Mixed Media

The inspiration content-wise for my work stemmed from personal experience while stylistically I was inspired by artists Laurie S Rousseau and Frank Hobbs.  My mixed media pieces focus on appreciation for diversity of the female form. I focused mainly on the figure and purposely left out facial details because I have personally struggled with body positivity and accepting my figure. I was inspired to create these works after finding old photos I took of myself years ago when my insecurities were the most crippling. I was shocked to see these pictures in a different light because I realized how delusional my ideals were. I truly saw myself through such an unhealthy lens I never realized what I actually looked like to other people. With these pieces, I tried to capture an appreciation for bodies that may differ from (but also celebrate) the extremely slim, white, blonde ideals I once had. Here are three pieces from my project:

As far as artists that I took inspiration from, I especially appreciated Frank Hobbs for his dark and somewhat muddled monoprints. They are abstract enough to lose detail and personal identification while being specific enough to be familiar and communicate emotion. His practice is focused on the creation, not the outcome. He believes that studio time is only beneficial after experience in the real world that he can then translate into work. Here are a few of his works:

The second artist I took inspiration from was Laurie S Rousseau's print making techniques. She created a series of varied monotypes using one figure. This series was based on the idea of the fragility and beauty of the body and an a love for nature. She created works in attempt to communicate a respect for the self which I identified with.  I appreciated how changing the background, colors, and use of the print changed the meaning and feeling behind the work. I attempted to capture this technique a few times through my work as well. Here are a few of her works: