2024
IB Art
Exhibition
Evelyn Brockenshire
Fashion! Drama! Glamour! Glamour!! Glamour!!!! I create for composition, for unsettlingly anatomical contusions that resonate and dance. According to Heisenberg's Principle of Uncertainty, it is impossible to derive a mathematical conclusion of an electron’s position and speed. When I create, the energy that sparks like zinc, bubbles up and through me, and finds itself as piece is similar! If one derives something from my art, then it is impossible to analyze the rest. All purpose is lost. If one analyzes the piece, then there is little clue as to what they are deriving. Even I don’t know what my art means, I’m too focused on it’s dance! After all, the highest form of respect to a performance is to absorb its moment in entirety. I am an artist who separates visuality from philosophy during my creation process, yet miraculously the two are birthed as twin flames in the final piece. My biggest goal while creating is to fabricate an atmosphere for the audience to experience a tangible void; is something missing? Or is it all purposeful? No, I know for a fact that something is wrong! Yet, it is so strangely beautiful! That is what I love! Confuse me, dear artist! And create a new sense of excitement! These pieces are parts of me, as such they are designed to carry this unique, artistic essence. This is my first ever art class, so this formatted experience was very new! I struggled indefinitely, lots of crying and bitterness. The challenge was necessary and pushed me to greater bounds. The first piece I really struggled with was the first major piece I created for this class: Fleuriste. She was the first big stance into me redefining what is considered “a piece of art.” I battled internally whether or not my art would be taken seriously, by my classmates, my teacher, by whatever IB considers as art. She is the beginning of my learning process, therefore she is the loudest of the group. The two sisters, “Bloom” and “Oh, Dorian. . .!” are images of conjured femininity. These pieces were pinnacle in relearning who I am as an artist, a person, a woman. The depiction of me grew from the branches of Fleuriste, so these three pieces are positioned diagonally, like a branch! The next two are the brothers, “un Aimed” and “Kami(?)nari, Kafka.” These pieces depict dualities of the universe’s nature. They were the last pieces created, and they represent the transition of discovery from internal to external. They are a satisfying finale, created with intense love and freedom.
Title: Fleuriste
Medium: Gouache, Acrylic
Size: 76.2 cm x 60.96 cm
Date: October 22nd, 2023
This piece was created as part of a comparative analysis between Henri Matisse, Hugh Steers, and Kubo Shunman. Matisse’s The Window was a large inspiration: the subject of a table and flowers along with his gentle abstraction. French language is a delicacy of art, and I thoroughly enjoy using it as such. I’m a fifth year French student, and I come from a french-canadian home, so the language is preciously engraved in me. It is a huge piece of my artistic inspiration. Fleuriste is the largest piece in this body, it was the beginning of and encompasses this new journey of my art.
Evelyn Brockenshire
Title: Bloom
Medium: Watercolour, paper, ink, acrylic, water-based marker
Size: 22.86 cm x 30.48 cm
Date: January 14th, 2024
Here I am! In bloom. Every new years eve year I do a self portrait, so this is an entryway into me. Here I am, butterflies and flowers, perfectly placed next to the beginning. Butterflies and flowers are incredibly important to me, as such they are a part of me. They accompany me, guide me, are partners and mentors in a way. This piece is full of emotion, and is very pleasing to the eye. I hoped to capture the words “gentle” and “essence” in this piece, as such they create the word “bloom.”
Evelyn Brockenshire
Title: Kami(?)nari, Kafka
Medium: Water-based marker, fountain ink, thread, alcohol marker, watercolour, graphite, acrylic, white out, mixed paper
Size: 22.86 cm x 30.48 cm
Date: March 7th, 2024
This piece is inspired by author Haruki Murakami’s Kafka on the Shore. Written language fuels me, and I greatly admire & appreciate the arts of script, especially intricate, complexly beautiful scripts like kanji. This piece was a re-entryway into my prior studies of Japanese, which I used to reference parts of the story. The blue inked kanji is a verse from the book’s song “Kafka on the Shore.” I personally translated it as I could not find a japanese translation, so please pardon the poor grammar and kanji.
Evelyn Brockenshire
Title: un Aimed
Medium: Watercolour, acrylic, water-based marker,
alcohol marker, oil pastel, ink, graphite, yarn, masking tape, white out
Size: 22.86 cm x 30.48 cm
Date: February 26th, 2024
This piece is important, there’s a lot of joy within it. I’d say it’s not inaccurate to view this piece with a lens of “this is my joy,” although I’m unsure if that’s feasible from an audience perspective. This piece is a bit strange in that way! A core theme present is the entropic nature of nature, her processes of death and rebirth, and the beauty of it all! The irony and gentleness of the world! The words “terror” and “essence” are apparent. The joy in this piece titles it worthy to be placed next to myself, in full bloom.
Evelyn Brockenshire
Title: Oh, Dorian. . . !
Medium: Water-based marker, acrylic
Size: 7.62 cm x 10.16 cm
Date: December 13th, 2023
This piece was greatly inspired by Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray. I adored how lovely is it that such delicacy and detail could be captured in the label of a person! I deeply connect with the artist character, Basil, and his fixation on people as a result of artistic inspiration. As such a vision of my own Dorian was created. The distinct vision of a woman’s face appeared in my head, and she was the epitome of beauty. She is very special: so gentle and delicate. She is her own world, so she has a special dedicated spot.
Evelyn Brockenshire
Nila Muthusamy
My pieces are connected by an unmistakable thread. My first piece, வீரர் (warrior), explored womens’ bravery. I followed this piece with Burdens, which demonstrated female strength. Next, I carried the henna designs of வீரர் to Eternal, conveying the infinite qualities of femininity. Held followed this piece, focusing on the infinite love between a mother and her child. While motherhood is an aspect of femininity, I did not want to suggest that it defined women, so my next piece, Ain’t I a Woman? broke stereotypes and communicated how women can be anyone. For my first year’s final piece, I connected back to the theme of love from Held, exploring how deep love’s impacts could be through அன்பு. In my second year, I began exploring women through nature. In Resilience, I used a flower to celebrate women who succeed despite impossible circumstances. In La Luna y El Sol and In Her Eyes, I continued to examine women through nature using paper quilling; the former shows how women and men complement each other, while the latter criticizes the male gaze. I continued to analyze the male gaze through Hide and Seek, criticizing its attempts to objectify. For my final, culminating piece, I took the layered paper quilling I learned to make in La Luna y El Sol and the theme of love from அன்பு, creating a call to action: with Bad Weather, I encouraged men and women to join forces, using love to combat patriarchy. My final piece brings together ideas I explored over both years, and I featured it as the center of my exhibition in order to emphasize its message.
Several motifs, ideas, and techniques recur throughout my exhibition, and some of these helped me arrange their layout. Hands are present in அன்பு, வீரர், and Hide and Seek, which are arranged in a triangle formed by the top left and right corners and the bottom middle spot. My henna designs and mandalas are featured in all three of these pieces, and also in Eternal. The henna in these pieces connects to Held, which features henna and paper quilling. Held is located in a corner, with quilling pieces above and henna pieces to the right, connecting both mediums. In La Luna y El Sol, I realized I could build my quilling on top of each other, creating pieces that were more 3 dimensional. boo
As a woman in the 21st century, I am endlessly grateful to the women before me who have fought tirelessly to provide me with rights and opportunities that were originally unimaginable for women. However, much work still needs to be done. As a passionate feminist, women’s issues are close to my heart. Therefore, I chose to celebrate women and criticize and combat these issues through my exhibition. My pieces explore concepts including the timelessness of femininity; the unrealistic expectations of stereotypes; representations of female strength and resilience; the detrimental impacts of patriarchy and the male gaze; and the importance and intricacies of love.
This allowed me to make In Her Eyes and Bad Weather, which were layered quilling pieces as well. A saree, a traditional Indian garment, can be seen in both Burdens and Held. Duality is conveyed in multiple pieces, including La Luna y El Sol, which contrasts the moon and the sun; வீரர், which depicts femininity and strength; Eternal, which contains opposing mandalas; and Held, which compares a bright, youthful child, with a matured, experienced mother. Finally, themes of nature connect La Luna y El Sol, In Her Eyes, Bad Weather, and Resilience.
I hope my intended messages are articulated to the viewer, or that the viewer is able to find their own deeper, more personal messages in my pieces. Art is meant to communicate and decorate, and I hope my pieces accomplish both. Overall, I hope to honor and celebrate women for who they are, what they have endured, and what they have accomplished through my exhibition. While my exhibition is focused on women, it also emphasizes how issues women face, like patriarchy, are harmful to men as well. Therefore, I hope my exhibition inspires men and women to work together and use compassion and love to solve these problems, improving the world for future generations.
Nila Muthusamy
Title: வீரர்
(Veerar; translation = Warrior)
Medium: Henna + Watercolor
Size: 8.5 in × 10 in
Date: December 2022
For my first piece, I wanted to explore female strength. Women, especially in henna designs, are portrayed as delicate and weak. I sought to communicate female power and strength by creating a typical intricate and feminine henna design, but including a figure of a warrior woman with a spear instead of a more shy, meek bride. In this way, I emphasize that women can be equally powerful and feminine at the same time.
Nila Muthusamy
Title: Burdens
Medium: Paper + Glue + Wood
Size: 5 in × 1 in × 0.5 in
Date: January 2023
Burdens contains a figure wearing a saree and holding a pot on her head. Women are sometimes considered to be weaker or more fragile, but this piece contains one of the many examples where women casually demonstrate their strength while performing an everyday task. While this piece uses an example from a physical burden, burdens can also come in a variety of other forms. This piece appreciates women for the many burdens they carry, whether physically, mentally, or emotionally.
Nila Muthusamy
Title: Eternal
Medium: Pencil
Size: 8 in × 11 in
Date: January 2023
Eternal is a representation of the timelessness and infinite qualities of femininity. The braid is in the shape of an infinity symbol, and both loops are filled with intricate, feminine mandalas, conveying my message. Additionally, the mandalas within the loops of the infinity symbol represent a duality. The loops are filled with opposing soft and light vs. spiky and detailed mandalas that show the diversity of womanhood.
Nila Muthusamy
Title: Held
Medium: Paper + Glue + Henna
Size: 11.5 in × 12.5 in
Date: February 2023
In most situations, parents make up a young child’s entire world. Held highlights the immense adoration a child has for her mother, and the tremendous love the mother has for her child. In this piece, the bright colors and playful designs of the child demonstrate youthfulness, while the maturity and experience of the mother is indicated by the vintage feel of the henna and designs. This piece intends to take the viewer back to their childhood, remembering the warm and safe feeling of being held.
Nila Muthusamy
Title: Ain’t I a Woman?
Medium: Paper + Glue
Size: 6.5 in × 9 in
Date: February 2023
For Ain’t I a Woman?, I drew inspiration from Sojourner Truth’s iconic 1851 poem. Truth’s poem criticized how Black women, who were just as womanly as White women, did not receive the same respect. Similarly, through this piece, I emphasize that women can be anyone. They don’t need to conform to a certain shape, size, color, style, ability, or stereotype in order to be considered womanly and/or beautiful; and in the end, it is our differences and unique qualities that make us who we are.
Nila Muthusamy
Title: அன்பு
(Anbu; translation = love, care, affection)
Medium: Henna + Digital Photography, retouched using Krita
Size: 8 in × 10 in
Date: March 2023
In my first year’s final piece, I chose to explore the all encompassing aspect of love. I express love in my piece through the centered heart, which spreads its love out to each of the fingers. The little heart’s ability to expand fully over the hands demonstrates how strong the impact of even a small act of love can be. Love comes in many forms: kindness, compassion, empathy, etc. Through these forms, we each have the power to brighten one another’s lives, and consequently change the world.
Nila Muthusamy
Title: Resilience
Medium: Paper + Glue
Size: 8 in × 11 in
Date: July 2023
In this piece, a beautiful flower grows out of rocky and unwelcoming terrain. Some of the rocks are sharp and spiky, and all the rocks are in dull and dreary shades of gray and brown. In contrast, the flower is bright and colorful, able to grow in spite of the difficult terrain and unimpacted by the negativity it is surrounded by. The flower in my piece symbolizes and celebrates the incredible women who break barriers and push through limitations in order to achieve impressive successes.
Nila Muthusamy
Title: La Luna y El Sol
Medium: Paper + Glue
Size: 4 in × 4 in
Date: December 2023
Here, I continued exploring femininity abstractly through nature. Frequently, the moon is considered to be feminine, even given a feminine article in Spanish, while the sun is thought to be masculine, with a masculine article. The beautiful moon is only able to be seen due to the light it reflects from the sun, and the sun is only appreciated due to the night it repels and the moon it illuminates. This piece highlights how women and men complement each other and make one another more valuable.
Nila Muthusamy
Title: In Her Eyes
Medium: Paper + Glue
Size: 2.75 in × 4 in
Date: January 2024
Male peacocks, along with many other male species, are far more colorful than their female counterparts. In nature, the male species is frequently expected to appeal to the gaze of its female counterpart. However, humans are expected to behave in an opposite manner: women are encouraged to appeal to and attract the male gaze. Through this piece, I emphasize how both of these options are unfair, and I hope that men and women can someday be expected to put in equal effort to attract one another.
Nila Muthusamy
Title: Hide and Seek
Medium: Henna + Digital Photography, edited using Krita
Size: 8 in × 8 in
Date: February 2024
In this piece, I continued exploring the concept of the male gaze. In society, the male gaze frequently objectifies and reduces women, only viewing them through the ways they can be used to benefit men. In reality, women are complex and are not seen in the ways they intend. In Hide and Seek, a woman hides her face with her henna-covered hands, seeking to be viewed and judged by what she communicates on her own terms, rather than her physical beauty.
Nila Muthusamy
Title: Bad Weather
Medium: Paper + Glue + Watercolor
Size: 5 in × 7.75 in
Date: February 2024
For my final, culminating piece over the two years, I sought to create a call to action. In this piece, a male and a female figure are holding an umbrella, shielding themselves from red rain. The red rain symbolizes the patriarchy that harms both men and women, and the umbrella is made out of hearts, symbolizing love. This piece conveys how men and women must work together and use love and compassion in order to combat the patriarchy, bettering the world for all of its inhabitants.
Emma Trujillo�Ever since I was little I’ve always been fascinated by space, my biggest dream was to go into cosmology and become an astronomer at NASA. This started to reflect in my artworks as in the last recent year I’ve been using most of my freetime going to college libraries and spending hours sitting and reading on any space information I can find. Using my knowledge of space and science I began to replicate universe events in my artwork.
These 10 pieces are close to my heart as they are ideas from my own brain without any influence from others. The intent of this body of work is to show the cycle of life centered around a connecting piece. The 9 works surrounding the middle piece represent a wide variety of the stages of life; emotions, events, and the future.
The 10 works were easy to choose as they distinguish from lots of my other work, and they each represent what I love and how I felt at the time. They allowed me to materialize my feelings into art, as well as teach others about space while allowing the flexibility for each individual to interpret the piece differently. I believe that since space events are almost entirely made up of shapes and colors, each person has their own definition of what those shapes and colors mean, so each piece may not relate to them the same way mine does.
