As part of Colgate’s studio art concentration, graduating seniors are required to produce one studio piece to serve as the capstone for the academic major. This year, 17 students produced works that were displayed in the University’s Clifford Gallery. Each piece invites viewers to consider new perspectives and to engage thoughtfully with its subject.
Condemned
Andrea Cornelius
Acrylic, paper, and moss on wood panel
11 x 5 feet
Artist’s statement: The future of younger generations is under threat. We are approaching an earth damaged and made inhospitable by formidable, unsustainable corporations, and by authorities that refuse to prevent it. The corporate world is powerfully interconnected and pathetically regulated. It consumes the planet without regard to the ecological effects. It leaves the world to drown, to wither, to suffocate, and to burn. We see on the news that many people are already facing the consequences, but it is easy to shut off the TV, turn off our phones, close our eyes, and assume we’re not in danger. Privilege protects us. For now. But we are in danger. And the ones responsible simply turn their backs to the rallies, the protests, the posters, the marches, the cries of outrage from the planet’s youth. I’m scared. Why aren’t they?
Cells, Not Cells
Sophie Chen
Oil on canvas
30 x 40 inches
Artist’s statement: Shrinking and shrinking, I’m about the size of a cell. My body is no longer the restraint; my vision goes beyond what I can see. I’m exploring, discovering, and imagining the alien creatures within me. I’m now part of the mystical world, the mesmerizing reality, and I decide to picture the tale I could not physically experience.
In Ink
Margaret Reed
Archival inkjet print
24 x 28 inches
Artist’s statement: I made a space in my studio where I could give full attention to my portrait subjects, and where they could share their stories. I used a film camera so neither I nor my subject could preview the images as we created them. There was no critiquing of poses or expressions. I used my camera to capture my spontaneous interaction with each individual. All of the portraits were taken while the subject was in the midst of explaining to me what their tattoos mean to them. A tattoo in itself is a self-portrait, a reminder of the experiences that make us who we are. By photographing these tattoos, I am capturing both the subject and their representation of self. Our conversations about why and when, sometimes evoking fond memories, sometimes evoking past hardships, led organically to the images.