Journal of Student Research 2019

Journal of Student Research

rapport rapport

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Bailey Mastin Senior, Studio Art : Metals and Contemporary Art Jewelry & Contemporary Sculptural Practices

Mentor: Masako Onodera

… love does not cling to an I, as if the You were merely its ‘content’ or object; it is between I and You… Relation is reciprocity. My You acts on me as I act on it. -Martin Buber, I and Thou Inspired by my relationships, I look at physical and mental closeness through my work and how it differs with friends, family, and lovers in my life. I create new spaces for connections between people by exploring physical distances that relate to existing mental intimate spaces. I address this space by constructing large scale sculptural apparatuses that encapsulate human intimacies. In making the work, I look into myself to find what mental and physical intimacies I share with others in order to decide the performers’ proximity. I write often about my relationships to understand better what they mean to me; this is my type of research. I highly value the equality and trust between connections that I continually find. For this body of work, it’s essential for me to show that all of the pieces have this constant reciprocity. When these apparatuses give agency to the wearers to be closer together, they have a more accessible mental intimacy. They create a need to hold, or give attention, and are allowed to do so in such proximity. It is this attention and care I want the viewer to feel. With wearers being farther apart, they’re forced to make this intimate relation work over distance. Their comfort is strained, and efforts are tested; these pieces require the most strength and trust to continue their intimacy. It is the balance and reciprocity in emotions that allows these long-distance relationships to work. It is this will and longing I want the viewer to feel. In considering my materials, I exploit stretchy fabrics creating an intensity and intimacy due to the pushing, pulling, and the strain put on these materials to be flexible. These colors relate to the body and internal anatomy creating a stronger bond from apparatus to wearer. Yellow in relation to the body is a sign of disease, and a reminder to me of the lines in the middle of the road. How five-hundred miles or so feels like an incredible distance and weight, and my connection at this length suffers from heartache. The connection is sweet, two trying to see each other, yet the means are bitter due to the distance. Keeping in touch seems like an impossible feat,

Out of Routine (4 of 4) 2018 Terra Cotta and Mixed Media Dimensions Vary

Table of Contents

Table of Contents