For my final project I intended to draw the viewer to an experience. I created this environment, or experience, to reflect my current way of life.
I purposefully chose an area that would be small and tight. I didn't want more than a single individual to comfortably fit in the space at a time. This small space is intended to reflect my constant state of uneasiness, stress, paranoia and claustrophobia.
The rug, table and curtains are all thrifted - reflective of my current financial situation and that of most college age individuals. I did not simply choose these items as decoration. Each piece had a certain connection or nostalgia for me. The curtains reminded me of curtains that hung in my Grandma's house when I was a child. The coffee table looks exactly like a coffee table my parents owned in our first home as a family. The small oriental rug reminded me of a similar rug my first boyfriend had in his room. Each piece had a small, special meaning for me. The christmas lights were an added piece, for decoration, but also to represent part of my personal space in my current home where I have christmas lights hanging purely for decoration.
On the coffee table sits a collection recyclables left from the beverages I have consumed during the course of this final project. These containers are an assortment of whiskey bottles, beer bottles, energy drinks and a coffee cup. These are small artifacts left behind as evidence to my vices as well as personal crutches I lean on to avoid thinking about or to deal with the stressors in my life - school, money, homesickness and the future.
Finally, on the walls are taped an assortment of receipts, letters, cards, to - do lists and notes. These all hang as a bit of self portrait. Nothing is more revealing to my personal life and how I spend my time than a collection of the paper trail I leave behind every day.
In the first reading we had for this class we were told that drawing is the human way of leaving their mark on the world, I way of making tribute to their existence. This sentiment really struck a chord with me and I think this project allowed me to convey my new idea of drawing in a purely conceptual manner.
