Art and Design Commons^™

Accompanied Solo: A Singer/Songwriter's Look Into The Music Industry From Design To Debut Album, Vivienne Mccracken

Honors Theses

Vivi McCracken is my self-titled debut Extended Play Record (or EP) that consists of five original songs. This project encompasses all of my creative passions, with the aim of gaining knowledge of the music industry and what it takes to debut an album from concept to completion. I wrote the music, sang the songs for the recordings, and, for my BFA thesis exhibition, I designed all the graphics, merchandise, and collateral.

The cover art is intentionally minimal. I wanted the imagery to be the main focus, so I chose a condensed sans serif typeface that felt playful enough to complement …

Catholicism Online: How The Church Is Communicating In The Visual Field, Alexandra Barfield

Honors Theses

ABSTRACT

Given the rise and importance of social media in the last two decades, religious institutions, especially the Roman Catholic Church, have an important place online to fulfill their mission and belief of spreading the Gospel message. Communicating this message on social media and with contemporary marketing practices is an opportunity and a challenge for churches, Catholics, and apostolates alike. In this study, I analyze a variety of Catholic-related Instagram accounts and interview individuals involved in Church management and content creation. This primary research is prefaced with secondary research exploring the status of the Catholic Church in the United States, …

Hidden Connections, Yazmin Goulet

Honors Theses

As a graphic designer pursuing degrees in both Art, from the College of Liberal Arts, and Integrated Marketing Communications, from the School of Journalism, the goal of the art that I create is for it to be seen by many and connect viewers to the messages that I am trying to get across through my work. Art is a form of visual communication, and as an artist, I am always looking at the world around me and seeing how art of all forms connects art to people.

Much how like art itself is used to connect people, for this thesis …

The North Mississippi Field Guide For Young Explorers, Olivia Wymore

Honors Theses

The North Mississippi Field Guide for Young Explorers is an interactive field guide to some of North Mississippi’s wildlife designed for a younger audience, ages six to twelve. The creation of this field guide is a culmination of my inspirations and interests as a child and my involvement and passions as a student at the University of Mississippi. Multiple times during my college experience I have had the fortunate opportunity to work with the local Montessori school, Magnolia Montessori School, by volunteering for various events and leading educational activities. After working with this school and learning about their teaching methods …

Ipseity Vol. 1: An Artful Exploration Of Identity Formation In Emerging Adulthood, Lauren Alexis Taylor

Honors Theses

Ipseity is a multi-edition coffee-table style book that integrates digital and print design and incorporates handmade elements and processes such as die-cuts, letterpress printing, gold foiling, hand-sewn bindings, and embroidery. Its design is rooted in minimalism, yet the handmade aspects, eye-catching color palette, and bold illustrations make reading Ipseity a visual and tactile experience. The design utilizes typography and flat-color illustrations in a consistent layout, with a strong emphasis on the handmade elements and craftsmanship throughout the book. It is not only a publication to read and ponder, but it is an artful object with a physical presence to be …

Art Of Darkness, Sarah Roper

Honors Theses

This paper describes the process, production, and explanation of Art of Darkness, an artistic expression of the struggle with anxiety. All of the work is inspired by literature and art from the English Romantic and Victorian eras, and focuses on quotes about the mind, emotions, and other thought processes. As each piece highlights a different aspect of anxiety, it also portrays the struggles of anxiety through color palette, printing process, and symbolism. These printed pieces consist of letter-press printed materials, with ink-wiped backgrounds and hand-stitched details. Also included are large-scale prints with silkscreened foregrounds, a selection of bookmarks, a …

Sobremesa: The Time Spent Savoring Food And Friendship, Rosa V. Salas Gonzalez

Honors Theses

Sobremesa is the culmination of five different ceramic sets handcrafted and uniquely made as a way to enhance the experience of eating and sharing food. This work honors the Latino and Hispanic tradition of Sobremesa, which is the time we spend sharing special moments with friends and family after eating. I explore the relevance of sharing meals as a member of a Venezuelan family and how these memories of my childhood before moving away to another country relates to the way in which I approach the creation of my functional vessel’s aesthetic and conceptual background.

