Real Stories From Real Artists
CLAIRE Denton * Painting BFA
INTRO: Always Been Here, Making
Bob Ross Reruns (And Some Other Guy)
A Spite Thing
on The Grind
To Stick With It, Against All Odds
Shit I'm Not Gonna Make Money...
Professors As Guiding Mentors & Harsh Critics
Crits Are Scary Scary...
Not Everyone's Cut Out For This...
Fitting In -ish
Do We Have To Make It On Our Own?
Also Shit, That's Expensive...
With Claire Denton
Despite spending all hours of the day (and night) in the studio, Claire could never imagine doing it any other way. To her, and so many other artists, working a 9-5 in a cubicle is a particular breed of "personal hell." Claire doesn't work a 9-5, instead it's more like a 9-10. The critiques are rugged and often filled with harsh words, art supplies are expensive, motivation and sticking with it all can just be difficult.
So, why stick with it?
The answer comes from the simple ending of these uphill battles. The reverse of it all. When you get moments of air and understanding. When that same professor who gave a harsh critique one moment before, ends up being the same person who tells you (quite sillily) to take a "lap around lawrence hall," when you break down because your canvas is upside down, because they know that you need a second to breathe. And the people around you can share in this struggle and in the (sometimes silent) understanding that doing this kind of work is often unrewarding and never ending. This is a known for artists. But these people understand that what's worth it is that sometimes you do hate it. But then you love it. And that love comes even stronger. That very well may be the universal artist experience. As Claire (quite wisely) put it, it's quite comforting to have people to share this experience with, no matter how crazy the experience is, or how "weird" society may deem the crazy dreamers and mad lads that are artists. Because at the end of the day it is only they that have the guts to make what they make and find home both in the people who understand, and in the challenges that end, resulting in something that is real and earned.
INTRO: Outside The Bounds/Pathways
Practically Living In The Studio
Thesis Work: Biology, The Ocean, & Identity
Knowing When To Call It Quits
HARPER Pearce-Mitchell * Metalsmithing BFA
Space As Our Space, Not Just Mine
On Making Work That's Special
On Making Work That's Me
On Feeling Belonging (More Than Ever)
The Meaning of The Craft
With Harper Pearce-Mitchell
For Harper, art is more than just the work, the grind, and even the finished product at the end of the road (though, having something to hold in your hand is an added bonus). To them, it's all about the ornate details that matter, why we make art, and who we make it for. In Harper's case, their work is a love letter. It's an ode to the beauty of trans and queer bodies, as they meld their identity as a trans and queer person into powerful metal creations that embody oceanic motifs: how the ocean endures, how the creatures in it are beautiful and unique. There isn't just a strictly suffering narrative within these pieces, and there's a resistant and radiant joy to be found in their works in the face of a difficult world obsessed with binary traditional concepts meant to put people and identity in labeled boxes. These pieces aren't neccesarily made to be wearable (though pieces of theirs can be). But they are made to be something for others to latch on to, even if it doesn't resonate with everyone.
"Not everyone is going to understand my work, not everyone is going to like it." There's a boldness to admitting this. Many may not find Harper's art to connect with them. But for those who do, it can unlock a whole other world for them, one they can feel represented and seen in. Harper reminds us that the meaning behind art has the power to be echoed through the medium, and to provide comfort to those looking to feel seen and find home and comfort in identity.
AUDREY McCarthy * Ceramics BFA
INTRO: Art Is Human, Handmade
Playfulness Is An Art of Its Own
It Has To Be Ceramics
Room For Experimentation
Make The Space Home Damnit!
Ditching The Guidelines
Sculpture As A Realer, Truer Self
Endings As Beginnings
Cemented In History
Home Is In The Process
With Audrey McCarthy
There's this perfectionist narrative with many artists. It's the notion that art should primarily concerned with being as realistic as possible. In a world of Mona Lisa's and Da Vinci's, sometimes a weird little mug or a jar with a giant stem is what the world needs more of. With artistry always constantly drilling in ideas of proper techniques and realism, something different, maybe something that sparks joy in its own right, is sorely needed, and that is exactly what Audrey gives to the world.
For Audrey, art is an opportunity to truly take the time to play with the form and challenge this narrative of perfectionism, opting instead for a truer expression of the self. Clay is a notoriously fun (and sometimes difficult) medium, but the result is something that is always unique, one of a kind, and is shaped by real human hands. While Audrey loves functionality pieces, their recent projects seek to challenge what is functional, instead engaging with the form in a way that feels playful and exciting and new, with a sense of home found in the process of making things made that are uniquely human, made by her, and something you won't find anywhere else.