Arts and Humanities Commons^™

Queerform/Ing, Matthew Solon-Lee Weimer

Art Theses and Dissertations

My artwork is situated within and around vessels and the Queer Homoerotic World and explores sexuality as a Demisexual within them. This is accomplished through the two processes of my creation, Minivague and Queerform/ing: balancing sexual tension and explicit expression, while subverting traditional norms and stereotypes with queerness to distance oneself from stereotypical Gay Art. Altering/emphasizing makes the artwork more romantic, lighter, whimsical, softer, and tender than the figure/s and the situations actually are. The process is also emphasizing what one sees or wants to be seen. The Pink Boy becomes a celebration of intimacy of any form. I discuss …

Ìlànà Òrí-Òkè Àtiyanrìn: T(H)Reading Sands And Mountains, Akintayo Akintobi

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The artist presents his Master of Fine Arts exhibition, entitled Ìlànà Òrí-òkè Àtiyanrìn: T(h)reading Sands and Mountains. The exhibit was mounted in Tipton Gallery in downtown Johnson City, TN, from February 1 to February 9, 2024. The exhibition consisted of 13 artworks, including mixed media paintings, fibers, sculptures, and installations. In this thesis, Akintobi discusses his life experiences growing up in Nigeria and traveling to the United States for his MFA, and how these experiences have affected his art over the past three years.

Through the exhibition, the artist delves into the intersection and variances of cultural perspectives, exploring …

Place-Conscious Vs. Place-Bound, Julie Avetisyan

Theses and Dissertations

Julie Avetisyan’s installation of sculptures, paintings and printmaking works are driven by an exploration of constructed identity that is not place-bound, but place-conscious. In this paper, she explores how her art practice generates world building under the context of the Armenian Diaspora – considering histories of indigeneity, migration, and assimilation.

The Modern Artist's Psyche: Making Meaning In Art Through History, Jenna Banks

Theses

The Modern Artist’s Psyche: Making Meaning in Art Through History provides a way for students to study and analyze works by Modern artists that explore themes like loneliness, isolation, anxiety, and despair. By studying these artists and their works, students learn about topics like art appreciation and psychoanalysis; specifically, how each artist used their mental state to create their visual products. Students learn about art appreciation through the process of discussing and answering questions about specific art works. Students also study the concept of psychoanalysis, relating to theories and techniques that have been used by Modern artists. This connects to …

Glass: The Material That Defines Us, Madisyn Rex

Honors Projects

This Honors Project is an exploration of the intersections between glass science, geology, glass art, and my own personal experience with glass.

Behind The Gate: Syrian Women In Soap Operas - Perception Vs. Reality, Tasnim J. Rahimah

Theses and Dissertations

Syria has witnessed what is known as al-fawra al-drameya, an eruption of drama since 2000. Every year, especially during Ramadan, dozens of Syrian soap operas are aired across the Arab world and beyond, depicting Syrians’ historical struggles as they fought for liberation from the French mandate at the beginning of the 20th century. Although women of those days were a vital part of that liberation movement and had prominent societal roles, these historical fiction soap operas chose to portray only the demure and dismissive female figures and not mention the women who were independent, courageous, and active members of the …

Women's Hall Of Fame, Brianna Kean

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

No matter how you identify we can all take actions in support of gender equality. Women have come a long way in society since Sacagawea’s time, but that doesn’t mean we live in an equal world. I was inspired by these ten women, and I hope you are too. Take that inspiration and turn it into action, so that maybe one day people might honor you for supporting women’s rights. This project honors ten women throughout history that have made an impact on women's rights and societal values. I created a portrait, a bio, and a poem that aims at …

The Hidden Power Of Images: An Allegory Of Chaos And Performance In The Digital Age, Livia Xandersmith

MFA in Visual Art

Within this text, I explore the hidden power of images in American visual culture through painting-based installations. I investigate images of the past and present juxtaposed in a surrealist landscape. Through the use of images in the news, entertainment, advertising, and images within the home, I depict how the problems of the past bleed into our perceptions of the present. I find that this cycle of problem inheritance connects us as humans regardless of time, generation, and place. In my work, I explore the complexity of image culture and its shifting presence within the digital age. Using surrealist collage, I …

Cultural Formation Of Place: Making Yourself At Home, Olivia Arratia

Art Theses and Dissertations

The environment you grow up in can become a pivotal part of your existence. The sights, smells, people, and places you experience every day can transform the way you see the world. Growing up in a Mexican-American household has brought its own set of experiences that have made me the artist I am today. I am one of many contemporary artists building on the foundations of their heritage and the Chicano movement. I am also a Mexican-American artist expanding the identity and extending the legacy in the 21st century. This paper will investigate how Mexican-American heritage has influenced my artistic …

Shiso: Asian Culture In San Luis Obispo, Natalie Elise Tsoi Rockhold, Mia Lee Candy

Graphic Communication

There is a serious lack of representation on the subject of Asian culture and history in SLO. This magazine aimed to put a spotlight on this topic, with the unique lens of both authors also being mixed-race and how that factored into us finding a cultural community. Through our use of applied design we demonstrated and developed our technical skills in Adobe CC and tactile skills in printing and binding. We created a printed magazine which incorporated cultural elements into its design. We aimed to reflect a strong message in a captivating visual medium, and used personal skills in web …

Meditations, Adrian D. Mosby

Theses and Dissertations

Adrian Demarco Mosby (b. 1991, Bronx, Ny) is a figurative painter focused on the use of allegory and narrative. His stone like figures depict a modern day apathy and disillusion. The narrative content is meant to formulate a moral philosophy that might combat such apathy.

