-
Moses Cone Through intricate brush strokes and experimentation with color theory, this piece reflects the blissfulness of a place we are lucky to call our backyard here in Boone, N.C.
-
Traces Through my chosen medium, alcohol ink, I hope to convey that one can escape from daily life in my artwork. Creating vibrant and colorful pieces is a hobby I enjoy to relieve myself of the stress and mental load that life as a college student can cause. When made for an audience, I want my art to distract viewers from the mundane. Too often we overlook the beautiful colors in our world and as a full time student, I am grateful for the short moments I take to paint and create artwork such as Traces.
-
Genesis This piece is inspired by Genesis -- "the origin or mode of formation of something". This piece utilizes this definition and references the first creation story in the biblical book of Genesis. We were created long ago, but our young adult years are when we truly create ourselves. A time of self-discovery and coming-of-age, this era of our lives is formative and profound. Once we have agency in creating ourselves, we finally start this process and begin to know who we are. And we see that it is Good.
-
1111 My family and I moved to NC 2 years ago because we were homeless and needed a new start. Nearly all our belongings were placed in storage units so we could drive down here. This August, a series of events caused us to lose those storage units and everything was sold. Everything. “1111” is about my undiluted mourning of this loss and trying to find my breath again. This has so far defined my time here at App State because it’s controlled my whole being: this piece helps explain the struggle I’ve been pushing through while going to class, keeping up with studying, and maintaining a social life. “1111” is evidence of my progress and healing.
-
Manic/Depressive This piece focuses on my experience traversing through the semester as someone with Bipolar Disorder. The stresses and victories of completing a class cause specific reactions and feelings with me, and I have put that on display here.
-
Matters of the Heart With this painting I wanted to illustrate the path I took to get to where I am now, and the things that keep me going. I tried experimenting with perspective and surrealism to demonstrate how it feels to have such a major change in life.
-
Each (Insta)nt I often find myself struck by “sonder” or the realization that each person in the world is living their own complex life. Even more wondrous is simply how different each individual person’s experience is, which is part of what my photography attempts to portray. This piece is a collage of photos from the past four years of my college experience in which I have tried to include a variety of subjects, angles, and compositions to depict the uniqueness of what each student may see in their time at Appalachian State. The second part of this piece is the paper frame in each picture which mimics the format of an Instagram post. This represents how interwoven social media often is in our lives and how it can present new perspectives on the world around us. Through social media, for better or worse, we can see beyond our eyes.
-
Hands of Wisdom "Blessed is the one who finds wisdom, and the one who gets understanding, for the gain from her is better than gain from silver and her profit better than gold..." (Proverbs 3:13-16). What a blessing it is to have this opportunity to gain knowledge from the classroom and wisdom from the world beyond! My University Experience is all about learning and growth. I came to college to gain knowledge; I have since become a wiser individual through the relationships I’ve nurtured and the experiences I’ve had.
The Hands of Wisdom carry the Chinese characters for long life, riches, and honor, which the author of Proverbs declares are the fruits of wisdom. These hands belong to me. But the wisdom I hold is not mine alone; it belongs to those who taught me a love for wisdom and to the generations after me who will be blessed with the same.
-
The Moments In Between The complete “Moments In Between” series is meant to be a documentation of the average college student, to develop the narrative of this point in everyone’s life. College is said to be some of the best years, so with that in mind, I set out to capture the fun moments in between the stress of working towards a career. With so little free time due to school, I question what we choose to give it to. Everyone places the value of free time in different things, and I believe that can define a person more than their major. This series is an expression of normalcy to find commonplace among students in this stage of life and what makes us all uniquely human in those moments in between.
-
Blow Pop This piece is supposed to capture how you feel when you're overwhelmed by outside influences but keep trying to be sweet and kind to others. it can be frustrating but rewarding.
-
The boonies This piece is a collection of memories from my first semester here at app state. Despite there being both good and bad memories depicted in this painting, I cherish my time here at app. I’m grateful that I got to experience everything boone had to offer me in my time here.
-
Thinking Through Things This is a self portrait exploring emotions and dealing with depression as a young adult, trying to figure out who I am and what I want to do in life.
-
Tranquility Upon entering college as the oldest daughter, I couldn't shake the feeling of how different things were. Finally being able to hold less weight on my shoulders inspired the feeling of tranquility. As expressed in this piece, the concept of rest is demonstrated through soft watercolors, a pastel color pallet, and my personal home-y touches. Specifically, the napkin used in the background was obtained from my godmother's household. A person who has given me a break from my busy home life for as long as I can remember.
When I created this art, my goal was to extend a hand of love to anyone who is the first in their family to go to college, first out of the house, and all of the oldest siblings on and off campus. It means so much to me that we stick together on this journey that we have to experience alone.
-
trust the process Painting on a canvas this big is new to me, so just seeing what sticks to the surface and what I'm vibing with is mainly what drove this piece.
-
Vibrant Existence For years, I've dedicated myself to a project close to my heart—sketching the students of Appalachian State University. Each drawing is a snapshot of real life, capturing moments when they were in class, spending time with friends, studying intently, or simply savoring life's moments. What makes this collection special is the diversity in their signatures; each one a unique mark, reflecting the individuality of every person I sketched. Through my art, I aimed to preserve the essence of their uniqueness, allowing my memories of them to spring to life in my work!
