Art and Design Commons^™

The New Life Of Feathers, Madison Bradford O'Bagy

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

When a feather is no longer part of a living bird it is, in essence, dead. When I pick it, up it is reborn. My artwork records and constructs these new stories. The story may reflect where and when the feather was found, what I was doing at the time, my thoughts or feelings when I picked it up, or the character found in the feather itself.

To reveal these stories, I paint my three-dimensional feather collection into trompe l'oiel two-dimensional images using watercolors. The qualities of the paint lend themselves beautifully to the loose flowing lines and weightless quality …

Synthetic Constructive, Jonathan Wade Mcdaniel

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Synthetic Constructive is an exhibition of paintings and collages, both reflect the building and managing of synthetically constructed places and expose the human condition of struggle in both the physical world and the emotional world. I view these works as synthetically created arenas that inform my understanding and experience of natural forces that cannot be rationalized or neatly ordered. Though inspired by and constructed from the imagery of the after effects of devastation they become more than that as they explore these relationships. It is important that these works, both as collages and as paintings, reflect the search and process …

Paiting, Lucas Page

Undergraduate Theses—Unrestricted

My work is motivated by the painting “as such” – as an inquiry into and intervention upon what constitutes a painting, how they are constructed, how they function, etc. Through an investigation of painting as a genre, both in its historical canon and contemporary forms, I deconstruct the formal and cultural elements surrounding the field. Four major axes serve as the basis for my inquiry and intervention of painting: Painting, Abstraction, Representation, Control. Taking as a point of departure the comment, “Your work is a representation of abstraction,” I aim to figure out how “the painting” (in all of its …

Tried It With Glasses Off Too; Sometimes., Nolan John Fedorow

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

I use a small wedge of wood as a tool to pick out food scraps that find themselves lodged between my teeth. I also use a small wedge of wood as a tool to keep a straight door from swinging freely on a crooked house. The small wedge of wood I stuff in between the floor and door as a tool is a controlling apparatus, much like landowners who use fencing to keep people from walking repeatedly through their land and inadvertently creating a path where they shouldn’t. A wooden door stopper will come to adorn a perpendicular-patterned patina across …

Learning To See, Jade Webber

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Learning to See is a written document accompanying the culmination of my three years painting at a graduate level. Through an exploration of line, color, shape, light and bears I traverse the wandering heart of painting. This document is an exploration of the place in which people become bears and bears become mountains.

Submersion, Hannah M. Harper Ms.

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The artist discusses the influence, concept, and process behind creating a cohesive body of work and accompanying show, Submersion, for the completion of her Bachelor of Arts degree and undergraduate research for the Fine and Performing Art Scholars branch of East Tennessee State University's Honors College. The show is to be held May 1st through May 7th of 2014 with its reception on May 3rd in the Submarine Gallery located on ETSU campus. The artist explored themes of the unknown, subconscious, and memory, using water as a reoccurring symbol. The works include five large portraits and two small to medium …

A Working Life, Benny A. Melton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In our culture, a person's profession is often made evident by the apparel worn or the tools being used. On the surface, urban scenes may convey a gentle flow and constant motion, which are characteristics of an ordered society. Beneath the visible elements are relationships which may represent a vastly different perspective. The work of artists often outlives the artist just as the result of labor may outlive the laborer. Giza's great pyramids are ancient wonders that baffle modern engineers and scientists as to how they may have been built. Though the exact techniques used may not be known there …

Fluid Realities: A Light On Life's Journey, Neta-Grace Coleen Shepherd

Theses and Dissertations

Images of nature and family comprise the gestural and abstracted interpretations of my life events. I use my photographs as inspiration for my work. I fuse layers of color, light, and line into glass and onto wood to suspend a personal memory. I want to capture those moments that flit by in life and envelop them in the media.

In my fused glass work, I manipulate color, light, and line. In these pieces, I layer frits and sheets of glass onto an abstract sculpted relief of fiberglass and fuse them into one thick slab. The sculpted relief creates a textured …

Cultures Of Practice Within Design: An Exploration Of The Differences And Similarities Between Photography And Painting As Representational Practices, Alun John Price

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Contemporary designers and photographers face many challenges as the profession rapidly develops. This is especially the case in in the Western Australian context. A review into the recent history of the Western Australian design profession is evidence that designers and photographers are consistently shifting between commercial and self-expressive practice. However, the urge to keep up with technological advancement has masked conscious development of this shift, which is a key to self-realisation and improvement for a designer and photographer. This lack of conscious questioning limits holistic development in design practice. This research reflects on myself as a designer developing a response …