Theses and Dissertations

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Open Access
A disobedient mediation
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2021) Bagdon, Andrea, author; Osborne, Erika, advisor; Bernagozzi, Jason, committee member; Ryan, Ajean, committee member; Little, Ann, committee member
Historically within the canon of art, specifically painting, the female form and ultimately female identity was understood in binary terms as being an opposite of the heroic male, conveyed as a commoditized trope of the feminine. There was a disruption to the canon of art in 1968 with the invention of the handheld Sony Portapak camcorder. Many female artists adapted video into their artmaking practice for its ability to become an effective communication medium. In its infancy, the medium of video was not yet dominated by male artists and was not taught in most art institutions. Thus, it represented a medium untainted by the baggage of art history. As a result, experimental video became a feminist medium which offered an alternative form of mediation to subvert the patriarchal artistic canon. Artists have the potential to be researchers of perception and Art can become an agent of mediation to breakdown subjective social orders that cloud our consciousness. My work aims to decode and expose the abstracted systems of femininity and the domestic by using the image processing mediums of video and paint. My paintings and videos unveil multiple emotional states from the same female-identifying psyche in order to examine intimate scenes of self-conflict which have been brought on by obsessive cultural programming. By using uncomfortable representations of the domestic and the figure I also intend to highlight the psychological trauma and disrupt the patriarchal lens that is inherent within the canon of art.
Open Access
A facility without its own territory
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2011) Straub, Edwina, author; Lundberg, Thomas R., advisor; Coronel, Patricia D., committee member; Ryan, Ajean Lee, committee member; Sparks, Diane, committee member
Dipping into the reservoir of tacit knowledge, the phenomenon in art that is created through the "knowing of that" or embodied knowledge. The integration of experience and perception is where the motivations of my art making comes from. It is through the manipulation of fiber that I am able to transform its essence into something extraordinary. Through the process of dyeing, sewing and cutting I create patterns in space. Through the integration of their shadows into the artwork, I create the ephemeral character of my art. The hand-cut modules are sewn in a grid. Through the full integration of the grid into the artwork, in part as scaffold and in part as element of the artwork, I create a dynamic composition of movement.
Open Access
A personal symbolism
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 1984) Ash, Lori Jean, author; Dormer, James T., committee member; Orman, Jack L., committee member; Ellerby, David A., committee member; Lakin, Barbara L., committee member
To view the abstract, please see the full text of the document.
Open Access
A Psychosomatic condition: prints as symptoms
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2015) Conley, Allison, author; Dormer, James, advisor; Plastini, Johnny, advisor; Lehene, Marius, committee member; Kneller, Jane, committee member
To transcend my standard way of art making, I have revoked all intent or previous purpose. I work intuitively, reacting to each mark as it is placed and developing an image on the matrix rather than the mind. This mode evokes internal conflict to spill into the physical world, as they are not allowed to dawdle in the mind. The resulting images are psychosomatic: they are the physical symptoms that manifest from an underlying mental disturbance. They are not the cause of the problem, only the residue created from the mind taking form.
Open Access
A road: poetry in painted landscape
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 1992) Haskins, David, author; Dietemann, David L., advisor; Yust, Dave, 1939-, committee member; Ellerby, David A., committee member; Tremblay, Bill, committee member
Landscapes reflected through the passing of time, light that is real "now", is only a memory a second later. Those memories that catch my mind's eye are what I attempt to hold, to examine, to understand through the painting process. My paintings allow those memories to become real once again and revisited.
Open Access
A search for spiritual integration
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 1997) Keyton, Lisa M., author; Yust, Dave, 1939-, advisor; Dietemann, David L., committee member; Gill, Ann M., committee member; Erskine, Nancy, committee member
My paintings are about a spiritual journey. They act as a visual description as well as a vehicle for the journey itself. For me this journey has included an exploration of utopian visions and a spiritual ideal, as well as the struggle to integrate spirituality into my life. I consider contextual issues and the process of painting as being equally important and integral aspects of these paintings. Contextually this body of work represents an exploration into a "sense of place" and "ambiguous organic forms". This sense of place or environment is not physical, it is a phenomena I perceive while I am in a meditative state. The ambiguous organic forms in my paintings act as metaphors representing myself. Introducing these forms into a sense of place allows me to explore the relationship I have with my spiritual issues and my environment. For me the processes involved with painting helps facilitate the retrieval of memories, emotions and sensations, it soothes, stimulates and mesmerizes, creating a haven for expressing the inner recesses of my soul.
