Library Art Contest First Place
Theme: Artists created art proposals that depicted their lived experiences in relation to diversity, inclusion, equality, social justice, and/or injustice as part of the CSUMB community.
Artist will create an original piece for the library art exhibit taking place in Fall semester 2022.
Artist: Raegan Lomanto
Awarded: $500.00
Major: Visual and Public Arts
Art proposal Submitted
Concept description:
I have been describing my current work as "chaotic anarchist scrapbooking." This stream of consciousness/journaling format has proven therapeutic for me as I manage the stressors of a nearly post COVID world. Many people my age went through a metamorphosis in quarantine. Many emerged from isolation radicalized, queer, and quite simply, awake. I was no exception. I have gone back to my childhood roots with my use of markers, stickers, and glue to create snapshots of my thoughts and feelings as I navigate this unprecedented transition time in my life (and all of our lives). In my isolation during the pandemic, I was forced to reflect on parts of myself that I hadn’t before like my ADHD, my anger management issues, my sexuality, and my gender expression and pronouns. During this time I was also radicalized by our country's lack of care for its citizens in a pandemic and by the blatant disregard for black and brown life in our society. I changed. I grew. My insides started shifting. Things that I had been questioning for so long started to make sense, and the love inside me grew as I began to step into my true identity.
Artwork:
And I Will Take Up Space
Library Art Contest Second Place
Theme: Artists created art proposals that depicted their lived experiences in relation to diversity, inclusion, equality, social justice, and/or injustice as part of the CSUMB community.
Artist will create an original piece for the library art exhibit taking place in Fall semester 2022.
Artist: Stela Apostolova
Awarded: $300.00
Major: Psychology
Art proposal Submitted
Concept description:
I focused on principles of equality, particularly illustrating my frustration when it comes to interacting with men as a woman. As a young woman myself, experiencing my first year of on-campus life, I have struggled with sexism quite more than I expected to, in subliminal as well as explicit ways, and in conversations between friends, workplace interactions, and academic settings alike. My point for this art piece is to depict sexism in its importance and remaining prevalence in the modern world. In addition, I want to represent experiences that I have had to come to terms with, as well as to feel strong and not let myself be talked down to, talked over, underestimated, or made an object anymore. It is also an important personal piece for me because it reminds me that I have to keep trying to offer support and remind people to educate themselves further on the subject, to increase safety and well-being for everyone. It is important to me that other women do not feel alone, and that we do not have to stay quiet about feeling hurt or disrespected by men just to have them keep talking to us. I do not want to stay quiet anymore in order to avoid being called emotional or dramatic, as if emotions are a bad thing to be expressed. I think that education on this subject should be further emphasized within the school because I am still hearing and experiencing hurtful things like this everyday, sometimes from men that I thought were my friends. Having conversations in order to do something about this, however, can be intimidating and challenging. I am hoping that this painting can serve to help conversations about change to be sparked, even if they are small and between friends. In this painting, I used mixed media in order to depict myself as strong and smart and colorful, and not budging in the face of comments and actions meant to get me down.
Artwork:
Mishotzi
Library Art Contest Third Place
Theme: Artists created art proposals that depicted their lived experiences in relation to diversity, inclusion, equality, social justice, and/or injustice as part of the CSUMB community.
Artist will create an original piece for the library art exhibit taking place in Fall semester 2022.
Artists: Van P.
Awarded: $200.00
Major: Marine Science
Art proposal Submitted
Concept description:
I wanted to make something reflecting acceptance, as well as the hardship many have made to face to get where we are today. The fight to create a better and more accepting world is not done of course, but by working together and understanding one another we can overcome any barrier. I used a lot of symbolism in this piece, the dandelions on the border represent hardship and the ability to endure anything, no matter what. The sea represents turmoil, and the sky represents peace. The outline of the figures in the middle are the light in all of this illuminating the vulnerability we expose with the spine being a literal vulnerability in this sense.
Artwork:
