Throughout the creation process, the connection between my pieces was not obvious; however, looking back over the semester I can now connect the dots. All three pieces are forms of Static Art, including painting, photography, and a combination of drawing and photography. The projects all combined Postmodernist and Modernist elements to create visually simple final projects embellished with layers of depth. Art that is visually bold yet simple attracts me, and has become a common theme in my own creation. For the first project I used my hands to make acrylic print paintings and practice Color Theory. Specifically I used bright color combinations that had both optical and physical effects to create a Formalist piece. My second Static Art piece used photography to capture the temporary 3D Design of balloons placed in a construction zone and among trashcans. The compositions were important, because the specific placing of a balloon in specific sites would draw greater ideas into question (For example, the red balloon next to the “Danger Hard Hat Area” sign). The photographs paid attention to light and it’s effects on the balloons. Red is a color I always lean towards and work with, and the boldness of red in these photographs sticks out. The last Static Art piece used classical portrait drawing (graphite on paper) and a photo mosaic to draw into question social structures. The black and white portrait was drawn from life with an emphasis on tonality and representation to create a harsh contrast. The photo mosaic used Social Media images to construct a postmodern portrait of myself. My work evolved thematically around the concept of the individual. My first project commented on the simplicity of childhood. My next project juxtaposed the simplicity and purity of childhood to the difficult and not-so-pretty working world. My final project commented on the grown individual, and how identity is something you create through the modern world and the conventions of social media. Identity evolves in my projects from the simple to the complex, from the young to the mature. Ultimately in a postmodern world, identity is something that through multi-media the individual creates for his or herself. Combining this theme with bold color and ton reveals my works’ pattern and progress throughout the semester.

Key Words: Static Art, Color Theory, Formalism, 3D Design, Composition, Light, Tonality, Representation, Social Media 

“Media Culture is the result of the industrialization of information and culture. Images, sounds and spectacles help produce the fabric of life, dominating leisure time, shaping political views and social behavior, and providing the materials out of which people forge their identities”  -Doug Kellner 

“People often say that this or that person has not yet found himself.  But the self is not something one finds, it is something one creates”  ~Thomas Szasz, ‘Personal Conduct,’ The Second Sin, 1973.

“When all is said and done, more will be said than done.”

“Painting is easy when you don’t know how, but very difficult when you do.” -Edgar Degas