Piece 1: Lakeview Moon
Pencil Drawing, Graphite on paper
22.9 cm x 30.5 cm
September 2022 - January 2023
This piece was made with the influence of my backyard and the full moon at the time. We live on a lake so I used the reflection of the moon on the water as a model for the drawing. I wanted to create a small piece that represented calmness and peace. And I think that throughout all my other work, it's a good medium that balances out the harsh colors of the other pieces on display.
Piece 2: Two Sides of a Nebula
Oil paint on paper
16.5 cm x 16.2 cm
January 2023
I personally love nebulas, they are one of my favorite space events. Nebulas are clouds of gas with chemicals that take up to millions of years to mix, similar to oil and water, a barrier is formed between them and these often make for exciting images when looking into space. My inspiration for this piece was to create a yin and yang type of work, and the pillars of creation inspired the colors for this piece.
Piece 3: Barrier
Oil Paint on canvas
25.4 cm x 20.3 cm
February 2023
This piece depicts a burning sun in the midst of black space, the blue lines represent a sort of lens that the viewer is looking through to observe the sun, hence the gleam of some kind of barrier. Since looking at the sun at that proximity may harm the eyes, the lens is there to protect the eyes of the viewer. The sun may represent many things to a viewer; light, hope, guidance, etc. This piece depicts the sun in a dark and mysterious feeling due to the color palette, and this conflicting feeling is the goal of this piece. To me personally, depending on the emotions I have, everytime I look at this piece, it represents something different to me, which is a very exciting idea.
Piece 4: Void
Oil Paint on paper
22.9 cm x 30.5 cm
February 2023
Out of all my works, this one is my favorite. Black holes are the most interesting phenomena in space, to think that there is a type of matter that sucks in everything it can and has a gravitational force so strong it absorbs light is crazy to think about. This piece was made with the intention of representing this black hole and the array of colors was to represent strong feelings being sucked in. As to what it’s being sucked into is up to the viewer, but in my head when I bury emotions I visualize a black hole.
Piece 5: Collision of Lovers
Oil Paint on canvas
25.4 cm x 20.3 cm
February 2023
I started this piece on valentines day of 2023, I wanted to create a piece that portrays the passion of two lovers and the effect it has on them and the space around them. So there was no better way then to paint the collision of two stars forming into one. The vibrancy of the colors create a sort of intense feel for the piece, all while being different from each other. Overall I believe this was my best way to materialize love and passion on one small canvas.
Piece 6: What Cannot Be Seen
Oil Paint on canvas
25.4 cm x 20.3 cm
March 2023
I made this piece as my final piece just recently, with all the space-inspired paintings I wanted to use some creativity and create my own planet. The only inspiration for this piece was “The Great Red Spot” on Jupiter, which is a storm that's been raging on Jupiter for thousands of years, and is big and deep enough to swallow our planet. The swirls of my planet represent my emotions during the making of this piece, showing the beauty in chaos. And the trail that the planet makes represents the very small particles of gas exhibited from this planet, a trail that cannot be seen with the naked eye unless you look deeper, hence “What Can’t be Seen”.
Piece 7: Cycle of Life
Watercolor on paper
30cm x 22.7cm
December 2023
This piece is very special to me as it is very different from what I usually create. The flexibility of the watercolor allowed a lot of space for a creative mindset. For this piece I wanted no restrictions of color palette, while simultaneously pulling inspiration from 19th century romanticism artists such as Monet and Klimt. With this piece I wanted to represent birth and death in a simplistic way, with the spaces in between representing the core emotions I’ve felt throughout my life; sadness, anxiety, dissociation (cloudiness), carefree, peace, and happiness.
Piece 8: Head In the Sky
Acrylic on canvas
25.4 cm x 20.3 cm
December 2023
For this piece I had wanted to create a dreamer type of perspective. The woman shown is stuck in her head, thinking beyond the confines of our planet and beyond into the stars. The bottom of the painting is a gradient of solid colors. This piece is very special to me as it represents my state of mind; the past being in the past and looking forward and beyond.
Piece 9: Caged Rage
Acrylic on Canvas
25.4 cm x 20.3 cm
January 2024
This piece conveyed my emotion during a really difficult time in my life. I have never been an angry person, but throughout this period rage was all I could find myself feeling. I put a representation of this onto a canvas to visualize my emotions, and this was the outcome. The deep black in the center of the piece with a light striking down the middle of it represents the pain of anger, and the swirl of red, oranges, yellows, and browns are there to represent the whirlwind of emotions such as anger and disappointment.
Piece 10: My World
Acrylic on canvas
10cm x 10cm
January 2024
Probably one of my favorites, this piece is very small but has a lot to say. Shown is a figure holding the Earth in a sky full of stars, easily outshining the rest of the universe. A protective hold around the Earth shows my love for our world. I wanted this piece to symbolize the deep connection humans have to Earth, and how the world can be held by each of us, and defined by each of our own unique definitions.
Emma Risch
Throughout my exhibition, my pieces show how movement is a form of expression. More specifically, I explore how strength can be expressed by movement. Through dynamic poses and beautiful backgrounds, my pieces tell stories and convey strength through the confidence posture in my subjects. My interest in this thread came from my investigation into Edgar Degas’ work. I loved his focus on dancers and how he showed their elegance and grace through dynamics. However, as I digged deeper, many sources claimed he used his subjects’ elegance to show fragility and daintiness. Being opposed to this message, I decided to do the opposite and show how elegance and movement can be expressions of strength. Throughout my pieces I focus on many different topics, such as strength through independence or strength through humility to name a few, but they are all pieces centered on dynamic poses that express strength in some way.
The circular spiral layout is very intentional to give the whole body of work a sense of movement. This is very important to me since my thread for the body of work focuses on how movement shows expression and can tell stories. Having the circular part in my exhibit adds another layer to the meaning of my body of work. The pieces in my body of work were chosen very carefully, and I had to make eliminations in the end to adhere to IB Art’s guidelines. I had eight pieces picked out for the layout, but since I am an SL IB Art student, I am only allowed 4 to 7 pieces. I knew I would have to get rid of one of the ones with the least movement and story/meaning behind it. After consultation with peers, I decided to use the technical study piece and eliminate my comparative study piece because it matched the thread and fit into the body of work better; the comparative study piece had little meaning behind it. Even though the new layout was very close to my original design, I still preferred the initial one. I was at a loss on how to fix this when I realized that I was not accounting for my exhibition texts and curatorial rationale. I decided to use my curatorial rationale to account for the lost piece, contribute to the movement, and complete the circular layout.
Emma Risch
Title: Swirling Twirls
Medium: Digital Art
Size in cm: 30.48 x 22.86 cm
Date: Dec. 5 2023
After studying Degas’s ballerina works I was influenced by the graceful movement and the feeling he was able to incorporate into his pieces. While Degas seemed to portray his dancers and subjects as simply graceful, perhaps even fragile and delicate, I wanted to portray my subject as strong, confident, and true through her dance and motion. The expression of the subject’s strength comes from the movement incorporated into the piece, connecting it to the rest of my exhibition pieces.
Emma Risch
Title: Rise and Fall
Medium: Digital Art
Size in cm: 45.72 x 34.29 cm
Date: Dec. 13 2023
My focus on this piece came from constellations, incorporating the night sky and strength through inquisitiveness. As the night sky represents unknown wonders, my subject reaches out to it, driven by the curiosity that plagues her mind. The dramatic dress and pose in the sketch shows her passion and symbolizes that she is always leaping for more knowledge, never satisfied. The expression she shows through her movement in the jump is what connects this piece and why I decided to include it.
Emma Risch
Title: Down to Earth
Medium: Digital Art
Size in cm: 60.96 x 45.72 cm
Date: Jan. 16 2024
The color scheme is meant to show contrast between the dark dress and bright background to further show the theme; strength through humility and an open mind. She accepts her descent and looks upon the world as bright, focusing on giving it value over herself. Through this description, the subject is characterized as ‘down to earth’. The movement of her fall contains the connection to the rest of the body of work and expresses the story and deeper meaning of the piece.
Emma Risch
Title: Against the Flow
Medium: Digital Art
Size in cm: 45.72 x 34.29 cm
Date: Feb. 1 2024
Utilizing a palette of turquoise colors, I focused on a waterfall piece because of its majestic and elegant nature, much like the subjects I tend to focus on. In this piece, the subject is a lot like the water, going with the flow and staying within the river. However, the subject breaks out of the flow, finds her independence, and knows that to be singular and one is a strength. The story the subject’s movement expresses is why I decided to include this piece in my body of work.
Emma Risch
Title: Prevailing Spirit
Medium: Digital Art
Size in cm: 22.86 x 30.48 cm
Date: Feb. 8 2024
This piece conveys the meaning of prevailing. The rocks in the background and that the subject balances on are hard, steady, and difficult to break. They are not eternal but do last a very long time. The subject conveys the same sort of dedication and everlasting spirit; strong, steady, and difficult to break. Her balance on the rocks also signifies the balance and stability in her mind. I chose to include this piece due to the dynamic movement featured and the expression of a deeper meaning.
Emma Risch
Title: Ballad of Dreams
Medium: Digital Art
Size in cm: 60.96 x 45.72 cm
Date: Feb. 25 2024
To create a strong eye catching piece, I decided to use a dramatic dynamic of light and shadow. I wanted the subject to read like an angel, descending from the heavens into the land below, dressed all in white. While I focused on the elegance and grace in dancers previously, I tried to add an ethereal power to my last piece to radiate her silent power. I decided to include this piece because of the dynamic aspects, both through movement and light, that enhance the storytelling aspect of my art.
Emma Risch
Title: Facing Red
Medium: Digital Art
Size in cm: 30.48 x 22.86 cm
Date: July 23 2023
I ultimately went with the theme “confidence” in mind as I created this piece, utilizing symbolism and body movement to convey this theme. For example where the woman throws her dress up boldly and unapologetically its as if to say “this is me, deal with it”, showing self confidence personified. I chose to include this piece because of the movement in the dress and subject that displays the message and expresses the underlying feelings that went into this work.
Lucy Spradlin
When I was a kid, my life was far from perfect because of this I learned things differently and had different morals. Even though I had a hard time in life, I continued and finally exerted the tunnel. Despite this, I am still affected by my childhood. It has always been hard for me to communicate my thoughts and art is an outlet and source of communication. My exhibition is about how the world is for me, it's about things that we all struggle with and feelings that are hard to communicate with others. Through this exhibition, I will show emotions that I can't express with words.
Title: “what if…”
by Lucy Spradlin.
Canvas size: 8x10
medium: Acrylic on canvas
This piece is about my anxiety. Most nights, I stay up late, either thinking about past mistakes or about the future. This painting shows this person just waking up, her head on a pillow, her hair over her head, and in a semi-comfortable position. Despite this, her face has an expression of worry and extortion, creating a contrast between her body and face. The soft fading gives a sense of comfort, and the cool tones show that it is late at night. The tones contrast with her skin color with the intense yellows and oranges that make you feel alert. You can tell that what she is thinking is causing her to lose sleep.
Lucy Spradlin
Title: “Rich vs Poor”
by Lucy Spradlin.
Canvas size: 12x9
medium: Acrylic on canvas
This piece is about anxiety for the future—the fear that I won't have enough money to survive on my own or to buy the things I want. But at the end of the day, we all end up with a pile of bones in the ground. The skeletons are nearly identical; you can't tell which skeleton was rich and which one was poor. I chose this piece for my exhibition because I have a common theme of pieces that reflect my thoughts on life. I feel that everyone needs to stop taking life so seriously and start living for fun.
Lucy Spradlin
Lucy Spradlin
Title: “Sit n’ the Shit”
by Lucy Spradlin.
Canvas size: 8x10
medium: Acrylic on canvas
This piece is about being self-destructive. Once you make a decision, you can't take it back, and you just have to live in it. Kind of like, “You made your bed, you lie in it." The background fades to black to put emphasis on the person. I did this to show how nothing but themselves. The mood of this piece is sort of quiet after the hurricane, just sitting in the silence and thinking about what you’ve done. I chose this piece because it fits into the theme of my experiences in life.
Lucy Spradlin
Title: “Losing Myself”
by Lucy Spradlin.
Canvas size: 8x10
medium: Acrylic on canvas
This piece is about the journey to recovery. In my experience, the medication I am on stops me from making impulsive decisions. This is a good thing, but the cost of that is a feeling in my heart where all I feel is pain and exotion, which makes me come to the conclusion that there is no meaning to life. While I know that that statement is untrue, I keep wondering: do the benefits of the medication outweigh the cost? In this work, there is a character slouched over a sink. The character is crying, looking at the viewer (you). The water is running, and two medication bottles are on the counter. In the mirror, instead of a reflection, there is an assortment of colors. The mood of this piece is distress and sadness, not knowing what the character has been through but knowing that they are struggling. I chose this piece because it fits into the theme of my experiences in life.
Lucy Spradlin
Title: “Mad Cat”
by Lucy Spradlin.
Paper size: 7x10
medium: Mixed media on paper
This piece was intended to be just something that I did for fun. I used my cat as inspiration, and I just made her angry. This piece shows a really angry cat; its hair is up and its ears are back. There are orange and yellow flames surrounding the cat, emphasizing its anger. I chose this piece because it complements the rest of it, with all the works showing the same amount of emotion.
Lucy Spradlin
Title: “Hot-Head”
by Lucy Spradlin.
paper size: 6x8
medium: Mixed media on paper
This piece is about taking action. This work was inspired by punk in the 1990s. I don't want to go into a history lesson, but the 1990s was a time when people started taking action through violence to get what they wanted. The piece shows a boy; his face is covered by a backwards baseball cap, but we can see the shadows of his eyes staring directly at something in the distance. He is in a baseball pitching pose, but instead of a ball, he is about to throw a molotov cocktail (basically a bomb). The background is black except for sharp shapes of yellow and red. The mood of this piece is calm content; the boy is certain of what he is about to do, looking directly at his target. I chose this piece because it complements the rest of this piece; all the works show the same amount of emotion.
Wyatt Biondo-Savin
I selected the following pieces because they reflect the mindset that I adapted during the process of creation. I arranged them in this format because this layout is the most aesthetically pleasing, and my pieces are able to connect with one another in this layout. Some challenges I encountered during the creation of these pieces are my mom’s diagnosis of pancreatic cancer, intense anxiety, as well as other personal issues. I also encountered issues such as burnout, as well as the inability to come up with new ideas. These pieces represent my mindset, challenges, as well as personal feelings during the journey of my senior year. My viewers can connect with such pieces because many people have gone through similar struggles as I have, allowing them to connect with my pieces on a personal level. My original intention was to create meaningful, unique art which contains personal value. This body of work also serves to show my evolution through creation, as this was my first time using digital art software. The arrangement of my pieces allows the audience to see my pieces as a storyline. The first piece was made before my mom’s diagnosis, as well as my change to digital art, allowing the viewer to see how my mindset shifted. Before her diagnosis, I would often focus on conflicts that were very insignificant looking back. Once we learned about my mom’s condition, it’s almost like my eyes were opened in a new way. I was originally extremely hopeless about the terrible news, but I know that living a life of sorrow is not what my mom would want for me. I have learned to be grateful for every second, as life is a precious gift.
