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Full-Text Articles in Art and Design

The Silent Rage Of Being Loved, Michelle R. Albertson Jan 2022

The Silent Rage Of Being Loved, Michelle R. Albertson

Theses and Dissertations

The Silent Rage of Being Loved is a multimedia installation working primarily with photography, video, and sculpture. It explores the nuanced ways in which memory, grief, and veneration manifest physically in my life through objects and my body. My proposed thesis installation is intended as a place of refuge for my audience amongst a shrine-like space and for us, collectively, to reexamine and widen the ways in which we experience mourning and grief.


Reclaiming The Appropriated Space Through Care, William P. Glaser Jan 2022

Reclaiming The Appropriated Space Through Care, William P. Glaser

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis navigates the complex and (at times) frustrating experience of balancing caregiving and art making while attempting to converge both practices into one. The collaboration of caregiving and art making serves as a potential solution for those that struggle with the seemingly unreconcilable stratification of both activities.


The Wild Beasts, Peter Cochrane Jan 2019

The Wild Beasts, Peter Cochrane

Theses and Dissertations

The Wild Beasts springs from my desire to thank my ever-expanding queer chosen family and mentors for their strength. Working through the often violent and othering aspects of the lens and photographic histories I create floral portraits responding to each person’s being and our relationship. Using the 19th century, 8x10 large format view camera—the same used by colonialists and ethnographers to “capture” the divinity of Nature—I erect each as a traditional still life studio setup at the threshold between the natural world and that constructed by humans. These environments speak both to the character of each friend and also to …


This Must Be The Place, Eve White Jan 2019

This Must Be The Place, Eve White

Theses and Dissertations

This publication is the companion piece to “This Must Be the Place,” a 3D realization of my conceptual photography work exhibited in the Anderson Courtyard at VCU's 2019 School of the Arts MFA Show. I photograph scenes from nature and reproduce these images onto flattened plexiglass planes, arranging them in new, natural environments and photographing them again. The outcome is a scenic collage in which two unfamiliar locations become superimposed. It is my hope that as people experience the work they become a part of the texture of it.


Enact In Disappearance, Stephanie Demer Jan 2018

Enact In Disappearance, Stephanie Demer

Theses and Dissertations

Enact in Disappearance excavates the unseen through the medium of photography in order to chart a new strategy for knowing and communing with a complicated world.


So Much Apparent Nothing, Emily Mcbride Jan 2016

So Much Apparent Nothing, Emily Mcbride

Theses and Dissertations

This document contains reflections on motivations behind selected works leading up to and including my thesis exhibition so much apparent nothing. Through journal excerpts and analysis of my own psychology, I attempt to put into words my thoughts concurrent to my making, indirect as they may be. The following text shares my personal conflicts and ideologies surrounding art-making, the permanence of objects, and the acceptance of an identity in flux.


Dispersal: A Multidisciplinary Investigation Of Plant Life, Alexandra E. Arzt Jan 2015

Dispersal: A Multidisciplinary Investigation Of Plant Life, Alexandra E. Arzt

Theses and Dissertations

Using plants as a basis for exploring the interstices between the human and nonhuman, this thesis investigates ideas of awareness, intelligence, deep time, animism, and the fluctuating human perception of the agency of Nature. It outlines environmental art practices since the 1950s involving vegetal life. In addition, the paper provides a critical analysis of plant perception of Jakob von Uexküll’s work and theories of vital materialism and “critical plant studies” while noting recent studies in plant neurobiology. In my work, plants become active participants via their movement, seeding, and smell. This study takes the form of imitation, purposeful symbiosis, anthropomorphism, …


Through Process, Mitchell Goldstein Jan 2012

Through Process, Mitchell Goldstein

Theses and Dissertations

At the core of any designer’s activity is the process they engage with to create design. Process is not only a way to get from an idea to a completed work, it is also what determines our attitude towards design. This is the place where both the design and the designer are created. The gray area between nothing and something is where we go to discover design, and in turn to discover who we are and what matters to us. In this thesis I am investigating the nebulous place between ideas and things, thoughts and artifacts, and being just a …


