Student artists display work in culmination of degree program

BIO

Carley Canfield, from Lakewood, Washington, is currently working toward getting her Bachelor of Fine Art with an emphasis in Graphic Design. Her favorite art medium is drawing, with pencil, ink or charcoal in particular. During her time at Pacific Lutheran University, she has also found a love for printmaking, mainly for linoleum prints. After graduation, she is interested in pursuing a career in the Graphic Design field while making graphic novels on the side.

BIO

Carley Canfield, from Lakewood, Washington, is currently working toward getting her Bachelor of Fine Art with an emphasis in Graphic Design. Her favorite art medium is drawing, with pencil, ink or charcoal in particular. During her time at Pacific Lutheran University, she has also found a love for printmaking, mainly for linoleum prints. After graduation, she is interested in pursuing a career in the Graphic Design field while making graphic novels on the side.

ARTIST STATEMENT

I’ve always felt that Graphic Novels could convey emotions in ways that words alone cannot. For as long as I can remember, I have always loved writing stories and creating drawings to go with them. I love combining words and images to tell a story, rather than relying on one or the other. Graphic Novels create another world full of characters that people can relate to and root for. And that is what I hope my art will accomplish.

I have known since a very young age that I wanted to become an artist. My earliest memory regarding this decision is when I found my uncle’s sketch book and saw his drawings. I don’t quite remember how young I was, but it made enough of an impact on me, and inspired me to pick up a pencil myself and draw. Ever since then, I haven’t stopped. I cannot see myself doing anything else, so I thought it made perfect sense to make a career out of something I love. And not only drawing, but writing stories to go with those pictures.

I find inspiration in many forms, whether they are from movies, video games, or other artists. The art that typically inspires me tends to use very muted and dark colors. As a fan of horror, I favor the use of these colors because I feel that it perfectly captures the mood of the genre. One of the artists I take inspiration from that uses this technique is Tony Moore, illustrator for The Walking Dead comic books. I am also inspired by the work of Ben Templesmith, illustrator of 30 Days of Night. While he also uses the dark and muted colors, his style is very different, almost seeming to blend 2D and 3D forms in one. I love how distinct his style is, and if you know Ben Templesmith, it is easy to tell it is his work just by looking at it. I wish to have my own distinct style and to one day inspire other artists as well.

I’ve always felt that Graphic Novels could convey emotions in ways that words alone cannot. For as long as I can remember, I have always loved writing stories and creating drawings to go with them. I love combining words and images to tell a story, rather than relying on one or the other. Graphic Novels create another world full of characters that people can relate to and root for. And that is what I hope my art will accomplish.
I have known since a very young age that I wanted to become an artist. My earliest memory regarding this decision is when I found my uncle’s sketch book and saw his drawings. I don’t quite remember how young I was, but it made enough of an impact on me, and inspired me to pick up a pencil myself and draw. Ever since then, I haven’t stopped. I cannot see myself doing anything else, so I thought it made perfect sense to make a career out of something I love. And not only drawing, but writing stories to go with those pictures.
I find inspiration in many forms, whether they are from movies, video games, or other artists. The art that typically inspires me tends to use very muted and dark colors. As a fan of horror, I favor the use of these colors because I feel that it perfectly captures the mood of the genre. One of the artists I take inspiration from that uses this technique is Tony Moore, illustrator for The Walking Dead comic books. I am also inspired by the work of Ben Templesmith, illustrator of 30 Days of Night. While he also uses the dark and muted colors, his style is very different, almost seeming to blend 2D and 3D forms in one. I love how distinct his style is, and if you know Ben Templesmith, it is easy to tell it is his work just by looking at it. I wish to have my own distinct style and to one day inspire other artists as well.

BIO

Hannah Eagle will be graduating this year with a BA in Studio Arts and a minor in Children’s Literature and Culture. Her capstone project focuses on portraying images of extreme negative emotions, such as depression, in a digital painterly realistic style.

These extreme negative emotions are something that she has had to deal with from a young age and the reason why she chose to explore them in further depth in her capstone. Her project started out as a comic book to talk about these serious issues that even young children face but evolved into these emotional posters. While unsure what her future holds, Hannah wants to continue exploring her newfound love of portraiture back in her hometown of San Jose, California.

ARTIST STATEMENT

I have always considered myself to be a highly empathic person, always in tune to both my, and others’, emotions. These emotions are what guide my artwork, my capstone project is no exception. The overall theme of my artwork delves into the darker emotions that people experience, such as depression, rage, and anxiety. I have created four posters which are illustrated digitally, combining a painterly realism with a more symbolic background. The naturalism of my figures are contrasted with the more symbolic representation of what they are feeling, in addition to a comic like figure of themselves interacting with the background. I incorporate phrases to make my pieces even more impactful, my own words that draw on my own experiences with these negative emotions. Combined, my posters are emotionally impactful to all who view them.

I draw major inspiration from Kelly Reemtsen, mainly her painterly style of drawing women. She is able to create such a narrative through her figures poses and their attire, without including the full figure, which I find admirable. Using bright colors and symbols to directly influence her viewers take on her works. I mainly try to incorporate her take on skin. There is little to no blending of the colors, creating harsh transitions. However, like my posters, from far away they seem blended, it is not until you approach them that you see the color separation.

BIO

After taking a protracted break from university to get married and have a family, I returned to school in the fall of 2013 to pursue a second career. While I had limited exposure to art classes growing up (one semester-long class during high school that should have been titled “The Briefest Intro to Art Ever”), I fell in love with ceramic arts while taking a class at Highline College to fulfill graduation requirements. Working as a ceramic artist wasn’t on my radar at the time (I was pursuing a career in forensic anthropology with an emphasis on facial reconstruction), but a couple missteps in planning my classes placed me on my current path. After transferring to Pacific Lutheran University, I jumped feet first into working toward my BFA with a concentration in Ceramics. On schedule to graduate in the spring of 2017, I currently live in Federal Way, Washington with my husband, two children, and three dogs.

ARTIST STATEMENT

I am motivated to share the beauty in the natural world through my art. Inspired by the curves and patterns that can only be found in the unpredictable world we inhabit, I strive to strike a balance between form and the environment.

Using clay as my medium, I create simple forms that are meant to invite contemplation and restraint while using surface decoration to define the character of the piece. Subtlety of form is an important consideration in the creative process. Too much ornamentation can result in a discordance between the shape of the piece and the glaze. As such, I prefer to forgo ornate embellishments and excessive altering of my work in favor of letting different glaze combinations mingle and flow in an organic pattern.

My work has primarily been shaped by inspirations found in nature. The variations in color on a rusty piece of metal or a sun-dappled mossy log stimulate my desire to experiment with color combinations, both conventional and unusual. I am currently influenced by Courtney Mattison and Mairie Stone, in part because they are inspired by the organic forms, textures, and colors that are usually experienced only by those brave enough to explore our oceans depths. In each piece, my goal is to create a unique object that invites contemplation and celebration on a daily basis.

BIO

Brandon Hunt was born and raised in Tacoma, Washington. Brandon first realized his passion for Graphic Design when he took a class in high school, which gave him a taste of Graphic Design. He learned the basics of the programs and some of the possibilities. After Graduating high school, Brandon went straight into college to Pacific Lutheran University to pursue his passion of Graphic Design. Brandon is currently in his senior year college for his bachelor of fine arts degree with a concentration in graphic design. He intends to pursue a job where he may work with others in a business-like setting.

ARTIST STATEMENT

I am interested in fantasy, mainly the ones where people have the power within themselves that they have yet to unlock. Within fantasy it intrigues me the way that a character is designed, whether it be the clothing they wear, the weapons they wield, the way they carry themselves, the mythical beasts that come forth to their aid, and most importantly, the magic they have hidden within themselves. Those kinds of designs stick with me and stand out. Within these stories there is always the one the outcast, the quiet kid, the underestimated, but when it comes down to it, the one people don’t expect to have the potential to change the world. I like to believe we all have that ability if we just put the right foot forward. Some artist influences are Yoshitaka Amano and Tetsuya Nomura. They both designed some of the Final Fantasy games and the characters within them. They  designed characters that when you look at them, one can think is that’s a very interesting look of person or outfit. I want my work to be as successful as these two men, their work helped to create a franchise, which is huge and many people see it and are immersed with it.

