In my recent work I have decided to explore myself. This self-exploration included questioning my taste and imagery I find myself returning to in both my work and daily surroundings. As often occurs one can be defined by their chosen surroundings and in such thought process so could I do in this series. I found myself surrounded in pattern, both ornate and simple in my clothing, bedding, and art there seemed to be a pattern, patterns. Attempting to pin point this origin or pattern in my life I traced it back to my earliest childhood memories of my local Greek Orthodox Church. The ornate decoration leaving no space uncovered included iconography of saints and pattern in all surrounding space. Such pattern was not limited to the walls but it covered stained glass, both priest and alter boy’s garments, and even one of the holiest pieces in the church, the chalice. These rich colors used to portray such iconography is mimicked in my own work and directly linked to my high regard for such decorative style. This series I have created delves into my past, present, and future for as I am ever evolving so is my series.
this one is a bit rough still for my liking i keep flipping around..
Vaz, go for simplicity:...."I find myself surrounded by pattern, both ornate and simple--in my clothing, my home and my art, there seems to be an obsession with pattern.Attempting to pin point this fascination with pattern in my life I traced it back to my earliest childhood memories of my local Greek Orthodox Church. The ornate decoration leaving no space uncovered included iconography of saints and pattern in all surrounding space. Such pattern was not limited to the walls but it covered stained glass, both priest and alter boy’s garments, and even one of the holiest pieces in the church, the chalice. These rich colors used to portray such iconography is mimicked in my own work and directly linked to my high regard for such decorative style. This series I have created delves into my past, present, and future for as I am ever evolving so is my series. " keep polishing it!
Vaz, go for simplicity:...."I find myself surrounded by pattern, both ornate and simple--in my clothing, my home and my art, there seems to be an obsession with pattern.Attempting to pin point this fascination with pattern in my life I traced it back to my earliest childhood memories of my local Greek Orthodox Church. The ornate decoration leaving no space uncovered included iconography of saints and pattern in all surrounding space. Such pattern was not limited to the walls but it covered stained glass, both priest and alter boy’s garments, and even one of the holiest pieces in the church, the chalice. These rich colors used to portray such iconography is mimicked in my own work and directly linked to my high regard for such decorative style. This series I have created delves into my past, present, and future for as I am ever evolving so is my series. " keep polishing it!
Many religious myths, legends and stories (including those of Osiris, Buddha, Moses and Christ)follow a similar structure: departure, initiation, return. In his book the Hero With a thousand Faces, Joseph Campbell delves into this archetypal hero myth and describes many examples of the structure from different cultures. Through my art I would like to examine the heroic journey as it applies to my own self perception. I am using abstracted images of the female form to create a personal reconciliation with the physical nature of the human experience and express this through three images in the structure of departure, initiation and return. Each image uses a similar color pallet of teals, golds and various shades of yellow. I am attracted to the color yellow because it often symbolizes both youth and decay. The dualistic meanings of the color yellow compliment the theme of "return." Through the medium of screen printing, I am able to create many copies of images with elegant line work and bold, blocked out color. I wish to emphasize the contour and shapes created by the line of my images by cutting them out and mounting them on solid backgrounds. This method of display will also allow the cast shadows to become part of the image. According to Campbell, "Artists are magical helpers. Evoking symbols and motifs that connect us to our deeper selves, they can help us along the heroic journey of our own lives."
Four years ago, I accidentally discovered I could draw. Whether it was out of sheer boredom or procrastination, I do not recall, but my friends and I picked up drawing in our spare time. For me, it all started with a red mushroom, an image that in time developed into a variety of seemingly series of psychedelic sharpie drawings. The therapeutic act of creating these detailed line drawings became routine; I would often find myself in a bubble of concentration, music and putting sharpie to paper. During the time of creation my thoughts, non-thoughts, or feelings seem so important, but I can never seem to find what each line represents when I look back at them. Pages covered with feelings, feelings that seem to get lost in the ink as it imprints into the paper. For some time I thought that my drawings were nothing more than a psychedelic parade of black ink on white paper. In the development of taking my drawings and rendering them into the medium of screen printing I have been able to in some ways remove myself. To see my artwork in a new form and therefore seeing in a state of less attachment, has made me realize that my artwork does not express one specific emotion but rather is the subconsciousness. The part of the mind in which I am not fully aware of but it influences my actions and feelings. These pieces convey the subconsciousness through a sense of visual chaos meets defined straight line. Although it may seem to be chaotic mixtures of blues, gold, and white there is actually structure, and a feeling of purpose within the pieces. A purpose that keeps my subconscious sane.
On the first day of my creative writing poetry class this past semester, Professor Carol Frost told me that every poem begins at spontaneous overflow of emotion. The idea has been stuck in my head ever since. I think it is not just poetry but any illustration, painting, stencil, print: they all start there. The reason I consider myself to be an artist is that every time I bottle up my emotions, someone agitates the carbonation, cracks the seal, and it explodes. I fall so easily prey to overflow. There’s something poured into my images that could never be verbally expressed though commands expression. This specific series I have been working on over the last few months is a timeline of my emotional state this semester. They are each born out of anxiety and pain I could not ignore. The first image revolves around my lack of success quitting smoking cigarettes. I also consider it to be my most obviously readable print. The skeletal outline of a human hand is intended to reflect what I most fear: that I will not stop until it kills me. The hand is holding a lit cigarette. The ashtray, containing a few used butts, implies that this is not the skeletal hand’s first cigarette. It is instead a creature of habit.
