Year of Award

2010

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Type

Master of Fine Arts (MFA)

Other Degree Name/Area of Focus

Painting

Department or School/College

Department of Art

Committee Chair

James Bailey

Keywords

autobiography, figure, memories, oil painting, pools, swimming, painting, time

Abstract

Recollect is an investigation of personal histories and myths relative to the experience of time and willful manipulation of said time. Depicted in the traditional medium of oil painting an autobiographical account is laid out. Not in chronological order, nor in any sense depicting actual events, these paintings are an attempt to identify and recreate distinguishing factors in my life. Acquiring a personal mythology is the prerogative of any and all people. History on a global scale has been written and rewritten under the influence of many factors. The factors that cause us to manipulate our own personal pasts are no less significant. Joseph Campbell writes that the myth plays an important role in the development of human kind. One of the reasons for this is the ability to mark time by milestones. Marking time, the understanding of how we personally experience and map time, and the innate desire to do both these things is a matter of survival; biologically and emotionally. The creation of a story (true or false) around events in our lives is no less than an act of self preservation. We are preserving ourselves by creating a context in which we can find our self. Time is relative to the paintings in terms of content, medium and the participants themselves. Temporal experience with this work constitutes a continuation of the medium as well as an unavoidable acknowledgment that the paintings act as perennial messengers in a visual culture.

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© Copyright 2010 Rebecca Gehres Weed