Extra Ordinary, Lana Waldrep Jan 2010

Extra Ordinary, Lana Waldrep

Theses and Dissertations

The title of this thesis Extra Ordinary is intentionally ambiguous. Depending on how you read it, it can refer to either the very ordinary or to that which is outside of the ordinary.The works described within these pages functions similarly. From person to person and with time they move from the ordinary to beyond and back again. How can something be both mysterious and understood at the same time? How can I as a painter create a space where diametrically opposed forces can coexist and what is the effect of viewing such an object? This thesis addresses these issues with …


A Sense Of Place: A Personal Exploration, Analysis And Re-Interpretation Of Diverse Places, Hyejin Park Aug 2009

A Sense Of Place: A Personal Exploration, Analysis And Re-Interpretation Of Diverse Places, Hyejin Park

Theses and Dissertations

Every city/place has unique, distinctive qualities. Individuals acquire a sense of place in accordance with their own experiences and perspectives, which may not be the same as the experiences and viewpoints of another person. In this project, I explore, analyze, and re-interpret three places that have creatively and emotionally influenced me and remained in my memory: Times Square, New York City; Insadong, Seoul, South Korea; and Broad Street, Richmond, Virginia. To comprehend and draw a sense of place, I observe, feel, and document the characteristics of each place through different methods and processes, based on my own experiences. In addition, …


Like Alike, Jill Zevenbergen Jan 2009

Like Alike, Jill Zevenbergen

Theses and Dissertations

Like Alike explores notions of pleasure and beauty through an examination of mundane activity. Pleasure is simple, uncomplicated niceness. Pleasure is forgettable and related to the norm. Beauty is complicated and hardly predicted. Finding beauty in the banal provides an escape from mundane life. The banal, then becomes unforgettable. The nondescript, everyday experience becomes important and gains meaning. Like Alike's electronic format is adapted from the original format of an artist book.


In The Theater Of Subjectivity, Violetta Litvak Jan 2008

In The Theater Of Subjectivity, Violetta Litvak

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis tracks the formal and conceptual development of my work during the two years of graduate study at the VCU Photography and Film Department. It describes the influence of photography on my evolution as an artist and contextualizes my desire to expand the practice beyond the traditional limitations of the medium. It recounts my experimentations with assemblage, video and installation and their contribution to my understanding of spatial and temporal dimensions in the formal construction of my work.In part, the thesis is also a statement of my convictions about art making. It discusses theimportance of perception and subjective experience, …


Moments Of Absorption, Sarah K. Kaufman Jan 2008

Moments Of Absorption, Sarah K. Kaufman

Theses and Dissertations

Moments of Absorption explores the conceptual and visual themes that are presented in my MFA thesis exhibition. The research looks into the absorption of the nude subject, the gestures that communicate this absorption, and the domestic space as a stage for the presentation of these gestures. This work investigates a tension between the theatrical and the natural as represented by images.


In An Expression Of The Inexpressible: Even This Title Is Stolen, But I Chose It, Carmen Alis Mcleod Jan 2008

In An Expression Of The Inexpressible: Even This Title Is Stolen, But I Chose It, Carmen Alis Mcleod

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis provides a tour through an imaginary building that contains the work I have completed in the last two years at Virginia Commonwealth University. The body of the text provides a discussion of specific paintings as well as more general themes related to painting and art. The discussion includes thoughts on futility, desire, schism, the leap, collage, photography, materiality, painting, image, and landscape. The second part of the text is an abstract statement about the paintings included in the thesis show, Splinter Paintings.