BIO

Rebecca Johnson is from Renton, Washington. She began her artist journey drawing murals on the walls of her childhood home in any medium she could get her hands on (which was not received well by her parents). This passion for art continued as she entered grade school and into high school. After high school, Rebecca came to PLU as a graphic design and mathematics major. This quickly changed and Rebecca will be graduating with a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Ceramics and a Bachelors of Arts in Computer Science.

ARTIST STATEMENT

My work examines the uncontrollable and powerful forces of nature. In this series of platters and sculpture, I am exploring how humans connect to nature. I find the stories and myths people have used throughout history to explain why nature behaves the way it does extremely interesting. The idea that there is a human or godlike force behind the mysteries of nature have been told since the beginning of human existence and created comfort and connection to the unexplainable.

The images on the platters and sculptures reflect that human connection to nature. They show either a mythical connection to nature or a human desire to control or structure nature. They explore the mythical and uncontrollable condition of nature.

These images are created using a sgraffito technique to create high contrast, almost print like style, to tell a these stories then add color to bring out details of the design. This technique creates a very two-dimensional image similar to images created by artists such as Albrecht Dürer and William De Morgan.

BIO

Arianna Keith is a passionate artist, who enjoys surround herself in both music and the arts. Born and raised in Washington State, she came to PLU four years ago with the intention of being a biology major, but her love of art soon led her to turning her passion into an everyday part of her life. She graduates Pacific Lutheran University this Spring as a Graphic Design major with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree.

Arianna enjoys spending her days with family and friends, constantly challenging herself to explore new things and better herself as both artist and person. With a fascination of psychology and how the world interacts around her, Arianna pours these curiosities and explorations into her own work as well, less so seeking answers, than expanding her knowledge as a whole.

ARTIST STATEMENT

I am interested in everything that makes us who we are in our existence. How we both react, and interact with the world around us. How do we work, socially? How can we each be so different yet virtually made up of the same leavers and pulleys? We each have different motivations, different life experiences, and yet our emotional traits and certain reactions can be the same across the board. Anger is anger, fear is fear, no matter who you are the same tells are there between each person. Just like everyone else I am here, existing. I can see the fear, the excitement, the anticipation in the eyes of every breathing thing before me and know what each emotion is—just as they can see the same about me.

The awareness of each of those emotions and our interactions in the world is what intrigues me most. The how, the why. Through my personal explorations in my work I balance between what can draw on certain emotions, versus what can be used to express them more blatantly, as well as how a piece may interact in its created environment. How can I catch that brief flicker of something that may not be there in another moment? And how can it be shared? Outside of the six universal emotions, what are the techniques I can use to express even more of them? Where do art and emotion meet? Where do they differ? I do not expect my work to necessarily offer up answers to the questions I am curious on exploring, but merely a look into the exploration itself. Perhaps there are no answers to be found. We are ever growing, ever changing, moving fluidly through our own thoughts and feelings and experiences and that is what I find myself eager to capture.

I find myself asking plenty of questions; how might this be seen? How might it be expressed? How can I trigger such a feeling in reflection, through a piece of artwork? I’ve long since given up on trying to find a rigid answer to many of the curiosities that course my mind, and instead enjoy the ideas of them, the wonder of the unknown and the excitement in the journey of self knowledge as a whole.

 BIO

Jenny Kimura is a BFA in Graphic Design, with minors in Latin, Printing and Publishing Arts, and Art History. Raised in Kailua, Hawaii, she grew up loving books, traveling, and making art. Wanting to take her passion for children’s and young adult literature to a professional level, she plans to work in book design for these genres and someday contribute to the conversation on diversity in children’s and young adult literature.

ARTIST STATEMENT

Growing up as an avid reader of everything from sci-fi novels and high fantasy, to dystopia and fairy tale retellings, I know what pulls me into a story: it’s not about what genre it is or whose its intended audience is for. The true power in a good story lies in its ability to represent, in some small way, an aspect of what it means to be human, through joy, sorrow, pain, or hope, and yet also paint a picture for the reader of things that could be. I especially find this interesting in books for children, where ideas and ideals are especially prominent. In my own work, I aspire to create art that stays true to the human experience, but also explores what it has the potential to be—that there is joy to be found in what is ordinary. My own style imagines this potential by creating art that is whimsical, colorful, and, through expression and emotion, hopeful. I pull inspiration from famous children’s illustrators such as Beatrix Potter and Antoine de Saint Exupery, both of whose styles are imaginative and fantastical yet firmly grounded in certain aspects of reality. I am also influenced by the more recent work of James Gulliver Hancock, the author of All the Buildings in New York: That I’ve Drawn So Far. His work is very architectural and detail-oriented, yet at the same time takes ordinary buildings and puts a whimsical spin on them. This balance between ordinary and extraordinary inspires me to create art that children and young adults can easily identify with, yet be delighted by what that work introduces to their imaginations.

