Senior Capstone Art exhibition features work from graduating Art students

According to India Booze, “The idea of universal beauty in America is linked to the images seen every day in magazines, on the internet, on television, and in fashion. These images are viewed as beautiful, powerful, and remarkable and embodies a standard that lacks representation of African American women. These images are influential because they frame the perception of how women are viewed by themselves and society. To challenge the notion of universal beauty depicted in various forms of the media, my project incorporates graphics of women of color, and creates a space for African American women who are not represented by the definition of beauty.”

Kaylen Buschhorn founded the women’s sport media company, More Than Just Balls, in September 2020. Her goal is to increase the coverage of female athletes through her merchandise, which includes clothing, cups, and stickers. She hopes to “elevate the voices of female athletes and spotlight those who are breaking through the glass ceiling.”

“My work focuses on how a person is perceived based on how they choose to show themselves and the parts of self that may not be seen at first glance but are core elements of who they are,” states Laurel Conover. “I explore this idea through a variety of media, with a focus on different textures and how layering can convey this message in my art. I show these ideas in my own experiences as a way of glimpsing into my thought process and sense of self.”

Kelly Creager’s art focuses on the impact of dementia. “Dementia is a disease that defines memory loss, behaviors, and difficulty with living independently, which sounds just as heartbreaking as it is,” she says. “The impression that my past dementia residents have had on me drives me to inform others of the disease.”

Noah De la Garrigue displays a series of graphic novel pages, self-portraits, and multimedia panels designed in the likeness of the vivid identities of his past and present. He states, “These works focus on my identity: how it was dictated by the heavy structure of my past and how it has changed over the course of my life so far.”

“My work of art is an experiment of color, shape, and pattern birthed from a graphic design background that to some level expresses the noise of my own inner thoughts and feelings,” according to Kaleigh Dumais. “My primarily abstracted paintings stemmed from the need to explore who I was as an artist and reevaluate my own technical skills while challenging my own creativity.”

Julianna Frascella’s work was developed during the pandemic. “Over the past two years, people have been dealing with the struggles and frustrations of Covid,” she says. “People were stuck in their houses with nothing to do. People like me decided to take on a new skill and that was crocheting! For this project I wanted to change people’s minds about crochet to see the fun and satisfying side of ‘do it yourself’ clothing!”

Ezerae Ham finds “the experience of human emotions to be a beautiful thing. I wanted to translate that experience into visual pieces. I feel like nature is a universal way to communicate emotions, so I decided to depict feelings and emotions through nature scenery and different colors that, to me, elicit emotional responses.”

“In today's society, many people have developed their personalities into brands, creating purchasable merchandise that represents that brand they've developed,” according to Laura Midkiff. "I was inspired by this trend in popular culture to create my own ‘merch’ that represents me and my experiences as an individual. Through sticker and T-shirt design, I was challenged to express those experiences, utilizing what I've learned as a graphic designer to convey who I am.”

Liz Mince is using her art to raise awareness of the Home on the Hill program at McDaniel for high financial need students. These students are provided access to the campus food pantry year-round, which includes food and produce, toiletries, school supplies, laundry detergent, and personal items, as well as other necessities. “My work will include graphic designs that display the importance of this program, as well as useful information... [to encourage those viewing the exhibition] to give back to their community by donating their items to the organization,” she said.

Makenzie Noble is a studio artist with an emphasis in film photography and sculpture. Her collection, “Label-Less,” is a multimedia exhibition centering around the exploration of modern-day relationships. “In this collection the viewer will witness personal photos, exchanges, and more that have defined my own contemporary relationships,” she says.

Video games are a very important part of Rebecca Seda’s life. She reveals that “for this collection, I took my online friend group who are from different parts of the country and even the world and turned them into video game characters, first based on their unique personalities and then based on a video game that we have played, including 'Dead by Daylight,' 'Red Dead Redemption 2,' 'Fall Guys,' and 'Pokémon Go.'”

“Instead of just having a small library at the Local Homestead in Westminster, I created an entire brand to strengthen and enrich the experience,” notes Joy Tarr. “I explore methods of kid-friendly marketing by utilizing my brand, ‘Bloom Books.’ I experiment with different merchandise ideas, color schemes, logo design, and brand recognition. Through methods of graphic design, I create mockups that utilize my logo and make cohesive branding templates. I want to provide the free little library with a personality that is different from the rest.”

“I’ve always had a terrible memory, but after the sudden passing of a close friend, I realized that I shouldn’t have written this off as much as I did,” notes Leah Wilder. “The first half of my exhibit aims to reclaim and reinterpret old memories that are slipping through my fingers, and the second half focuses on making new memories and keeping myself present in the moment.”