Browsing by Author "Ronan, Anne Elizabeth"
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- Crafting Clementina: Using Material Culture to Interpret the Contributions of 18th-century American Craftswomen in Scholarship and at Public History SitesApplebaum, Micaela (Virginia Tech, 2024-09-20)
- Darśan - Dance for KriśnaPilania, Harshal (Virginia Tech, 2024-06-25)Darśana is an an interactive, multi-channel installation offering participants an artistic, somatic immersion in Hindu mythology. The exhibit interprets the Hindu concept of 'darśana'—a practice involving the experience and observance of a deity—through a contemporary lens. At the heart of the installation is Lord Kṛṣṇa, the beloved flutist deity celebrated for his wisdom and charm. Participants are immersed in a digital rendition of his native forested land, Vṛndāvana. Here, they are encouraged to move, dance, and interact with their surroundings. By presenting ancient stories through new media technologies, "Darśana" explores the potential of modern technology to reinterpret and revitalize traditional practices and beliefs for contemporary audiences, drawing their attention to their cultural heritage.
- Feminist Interventions in Curatorial Practice at Appalachian University Art InstitutionsPenven, Savannah Kate (Virginia Tech, 2024-05-23)This thesis addresses a gap in scholarship by centering curators at often-overlooked university art institutions in the Appalachian region in order to analyze the practical applications of feminist curatorial methodologies in comparison to established feminist curatorial scholarship Three case studies focus on the Reece Museum at Eastern Tennessee State University, the Art in the Libraries initiative at West Virginia University, and the Eleanor D. Wilson Museum at Hollins University. This study uses qualitative and anecdotal data collection methods, such as surveys and one-on-one interviews to demonstrate how feminist methodologies are employed as a theoretically informed curatorial practice, following the framework originally developed in feminist curatorial scholarship. An analysis of feminist curatorial scholarship reveals three core principles of feminist curating: institutional critique, collaboration and engagement, and inventive exhibition strategies. Data analysis found that staff at these three university institutions utilize various intersectional methodologies under the umbrella of feminist interventions when creating exhibitions in their respective institutions. The concept of "feminist curating," as understood and expressed by the staff, has evolved from traditional gender-centered approaches to address a broader scope of socio-economic inequalities as well as power dynamics within museums It is intended to serve as an entry point for further critique of self-described curatorial feminist methods and their practical implementations, in order to analyze what these strategies and practices look like, and how they are intended to affect the university community.
- The Joys of GardeningShah, Jasmine Rajesh (Virginia Tech, 2021-12-09)The Joys of Gardening is a virtual experience in which the viewers are invited to roam and explore a garden maze scattered with features including a greenhouse, a fountain, a gazebo, and a variety of personal gardening videos. One of the main attractions includes an opportunity to interact with a tomato plant and observe different stages of its growth. These elements combined are essential to the piece's purpose: to spread the passion and joys of gardening. There are many therapeutic effects to gardening such as: the sun helps people be happy, working with the soil allows a sense of giving life, and watching a plant grow can inspire the joy of gardening and the joy of discovery. As the viewer inhabits the space, they are engulfed into a world of butterflies, birds chirping, and serene lighting. This experience has a set aesthetic, narrative, and user interaction. By utilizing these elements, they are able to enjoy a relaxing stroll through the maze. This paper will discuss the influence behind the experience, stylistic choices, and user interactions. This experience continues to explore the potentials of blending the physical landscape and the digital landscape.
- Myco-scapes: Multispecies Entanglements in ArtmakingThornton, Eva Marie (Virginia Tech, 2024-06-25)Myco-scapes: Multispecies Entanglements in Artmaking is a body of ephemeral fiber sculptures. These weavings and digital fabrications are the result of collaborations with dynamic materials and other species, primarily fungi. The artworks (or artifacts) of the artist's material intra-actions explore the possibilities, challenges, and ethics of multispecies collaboration. Furthermore, in its ephemerality, Myco-scapes responds to the preventative conservation practices employed by art museums. Not only do these sculptures embody the fleeting nature of material entanglements, but they also challenge the capitalist structure of art collecting through their impermanence. The written thesis describes the artist's studio practice by exploring three primary influences: mycelium (the root-like structures of mushrooms), entanglements (the complex interwoven structures in which we exist), and preventative conservation (art-handling protocol designed to preserve artifacts).
- Stitches on Display: Embroidery Exhibited by the Museum of Modern ArtAtallah, Grace Elizabeth (Virginia Tech, 2024-05-17)Engaging with both the materiality and visuality of the embroidered artworks by Marguerite Zorach and Elaine Reichek, this thesis analyzes the material acknowledgement, or lack thereof, of the embroidery medium in both the artists' own motivations and how the Museum of Modern Art represents and displays modern embroideries. Often perceived as old-fashioned, in both cultural and artistic frameworks there is at a times tremulous acceptance of the embroidery medium. Both Zorach and Reichek's embroideries are undoubtedly rooted in modernist ideas surrounding form, subject, and aesthetics. Expressed in thread, the concepts behind these artworks are closely stitched to the medium itself, enhanced by the textural and methodological process of embroidery. Despite this, the modes of display used by the MoMA exhibits portray a reluctance to fully embrace and acknowledge the importance of materiality in in the history of embroidery. Examining the inclusion of Zorach's The Circus in the 1938 Three Centuries of American Art exhibition alongside Reichek's 1999 solo exhibition Projects 67: Elaine Reichek displaying her When This You See… embroidery series, this thesis evaluates each artist's use of the medium and how the respective exhibitions framed the embroidered artworks.