Term of Award
Spring 2025
Degree Name
Master of Fine Arts (M.F.A.)
Document Type and Release Option
Thesis (open access)
Copyright Statement / License for Reuse
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Department
Department of Art
Committee Chair
Jeff Garland
Committee Member 1
Matthew Mogle
Committee Member 2
Jason Hoelscher
Abstract
Hard-edge painting has always been rooted in precision, crisp forms, and the rejection of gestural abstraction. My work builds on this tradition while pushing its boundaries, breaking free from the conventional picture plane, exploring objecthood, and activating space through material and color. By using shaped wood substrates instead of canvas, I transform paintings into physical objects that interact with their environment rather than existing as flat images. The natural grain of the wood plays an integral role in this, creating an organic contrast to the controlled, geometric forms I apply.
Color functions as both a formal and perceptual tool in my practice. Drawing from Josef Albers’ research on simultaneous contrast, I explore how color interactions create optical vibrations, shifting how the work is perceived depending on placement and lighting. The use of metallic and iridescent paints further enhances these effects, allowing the surface to change in real-time as the viewer moves. Inspired by Minimalist sculptors like Donald Judd and Robert Morris, I consider installation an extension of the work itself, floating pieces off the wall, casting real and painted shadows, and integrating the gallery space as part of the composition.
Through research into hard-edge abstraction, minimalism, and color theory, I position my work within a lineage of artists such as Frank Stella, Ellsworth Kelly, and Bridget Riley, while simultaneously disrupting these traditions. The goal is to create work that blurs the line between painting and object, between surface and space, between order and disruption, challenging the viewer’s perception and redefining what a painting can be.
Recommended Citation
Humphrey, Quinderrious, "Hard Edge Expansion" (2025). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 2927.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/etd/2927
Research Data and Supplementary Material
No