Wyatt Biondo-Savin
Title: “Renditions of the Storms”
Medium: Digital
Size: 2388 x 1668 Pixels
Date: October 2023
I planned to create a work influenced by three pieces I used during my comparative study, the most significant being Sunflowers by Van Gogh. I wanted to convey a sense of bravery and power as the red flowers prepare to survive the sinister thunderstorm approaching. I chose this piece because it reflects a feeling of bravery, evil, danger, and life. The red flowers are unique in the way that they are the only bright plants in the shot, with everything else being tall, brown grass.
Wyatt Biondo-Savin
Title: “Cable Management”
Medium: Digital
Size: 2500 x 2500 Pixels
Date: December 2023
I wanted to show the feelings of stress that I was experiencing during the creation of this piece. My thoughts are cluttered and messy, like a bundle of cables that needs to be organized. The static and shadows in the eyes show my overall confusion of life. The glitched mouth and missing ears show the lack of communication I feel with my issues, like I can’t hear anything but my own thoughts. I chose this piece because it represents anxiety, as well as the dark theme of my exhibition.
Wyatt Biondo-Savin
Title: “Veyelet”
Medium: Digital
Size: 3840 x 2160 Pixels
Date: December 2023
My original intentions for this piece were to create a dark piece relating to the flow of my exhibition as a whole. I also wanted to symbolize my support for my mom’s battle with pancreatic cancer, hence the purple iris. Purple symbolizes pancreatic cancer awareness. Sight is one of, if not the most important sense, and I made the iris purple to display the importance of supporting my mom. I chose this piece because not only does it reflect my exhibition concept, but also my support for my mom.
Wyatt Biondo-Savin
Title: “We’re Boned”
Medium: Digital
Size: 2388 x 1668 Pixels
Date: January 2024
My original intentions for this piece were to communicate the importance of music to my daily life, as well as my identity. The keyboard is made up of bones, the structure of our bodies. Ever since I was little, I’ve been highly invested in music. I have perfect pitch, which 1 out of every 10,000 people have. Perfect pitch is the ability to immediately identify a note, respective to its frequency. This largely shaped who I am, as it has given me the ability to find music in everything.
Wyatt Biondo-Savin
Title: “Stature of the Restless”
Medium: Digital
Size: 2500 x 2500 Pixels
Date: January 2024
I originally made this piece because I wanted to symbolize the restless souls of the dead whose lives were wrongfully stolen. The flame emerging from the hole in the forehead and eyes symbolizes the flame of the soul that is still ablaze, hoping to one day find human form again. The head rests on top of a rusted spear, the same one used to take its life. I chose this piece because it clearly represents the sinister feeling that I am trying to convey throughout my exhibition.
Wyatt Biondo-Savin
Title: “I Just Need Some Space”
Medium: Colored Pencil & Ink
Size: 20.3 x 20.3 cm
Date: January 2023
When I made this piece, I wanted to portray the intrusive thoughts that were invading my mind at the time I made this piece. It was influenced by the movie Interstellar, which changed my mindset by allowing me to see the bigger picture of life as a whole. It is still one of my favorite films to this day. I was also influenced by its theme of space. I chose this piece because it portrays my interest in space, as well as the thoughts I had during the process of creation.
Wyatt Biondo-Savin
Title: “Brimrose”
Medium: Digital
Size: 1668 x 2388 Pixels
Date: February 2024
I made this piece because I wanted to represent the ability to find beauty in anything, even struggle. Roses are viewed as the flowers of life and love, and their black, sinister appearance symbolizes death and evil. Although they represent darkness, we still find beauty among the dark roses. Death is a similar concept. Although scary, it is inevitable, and without death, life would mean nothing. This piece is a key part of my exhibition, displaying the concept of finding beauty in anything.
Wyatt Biondo-Savin
Title: “Another Chance”
Medium: Digital
Size: 2089 x 1170 Pixels
Date: February 2024
When I made this piece, I wanted to visualize the importance of love, hope, and perseverance. Two lovers are linking their fingers to form a heart, symbolizing their unity and strength together. The sunset symbolizes the end of the day, which will eventually lead to night, eventually becoming daytime. This cycle relates to the process of strength. No matter how many times we fail, keep going. A sunset is a symbol that you can make it, as long as you have hope and stay strong.
Wyatt Biondo-Savin
Title: Precipication
Medium: Colored Pencil & Ink
Size: 21.6 x 28 cm
Date: December 2022
My original intentions for this piece were to portray my dependence on my medications. Without them, a storm brews around me. This piece, although from last year, was made before I switched over to digital art. It serves as a representation of my style, as this was one of my first pieces I made in IB Art. This piece also shows the importance of my beanie. Without it, I feel like a motorcyclist wearing shorts without a helmet. For these reasons, I chose to include this piece in my exhibition.
McKenna Kosciolek
Do what you want. My art has significantly changed over the course of this semester, but I still stick by that first sentence. My brain is always in imagination mode. And I’m not someone who’s always big on planning things out, I kind of rush in. Which may not be the best, but that’s how I do things. These artworks that I have selected for my exhibition are my characters and stories. And all my characters are based off of me, or parts of me. They show different events of my life and aspects of myself that I have stirred up to be part of their story and character. My pieces hold unique stories that I can relate with and I hope others can as well. Since all of my artworks are different from each other, it was a little difficult to figure out where to put them. And I have to thank my friends and classmates for helping me with that, but they all do connect in a way. I put either the same or similar characters together, I also connected them by what their story entails. Three of my pieces are futuristic versions of our own world but with a twist, so I decided to put those three together. And from there they connect to the other pieces. I’ve always said my art is for me, and it is, but it’s for others as well, others who can connect with my art and me. And that will be unique depending on the person and the character and/or the story. Most of my stories talk about struggle, different struggles, but struggles nonetheless. People go through so many struggles and so many different things in life. I want people to be able to personally connect with my artwork in any way that they can.
McKenna Kosciolek
Title: Flame in the Dark
Medium: Digital Artwork
Size: 30.5 x 20.3 cm
Date: February 11, 2024
This piece showcases my main muse; Cosmic. A character from a story I have spent a lot of time and effort on. The sources that influenced this piece were my own imagination and the help of others. I chose this piece because even though it is redone, this piece resembles my first artwork done without lineart. This shows my growth as an artist, and as a person. Cosmic’s character has changed much over the years, his starting point is so different to where he is now. Just like me.
McKenna Kosciolek
Title: Reflection
Medium: Digital Artwork
Size: 20.3 x 27.9 cm
Date: December 13, 2023
This piece focuses on Cosmic once again. At this point in the story Cosmic has been knocked down and hurt. His home was attacked and his family is gone. Here Cosmic stands in front of a mirror looking at himself, reflecting on the changes in his life. The physical and the emotional. Cosmic’s powers were taken from him, and somehow he magically survived. But Cosmic isn’t the only one who is seeing this new person but so is another character; Alastor. One of the people that hurt and attacked Cosmic.
McKenna Kosciolek
Title: Out of Reach
Medium: Digital Artworks
Size: 30.5 x 20.3 cm
Date: January 18, 2024
For this piece I chose a different character to focus on, one not connected to Cosmic or his story. This is Kaito, he struggles with his gifts and the popularity of his parents. His parents are very famous and highly powerful people, and everyone else expects Kaito to live up to the same standards. Though he feels like he isn’t living up to those standards. Like where he and everyone else wants him to be is always too far away, always out of reach.
McKenna Kosciolek
Title: The Searcher
Medium: Digital Artwork
Size: 20.3 x 27.9 cm
Date: February 4, 2024
The Searcher is about a world similar to ours but our worst fears came true. World War lll happened and it didn’t end the way everyone thought it would. Three people came into power over certain areas of the world and changed things drastically. And if anyone opposed or disobeyed the rules they would be dealt with. Em’s family was some of those people, and when the people in charge came to take them away, Em was the only one to escape. So now he’s searching for them, hoping they’re still alive.
McKenna Kosciolek
Title: Through the Looking Glass
Medium: Digital Artwork
Size: 27.9 x 20.3 cm
Date: February 26, 2024
This piece is similar to Reflection as it shows my character Mason hurt from a fight. He is recovering in a hospital room, looking out the window, feeling like he wasn’t able to do his job as well as he wanted. But instead of seeing his reflection we see him, or more specifically his back. We see the amount of damage he took protecting the city from a dangerous threat. When you look at this piece you can almost feel the disappointment he has in himself coming off of the piece.
McKenna Kosciolek
Title: Stargazer
Medium: Digital Artwork
Size: 27.9 x 20.3 cm
Date: March 4, 2024
Stargazer is about a boy who lived for the stars, he fell in love with them the moment he knew what they were. Galileo grew up to be an astronomer, spending his days doing what he loved. But one day his world was attacked and he was stolen away from the people that cared for him. This caused a deep secret to finally reveal itself. And to find out more, Galileo left his home and went to find out what and who he was. Galileo met so many new people and traveled with friends who soon became family to him.
Allie McIntyre
Thank you for visiting my exhibition. I worked really hard on my art this year, and I am proud to show it off. I made all of these pieces with immature femininity in mind, and I hope that concept shines through. I wanted to reminisce upon my childhood, full of dresses and frills and other pretty things. There were also some rough patches, but I didn’t want to focus upon them so much. I wanted to show myself all of the good parts of the past 18 years, because I think I often focus too much on the bad parts. I arranged them so that the similar pieces would be on opposite sides, and I put my favorite pieces (the ones with cats as the main focus hehe) in the center. I put the one of my dog on the bottom corner so I wouldn’t have to look at it so much and start crying. I miss her very much. I faced many challenges while making these pieces, as I haven’t ever painted this much before, and I often struggle to paint faces. To combat this I painted animal faces instead. I also found difficulty in connecting all of the pieces. I hope that the feminine energy of all of them is apparent, as well as the amount of love and care that I put into each piece. I hope many girls can connect with these pieces, and relate to the feelings behind them, although they are not all that deep. They are expressive of the beauty of girlhood, and I hope everyone feels happy when they look at my exhibition. Last year I think I made everyone sad, so this year I am hoping for the opposite. I know that most men will not feel connected to my work, but that was kind of my goal. Sorry! I hope you still enjoy it, thank you!!! <3
Allie McIntyre
Title: Ballet
Medium: Oil pastel on paper
Size: 30.48cm X 22.86cm
Date: December 2023
This piece was inspired by ballet dancers. I really love watching ballet dancers, I think they are so elegant and beautiful. I used to do ballet, but I quit after I realized I hated it (1 month in). I made this piece to reminisce upon what could have been.
Allie McIntyre
Title: Doodle
Medium: Alcohol marker, ink, acrylic paint on paper
Size: 27.94cm X 35.56cm
Date: December 2023
This painting was inspired by the lolita dress style. I want to have this type of dress for prom, so this is me manifesting. I added some doodles to reminisce upon my exhibition from last year, which had mostly doodle-style pieces.
Allie McIntyre
Title: Bubble Cat
Medium: Acrylic paint on paper
Size: 30.48cm X 40.64cm
Date: October 2023
This painting was inspired by my cat, Cosmo. She is so lovely and has a lot of fun popping bubbles, so I wanted to create a painting based on that. So sparkly!
Allie McIntyre
Title: Shell
Medium: Oil paint on canvas
Size: 25.4cm X 25.4cm
Date: August 2023
This painting was inspired by a beach I went to in Mexico on a cruise last spring break. It was very fun and I collected many shells. These are not the exact shells I collected, as I wanted the ones in the painting to be more diverse.
Allie McIntyre
Title: Best Friend
Medium: Acrylic paint on paper
Size: 27.94cm X 35.56cm
Date: March 2024
This painting was inspired by my dog, Nixie, who passed away in March of 2024. I miss her very much, and the blue paw print is hers. I hope she is doing well and eating delicious food on the other side.
Allie McIntyre
Title: Tea Party
Medium: Acrylic paint on canvas
Size: 30.48cm X 40.64cm
Date: February 2024
This painting was inspired by the tea parties I used to have with my mom and sister when I was little. This is a time in my life I look back upon fondly, and I wanted to remind myself of those good times.
Allie McIntyre
Title: Fruity
Medium: Acrylic paint on canvas
Size: 27.94cm X 35.56cm
Date: February 2024
This painting was inspired by my cat, Cosmo, again. Whenever I eat anything she wants to eat it too, and I thought a fruit bowl would be fun to paint.
Allie McIntyre
Title: Kitten
Medium: Oil paint on canvas
Size: 27.94cm X 35.56cm
Date: December 2023
This painting was inspired by my cat, Cosmo, as it is a portrait of her. I put lilies in the background before I found out they are toxic to cats… Oops! I wanted to make it pretty because she is so pretty.
Allie McIntyre
Title: Walking on Stars
Medium: Acrylic paint on paper
Size: 30.48cm X 40.64cm
Date: October 2023
This painting was inspired by a picture of a cat walking on a piano. I thought it would be cool if it was walking on stars instead. This painting can represent cats that have moved on to the other side.
Allie McIntyre
Title: Mind If I Pick Your Brains?
Medium: Alcohol marker and ink on paper
Size: 15.24 x 22.86 cm
Date: January 2023
This drawing was inspired by when my math teacher told me that she might have to “pick my brains” more in the future. I thought it was a little bit silly and funny.
Allie McIntyre
Title: Star Lost
Medium: Alcohol marker and ink on paper
Size: 15.24 x 22.86 cm
Date: December 2022
This drawing was inspired by a song by one of my favorite bands. They share the same title, and have similar ideas. The lyrics of the song explain how they will protect those they love, and similarly the skeleton is meant to be protecting the red haired girl. They are fighting in space!
This entire body of work is meant to overall represent the impacts and power of love. Whether that's toxic romantic love or healing platonic/family love, the power of love controls us all over the world and deep inside ourselves. The most powerful love, self love, it kills and breaks people down but can also build people up with the help of others affection. All of these pieces relate to each other not only because of their medium but because of the things that they represent, the present different struggles that I personally have gone through in my life and represented through the thing that brings me back down to earth and to a better place, through art. I hope these connect with you viewers as they represent struggles that you or a loved one potentially went through, it is never something to be ashamed about but instead something to be proud you overcame or eventually will overcome. These pieces are arranged with symmetry in mind, with the black board pieces being up top and the rest surrounding the main piece, The Only Reason to Look in the Mirror. All of these pieces were made with a lot of emotion, the process taking more than a few hours for each, each took multiple attempts to create the work you now see in front of you and I am incredibly proud of the work I have done. The orientation of the pieces represents the meaningful images that they are up to interpretation, yes there is a meaning but viewers do not know the history or the backstory of these characters in the pieces, for example we don't know whose hands are on them in Their Ghosting Touches, that is up to interpretation, could be hands from a loved one whom they miss or could be hands from someone who took advantage of the person. I know that these topics that i have chosen to display may be a bit difficult for people to understand or to consciously view due to the aggressive idea, i hope people understand that the art is not meant to be innocent but instead something to be viewed with power and respect of the boldness i have taken by making these pieces.
Linsey Gallmeier
only reason to look in the mirror
charcoal and acrylic paint
Size in cm: 71’x56’
Date: february 23 2023
I created this piece out of a large poster board and raw charcoal vines in an attempt at creating the image in mind of a woman, looking upon her reflection in the mirror and crying as all that she sees is a failure or someone disgusting. She thinks that the only reason to look in the mirror is to see her flaws and that is demonstrated as I used water down acrylic paint too. paint on the mirror as if she is the one to do it so when she looked in the reflection, she saw the clown. I added small self harm scars to the inside of her wrists along with some tears falling down her cheek as she looked in the mirror. By doing this I also hope to help the viewers know that she is the one who painted on the clown face and word.
Linsey Gallmeier
Northvilles’ gone down
digital photography
Cize in cm: 30’x46’
Date: december 25th 2022
I walked into the Northville Downs and instantly knew that this place is going to be great. The atmosphere there is thick and gloomy, yet the lights were so florecently bright. No one is around as the area is covered up behind large tarps and a ‘do not enter sign’, so I obviously entered. This is right by the entrance and it is of the refreshments area and ticketing betting to place live bets on the horses outside being abused to run. With this photo I wanted to reflect on the ways of animal abuse that were once presented here, showing the now abandoned ticketing area in this gloomy and distraught lighting and atmosphere. I am so proud of the way this photo captures the downs as it is now and not how it was.
Linsey Gallmeier
Destructive love
charcoal
Size in cm:30’x41
Date: December 10th 2022
I love to embrace the lack of detail that I choose to use. I decided on using charcoal as it could allow me to create a type of ominous ‘vibe’ that could be achieved through the materials' workability. The charcoal allowed me to smudge and blend the details into the paper, creating a thin ‘layer’ of minimal detail seen. The terrain/setting of this piece is somewhat inspired by the abandoned ballroom in Detroit, Grande Ballroom, which has been abandoned since the 70’s. It is inspired by the architecture not as reference.
Linsey Gallmeier
The Masks we Wear
White pencil on board
Size in cm: 28’x36’
Date: February 10, 2023
This piece literally came to me somewhat in a dream as if i thought “oh i wish i could do that”. This was shortly after I created my brainstorms about the idea of pulling someone's skin off to reveal that we are all the same bone on the inside and it does not matter what we look like. If any words were used to describe this piece I think it would be raw, realistic, and human.
Linsey Gallmeier
His Horn Swallows my Silence
White pencil on board
Size in cm: 43x24
Date: December 7, 2023
I named the piece “his horn swallows my silence” because I imagine in this situation the person driving is coming up so fast and blaring their horn for the person to get out of the way and that would finally kill the silence and potentially the person. I made the person completely black/blank using negative space to create a contrast in the values surrounding. With the person containing no detail it makes the viewers wonder the identity of the person.I choose to put the person and truck in the center as it would create balance through hepatern and a visually appealing center as it fades out around. I made the board longer so it could fade slower though.
Linsey Gallmeier
Too Much or Just Enough
Charcoal
Size in cm:42x36
Date: August 31, 2023
I'd be lying if I were to say that the pieces that have been coming to me that weren't really depressing to be honest. But at the same time, I'd also be lying if I were to say that these thoughts haven't ever crossed my mind. This piece is what I and millions upon millions of others deal with every day with depression, countless people die every year to suicide and drug overdose so I wanted to represent fear and true sadness that people experience. Although prescription drugs, like anti-depressants can help save millions of lives, they also can be a factor in the loss of some as well. Through this piece I feel I was able to successfully show that through something I am so saddened to be proud of.
Linsey Gallmeier
The Weight of Words
Charcoal
Size in cm: 48x36
Date: august 1 2023
The original intention of this piece was to create and spread the message of body dysmorphia, as someone who struggles with my body image, I constantly weigh myself and instead of numbers i just see this curse word starting back up at me describing my appearance. If any words were to describe this piece it would be raw and brutal. I chose this piece to add to the body of work as it touches on self hatred in the means of body image which is a similar theme to others in the body of work.
Linsey Gallmeier
Lipstick on a Pig
Charcoal and red lipstick
Size in cm: 32x28
Date: January 28, 2024
The phrase lipstick on a pig means to make superficial cosmetic changes to attempt and fail to disguise flaws. For example, I hate the way my eyes look so I cover them up and distract them with eyeliner yet it doesn't change the fact that I still hate my eyes and that at the end of the day when I take off my makeup, they will still be something to look at with disgust. Even if you remove the make up the flaws are still there and it's just a futile attempt to fix what's broken, even if you erase the lipstick, it's still a pig underneath
Linsey Gallmeier
Beauty is Pain
Charcoal
Size in cm:29x22
Date: August 10, 2023
I despise the beauty standards put on women ever since they were young girls by the public. It's gotten to the point where even women are putting their women down because they dont look like how everyone wants them too. The red acts a blood dripping down from the woman's legs as she cuts herself with the razor in her hand. Now whether she cut herself on purpose or on accident while shaving is up for the viewers interpretation but I like to think that it was accidental but ironic considering all she does just to be considered pretty, that we will hurt ourselves in the process to make others happy with our appearance
Linsey Gallmeier
There Ghosting Touches
Charcoal
Size in cm: 15x20
Date: January 5 2024
The original intent of this was to create a body being violated by others touches, to represent PTSD of difficult times or just the missing of a loved ones touches. This can represent the difficult memories because of being taken advantage of or missing someone you'd live to touch you in a close way. II just add this piece to the body of work because it means something to me and can mean a lot to others, it is also matching in the design of others with thee same medium and color pallet
Linsey Gallmeier
Chukwudi Monplaisir
The central theme running through my artworks embodies a profound call for a more sustainable and environmentally-conscious world, one that confronts not only the deleterious impact of major corporations but also the cumulative effects of societal actions. In "Rush of Harmony," the imagery of a trumpet resonating with a person symbolizes the discord between noise pollution and the soothing melodies of music, serving as a poignant metaphor for the contrast between environmental degradation and natural harmony. This motif is further explored in "Merry," where the tranquil ambiance captured in watercolor underscores the imperative of preserving the pristine beauty of nature. "Nature’s Abode" delves into the delicate balance between human ingenuity and the natural world, celebrating the potential for symbiotic coexistence. Yet, "Downtown" and "Lost in the Glow" pivot the narrative, starkly revealing the detrimental repercussions of unbridled urbanization and artificial illumination. Similarly, my piece "Gilded Age Globe" offers a haunting yet insightful portrayal of the Industrial Revolution's transformative impact, underscoring the paradoxical relationship between progress and environmental degradation. Overall, each artwork in my Exhibition serves as a catalyst for introspection, urging viewers to contemplate our collective responsibility in safeguarding the planet for future generations.
Chukwudi Monplaisir
Title: Rush of Harmony
Medium: Acrylic Paint
Size in cm: 22.86 cm. x 30.48 cm.
Date: 2023
In my artwork, I aimed to depict the powerful connection between a trumpet and a person through harmonious sound, reflecting my theme of contrasting noise pollution with the pleasant tones of an instrument. I drew inspiration from Picasso's realist, modernist, and conceptual styles, along with African American Art, I used vibrant, contrasting colors in the backdrop, enhancing its sensational vibe. The personal connection to playing the trumpet at my previous school adds depth, with the depicted person symbolizing a meaningful connection to the instrument.
Chukwudi Monplaisir
Title: “Merry”
Medium: Watercolor Paint
Size in cm: 22.86 cm. x 30.48 cm.
Date: December 2023
Originally, my aim was to capture the bliss of an unspoiled natural setting adorned with symbols of divinity and protection, resonating with the theme of nature. Inspired by the beauty of nature and the holiday spirit, I envisioned words like serenity and tranquility that could rejuvenate anyone viewing it. I created this piece to illustrate how elements such as certain leaves in nature play a significant role in the holidays we cherish.
Chukwudi Monplaisir
Title: Nature’s Abode
Medium: Acrylic Paint
Size in cm: 22.86 cm. x 30.48 cm.
Date: December 2023
In my first piece, I sought to portray the abstract shift from night to day using a vibrant palette, drawing inspiration from Van Gogh's expressive brushstrokes. Evoking words like expressive and mellow, this artwork reflects my exploration of a new medium and explores the harmony between nature and a solitary yet interconnected dwelling.
Chukwudi Monplaisir
Title: Gilded Age Globe
Medium: Colored Pencil, Graphite Pencil, Ink
Size in cm: 22.86 cm. x 30.48 cm.
Date: February 2024
My goal was to portray the repercussions of industrialization on the global environment, drawing inspiration from historical imagery and environmental concerns. Terms like retro and striking encapsulate its essence. The piece features a globe embellished with industrial elements and gilded details, chosen for its distinctive medium and thought-provoking narrative.
Chukwudi Monplaisir
Title: Downtown
Medium: Wax, Graphite, Ink
Size in cm: 22.86 cm. x 30.48 cm.
Date: December 2023
My intention was to portray the urbanization of Detroit, highlighting its uneven impact, as certain areas remain polluted without remedy. Influenced by downtown art, including graffiti sketches and symbols on structures, and the visible litter on streets. Expressive words such as congested, diverse, and bold come to mind. I chose this piece not only for its personal resonance, but also to shed light on issues like extreme poverty and collateral waste.
Chukwudi Monplaisir
Title: Lost in the Glow
Medium: Colored Pencil, Graphite Pencil, Ink
Size in cm: 22.86 cm. x 30.48 cm.
Date: February 2024
My aim was to depict the frequent attraction of sea turtles to artificial light over natural moonlight, causing confusion. Influenced by ecological studies on sea turtle behavior and inspired by artwork in Santa Monica and Los Angeles, the piece is poignant and symbolic. I selected it to highlight the environmental challenges faced by sea turtles, stressing the need to preserve natural conditions for wildlife.
Alicia Na
I wanted my exhibition to be a physical representation of the elements of my identity that have become more relevant in recent years to my life. My culture, friends, and the overall environment I chose to surround myself with have become more than significant to me. My art is meant to convey an appreciation to those around me and a growth within my own mindset. Starting from “Appetite”, I wanted to illustrate the shared internalized racism many children face growing up in the United States. Rejecting the language your parents speak at home and trying to eat more “American” is something all too familiar to many apart of the Asian American community. I wanted to emphasize the feelings of isolation that I felt at a young age, being one of the only East Asian kids in my elementary school class or even entire grade.
I wanted my next pieces to follow me overcoming this feeling and finding a place in the world after denying it for so long. I wanted to capture the warmth of finding people like me, or people who are nothing like me yet accept me for who I am. The memories I made in middle school and high school so far are pieces of me that I would never want to give up. It led me on my journey to accept myself further and finally decide that my culture is a part of my identity – an identity I, too, would never want to give up.
I was able to discover notable figures in both pop culture and history that reflected the free and strong-willed spirit I wanted to become, as well as figures who shared my ethnic features and ate the same Chinese dishes at home that I did. I was able to explore new forms of media, like movies, that I had never fully appreciated before. I could look beneath the screen and at those who made their dreams come true, because if they could do it, that meant I also had a chance.
Alicia Na
“Appetite”
Pencil on Paper
9x12 inch
“Appetite” is a piece meant to target a huge issue within the Asian American community – rejection of culture. When people don’t see content depicting others like them growing up, it becomes easy to look into the mirror and see unfamiliar features staring back. I wanted to draw attention to this feeling and capture how rejecting one’s own culture can make them feel guilty – just like losing your appetite.
Alicia Na
“Fruits”
Marker on Paper
9x12 inch
“Fruits” is a piece that captures the feelings of warmth and reunion from fruit fields, capturing the social aspects of my life that have shaped me over the years. One of my more recent and fond memories of my friends revolve around tying ribbons in each other’s hairs. I wanted to capture all those small yet significant moments of my life, but, just like the fruits in a field, there are too many to count.
Alicia Na
“Red Envelope”
Marker and Cutouts on Paper
14x17 inch
“Red Envelope” is a collection of the cultural and social aspects of my identity, reflecting the memories from my childhood into my teenage years. My face is made of features from Vivienne Westwood, who’s vibrant spirit I strive to one day have, and Anna May Wong, the first well-known Chinese American actress in Hollywood. The pop culture references littered throughout this piece are an appreciation for femininity and acceptance of identity.
Sources: The Virgin Suicides (1999), Priscilla (2023), Nana (2005), The Picture of Dorian Gray (1890), “My Kind of Woman” by Mac Demarco, Angelina Jolie, Vivienne Westwood, Anna May Wong
Alicia Na
“The Greatest”
Watercolor on Paper
9x12 inch
“The Greatest” depicts the Great Wall of China, an important and notable aspect of Chinese culture. I wanted to use this significant landmark to highlight my culture and the feeling of coming to terms with one’s culture. Accepting your culture equates to accepting an important aspect of your identity and soul. Along this great wall’s structure lies the miles of my life and a collection of my entire person.
Natalie Rubio
I selected these artworks to represent my identity as an artist and reflect the progression of my artistic journey. Additionally, I chose these compositions for their resonance with my artistic style and the inherent meanings they convey. I arranged this body of work in a way that branches out into different sections of my art. The middle piece helps guide the audience's eye throughout my works.
Most of the pieces focus on conveying hardships faced by women and mental health issues. I aim to express how the male gaze can distort women’s actions, their fear of speaking up or not being heard, the dangers of stress, and my own fears for the future. Additionally, there's a piece highlighting Asian beauty and elegance, while others serve as narratives about love or darkness. I chose to tell these stories because they resonate with who I am as a hopeless romantic who loves drama and is a major people-pleaser.
The pieces I created in year 1 were infused with strong emotions from my junior-year self. I had a difficult time last year, and expressing my emotions through art was very therapeutic when I couldn't verbalize my feelings. I was heavily struggling with self-identity and figuring out who I truly wanted to be. While I am still grappling with that concept, I am more at peace with not knowing who I am yet.
This year, I initially planned to create more extravagant pieces, pushing beyond my preconceived limits and exploring styles outside of my usual range. However, I realized that wouldn’t truly communicate who I am as an artist. Nonetheless, I continued to experiment with different concepts I had never thought to accomplish before. While I didn’t face the same emotional struggles as last year, I had to deal with the pressures of senior life, which influenced most of my pieces.
The connection between my pieces this year mostly stems from my artistic style — exaggerated shapes, color palette, noise, desaturation, and subject. I hope that you gain some insight into my character, mind, and soul. While I often struggle to express my emotions, I pour a lot of my being into these pieces, whether it is my true emotions or a story I feel needs to be told.
Natalie Rubio
Reaching Out
Red Cardstock, Foam Board, Poster, Posca Pen, Hot Glue
40.64 cm x 50.80 cm
March 6, 2023
This was intended to convey the feeling of getting lost in the moment and reaching out one last time. I really wanted to try something new, different, and slightly more crafty. I believe I achieved that. The red paper forms the rose petal engulfing the woman as she reaches out for help. I chose this piece because it was the one I was most excited to share, being the furthest from my comfort zone.
Natalie Rubio
Read Lips
Digital Photography (IPhone)
38.07 cm x 28.60 cm
December 19, 2022
This piece explores how people often focus solely on the words spoken rather than the emotions and deeper meanings behind them. It reflects the frustration and exhaustion of repeating oneself without feeling truly heard. I drew inspiration from Garry Winogrand’s dramatic photography. I chose this piece as my first, setting the aesthetic tone for the style present in my artworks.