Philosophical Archeology In Theoretical And Artistic Practice, Ido Govrin

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The aim of this thesis is to examine philosophical archeology and the feasibility of knowledge that derives from researching it simultaneously through theoretical and artistic practice.

Philosophical archeology essentially embodies one’s relation to history and historiographic research—a research methodology at the core of which lies a “historical a priori”, that which a priori conditions the historical development of a phenomenon. However, this research conceives of philosophical archeology more broadly, as a multifaceted term that traverses the discourse of the humanities at large.

By pursuing this doctoral research, my original contribution to knowledge is twofold: (1) I historicize philosophical archeology—a …

Middle Waters: A Visual Historical Fiction Of The Osage Nation, Tori H. Forster

Honors Projects

The following project is in two parts: A series of concept art and illustration pieces surrounding the history of the Osage Nation, and a research paper detailing that history and exploring the process of creating the aforementioned visual pieces. The artworks are designed around an original story set during the 1920s on the Osage reservation, and explore past history of the Osage people as a part of that. The paper also discusses the author’s personal response to the research, and explores themes of ignorance and social justice as the project draws to a close.

To The Peaches, Jazmine Hayes

Theses and Dissertations

My work focuses on erased histories and the ways these histories are preserved through cultural traditions. I explore histories across the African diaspora with specificity on African American culture and black female subjectivity.

Zitrone, Chase Roy Young

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this thesis paper is to describe the elements and narrative associated with the exhibition, Zitrone, as well as the conceptual and theoretical ideas influencing the work. The exhibition is centered around an invented singular historical object in the form of a vehicle, and a museum display of artifacts, documents, and recreations intended to validate the existence of the central subject. Drawing on the work of artists Marcel Broodthaers, Damien Hirst, and David Wilson in conjunction with theoretical writings of Dave Hickey and Lewis Hyde, the exhibition seeks to address the perception and presentation of history as absolute …

Seeing Through Feeling, Christopher Mitchell Rodgers

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this paper is to describe both the inherent formal qualities and conceptual framework that are addressed within the exhibition, Seeing Through Feeling. The exhibition is centered around the methodology of making, collection, and display all through the one singular positioning, the object. The objects within the exhibition are either handmade or collected fragments that weave together around the singular position of craft and history under the pretense of how our understanding of time may not always be true. The thesis breaks down key components through specific themes into the categories of the hand, eye, symbol, object, value, …

Automation In Graphic Design, Robert M. Doehling

Honors College Theses

Advances in technology have had dramatic impacts throughout history on a myriad of industries outside of the technology industry itself. These changes are showcased through a brief examination of the changes within the graphic design industry since the recorded birth of the graphic. With the advent of popularized artificial intelligence seen in the modern day, many are predicting the end of graphic design. Through an analysis of current automated design products within the consumer market and a dive into the research alongside design automation professional Peter O’Donovan, it is evident that the role of the graphic designer will most likely …

The Home As An Object: Material Culture In The Age Of Ikea, Maxwell Harling Fertik

Senior Theses and Projects

The curiosity of everyday objects looms large in every human’s life. And naturally, these objects are almost as diverse in character as the person who bought them. This variation can be in style, period, shape, origin but also in the arrangement it is given in relation to other objects or persons in a space. On one level, the objects we surround ourselves with are meaningless, purely functional, utilitarian and banal. Especially on a budget, one may not consider aesthetic or design issues at all and purely buy a toaster because they want toast. Why would one buy a SMEG+Dolce and …

Reworking The White-Masculine Ideal, Steven H. Gonzalez

Art Theses and Dissertations

This text functions as an exploration of self through artistic practice, a designated space for reflection on contemporary Queer experience. In looking specifically at the permeation of the idealized-white-masculine figure as found within Western visual culture, social media and gay pornography become isolated as sites where these figures are commonly found. This line of inquiry defines how the ideal is reified through these differing digital platforms and the social implications the homogenized male form has on raced individuals. In addition to determining the image of the perfect masculine physique through research, this text expands on how its' imaged representation becomes …

Layered Histories, Interpretive Desires, Rachelle Dang

Theses and Dissertations

I aim to excavate source material from the past and reinterpret its significance in the present through art. I merge history with the contemporary through acts of appropriation and material exploration, creating conditions for the viewer to grapple with colonial legacies in an affective space of visual experience.

The Posers: Instinctual Simulation Across Time, Kathryn Mccarthy

Theses and Dissertations

The Posers is a video about the occlusion of the self in history and in love. This paper explores methods of laminating historical moments with contemporary experience to explore the passage of time and the ongoing marginalization of women.

