Senior Art Thesis 2020

Each year, Wittenberg University's Department of Art presents a Senior Art Exhibition. Traditionally, it opens with a reception in early April that coincides with the university's annual Celebration of Learning event.

Due to the COVID-19 health crisis, this year’s Senior Art Thesis is being presented virtually. Congratulations to the department's seniors in the Class of 2020 - we hope you enjoy their work.

NOTE: More students' work will be added to this page as it is completed and provided to the website content manager.


Allie Garnai ArtworkFreothuwebbe
By Allie Garnai

My thesis project, Freothuwebbe, explores the intention of handwork through the process of weaving photographic images together. The two photographs that become woven portray the same model in similar poses but differing in scale. All photographs in this work incorporate the subjects’ bodies being manipulated by their hands. I chose rice paper as my printing medium because it is a lightweight, fibrous material that allows me to manipulate the printed photographs. I was intentional with each image in what details I wanted woven and left unobstructed. In some weavings, such as “Freothuwebbe 03”, I kept the width of the strips for the warp (strips going up and down) consistent and then wove into them a variety of width dimensions for the weft.

Click Here for Complete Artist Statement And Link to Online Presentation


Amanda Hanson ArtworkSenior Art Thesis
By Amanda Hanson

To me, design is one of the most influential industries in the world and has the ability to change perspectives. It can influence a consumer from choosing one product over another just based on packaging and branding. As a designer, I feel a great responsibility to find solutions to an issue that can ease communication. The entirety of my senior thesis is to communicate that art can be for all ages regardless of gender, race, or intelligence. I also wanted to relay that art museums are for everyone even though there is a stigma that they are for a particular audience. I hope to create a revolutionary way for families to come together at an art museum to think about art as well as interact in a new way with it. To do this, I created a friendly monster named Maeve.

Click Here for Complete Artist Statement And Link to Online Presentation


Claudia Rieth ArtworkPridefull
By Claudia Rieth

Design is a powerful form of communication. It is a way to get people to listen visually, without verbally speaking a word. Design allows people to hear your message in a new and different way. As a designer, it is my job to effectively communicate that message, whatever it may be, in an understandable way. The message behind my own senior thesis is driven by the desire to educate, inspire, and advocate for the LGBTQ+ community. As a member of the community myself, I want to effectively communicate my message in a way that will be easy to understand for the general public.

Click Here for Complete Artist Statement And Link to Online Presentation


Katlyn Roberts ArtworkSenior Art Thesis
By Katlyn Roberts

My work in clay focuses on surface texture and design, while also being utilitarian for daily life. I use sharp carving designs to create texture on my pieces, which complement the glazes. I use underglaze transfer paper to create the floral designs. This process requires me to cut each individual design and place it on the piece in order to transfer the design onto the form. Gold Lustre and Mother of Pearl are special overlays that require a third firing in the kiln. This can enhance the form and attract the eye due to its metallic qualities.

Click Here for Complete Artist Statement And Link to Online Presentation


Andrew O'Malley ArtworkSenior Art Thesis
By Andrew O'Malley

When you see a cartoon character do you imagine what they would look like in real life? Today it’s not that difficult to imagine. There are live action film adaptations of everything now, from Guardians of the Galaxy to Pokemon. I was content with cartoons as a child until I saw the first Spider-Man movie, which suggested that he was actually real and out there somewhere. After that, I couldn’t help but hope for the same result for all my favorite superheroes. To see a character go from concept, to comic book, to animation, and finally film, it’s a fulfilling experience. My thesis project embodies this evolution, and it allows viewers to reflect upon what changes throughout the process. Initially I  reached out to family friends and neighbors who had young children and asked each child to draw one superhero and one villain. They offered up some unique characters.

Click Here for Complete Artist Statement And Link to Online Presentation


Hawk Smith ArtworkThe Class of COVID-19
By Hawk Smith

Here are my final completed portraits. Over the past few weeks, I had the time to think about my thesis and what it was I wanted to portray. Amidst the chaos and ambiguity of this world; still incorporating text amongst my drawings, I decided to draw portraits of some of the senior class with a “stamped” seal overlayed. The seal is only 3/4 the way finished, alluding to our senior year being cut short. Dedication to: The Class of Covid-19.

Click Here for Complete Artist Statement And Link to Online Presentation


Lilliana Strozier ArtworkSilent Whisper
By Lilliana Strozier

Lilliana majors in Digital Imaging and worked with this medium for 4 years. Lilliana will receive a bachelor's degree in Studio Art with a focus in Digital Imaging in May 2020. Lilliana's career interest after college is filming and animation with huge corporations like Disney and Dreamworks. Lilliana believes her art should be able to tell a story, capture, or spark an emotion inside the audience, but not limited to these standards. Art can be defined as the expression of human creativity and imagination, but art can be in a free state as well. With past projects throughout her college career, she focused on work that mainly interacts with emotions, views that the audience can depict in their own way, or creates an impactful story.

Click Here for Complete Artist Statement And Link to Online Presentation


Grace Worley ArtworkSenior Art Thesis
By Grace Worley

If you take a moment to reflect on an experience or a tangible object that you encounter on a day-to-day basis, would you be able to describe the details that make up the defining features of the foremost elements? Finding specific details within everyday items and experiences while actively taking a step back to view these elements from a new perspective can positively change your mindset for future experiences. Within my artwork you will find specific details of moments in time where I noticed new qualities that gave me a greater appreciation for or a different perspective on an experience.

Click Here for Complete Artist Statement And Link to Online Presentation

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