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April Issue 2006
Clemson University in Clemson, SC, Offers BFA Exhibitions
Clemson University in Clemson, SC, will offer the exhibition, Bravura: A Bachelor of Fine Arts Senior Exhibition, in the Rudolph E. Lee Gallery, in Lee Hall, at the College of Architecture. The exhibition of works by seniors enrolled in the Department of Art Bachelor of Fine Arts program includes works by: Bethany Flagg, Micah C.R. Guy, Leah Hickman, Meagan Jacobi, Kevin Quinn, Nicole Terry, and Jennie Williams, on view from Apr. 24 - 28, 2006.
Bethany Flagg offered the following statement: "My goal as an artist is to learn from the world around me as well as to explore my imagination through abstraction. My drawings, which deal with the figure as a whole, in detail, and from the inside (as in bones); as well as my collage pieces that explore the use of shapes, colors, and patterns taken from my imagination are evidence of my goal."
"As an artist interested in the expressive nature of drawing, I am concerned with learning about surface and form and challenging scale in order to get the viewer involved in surface as well as to explore the possibility of transformation," says Flagg. "My objective is not necessarily to always capture the figure as a whole as much as it is to capture smaller parts of the body on a larger scale, such as hands, that contain subtlety in what they convey. My attraction to abstraction is also important to my goal as an artist. I am interested in an abstract language, as communicated in my collages, as well as the process of making decisions about form, content, and color. My collages are explorations of generating an image as I work rather then planning and executing an image as I do in my drawings. I find that working this way with abstraction compels the mind to solve compositional problems in the ways that are not available when planning a piece in a sketchbook."
Micah C.R. Guy offer the following statement: "My work tends to deal with multiple themes, as I do not care to box myself in with a single idea. At the present, I have some works that deal with the definitions of fear and the surreal, some others that deal with the ongoing technological revolution humankind has experienced in the last decade and whether it is truly a good or bad thing, and a current set that is unclear."
Leah Hickman offers the following statement: "During my time at Clemson University thus far I have realized what techniques I really enjoy and which ones I feel I successfully portray. I really feel like I have a sense of color and color has always been a big part of my works, especially since I have been in senior studio. I am also very attracted to mixed media and texture. I became interested in mosaic tiles last year around this time. I decided to try painting squares to imitate mosaic tiles. I enjoyed the end product and decided to make this process my focus for senior studio."
"I feel my options are endless when it comes to this technique," says Hickman. "I plan to experiment a lot this semester with size. Imitating mosaic tiles is very time consuming but I feel it would be very successful on a larger scale. I also plan to incorporate this technique on other surfaces that aren't flat so the viewer can move around the work and analyze it. As far as themes within the mosaic tiles, I feel myself continuously going to nature and things found in nature. I like to create abstract landscapes using the squares and plan to experiment more with this in my final senior semester."
Meagan Jacobi offered the following statement: "I am very fascinated with the classical subject of the female nude. Not only is the female nude in art relevant today, but the subject touches upon a variety of context that our society dwells on daily and indirectly affects women of every shape and color. Visual culture plays a great deal in human lives. The media constantly portrays women and men who change their bodies through diet, plastic surgery, and obsessive exercise. I feel that the human form, no matter what orientation, illustrates beauty in art. When creating human-like forms in ceramics, the curves of the body, the structure of the face, the joints and distortions, every aspect of it is exciting. The female body is especially intriguing because sexuality is a defining quality of a woman. A slight gesture or contortion can contain domesticity or even eroticism. Creating the male form is just as enticing because I have the freedom of expression to make the underlying distinctions between female and male characteristics. The intent of my work is to express the body as everything that is beautiful, whatever size, shape, or distortion that may be."
"Through my pieces of work, I intend to portray not only sexuality, distortion, and eroticism of a human being but also the relationship and interaction that a human being can have with others," says Jacobi. "The communication among these human-like vessels and forms should provoke curiosity, confrontation, and intensity. I enjoy the discovery in each body of work and hope that the viewer can discover his or her own internal relationship when viewing my work as well."
Kevin Quinn offered the following statement: "My current body of work is very politically and socially driven as well as minimalistic, some pieces less so than others. Most of my work is currently inspired by what is happening in my local community such as urban sprawl issues or by national/international events such as the war in Iraq, our country's influence abroad, or how our government (mainly our current president) is dealing with issues of great importance. Being that I am driven by what I see in my own community as well as what I read in the news or see on TV in regards to the entire nation, I am also inspired by artists who have a socio-political basis to their work. I have to keep updated on as many aspects and differing views of a subject as I can so that way I can make the most informed decisions in regards to my pieces. Keeping informed on local issues such as urban sprawl, education, and land use are just as important to me as staying informed about national and international issues such as oil prices, disasters, terrorism, and world politics and opinions in regards to the US and its policies. I try to leave some leeway for the viewer to make their own connections and decisions based on what I've given them. This is something I am truly striving for as I do not want to feed the viewers some simple, self-explanatory piece that they understand relatively quickly, thus losing their attention. Through some pieces, such as Camo Tower, I want the viewer to truly think. The piece itself is very open to interpretation and that is what I like about it. Viewers, who have no clue as to what the piece is about, must work to make connections and being that there are many various connotations that could be derived from this work, the viewers can thus bring about what is most relevant to them be it conservation, sprawl, gaming, or some other connection that I myself have not made."