Des Perdues: The Precariousness Of Loss, Alissa Grace Davis Jan 2008

Des Perdues: The Precariousness Of Loss, Alissa Grace Davis

Theses and Dissertations

The majority of losses that take place in a day are not large, or sad, they are built almost entirely on behaviors and systems that have nothing to do with loss. Most of these, I discovered, are the result of deliberate carelessness. The word loss is as difficult to define as truth, but its variation is what makes it so interesting and evocative. It is not, and never has been, a definition of loss that I seek: it is not enough to simply say I lost this person or that place, we must consider what is left and what can …


Within And Without, Shane Robert Rocheleau Jan 2007

Within And Without, Shane Robert Rocheleau

Theses and Dissertations

Within and Without is a document which illustrates my personal and artistic research into the nature of the postmodern conception of the self: that self is unfixed, multiple, and reactive. It explicates my myriad and explorative approaches to photographic portraiture. Furthermore, it indicates many of my theoretical and artistic references and how I have applied my lessons both as an artist and a researcher to maximize the effect of my concepts within the formal and aesthetic confines of my photographs. Finally, this document explains my own beliefs concerning the nature of self and how a synthesis of my influences has …


Toward A New Kinship Constellation, Nellie Helen Frances Appleby Jan 2007

Toward A New Kinship Constellation, Nellie Helen Frances Appleby

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis attempts to elaborate on my artwork during my graduate studies, while contextualizing it within the framework of the art world and the works of other artists. A main project during this time was to minimize the singular interpretation and framing of a fine art photographic print, while expanding its possibilities of meaning through the addition of important ephemera and objects such as plants, drawings, moving imagery, conversation and the unknown.


Invisible Green, Amanda Sauer Jan 2007

Invisible Green, Amanda Sauer

Theses and Dissertations

How is nature conceived today, a generation into the environmental movement? Many contemporary artists grapple with how to reconcile our inheritance of both a precarious natural world and the culture that created it. My work investigates the subtle intricacies of our relationship with nature. I use photography to develop a way of seeing that points to the often-unnoticed nature in front of us. In particular, my work recognizes and re-imagines nature's deep connections in the context of our ecologically changed world.


Would You Believe Me If I Said I Didn't Need You, Andrew Kozlowski Jan 2007

Would You Believe Me If I Said I Didn't Need You, Andrew Kozlowski

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis is an attempt to expand upon the ideas that permeate the practice of art making that has developed over the past two years. Art criticism, theory, history, and practice are used to give definition to the boundaries of my ever-shifting body of work. Focusing on the elusive nature of communication in both public and private spheres, these projects range from installation and sculptural work, to web projects, photography, and drawing.


Investigations Into Social Game Theory, Stephen Bryce Harper Jan 2006

Investigations Into Social Game Theory, Stephen Bryce Harper

Theses and Dissertations

Investigations into Social Game Theory is a document that describes my two-year exploration of the ritual encapsulated in our societal framework. It discusses the thoughts and processes that accompanied the three bodies of work that led to the creation of my final thesis exhibition.


The Enduring Image, Michelle Lieb Jan 2006

The Enduring Image, Michelle Lieb

Theses and Dissertations

In my work, I have chosen to pursue the antiquated, experimental, and alternative processes of photography. A digital image, a web page, an e-book all point to the current pace of a society concerned with the beauty it can access in a moment of instant gratification. It often has no regard for a process that requires personal discipline to capture a moment, a place, or an idea. I find little enjoyment in the immediate, when I can instead experience what happens when the combination of chemicals, glass, wood, and the environment turn a potential photograph into an inimitable encounter. It …


Out Of Body, Alessandra Lee Michelle Torres Jan 2006

Out Of Body, Alessandra Lee Michelle Torres

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the evolution of Alessandra Torres's work, from her early performances and installations, to her latest work with surrogate bodies, as she challenges the relationship between artist and their creation, body and object, and audience and art. Examining the work of artists such as Cindy Sherman, Rebecca Horn and Marina Abramovic, Torres explores the transformative capabilities of interactive sculpture and live performance. Join Ms. Torres as she transforms herself into everything from a paintbrush to a serpent, in her ongoing exploration of the body's ability to adapt and evolve.


The Barbershop: A Photographic Documentation And Exhibition, Justin K. Howard Jan 2006

The Barbershop: A Photographic Documentation And Exhibition, Justin K. Howard

Theses and Dissertations

In this project I explore the environment that surrounds and frames my life experiences. Interests in form, architecture, vernacular typographyand community blend into a photographic documentation—communicating my perceptual experience of Richmond barbershops through public exhibition.


