In Bridge 5 we were asked to write an artist statement reflecting on our coursework from Integrative Seminar & Studio 1.
Artist Statement
MaryV Benoit is 18 years old and was born in Denver, Colorado. She is in the Photography program at Parsons The New School of Design in New York City. Integrative Seminar and Studio are required classes as a first year student.
The first assignment in seminar was to write memoirs about five different parts of the body that have some type of story with them. MaryV chose to write a memoir about her lip scar/freckle; undercut; a scar on her left wrist; her lightning bolt tattoo on the side of her left breast; and a cut on right ankle.
In this assignment the theme of pain was felt in the writing and seen in the project. The word Shift was the topic of the classes. In this first assignment “shift” is seen through the comparison of growth displayed in each specific experience. Shift is also seen in this assignment because MaryV improved her writing skills. There was a large change in her first paper compared to her second paper because she used better grammar, no spelling mistakes, and more use of sensory details.
Her first Studio assignment was to make a body map. To show specific parts of her body, MaryV decided to paste black and white photographs corresponding to the five body parts that she had written her memoirs about onto the outline of her body on a large piece of paper.
Although it was not initially planned, once MaryV realized that she was writing about her body in Seminar and doing a body map in Studio, she decided to link the body parts with the writing and project. The use of photos allowed MaryV to improve her black and white photography skills.
The second assignments in Studio and Seminar were both called Peer to Peer. The Studio assignment was a portrait project of the peers. The Seminar assignment was to conduct questions and answers through an interview.
MaryV and her peers created a video of each of them showering and brushing their teeth to show something that everyone does everyday. They wanted to show how a normal act can be observed by three different people doing it three different ways. For the interview, the peers asked very personal yet light hearted questions so they could get to know each other in a short period of time. The “shift” here was going from strangers to peers that shared intimacy and vulnerability.
The third assignment was to pick a neighborhood, observe, research, and create a visual map. The purpose was to find a problem connecting to gentrification, create a solution, and write a research paper.
MaryV’s group was assigned the town of Astoria. They determined that there is high gentrification in Astoria. The group specifically noted the problem of litter on the streets. Their solution was to create awareness by making sticker to pass out to the people of Astoria. The stickers served as a little reminder to make sure to place trash in a trash can. A “shift” in Astoria is its current gentrification. The population keeps rising and the trash removal is still the same.
The final project corresponds to the previous assignments in that MaryV and her peers displayed ordinary everyday life events and people. From bumps and bruises, to taking a shower, to sharing intimate secrets, to littering, all the assignments showed common occurrences and shifts. Everyday happenings, growth, development, and “shifts” were captured throughout all assignments.
MaryV enjoyed learning about shifts in life and experiencing the different shifts that occurred though these classes. The projects revealed MaryV’s passion for taking photos is much stronger than writing about something. She would rather take a 1000 photos of something then write a paper to get her point across.
MaryV is a visual learner and communicator. Next semester MaryV would like to explore how to incorporate her photography in the majority of her projects. A new interest in filmmaking was sparked during these classes. In conclusions,MaryV learned that she thoroughly enjoys working with people and watching them shift through life.