Open Access
A thing of things: Critter comfort
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2024) Hagerman, Haley Leilani, author; Plastini, Johnny, advisor; Reip, Dave, committee member; Moore, Emily, committee member; Cooperman, Matthew, committee member; Harrow, Del, committee member
This paper explores physical and theoretical layers behind the thesis show Critter Comfort which ultimately aims to immerse and enrapture the viewer in overwhelming giving. Split into four parts, the paper starts with the first two sections give with a more empirical mindset of the installation through exploring the situation of a museum setting, and the art thing(s) on display. Parts three and four deal with the intangible of what goes into creating art with tension, and the quintessential part beauty plays on a surface and metaphysical level. Ultimately this paper is an indulgent explanation of exactly why I made the type of installation I did for my thesis capstone show: to create and share what I find beautiful.
Open Access
A timeless vision
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 1996) Niles, Kathryn M., author; Dormer, James T., advisor; Ellerby, David A., committee member; Mitchell, Carol A., committee member; Simons, Stephen R., committee member
Landscape and figure are timeless, universal, and venerable motifs that compel constant and continued examination. This group of works employs form, movement, and spatial relations that are elements evident in both themes. I approach my subjects with a history of memories, an awareness of my surroundings, and my psychological state at the moment. These portrayals of life as I experience it may, in a sense, all be seen as self-portraits.
Open Access
Abstraction, ideology and identity
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2014) Hettinga, Maria, author; Simons, Stephen, advisor; Dormer, James, advisor; Beachy-Quick, Dan, committee member; Ryan, Ajean, committee member; Tornatzky, Cyane, committee member
My graduate work has been in printmaking, specifically monoprints. I print a variety of materials which reference landscape as well as domestic life, including common household materials such as wax paper, plastic wrap, sewing machine-stitched swatches of textiles and paper, tulle and lingerie. My personal biography is instrumental in my work; my cultural identity has played a major role in shaping my personal identity. I was raised in a Dutch immigrant farming community on the rural perimeter of Los Angeles. Domesticity, decorative arts, fashion and femininity were intertwined to create a fixed notion of beauty and to enforce a strict definition of gender roles. My insular, conservative community contrasted with the ever-changing natural environment of Southern California in the 1970s--1990s; the landscape was altered by urban expansion as well as pollution. I make abstract visual references to fashion, femininity and landscape in effort to create imagery which evades easy definition. I employ abstraction to destabilize traditional, taken-for-granted ideological narratives. While challenging authority, I promote a mindful approach to social and environmental progress which acknowledges the complexities of the twenty-first century.
Open Access
Acts of emergence
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2015) LaBarre, Sarah E., author; Lundberg, Thomas, advisor; Harrow, Del, committee member; Kneller, Jane, committee member; Ryan, Ajean, committee member
In my thesis installation Acts of Emergence, impressions of memory and past experiences emerge from canvas through layers of stain and stitch. Each piece suggests a fragment of memory--real and imagined. Several dozen fragmented units represent a mapping of memory through space, as if each component manifests pieces of a moment in time, flowing across the wall. The format of this piece presents a kind of disjointed timeline that contains partial records of an experience. The work as a whole is scattered across and floating away from the wall, creating a fragmented composition made up of bits of densely stitched canvas. Viewed more closely, each fragment itself becomes a composition. Stains suggest the presence of memories left behind. Each piece in this panorama holds a moment; together the units present a kind of suspended place or moment in time. These fragments appear to travel across the wall, emerging from my memory and stained with references to a history, not unlike paintings made by the Mexica people of Pre-Hispanic Mexico, who conceived time and space as intrinsically linked. I draw much inspiration from the human body's capacity to convey many emotions. The dancing figures in my work are anonymous: each with their own identity, yet not seen as anyone in particular. They are frozen in specific moments, offering a view of that moment as well. Together, suspended figures plot multiple moments within this spreading map of memory.
Open Access
Adventures in roller derby
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2007) Link, Karen Lynn, author; Yust, Dave, 1939-, advisor; Sullivan, Patrice M., advisor; Tremblay, William A., committee member; Simons, Stephen R., committee member
In my thesis, I discuss why I paint images of roller derby matches and why, in particular, the Rocky Mountain Rollergirls. I show how I explore my subject through narrative, compositional space, and value. I write about the relationships between the figures, and between the figures and their environment, and how that relates to issues of narrative. I show how I explore my subject through acrylic and india ink and the materials that are used for my supports. I discuss how Henri Matisse and Richard Diebenkom have influenced my work and how my work functions differently from theirs. Also in my thesis, I discuss the use of photography and how it relates to the creative process of my painting. Lastly, the reasons and advantages of using photography in my process is explored including the malleability of digital photography.
