Taylor’s house-themed senior art exhibition, “Stay Awhile,” showcased Friday, Apr. 4 from 6-8 p.m. in Modelle Metcalf Visual Art Center’s art gallery.
Danielle Pritchard, a senior illustration major participating in the exhibition, said the show was an opportunity for senior art students to officially step out as professionals and showcase their work, though many of these students already hold professional jobs outside of Taylor.
“It’s crazy to see how these ideas have grown and become a show,” she said. “Now we get to see it come to fruition, which is very exciting.”
To fit a house-themed show, each artist’s work parodied a room found in a typical house. Rooms in the exhibition’s “house” included a ranch, backyard, family room, mudroom and more.
Pritchard’s artwork centered around a garden theme with flowery paintings and ceramics surrounded by garden props. She loved that she was able to incorporate her hobby into her display by growing real plants in her ceramic pots.
Pritchard said the various artists’ displays not only emulated specific areas of a house but also reflected the various styles and personalities of each artist. She said spending the past four years bonding with her fellow art majors has enabled her to see their distinctive styles in each exhibit.
Clara Elffers, a senior illustration major who also participated in the exhibit, said she loved that each person’s style fit the room they were assigned.
“We each picked a theme that we felt like fit our artwork, or…our personality,” she said. “For example, I have the playroom because my art is very playful and childlike.”
Pritchard said it’s heartwarming to see how far each artists’ work has come over the years. She said improving art often isn’t fun or easy.
Creating art can be enjoyable, but it’s firstly a form of communication that requires hard work, Pritchard said.
Pritchard hopes people attending the art exhibit can see how much her fellow artists have improved.
Over the years, the group has grown to feel like a family, Elffers said. She said their feedback and critique helps her improve. The group makes projects fun and encourages her to work long and hard at her art, she said.
“That’s informed a lot of how my art has turned out, because a lot of people have helped me get it to the place that it’s at right now,” she said. “I’ve been very blessed to be with a group of people, particularly the illustrators, who really encourage me and push my art to be better.”
Elffers said the art faculty also poured into her, pushing her to improve. She especially acknowledged Professor Jonathan Bouw, department co-chair and professor of art, and his eagerness to help her. Bouw oversaw the senior art exhibit.
Elffers was excited to display her and her fellow artists’ hard work as they approach graduation.
“It’s very satisfying to work with your hands and then see something come together,” she said. “I think the whole show will be very satisfying, to see it all come together.”
The unity of the artwork was appreciated by Aspen Postma, a pre-art therapy junior who attended the exhibit. She said the artists maintained a unifying theme while focusing on their individual work in a way that was professional, beautiful and cohesive.
Postma said she enjoyed seeing each artists’ personality through their art.
“Art is very much an expression of yourself,” she said “No matter what you create, a little bits of yourself are always going to be coming into it. As a viewer, you have this opportunity to not only understand what the artist wants you to understand, but to understand what that art means to you.”
Postma said that while people view pieces of an artist through their art, they also project their self perceptions onto the art by relating to it. This creates a conversational dynamic between the viewer, artist and artwork, she said.
Postma also appreciated the exhibit’s interactivity. She said the seniors handed out postcards displaying the artists’ names during the exhibit. Viewers could collect stamps next to the names as they traveled through the exhibit. It was fun, enjoyable and engaging.
Postma looked to the future as she considered the exhibit.
“It makes me really excited for my own senior show,” she said. “I know it's gonna be fun.”