"Most recently I have been inspired by the works of Mel Chin as well as H.C. Westermann," adds Quinn. "Chin directly takes on what is happening at that moment in time such as his piece Home Y o Sew 9, a Glock 9mm converted into a field surgical kit. Westermann has taken on his past experiences in the military and with some works related the to the present as well such as Death Ship Out of San Pedro, Adrift, which takes on the issue of oil prices or oil and the environment along with his traditional meanings in his death ship series. Another artist that I have been drawn towards recently is Louie Rochon, a papier mache sculptor. His work is very "in your face" and quite self explanatory in dealing with issues such as computer-human relations, road rage and the elderly, and the various personalities/masks each of us wear every day. Even though the subject matter of his work is very clear and easily read, the pieces still invite you in for closer examination which leads to a greater self-reflection. I truly admire him for being able to do that."
"Material choice for me is quite important as it is for every artist, but I do like a wide range of materials," offers Quinn. "Steel and oil (as in Big Business #2), fabric (such as the Camo Tower series), or the choice of using local red clay dirt instead of a red die all are very important decisions to me. In Big Business #2 the choice of steel and oil speaks to the US dependence on foreign oil and fossil fuels, as well as the sagging and failing US steel industry. The hardness of the steel and the reflective, almost sensuous nature of the oil brings a beauty to the materials that most people wouldn't normally see, and this is in conflict with the ideas and emotions being conveyed by the piece itself. In my most recent piece, the use of red clay dirt to stain the fabric instead of a red die is quite important in that it ties the piece into the local area/region. The south (particularly South Carolina and Georgia) is known for its red clay dirt and when viewers see this color and material incorporated into the final piece then they will be aware of the tie-in to our local communities. To me the use of this material also speaks to the overwhelming construction that is taking place in the south that threatens to consume us and destroy our local environments/ecosystems, southern communities, and even our traditional way of life."
Nicole Terry offered the following statement: "As a young artist, I find that when I first initiate a work, my ideas, my style, my beliefs, even my knowledge of art are only beginning to take shape. To me, those early stages of creating are what make my works uniquely mine. The possibilities for interpretation of even a simple everyday scene into my own personal expression are profound. The fresh freedom of an empty canvas is what makes me passionate about art."
"I am constantly aware of the beauty in nature," says Terry. "I am drawn to organic forms, so this is where my work usually originates. I try to pull out what I find visually appealing in these forms by using dramatic lines and vibrant colors. Gauguin and Rousseau have recently become very inspirational for me in my art. Gauguin, more specifically, coined his style of painting as Synthetism, which is derived from the French verb synthetiser. This term basically means to represent a three-fold artistic endeavor aimed at conveying to the viewer something about the real appearance of the subject. I have always tried to break my art down to the point where color and line can essentially take a life of their own. I am also drawn to the substance within Gauguins' paintings, which form rich abstract pattern. Where content is very important in any work, I am striving to create a kind of painting in which form (line, color, and shape) take precedence over subject matter."
"I love the challenge of transforming shapes taken from everyday life and conveying them through my own visual representation," adds Terry. "There is poetry in these forms, which to me, gives my work a foundation derived of well-built content."
"My goal within this last semester at Clemson is to make my art an articulation of my views on life and the world."
"Maurice Denis characterized the spirit of Synthetism by writing the famous line, 'It is well to remember that a picture before being a battle horse, a nude woman, or some anecdote, is essentially a flat surface covered with colors assembled in a certain order.'namely saying that the form of a work of art is more important than its content."
Jennie Williams offers the following statement: "I am a senior focusing in ceramics, with an emphasis on the thrown and hand-made tiles. I enjoy using many different aspects of art in my work, such as drawing, sculpture, and painting. I feel that using all of these areas helps to make my work more interesting. I use many different clay bodies in my work such as stoneware, earthenware, raku, and porcelain. As I become more educated with each different clay body, I explore their different limitations and functions. Clemson's ceramic program has really helped me to explore all to wonders of clay."
"Art nouveau along with nature has been the major influence in the subject of my work," says Williams. "I really enjoy the combination of simplicity of the form with the luscious colors and designs of art nouveau. It has influenced most of the shapes of my thrown work also I like to use the art nouveau style of drawing on my hand made tiles. It is the smooth lines and color that really attract me to this kind of drawing. Nature is another major influence in my sculptural work, along within some functional pieces. I like the combination of clay with a natural texture and color. When I use nature as my influence I usually fire in the soda or the wood kiln."
"My fascination with color is what lead me to my interest in art," adds Williams. "I enjoy very bright colors but as I began to experiment with different clay bodies I became attracted to different colors. I experiment with more metallic colors such as the ones that raku can give you. The colors you can get from such a natural process interests me. However, I still continue to use bright colors on my porcelain and earthenware pieces. My favorite works are my porcelain pieces strictly because of the color."
"I have much more to knowledge to gain about different techniques in ceramics, but currently I am very please with the work that I have been coming up with."
For further information check our SC Institutional Gallery listings, call the gallery at 864/656-3883 or at (www.clemson.edu/caah/leegallery).
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