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open access

Activating Space within the Object and the Site

Description: I look at the world as a sculptor, examining physical constructs and implied meanings. My current research developed from my earlier studies of “containment” or, more specifically, “encapsulation,” creating visual, often physical, boundaries around selected content. Encapsulation confers a more active role than “containment”, a process rather than a result. This idea speaks to the issues of form, and asks the viewer to question the outside “shape of the form” in relation to the inside shape and… more
Date: May 2001
Creator: Provence, Dana Noel
open access

Exploration through Materials and the Transformation of the Commonplace

Description: The challenge of this project was to present subject matter in a way that did not seem common to the viewer. With this goal in mind, I aimed to switch the traditional roles of material and form in order to aesthetically elevate the commonplace. For my proposed project I combined traditional sculptural materials and processes with commonplace subject matter. I took a chance at the beginning of this project by making something that I had been joking about until I realized that this might be an in… more
Date: May 2001
Creator: Sides, Luke
open access

Formal Concerns in Conceptual Sculpture

Description: The problem I choose dealt with a new material to use in conceptual art. Since the nature of my work deals with ribbed sculptural forms that explore conceptual abstractions of recorded observations, I investigated a new material called composites. A composite is defined as two or more materials that are combined to share the best qualities of both. Laminated foam core, nylon fabric weave, vinyl, and resin composites may introduce an aesthetic and structural advantage to traditional material suc… more
Date: May 2001
Creator: Stromberg, Matthew Gray
open access

Man-Bull

Description: This thesis presents a body of work that acknowledges Rural American landscape and the importance of its conservation. This conservation is not restricted to recognizing the rural landscape as strictly a natural resource, rather, a spiritual place that fosters a positive side of humanity.
Date: August 2001
Creator: Staples, James M.
open access

Loss of Innocence

Description: Loss of Innocence uses sculpture, two-dimensional imagery, and text to explore the moment when children lose their innocence or realize their mortality. In the introduction, I explain that there are many factors, such as age and personality, which determine how children will deal with traumatic events in their lives and the duration of time that must pass before they move past the event. Often, children will combine childhood fantasy with random facts to create their own satisfactory explanatio… more
Date: May 2002
Creator: Smith, Jennifer J.
open access

Surfacing the Void

Description: Surfacing the Void is an exploration of surface design in relationship to the topic of voids. For the purpose of this paper, two types of void were addressed: shelters and hulls. The theme behind the sculptural works dealt with negative spaces as an analogy for the voids in people's lives. The goal was to find a way for the surfaces to elicit an emotional response from the viewer that correlates to the impression of either shelter or hull. Keeping this in mind, each experiment was approached w… more
Date: May 2002
Creator: Williamson, Melanie L.
open access

Abstract Moments of Art Found in the Ordinary

Description: This paper is an experiment using digital video to locate and identify the abstract in everyday life and nature. The abstract moment occurs when the image that is captured by video loses its connection with the original context, allowing the images to be viewed in an entirely new way. The abstract moment is initiated by a transformative instant, that instant in which perception is altered and the viewer sees the intended content of composition of light and sound. The project contains four digit… more
Date: December 2002
Creator: Kraft, Stuart
open access

The Exploration of Surface and Texture on the Inside and Outside of My Sculpture

Description: After generating work for many years in an intuitive, “truth to materials” mindset my intent was to explore the interior possibilities of my sculptural forms and relate these if possible, to the exterior. Alongside this exploration of the interior I introduced surface texture and color onto both interior/exterior surfaces. In some cases the work had undergone a change, which lent new meaning and provided new relationships to exist between the interior/exterior of my sculpture. Not all of the wo… more
Date: December 2002
Creator: Holt, John
open access

Preconceived Notions of Scale Relationships

Description: I proposed in my paper to use juxtaposition of unexpected scale in my sculpture, with the expectation that it would create an unexpected tension that is visually stimulating to the viewer. I achieved this by creating disharmony in scale between an object that is perceived as miniature and an object that is perceived as gigantic within each sculpture. I then asked three questions of these sculptures: Was I able to alter the viewer's preconceived notions of the miniature and the gigantic through … more
Date: December 2002
Creator: McClung, Jeffrey Bruce
open access

Tangible Struggle

Description: The focus of my graduate work was to find my own voice through my continued efforts in woodcarving. I proposed to produce six to eight wood carved sculptures for my thesis that would be dealing with a juxtaposition of struggle expressively portrayed by the figure between two-dimensional and three-dimensional worlds. I used these works to express my emotions about myself, and my interactions with others in a form of nonverbal communication with the viewer. The result of this process did lead me … more
Date: May 2003
Creator: Whelan, Shawn
open access

Poetic Products

Description: Not many artists have made a successful connection between art and text. In this installation of four works of art, I have given a new perspective on commerce by combining my poetry with common products. The content of my work is based on experiences I have had throughout my life. I believe that I have successfully combined my poems and art into cohesive works that break through the conventional understanding of products and their packaging.
Date: December 2003
Creator: Henry, Benny
open access

Professional Widow

Description: The focus of my graduate work was to figure my way through a variety of challenges and transitions I was going through as a graduate student and simply as a person finding my way through my education to discover who I am and who I want to become. Perhaps my themes didn't focus primarily on these events in a literal sense, but I think the transitions in my artwork have become obvious through my time spent at UNT and the variations on a theme I have dealt with. All of my work deals with love, att… more
Date: May 2004
Creator: McKinley, Katherine L.
open access

The Unreadable Word

Description: This autobiographical problem in lieu of thesis explores the subject matter of the sculpture, revolving around the issues of dyslexia and literacy, and builds upon the idea of metaphor and its function in relationship to the sculpture. The four visual and conceptual elements that are emphasized are: (a) the juxtaposition and arrangement of elements and materials; (b) inability to open the books; (c) alteration of the text to make the words illegible, by creating words that are fuzzy or transpar… more
Date: May 2004
Creator: McGehearty, Eric
open access

De-Emphasize Direct Presence

Description: The following paper reveals some aspects of my thoughts about art. The works discussed are featured in my M.F.A. exhibition. All works are mainly based on the ideas of absence, self-reference and utilization in art practice, even though each piece approaches the subject from differing angles. My dissatisfaction with preconceived notions in the contemporary art, rooted in art history, has shifted my focus from concerns of the direct, physical presence of artworks to the indirect or indecisive el… more
Date: August 2004
Creator: Chen, Xinpeng
open access

Moving in a New Direction: An Exploration in Kinetics

Description: Movement, whether conveyed through an actual motion or a gestured implication, remains an underlying theme in my creative process that started with my earliest works. I explored different aspects of kinetic sculpture, because I am seeking new ways to create motion such as experimenting with circulating air, wind, and the use of water features. I created a series consisting of three to five kinetic sculptures which do not rely on sound or direct viewer manipulation.
Date: August 2004
Creator: Illy, Etienne
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