Browsing by Author ""McConnell, Walter""

Now showing 1 - 7 of 7

Open Access
Come Get Your Honey
(Alfred University, 2024) "Brodovsky-Adams, Joël"; "Briggs, Paul S"; "Green, Nicki"; "Hanes, Stephanie"; "Kelleher, Matt"; "McConnell, Walter"; "Sikora, Linda"
"My work is an exercise in indulgence. It stands in the face of austerity that frames pleasure as a frivolous, valueless pursuit. My studio practice is deeply rooted in process, specifically wheel-throwing. Process generates a visual vocabulary determined by very specific ways of manipulating material. The works themselves function as furniture: table, lamp, stool. My current research radiates out from a particular family of forms, dictated by a set of anatomical rules. Evoking the body, they are edgeless closed volumes with two ends that fold in upon themselves. The forms are versatile: they are joints, modules, anchors. Often made up of components, each assemblage depends upon a version of this form. I also construct appendages to enhance composition and expand their utility. The works possess a certain theatricality, both as animated characters in and of themselves and as invitations to anticipate the happenings that surround them. While much of the work alludes to the domestic or private space, it also references public furnishings and the starkly different rules of engagement that accompany the public context. One particular public context dominates my thinking: the Queer Club. Queerness frames pleasure as something valuable despite the absence of conventional productivity and the Queer Club is a space where it is bountiful and prioritized. This work confronts a culture that relentlessly positions labour over life, productivity over pleasure."
Open Access
I Know How the Movie Ends
(Alfred University, 2024) "Tang, Julien"; "Briggs, Paul S"; "Green, Nicki"; "Hanes, Stephanie"; "Kelleher, Matt"; "McConnell, Walter"; "Sikora, Linda"
"My practice is a living evidence of me trudging through life with cautious curiosity; figurative sculpture is my primary crutch. I infuse 'happenings' into my pieces, a technique I term 'glazing,' to harness the transformative nature of clay and glaze, amplifying human sentiment and the ephemerality of existence. Inspired by slow cinema's portrayal of the body, I aim to establish a connection with the inner lives of both the figures and the viewers. My ceramic narratives encapsulate the essence of the 'cinematic body,' capturing moments, drama, and nuanced compositions within each sculpture. The storylines I craft draw from East Asian literature, popular culture, and cross-cultural perspectives. Informed by Taiwan's colonial and geopolitical dynamics, my background shapes both the themes I explore and my artistic approach. Beyond aesthetics, my inquiry examines the complexities of human behavior, psychology, and the sociopolitical landscape, seeking a more cohesive understanding of humanity." Through static figurative sculpture and time-based materials, my aim is to evoke a lifelike presence, lingering akin to a sentimental ballad. These works etch a piece of time for viewers, inviting engagement and reflecting the intricacy of human experience.
Open Access
Please Don’t Pick the Wildflowers
(Alfred University, 2024) "Poucher, Gabriel John"; "Briggs, Paul S"; "Green, Nicki"; "Hanes, Stephanie"; "Kelleher, Matt"; "McConnell, Walter"; "Sikora, Linda"
"What does ecology look like in the Anthropocene? In urban areas, crows and magpies have begun repurposing anti-roosting spikes as nesting material. Certain species of microbes have evolved the ability to break down and digest plastic, in response to its ubiquity in the environment. The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdown disrupted human infrastructure, but also caused notable changes in nonhuman ecosystems over a relatively short period of time. Here, the natural and the artificial become enmeshed: what does nature mean in a landscape where the organic is outweighed by synthetic material? The world is brimming with entanglements: literal and theoretical spaces in which apparently disparate systems intersect, interrupt, and transform one another. The disruption of familiar systems can feel apocalyptic - metamorphosis is sometimes uncomfortable, but always necessary. My written thesis addresses these uncertain boundaries and provides a personal and theoretical framework that serves as a supporting document for please don’t pick the wildflowers. This body of work reflects on the transmogrification of natural and artificial systems, and takes an ecological, queer, and posthumanist view that collapse is not a parameter for failure, but the foundation of radical transformation."
