I received my BA from Ohio University. I was lucky enough to dive into my studio art classes with some of the best artists around (OK, I may be a little biased but really; best artists, PERIOD). The faculty at OU thrived on making their mini artists question, critique, lose their mind, & question their art some more. Until they felt that they may truly die from lack of conceptual ideas, much less the manifestation of these ‘ideas’. I graduated in 2011, with a handful of paintings that were good enough to throw on a website. I’ve spent my time since college focusing less on conceptual ideas & more on the materials in hand. While discovering what my materials can do for me, I find myself never being able to fight the urge to add more color & texture. I’ve given up on fighting this urge and now embrace it. I continue to find new ways to manipulate the paint & manifest my ideas. I encourage you to take notice to the variation in color, value, texture & movement in my art. These paintings are simply abstractions of everyday life, feelings & concerns. They’re inspired by my surroundings & are focused far more on the materials than the message.

Saturday, August 11, 2012

Nostalgia.

Nostalgia: 
     nos·tal·gia, noun, a wistful desire to return in thought or in fact to a former time in  one's life, to one's home or homeland, or to one's family and friends; a sentimental yearning for the happiness of a former place or time: a nostalgia for his college days.*

I have spent most of my day filling out job applications, and with doing this I have had to really think about what my long-term goals are. I am faced with this question because, not surprisingly, employers want to know the answer to this. With this I have had to think about why I went to college, what I got out of college, and what do I want to do with this experience and knowledge I have gained. 

Well folks, I can't say I've really pin-pointed an exact career goal, but I do feel strongly that it is my calling to spread art to the everyday people. I don't know how I will do it, or if it will happen in my near future... but I want everyone to feel like art is accessible to them regardless of their demographic background or their education. I want to emphasize the importance that art plays in a person's life, whether that person be a child, an adult, or anyone in between. In the meantime of figuring this out, I began to feel nostalgic. Much like the definition of Nostalgia, I was aching "for my college days". Not the house parties... or Athens' plethora of bar choices... or late night/early morning delivery options... Well, let's be honest-I do miss those! BUT my true nostalgia lies within the School of Art at Ohio University. 

The school of art (SOA) building is truly where I was tested as a person, student, and artist. There's a sense of community among the art students... because college is hard, and all-nighters are common in all majors-no one's arguing that-BUT nothing compares to practically living and staying all night in a BIG, scary, retro, empty building that creeks and cracks over the blasting, diverse sounds of Talking Heads, Tupac, or The Velvet Underground, all while you are supposed to create something that defines you and is wonderful and concise--TALK ABOUT PRESSURE! Not only do I miss this building, and the community, but I miss the constant push, and enlightenment I got from fellow students and faculty.

This being said, whether those faculty and students know their impact on my artist voice or not, I want to share some of their works with you. Make sure to visit their websites too, I know you won't regret it! :)

First on my list of inspirational students is Paige Wright. I made the mistake in one of my last quarters to take a ceramics and the figure class that I was beyond under-qualified for. Not to mention, it was my first college-level ceramics class (and a 400-level class, at that). Not only was this class one of the hardest classes I had to push through, but I felt I was an amateur amongst pros. Paige was a grad-assistant to Tom Bartel-Associate Professor. With her and Tom's efforts, they made me feel at home in the Ceramics studio, and helped me to push through this class. This was the beginning of my love and admiration for everything ceramics.

Page Wright, CHECK OUT HER WEBSITE!!!

Rosemarie Basile, a Professor, an Advisor, and above all-A MENTOR. I would never have graduated if it were for her. She is truly an inspiration, and an amazing woman.
Next on my list of inspirational faculty would be John Sabraw. Initially, he scared the shit out of me-I will be honest, but as time went on... I realized 2 things: I gained more out of his class than all of my beginning classes combined, & his bark is much bigger than his bite (but that secret is safe with me... assuming SOA sophomores are not reading this blog).
John Sabraw, CHECK OUT HIS WEBSITE!!


I hope you are equally as inspired by these artist's websites as I am, more inspirations to come. 

Peace, Love, and Art. 


*All photos in this blog entry are not my personal photos, and were found on the web. Definition of Nostalgia provided by Wikipedia.com*

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