I turned in my application for the Bachelor of Fine Arts program at Central Michigan today! I am hoping for the best. I thought I'd share my artist statement and the 10 works I submitted.
Portfolio
Artist Statement
The BFA program will help me
progress as an artist and support the type of mixed-media art I would like to
pursue. My interest is primarily 2-D art. I enjoy painting, photography and
printmaking and would like to experiment more with mixing all three mediums and
establishing my own artistic voice.
The
work in my portfolio reflects the format in which I would further develop
through my courses. Air Pollution was
something I created in high school, but is a piece I frequently come back to
because it demonstrates the type of art I want to be producing. It includes a
manipulated photograph, done first with Photoshop and then furthered by hand, a
collage of drawn images, painted imagery in the background and many layers of
inks, chalks and acrylic paint on top. The layering method of different mediums
is something I wish to further pursue. Finding the perfect materials to express
an idea, and not being bound by the rules and restrictions of them, feels
adventurous and exciting. I like the idea of being a well-rounded artist with
experience in a wide range of areas.
Portraiture
is the format of work I would like to further explore. I really am a true
introvert type of a person. I get scared and nervous when talking to people,
but at the same time I find people extremely fascinating. I find that a lot of
my inspiration to create art comes from the fact that I feel very shy and
awkward most of the time. Trying to understand human emotion, and furthering
that emotion to convey a completely different topic is something I have
attempted and would love to continue to do.
At
this point I do not have particular standout favorites in the art world, but I
have found I most frequently gravitate towards portraiture. For example, a
printmaker that I enjoy is Barbara Elam. The portraits she makes seem to be
memories of hers. The people aren’t proportioned perfectly, or necessarily look
real, but she has a definite style that can be seen in all her work. A painter
I enjoy is Victor Rodriguez, a hyperrealist painter. I am very attracted to the
idea of taking portraits and pushing them so far as to have the viewer question
whether the image is a painting or not. These two artists have very different
styles, but I find both to be very influential.
Overall
I feel the BFA program fits my needs because I am a very driven person,
interested in really developing as an artist. I am also an art education major
and being a teacher later in life is all the more reason for me to have as much
experience in the studio as possible. The BFA program would give me more
opportunity to practice discussing and supporting my own work, something I know
will benefit me not only as an artist, but as a teacher as well.
Here's hoping for the best!