Design Plan For The Sawmill Town History Wing At The Texas Forestry Museum, Kendall D. Gay

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Texas Forestry Museum in Lufkin, Texas is the only forestry museum in the state. It preserves artifacts and educates visitors about Texas’ forest industry history. The museum has a Sawmill Town History Wing that is outdated and in need of a refreshing exhibit design based on current best practices. Using a previous museum audit as a guide, the new exhibit will have better flow, panel aesthetics, content, and interactive elements. By creating a new exhibit, the museum is better able to educate and entertain the visitors about Texas’ forest industry history.

Paleoimagery: The Artistic Restoration Of Dinosaurs And Prehistoric Life, Colin Mcnulty

Honors Projects

My purpose in creating this paper is to research a holistic view of paleontological illustration (also called paleoimagery or paleoart). A thorough history of paleoimagery is outlined from its roots in biblical illustration in the 17^th and 18^th centuries approaching the modern day. A two-fold examination of the utility of art to communicate science and its use within the science of paleontology is also given. This includes discussions of the specific components of art pieces that help them to successfully communicate scientific ideas and examples of how paleoimagery contributes to paleontology. The author then outlines the conception and …

Rewriting History: The Press As A Tool For Destruction And Preservation, Emily L. Mogavero

Bachelor of Fine Arts Senior Papers

This statement describes my two bodies of work, Aufheben and Artist-Hero/Squish, in which I use printmaking processes to rewrite history. In Artist-Hero/Squish I mimic canonical paintings of women by modernist male painters and run my quotations of these paintings through the press while the paint is still wet on the canvas. Through this process, I examine, confront, and change the male-dominated history of art. Aufheben currently includes one hundred drypoint prints that catalogue the personal history of my mark. This series represents a process of constant change, with individual prints suggesting stages of my process including moments of growth …

Interpreting, Stephanie Jo Kent

Doctoral Dissertations

What do community interpreting for the Deaf in western societies, conference interpreting for the European Parliament, and language brokering in international management have in common? Academic research and professional training have historically emphasized the linguistic and cognitive challenges of interpreting, neglecting or ignoring the social aspects that structure communication. All forms of interpreting are inherently social; they involve relationships among at least three people and two languages. The contexts explored here, American Sign Language/English interpreting and spoken language interpreting within the European Parliament, show that simultaneous interpreting involves attitudes, norms and values about intercultural communication that overemphasize information and discount …

Dressing Indian: Appropriation, Identity, And American Design, 1940-1968, Alison Rose Bazylinski

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This thesis examines the ways the American fashion industry and fashion publications appropriated aspects of Indian cultures as marketing tools from 1940 to 1968 and the ways representations stereotypes created through fashion outlets denoted American and individual, rather than Native, identity. Representational stereotypes created at the turn of the twentieth century provided fashion merchandisers and sellers with a home-grown marketing scheme, while the development of an American fashion industry based on mass-produced, ready-to-wear sportswear led to nation-wide dissemination and use of "Indian" colors, patterns, and designs.

"By Reason Of Birth", Cheyenne Kody Crawford

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

This written monograph is intended to parallel my MFA thesis show, “by reason of birth”. These written accounts from my childhood are specific occurrences in my life that influenced the creation of this work. Through the combination of written and made work, I recall an ambiguous past that allows the viewer to infer his or her own personal histories alongside mine.

Glorious Constructions: The Struggle To Preserve Salvation-Themed Visionary Art Environments, Molly Elaine Sheehan

Master's Theses

Salvation-themed art environments are a roadside rarity, built out of a strong visionary dedication to God, but the sites are disappearing simply because the work is misunderstood. The historiography on the subject is sparse, trending more toward coffee table books with big glossy pictures than real scholarly endeavors, but the consensus among all has been clear. The sites are a valuable part of the recent American cultural landscape, crossing several scholarly fields - art, architecture, and history - and uniting them into a cohesive preservation movement. On a series of trips to visit, see, and experience five of these sites, …

Ties That Bind, Jessica Marie Orlowski

Art and Design Theses

I am fascinated by the inner thoughts, the memories, and the cumulative experience that make us each a complex physiological puzzle. From birth, sociological building blocks are constructed forming emotional walls and unexpected doorways, boundaries and comfortable passageways through the architecture of our personalities. My thesis work, which is comprised of ceramic figures and interactive toys, offers playful memory triggers and evocative spaces in which viewers can deconstruct the building blocks of their social persona.

Decorator Or Narrator: A Contextualisation Of Slavic And Australian Pattern Making And Its Relationship To My Painting Practice, Iliana H. Jordanov

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

In this thesis, I will examine pattern making in art practice from two cultural perceptions, Slavic and Australian. Existing differences between the two cultural backgrounds will be used to debate how pattern is understood by the viewer or practiced by an artist in a particular chosen environment. The central argument focuses on pattern as a decorator and/or a narrator. I will examine the outcomes and changes in narrative pattern according to cultural context and exchange. By introducing Slavic pattern into contemporary (Australian) art practice, I examine how traditional cultural values and functions change. In discussing the processes of changes that …