BIO

Amy King is best known for being awkwardly charming. Hailing from her hometown of Camarillo, California, she came to Pacific Lutheran University to pursue her love of the arts and athletics. A Graphic Design major and Marketing minor, Amy works in primarily digital mediums; including Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, AfterEffects, and Premiere. In her time at PLU, Amy has become skilled in other techniques such as drawing, printmaking, and ceramics.

As a four-year member of the Pacific Lutheran University softball team, Amy is very passionate about sports. Throughout the years she has found ways to integrate her love of athletics with her appetite for art and design. As a California native, Amy is also able to bring a uniquely organic and fresh perspective to all her artwork. Post graduation, she hopes to secure a job in sports design and marketing.

ARTIST STATEMENT

Being a college athlete myself, I am inspired by the demeanor of athletes. I strive to capture the commitment, perseverance, and passion they have for their sport in a visual display. The concept was inspired by the promotional hype videos and designs created for college and professional sports teams.

For these pieces, I dove deep into the essence and personality of my team, the PLU softball team. For the video I was able to go behind the scenes and film the different elements that make up being a student athlete in season. I wanted to highlight five main sections: the idea of being a student first and an athlete second, extra work athletes put in outside of practice, team practices, game days, and they idea of our team being a family. In taking the portraits, I aimed to capture the mental toughness and competitiveness of my teammates. My work can be viewed individually or as a group to encompass everything that makes up what we like to call, “Luteball”.

BIO

Sophia Lewis is from Federal Way, Washington. She began to dabble in the visual arts only recently starting with painting and sketches. This eventually led to her exploring the three-dimensional art world, which is where she found her true passions. Sophia has always been interested in storytelling. She is fascinated by humanity: the emotions, our interactions, and the different junctures one faces in their lifetime. Sophia originally came to PLU as an intended Music major after running into one of these said junctures she changed her degree to a BA in Studio Arts and started creating ceramic sculptures that explore the complexities of life and humanity.

ARTIST STATEMENT

I have always been a curious person, what I mean by that is I am constantly asking questions. While some might daydream, I take it to another level. I will be analyzing ideas and questions in my head for hours. Starting with one that leads to another then another and another, until I have been so wrapped up in my thoughts that everything is continuing on around me, but I am no longer aware of it happening. It is at this point when I come up with my most creative ideas.

I have always observed and been intrigued by people’s feelings and emotions. Which is why for my capstone I decided to explore it further. Every emotion that we have is a result of a moment in our life. Our lives are one big story and it is these stories about our human interactions, the junctures we face and the emotional rollercoaster we ride on, that fascinate me the most. I draw my influence from Ron Mueck, Philippe Faraut, and Jose Ismael Fernandez because of their attention to detail, the combinations of realistic depictions of life or fantasy and the raw emotions conveyed in their pieces.

I wanted to create ceramic sculptures that explore these complexities of life. With all the emotions out there, I decided to focus on the emotions I have felt in the four years I have attended PLU. I did not want my artwork to only be relatable to me and my experiences because I enjoy creating art that makes the viewer feel something, or have an emotional connection that leads to further reflection. By using unique or dramatized imagery containing some references to the human body/organs and colors I have created a cohesive collection of sculptures that convey these emotions.

BIO

Though my work has usually been revolved around this theme, I have yet to discover my exact purpose as an artist. I began my journey into art through photography when I discovered how exciting it was during the end of my sophomore year in college. From there I began to discover how fascinating digital art was. I’ve always wanted to become a game designer, which is why I pursued an education in Math and Computer Science, but I discovered the visual designs of art were more fascinating. I began to realize that I can do more in digital arts and started to explore more mediums such as graphic design, 3D modeling, and animation. My work is still very new and I still have a lotto discover as an artist.