The pieces that make up …

The Life And Struggles Of Red Cockaded Woodpeckers, Michaela Gay

Honors Theses

This series of paintings focuses on red cockaded woodpeckers, an endangered species of bird and the longleaf pines forests which they live in and are reliant upon. I drew my inspiration mostly from personal experience with my family’s own efforts to restore one of these forests as well as my longstanding belief in the importance of protecting the environment. However, the point of these paintings is not to preach to people, but rather to show them the beauty of these trees and birds, so they can perhaps begin to care about them themselves instead of just being told that they …

‘How Has Art Refocused Consumers’ Attention Within A Visual World Through The Exploration Of Package Design?’, Frances Hackney

Honors Theses

The art of design has refocused the attention of consumers as they have entered into a visually demanding world. While this concept is complex and perplexing, stemming from endless influencing factors, the elements of design can be broken down into areas of focus to dissect the visual world of marketing. A simple way to communicate the influence of design on the consumers is to unveil the answers through the study of art.

In this thesis, the study will turn to the world of art to learn more about consumerism. The goal is to understand how visual images and the ongoing …

The Hair You Wished To Comb, Sarah Barch

Honors Theses

This thesis is a collection of poems exploring gender and trauma in Greek mythology by retelling classical stories in a female voice.

Breath: Capturing Energetic Forms In Pottery, Raymond Brown

Honors Theses

As a Bachelor of Fine Arts candidate with an emphasis in Ceramics, the culmination of my undergraduate education was a formal showing of my work at the Gallery 130 in Meek Hall at The University of Mississippi, Oxford Campus from April 1, 2019 to April 5, 2019. I chose to make pieces of functional, utilitarian pottery with the intent of providing the user with an entrance into a memorable and contemplative experience. Taking influence from historical slipware mark-making - especially German Pennsylvanian Tulipware, I work to craft pieces that are inviting, generous, and strong. Both my show and written thesis …

Internalizing Disorders Among Mississippi Public School Students And The Need For Intervention, Madison Varner

Honors Theses

Childhood anxiety disorders traditionally do not garner much attention in academic settings. However, many studies have concluded that approximately 1 in 8 children has an anxiety disorder by age 12, often beginning at earlier ages but going undiagnosed. Further, studies have shown that these disorders strongly affect both behavior (e.g. bullying, school attendance, and social performance) and academic performance (e.g. literacy, mathematical learning). Under several existing pieces of legislature, public schools should already be providing treatment for these disorders; however, due to financial costs and the silent nature of these internalizing disorders, few schools have any provisions for the numerous …

The In-Betweens Of Life, Laura Alison Chatham

Honors Theses

Have you ever walked through someplace too many times to count, and then one day it feels entirely new? The feeling of paying attention to an insignificant place for the first time interests me. We are constantly surrounded by buildings and trees and sidewalks and light poles, and don’t often take the time to look at them. In this series of paintings, I am taking the time to look at the overlooked. With The In-Betweens of Life, I am very particular about leaving my hand in each mark. Because the paintings are so small, the viewer is invited close to …

Sillage, Brooke Alexander

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The blurry, the dark, shadoplaces hidden and dwelling amongst the certainty steal my attention. Such places can communicate a vast sense of both time and setting, can convey that which is both occurring and that which is past. I do not think those spaces can be explicitly defined. They are reflections and explorations of the figures’ minds, providing a place for both their physical bodies and their thoughts to live. The paintings that compose Sillage communicate a space that requires engagement and that is not readily understood. The painted area changes as it invites and rejects visual entry. These ambiguous …

Un/Veiling, Marisa Andropolis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