Natalie Rubio
Pulling Back
Procreate
21.31 cm x 27.58 cm
February 28, 2023
This piece displays a person being overcome by the thoughts of the past. I would describe this piece as eerie, graceful, and unusual. The woman is trapped in a trance, as she keeps rethinking and over analyzing the past. Though I wanted this to turn out compositionally different, I still created the feeling that I wanted. I chose this piece because I wanted to showcase my drawing skills and create contrast with the colors in this exhibition.
stressed and dazed
Digital Photography (IPhone 12, Photoshop)
20.32 cm x 25.40 cm
October 9, 2023
This piece shows how people push themselves too hard when stressed. I wanted to convey the importance of self-care and taking it slow. Sometimes people overexert themselves to the point of exhaustion. The grainy, flowy aesthetic, in addition to the warm and bright colors of the piece, expresses the trace the subject is in as she has overworked herself
Natalie Rubio
the hair flip
Digital Photography (IPhone 12)
20.32 cm x 30.48 cm
November 25, 2023
This piece depicts the male gaze on women's actions, inspired by artworks like "Portrait of Madame X" by John Singer Sargent, "El Morocco, New York" by Garry Winogrand, and "Living Series - Ballet" by Ju Ming. These compositions portray women as delicate, elegant, and sophisticated, echoed through the use of a dull color palette, intense shadows, highlights, and red lips.
Natalie Rubio
clean slate
Digital Photography (IPhone, Procreate)
20.32 cm x 20.32 cm
December 5, 2023
This displays how I feel as I enter adulthood. I am shedding my adolescent skin and transitioning into my college years and adulthood, becoming a new person. I am starting with a clean slate, yet there is a weight on my chest every time I think of this idea. The strange and mysterious atmosphere in the piece conveys the feeling of anxiety for my future and what lies ahead for me.
Natalie Rubio
entrance to the soul
Digital Photography (IPhone 12, Photoshop)
27.94 cm x 35.56 cm
December 12, 2023
I stepped out of my comfort zone and experimented with this piece, aiming to infuse drama and eeriness.I used deep black space to contrast with red, creating a striking impact. The exaggerated hand shapes emphasize the bright, glowing red eyes, leaving a sense of mystery. Inspired by horror movie posters, especially the 'Barbarian' poster.
Natalie Rubio
burning star
Digital Photography (IPhone 12, Photoshop)
20.32 cm x 25.40 cm
February 1, 2024
This piece represents how even the high and mighty can fall. A star that shines too brightly burns into ash. I also used the piece to introduce more bright colors into my exhibition, as I had previously stuck to more gray tones. The stoic look reflects the stubbornness one would possess when falling from grace. The red, orange, and yellows convey rage, with a hint of fear signified by the blue.
Natalie Rubio
til death
Digital Photography (IPhone 12, Photoshop)
12.70 cm x 17.78 cm
February 19, 2024
I based this piece on the Hanaki Disease, a fable claiming that flowers will grow in your lungs due to unrequited love. I created it to connect my exhibition pieces both in message and style. The colors in the piece serve to bridge the grays and light colors in each piece, evoking a feeling of hopelessness in love as the subject slowly fades away.
Natalie Rubio
Exhibition Layout
Natalie Rubio
Logan Thornton
Through the nine works within my exhibition, I intend to express my emotions through symbolism. In the past two years, I have used art as a way to express my distress, my dreams and aspirations, my interests, and even my worst fears. The following artworks were on topics I couldn’t seem to get out of my heart. By including my personal feelings within my art, the viewer and I are both able to clearly see my mood progress over the years. I picked these specific pieces because they all share a similar color palette, which was not my original intention. This made it easy for the pieces to flow from one to another as a collection. I quickly realized that in order to truly see the connection between each piece, I must look not only at the visual aspect, but also the symbolism behind it. Something they all have in common is the time in which I made them. All nine pieces were created in one sitting, then fixed during the feedback process. Although this seems like a plus due to motivation, it actually ended up as my largest challenge. While I looked at my work for a long period, I lost perspective on my mistakes, in which I would have to fix simple, yet tedious, errors within my art. This is something I’m glad I’ve learned, and will definitely take it into account for the future. As a whole, I attempted to go out of my comfort zone by using different techniques such as anatomy, perspective, and texture. Through this, I discovered I really like adding texture to my art, which I did by layering acrylic paint and modeling paste.A lot of these pieces reflect my struggles with negative thoughts—like finding motivation for my education, regretting choices I've made, and dealing with periods of feeling down. But some of them also show my positive outlook on my passions and dreams. I was able to create the same feeling I felt, but shown in a visible and artistic way. To the viewer, or anyone struggling with mental health issues in any way, you will relate to these pieces, since most are up to interpretation.
Logan Thornton
Aurora
Mixed Media
15 x 28 cm
2023
I painted onto cans with thick acrylic paint, and used embroidery needles to poke designs into the cans. This way, when a light is shined in from the bottom, it lit up the otherwise hidden design. Originally, the piece was only the light colored can, but it felt incomplete. This duo is unconsciously inspired by the movie Tangled, with the moving lanterns and magical landscapes. The title of the piece comes from Aurora the Disney princess, as well as the nickname for the Northern Lights.
Logan Thornton
Visible Mistake
Acrylic on Canvas
20 x 25 cm
2022
Art expresses emotions through technicality and conceptuality. People often use broken glass to express something that feels broken within themselves. Visible Mistake is the representation of a choice I made, and the regret and sadness that came after. To add, intentionally broken class signifies negativity, while accidental breakage indicates the departure of evil and new beginnings. I wanted to include both sides of glass breakage, and create a beautiful yet mysterious mood.
Logan Thornton
The Reacher
Acrylic on Canvas
20 x 20 cm
2022
This piece is meant to reflect bad decision making, and longing for a brighter future from a place of darkness. As it is the first piece I created, I excitedly rushed to work on it. However, I ended up struggling to complete the piece with a happy mindset. I overall pushed my boundaries by purposefully drawing the viewer's eye towards the only object available, the hand. The dramatic effect to the hand is with the intent to emphasize it, in contrast with the gloomy background.
Logan Thornton
Waves of Sorrow
Acrylic on Paper
20 x 28 cm
2022
Through trial and error, my ideas consistently gravitate towards landscapes. I haven’t seen many, and maybe that’s why I enjoy creating them. With this piece, I unintentionally adapted a blockier style similar to Kirchner, an expressionist 20th century artist. During the time of creation, I was researching his other works created around his mental health journey. This piece meant to represent the ups and downs of depression, since I have first handedly experienced this for many years in my life.
Logan Thornton
Schadenfreude
Acrylic on Canvas
15 x 17 cm
2023
Abstractism became so popular due to the controversial ideas it expressed. Through this artwork, I sought to experiment with this degenerate style of art, similar to how artists that inspire me have in the past. Applying a pastel color palette, I created a painting with loose lines and shape with unrestricted conceptual ideas up to the viewer. The title of this piece, translated from German, contains themes of pleasure and joy.
Logan Thornton
The Calm Ballerina
Mixed Media
20 x 20 cm
2024�
I used this piece as an opportunity to practice my anatomy and shading. Utilizing cool hues for a calming ambiance of the gentle crayons and acrylic. Within this composition, one may see dynamic movement and patterns in the stars and below the dancing girl. I also maintained crisp lines along the stars, ensuring the intricacy of the patterns.
Logan Thornton
Miss Moon
Mixed Media
30 x 60 cm
2024
Within this piece, I mean to express the essence and beauty of women and their femininity. In today’s culture, femininity and the insecurities attached to it are very popular. One popular example is beauty marks, in which many women today are insecure of. I incorporate beauty marks onto the moon's face with fine detailing to emphasize her expression. The texture of the moon also helps her gain depth against the dark flat background.
Logan Thornton
Cosmos
Mixed Media
30 x 60 cm
2024
Cosmos is my favorite creation, but was also the most challenging and time consuming. My inspiration for this artwork is myself, because of my previous piece “Miss Moon”. I wanted to create a piece with broad celestial elements with intricate details and mediums involved. To achieve the detailing desired, I ended up using gouache, embroidery, and acrylic, paper, and canvas for this piece. The overall mood received from this piece should be mystical and magical, and sort of lost in time.
Isen Zhang
A majority of the members in an audience of a performance never see the countless hours of rehearsing a musician spends meticulously working on details that often go unnoticed to the untrained ear. Even for those who know a musician, it is difficult to imagine just how much work is needed for an adequate performance. In the Northville High School band, the repertoire of the upperclassmen band this year consists of three pieces which we have rehearsed for almost six months to perform at district and state festival. However, when totaled up, the three pieces add up to an average of only 15 minutes.
The aim of my exhibition is to highlight just how much time and effort goes into a performance, even at the detriment of the musician’s physical and/or mental health. I chose to focus on the negative aspects of music to show the reality of a musician’s life. However, I don’t intend to discourage anyone from pursuing music. I have been in the school band since 6th grade and have been involved in music from the age of 5. Music has and still plays a crucial role in my life and I can’t imagine quitting. Each piece draws from my own negative experiences as a musician, but it also leaves out the innumerable life changing moments that music has given me. I try to use each piece to not only share my experiences, but to also make musicians more human to the audience by taking them into the musician’s mind and experiences. To best deliver this message, I changed my mediums in every piece and made each art style specific to the idea it tries to convey.
Despite the wide variety in styles and mediums, each piece links to each other and the concept of one piece can lead to the concept of another in a domino fashion. My two cardboard pieces on opposite corners are my two most eye-catching pieces, so I put them farthest from each other to avoid too much emphasis on one side of my exhibition. Their unique shapes allow for an encompassing square for the other four pieces to create a path. Each piece fits in its spot almost like a puzzle piece, connecting to one another and creating an overall visual message in the process. I hope for the audience to gain more appreciation for the time and effort that is put in for performances and concerts.
Isen Zhang
Title: Drumming alone
Medium: Brown wash and pen
Size in cm: 13.5 x 18
Date: November 8, 2023
Although playing music makes me happy and I could practice for hours on end, I sometimes feel that I am missing out on a normal high school experience, such as going to football games in the student section rather than with the band. This piece is from my Comparative Study, where I analyzed Claude Lorrain’s skill in values and David Stone Martin’s unique linework to create my own inspired piece. I included this piece because it illustrates how calming, yet isolating it can be to be a musician.
Isen Zhang
Title: Won’t Stop
Medium: Charcoal and paint
Size in cm: 21 x 21
Date: December 7, 2023
The movie Whiplash features several scenes where the drummer’s hands begin to bleed from over practicing, but he ignores his injuries to keep practicing. I used to do the same thing, bleeding through bandages on my fingers for just one more hour on the marimba or staining reeds red from my cracked lips. “Won’t Stop” is an intense depiction of how I willingly hurt myself for music. The dark charcoal paired with a deep red provides an insight on how beautiful yet haunting this mindset felt.
Isen Zhang
Title: Barely Conscious
Medium: Graphite
Size in cm: 14.5 x 20
Date: December 17, 2023
I aimed for a feeling of internal conflict when drawing this piece. The most vivid memory of conflict I have is from when I was unable to perform at the Detroit Jazz Festival due to passing out from heat exhaustion. I could barely stand but I could hear the jazz band performing, which was incredibly frustrating and saddening. I think utilizing my most comfortable medium helps visualize the emotions better. I want the audience to feel how I felt at the time: left out and dazed.
Isen Zhang
Title: False Confidence
Medium: Digital
Size in cm: 14.5 x 20
Date: January 15, 2024
“False confidence” is one of my first digital pieces, inspired by the novel “The Magic Fish”. This piece is the most complex piece in my exhibition, featuring three of my insecurities brought to life. This piece shows how constantly I self doubt my skills as a musician. The tension and contrast in colors give this piece a unique style which fits in my exhibition. I hope to bring to mind people who appear confident in their abilities, but secretly worry they aren’t as skilled as others believe.
Isen Zhang
Title: Still thinking
Medium: Cardboard and marker
Size in cm: 57 x 34
Date: January 30, 2024
Making mistakes makes us human, yet I never forget mistakes I make at concerts. Sometimes I get lost in past mistakes instead of remembering what went right and what can go right. Although many people understand this concept, this piece draws attention to specifically musicians. “Still thinking” connects the most to all the rest of my pieces, which were created based on a memory or experience that I haven’t forgotten. This piece’s unique medium and art style creates a lost and helpless feeling.
Isen Zhang
Title: JUST BREATHE
Medium: mixed media (Cardboard, acrylic paint pens, yarn)
Size in cm: 30 x 45
Date: February 19, 2024
Musicians are so composed on stage it can be easy to forget they may be panicking internally. I have performed many times with tingling hands and legs that have gone numb from anxiety to an audience none the wiser. The jagged and shaky nature of this piece helps the audience see how emotions can affect a musician and even hinder their playing abilities, which is often frustrating. This piece visualizes the internal anxieties musicians may experience while performing and how it affects the body.
Emily Gallon
Nature surrounds our daily lives but we pay little attention to it. It is the Earth's personal artist and I intend to replicate some of its beauty in my own pieces. My goal is to remind people to pay attention to the small things in life and consider their impact on the world. I create textures and symbols that make the viewer question the nature around them in a new light. Through experimentation in different mediums, my artwork is unique and intense, reflecting the inner me. In many of these pieces I had unexpected challenges, such as ripped canvases and missing white paint that forced me to be innovative. These challenges made me persevere to see my vision come to life, resulting in more dynamic artworks. I chose to include these pieces because I feel like they all force you to reconsider your perspective on life. They have similar color palettes and subjects, but they tell their own independent stories about nature. I also wanted to show a variety of skills. I get bored very easily, so switching the medium allowed me to be more free and creative. I wanted the exhibition to be confrontational, the large pieces, Orchid, Mother, and Blissfully Unaware are encapsulating the smaller pieces, forcing you to get closer to the center of my pieces. Eyes on you, Invasion and The Breach are in their own little section because they tell a private story that ties into the rest of my artworks. The podiums are placed next to each other because the pieces relate to each other. My creations are a journey through my perspective on nature and how we impact it.
Emily Gallon
Title: Orchid
Medium: Acrylic paint on canvas
Size: 40.64 x 50.8 cm
Date: October 19, 2023
Orchid is an exploration of color and texture within nature. I wanted to play with bright colors in a more abstract manner. I took inspiration from Matthew Wong and his use of meticulous lines to create depth and texture. Orchid was my gateway painting into a new style focused on maximalist details and exaggerated colors. I want this piece to invoke a sense of playfulness and remind you to take a second to admire the beauty around you.
Emily Gallon
Title: Intertwined
Medium: Jewelry making, wire work
Size: 40.64 cm
Date: December 6, 2023
In order to explore nature's ties to humanity, I wanted to create a functional piece you can wear. I find that nature finds small ways to intertwine into our materialistic lives, so I aimed to represent that on a small-scale artwork. I was inspired by the wire weaving I saw in a local art fair. Artists take a small stone and incorporate it into their jewelry, adding a piece of nature into a typically man made good.
Emily Gallon
Title: Blissfully Unaware
Medium: Makeup, portrait photography
Size: 41.24 x 43.63 cm
Date: December 16, 2023
Based on the phrase “blissfully unaware” I was inspired to create a makeup look symbolizing our ignorance to the world around us. I was also heavily inspired by the exaggerated makeup of 1920s flappers, I wanted features to appear more expressive. I wanted to blend the worlds of 2d and 3d by incorporating a simple paper drawing. My goal was to make you question your view on reality, and to try viewing the world in a more abstract lens.