The image I printed following the skeletal hand does not read as plainly, tying it tied in more closely with work I have done in the past. The subject is female. She has big, bold lips that a black gap and white front teeth barely separate (as if she is exhaling or else pursed holding a breathe). Her hair falls in a way to frame the section of her face being depicted and the shoulders, which in turn frame the body. This image fits into my series in the way it was drawn. I drew exaggerated lines to create the stencil. That graphic style I believe lends well to screen-printing. The tattoo over the girl’s breast is a continuation of a thought from the first print. It reads (though backwards, assume she is facing a mirror) “DamnAge”. It means two things. The first: she is damned by her youthful naivety. The longer she lives, the younger she feels. The more experience she gains, the less she is sure of. The second: similarity in sound between “damn age” and “damage”. The tattoo is placed over her wounded heart. From her luscious lips down to her skin-baring tank top, the image is meant to radiate lust, desire, and sexuality. The clash and humor is in the true pain, the damage she masks behind “pride” and a confident exterior. She owns herself, but the people who have permeated the inked wall shield over her heart share in that ownership. My third and final illustration is the darkest, therefore the most serious image. There is an intentional progression of darkened meaning from the first image until the third. The skeletal hand, though sickly humored, is essentially fun to look at. It was intended to be. The second image, while possibly still fun, is meant to evoke a more individualized illusion to self-torment. However, there is still lightheartedness to fall back on in that second image, given the vibrant color choice and impermeable exterior the subject fronts. The skeletal hand alludes at what the tattooed girl draws you in to and the final image envelops you in: life’s shadows, darkness. A young boy hangs by his right hand from a ledge of unknown height, an anchor pulling him down quickly as a balloon sails away, soon to float off of the page. The anchor plays dual roles: representation of the weight of living and a symbol for the college he goes to. The anchor is symbolic of the life he is living, the balloon of his potential, and the gap between them of sinking beneath that potential. The hand gripping the ledge holds symbolism as well: the hand is hope and the ledge is success. So long as he still has one hand to hang from, no matter how heavy the weight bearing down on him may be, he impedes the ultimate fall. This is my final example of spontaneous overflow of emotion in this series.
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In my recent work I have decided to explore myself. This self-exploration included questioning my taste and imagery I find myself returning to in both my work and daily surroundings. As often occurs one can be defined by their chosen surroundings and in such thought process so could I do in this series. I found myself surrounded in pattern, both ornate and simple in my clothing, bedding, and art there seemed to be a pattern, patterns. Attempting to pin point this origin or pattern in my life I traced it back to my earliest childhood memories of my local Greek Orthodox Church. The ornate decoration leaving no space uncovered included iconography of saints and pattern in all surrounding space. Such pattern was not limited to the walls but it covered stained glass, both priest and alter boy’s garments, and even one of the holiest pieces in the church, the chalice. These rich colors used to portray such iconography is mimicked in my own work and directly linked to my high regard for such decorative style. This series I have created delves into my past, present, and future for as I am ever evolving so is my series.
this one is a bit rough still for my liking i keep flipping around..
Vaz, go for simplicity:...."I find myself surrounded by pattern, both ornate and simple--in my clothing, my home and my art, there seems to be an obsession with pattern.Attempting to pin point this fascination with pattern in my life I traced it back to my earliest childhood memories of my local Greek Orthodox Church. The ornate decoration leaving no space uncovered included iconography of saints and pattern in all surrounding space. Such pattern was not limited to the walls but it covered stained glass, both priest and alter boy’s garments, and even one of the holiest pieces in the church, the chalice. These rich colors used to portray such iconography is mimicked in my own work and directly linked to my high regard for such decorative style. This series I have created delves into my past, present, and future for as I am ever evolving so is my series. " keep polishing it!
Vaz, go for simplicity:...."I find myself surrounded by pattern, both ornate and simple--in my clothing, my home and my art, there seems to be an obsession with pattern.Attempting to pin point this fascination with pattern in my life I traced it back to my earliest childhood memories of my local Greek Orthodox Church. The ornate decoration leaving no space uncovered included iconography of saints and pattern in all surrounding space. Such pattern was not limited to the walls but it covered stained glass, both priest and alter boy’s garments, and even one of the holiest pieces in the church, the chalice. These rich colors used to portray such iconography is mimicked in my own work and directly linked to my high regard for such decorative style. This series I have created delves into my past, present, and future for as I am ever evolving so is my series. " keep polishing it!
Many religious myths, legends and stories (including those of Osiris, Buddha, Moses and Christ)follow a similar structure: departure, initiation, return. In his book the Hero With a thousand Faces, Joseph Campbell delves into this archetypal hero myth and describes many examples of the structure from different cultures.
Through my art I would like to examine the heroic journey as it applies to my own self perception. I am using abstracted images of the female form to create a personal reconciliation with the physical nature of the human experience and express this through three images in the structure of departure, initiation and return. Each image uses a similar color pallet of teals, golds and various shades of yellow. I am attracted to the color yellow because it often symbolizes both youth and decay. The dualistic meanings of the color yellow compliment the theme of "return."
Through the medium of screen printing, I am able to create many copies of images with elegant line work and bold, blocked out color. I wish to emphasize the contour and shapes created by the line of my images by cutting them out and mounting them on solid backgrounds. This method of display will also allow the cast shadows to become part of the image.
According to Campbell, "Artists are magical helpers. Evoking symbols and motifs that connect us to our deeper selves, they can help us along the heroic journey of our own lives."
Four years ago, I accidentally discovered I could draw. Whether it was out of sheer boredom or procrastination, I do not recall, but my friends and I picked up drawing in our spare time. For me, it all started with a red mushroom, an image that in time developed into a variety of seemingly series of psychedelic sharpie drawings. The therapeutic act of creating these detailed line drawings became routine; I would often find myself in a bubble of concentration, music and putting sharpie to paper. During the time of creation my thoughts, non-thoughts, or feelings seem so important, but I can never seem to find what each line represents when I look back at them. Pages covered with feelings, feelings that seem to get lost in the ink as it imprints into the paper. For some time I thought that my drawings were nothing more than a psychedelic parade of black ink on white paper.
In the development of taking my drawings and rendering them into the medium of screen printing I have been able to in some ways remove myself. To see my artwork in a new form and therefore seeing in a state of less attachment, has made me realize that my artwork does not express one specific emotion but rather is the subconsciousness. The part of the mind in which I am not fully aware of but it influences my actions and feelings. These pieces convey the subconsciousness through a sense of visual chaos meets defined straight line. Although it may seem to be chaotic mixtures of blues, gold, and white there is actually structure, and a feeling of purpose within the pieces. A purpose that keeps my subconscious sane.
On the first day of my creative writing poetry class this past semester, Professor Carol Frost told me that every poem begins at spontaneous overflow of emotion. The idea has been stuck in my head ever since. I think it is not just poetry but any illustration, painting, stencil, print: they all start there. The reason I consider myself to be an artist is that every time I bottle up my emotions, someone agitates the carbonation, cracks the seal, and it explodes. I fall so easily prey to overflow. There’s something poured into my images that could never be verbally expressed though commands expression.
This specific series I have been working on over the last few months is a timeline of my emotional state this semester. They are each born out of anxiety and pain I could not ignore. The first image revolves around my lack of success quitting smoking cigarettes. I also consider it to be my most obviously readable print. The skeletal outline of a human hand is intended to reflect what I most fear: that I will not stop until it kills me. The hand is holding a lit cigarette. The ashtray, containing a few used butts, implies that this is not the skeletal hand’s first cigarette. It is instead a creature of habit.
The image I printed following the skeletal hand does not read as plainly, tying it tied in more closely with work I have done in the past. The subject is female. She has big, bold lips that a black gap and white front teeth barely separate (as if she is exhaling or else pursed holding a breathe). Her hair falls in a way to frame the section of her face being depicted and the shoulders, which in turn frame the body. This image fits into my series in the way it was drawn. I drew exaggerated lines to create the stencil. That graphic style I believe lends well to screen-printing. The tattoo over the girl’s breast is a continuation of a thought from the first print. It reads (though backwards, assume she is facing a mirror) “DamnAge”. It means two things. The first: she is damned by her youthful naivety. The longer she lives, the younger she feels. The more experience she gains, the less she is sure of. The second: similarity in sound between “damn age” and “damage”. The tattoo is placed over her wounded heart. From her luscious lips down to her skin-baring tank top, the image is meant to radiate lust, desire, and sexuality. The clash and humor is in the true pain, the damage she masks behind “pride” and a confident exterior. She owns herself, but the people who have permeated the inked wall shield over her heart share in that ownership.
My third and final illustration is the darkest, therefore the most serious image. There is an intentional progression of darkened meaning from the first image until the third. The skeletal hand, though sickly humored, is essentially fun to look at. It was intended to be. The second image, while possibly still fun, is meant to evoke a more individualized illusion to self-torment. However, there is still lightheartedness to fall back on in that second image, given the vibrant color choice and impermeable exterior the subject fronts. The skeletal hand alludes at what the tattooed girl draws you in to and the final image envelops you in: life’s shadows, darkness. A young boy hangs by his right hand from a ledge of unknown height, an anchor pulling him down quickly as a balloon sails away, soon to float off of the page. The anchor plays dual roles: representation of the weight of living and a symbol for the college he goes to. The anchor is symbolic of the life he is living, the balloon of his potential, and the gap between them of sinking beneath that potential. The hand gripping the ledge holds symbolism as well: the hand is hope and the ledge is success. So long as he still has one hand to hang from, no matter how heavy the weight bearing down on him may be, he impedes the ultimate fall. This is my final example of spontaneous overflow of emotion in this series.
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