Open Access
Agency of ecological landscapes through paintings of the American West
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2024) Hinkelman, Adam, author; Osborne, Erika, advisor; Lajarin-Encina, Aitor, advisor; Harrow, Del, committee member; Moore, Emily, committee member; Bowser, Gillian, committee member
The lineage of American landscape paintings invokes a hierarchical structure cresting with humankind and the divine. This evokes problematic relational dynamics between humanity and the natural world which is exacerbated by Anthropocentric activity. Traditionally, early western landscape artists illustrated nature as a sublime force displayed as vast expanses of "untamed" wilderness, ethereal mountain peaks, fertile valleys, and steaming brooks. Alongside colonial settlements, paintings effectively lured eager European Americans to claim land through western expansion. To promote mutualistic bonds between humans and nature and contribute towards a new decolonial ecology, my thesis instills agency to natural landscapes by exploring a synthesis between generational historicity to place, non-anthropocentric phenomenology through kinship, and a painting process enriched by the practice of ultra distance trail running. More specifically, my paintings recognize the innate agency of trees, mountains, and glaciers through non-human centric perspectives across time scales, spatial dimensions, and non-observable light wave spectrums. This invites observers to identify a kinship with nature from non-anthropocentric grounding.
Open Access
Allegory and metaphor in tableware
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 1999) Amador, Susan, author; Getty, Nilda C. Fernández, advisor; Dormer, James T., committee member; Fahey, Patrick G., committee member; Valdez, Norberto, committee member
Silver tableware contains the surfaces and familiar cognitive references ripe for story telling with relief, developed by chasing and repousse. The elitist connotations present in the material attract the viewer into close proximity to the work and functionality fosters an intimate relationship. The human tendency towards rituals surrounding ingesting ceremonial food and spiritually elevating drugs devise ingenious accouterments that signal entry into the ritual space, tableware being one of indicators of access. The tableware in this thesis work present allegories with diverse content, from direct, intimate function to paradox. Personal experiences, widespread in their commonality, embody a narrative significance that relates to the holloware form chosen for the particular relief images. As John Keats said "A man's life of any worth is a continual allegory-and very few eyes can see the mystery of his life ... "
Open Access
An exhibition of twenty-three original works of art
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 1980) Benedict, James Michael, author; Dormer, James T., advisor; Dietemann, David L., committee member; Sanford, Kern, committee member
The concern of this thesis is a personal translation of light and form into an interplay of forces that animate the objects or shapes beyond the picture plane. This poetic rhythm of object and space is created by delicate intrusions of geometry on the shapes. These intrusions allow the open space and light to penetrate the image or object but do not dictate its specified shape. The images suggest volume, but they are not hallowed out from space; rather they are projected from space through the interaction of light on form. I have examined these elements in terms of organic forms and also mechanical forms.
Open Access
Analogues
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2011) Phillips, Lindsey Elizabeth, author; Bates, Haley, advisor; Coronel, Patricia D., committee member; Tornatzky, Cyane R., committee member; Eckman, Molly Jean, committee member
Block by block, pixel by pixel, my three dimensional work suggests the framework of the virtual and how it has become increasingly routine to cross its borders. Handheld devices are our tangible windows to the cloud, a reminder that we still reside in a physical world. The use of wood and enamel accentuate the materiality of my pieces but also suggest a link to historical mosaic and stained glass work. The exponential evolution of technology is contrasted by the excessive manual fabrication within one piece. The two dimensional drawings are the cloud itself. They express the invisible narrative within a single device as well as the dialogue it has between other connected technologies. Just as the sculptures have been stripped of function to highlight their physicality, the drawings broadcast a corporeal familiarity onto an incomprehensible dimension.
Open Access
And she built a crooked house
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2012) Franzen, Wendy Westfall, author; Lundberg, Thomas R., advisor; Kneller, Jane E., committee member; Faris, Suzanne M., committee member; Moseman, Eleanor F., committee member
The title of my installation originates from a favorite short story I first read in high school. Robert A. Heinlein originally published "-And He Built a Crooked House-" in Astounding Science Fiction in 1941. The tale is about a California architect who designs an efficient structure by building a house in a three-dimensional representation of four-dimensions. An earthquake causes the house to actually fall into the fourth dimension: time. This is not a horror story, but a whimsical view of the wonders of the space-time continuum, and how a natural event like an earthquake can affect our lives. In my response to Heinlein's tale "she" is Mother Nature or Gaia, who has "built a crooked house" still beyond our complete understanding or control. The forces and movements of the earth that create organic structures and environments are the basis for the formal and conceptual aspects of my thesis: Tectonic plate movements cause mountains to form at a geological pace, punctuated by the rapid turns of volcanoes and earthquakes. Even the fastest rivers must yield to the rhythms of stone in their making of canyons. Weather events, like hurricanes and tornados, swirl through land and sea on a seasonal basis. Water and minerals slowly build into sand dunes and caverns of stalactites and stalagmites. It is the mystery and force of these complex occurrences of nature that compelled me to build And She Built a Crooked House.
