By Ashley Rivers
Reflections from my Life during Undergrad
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Let’s Reflect
From the moment I transferred, the professors and courses I took at The University of South Florida began to change the way I saw and practiced art.
I was able to learn new mediums, new ways to practice and merge those mediums, experiment on any ideas I thought of, and learn how art had changed and evolved over time.
The program allowed me to explore new ways of creating, and learn concepts relevant to contemporary 2-D, 3-D and 4-D art. By the end of my time there, I was able to finally develop a body of work that shows a conceptual focus and direction that reflects my individual identity and interests.
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One of the major successes I took away from being at USF, was the way in which I was taught to be able to understand and talk about Art in different ways. The way our classes conducted critiques allowed me to hear about how others – other students as well as the professors – viewed my art, and gave me the chance to express how I viewed theirs. I was able to critically question how the artwork reads, and increase my vocabulary, visual literacy and knowledge of contemporary issues and practices.
The input that I received from my classmates and professors was used to further push my work into the directions that I needed, that I am uncertain I would have been able to find on my own.
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Working within the program, I was forced to research and learn new skills on my own or with the help of the professors, such as mold making, welding/basic metal working, woodworking, multiple ways of printmaking, manual photography and digital printing, painting, drawing, paper making, sculpture and so much more.
With these new skills, I have been able to broaden the ways in which I create. I have been able to merge mediums and make work that I would not have been able to make before.
Everything that I learned led me to push myself and my art into new realms.
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You can explore the work of Ashley Rivers at thenatureoffire.com
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