Art 444 Report

Whether it be by stunning photos, contemporary clothing designs, creative clay formations or detailed paintings, students and faculty alike were amazed by the skill of the 30 student artists who participated in Art 444 this year and filled the Academy’s campus with unique student work.

Art 444 is offered in the fall and spring to students who have previously taken a 200-level and 300-level art course. Throughout the term, students choose a certain medium to focus on and create a professional portfolio of artwork featured in an exhibition in the Mayer Art Center.

According to Chair of the Art Department Tara Misenheimer, the Art department classifies these students as hard-working, professional artists working in their studio. Although they are guided by an instructor, the expectation of the course is for students to develop their own goal and focus on their individual artistic growth. “It is the highest level of art a student can enroll in, and it is special to our hearts as faculty,” Misenheimer said.

This fall, nine students took the course under art instructor Carla Collins. In the spring, Misenheimer and Collins respectively mentored a section of the Art 444 class.

In addition to the paintings and photographs she made this fall, senior Mei-An Nolan made ceramic bowls and vases in different shapes, cut them into segments and sewed them back together. Misenheimer said Nolan’s art “looked like they were in a contemporary museum.” Classmates also commented on Nolan’s creativity in terms of how she reinterpreted forms and shapes, and how they interacted with space through cutting and sewing. “I loved Mei-An’s ceramic artworks,” lower Wendi Yan said. “Her project was really creative.”

“Loving myself has been something I’ve been trying to do for a very long time now, and in talking with other people, I’ve realized that self-love is a big struggle for so many people.”

Nolan’s series won a Gold Key Portfolio at the Scholastic Art Awards in New Hampshire, as well as a thousand dollar scholarship for one of the highest rated portfolios in the state. “The concept was very clever, sophisticated and well built,” Collins said.

Challenging himself to take 2-D photography to a new level, senior Alex Zhang created a portfolio of photographs of students posing with large, painted-on plexiglass. Senior Rebecca Ju modeled for several of Zhang’s photos. “I loved being able to see how photography works as an art form, as I hadn’t had much experience there,” she said.

During the term, Ju created a large seven by three foot abstract portrait. Ju was inspired by artists such as Ben Slow and Danny O’Connor. While she had difficulty figuring out new painting techniques, she appreciated the opportunity to explore her own art.

Through four self-portrait oil paintings, lower Wendi Yan examined her own Chinese culture. Growing up in Beijing, Yan was exposed to several forms of Chinese art; however, she didn’t develop an interest for them until she came to Exeter. In her project, each of her paintings incorporated elements of her culture and herself through shapes and designs that interacted with the self-portraits. Yan loved how the class provided her with a studio space, mentor and other resources she needed to pursue her own passionate. “We were given the freedom to explore what truly mattered to us and externalize them into art works,” Yan said.

Senior Blandine Hoge commented on Yan’s “beautiful and skillfully painted” pieces. “She’s extremely talented, I wish I could paint like that,” Hoge said.

Inspired by Matt Adrian, who paints portraits of birds against solid colored backgrounds, Hoge created two pastel portraits with simple colored backgrounds. She concentrated on using the expressions of the models as well as the language of flowers to convey certain emotions or meanings. Hoge enjoyed the class dynamic and freedom it provided. “I liked having a format almost everyday where I could just go in and draw and forget about everything that would be going on that week,” Hoge said.

Senior Nicolas Coleman painted a portrait series of wrongfully convicted men. The project was inspired by his summers with the Duke Law Innocence Project and were displayed at the Duke Wrongful Convictions Clinic. Coleman also sold several prints of the project to a Guatemalan art collector and graduate of Duke Law School. “The series allowed me for the first time personally to experience the reflective and political power of art,” Coleman said.

Upper Isabella Thilmany put her drawing skills to the test in a new way by creating a series of short animation loops. She wanted to make her animations resemble familiar art styles and techniques, such as Disney’s exaggerated motion films. After taking two terms of drawing classes, Thilmany realized that animation could be categorized under that art form. “I’ve been animating on and off since fourth grade, and when I had that realization I knew that was what I wanted to do,” Thilmany said.

Similar to Yan, lower Ivy Tran based her project off of traditional Chinese influences in western high fashion. She designed a line of clothes that had a western foundation, but also were symbolic in Chinese culture.

Upper Nora Epler created two large prints and a portrait of her friend. She said she chose her friend because he has “a unique look” of masculine features with long hair. “I wanted to use my project to examine gender roles and how they and biases affect our generation,” Epler said.

Similarly, senior Fedja Celebic’s project was a blend of photography and drawing “to express society’s obsession with killing personality and individualism.” He used photography to take a picture of a scene before drawing in the unseen psychological aspects.

Senior Chris Lee explored the colors of black and white through various mediums with a focus on the use of lines and composition when color isn’t present. “I struggled for a little with my underlying theme of the project, because I wanted to spend time exploring my personal style as an artist,” Lee said. “Ms. Collins helped me develop my theme after noticing that most of the art I’ve done is minimalistic and monochromatic, so I decided to work in black and white to really focus on form.”

Through a series of portrait photographs of men and women coming home from war, senior Tom Appleton sought to give back to the community. “I have always appreciated the courage of our servicemen and women, and I thought this would be a great way to showcase their bravery,” Appleton said.

Senior Stajz Saar created a detailed four by five foot painting of a vintage radio. “Ms. Misenheimer has been super helpful with giving me advice and support,” Saar said. “I put a lot of time in outside of class, but I’m excited to have a painting I’m proud of.”

Throughout the year, all students have used the class as an outlet to experiment with their individual artistic style. Senior Megan Smith created a photographic how-to guide on self-love. “Loving myself has been something I’ve been trying to do for a very long time now, and in talking with other people, I’ve realized that self-love is a big struggle for so many people,” Smith said. “I hope this project will raise questions and inform people on my personal perception of self-love.”