ARCHIVES

BAM ARCHIVES ( 2015 -  )

NO BORING ART:
”I WILL NOT MAKE ANY MORE BORING ART.” - JOHN BALDESSARI

WARNING: 

Possible trigger content 

Content includes: nudity, violence, implications of suicide 

Graphic imagery not suitable for persons under the at of 18. By continuing on this page you acknowledge that you are either 18 or older or have permission from a guardian to view this content. Some of the imagery in this gallery may be distressing for some viewers. Please exercise discretion when engaging in this gallery, and seek out support of others if you require it.   The opinions and information presented in this exhibition are solely those of the individuals involved and do not necessarily represent those of Arkansas State University, Bradbury Art Museum, and its employees. We support freedom of expression and believe in letting our students’ voices be heard.

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A digital exhibition by A-State Department of Art + Design’s New Media students:

Drake French
Kierra Crenshaw
Jake Edwards
Rachel Rowland
Joshua Kruse
Alliyah Kirkwood
Michael Ring
Neal Coleman
Sarah Frisbee
Amanda Davis
Sabrina Sturtevant

 

To view the exhibition in the highest quality, we recommend you download the game and run it on a desktop. You can also view a WebGL (browser) version below.  Please note the quality is not nearly as high in this version compared to the standalone downloads.

John Baldessari cremated every painting he made from 1953 to 1966 in the landmark 1970 work "Cremation Project".  He calls this an act to "rid my life of accumulated art....It is a reductive, recycling piece. I consider all these paintings a body of work in the real sense of the word. Will I save my life by losing it? Will a Phoenix arise from the ashes? Will the paintings having become dust become materials again? I don’t know, but I feel better."

"I will not make any more boring art" became the mantra (and punishment) of John Baldessari for the next 5 decades as he continued to create groundbreaking work.

John Baldessari died Jan 2, 2020.  

When I heard the news, I was busy in the winter break preparing for my New Media class which launched just a week later.  I had solid assignments going in to the class, and every intention of teaching a very "traditional" (whatever that means) New Media course on E-Textiles.  But the death of John Baldessari absolutely floored me, and I threw out my curriculum, burning it in a ritual cremation.  

I came in the first day of my class and presented my students with his work and the final phrase "I Will Not Make Any More Boring Art".

This was the only requirement for the class.  Burn everything you've made before.  Begin anew.  Do not make boring art.

- Cameron Buckley

Assistant Professor of Photography and New Media, Department of Art + Design, Arkansas State University, Jonesboro

Kierra Crenshaw

What I have created here is a unique world, a specific vision of complete solitude. Throughout our lives, we are constantly pushing through the good and bad, fighting between the complex decisions of right and wrongs, all to reach eternal happiness. The state of Nirvana is the end goal of humanity, whether that be their own religious-based heaven or a state of peace and well-being. This installation is a version of Nirvana that we are able to experience during this lifetime. It is one that does not judge you on your choices, contributions, or karma, but rather serves as a place where you can come to exist no matter your circumstances. Humans are constantly being observed and judged as we move throughout the world. Whether they are positive or negative interactions serves no difference when we are always in the eyes of someone else. This is the reason why I have created this place. It is where you are able to distance yourself from the expectations of the world and exist for yourself, finding your own Nirvana within.

Sabrina Sturtevant

Ambiguity is the only reason people read artist statements. The truth is, these paintings are a tribute to the millions of lives that have been affected by COVID-19. “R” stands for Recovery, “C” stands for Cases, and “D” stands for deaths. The top most numbers are worldwide totals, with country totals underneath. Most of the numbers have been converted to binary. This makes the audience guess what the number totals actually are currently. These panels in no way contain every person who has been affected. These frames could potentially go on for dozens of more lines.

Rachel Rowland

I have explored what it means to be relevant. Relevant to myself. Relevant to my peers. Relevant to my followers. Relevant to the world. I asked myself every single day, with aggression and frustration, “how can a photo of myself be at all interesting or significant to anyone without seeming vain or inconsiderate in relation to real problems in the world?”. Thus, my very own identity crisis was born. In an attempt to overcome this problem, I considered alterations. No longer were my photographs about construction or composition or even being “pretty”. Instead they were about distortion and manipulation and concept. I want you to view these photos and wonder what and/or who the subject is without knowing what is happening in the photo. Can you see yourself in my work? I want you to have an identity crisis of your own because I believe every single day we are altering or reinventing ourselves without even being aware of any of it.

