Proposition

After the exercise in class I went through and found that a common theme in all of my sentences were those of acceptance. I saw for example, “I am innocent but people still tend to push”, “I like things and people and feelings that are genuine”, “I want consistent love” “ I believe kindness takes people farther”, “ I find that I act differently when I first meet someone” and “ I felt the ability to organize myself”.

Oftentimes when people enter new situations, like here for example, being in college for the first time, emotions that may have gone unnoticed before begin to stick out when nothing around you feels right yet. No matter how comfortable you are in this so-called place or how close you are to falling apart, things will still feel new and comfort is often sought by replacing what has been left behind. For many this means, a bed, food, a routine and basics and for others it means finding a new family with new friends. Sometimes we judge people and eliminate them from this plan based on how they make us feel, other times we see people and want to be their friend but may to scared to try based on previous assumptions or incidences. I have found myself in positions where I approach a group and feel left out or looked down up or immediately at home. I am occasionally surprised that the reaction I was awaiting turned out to be quite the opposite of the one that I actually received. It is these first moments of greeting when things are either instantly clarified or made far more blurred in our minds. We feel accomplished and accepted or completely out of place and additionally, proved wrong or proved right.

It is my intention to use art as a vessel for sparking the memories viewers may have from these types of moments in their lives. Everyone has felt the knot in they’re throat while desperately trying not to let they’re eyes water, or the pain in your abs that comes from laughing so hard with a person you feel close to. These physical sensations stem from physical situations we find ourselves in, ie being held close by your mother or standing in a group not contributing to a topic you know nothing about.

Essentially I want to create a series of pieces each with a different level of comfort in mind, but specifically from the “feelers” point of view and in ways that person can be greeted. Perhaps they would go in this order, “invisible”, “overlooked”, “acknowledged”, “accepted” and “embraced” . The first might be of the outsider looking in, longing to become a part of a group. The second may be some of the glances the onlooker may receive which may not be welcoming. The third might be one person reaching out with a smile. The forth may be far more zoomed in as the person makes his/her way to join the cluster. Finally , he/she has made it and maybe found that desired niche. Shown side by side the images would essentially act as a scale. Still undecided though, is how I want to produce them. I am considering photography and painting but most likely mixed media with ink, pen, and marker. I would like to experiment with the ten images by trying several of these techniques before I choose. While much of the technique I am unsure about I am looking forward to seeing where this project takes me.