2007 MFA Fine Art Thesis Exhibition

Natalie Aguilar
Bridget Barnhart
Lina Bokhary
Benjamin Carder
Iris Charabi-Berggren
Amanda Curreri
Anne Devine
Jennifer Durban
Frank Anthony Ebert
Patricia Esquivias
Heather Feeney
Renee Gertler
Katherine Gritt
David Gurman
Jessalyn Haggenjos Barr
Amanda Herman
Marnia Johnston
Robin Johnston
Bessma Khalaf
Melanie C. Lacy Kusters
Sarah Marie Lewallen
Christopher Loomis
Samuel Lopes
Celia Manley
Jack Miller
Carrie Anne Minikel
Elizabeth Mooney
Nyeema Morgan
Harry Muniz
Alison Naschke-Messing
Jennifer O'Keeffe
Karen Olsen-Dunn
Katina Papson
Lee Pembleton
Ryan Pierce
Lacey Jane Roberts
Amy Rose Sampson
Erik Scollon
Marsha Shaw
Shawn Sloan
Reggie Stump
Gabrielle Teschner
Julie Ann Travis
Carly Troncale
Lindsey White
Tom Wiehl
Christine Wong Yap
Jenny Zito

Ryan Pierce
 
Albertine Rift
72" x 48"
acrylic on panel
2006
 
Artist Statement
In my paintings and related sculptures I depict how humans might rebuild society and culture after the end of industry.  I synthesize two opposing hypotheses to create scenes that speak of the struggle and mystery of the human relationship to the rest of the natural world.  One side of me is optimistic, and believes that with a clean slate and cautious determination we could avoid further ecological disaster.  This is tempered by another view that fears that human greed and conflict is unavoidable.  I use a personalized theory of bioregionalism— the notion that sustainability can be realized by redrafting society around the health of natural systems— to create the rules for which this world might exist.  Each painting is based on a specific ‘ecoregion,’ an area of land defined not by a nation state but by ecology. These factors help me add a richly imagined specificity to my dream world.  This project is a way of cross-examining my own ideals.  Through the lens of my fears—violence, nationalism, and a vast uncertainty— I can debate the plausibility of my passions.  I am thus forced to reckon with both the triumphs and pitfalls of the bright and cloudy future.

Contact
tarptarmac@gmail.com


©2007 California College of the Arts. All rights reserved.