My exhibition begins with three color pencil works, displaying the same living room. I drew inspiration from my living room, and did these pieces with a photograph reference. My first work is done with the perspective looking into the room. The center of the first row has a full view of the window, with gray curtains to show the barrier between the inside and outside of the space. The third piece has a viewpoint looking outside of the room. These works have lighter colors than the rest of my exhibit, which is why I chose to include them at the top. When viewed together, these three works have some symmetrical elements. For example, the first and third work have doors respectively located at the left and right of the piece. The viewer is meant to look at the space in each room and the focus is on the green portions, depicting the outside. These works were done over the past year, and I wanted to explore the isolation felt in one’s home. Many people also had the desire to be outside instead of being quarantined, which is why it is portrayed with a green color. Viewers should consider their own relationship between their homes and the outdoors. 

 

My second row of art was curated based on colors. The left and right artworks both use blue, which is why they are on the sides, with the oil pastel piece in the center. The acrylic work is the fourth piece of my exhibition because it also depicts the interior of a room. I used the interior of my former bedroom to decide where to place the objects within this piece. My audience should consider the futility of escaping the room shown in this piece. I used white to show the points of escape, both physically and mentally. The red surrounding these objects symbolize that exit is unattainable. This piece focused on isolation felt due to mental illness. I hope my audience considers why each object has red, especially the red around the pillow and red mirror. 

 

The fifth and sixth pieces in my exhibition present an outdoor environment. The oil pastel piece was the first one I did for this body of work. The majority of the forefront uses red, which is contrasted with the green sky. The sun in the sky is black, and I wanted this piece to have a disturbing mood. There is a popular notion of riding off into a sunset, and I wanted this piece to challenge that by using high contrast to create an unsetting feeling in the audience. Individuals wish for things without considering where the desire comes from, or whether they’ll be satisfied once they’ve reached their goal. My audience should consider the different perspective presented in this piece. The third piece of the second row is my mixed media piece. I used different mediums to portray parts of our environment. The sky, ocean, and trees are presented so the audience considers the state of our environment. This is my second to last piece because I want viewers to consider their role in helping our environment. The first few works in my exhibition show the concepts of isolation and human desire, and the focus of my mixed media piece was for people to be self-reflective of what’s happening regarding our climate crisis.   

 

The last piece of my body of work is a series of photographs. I decided to place these photographs last because of the finality within the last photo. There is a transition of colors throughout the whole piece, with the background of the first photograph as green and the last as red. The form of the hand also adds to the mood of each piece, telling a story when viewed together. This piece largely comments on desire, and shows the figure in the first photo reaching for the light. This can be interpreted broadly by viewers but, I hope, they contemplate how the series ends with a red background. I used a red background with the hand over the light to symbolize the inability of people to be satisfied with what they have.