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Browsing by Author "Mackenzie, Matt, committee member"

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    Drawing questions
    (Colorado State University. Libraries, 2012) Croghan, Nicholas, author; Kokoska, Mary-Ann, advisor; Lehene, Marius, committee member; Flippen, Paul, committee member; Mackenzie, Matt, committee member
    In my artwork, the questions I am interested in are those that begin with our experience of the world. Specifically, the connections between an embodied subject, the environment and the different roles the senses play on the temporality of consciousness. Other enigmas that have occupied my mind are those regarding the relationship between self and other and how to create an art that provokes a participation in the inter-subjective living moment. To investigate these themes I create two and three-dimensional objects which provide a multi-sensory experience that is aesthetically engaging, conceptually provocative, and layered with levels of meaning. To invoke a fascination in these ideas, I have used intricate and evocative imagery, incorporation of kinetic and interactive components, and elements that change with time or different environmental conditions. Important is a necessary mobile perspective that breaks the viewer free from a static cone of vision and seduces him or her into a labyrinth of puzzles. Formally I juxtapose various materials including silverpoint, transfers, vhs tape, polarized screens and found objects with supports ranging from folk art-style assemblages to meticulously crafted panels and glass. Subtractive processes such as carving, erasing, and veiling constitute another aspect of the layering that gives rise to the finished piece. Employing these materials and processes with subject matter that is representational as well as abstract, narrative, or illustrative of mechanical and anatomical diagrams allows me to take the viewer from a place of the known to one of not-knowing. Every work is both a sensory and cerebral playground in which one can investigate the curious nature of perception. It is important for this exploration to absorb the viewer in multiple epiphanies that lead to questions, self-reflection and a state of being conscious of consciousness. My art practice is inspired by the mutual arising or transactional interaction between the viewer, myself and the art experience.
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    The ecological self: a cognitive anthropological study of identity, body ideology and ecology in American Zen monastic culture
    (Colorado State University. Libraries, 2015) Graves, Kelly Anne, author; Snodgrass, Jeffrey, advisor; Kwiatkowski, Lynn, committee member; Mackenzie, Matt, committee member
    This research will examine the unique cultural context of Japanese Zen as it is practiced, embodied and shared in an American monastic setting. It will look at how this particular “culture of meditation” (defined as the U.S. Zen monastic culture) promoted within these communities may influence the way a person frames their bodies, sense of self and environment. Through this process, I suggest that the experience of self-moves from an ego-centric to a more eco-centric ontology, resulting in a unique environmental worldview that may be related to subjective wellbeing. Using a mixed-methods approach this will be explored through the use of ethnographic grounded theory, surveys and a cognitive test measuring visual processing with the intent of providing a case for how a “culture of meditation” may impact the way we contextualize ourselves within the world around us. An introduction to Buddhism in America will be given, in order to frame the particular Buddhist culture examined in this study, as well as a definition of “meditation” through the vantage of contemporary psychological vocabulary. This study will take a strong interdisciplinary stance. Chapter 3 will examine various theories from psychology, anthropology and ecology as possible frames to interpret the unique cultural and religious identity that is promoted by Zen monastic culture. Then, first hand research conducted at a U.S. Soto Zen monastery in Oregon will be addressed, using an enhanced ethnographic approach to give voice and rigor to the lived experience of how this “culture of meditation” transforms a sense of self and motivates an alternative ecological worldview. Chapter 4 will provide an overview of the methods used, detailing information on participants, setting and an analysis of prior participant observation and Chapter 5 will present and examine the data in each step of the study, providing analyses of the findings and identify the emergent themes. A summary of these analyses and description of the conclusions will be discussed in Chapter 6, as well as the limitations of the research process, applications of the findings and recommendations for future directions. Themes of body, self and environment will be explored throughout the study, with the intention of providing a unique exploration of Zen practice, culture and experience.