David Freedberg wrote in The Power of Images that the purpose of painting portraits was to show the living reality of the sitter by representing subjects in a way they wanted to be seen or remembered. The body of work Un/Veiling challenges that idea by representing both the subject’s staged persona (their “ideal”) alongside their hidden, inner realities. To begin, I referenced photographs of myself as a vehicle to create personas that convey ideas about the fluidity of identity that I then painted using traditional processes (layered oil painting technique to imitate a studied naturalism) on less-traditional, multi-faceted canvases. Un/Veiling …

Impulsion, Nicholas Meyer

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The nut, bolt, and thread are symbols of order in my work. They represent a memory trace of my time growing up in Iowa and my connection to working on the family farm. These objects have the potential to exhibit elements of both simplicity and complexity, expressed through patterns and harmony, and the repetition of form, line, color, space, presentation, and ultimately, their relation to you the viewer. With this body of work, I intend to create metaphors relating to connections people have to one another, as individuals, society and ultimately as a reflection of self. The act of grouping, …

A Picture Of Health: Art And Medicine In The Lives Of Late 19th-Century Artists Henri De Toulouse-Lautrec And Vincent Van Gogh, Smith Jessie

Honors Theses

For this thesis, I wanted to explore a topic that I found interesting and that I could really enjoy researching. After a study abroad course in southern France in August 2015 during which we explored the locations that inspired artworks by Vincent van Gogh, I found my topic: health and art. After more research, I discovered that this topic could develop into a thesis. Specifically, this project investigates the ways in which the medical conditions of Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec and Vincent van Gogh affected their perspectives and relationships, and in turn, their artwork. In it, I explore the biographies of …

Interwoven, Preston Tolbert

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

I am regularly amazed by the power of artifacts. Objects can translate intent, skill, function, place, and time, causing us to reflect upon the maker and past users. By incorporating basketry patterns on the surface of my pots, I am creating a connection to my heritage. My family made baskets back many generations. The patterns are incomplete and fade as they weave around the forms. This reflects the nature of objects that have been used to the point of collapse. We live in a society driven by partial consumption and indiscriminant disposal. When something exhibits wear, we get a new …

The Archive, Hailey Cecilia Christian Hodge

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Archive is an installation that considers the human brain’s potential to distort memory over time. Memories from our past can be changed by our current atmosphere, manipulated by our emotions towards the experience, or can altogether be forgotten. Humans explore the world through their eyes, making mental photographs to help them navigate the future through the experiences of their past. However, the human memory is faulty at best. We all have memories stored, false memories that we believe, and we continue to create new memories every moment. This body of work is exploring how the passage of time and …

Southern Discomfort: Performing Femininity In The Deep South, Rachel Whitney Turnipseed

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The “performance” of gender is variable and multifarious, fabricated in reaction to audience, mood, and previous experiences. Starting in childhood, people “police” our gender performances, and profoundly shape our self-presentation and sense of personal identity. We gradually learn to self-edit our performances of gender, after countless critiques by others, which often negatively impact our body image as they preserve “norms,” marginalizing anyone who does not conform. The mixed-media installation, Southern Discomfort: Performing Femininity in the Deep South, examines this process and its impact on young girls. The young, blonde, female figure who appears multiple times in my installation reveal girls …

Taste-Making Mechanisms In The Contemporary Art World, Zachary Creel

Honors Theses

This Honors Thesis explores the taste-making roles of various institutions within the art world. A taste-maker is a person or institution which is capable of growing an artist's reputation and increasing his/her visibility within the purview of the public. This paper identifies Museums, Commercial Galleries, Biennials, Art Fairs, and Art Critics as key taste-makers and argues that the validation which each of them offers to an artist is critical to their rise to notoriety and fame. These institutions also act as gate-keepers between the artists and the public, oftentimes deciding which artists' work will meet with exposure to larger audiences. …

Touchy-Feely, Gross Stuff, Elise Marie Robbins

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Physical affection and visible emotion were not the way of my family. Compassion, concern, judgment, really any sentiment was expressed almost exclusively verbally while I was growing up. To me this very normal, and as an only child, I did not have much to compare it to until I started school. It was there that I saw children and adults convey emotion not just with words but also with a physical display. Though the idea of outwardly expressing emotion was not foreign to me, it was not exactly natural, and I struggled with it. or this reason, I was constantly …

Transients, Hunter Rose Johnson

Honors Theses

My exhibition Transients is an attempt to embrace the process of growth and decay that comes with being human while at the same time showing the beauty in temporary things. Each piece in Transients is a battery-powered lightbox containing a translucent image with light shining through it. The process of making the pieces was a complicated and meticulous method of paper cutting. The combination of the difficult process and the translucence of the products reflects the difficulties and impermanence of life.

