Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Re-Making The Mark, Zora Murff

School of Art, Art History, and Design: Theses and Student Creative Work

Is there a difference between a Black body lynched in 1919 and the forced removal of a community through the construction of a freeway? Or a blighted landscape shaped through generations of segregationist legislation versus a Black life taken by police in 2018? With Re-Making The Mark, I produce a mixture imagery and history to prompt inquiry into not only how racial violence has been recorded through images, but how they can also become a subversive code to interrupt collective belief. I capitalize on photography’s capacity to reveal temporal layers, and my work reinterprets American narratives about power, race, and …

Chimera Rising, Rosana Ybarra

School of Art, Art History, and Design: Theses and Student Creative Work

Chimera has three definitions, each so equally fitting of my work that this word has come to embody what I consider my own holy trinity. One: a firebreathing female monster in Greek mythology, often read as an omen for disaster. She was a hybrid animal made up of three – lion, goat, and serpent. Two: an unrealizable dream, a fanciful illusion composed of discordant parts – improbable but dazzling, wild. Three: an organism formed by multiple sets of distinct DNA, human, plant or animal. Chimera – a hybrid monster, an impossible dream, a harmonious organism composed from disparate origins. There …

Someday I'Ll Find The Sun, John-David Richardson

School of Art, Art History, and Design: Theses and Student Creative Work

I am a product of poverty. The atmosphere of my childhood prepared me for a world where economic and social worth is defined by class. I was raised by my mother and her countless male partners amidst a backdrop of violence and neglect. These men would come and go, each one exhibiting more violent and destructive behavior than the one before. My family fought to make ends meet, but their efforts constantly fell short due to addiction, domestic violence, and a lack of education. This unrelenting cycle shaped my worldview at an early age, and I came to understand family …

Time And Lines, Richard Pecos Pryor

School of Art, Art History, and Design: Theses and Student Creative Work

“How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.” -Annie Dillard

I want to make art that is worthwhile, that shares something important. This desire often overwhelms and hinders me from starting projects. I find myself questioning the purpose of art altogether. Yet, once I relinquish control into action—just simply start and keep going—the unforeseen meaning eventually presents itself.

Drawings begin with lines. Partnered with curiosity, I began this series by exploring the potential of drawing materials. How far and for how long can a single sharpened pencil last? What does a mile of lines look …

The Adjacent, Phoebe Jan-Mcmahon

School of Art, Art History, and Design: Theses and Student Creative Work

There are few times when my mind quiets; painting is one of them. A universe exists adjacent to this one where I process thoughts in a quiet space, free from the streaming cacophony of various devices. This adjacent space is where my mind is able to process the state of the world. I think it is essential that everyone knows what is going on around them, especially if the issues they hear about do not affect their daily life. I want to be an active participant in the world but find myself bogged down by the unrelenting events cycling through …

A Certain Kind Of Woman, Emily Wiethorn

School of Art, Art History, and Design: Theses and Student Creative Work

Our patriarchal Western culture has long dictated how women should behave. We are repeatedly put in our place, told how to present ourselves, and instructed to keep our voices down. There is also immense pressure on women to perform for the public. Whether this is the feeling that we must be “presentable” when we leave the house each day, or when we tailor our personalities in public in an attempt to be more socially amenable, we conform.

As a young girl, my mother provided guidance on how a woman should conduct herself. I then spent my early years hidden beneath …