My senior project is to complete a two-panel painting that focuses on Black and WOC theory as its base while experimenting with lithography and printmaking. Lithography is a type of printmaking that is generally considered complicated but an interesting process. It deals with the repelling of ink and treating surfaces, and while the process has always intrigued me, it will also serve to challenge me to try another medium. It involves multiple steps and can vary depending on how you execute it but the difficult process is what really makes the art so special. I also feel that a mixed media piece will best represent the topics I am hoping to portray given they are so complex in and of themselves.

I will be trying to visually conceptualize popular Black authors’ writings through my paintings to make a relatively dimensional art form, able to be understood visually. One of those pieces is Ta-Nehisi Coates’s Between the World and Me. Within his writing, he makes very impactful comparisons, points, and metaphors that not only resonate with the reader but also leave a lasting impression. I would like to conceptualize these into my art as another format of expression. Through this painting, I hope to not only challenge my creativity but also challenge myself to think more thoughtfully and choose my decisions carefully when painting. Being able to communicate something without explicitly spelling it out can be difficult and that is why I chose this project. This project would fill the mandatory bucket of creativity because of the painting and lithography. Through seminars and hopefully outside classes at The Art Students League of New York, I will also be able to fill the academic and experience buckets

I will also be exploring two other books, White Tears/Brown Scars by Ruby Hamad and  Nepantla: An Anthology Dedicated to Queer Poets of Color by Christopher Soto. Both books bring different perspectives and important commentary that the other didn’t, allowing for me to create a multi-dimensional and intersectional take on black art and painting in general. While White Tears/Brown Scars serves to comment on White feminism and its dangers, Nepantla: An Anthology Dedicated to Queer Poets of Color brings an array of new and old poetry that is refreshing to read because of their short nature. Having these books has also allowed me to easily brainstorm and come up with endless concepts and although I certainly can’t paint them all, it has made the process smoother.

I don’t think of painting as being successful through the outcome but rather through what I learned along the way. I created this project to challenge me, and because of that no, matter what it looks like in the end, I will have learned something along the way. I will have pushed myself to think and really analyze planning and intentional messaging through art. Given that I almost only paint because of my urge to do so I often don’t take a minute to think and plan. Along with that I also will be using printmaking as another method of communication, which is something I am relatively unfamiliar with. Being able to be open and try these new mediums and processes will help me be successful.