ARTS 308 - Project 1 Proposal

Title: Campus Ghosts

Concept: A 2011 ACHA-NCHA survey found that about 30% of college students reported feeling "so depressed that it was difficult to function" at some time in the past year.

I pondered on the causes of depression in a college environment. My body cast sculpture explores the element of loneliness and alienation that many people feel in the college environment - a feeling that one doesn't even exist on the same plane as their peers. Thus, they feel like ghosts, unable to interact with those around them.

Campus Ghosts is a confrontation with students who feel like ghosts due to their loneliness - the sculpture literally makes the unseen seen.

The concept is inspired by the words of a song by B.O.B. aka Bobby Ray Simmons called 'Ghost in the Machine' (full song lyrics here):

Tell me where am I supposed to go?

And who am I supposed to believe.

If only you knew what I knew.

Then you could see just what I see.

So I grab my bags and go, as far away as I can go.

Cause everything ain't what I used to know.

And I try to hide, but I just can't hide no more.

There's nothing worse than feeling like a ghost.

Location: I want the sculpture's location to reflect the theme of ordinary people "hiding in plain sight". The location must also reinforce the feeling of isolation even in a place where students are frequently found. So I chose the 2nd floor walkway connecting Langfords B&C with Langford A.

Material: My initial idea for the sculpture was a white sheet with eyes cut out. It's one of the most recognizable images of a "ghost". The biggest challenge with using a white sheet will be getting it to stay in place with wind, weather, etc. I will research ways to get cloth to be more rigid, or I may use wires or even plaster of Paris to create a rigid cloth body.

Schedule: Thursday, February 5: Finish plastic body cast. Wednesday, February 11: complete material attachment on-location.

ARTS 308 - Sculptures Using the Body

1. Peter Jansen - Human Motions Series
Sculpting the motion of humans in one sculpture "frame" creating energetic spaces.

"Running", 2007, bronze

"Arabesque", 2007, bronze/chrome

2. Matteo Pugliese - Extra Moenia Series

Location specific to wall, exploring concepts of emergence, human male form struggling against and interacting with wall.

"Pensiero notturno", 2010, bronze

"Istinito", 2009, bronze

3. Ron Mueck - Hyper-realistic Human Sculptures

Humans of gigantic proportions that are both familiar yet alien and unreal. Extreme attention to details such as hair, skin, etc.

"Boy", 1999, clay maquette under glass fiber cast.

ARTS 308 - Portfolio Slides

ARTS 308 (Sculpture) - Introduction

Howdy all,

I'm a senior Visualization student here at A&M. This is my last semester of undergraduate classes, and I hope to graduate in August and go straight into the MS-VIZ program from there.

ARTS 308 is my last directed elective, and I took it because I'm curious about what I can learn about physical sculpture, I want to develop more traditional art skills, the class fit my schedule well and I like the way Hwaryoung formats her classes.

Over the years at A&M, I did a few sculptures in VIST 106 with Dick Davison. The two most notable ones were a subtractive sculpture made of florist foam and, of course, my robot sculpture:

While I've done a lot of practical, narrative, representative sculpture in the past, I'm interested in developing an interest in abstract forms in sculpture and developing higher mastery of materials.