Carley Anderson: Unhinged

Artist statement

The human figure has always fascinated me, as one of many fascinations. Part of my fascination involves the psychological and sociological aspect of being human: self. The self, as I interpret it throughout this project, is how we perceive ourselves, your personal identity. My goal for this project was to combine the human figure with the hideous self, a self that has a negative perspective. As I worked throughout the semester and contemplated the self, I sometimes remembered how much society is intertwined with the self. Society either silently or loudly tells us how to conduct ourselves, and while I never intended to include any part of society or issues with society in my project, I realize that it is, in some way, part of the self.

My original plan for the semester was to primarily work with pen and ink. I wanted dramatic contrast between black and white while emphasizing details with scribbled hatching. Some heavy black edges were treated with a white acrylic marker to emphasize the edges as well as complimenting the bold black. My style for this project combines realistic elements with cartoonish features that were more anime-esque than realism to exaggerate emotion. I also allowed myself to be loose with the inking process, as I felt a more sketched appearance fit better with the negative self. After a few ink drawings, I then branched out towards digital while playing on the terms “pen and ink," experimenting with bright colors while also creating different versions of the same image, each version conveying a different yet similar message.