ARTIST STATEMENT

My artwork is formed around the strengths and beauty of people through photography, animation, and graphic design. When I was younger, I used to throw myself into the world of superheroes and animated films. I would envision myself living the stories of characters such as Goku from Dragonball, Luffy from One Piece, or more popular characters like Spiderman, Batman, and other superheroes from different comics or even a couple Disney characters like Tarzan and Aladdin. The fact that such a simple idea of a person with powers who can make a difference in the world had always entertained me. These ideas expanded to more realistic powers such as the strengths of professional athletes and military members and how much of an impact they could have by inspiring others. Most of my work have highlighted the special characteristics of an individual that helps inspires others to throw themselves into the world that my subjects are in.

BIO

Krista Morford, raised in Lake Tapps, Washington, is a graphic designer working towards her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree at Pacific Lutheran University. Krista has always been a  creative and passionate person, which is why she’s pursuing her dream of becoming a graphic designer. Krista’s passion in art and design has steadily grown alongside her interest for typography and photography. She tries to implement these interests into majority of her work. Her interest in typography has flourished into an obsession that has made her fascinated within the world of typefaces.

Being a student-athlete all four years at PLU, playing soccer, Krista has also developed a love for sports. She hopes to combine her two passions of design and sports together to head into the field of Sports Design. Post graduation, Krista plans to push herself into any design opportunities that come her way, and hopes to work within the sports industry.

ARTIST STATEMENT

Choosing to take a journey into art, is following a never ending path of curiosity and learning. Each day I find myself more interested about design. From what I observe around me; to thinking about what I can offer the world. What I’m ultimately striving for, is to make the simple things more appealing to the eye. When looking at logo designs, advertisements, and posters, my curiosity takes over and begins to break down each aspect in that design. This pushes me to explore and discover the main reasons for why the designer did what they did, and if they did it well. By doing this to basically everything I see, I’ve learned a lot about myself, and what I want to accomplish as a graphic designer.

My passion in art and design, has steadily grown alongside my interest for typography. I Believe it is the backbone to any good design, because it is essentially what language looks like. I’m fascinated with the fact that with one look, you can determine the mood of the whole design. This interest has flourish into an obsession, that has me fascinated with the world of typefaces. When designing, I believe simplicity is key. By keeping it clean and easy, the design becomes unmistakable and more appealing. I’m also very optimistic about what mediums I use in my designs, and I try to use an abundance of them. Ultimately, I try to challenge myself as much as possible as a designer.

BIO

Born in Tacoma, Washington, Lisa Moxcey now calls Gig Harbor home. After a career in the banking business, she decided she needed a drastic change following the recession in 2007. Originally wanting to pursue a degree in Elementary Education, she found that she had a deeper passion for the art world. Lisa started to further develop her love of art and nature when she became a student at Tacoma Community College. Her mentors then helped mold her to who she is today. From there, she pursued her Bachelors of Fine Arts in Graphic Design at Pacific Lutheran University. In her free time she loves to experiment with painting, drawing, photography and graphic design. She hopes to further develop her illustration skills as a graphic designer and looks forward to what the future has in store after college.

ARTIST STATEMENT

I am a graphic artist based out of the Pacific Northwest Region. I gain inspiration from the connections that are discovered within nature. For me this is my happy place, my center, my peace. My work is about connections, and the peace found from within. I try to interject this into my work, by focusing in on the little details of my projects and allowing for them to come alive. Specifically, I love the challenge of creating illustrations from life; this is one element that I find I am quite passionate about. Through designing illustrations, I enjoy taking the essence of which I have been inspired from and then translating that into my work.

Some artists that influence me are: Ben Barry, Diego Rivera, Georgia O’Keefe and in particular, the various artists that worked on the National Park Poster Campaign of, “Go See America” from the 1930’s. From the moment I saw these pieces of work, I became inspired.

These posters are illustrated from photograph reference, which is something that I am experimenting within my own work. The attention to detail throughout these pieces is wonderful, and the color used helps exemplify the energy felt from within. The end result is a beautifully crafted piece of art that is derived in a stylized form. Here the artists are able to imprint what they see in nature and translate what they are feeling to the viewer. These building blocks of connections help bring people together. This is a large part of why I love what I do; as it has the power to transform people out of their everyday life struggles towards a better state of mind. It is through these quiet everyday moments where I find I am enlightened to create.

