Digital Commons Network^™

A Showcase Of Digital Design, Grant Hoffman

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

As an artist, my design is heavily inspired by a lifelong passion for creativity and desire to effectively communicate with an audience. My work tends to lean into the realm of swiss design, characterized by simplistic layout and bold san-serif typography. The use of neutral tones and bold hierarchy contribute in building an effective but unique way of communication to the viewer. Oftentimes, my work conveys complex ideas that provoke the viewer to deeper understanding behind a seemingly superficial piece of work. I enjoy exploring the concepts of reliance on technology, false imitation and abstraction within a composition.

I find …

Drifting Through It All - Caitlyn Cooper, Caitlyn Cooper

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

My body of work combines Graphic Design and UI/UX design to investigate and problem solve how to make well-designed products that are interesting and accessible to the broader public. UI/UX work has allowed me to design with intention, finding purpose in my choices and making the experience easy to navigate for the end-user. Accessibility is not an afterthought but a cornerstone of the creative process. Whether crafting a website, a mobile app, or a digital interface, each project must be approached with a deep understanding of its context, audience, and objectives, ensuring that every design choice aligns seamlessly with overarching …

Drifting Through It All, Cross Berry

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

Mimicry is an important adaptation for survival in the natural world. In nature this comes in varying forms, such as a stick bug that camouflages itself from predators, or how the Myrmarachne camouflages itself as an ant to ambush its prey. Mimicry in our childhood allows us to enhance our creative development. During my childhood, I often tried to mimic the way my cousin would create fantastical creatures. These creations gave me a sense of comfort and confidence in my own imagination, which allowed me to explore design and the way life functions. In my day to day life, I …

Through All Of It, Thomas Townsend Jr

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

My art is about feelings and thoughts that can’t be expressed with words. I want to make art so that my audience can understand the importance of the places I have been and their significance to me. The drawing I recently made, Self-portrait, is about how I am dealing emotionally with familial loss. In my piece Family Museum, the background was made to have a museum or memorial feel, displaying two rooms for my passed family members. In addition, the value of contrast helps elevate the understanding of depth and space, giving it a more authentic look.

Listening to music …

"Drifting Through It All", Jayson Coley

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

In my exploration of abstract and portrait photography, I aim to transcend the confines of traditional visual representation, delving into the realm of the intangible and the unseen. Through a careful interplay of light, shadow, form, and color, I strive to capture the essence of emotions, concepts, and fleeting moments that elude direct description.

Abstract photography allows me to break free from the constraints of literal interpretation, inviting viewers to embark on a journey of subjective interpretation and personal connection. By distilling the familiar into the unfamiliar, I create compositions that challenge preconceived notions and encourage a contemplative engagement with …

Teresa Hill Ba/Bs Drifting Through It All Exhibition Spring 2024, Teresa Hill

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

Among other themes, the idea of nature reclaiming what it had lost to humanity is what has been driving my work recently. The evidence of it appears all around us; wandering past run-down homes with choking vines and knee-high weeds, traveling past old gas stations with rust-covered pillars, even old gardens left in disrepair for the wilderness to take back. I’ve been surrounded by older buildings and lived in places filled with greenery, and the interaction the buildings and plant-life have is so interesting to me. In my eyes, it makes the buildings have a new purpose outside of keeping …

The Essence Of Introspection: Miranda Tynes, Miranda Tynes

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

Artist Statement

My name is Miranda Tynes and I am a multiple medium artist. I have enjoyed painting, ceramics, and woodworking so far. These disciplines are very different from each other, but it is nice to work a different part of the brain, eye, or hands to create in these different mediums. With painting I work my brain and eyes for color and composition, with ceramics my hands and eyes for form and movement, and with woodworking my brain and hands for the process, physical work and attention to detail. I also like experimenting with adding separate materials to each …

The Essence Of Introspection, Mahaila Pinchot, Mahaila Pinchot

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

The work I create is experimental and stylized. I like to use certain art making processes such as photography or ceramics to document different events or emotions that are going on in my own personal life. The concept of taking something common and turning it into tangible art is a topic I am passionate about and continuously exploring. This particular body of work is a celebration of my journey working through my own personal experiences and highlights. As well as a way to honor my life, past and present.

The imagery used in these photographs are inspired by places that …

Essence Of Introspection, Olivia Swaidner

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

Olivia Swaidner

This past year of my life, I have seen hardships and sorrow like I never imagined I could. Taking steps forward and continuing to photograph has been an outlet of expression and motivation to help keep me moving forward. With my experience in this medium, I have found that the process itself is where I find freedom. Especially when dealing with analog photography, the process to create a final image is long with many intentional decisions made along the way. My passion for photographing nature comes from being raised in the open fields and dense woods of western …

The Essence Of Introspection, Rebecca Curtis

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

Fantasy was a household theme during my childhood. It appeared in the form of unicorn figurines, a fairy mural on my bedroom wall, a healthy obsession with Amy Brown, a love of Sci-fi movies, and regular Dungeons and Dragons games with my parents. After experiences including sexual abuse, divorce, coming out, and my son’s autism diagnosis my art made a metamorphosis from fantasy to reality. My current work explores the positive and negative feelings associated with all of those personal events.

