| For more information about this article or gallery, please call the gallery phone number listed in the last line of the article, "For more info..." |
April Issue 2006
Clemson University in Clemson, SC, Features Works by Dan McDonald
Tonic-Clonic vs.
The Catharsissy
is an Master of Fine Arts Thesis exhibition highlighting the sculpture
of Dan McDonald on view in the Lee Gallery at Clemson University
in Clemson, SC, from Apr. 17 - 21, 2006.
McDonald offers the following statement about his work: "My
work addresses concepts of prophesy; be it false, real, or self-fulfilling.
I am interested in the dynamics of faith paradigms and the value
of historical identity within a Socio-Cultural context. Catharsis,
pertaining to the interrelation of my faith and myself, is the
desired end result."
"I want to make fun of and rectify my relationship with religion," adds McDonald. "It is a narrow row I hoe: One part affirming the faith, one part despising the culture. I want to make fun of cultural aspects of my own faith in either a self-deprecating way or by wielding the gavel of judgement on others. Irony is a tool that I use to survive and make myself stronger. My work is religious in nature and takes faith to appreciate. I use concepts and materials that are often unique to Mormonism like magical found objects, and their respective dynamic histories, particular historical events, and prominent characters from those histories to exorcise angst. I try to educate others about my American history and an American history often times overlooked, even by those whose roots are deeply embedded in it."
"To effectively communicate elements of these histories, I create works that caricaturize my culture. This has allowed me the opportunity to recognize my accepted stereotypes while seeing those stereotypes as integral portions of who I am. As I make my work, I am making judgments on the world around me, but know that in doing so, I am simply describing myself," says McDonald.
A free Lunch and Learn,
gallery walk with Dan McDonald will be presented on Fri., Apr.
21, 2006, in the Lee Gallery.
For more info check our SC Institutional Gallery listings, call
864/656-3883 or at (www.clemson.edu/caah/leegallery).
.
Carolina Arts is published monthly by Shoestring Publishing
Company, a subsidiary of PSMG, Inc.
Copyright© 2006 by PSMG, Inc., which published Charleston
Arts from July 1987 - Dec. 1994 and South Carolina Arts
from Jan. 1995 - Dec. 1996. It also publishes Carolina Arts
Online, Copyright© 2006 by PSMG, Inc. All rights reserved
by PSMG, Inc. or by the authors of articles. Reproduction or use
without written permission is strictly prohibited. Carolina
Arts is available throughout North & South Carolina.