BIO

I have always had a strong connection to my emotions, so I have decided to explore them further in my Capstone series. With all that could be done with the topic of emotion, I have chosen to focus on the most important life moments, things that we all feel. The other focus my work is birds, which are animals I feel strongly connected to. I decided to find a way to connect birds to these emotions that humans feel, and in a way, show how we are similar to birds. I believe we both feel certain things: love, fear, passion, and so on. Each work explores an moments in life that are highly impactful and relates them to the live of birds as well as spiritual motifs. This is done through dramatic imagery using the human figure, various kinds of birds, and distinct color schemes.

Along with my theme of exploring emotion, I decided to create impactful visuals using a surrealistic painterly style, combined with abstract expressive mark making. The combination of these two styles create a cohesive element to my series. I draw inspiration from many sources, including René Magritte, Amy Judd, and Edgar Degas. I admire the quality in each of their distinctive styles of work, the attention to detail and the exploration of form and texture. I would like to continue to work in this way, while also exploring new and interesting topics.

ARTIST STATEMENT

Throughout my interest in history, I have been drawn to how conflicts and particularly how wars have been depicted and documented visually. I was first introduced to looking at history through visual documentation (paintings, posters, and newspaper advertisings) when researching The Battle of Chattanooga during the American Civil War my junior year and saw how children were depicted and remembered when battles were fought literally in their own backyards.

This research was the catalyst that made me switch to Art History. I am continually drawn to the question on why and when children were depicted in art throughout times of conflict. Children have been perceived as “innocent” and “pure” icons in art but the impressionistic nature of children shows that they have been used in history as pawns and even catalyst themselves of conflicts. I have extended my research to include and compare historical altercations outside of the United States that have heavily involved civilian children such as the Holocaust in Germany and the conflict in Derry, Ireland.

To be able to process and get perspective when studying such dark history, I try to never forget to escape to my content memories. This is why my research and art are polar-opposites of each other. My grandma Maggie Treptow taught me how to paint at a young age and is my biggest influence when it comes to my style of landscape painting. My dad is the one who exposed by to the subject matter though through the endless summers exploring the San Juan Islands and other beauties of the Pacific Northwest.

This is why I should encourage you to research and fully understand the dark things in history you may not know so they are not forgotten or hopefully repeated, there are many sides to every event. My little sister’s favorite quote by Russell Banks states that, “Even if we can’t know what it’ll be like when the smoke clears, we do know that rage, for better or worse, generates the future.” With that, it is just as important to allow yourself to have the greatest gratitude to the beauty that surrounds you and truly appreciate the little things in life that you get to experience.

BIO

Tahle Oestby was born in Bergen, Norway in 1992. She has always enjoyed making art, and especially drawing has been a favourite from an early age. Tahle majored in Studio Arts at Waldorf High School and went on to Rome, Italy to study philosophy and art history, as a part of a Norwegian university program. In 2014 Tahle went to Atlanta, Georgia to study Studio Arts at Oglethorpe University, but after one semester, she transferred to Pacific Lutheran University to pursue a degree in Graphic Design. Tahle is very interested in sports and hopes to work with sports design and advertising when she goes back to Europe after graduating this May.

ARTIST STATEMENT

I like to create art and designs that exude positivity. My designs have vivid and positive colors, smooth transitions and a play between light and shadow. My art is often surreal and reflects simplicity and sleekness because I enjoy looking at something that calms my mind. I need to surround myself with positive energy, and my art reflects that positivity through color and theme. My goal is to make something that is pleasing to the eye and I want to reveal something about my personality.

I am inspired by some of the work of Jessica Walsh. She is a designer and art director in NYC. Her style inspires and influences me because of the strong and bright colors. Her work goes well with my personality and taste because they are surreal, direct and simple. There is no misinterpretation, in my opinion, which I find to be very important factors when creating my design. I also like the abstractness and how she integrates and fits text into the space of her photographic designs in very creative ways because I feel like the messages become stronger that way and I admire her skills. This is something I wish to do in my own designs, because I am direct, I enjoy colors and I’m attracted to abstractness and simplicity and it pleases my eye. I am also influenced by Jeff Koons, who is also an artist who works in NYC. I am influenced by his balloon sculptures and their shiny surfaces because I feel a sense of positive energy when looking at them. His use of strong and positive colors and the simplistic shapes in his artworks also fascinates me.