Uniquely raw, figurative works combine themes of love and trauma into my recent prints, paintings, and ceramics. Taking notes …

The Essence Of Introspection, Molly Ramsey

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

My childhood home was built in the 1940s and thus it had an exceeding number of nooks and crannies that accented the home's personality. Although the house was beautiful it was also old causing it to have a vast amount of work to upkeep, and as a child, I dreamed of moving to a different home because of this. My work is now focused on the architectural structures of my childhood home and how these memorable spaces were used.

Printmaking and specifically relief with its direct carving, allows me to watch my designs come to life in a way that …

The Essence Of Introspection, Skyler Pointer

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

In my youth, I grew up watching cartoons and I mean a lot of them. Animation has always been very important to me as I am fascinated by how we give characters movement and how it gives them a personality. Some people might look at these characters and see more than what others see in the sense that a viewer could assume how these characters are supposed to act based on how they walk or how their arms move. The storytelling that we can do with these characters gives us almost unlimited possibilities with where we can go within this …

Unique Perspectives, Kylie Conaway

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

Through my work I strive to create a sense of completeness and contentment. I make my art for others so that they can have something meaningful in this chaotic world. Ceramics is one of my main focuses because I enjoy the amount of control I feel when I throw something on a wheel. The tranquility and peacefulness I feel from it can't match anything else. In day to day life I am a very unorganized, scattered brain student; but as soon as I start working on ceramics or photography I can become the most serious person you have ever met. …

Unique Perspectives, Michael Crabtree

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

Michael Crabtree

Artist Statement

I make drawings that communicate my experiences through the lens of illustration and narrative artmaking. Drawing is a foundational artistic practice, and I enjoy its simplicity and practicality. Pastels have become a direct means to add expressive color to my drawings and create the atmosphere that I aim to capture. My process begins with a memory or feeling about an experience. I will usually have a picture in my head that I am trying to capture. The next step is to start making the drawing. As I am working, more ideas fall into place and something …

Unique Perspectives, Emma Salger

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

The jewelry I build is intended to empower the wearer. Each piece of jewelry in this exhibition is inspired by my own personal experiences as a woman, but the attempt is to develop a piece that can empower anyone connecting to the message. Choosing to make wearable and empowering jewelry is an act of defiance because wearing my work gives me strength to push against existing societal gender barriers. Growing up as the youngest girl in a male dominated household and being taught a lot of gender expectations, there is an existing struggle to feel strong. Wanting to find a …

Unique Perspectives, Paige Small

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

Artist Statement: Paige Small

A community is a place that helps one grow and feel supported through vital interactions, which helps one become who they are meant to be. Being embraced in a society that exemplifies all these things is essential. These connections most often become the ones that mean the most and have the biggest impact on someone. Examining the relationships and community surrounding me has inspired this work.

My prints show the physical embrace of being held, loved, and comforted. Hands are chosen as symbols of community and the human interaction of support and togetherness. Flowers are another …

Funhouse, Kathryn Huttunen, Kathryn Rebekka Huttunen

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

Kate Huttunen Artist Statement

Am I black enough to question this? Am I valid, are my opinions valid?

Do I sound like that? Do I look like that?

Will my partner like me for me – not for an exotic kink?

My work is informed by personal memories and self-reflections about both black and white culture as an adopted woman of color. I often find myself contemplating how society views me and how I view society. As I grow as an artist I find myself questioning my identity in my artwork. What is gender in the black community? What is …

Accumulation, John Gee

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

My photography explores the tension between the self-consciously constructed image of the world and the fleeting accidental moment of a snapshot. Portraiture allows me to document people and experience a moment with them while I make an image that is my interpretation of reality. Part of my work takes the form of editorial photography and often features subjects that take on a sculptural appearance, as if they are precious, immovable objects. When not making editorial style images, I enjoy capturing the aspects of life that others may not notice. This stems from my sentimental personality as I get emotionally attached …

Lingering Space, Makayla Tapp

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

Lingering Space

Since I was young, I have had a fascination with childhood memories that I should have been too young to remember.. Over the years, these memories have changed and warped, yet the strongest memories that have remained the same are those of my parents, and the spaces they inhabited. As my memories of my parents fade, I begin to lose details, such as the way their voices sounded, the way they smiled, the way they laughed. But the pieces that linger are the spaces I remember them being in, the homes they lived in, the places where we …

21st Century Revival- Ba/Bs Senior Show, Kirsten Moore

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

Growing up in Kentucky, I had no choice but to acknowledge that I was smack dab in the middle of the Bible Belt, where culture is in many ways defined by Christianity and there is a church on every corner. These deep southern and Christian roots have defined who I am and how I view the world, inspiring me to examine the roles these two factors play in my life as well as the lives of others through my art. 21st Century Revival takes a dive into this specific culture, questioning how southern Christianity has impacted the lives of those …

Ba/Bs Practicum Group Exhibit, Jasmine Groves

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

In my art, I utilize patterned fabric, domestic objects, and portraits to achieve my desired results. My body of 3D and 2D artwork focuses on domestic spaces and the physical sensation of fabric surfaces (clothes, sofas, curtains, stuffed animals etc.)