Emily Gallon
Title: Eyes on You
Medium: Marker and pen on paper
Size: 17.78 x 25.4 cm
Date: January 15, 2024
Once again, I was inspired by a question, if nature has eyes, would it forgive us? Would nature believe we are justified? I want this piece to feel as if the eyes are judging you, forcing you to reconsider. I also wanted this piece to exhibit contrasting mediums, scratchy pen and smooth marker, correlating with the contrast between the wood and paint in Orchid. I love the color palette in this piece and the stark contrast between the background and leaves.
Emily Gallon
Title: Invasion
Medium: Acrylic paint on wood
Size: 33.02 x 17.78 cm
Date: February 22, 2024
Now that nature has witnessed our actions, I wanted to depict what its response may be. In my mind, nature would try to reclaim the land stolen, represented by the vines breaking into a simple home. The plants are noticeably more colorful, as if they have sucked the color out of the walls. I want this semi-apocalyptic scene to remind us of the downward direction our planet is heading and the severity of the situation. However, this painting is meant to be peaceful, like the calm after the storm.
Emily Gallon
Title: The Breach
Medium: Ceramic, acrylic paint
Size: 12.7 x 12.7 x 11.43 cm
Date: March 1, 2024
To further explore the idea of nature's revenge, I want to create a ceramic piece. The vase is bulging from being strangled by the vine, expressing how humanity suffocates nature. In a sense, the vine is reclaiming the space we take away. By having a 3D piece, I hope to make the meaning more literal and shocking. I also chose to stick with my bright color choices to make the piece more playful.
Emily Gallon
Title: Mother
Medium: Mixed media on canvas
Size: 40.64 x 50.8 cm
Date: March 12, 2024
If nature found a way to embody the human form, what would it look like? That question kickstarted the creation of Mother, a piece exploring the bridge between human and nature. The various mediums used replicate the different plants and textures found in nature. I wanted to bring an element of the real world in by adding 3D fake flowers that frame the face of the women. I specifically chose to create a female figure because women provide life and nature creates subsistence for life.
Thara Balasubramaniam
Art has always been the language of the mind and soul. I believe that the artwork I create represents my beliefs and messages I fear to say. As I meet new people, and experience new realities, I am met with the chance of losing myself. Feeling imposter syndrome as I drone on about thoughts I have no interest in. Taking inspiration from the elements and design that surrounds my life.
Originally, the idea for my pieces came from the culture and identity. Using bold colors and patterns that surround body parts such as hands. I wanted to incorporate parts of humanity we dare not talk about. However, as my thread continued to develop, I realized that each of my pieces illustrated parts of me that felt lost or otherwise blurred. My experiences, struggles, dreams, and my life all surrounded the very aspect of identity. They begged the question of who I was and what I showed externally.
These pieces are created through a multitude of mediums, ranging from gouache to color pencil. The process includes envisioning what my mind wants to say, sketching out a design, and using the chosen medium to add life in the pieces. The amount of time that I spent with each piece allowed me the time to reflect on myself and heal a part of myself. Looking back, my choices, my style, my traits, and beliefs and values are evident in each piece made.
My identity and all of my different emotions are highlighted in the thread of my work. The hand represents the loss of culture’s touch as I grow up in a foreign entity. The stretched-out eye represents the superficiality of beauty and the loss of femininity I feel. The blue eyes represent the emotions I harbor away from those who see me. The abstract face represents a spirit of me rooted in the feeling like an imposter living the life not meant for me. The zoomed-in face represents my insecurities and dysmorphia when it comes to my self-image. Lastly, the shadow figure to portray the factors that surround me as I drift on to this life. Overall The message I want to relay is that I am me, through the thorns and roses. I have become the person that stands here today.
Thara Balasubramaniam
“Hold my Hand”
Size: 8.5 x 11
Medium: Mixed Media
“Hold my hand is an 8.5 x 11 piece about the relationship between culture and identity, illustrating the loss between both enigmatic ideologies. Inspired by the creation of Adam painting, I wanted to denote the idea of how one experiences loss of their cultural identity through the grasp of growing up. The red background encompasses the multifaceted color symbolism of loss, and luck, accompanied with the black tear drop falling from the hands.
Thara Balasubramaniam
“Don’t Blink”
Size: 8 x 10
Medium: Mixed Media
“Don’t Blink” is an 8 x 10 referencing the satirical nature of beauty. Touching on the aspect of superficiality and finding one’s identity. I wanted to explore the idea of feeling feminine to fit in order to fit in with others. As trends come and go, there is the idea of fitting in with the crowd so we can feel acknowledged. I took inspiration from the many beauty campaigns shown in the media. The red-pupil intentionally drawn to show envy and imposter-likeness.
Thara Balasubramaniam
“Eyes don’t Lie”
Size: 8.5 x 11
Medium: Mixed Media
“Eyes don’t Lie” is a play on Michelangelo’s “David” sculpture. Referencing the raw emotion within its eyes, I created this piece to touch on the emotions we hid for the sake of others. Hidden anger and sadness only for our soul to see. Being vulnerable within society can be often looked down upon, as it tarnishes how others view us, hiding our identity as well. The blue tones are chosen to show melancholy as it is accompanied with the piercing red eyes and single tear drop on the cheek.
Thara Balasubrmaniam
“Dysmorphia”
Size: 8.5 x 11
Medium: Water Color
“Dysmorphia is an 8.5 x 11 that portrays the spirit of the human body. The abstract representation of how one feels in a new environment. Anxiety surrounding the very being of our existence, as we ponder the question of how we present ourselves to others. The feelings of looming dysmorphia consume our mind while comparing ourselves to others. I included elements of orange, yellow, green to showcase the colors of emotions we feel as our identity within an external environment is being found.
Thara Balasubramaniam
“Zoomed In”
Size: 3 x 5
Medium: Acrylic Paint
“Zoomed in” is a 3 x 5 piece that focuses on the subtle insecurities that consume our mind. It is inspired by the glamor magazines and pieces found in art museums.The pastel colors of purple, black and orange used to define the colors of our personality, although weighed down by thoughts of insecurities created by societal standards around us. These thoughts control our overall view of ourselves and change our inner identity.
Thara Balasubramaniam
“Pieces of Me”
Size: 10 x 12
Medium: Mixed Media
“Pieces of Me” is a 10 x 12 piece that is a picture of my soul. Inspired by “The Picture of Dorian Gray”, I wanted to make a piece that reveals my identity. The surrounding elements such as architecture plans, winnie the pooh, and stuffed animals represent the factors around me that controlled the very outcome of my life. Alongside this, I’ve included the hands and building to represent the state of where I am at right now. Surrounded by a sea of green and gold, representing envy, success, and appreciation of the current life I am living now.
Janet Tian
The world is filled with endless lines, shapes and colors. Within my work, I focus on the personal, emphasizing the warmth of interpersonal relationships and interlinking my passion for mental health with my love for art. My art incorporates the monochrome, the colorful, and everything in between, through 2D and 3D mediums created as both symbolic and literal representations of the world around me. Within this arrangement, I embrace various opportunities for gradual changes in my medium, which shifts from ink and paper to the more abstract values of acrylics, moving from more comical images to deeper representations.
Elements of color and line depict the vividness of life within my art, creating a warm atmosphere which aids in drawing all my works back to one common point of connectivity. The seven selected artworks displayed in this showcase aim to show the versatility of my artistic ability, as well as a general emphasis on the detail. I deeply value high detail work within my own art; the complexities and small references form the lines connecting my pieces, and intensely characterize my style.
The interpersonal connections present in my life occupied the forefront of my mind during the creation of my pieces. As a result, all of my displayed works are reflective of my perceptions of relationships in my life at the time of creation, immortalizing previously temporary connections and feelings. Allowing myself the grace to process all my emotions through art was strangely comforting, extending past just the happy, the sad, or the grateful, but rather embracing the intricacies of being human. Beyond self expression and perception, I seek to create pieces which validate not just my own feelings, but the feelings of others.
My overall intent in my art is to capture my perceptions of my relationships in the moment and create various scenes of connectivity. Some creations are more connected than others, through medium, concept, or characters pictured. Regardless of which universe they exist in, my body of work contains introspective thought on my deepest personal relationships, ultimately creating a warm and whimsical feel that transfers to the viewer.
A Rainy Day Reminder
Medium: Ink on Paper
Size in cm: 20 x 28
Date: November 2023
A Rainy Day Reminder is a monochromatic comic dedicated to one of the most important mentor figures in my life, D.S. Within my body of work, I integrate my perception of my relationships, with this piece emphasizing on the mental growth that D.S. has cultivated within me, and the shift in mindset that I work hard on adapting. I chose this piece as a starting point, representing my perspectives and motivations, as well as reminiscing on my initial first steps towards a healthier state of thought.
Spaces
Medium: Mixed Media (Ink on paper on wood)
Size in cm: 20 x 20 x 15
Date: December 2023
Spaces exists as an expression of escapism. As the first of two works centered around a fictional storyline based off of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, this four-room diorama depicts a quiet relationship between a mentor countess and her young artist mentee, reflective of a dynamic I’m particularly fond of in my own life. Aside from practice in implied story writing, Spaces was an outlet for me to create two well-rounded female characters, a feat rarely achieved in old gothic literature.
The Vampire and the Familiar
Villains and sidekicks share various dynamics in media, such as the infamous Dracula and his notoriously loyal follower, Renfield. Two characters from two different walks of life (and mediums) interact within this Dracula themed world, except boldly feminine. The Vampire and the Familiar, the second of two pieces centered around the Countess and the Artist, provides a basis for my later explorations in character writing and world building, integrating technical skill and creativity.
Medium: Mixed Media (Ink on Paper, Acrylic on Wood)
Size in cm: 20 x 20 x 5
Date: January 2024
Companion
Medium: Acrylic on Wood
Size in cm: 30 x 30
Date: November 2023
Fittingly named, Companion is my only piece without human figures. Inspired by the vivid values of post-impressionist art, this painting sets a colorful scene fit for a date. The balance and harmony of the two subjects thrive alongside the intensity and variety of color, with flowers sitting comfortably beside the candle and the lively flame, dancing among the stillness of the subjects. Despite the lack of direct human connection, various tones of connectivity still flow throughout the painting.
Pigeon-Hearted
(Lady Renfield; a Self Portrait)
Medium: Acrylic on Wood
Size in cm: 20 x 46
Date: December 2023
A self portrait, Pigeon-Hearted, explores the perception of silence as cowardice in the eyes of society, as well as the inaccuracy of the term itself. Pigeons are deemed cowardly and without power despite their historical contributions, as are often women, with the erasure of female contribution and power continuing today. This piece further alludes to ideas of female vampirism, exploring the idea of feminine empowerment through traditionally male roles, in close relation to my Spaces series.
Self-Connectivity
Medium: Acrylic on Canvas
Size in cm: 46 x 61
Date: March 2024
Self-Connectivity explores self-healing and comfort. This scene takes place within a dreamscape which provides space for vulnerability and healing. Investigating the duality of one’s inner mindscape, I took inspiration from Frida Kahlo’s surrealist portrayals of self. Revisiting my messages conveyed through color, harmony doesn’t always need to come from two or more parties. Companionship is vital and valuable, but it is also important to be comfortable on your own.
Affirmations
A reflection and gentle call to action for self-kindness, Affirmations lovingly incorporates familiar faces, themes, and concepts within a final synthesis. I excitingly circle back to my comic style, but with a colorful twist, expressing my gratitude to those who bring such vivid hues into my life. The progression from monochrome to color within my work conveys my shift in perspective, with this comic acting as a final reminder on the power of words, especially those you express to yourself.
Medium: Ink and Pencil on Paper
Size in cm: 29 x 61
Date: March 2024
Patricia Cosma
My body of work is meant to serve as a means of expressing not only my identity as an artist but also my personal self. Rooted in my cultural background and, more specifically, my home country, my body of work serves as a visual representation of the world I inhabit. The act of painting these influences onto canvas is deeply therapeutic for me. Through my art, I seek to capture the beauty of nature and the environment that surrounds us. I took large inspiration from renowned artists such as Claude Monet and Leonardo da Vinci, who also painted from their immediate surroundings. I embraced the challenge of working with a medium that was previously unfamiliar to me. Painting, whether it is with acrylics or watercolors, was a huge struggle initially.
However, this struggle allowed me to learn and grow as I created my work. The careful planning behind each piece is what makes them truly personal to me. Planning the palette for each artwork and how the colors will interact required a lot of thought. In particular, working with watercolors has taught me patience, and the importance of allowing each layer to dry before proceeding. Using watercolors forced me to slow down and not rush my work. All of these pieces hold some significance in my life and my experiences. Much of the artworks are derived from real photos I took and places I’ve been. My piece, “Blue Hue'' is directly a photo of my mother's city and where she grew up. Other pieces are inspired by places I've been. Depicting my country in this manner helps me connect with my culture. The connection with my viewers goes beyond the surface aesthetics of my work. It is an emotional and cultural exchange, a shared appreciation for the world around us. And how even though we all have different backgrounds, our backgrounds are still all beautiful.
Patricia Cosma
Title: Village in Trees
Medium: Watercolor
Size: 21 cm x 13 cm
Date: October 2023
My original intention for this piece was to depict a calming and visually appealing piece. I drew inspiration from personal photographs of similar villages, aiming to convey the simplicity of the countryside. I painted using watercolors, as I find they evoke a sense of nostalgia and warmth. Wet-on-wet was used for soft blending of the sky and mountains. Dry brushing added texture to houses and trees. The final product is a very organic and soft-looking piece, so I chose it.
Patricia Cosma
Title: Orange Tree over the Mediterranean Sea
Medium: Digital
Size: 23 cm x 20 cm
Date: February 2024
My original intention for this piece was to blend nature and urban life. Inspired by Italian Renaissance art, I drew from the works of Leonardo da Vinci for composition and vibrant color palettes. The oranges in the painting pop against the calming blue cityscape, creating a contrast. I chose this because it adds energy and warmth to the peaceful city scene, making it more visually interesting. I used a variety of digital techniques to make each color stand out. I added small details within the piece to give it a more abstract feel.
Patricia Cosma
Title: Overgrown
Medium: Mixed medium
Size: 20 cm x 14 cm
Date: January 2024
Since many of my other pieces are simple, I wanted to create something dense with more detail. My intention was to have tons of small details that would prompt the viewer to spend some time observing the piece. I was inspired by Claude Monet, who would fill his paintings up with nature and details, creating an interesting composition. I love how the details came out, I very carefully spent a lot of time with the pen, working on making the lines pop.
Patricia Cosma
Title: Blue Hue
Medium: Alcohol Marker
Size: 22 cm x 16 cm
Date: December 2023
My original intent was to draw a scene exclusively using one singular color and create within this constraint. This photo is one that I took myself specifically, the city where my mother grew up in. I utilized a monochrome palette to evoke a sense of unity and connection. I chose this piece as a tribute to my mother's roots, aiming to preserve and share the emotional significance of her hometown through art.
Patricia Cosma
Title: Stairway
Medium: Watercolor
Size: 26 cm x 30 cm
Date: February 2024
In creating this painting, I aimed to capture the serene beauty of a coastal city in my homeland. My goal was to blend urban and natural elements. Using watercolor, I made sure to use more dynamic colors for the shading but still make it work in the context of the rest of the painting. I then used a pen in order to add outlines to the piece and add more details to give it texture. I chose this piece because of my unique blend of colors in order to create a calm and stunning piece.
