Date of Submission

Spring 2013

Academic Program

Studio Arts

Project Advisor 1

Nicola Lopez

Abstract/Artist's Statement

Mariel Santana May 1, 2013

Senior Project – Artist Statement Divison of the Arts

Project Advisor: Nicola Lopez Studio Arts

BARREN

“Yo soy como un campo seco donde caben arando mil pares de bueyes, y lo que tú me das es un pequeño vaso de agua de pozo. Lo mío es dolor que ya no está en las carnes”

- Yerma, Federico Garcia Lorca

"I am like a dry field with room for a thousand pairs of oxen plowing, and what you give me a small glass of well water. Mine is pain that is no longer in the flesh "

- Yerma, Federico Garcia Lorca

Barren is an exploration of fear and desire culminating in a multimedia installation. Driven by a personal anxiety, I’m exploring age-old associations of woman as fertile being, the power that these associations carry, and the social/psychological effects of the inability to produce offspring. The network of sources and inspirations that I’ve pulled from are wide. I’ve looked at literature dealing with the subject, as well as ancient fertility rites and rituals from various cultures to better define my understanding of the subject. I’m interested in the power and mystery of fertility and how it continues to capture and infiltrate the human imagination.

The materials used have all been considered for their individual properties. I looked for objects that carry associations with comfort, softness and protection and have manipulated them so that they are sharp, petrified and rigid, the opposites to their normal associations. The physical environment juxtaposes warmth with coldness and sterility. It is designed as a sterile womblike atmosphere-containing cocoon like sculptures that will never bloom.

Barren is my way of sculpturally processing and probing my fear. It culminates for me as a platform for better understanding of this human condition and the roots of said fear.

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