Liberty Kellokoski: capstone

Abstract

The artist's statement: My father once said to me that a great artist uses the tools of their time. Graphic design is an extension of this age-old quest for modernity. Thanks to the advent of computer editing software and the internet, countless historical movements are now beginning to coalesce. Much as the impressionist painters decided to defy tradition in order to become something new, designers too must venture into previously unknown landscapes of artistic expression. Although tradition has a valuable place in every artist's toolbox, many people refuse to make the next step into discovery and invention. In order to be part of this "avant-garde" front of expression, one must be willing to utilize the best equipment available to them. Computers fulfil that requirement. As an artist I am fascinated by the way lines meander across a blank page, the way colors constantly battle for our attention, and the way forms can capture human eyes and hold them, awe-struck, until they are released by the flow of time. But art is not merely about decoration. It can be employed to reveal hidden truths. Art has the power to single-handedly shackle or liberate the mind, moving viewers into a state of terror or pure bliss. For effect of course. Digital art in particular is a powerful form of expression, with the power to disseminate messages to a wide range of people around the world. For me the most important of these truths are the ones that equalize all of humanity. Birth, Life, Love, and Death. For me art is more than just marks on a page, more than just a stroke of paint on a canvas, or more than just a digitized composition. Art is a spiritual imperative. It is symbolic of a quest to reveal that despite our countless differences, underneath it all we are part of a dynamic whole, traveling through the very ocean of space and time.