Lily Berlin
When I was thinking about what would be my string of connection throughout these pieces I thought of style, color schemes, and subjects. I tried to place my artworks in a balanced way. I chose to have my artwork , At Peace, in the middle since it was the only vertical artwork I made. I created all these artworks in the hopes that when people see them they would feel calm, happy, and at peace. I also hope these artworks can bring people joy and hopefully brighten up their day, even if it's just a little bit!
Grateful
Medium: alcohol Copic markers.
Size: 32.5cm x 24.5cm
Date: December 12, 2023
My original intentions were to create a piece that showed my faith. I have always liked the view of someone looking outside a window and wanted to recreate that. I would say this piece is calm, happy, and sweet to look at. I chose this piece since it shows my style very well and flows with my other pieces.
A Place for All
Medium: Alcohol Markers and Pencil
Size: 14cm x 14cm
Date: January 17, 2024
This piece was created with the intention just to experiment with architecture more. I was inspired by one of my artworks, Grateful, and wanted to go further in depth on the church. I would say this piece has structure, angles, and gradients. This little artwork fits into my exhibition since it matches the color theme and goes well with my piece, Grateful.
A Cherry Tree
Medium: Water Colors
Size: 24cm x 24cm
Date: January 24, 2023
For this piece I wanted to create something delicate and simple using watercolors. I was not really inspired by anything in particular, but I was inspired by the pretty cherry blossom tree. I would describe this piece to be peaceful and soft. I chose this piece to fit with my exhibit because it also flows well with the others and follows a similar color scheme with the rest.
At Peace
Medium: Water Color
Size: 30.5cm x 22.5cm
Date: March 2, 2024
I created this piece to show that music is powerful. For this piece I was inspired by David Schluss and his art work “Musicians”. I love his artwork because it gives me joy. I would call this piece peaceful and calm. This piece fits in my exhibition because of the color theme and style.
A Fuzzy Friend
Medium: Water Color
Size: 14cm x 14cm
Date: December 23, 2023
I created this piece before Christmas. My intention of creating this piece was to give it to my dad. This painting was inspired by my dad’s old teddy bear named “B”. I wanted to create a piece of artwork that would mean something to him. I would say this piece is cute, cuddly, and bright. This piece goes with my other artworks since it has that matching cute style and is in water color like some of the others.
The Chase
Medium: Colored Pencil and Alcohol Markers
Size: 24cm x 24cm
Date: February 9, 2024
In this piece I wanted to share a story and a theme in the Bible. The theme being that we are God's sheep and that if we get lost we will be found. I would say this piece is religious, funny, and cute. This piece works with my others since it shares the same style, color scheme, and also has a similar tree in the same spot as my other pieces.
The Path
Medium: Water Colors
Size: 30.5cm x 22.5cm
Date: February 25, 2024
I created this piece with the intention to get out of my comfort zone in the medium of watercolor. I was inspired by garden photos I have seen early in the year. I would call this piece floral, realistic, and vibrant. This piece matches with my other artworks with the delicate style and same medium. Even though it has more detail and a touch different color scheme I feel it still works well with the rest.
Sarah Ye
I’ve always believed that life will work itself out; that problems of the past are anecdotes of the future. When I was younger, I told myself that I would be a good artist in the future because life will work itself out. Despite my hopes, I never liked drawing as a kid. I didn’t like drawing because I was bad at it. I figured that, if I wasn’t good at something, I’d rather not try so that I wouldn’t embarrass myself. My parents saw my jealousy everytime I would stare at the difference in ability between me and my classmates and enrolled me in private art lessons and I started to practice. Because I was attending lessons with my friends every week, I felt that it was easier to set a routine for art. I would practice art for at least 2 hours a week, every week, for 8 years. In the last decade of my life, I’ve been able to see the improvement in myself and my pieces. I wanted my artwork to feel carefree and happy because of my belief that everything will be fine. I also wanted to show my appreciation to my chinese art teacher and her basement which is where a lot of my art’s inspiration came from. The artworks I present here in this exhibition is a testament to my growth. I realized that my previous belief was inaccurate, I learned that life will work itself out; as long as you try.
Sarah Ye
Title: Window on the Wall
Medium: Acrylic paint
Size: 61 cm by 76 cm
Date: 2023
The Window was made with the intent to push myself into creating more complex pieces. Many of my connections and experiences influenced my work; my art teacher helped guide me through the technicality and my love for plants and nature influenced the details and colors of this piece. Throughout all my pieces, I’ve had a common theme of flowers, plants and pastel colors. The Window follows this theme while also exhibiting how far I’ve come in my art career.
Sarah Ye
Title: Blooming Winter
Medium: watercolor
Size: 24 cm by 22 cm
Date: 2023
I wanted to refresh my watercolor abilities and learn how to create the exact colors I want using simple paint palettes. Because it was winter while I was making this piece, I wanted to show my anticipation and joy for the warmer weather to come. Words that represent my piece are: dreamy, floral, blooming. I chose this piece because it ties in the plants from my window to my other watercolor pieces.
Sarah Ye
Title: Crane on Water
Medium: watercolor
Size: 37 cm by 22 cm
Date: 2021
My original intention was to create a piece that incorporates my culture. The crane is the centerpiece of my painting as that is the meaning of my last name. I also took inspiration from the painting of East-Asia. Some words that describe my piece include: pond, light and liquid. I chose this piece because it shows my process exploring watercolor and was the first time I incorporated my culture into my painting.
Sarah Ye
Title: Story on Silk
Medium: watercolor
Size: 39 cm by 29 cm
Date: 2021
I made this piece with the intent to solidify my watercolor abilities. My own culture and the cultures of different countries in East-Asia influence my piece; the same elements that influenced my previous piece. Some words that describe this piece are: expensive, fancy, dressed-up. I chose to include this piece in this exhibition because it incorporates my theme of flowers and nature with my passion in asian culture.
Sarah Ye
Title: Fish from Dreams
Medium: color pencils
Size: 35 cm by 29 cm
Date: 2023
This piece shows the fluidity and nonconformity that dreams can sometimes bring. I accomplished this by using lighter colors that feel light when used together. Not only did I draw inspiration from other painted fish, but I was also inspired by the feeling of summer when I was choosing what colors to use. Words that describe my piece are: summer, light, and breezy. I chose this piece because it relates to my love of light feelings and it shows my growth from different colored pencil pieces.
Sarah Ye
Title: Light as a Feather
Medium: color pencil
Size: 38 cm by 28 cm
Date: 2018
My intent with this piece was to show a wide range of skills that can be applied when using colored pencils. I made this piece since colored pencils are what I’ve started my art career with when I was a child. I wanted to show myself the growth through the use of a medium I was familiar with. Words that describe this piece are: light, elegant, emphasized, and strong. I chose to include this piece because it shows another stepping stone in my art career.
Andreja Milojevic
Imbued with the essence of my Orthodox Christian faith, this exhibition transcends mere artistic expression, delving deep into the core of my beliefs and experiences. Each piece, carefully selected and crafted, serves as a testament to the significance of spirituality in my life. Throughout the creative process, I grappled with the challenge of translating the profound sentiments of faith into tangible forms. Every stroke of the brush and pencil echoed with the struggle to capture the essence of divine inspiration. The abstract pieces, in particular, posed a formidable obstacle as I endeavored to manifest the intangible facets of spirituality into a visual representation. Yet, amidst the challenges, there were moments of revelation. Each hurdle surmounted brought forth a deeper understanding of my own faith and artistic vision. It was through these struggles and discoveries that the true essence of the exhibition began to emerge.
The selection of each piece was deliberate, guided by the desire to create a cohesive narrative that resonates with the viewer. Each artwork serves as a chapter in the larger story of my spiritual journey, intertwined by a common thread of belief and devotion. From the intricacies of each piece and the mere simplicity of them, each piece speaks volumes about the multifaceted nature of faith.In crafting the presentation, I aimed to evoke a sense of reverence and introspection. The arrangement of the pieces invites the viewer on a contemplative journey, guiding them through the depths of spirituality and self-discovery. The central piece acts as a focal point, drawing attention to the core message of the exhibition while allowing the surrounding artworks to complement and enrich its significance. Ultimately, this exhibition is more than a mere collection of artworks; it is a testament to the enduring power of faith to inspire, enlighten, and transform. Through each brushstroke and pencil line, I invite the viewer to embark on a journey of soul searching, guided by the timeless wisdom and beauty of Orthodox Christianity.
Andreja Milojevic
The piece “Saved”, driven by my faith, aims to depict the sacrificial love of Christ on the cross and the profound impact it has on humanity. I employed high-contrast imagery to emphasize the significance of the subject matter. I chose this piece as the exhibition's centerpiece as it serves as the cohesive element that unites all other works, anchoring the collection with its powerful message.
Andreja Milojevic
The piece “The Way”, is deeply rooted in my faith being influenced by my church and other works in the exhibit. I aim to captivate viewers with its unique and stylized presentation. I intended to create something visually engaging while remaining connected to my faith. I chose the piece for its ability to resonate with the exhibition's broader themes while adding depth and visual interest alongside other pieces in the collection.
Andreja Milojevic
This piece “Opening Of The Mind” serves as a redemption from a previous work, striving to meet higher standards and convey a message of enlightenment and liberation through Christ. Influenced by a previous piece it explores abstract and intricate themes, symbolizing the journey of opening one's mind to truth and freedom. I chose it for its narrative of growth and redemption, it contributes to the exhibition's overarching theme, alongside other works, each imbued with its message and significance.
Andreja Milojevic
The piece “Weighing of the Heart”, influenced by my faith and previous work "Opening Of The Mind," explores the significance of having a pure heart. Through intricate and abstract imagery, it conveys the message that true judgment lies in the sincerity of one's heart, transcending superficial appearances. Selected for its deeper meaning, it contributes to a larger thematic narrative, resonating alongside other pieces, each imparting its unique message within the overarching theme.
Andreja Milojevic
The piece “Slice Of Paradise”, inspired by a serene location I frequent, captures the essence of tranquility and spiritual connection. Through abstract imagery, it portrays a slice of paradise, symbolizing the peace found through faith in Christ. Each element chosen reflects a deeper meaning, contributing to a greater thematic tapestry alongside the other works.
Andreja Milojevic
The piece "Chasing Worldly Things" delves into the futile pursuit of materialism and physical perfection. It serves as a poignant commentary on the endless cycle of desire, never finding true contentment. Influenced by faith and a passion for fitness, it dramatically portrays inner turmoil and the quest for fulfillment. Each piece chosen contributes to a greater theme, resonating with deeper meanings that collectively convey a profound message.
Andreja Milojevic
This piece “Spec”, inspired by the vastness of the universe and my faith, seeks to illuminate the intricate design behind existence. Through expansive imagery, it portrays the scale of humanity in the grand scheme of the cosmos, suggesting the presence of an intelligent creator. Chosen for its profound message, it aligns with other works, each contributing to a broader thematic exploration of existence and spirituality.
Madison Korhumel
Throughout my exhibition, a common thread is that all of the soccer players that are depicted have had to go through some kind of discrimination and criticism. One event which resulted in three black English players getting racially abused on social media is the 2020 Euros. After England lost in a penalty shootout in the final of the tournament, the three players who missed their shots, Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, and Bukayo Saka, were all racially discriminated against. Another instance where a player was racially abused can be seen when looking at what Brazilian Vinicius Jr. has had to go through when playing at club team Real Madrid, who was called a monkey by fans at one of his matches. Another player that received criticism for a different reason is English player Aaron Ramsdale, who received criticism when he changed clubs, due to his past clubs all getting relegated. Despite being discriminated against, all of these players were able to overcome the negative things happening around them and be very successful. I selected these artworks because they all deal with discrimination and soccer, and they are also all digital pieces created with Procreate which have a similar style of being very clean, neat, and smooth. The way that I arranged these pieces was so that each column tells the story of each player, except for the second column which combines the two stories of Rashford and Sancho. My artwork connects with the audience because everyone has had a struggle that they have had to deal with in their lives. However, even when it seems like everything is wrong and nothing will help you get out of that hole that you are stuck in, a light will shine through and you will overcome whatever has gotten you down. As I was making these pieces, for each player, I made one piece which communicates the negative things that were said about them, and then one piece which portrays positivity and compliments that were made about each player after they had been discriminated against. Part of this positivity or negativity communicated comes from the words in each of the pieces, which are all quotes from what people posted on social media, or are from letters that were written to the players during their time of struggle. Additionally, a relationship between my artwork and the viewer forms because even though the viewer may have not heard of the player before, they do know what it is like to have to overcome all of the obstacles and struggles that life throws at them, leading to a connection between the viewer and the artwork. The arrangement helps with this connection and understanding of the viewer by the pieces of the same player being in the same column, and by the pieces of the three players who were racially abused after the 2020 Euros all being in the center of the exhibit.
Madison Korhumel
They Told Him To Never Return
Digital Art
30.48 x 30.48 cm
June 2023
This piece depicts the soccer player Bukayo Saka moments after he missed a penalty shot that cost England the chance to win the 2020 Euros. Because of this, he received racial abuse on social media. My intention in creating this piece was to show how racism and discrimination isn’t going away anytime soon, and unfortunately, those who should be seen as strong and brave pay the price.
Madison Korhumel
So He Came Back A Star
Digital Art
30.48 x 30.48 cm
March 2024
Despite receiving so much abuse after the Euros, Saka was able to overcome this abuse and he became a vital player to his club team, Arsenal. The scene that I was trying to depict in this piece was Saka celebrating after scoring his first goal for his club after the Euros. Furthermore, my intention in creating this piece was to demonstrate how no matter what life throws at you, you can overcome it and succeed.
Madison Korhumel
Shamed
Digital Art
Size: 22.86 x 27.94 cm
July 2023
Marcus Rashford is another soccer player who suffered from racial abuse after missing a penalty in the 2020 Euros. My intention in creating this piece was to show to a further extent the kind of things that were said about the three players who missed. I would describe this piece as being very clean and neat. I would also say that the variety of greens that I used in writing the words adds to the detail of the piece.
Madison Korhumel
So Called Useless
Digital Art
30.48 x 20.32 cm
August 2023
Another player who received abuse from the 2020 Euros is Jadon Sancho. The scene depicted in this piece is the moment when Sancho’s penalty was saved by the goalkeeper. My intention in creating this piece was to give the audience an idea of what the event looked like, and I tried to establish the setting further and capture a different kind of scene. I would describe this piece as being very smooth and clean.
Madison Korhumel
United Together
Digital Art
30.48 x 20.32 cm
December 2023
This piece depicts Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho together. I decided to have these two players together because they are on the same club team, Manchester United. My intention in creating this piece was to portray how the two players were able to ignore the hate that was being sent to them, and they were able to have success at their club team. Furthermore, while there was a lot of negativity being sent to the players, there was also positivity and kindness, which is seen in the background.
Madison Korhumel
“FRAUD”
Digital Art
20.32 x 29.21 cm
January 2024
This artwork depicts Aaron Ramsdale, a goalkeeper for England and the club team Arsenal. When Ramsdale first moved to Arsenal, fans sent him abusive messages on social media because the clubs he had been at in the past had been relegated. With this piece, I intended to communicate how even something like past clubs can result in a soccer player receiving abuse. In order to portray this, I drew the jerseys of his past clubs overtaking the Arsenal jersey.