The Technician Behind The Artist: Where Science Meets Art, Joella Vaughnn

Honors Theses

The thesis has two purposes: to evaluate the difference between oil, acrylic, gouache, and encaustic paint for the purpose of glazing and to integrate engineering and artistic principles into this thesis. My final evaluation across the four paints is that oil has the highest performing glaze. I believe it is the best glazer because time is not a constraint for me as an artist. If an artist has a time constraint on their painting, I recommend using acrylic mixed with an acrylic polymer medium as a glaze because the drying time is much faster than oil. I discovered that gouache …

Machine Dreams, David Lingen Bradway

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The works in my thesis exhibition have all been made within my three years attending The University of Mississippi and relate to my experiences traveling around South America and various places in North America, where I observed how different cultures view power and how it serves them. In this body of work, I looked for meaning in the process of discovery, whether it is found in a personal, social, or regional background. The exhibition is composed mostly of medium to large prints, in addition to some drawings and chine collé. The prints vary in size, shape, color, pattern, mediums and …

There's No Place Like Home, Stacey Lynn Rathert

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

I grew up on a farm in Northeast Kansas, under a big sky that had open views of the fields, pastures, and farmsteads. During that upbringing I learned about hard labor as well as work ethic, and what it took to survive in an often harsh and unforgiving environment. It is these experiences from my formative years, in that environment, where most of the driving force behind my artwork is derived. The work materializes as objects and narratives in sculptural manifestations. The themes range from domestic activities taught to me by the women in my life, to the hands-on, “dirty” …

Leading Edge, Seth Michael Thibodaux

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

I was introduced to the airplane at a young age through my father. Since that time I have been obsessed with airplanes. Wanting to be like my father in my youth, I became interested in the construction of these machines. I would spend hours working in the shop with my dad on airplanes and learning the specific structures that made up all sorts of different aircrafts. As I grew older I became fascinated with the history of aviation and where the idea of flight came from. It was this passion and knowledge that led me to my current body of …

Visual Phallacies, John Howard Cummings

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Roland Barthes wrote that only after removing all of the author's intentions and traces can a work of art truly be perceived by viewers fairly (Barthes). A viewer's perception of the world is influenced by his or her individual subjective history, which is the product of his or her own experiences. But as the author of ceramic work, my influence is ever-present. Clay records every push, pull, spank, squeeze, and poke. It fully records its physical history and as well as my actions upon it. This thesis exhibition asks the question: Can a viewer de-contextualize familiar-but-contentious subject matter and be …

Passing Time, Bryan Horn

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In today’s fast paced world based around expedience and convenience, we often find ourselves lost in the hustle and bustle of daily life. While keeping up with our busy schedules it is hard to find those moments of pause in which we can regain our composure. The ceramic vessels in Passing Time are about those moments in between, like the space between musical notes they are essential to our understanding and being. This body of work represents the building and maintaining of relationships, the welcoming space of home and establishing invitation through the act of giving and sharing. I use …

Beyond The Fields, Terry Rodnell Lynn

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Abstract: "an America that looks away is ignoring not just the sins of the past but the sins of the present and the certain sins of the future." Ta-Nehisi Coates my work deals with the ideas of blackness and southern culture. Born in Memphis, Tennessee on the heels of the civil rights movement, I cannot help but to be shaped by the aftermath of integration and the ideals of equality. The south is more than a geographical location; it is a cultural distinction. My life has been shaped by these cultural experiences. Inspired by family stories, my art references a …