I often find inspiration when I look through my family’s photographs from the 1960s and 70s. My great grandmother was a seamstress, and encouraged all of her female descendants to make their own pillows, quilts, and even wedding dresses instead of purchasing them. Also, the 1960s and 70s were an incredibly important time for Black America. The visual culture of …

B.A./ B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit, Conner Murt

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

This work is a study of everyday spaces and activities of daily living that are often overlooked. These photographs capture raw moments of people’s lives, without artistic fabrication, communicating a sense of candor. I create photographs of interior spaces that stand out mentally to me and which include objects with unique characteristics. I illustrate portions of a given location, but intentionally do not give away all of the specifics of the space. There is an absence of a figure, yet symbolic fingerprints are apparent in these very personal spaces. Although the individual is not the focus, the space or environment …

Ba/Bs Senior Show, Emily Netherton

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

Memory is a complicated thing. We often long to hold unto the past, but struggle to actually remember it accurately. We place such importance on memories that we continually collect artifacts to remember things by. We take pictures to remember moments. We hold onto personal items to remember people. We often display these artifacts and spend so much time with them that we place more importance on the objects than the memories associated with them. The relationship with our past and our past selves is complicated. It is both the same person we are now, and a completely separate person …

Ba/Bs Art Exhibition, Utarius Rose

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

Utarius Rose

Artist Statement

As individuals with different personalities, we tend to distance ourselves from each other. Trying to connect with others is hard. So, how do we form connections and how do we create conversations that bridge the gaps between us? I believe the connection can be made by sharing personal emotional experiences through translating them into artistic narrative forms. I make drawings, paintings, and prints that insert surreal elements into representational spaces, often incorporating the figure. Both concepts and details excite me because they expand my imagination and inspire both mental and technical goals to focus on. I …

Strange Fruit, Tia Whitaker

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

As a young child, I was always interested in history. I found it fascinating how big or small events, directly or indirectly, affected the life that I am now living in today. Although my hometown was small, the history of it was enormous. Trips to the city museum fueled my love for history and the desire to learn even more about myself, my town, and my country. Being a person of color, I was aware of the adversity that my people have faced. Knowing the turbulent history that African Americans have faced in this country has always inspired me to …

Changed Trauma, Jessica Free

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

Changed Trauma

In this collection, I am exploring my past trauma that I have obtained as a result of the abuse I experienced years ago. Although my experiences from the 5 years of abuse were bad, the good now overrides the bad. Through these experiences, I have grown into a strong independent person as I have gotten over them through forgiveness and time. Often associated with place, I have never forgotten the memories but I continue to grow from them. Time is a heavy component in this collection. To emphasize this, I used black and white photography to make the …

Unprecedented, Emma Mitchell

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

The broad concept behind my work is that of acceptance for one’s true form. As someone who struggles with self-acceptance, building ceramic sculptures bearing flaws and strange features has been a sort of therapy. When looking at my work, the viewer should feel empowered and safe in their own skin. They should see a reflection of their own flaws and insecurities in my sculptures, and feel a sense of belonging.

Out of the five senses, the one I resonate with most is touch. In all ceramic work, touch is utilized in the making; whether the finished product is meant to …

Unprecedented, Drey Reed, Drey Reed

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

My goal as a designer is to draw the audience’s eye, making it clear what information is most important. I make my designs visually pleasing through the overall layout and use of color combinations. Recently I have discovered an interest in character design. I aim to improve diversity seen in tv, comics, and video games. Which is why I have decided to focus on designing a more diverse character, in this case one that is based off myself, half white and half black. I designed this character with the intent of him being in an animated tv show, which is …

The Whole Shabang, Allison Pitt

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

My art is a combination of my two favorite things; painting and food. I use my paintings to communicate my relationship with food. Over time, my love for food has transformed into a disgusting obsession. This is shown in my work, as I display all of my favorite foods and drinks, in a manner that is unsettling. This reflects my feelings after a binge of food or my ever changing relationship with the foods that I love. I also discuss the image of my own body, and how I see myself in my own head. Like in my head, the …

Unprecedented: Ba/Bs Senior Exhibition Fall 2020, Samantha Tudor

B.A./B.S. Practicum Group Exhibit (ART 499)

Cryptids are heavily based on oral legends and strange occurrences. Some of these legends are based on good versus evil like the Wendigo, an evil spirit that possesses someone who commits cannibalism, and some are based on happenings that cannot be explained like the Chupacabra.

I have been fascinated by the appearance and lore of cryptids and how these stories are created. That fascination has begun to seep into my work. I am also interested in the evidence, real or fabricated, that is provided for these creatures as I create my own cryptids and compile relatable evidence to support my …