Open Access
Axis mundi
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 1991) Valenti, Anne, author; Voss, Gary Wayne, advisor; Lundberg, Thomas R., committee member; Williams, Ron G., committee member; Silberberg-Peirce, Susan, committee member
To view the abstract, please see the full text of the document.
Open Access
Banners, triangles and fire
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 1992) Lovett, Kimberly Laurice, author; Lundberg, Thomas R., advisor; Knoll, Diane Sparks, committee member; Twarogowski, Leroy A., committee member; Kwiatkowski, Ronald W., committee member
My work celebrates the ritual of making art. When I work, I touch and taste each thread; the needle becomes part of my fingers as I make the marks that contain my thoughts and memories. The act of sewing allows me to exist in a meditative or hypnotic state; I am able to clear my mind of everyday pressures and contemplate what expression and discovery might be within. I want each piece to continually evoke contemplation both within myself and my viewers. The archetypal images of banners, triangles, vessels and fire enable the viewer to participate in potential aspects of the collective unconscious. The form of a cloth banner offers a familiar experience and a reference to an heraldic tradition of commemoration or celebration. The triangles refer to the balance of three, the harmony of the spiritual. The image of a vessel parallels the containment of the spirit by the human body, as well as a place of storage and safekeeping of precious things. Fire can be read as transformation or enlightenment. I consider the fabric windows to be a sacred threshold, an entrance into the color and light created by the embroidered image. The placement of the fire within a vessel within the triangle suggests a movement into the spiritual self, toward personal enlightenment and evolutionary change. These fiery images are emblems of creative energy, ready to be awakened and given form. These images are made with thread upon woven thread. Thread is an ancient symbol to bind or link together elements. The overall form of my work is similar to an altar because of its material and spiritual references. The shrine-like quality can be seen within the illuminated central images. However, the banners are not objects of worship within themselves, but are vehicles that guide to the discovery of the inner self. They record my discovery of unconscious ideas and emotions. Put into form, they are my transformational process expressed. I want my work to speak of a subtle richness that emerges from the black cloth as the viewer moves closer. The color black surrounding the central image is a space through which the viewer can travel. Black speaks metaphorically of the void before creation or the dark before the light. The multiple borders and black spiraled textures create a quiet rhythm to engage the viewer in a transitional resting place. With the variety of textures of the wood and fabric, I hope to entice the viewer to visually experience the tactile element in my work. It is not important to me that the viewer sees or understands the personal thoughts and emotions that are imbued in my images, but that they are inspired to surpass their sense of what is mundane and to discover their own unknown. Amidst a black textured curtain, I offer a window filled with color and light, in hopes of creating a view that spurs individual reflection and discovery.
Open Access
Beaded vessels
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 1988) Goreski, Jeannine Denise, author; Lundberg, Thomas R., advisor; Williams, Ron G., committee member; Voss, Gary Wayne, committee member
These vessels are full. They contain vastness, subtleties, memories, questions, and moments. These vessels are empty. They offer stillness and energy. Beads are vehicles. They connote the precious and command close inspection revealing structure, line, image, color, light, idea, and tactile sensuality. The intimate scale of the beads easily lends them to personal, passionate content. The center, crucial both structurally and philosophically is the genesis from which each vessel spirals upward and outward. Stitched together, each bead is locked in a structured, ordered brick system, pattern. This bead-by-bead building process is important; it speaks of time, frailty, vulnerability, and integral elements. Able to transmit light through matter, glass beads allow for emphasis through illumination. Light suggests seeing and entering. Notions of interior and exterior, knowing and darkness are addressed. Color, inseparable from light, symbolizes emotion. Form is dictated by metaphor. The spaces created are born of contemplation and inviting of contemplation. Symbols of growth, change, directions, motion, and transcendence reflect my thoughts and questions.
Open Access
Beauty in decay
(Colorado State University. Libraries, 2014) Brakefeld, Jennifer L., author; Sullivan, Patrice, advisor; Osborne, Erika, advisor; Simons, Stephen, committee member; McKee, Patrick, committee member
Industrial Agricultural complexes offer an aesthetic beauty in the decay of its materials and structures. American interest in agriculture as an investment in domestic self-reliance has waned over time leaving behind gigantic structures that are left to deteriorate without upkeep. The lack of upkeep causes a physical deterioration of the structures and the materials. My work exposes the beauty in this deterioration though the use of the formal elements of painting. Color, texture, form and light are the elements used for the execution of my paintings. Canvas size also plays a key role in my work as it places the subject matter on a historically relevant scale in a similar fashion to the painting Burial at Ornan by Gustav Courbet.