Open Access
Public Broadcasting
(Alfred University, 2024) "Cheek, Spener"; "Briggs, Paul S"; "Green, Nicki"; "Hanes, Stephanie"; "Kelleher, Matt"; "McConnell, Walter"; "Sikora, Linda"
"Broadcasting. Information sent through the atmosphere, to be picked up elsewhere. Targeted messages radiating out and surrounding us. Upon reception, metal within a radio oscillates molecularly in response to this emission. Attunement. The ceramic figurines populating our made worlds operate much like a broadcast. These items are laden with meaning, explicit or implicit, and this web of stuff humans have woven can be thought of as wave, energy. Transmission. Radio frequencies buzz around unnoticed, until they are. Objects sit within our spaces, unseen, until they are. A message sent out, not just as energy, but as mass; figurine, column capital, happy meal toy, bumper sticker, all these contain. I explore our connection to these idea-things through large scale figures modeled off ceramic figurines sourced from second-hand stores which through their translation of scale, provoke questions that may not often be demanded by these diminutive often mawkish characters."
Open Access
The Unbound Archive
(Alfred University, 2024) "McMaster, Chelsea"; "Briggs, Paul S"; "Green, Nicki"; "Hanes, Stephanie"; "Kelleher, Matt"; "McConnell, Walter"; "Sikora, Linda"
"The Unbound Archive is a living reliquary for stories, memories, and everyday objects. In this space, these objects are imbued with reverence for the daily rituals, practices, and culture that they facilitate. The Archive endeavors to halt the othering of ourselves by enshrining the knowledge held by the people and objects that carry our past, and breed respect for the unrecorded. Black material culture is filled with objects whose complex origins reflect the people they are tied to. Through the language of Black hair and the braid, I explore the idea of the artifact that exists uninhibited by the boundaries of time and space. Using an auto theoretical1 approach to contemplate lived experiences in a Black body, I hold space for objects forged through a process of communal history making and a search for the known and the unknowable. I use materials and processes in relationship with the artistic traditions of the African diaspora to communicate the connection between place and identity. The work draws parallels between the vessel, the body, and women as collectors and keepers of knowledge. The work of the Unbound Archive is to subvert the hierarchy of official history and its system of the valued and the valuable. This reframing identifies and elevates objects, ideals, and cultural practices before they need to be preserved."
Open Access
What Can Objects Do
(Alfred University, 2024) "Lim, Daeun"; "Briggs, Paul S"; "Green, Nicki"; "Hanes, Stephanie"; "Kelleher, Matt"; "McConnell, Walter"; "Sikora, Linda"
"In the world of objects, our understanding is often limited to their functionality. I view this as a critical oversight and seek to explore the intricate relationship between objects and ourselves. Throughout this thesis I ask the question, “What can objects do?” by examining its tonal duality. Initially, this question is posed neutrally, suggesting an inquiry into objects' capabilities beyond their prescribed roles. I challenge the notion of “usefulness,” advocating for uselessness as a means to deepen our understanding of objects. This approach imagines objects with the agency, transcending their conventional function. Subsequently, I pose the same question with a sense of rhetorical resignation, acknowledging limits of objects and prompting a more profound inquiry into failure. Drawing from Jack Halberstam's concept of failure, I explore how my objects embody aspects of failure, disrupting conventional engagement to invite a more meaningful relationship with their users. Through ambiguity, embracing failure, and challenging norms, I aim to reassess their inherent potential and their ability to narrate human experiences."
Open Access
While We Are Still Here
(Alfred University, 2024) "Vukelich, Liz"; "Briggs, Paul S"; "Green, Nicki"; "Hanes, Stephanie"; "Kelleher, Matt"; "McConnell, Walter"; "Sikora, Linda"
"My relational sculptures aim to help us express grief, connect with each other, and remind us of our mortality. They emphasize who we still have in our lives by honoring those we have lost. The pieces come alive when people engage with them as well as through the documentation of public and private rituals. To share pieces activated outside of the gallery space, I collect stories from participants in the form of writings, video, and remnants.1 Dying and living are two sides of the same coin. If we refuse to acknowledge our own mortality, refuse to make space for loss, we cannot live fully. Though I think about death more than most, living inspires my practice. Life is at its best when we are present with each other, when we share experiences. These interactive pieces exist to commune. My work posits that intimacy is worth the vulnerability it requires. Giving space to grieve and forming intentional intimate spaces is an act of remembering those we care about. I believe we should make the most of the life we have left with the people around us."