What is a BFA Show?

When I tell non-art types I am getting a BFA they look at me strangely and ask what is that? BFA stands for Bachelor of Fine Arts, an art degree that requires more studio time than a regular art degree. In addition to spending more time creating, the BFA student must participate in the BFA exhibition. It is a requirement to graduate. Throughout their studies, the emerging artist must demonstrate the ability to create a body of work worthy of the show. That means that the work has a consistent theme or aesthetic and they have to explain what the art means or what motivated them to use the process they chose. Sometimes that is difficult because many artists will tell you that they created a body of work and the meaning presented itself at a later date. That is tricky for students because art professors are rascals and they like to see art students squirm under pressure to explain their work. It is a skill that an artist needs.

Here is the scoop on my BFA show next Friday. Five other art students and I are transforming Wells Hall for the show titled RE: if I (a play on words) on November 30, 2018, starting at 6 pm. FREE FOOD!

Featured artists besides myself include Saleha Butt, Victor Beckman, Autumn Hunnicutt, Coryn Catanzaro, and Henry Hartig. Everyone has a fantastic body of work representing the culmination of their academic research. The media will include sculpture, jewelry, painting, and performance.

Here are the links to my talented classmates:

facebook.com/events/1955218074577040/

coryncatanzaro.com

karensconley.com

autumnhunnicuttart.com

vmbeckman.com

instagram.com/saleha4716/

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The Value of Art

I don’t know about anyone else, but sometimes I start a painting or pastel and then I just stop because I have other deadlines for example school or my current BFA show coming up. Well, I started a portrait of my sister two years ago. After doing the sketch and the initial layer of paint, I put it aside. The black and white underpainting kept giving me the stink eye every time I went in and out of the garage. It was supposed to be her birthday present, and I felt terrible that I let it languish so long. I wondered why I did not attach more value to completing the work. This summer I decided to experiment with pastels, and I applied them on top of the oil. It took a lot of layers, and I still could have put more color on that canvas, but I really needed to finish it before my mother's October birthday. My mom lives with my sister, so it was also going to my sister. "Two birds with one stone." The value that I placed on the work increased the closer my mom' s birthday drew near. The frame was heavy, and the shipping cost was outrageous, but I needed to complete this task because I knew that it was going to be more valuable once my mom received it. That is the thing about the value of art, it is in the eyes of the beholder or the investor who is going to buy it as an investment. For me, I am much happier knowing that this mixed media piece that lived in the garage for almost two years finally has a home in which it is much loved. My sister had a big party and filmed my mother getting the "Girl with the Green Hat." I wish I could have been there because it brought my mom to tears. That is the real value of art.

Girl With the Green Hat, 2018

Girl With the Green Hat, 2018

Sometimes your own Identity makes the best artwork.

I'm am working on a series of self-portraits for my upcoming BFA show at the end of November. It is proving to be more emotional for me than any of my other work. I am reflecting on my personality, life events, and people that have shaped me, bad or good. As in most of my work I am looking at vernacular photography, family dynamics, and memory. I am trying to get six 36x36 paintings completed for the show as well as some video. I am hoping to tackle some small work at the end of November. Yesterday I felt very emotional while I was working.

I think my painting skills are improving with each portrait and I am learning to slow down. I am always in a hurry in general and do not know why everything seems like a race. Being in school contributes to that with deadlines, but that is the way it is. Academia is a time to practice, but I get attached to everything I do, and sometimes feel crabby that I don't have more time to reflect on the work. But that in itself can be a curse because I could spend too much time in contemplation.

me as a nunIMG_2334.JPG

Masks can be more revealing then our own reflection.

I'm am working on a series of self-portraits for my upcoming BFA show at the end of November. It is proving to be more emotional for me than any of my other work. I am reflecting on my personality, life events, and people that have shaped me, bad or good. As in most of my work I am looking at vernacular photography, family dynamics, and memory. I am trying to get six 36x36 paintings completed for the show as well as some video. I am hoping to tackle some small work at the end of November. Yesterday I felt very emotional while I was working.

I think my painting skills are improving with each portrait and I am learning to slow down. I am always in a hurry in general and do not know why everything seems like a race. Being in school contributes to that with deadlines, but that is the way it is. Academia is a time to practice, but I get attached to everything I do, and sometimes feel crabby that I don't have more time to reflect on the work. But that in itself can be a curse because I could spend too much time in contemplation.