-
Valak In the realm of college challenges, my art serves as a sanctuary. Abstract pieces are one of my ways of unpacking internal struggles. Creating them is like letting go, and afterwards, I find a deeper acceptance of myself and the circumstances I face.
-
Ash, Bone, and Gold In my painting, "Ash, Bone, and Gold," I sought to capture the essence of the student experience at Appalachian State University. This mighty dragon, crafted with ink and adorned in gold, symbolizes the strength and resilience cultivated through challenges and growth.
The god-like halo represents the pursuit of knowledge, illuminating the path of enlightenment during the academic and personal journey. Against a backdrop of contrasting dark clouds and gold, the painting mirrors the contrasts of my struggles and triumphs.
The cracked floor landscape with dead trees serves as a metaphor for overcoming obstacles and adapting to change. It signifies the transformation that occurs within oneself, mirroring the evolving nature of personal and academic development.
In this painting, I invite viewers to reflect on their own odysseys. It is an exploration of the intricate tapestry of emotions, challenges, and growth that define the unique journey of each Appalachian State University student.
-
Scaly Night Sky This print “Scaly Night Sky” was inspired and prompted by the task of making a Meta-Mural for the Art Crawl on King Street where each person was tasked with making a piece that would connect to the next. I came up with the concept of these dragons when deciding I wanted to make at least one print that explored dragons and the different forms they can take. I wanted the viewer to be able to explore and imagine the journey these dragons might be on and to get lost within the patterns and flowing forms. I hope that these dragons are capable of taking you on a journey like the one I have experienced throughout my years here at Appalachian and the growth I have experienced.
-
Stargazing on Memories Stargazing on Memories represents my journey at Appalachian State, from mountains to sea. When planning this painting, I took my time reminiscing on my experiences that shaped me into the person I am today. The result is a peaceful landscape, forged from a combination of my memories that visualize the storyline of my college journey, from Freshman year to now, Junior year. I placed myself atop a hill, observing Boone and Oak Island through my telescope. Ultimately, the combined landscape is somewhere I would personally find peace within, if it existed. What may come as a surprise is my painting is not meant to be happy. Certain aspects derive from memories of my first heartbreak and the loneliness it causes me. Despite the negative association, I wanted to portray my memories in a positive way, because even though the past hurts, I will always remember the good times I had.
-
Within the Storm When thinking about the University Experience, a storm comes to mind. College is never just a smooth road, but a storm that can range from sweet rain drops to the hurling winds of a tornado, with lightning skipping across the sky. However, when looking past the intense nature of college, it can be quite beautiful. Seeing past the negative aspects of a storm, we can see the beauty and color within it, and how it reflects the colorful moments of the journey in education. We see those moments and rise from the storm. Not seeing it as the enemy or the challenge that stops us, to the weapon we harness, the memories we see along the way. It may start out as a treacherous storm, at the end the journey we have created and rose into a world of colorful creations.
-
Path of Most Resistance My experience here has been a challenge, like I knew it would be. I could have gone back to an HBCU, but I was curious about the mountain’s peak. Flying up here, I never could’ve known I’d be struck by lightning, but it was only a matter of time. Even though I’m unsure if I’ll make it over this, I’m happy I was able to come this far. In taking the path of most resistance, I’ve proven myself to be stronger than the lightning that’s striking me down.
-
Metamorphosis As an artist I am constantly growing and changing but one thing has remained the same. I use art to explore my thoughts and feelings. Art is a way for me to understand myself and the world around me. Art is a voice for me. As an artist, I want to tell stories that connect with people; to touch them and provoke thought.
I’m an artist and I create. I just create. I can’t help but create.
-
A Universe of Possibilities The canvas of my experiences is vast, spanning the halls of knowledge, the landscapes of curiosity, and the uncharted territories of the future. This painting displays an outer space image of something that hasn’t yet been discovered but shows the possibilities that could be out there in the universe. Being a student at Appalachian State University has pushed me to explore endless possibilities both in our universe and outside of it. As I further explore what my education has to offer me, I'll sketch constellations of memories from my past, paint the cosmic hues of my present adventures, and launch into the unknown with the brushstrokes of my future aspirations.
-
Roadkill Every art piece I create is an attempt to gain understanding. Each work reaches out in desperation, hoping to untangle the emotions that have no words yet.
Life is fleeting- as is everything we perceive around us. The moments in which we are faced with this are hard to overcome- but it can become a necessary step towards acceptance. And then, we can try to flourish within this alien world.
"Roadkill" came to fruition during an unexpected bout of psychosis. I tried to express the pain and realizations I worked through during that time, as well as the aftermath I was left with. We are all bursts of awareness, wandering the Earth in a human shell. To me, art is how we cry for help, how we rejoice in our advancements, and how we learn what brings us fulfillment and purpose.
-
Melodious Being at App has been a whirlwind of new experiences that force you to adapt and change. These experiences have all felt different, but when I take a step back I can see that they all helped me become a better and more well rounded person. Just like this painting, I want to take all my experiences here in stride, and carry them with me as a reformed complex person, with all my straight lines, smooth gradients, renderings, and tactility. This piece exemplifies this for me, because while all its parts seem like they may not work together, they sit in harmony, the modern and the traditional hand in hand, just as the past and future inform each other. I want to carry my past here into my current and my current into my future.
