Scholarship & Research
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Item Victims of circumstance, victims of ourselves(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Arts & Architecture, 1981) Toland, Deborah GroomeI am trying to represent a feeling or psychological state; the situation and figures in.my work are often used as metaphors. The drama becomes a symbolic representation of an emotion or inner condition. There is an exaggerated sense of drama or melodrama throughout the work, which increases the potency of the scene and promotes self- consciousness in the viewer. In creating scenes where the figures look out at the viewer, it is my intent that the viewer becomes aware of his own observation,. Many scenes depict fragments of an implied narrative creating a mystery open to the viewer's interpretation. The use of light and shadow support the melodrama and increase the level of fantasy and mystery. Each isolated scene, beyond describing a condition, asks> the viewer for his involvement in the drama, while making him self-conscious in the process. My work is often satirical. This satire co-exists with an empathy for the situations created.Item Untitled(Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Arts & Architecture, 1983) Tapola, Bruce Charles; Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Richard HelzerIt's not the rational or logical workings of the intellect but rather the illogical, irrational workings of the heart (soul), which are the catalysts of my pictures. By in some way giving the ambiguities of the emotional self visual substance, either through metaphor or the invention of personal symbols, I am attempting to make those ambiguities tangible. The intent is that once tangible they become easier to understand. Many of my paintings are born of anxiety. I wonder (WORRY) about my future constantly. What my paintings are about is the end result of the emotions they are born of. Where a more logically based approach to art making yields the results of a pre-planned effect or is illustrational of an idea or theme, my approach yields the evidence of the questioning process. At any one time I hold a multitude of contradictory feelings and viewpoints. By including a visual conglomerate of information which is both central and peripheral to a particular experience I can more fully understand and represent my interpretation of that event as a multifaceted 'thing'. I feel that it is the inclusion of contradictions and the absence of 'answers' which gives my work an unsettling quality. Humor or satire plays a role in the making of each piece and in the approach to subject matter. Their 'homemade' quality serves as something of a nose thumbing towards the notion of high art. The inclusion of 'dumb' imagery is a counterpoint to the heaviness of the territory explored. Truth, regardless of how it is defined by different artists, is one of the most desirable qualities of a work. Bruce Nauman's piece 'True Artist,' reads, 'The true artist helps the world by revealing mystic truths.' I believe in this as an artistic ideal. Though this revealing must be the intent of the artist I believe these truths are revealed by accident. If I have anything 'important' or truthful to say with my work I believe it must begin with an examination of my self. My pictures are the evidence of this examination.