Two collections of paintings, pictures, sculptures and ceramics will allow senior students to tell grounded and bizarre stories.
The first exhibition, “When All is Said and Done,” opened Dec. 2 at the Joann Cole Mitte building and will be on view till Dec. 6. The second, “Surreal Slumbers,” opens on Dec. 5 at The Oasis in apartment 632.
According to Katie Hernandez, studio art senior, “When All is Said and Done” showcased highly personal and narrative works from each artist. For Hernandez, her pieces explore a relationship with religion.
“I take pieces of cardboard, stitch them all together and I collage on top of that,” Hernandez said. “The torn edges: that’s kind of representing the doubts and questions that I have, and then stitching it back together, that signifies how I’m always going back to my faith. It’s a way of repairing that relationship — even though I have questions about it, I’m always going back to it.”
Hernandez’s pieces often consist of charcoal and collage. Asia Estelle, photography senior, used photography and ceramics to convey her themes.
“I make work about Blackness, about my culture, the Black experience,” Estelle said. “That’s how I exist. That’s how I present to the world. It’s something that I’m passionate about making work about; representing myself or being able to add to the many definitions of the ways that Blackness already exists and has been represented.”
While “When All is Said and Done” explored artists’ relationships with subjects like culture and religion, according to Hope McNabb, studio art senior, “Surreal Slumbers” will explore the relationships people have when they’re asleep.
“We want to dive into how your memories and like real life experiences affect the way your dreams are,” McNabb said. “How themes of your childhood or maybe stuff that you enjoy, likes and dislikes, are presented to you in your dream state. Even though it’s a crazy, random world, it still is a reflection of your real life.”
To further immerse guests in the theme, many of the pieces will be set up in a bedroom. For artists like Sidney Eskew, photography senior, this won’t be the only unusual part of the project.
“I’m shooting how I haven’t shot before,” Eskew said. “I’m doing really low exposure and I’m doing flash as well, so it kind of gives them that kind of eerie feeling. I’ve been learning with trial and error. But yeah, that’s how I’m bringing a new style to the art exhibition to really fit those surrealisms.”
Artists in both exhibitions worked on their projects since the beginning of the semester. Though they poured many hours into their exhibitions, the artists found it was worth it.
“I remember in kindergarten there was a day where we had to dress up as what we wanted to be, and I dressed up as an artist, like with a little paint palette,” Hernandez said. “Obviously there’s been bumps in the road over the years, but I think I’m always going to pursue this, and I’ll take whatever struggles come with it. Because at the end of the day, this is what makes me happy, and I’m following my dreams.”