Madison Korhumel
Loved At Last
Digital Art
20.32 x 20.32 cm
February 2024
With this piece, I depicted Ramsdale celebrating saving a shot on goal. In the background, I included positive things that people said about Ramsdale, and by using a variety of greens, I was able to add more detail to the piece. By making this piece, I intended to communicate the idea of overcoming the negative things that are said about you to succeed and achieve greater things. I would describe this piece as being very clean and organized, while also having a lot of detail in the figure.
Madison Korhumel
Welcome To The Jungle
Digital Art
30.48 x 20.32 cm
February 2024
By making this piece, I depicted Brazilian soccer player Vinicius Jr. being called a monkey during a game that he was playing for Real Madrid in May of 2023. As some of the fans started calling him this name, he began pointing them out. Furthermore, the vines and plants growing around him symbolize how despite fans telling him things like “go back to the jungle”, he was immediately taken to the jungle the minute the fans started calling him this name.
Madison Korhumel
Fighting Against Racism
Digital Art
34.29 x 27.94 cm
March 2024
With this piece, I portrayed Vinicius Jr. celebrating despite all of the abuse he had received. In the background, I included posts that he had made on social media after being called names, which say how this has happened before. By posting these things on social media, Vinicius Jr. communicates how LaLiga, the Spanish soccer league, needs to do something about the racist fans. By making this piece, I demonstrated how everyone has the right to stand up for themselves and what they believe in.
Casey Leonard
The intention of this body of work is to create a dreamy, whimsical feeling and an appreciation for the world around us. I picked these pieces because they are very coherent together and all have a similar light color scheme. They also all have themes of nature and evoke the same type of mood when viewed. My other pieces also somewhat fit this theme, but I did not choose to include them because they drew attention to themselves in a bad way when shown with my other pieces. The pieces I chose were not necessarily my strongest individually, but together, they were the strongest body of work. Since I used many different mediums, embroidery, acrylic, sewing, and colored pencil, I had to make sure all of my pieces flowed and fit together somehow. I was always intending to create that dreamy, whimsical feeling, but after a few pieces I found myself gravitating towards lighter colors, which overall ended up helping my pieces work together. My exhibition is arranged in this way because I feel that it highlights each piece individually while looking cohesive and visually appealing. I had to work most of my pieces around the dress form, and after that, I mostly focused on the visual weight of the colors and shapes. I wanted to separate the embroidered pieces somewhat, and make sure nothing looked off balance. The best way to do this is the order I have created, because the pink and other colors in the middle piece tie everything together and balance the exhibition along with the positioning of the embroidery pieces. The arrangement and selection of this body of work is overall the best way that I could convey and contribute to the meaning and purpose of my artwork.
Casey Leonard
“The Koi Pond”
Embroidery, watercolor
13.5 x 13.5 cm
December 5th, 2023
This piece was created to depict a peaceful scene in a unique way. The piece shows a Koi fish pond through the lens of a Polaroid picture. I used watercolor in the background to make the embroidery details stand out. The piece fits in very well with the rest of my body of work and evokes similar feelings of calm.
Casey Leonard
“Canvas Canopy”
Embroidery
18 x 18 cm
December 14th, 2023
I created this piece to depict a peaceful, serene spring setting with pops of color. I wanted the peace to evoke a quiet, pleasant feeling, and be visually appealing. This piece works well with my body of work because of its tone, color scheme, and style.
Casey Leonard
“In The Clouds”
Acrylic on Canvas
15.5 x 15.5 cm
January 18th, 2024
This piece was intended to create a bright, dreamy landscape somewhere you would not usually expect it. There are many small elements hidden within the piece to make it visually interesting and shape the scene. I used acrylic on canvas to create this piece, and added more texture to the clouds to make the piece whimsical and fun, as well as elements like people sleeping in the clouds. This piece fits my body of work because of the color scheme and mood.
Casey Leonard
“Springtime Delight”
Sewing
68.5 x 35.56 cm
February 14th, 2024
This dress was created to evoke feelings of comfort and peace. The flowy bottom of the dress and the light floral patterned fabric overlay make the dress communicate these emotions. The emotion it evokes and the colors and pattern of the fabric made it a good choice for my exhibition.
Casey Leonard
“Going Up”
Embroidery
15.5 x 15.5 cm
February 25th, 2023
I created this as my last embroidery piece. It has a more simple feel to it to work well with the rest of my pieces. I incorporated some brighter colors along with the light cool tones. This piece helps connect all of my pieces, with a common symbol of clouds and nature. The pink tones help unify the body of work because of the pink accents in other pieces and the pink foreground in my last piece.
Casey Leonard
“Out of Whack”
Sharpie, colored pencil
28 x 20 cm
March 3rd, 2024
This piece explores distorted proportions and items used in ways they would not usually be. I used a pink spirally pattern for the ground, with green hills in the background. The piece is meant to be a fun, colorful depiction of a scene made from everyday objects. This piece also shows nature and light colors like my other pieces, so I created it as my final piece to tie all my pieces together.
My body of work represents my love for surreal aspects hidden in plain sight. For my whole life, my imagination has run wild and made up things that aren’t necessarily there, especially as a child. I decided to explore this part of myself, creating these ideas into art through a variety of different mediums. Many of my pieces reflect the question “am I really alone?” They explore the mystery of whether everything is as it seems. My color palette unifies my body of work, as blues and purples often symbolizes reflection and darkness. Along with that, night commonly brings a sense of unease, which is why I featured a night sky in almost all of my pieces. Diving deeper into life’s mysteries is one of my passions, and I’m glad I was able to explore this concept through my art.
Annabella Rizzo
“cosmic halo”
Digital
20.32 x 25.4 cm
December 8, 2023
I created this piece with the purpose of creating a literal visual out of a figure of speech. People often say “the world doesn’t revolve around you,” and I’ve always pictured this exact image when people say it. This piece was the base for my thread and established my moody, reflective exhibition all together.
Annabella
Annabella Rizzo
“alone?”
Acrylic on canvas
20.32 x 25.4 cm
December 14, 2023
When visiting Georgia, I drove past a girl standing under a streetlight. Since then, I’ve wanted to create a piece based on her. I love adding elements to my art that don’t necessarily make sense. The shadow behind the girl evokes the thought: are we ever really alone? The deep colors contribute to this mystery, and the willow trees create intricate emotions.
Annabella
Annabella Rizzo
“whiskered sonata”
Watercolor collage on paper
20.32 x 21.59 cm
Date: 1/18/24
I fell in love with watercolor after experimenting with it in class. Wanting to maintain my theme of variety with my pieces, I decided to create a watercolor piece. Inspired by Eric Carle, I painted and cut out each aspect of the piece and glued them together to create a collage. Both the cat and piano mean a lot to me. To maintain my surreal thread from my other pieces, I added the shadow of a ghost sitting at the piano, symbolizing that not everything is as it seems.
Annabella
Annabella Rizzo
“spiral serenity”
Crochet
26.67 x 58.42 cm
February 5, 2024
In the past year, I’ve grown very connected with the art of crochet. Using my color palette and acquired knowledge, I designed and created a bag unique to me. This was strongly influenced by my past projects, as I wanted to make something solely based on my own design. I always feel extremely connected to bags I create, as I take them everywhere with me. The texture and emphasis of the blue against the dark gray brings serenity and comfort, something that I think a bag should always possess.
Annabella
Annabella Rizzo
“two-faced”
Digital
20.32 x 30.48 cm
February 23, 2024
When alone and faced with a mirror, there is no way of knowing what it looks like when we turn around. In a way, it symbolizes the different sides of people and how they can change when not looking at them. I decided to create a piece based on this idea that people can have multiple identities. Its eerie vibe and color scheme fits perfectly with my thread.
Annabella
Annabella Rizzo
“midnight solitude”
Acrylic on canvas
30.48 x 40.64 cm
February 29, 2024
For my final piece, I wanted to bring a sense of calm compared to my other pieces. My previous pieces all had some sort of surreal factor to them, but I wanted this one to portray a peaceful end. Night has always been my favorite time of day; it’s when I can fully relax and be myself. I used myself as a reference, showing my comfort with night. My cat, Jingle, is also featured. I love this piece and think it was the perfect finale to my exhibition.
Annabella
Annabella Rizzo
Sal Grando
I thought this format was the best as it allows for my proudest pieces to be at the center and quickly grab the attention of the audience,. Throughout the process of creating these works, I’ve faced quite a few bumps in the road; naturally, some of those were my ongoing battle with finding the motivation to actually complete an artwork plus have it show something I truly wanted. When I first created one of these pieces, I was very happy, as it’d been something I’d finally liked to look at despite the struggle to find and create it. My art is very inconsistent and always changing, I have never settled on a particular art style or color pallet simply because of how fast my mind changes so it was a bit of a struggle to fit them all into one connecting theme. I think my choices with these pieces in the end were a good selection that connects to one another fairly well. How they can lure sailors to their deaths, can be an omen for storms. Their wild freedom, rebellious spirits and ferocious independence. The duality of them is something enduring to me. The relationship between all artworks is the continuous mermaid symbolism as well as the pattern of continuously contrasting colors of each work. Maybe darker values on one and brighter on the other. Throughout this whole process there were a lot of ups and downs but I overall enjoyed it.
Title: Woods
Medium: Graphite
Size in cm: 8 x 12cm
Date: 11/13/23
I used graphite because of how much I can smudge it. wanted to convey some sort of unease in the lady’s face that works with the background. I redid this piece several times with different mediums and graphite is definitely the best one for it! The fabric folding of the clothes was my absolute favorite to do.
Title: Mermaid Tea
Medium: Digital
Size in cm: 8 x 14 cm
Date: 1/4/24
I wanted to create something fun and freeing, something new and different from my previous work that fully allowed me to be creative and expand on my abilities as an artist. This piece is one of my best that was really bright and cheerful exactly like how I’d brainstormed it to be. It created an outlet for me to just pour my ideas in and add even more little details that make me extremely happy
Title: Moon
Medium: Digital
Size in cm: 11 x 14
Date: 3/11/14
I created this piece while thinking about the connection between the moon and earth’s tides. The push and pull between the moon and the waves.
Title: Floating
Medium: Digital
Size in cm: 12 x 12 cm
Date: 10/22/23
I really had no intention for this piece at all other than practicing lighting and hair texturing. It was hard to figure out how to accurately shade the lighting with the brush tool, as well as get in the right colors to properly show that shading.
Chloe Mattic
Awe (Piece 1)
Acrylic paint on wood canvas
22cmx22xm
1-x-24
My original intention for this piece was to pass the sense of wonder and enrapturement (?) that I felt taking the original photo onto the viewer. My adoration (?) for marine life served as the impetus for my entire body of work, but I believe this piece in particular truly captures that feeling and draws the viewer in. During the process of choosing which pieces to place in my body of work and which to exclude, the inclusion of this painting was indisputable.
Chloe Mattic
Lanterns (piece 2)
Acrylic paint on wood canvas
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I believe that this piece’s charm has a lot more to do with its likeness to the reference photo than anything. The use of space and color matches the original far better than I could have hoped for. This painting was based on the first photo that I took pride in. No matter how similar the end result looked, I imagine I’d have been fond of it regardless. To me, this painting almost symbolizes the beginning of my love for photography, as its reference photo sparked my interest in the first place.
Chloe Mattic
Lightbulb (Piece 3)
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Out of each piece from my body of work, this is the one I had the most fun painting. Taking the original photo was frustrating beyond belief (this species of jellyfish tends to move rapidly throughout the water), but the accomplishment at taking a successful shot was worth every failed attempt. The space between each jellyfish and the deep blue background adds more depth than I expected.
Chloe Mattic
Hurricane (Piece 4)
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Portraying a sense of depth, space, and light for this painting was one of the more difficult things regarding my body of work. Each fish being so clustered together and the shadows overtaking the outer edges of the photo provided an obstacle during the process. All in all, I think adding beams of light to the background before painting the actual fish facilitated things.
Chloe Mattic
Spark (Piece 4)
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I did my best to incorporate the explosiveness and brightness of the reference photo into this piece. The darkness of the background helped me along, as any lighter colors would have popped and provided contrast to the black void behind the subject.
Samantha Azer
The pieces that I have made are all dedicated to environmental impacts and pollution. After lots of research and the ways how these types of pollution cause more damage than there was to know especially with the ways how they are caused, i inspired each piece from this. One piece relates to another from the chemicals that are released to the air, building cities in preserved areas, spills in the ocean, and a lot more major impacts. I chose these impacts to inspire all of my pieces from how it is constantly ongoing issues and will continue to be. Especially with having the majority of my pieces made out clay it was a lot of trials and errors making them and having the freedom to make them in any way that I wanted. It's something that is not brought to attention by many but in specific locations these impacts are large and affecting the way how others live through it including the wildlife. There is no specific intention of any of the pieces each viewer can see it in their own way and take the message they think the piece is showing to them, the main goal was to make the piece dedicated to one thing and the viewer can take any message they want from it.
Samantha Azer
Title: Chemical Sky
Medium: clay/ceramics
Size in cm: 19x16
Date: October 17, 2023
The intention of this piece is to show the major chemicals that are released in the fumes which then get out into the atmosphere and cause many threats such as many lung issues, cancers, diseases, etc. In areas where air pollution is greater these threats are always out there which is the reason for the streaks of red and dark theme hinting to how it can deeply put an effect out.
Samantha Azer
Title: Wave of Spills
Medium: clay/ceramics
Size in cm: 8x9
Date: December 12, 2023
The main known pollution in water/ocean is typically plastic but that is something that seems to be brought up more than oil spills. There have been many times where water was able to catch fire from the oil spills and how it also impacts the wildlife living in the waters.
Samantha Azer
Title: Dark and Light
Medium: clay/ceramics
Size in cm: 18x16
Date: January 22, 2024
This piece has been one of the favorites from how I was able to show the differences between a natural environment that gets destroyed to be replaced with buildings and causes light pollution. Stars seen in the city are nothing compared to how they would look in a light pollution free sky. The amount of lights that cities use dims out the sky and behind the dark skies is something a lot more than what you can really see not being in one.
Samantha Azer
Title: Toxicated Roots
Medium: clay/ceramics
Size in cm: 7x7
Date: February 27, 2024
This piece is made to seem normal on the top but below it there are many effects that are under the ground. Soil pollution is one that can also have big effects on health such as the damage it can cause to organs and the skin diseases it can cause from the chemicals that are taken in from the roots.
Samantha Azer
Title: Floral Blooms
Medium: clay/ceramics
Size in cm: 27x13
Date: September 21, 2023
This piece is made to stand out compared to all of the other pieces. This one is the complete opposite in color and what is used in it. This piece is used to show how the environment can really look but can get affected in any way. This piece has many ways of showing how real nature can look if in the right environment free from any of the other pollutants listed.
De’Imin-Dezbaa’ Dearhouse
My pieces are about decay, progression, trajectory, and growth. Many are mood-based, or experience-influenced. Some desolate and some energetic, to appreciate the transition to spring. My pieces are connected by nature, color, organic shapes, energy, and direction. My pieces attempt to replicate the raw vulnerability of emotions in ordinary environments, and savor these feelings as they bubble over. My pieces tackle the issue of hyper-efficiency and the effects it has on the new generation.
“Flower Child”
dedicated to Celeste