I make my art because I enjoy putting different pieces together, sometimes they fit, sometimes they don’t, but I enjoy that process of thinking and exploring and there is nothing in the entire world that pleases me more than when I see the final result of my artwork. I am conscious about this in all my design choices.

BIO

Lianne Tjoelker is a senior at Pacific Lutheran University in Tacoma, Washington. She is will be graduating with her Bachelor of Fine Arts in graphic design and a minor in Chinese Studies in the spring of 2017. She plans to pursue her passion for video games by making a career in the video game industry.

Lianne has done work and commissions for Pacific Lutheran University’s student run advertising agency, Impact, as well as PLU’s School of Art and Design department. She specializes in both traditional figure drawing as well as digital illustration.

ARTIST STATEMENT

“We keep moving forward, opening new doors and doing new things because we’re curious and curiosity keeps leading us down new paths.” I find this quote by Walt Disney apropos to my personal endeavor to constantly improve my own skills, knowledge, and capabilities. I was first introduced to the graphic arts in a high school elective class, and I was immediately in love with the process of digital design and illustration. My overall drive towards graphic design and illustration has been storytelling and finding a way to blend together my passions for art and writing. As a gamer, I have been heavily inspired by how JRPGs focus on storytelling by combining rich narratives and intricate detail in characters and environments, and I want to be able to create a similar harmony in my work.

Growing up, I was an avid reader and I easily fell in love with characters that had emotional depth and internal narrative. I wanted to know what their desires were, their sins, their goals and motivations. In my work I want to be able to express a similar level of emotion so that it is not simply a picture, but a portrait with intricate depth and emotion. Storytelling is an underrated art form. It shares an invaluable piece of the creator with the audience and allows the audience to step into the visual world that they have built.

I have long held a passion for writing and crafting my own stories. In nearly all media from movies and television to books and video games, I have always been drawn towards in-depth and uniquely detailed stories. There is power in a medium that is able to communicate a specific narrative through how a character is drawn and portrayed aesthetically. I want to be able to create characters in such a way and to be able to tell an equally engaging story through their unique designs.

As an artist, I consider storytelling one of the most valuable aspects to integrate in a project. Based off of my dual interests in art and writing, I strive to communicate a specific story or message through my work. I strongly believe that what makes a piece of art interesting, whether it be visual or written, is the story that it tells.

 BIO

Emily White, raised in Kent, Washington, is a painter working towards her Bachelor of Fine Arts at Pacific Lutheran University. She has been painting for nearly 8 years, and has been creating art for 10 years. She is a passionate worker, who is highly dedicated to her work. She works in many mediums, including oil paint, acrylic paint, watercolor, pencil, charcoal and pen. Throughout her time at PLU, she has gained a variety of skills outside of painting and drawing. She has done work with ceramics, sculpture, book making, and print making.

She is interested in continuing her painting after completing her degree, and will likely pursue freelance art, commissions, and displaying at local galleries. She would also like to begin exploring illustration, potentially for books or short stories. Emily has displayed her artwork at various locations, such as 208 Garfield, a local cafe, as well as the University Gallery at PLU.

ARTIST STATEMENT

I have always had a strong connection to my emotions, so I have decided to explore them further in my Capstone series. With all that could be done with the topic of emotion, I have chosen to focus on the most important life moments, things that we all feel. The other focus my work is birds, which are animals I feel strongly connected to. I decided to find a way to connect birds to these emotions that humans feel, and in a way, show how we are similar to birds. I believe we both feel certain things: love, fear, passion, and so on. Each work explores an moments in life that are highly impactful and relates them to the live of birds as well as spiritual motifs. This is done through dramatic imagery using the human figure, various kinds of birds, and distinct color schemes.

Along with my theme of exploring emotion, I decided to create impactful visuals using a surrealistic painterly style, combined with abstract expressive mark making. The combination of these two styles create a cohesive element to my series. I draw inspiration from many sources, including René Magritte, Amy Judd, and Edgar Degas. I admire the quality in each of their distinctive styles of work, the attention to detail and the exploration of form and texture. I would like to continue to work in this way, while also exploring new and interesting topics.