Browsing by Author "Faris, Suzanne, committee member"

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Open Access
Between viewing and experiencing
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2018) Adams, Margaret, author; Gravdahl, John, advisor; Coke, Pamela K., committee member; Faris, Suzanne, committee member; Moseman, Eleanor F., committee member
Psychologist, American philosopher, and educational reformer John Dewey, once said, "Give the pupils something to do, not something to learn; and the doing is of such a nature as to demand thinking; learning naturally results." We learn through play and exploration. As an observer and participant in this world, my own personal experiences inadvertently impact me as a maker, and as a teacher. This is a continual revolving influence. My experiences, my artwork, and my teaching all have a direct impact on each other. There are intersecting connections and overlapping interests between design as visual communications and teaching. They are about shared experiences and both encompass communication, personal expression, collaboration, transmission of information, participation, and interpretation. Design and teaching are about communication. Design can communicate a message in different ways such as through typography, visuals, materials, color, symbolism, etc. What we know as a viewer by experience, impacts our interpretation of the artwork. We look for ways to relate to the artwork based on what we know. The artwork can push us into feeling uncomfortable to promote a concept or a message. Even though an artist may have a specific message in mind, there is no check system to ensure the viewer received that message. In the classroom, I aim to create a comfortable environment for students to encourage a safe place for interactive learning. There are checks and balances in place, such as quizzes, tests, discussions, projects, and critiques to ensure the message that was presented was clearly understood. If a student does not understand the message that was communicated, they can be affected since the message deepens the understanding of the industry they are preparing to enter as well as techniques that are needed to be a successful designer. Artwork is different, the message could be passive or ambiguous. It could be meant to engage and stir up a reaction. Art is between object and viewer; the collaboration is personal and internal. Teaching is a collaboration between teacher and student, it is external. With teaching, collaborating with students relies on student experiences to grasp the concepts being communicating. With art, collaboration depends on the object or art to start the discussion, whereas with teaching the focus is on the teacher to start the discussion. Design and teaching can be static or interactive but collaboration is always present. Design can encourage critical thinking, reaction, and even a change in the viewer's thinking. In my role as a teacher, I aim to encourage critical thinking. For example, I give a prompt and I expect students to come back with a concept for their project. They are acting and reacting to the direction they are given. I encourage change in their own thinking as we move through the semester and they learn new industry skills. As an artist, my artwork does the same. If I design a poster for a theater concert to promote sale tickets, my goal is to encourage viewer participation by convincing them to purchase tickets. I never questioned whether graphic design was a form of art, but in graduate school, I came to the realization that teaching is an art form and there is an unquestionable connection between design and teaching. As an artist, I explore concepts through sketching and digital exploration. Through this process, the concept develops. As a direct result, I grow as an artist, learning and expanding my knowledge and experience. As I choose materials, size, typography, and visuals for my artwork, I am framing a message. As a teacher, I play the same role. I choose the message I wish to convey to my students, and frame the presentation through a selection of materials, typography, and visuals. I have come to the realization that teaching a design class and creating artwork have many commonalities. In the classroom, I am creating an experience for the students–they are the viewers and what I am participating in is a creative act. Many disciplines grade student knowledge and understanding my asking multiple choice questions. As a design teacher, I can ask multiple choice questions when it comes to industry terms and basic design knowledge, but design as a visual communication encompasses so much more. Technique, content, and concepts must also be evaluated and that cannot be done through multiple choice questions. I must handle students individually in a studio setting, grasping what individuals are getting and not getting from the instructions based on the work they are creating. I must be able to think on my feet and change gears quickly relying on my own intuition of the design field. Teaching is a creative act the same way making artwork is.
Open Access
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(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2009) McGrath, Meghan, author; Yust, Dave, 1939-, advisor; Sullivan, Patrice M., advisor; Coronel, Patricia D., committee member; Faris, Suzanne, committee member; Flippen, Paul, committee member; Beachy-Quick, Dan, 1973-, committee member
My current work, as a painter, is interactive and personal. Patterns of communication, relationships, and personalities are represented through family portraits. I am interested in dissecting characteristics and connecting them visually. Rather than nostalgia, memory serves as a visual history. The portraits become metaphors for maps describing time, place and linear movement.
Open Access
Found, and wandering lost
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2008) Kissell, Kevin, author; Lundberg, Thomas R., advisor; Coronel, Patricia D., committee member; Littrell, Mary, committee member; Faris, Suzanne, committee member
To view the abstract, please see the full text of the document.
