Presentation Title
Beauty through Complexity: Celebrating the Intersections of Identity and Femininity
Type of Presentation
Presentation
Description
This body of work will investigate celebrating the intersections of femininity and identity for feminist individuals through the depiction of the female figure and utilization of conventional feminine color, materials, patterns, and methods of crafting. Individual silhouettes will be created through embroidered yarn and sewn beads over uniquely patterned paintings attributed to the individual. Formal choices of imperfect, non-symmetrical patterning, and brushy strokes will show the quality of both the paint and the hand application. My figures will portray women from my life stand in a position they deem personally expressive. The figure will fill the canvas vertically referencing traditional portraiture and be large in size evoking equality among the viewer and the piece. In developing the representative patterns, I intend to investigate the interconnections of the individuals’ identity with interconnecting patterns and motifs. The patterns will consist of alterations, imperfections, and juxtapositions being similar to nature. I work to showcase the diversity, power, and beauty that stems from the complexities and connections of my subjects. Artistic influences include: Ghada Amer, Kara Walker, Jessica Watts, William Morris, and Khendie Whiley. Amer’s string paintings in conjunction with Watts’s and Whiley’s use of pattern with figure relationships will be explored in my paintings. Walker’s use of silhouettes to convey meaningful stories alongside Morris’s traditional wallpaper patterns will influence my design choices. The body of paintings will represent the female figure in traditional and hand craft techniques prompting the viewer to engage in a conversation with the subject and materials.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Faculty Mentor
Elsie Hill
Department of Primary Presenter's Major
Department of Literature
Symposium Year
2020
Beauty through Complexity: Celebrating the Intersections of Identity and Femininity