Jimmy Hit His First Home Run, Eileen N. Rafferty Jan 2006

Jimmy Hit His First Home Run, Eileen N. Rafferty

Theses and Dissertations

This document begins with the end of a life and ends with the beginning of hope. It is a brief description of the artist's history, artistic and literary influences, and subsequent works produced during graduate school, specifically Dichotomy, Swan Dive, and Jimmy Hit His First Home Run. Topics discussed include Human Physiology, Transference, Buddhism, and Bubbles. This document was created in Microsoft Word 2004 for Mac, Version 11.2.


Foliage And Fabrication, Carrie Rosicky Garvey Jan 2006

Foliage And Fabrication, Carrie Rosicky Garvey

Theses and Dissertations

In my photographic work, I contrast natural and man-made objects abstracted by manipulation of scale. Details of the objects are blown up to proportions larger than life. By distorting the scale, I aim to allow the audience to view the image out of context, enabling the viewer to see it for its aesthetic value rather than the object's functional purpose.


Memories We Forget, Michael Dax Iacovone Jan 2005

Memories We Forget, Michael Dax Iacovone

Theses and Dissertations

I have always preferred the journey to the destination. When I was growing up, my family drove back and forth between Florida and New York every summer. My father did the driving, my mother sat next to him, and my older brother and sister sat in the back seat. This left the cavernous back of the family station wagon for me and the luggage. There was no radio, very little conversation, and I didn't sleep. I spent these summer trips staring for endless hours, out of the back window of the car, transfixed on the expanse of open road behind …


Escape Artist, Charles F. Gustina Jan 2005

Escape Artist, Charles F. Gustina

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis reviews the background, influences, and evolution of the body of work entitled Folia, which forms the basis for the candidate's thesis exhibition. It traces the development of the candidate's artistic inclinations from drawing to photography. Directorial and Pictorialist photography are discussed as forebears in the Influences chapter. Evolution of the Body of Work details how the current work grew from both the candidate's background and influences. A Brief Anthology of Quotations references Susan Sontag's influential work, On Photography, with quotations that have either influenced the candidate's work or reflect his perceptions of art and life. The balance of …


Long Walk In Flight School, William H. May Iv Jan 2005

Long Walk In Flight School, William H. May Iv

Theses and Dissertations

Long Walk in Flight School is a document intended to complement a body of artwork that includes photographs, giclee prints, animation, and a twenty two page book of images. The main focus of the text is to discuss two types of exchange; my energy with tools in exchange for an object or event, which is then exchanged in the imagination of the audience for something else, a hybrid thing. These exchanges are part of the performance or presentation of the work. Beginning with a brief description of intent at the start of graduate school, it traces my development as an …


Posthumous, Michael K. Lease Jan 2005

Posthumous, Michael K. Lease

Theses and Dissertations

This thesis reviews the background, influences, and evolution of three works that form Posthumous, an exhibit by the thesis candidate. The thesis begins with a series of vignettes that relate a number of personal experiences involving death, and photography, which have influenced the conceptual development of the work. Chapters devoted to each piece follow the vignettes. These chapters refer to the various influences that have led to the development of the following works: Obit to Self: April 10, 2005, Posthumous, and Jay. These influences range from the movie Hotel Rwanda, to handbills for punk-rock shows. The thesis ends with a …


Soul Hunting, Guido Esteban Alvarez Jan 2004

Soul Hunting, Guido Esteban Alvarez

Theses and Dissertations

According to the Webster's unabridged dictionary, a mania is an excessively intense enthusiasm, interest, or desire; a craze. I experience a mania on a daily basis: I take photographs. I trap photographs inside flat, airless fish tanks where time stands still. The creatures captured inside the tanks resurrect every time I see them to remind me of a sound, an odor, a flavor, and, ultimately, a feeling I once experienced and now cherish. This project will attempt to show the energy captured in my photographic archives as a journey through my memories using an experimental interactive method.