Open Access
Light works
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2009) Dillo, Sophia Dixon, author; Yust, Dave, 1939-, advisor; Faris, Suzanne, committee member; Kokoska, Mary-Ann, committee member; Lehene, Marius, committee member; McKee, Patrick L., committee member
Light Works explores the incorporation of light into painting in both small wall works and large hanging installation works. The pieces have a quiet gentle presence that sets the tone of the space they inhabit. Light is incorporated into the pieces through the combination of opaque layers such as off-white paper and white paint, with transparent and translucent layers of plastic and Mylar. Varying combinations of these materials create subtle visual effects as the light interacts with the layers. Elements of shadow, light, and visual fogginess or clarity of material all occur depending on the viewer's spatial relationship to the works. These works are non-objective. They use all-over patterning in order to not establish a visual hierarchy between forms. The viewer's attention thus tends to alternate between the whole of the work and the particular forms of the pattern. The combination of scale, composition, light, color, material, and physical placement of the works creates a space of simplicity, openness, and stillness. The intention is to situate the viewer in the immediacy of direct experience. Instead of our usual mind of naming, comparison and association, these works try to evoke a felt sense that exists before labeling, before thinking. I intend to have this space invite a specific experience of beauty, beauty as an activity of mind, a mind that reaches out to an object and returns nourished.
Open Access
Motivations for participation in knitting among young women
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2011) Stannard, Casey Rhea, author; Sanders, Eulanda, advisor; Sarkar, Ajoy, committee member; Faris, Suzanne, committee member
The purpose of this research was to understand the complex motivations of young women who choose to participate in knitting. The number of young women who knit has increased dramatically in the past ten years. However, there has been little research focused on understanding the culture of these young, female knitters and no research has concentrated its attention on the material culture of these women and the artifacts they produce. Fifteen young, female knitters (ages 18-30) who resided in Northern Colorado were identified to participate in the study. Data were collected from in-depth interviews, a material culture analysis of artifact(s) made by the participants, and a demographic data survey. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and artifacts made by the participants were photographed for later analysis. Validity was established through the use of multiple information sources and a secondary coder. Data gathered from the interviews were analyzed using constant comparative method. The knitted artifacts were analyzed using material culture and content analysis methods. Finally, the survey data were examined using frequencies and descriptive statistics. Thirteen subthemes emerged during the coding process of the interview data: creativity, multi-tasking, financial, alterations, information sources, social aspects, negative reactions, mistakes, expense, positive reactions, products, confidence, and relaxation. These themes were grouped into three main categories: incentives, barriers, and positive outcomes. The Taxonomy of Participation in Knitting was developed to graphically arrange the themes and subthemes. The data were then compared to an existing theory, Uses and Gratifications (UG), to determine if the categories of motivations described by Katz et al. (1974) were appropriate to describe the incentives for young women to participate in knitting. The categories of UG were very suitable and a second model, The Model of Motivations for Knitting among Young Women, was created to showcase the motivations that participants had for engaging in knitting.
Open Access
Refractions
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2010) White, Sara Goldenberg, author; Lundberg, Thomas, advisor; Faris, Suzanne, committee member; Sanders, Eulanda A., committee member; Coronel, Pat, committee member
To view the abstract, please see the full text of the document.
Open Access
Regarding humanity: interwoven intricacies of universality and unity
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2013) Clark, Sandra S., author; Lundberg, Thomas R., advisor; Moseman, Eleanor, committee member; Faris, Suzanne, committee member; Volbrecht, Vicki, committee member
In order to communicate, organize and understand the world around them, people from the earliest times have established semiotic language systems, mathematics, social structures and religions. Through layered symbolism, the mathematically driven work discussed here ruminates on these common developments. Each component is individually crafted, bringing value to each unit of the overall pattern. While there are slight variations, as in humanity, these components are all basically the same. This installation is intended to draw attention to the beauty of the whole. Regarding Humanity offers my interpretation of these cultural developments and what I view as the fundamental, intellectual needs of people all over the world.
Open Access
Unwearable war: a visual exploration of transversal politics
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2008) Rockinger, Sara Pierce Rockwell, author; Lundberg, Thomas R., advisor; Kokoska, Mary-Ann, committee member; Faris, Suzanne, committee member; Aoki, Eric, committee member
To view the abstract, please see the full text of the document.