Eric Berry proudly stands with his installation “Caddywhompus Ho-Hum Handsomeness” at Feints opening night. (Photo by Sarah Lamb)
By Sara Lamb Contributing Writer
Senior Art majors at UMF are showcasing their final capstone projects in a group show titled “Feint” in both the Emery Arts Center and the UMF Art Gallery. Feint is a group project with contributions from six UMF seniors: Eric Berry, Samuel Burnell, Nicholas Cole, Elliott Eno, Cameron Morrell and Olivia Vanner.
The meaning behind the title came from the word’s definition: to deceive. The artists are deceiving cultural restraints through its various themes. The show explores topics such as labor, cultural norms, media and memory through the artist’s different points of views and experiences.
Capstone is a final accumulation of all the work and knowledge that one has consumed over their four years at UMF. It is a year-long course that is required to graduate and is found in all majors on campus with slight variations for the different degree programs.
Eric Berry, a senior, has wanted to pursue a career in art since high school. Berry said in an online interview, “I would consider myself a sculptor but I do love adding color to my work, whether it is painting or using the color of the original material.”
Senior Olivia Vanner Experimented with 2D animation. (Photo by Eryn Finnegan)
Berry has installed his work in the two locations, and continues to tweak and modify the pieces to improve them. All of Berry’s pieces have been worked on since this past fall. “One of my most reoccurring themes is exploring labor through rural objects. Each piece does have multiple themes underlining that idea,” Berry said.
Berry encourages everyone who goes to the exhibits to take a booklet created by each artist that goes into more detail about their work.
Cameron Morrell, another Senior Art major, said in an email interview that his favorite art to work with is installations and digital compositions/collages. “I like to create pieces that have a sensory impact so they engage more th
One of Morrell’s installations, “Rebuild & Continue.” (Photo by Keely McConomy)
an just the eye. Something that puts the body into perspective with either size or with sound or smell or a feeling,” Morrell said.
Most of Morrell’s pieces in the show involve multiple senses, such as the breeze of a fan or the smell of citrus fruit. In addition to the pieces they had to create, artists needed to write a thesis about their work. For Morrell, this was the most challenging part. “It’s incredibly difficult to try and explain in words what our art is doing and where it’s coming from,” Morrell said.
President Foster, who attended the event, said, “there is nothing more inspiring than seeing the culmination of a person’s thought process and I am awed by and blown away by the talent and the diligence the creativity and the brilliance of the work that I see from the seniors.”
President Foster continued, saying that she sees talent illuminate from the seniors every year, but this year’s art capstone seems particularly compelling for her. After speaking to some of the artists about their art, she walked away with a smile on her face.
The UMF Art Gallery is open for viewings Tuesday through Sunday 12-4 p.m., and t
Morrel’s Digital composition “Windows” in Emery Arts Center. (Photo by Eryn Finnegan)
he Emery Arts Center is open daily from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. The artists will uninstall their work on May 13. If you would like to know more information about each artist’s work, they will be participating in artist talks about their work on Symposium Day.