Drake French

Manipulation and mentality. The ways that we think and act are very much altered by the things we hear and see every day. We like to hold to the misconception that our thoughts are always our own, but every day those thoughts are slowly molded by what we hear or see from others. Sometimes thoughts and actions are molded towards correction, but many times they are predisposing us towards failure. Belief that we aren't enough, belief that we could be better, belief that we are worthless. These things lead your mind and life down a dark path that you would never have gone down otherwise. All I ask is that you take the time every day to reevaluate yourself and your worth. Never let anyone tell you that you are not valuable.

Michael Ring

Coronavirus. Re-elections. Controversy galore. This entire year thus far has been nothing short of a clusterfuck. With my illustration, I meant to convey my overall view of the Trump administration and the handling of this virus in general. It’s sick and ridiculous the way everything has been handled. The stimulus check is a fantastic idea in retrospect. In reality, it was just another way for the stupidity of this country to show its face once again, only this time, tenfold. Money is the root of all evil but it’s not the money itself. It’s the way that it’s used and the people whom are in possession of it and I bet Trump thinks he won over a majority of the American people by sending them out. Gotta get those approval scores up before November. Regardless, I meant for this piece to be satirical and yet convey a message at the same time.

Sarah Frisbee

Sarah’s sister has an abandoned house on her land she recently purchased. Sarah decided to do some exploring and realized just how creepy the house is. When she was told they were going to tear it down, Sarah thought it would be cool to have a photoshoot in there. But, after realizing that it would be cool to go all out, Sarah made fake blood. She had a lot of fun! This work, shared on the platform TikTok, juxtaposes candy-coated fun of social media with escalating violent imagery. How does the meaning of what we share change with how we share it? Does a platform inherently have a certain identity, or can it shift with the events of the world?

Amanda Davis

"If you think this is a piece about art, then maybe stand here for a few more minutes" This is an updated version of Baldessari's "Tips for Artists who Want to Sell".

I'm providing a transcript of the original for your easy comparison:

Tips for Artists Who Want to Sell • Generally speaking, paintings with light colors sell more quickly than paintings with dark colors. • Subjects that sell well: Madonna and child, landscapes, flower paintings, still lives (free of morbid props --- dead birds, etc.), nudes, marine pictures, abstracts and surrealism • Subject matter is important: it has been said that paintings with cows and hens in them collect dust --- while the same paintings with bulls and roosters sell.

Joshua Kruse

For this project, I wanted to focus on turning prompts into 3D portrait models. The prompts are the following: Italian Mobster, a monster that can see sound, a pilot, and a telephone operator from the future. This gave me the opportunity to learn how to sculpt using Mudbox and to think of elements that could help me identify my modules. Overall, I found the process fun and organic.

Alliyah Kirkwood

For the past couple of months, life has seemed to take a standstill because of the COVID-19 pandemic. A lot of the joys that come with being able to go outside and interact with people are now seen as high-risk health situations. A lot of businesses have closed and still are closed for the duration with no clear end in sight. I have mixed feelings about my job, it like other places that serve some food was deemed “essential”, so in short, I was one of the few lucky (or unlucky) people who still had a job. So instead of wasting away at my apartment in boredom, I worked. I like my job, but I also know that it is not a means to an end. I am still young and once the opportunity to do something that energizes me comes along — I’ll take it. For my piece, I wanted to recreate the main floor of my current job. Instead of using actual humans, I modeled 3D anthropomorphic animals instead to represent the highly coveted “essential” workers that work in the food industry and were thankfully not affected as badly because of the pandemic. While on one hand, being closed would provide a much-needed break to sit back and reflect on our lives. However, some people just can’t afford to.

Jake Edwards and William Coleman

I used photos from the disaster that fell upon us from a tornado hitting our town of Jonesboro. I went out to get photos of the wreckage, using those to remember the nightmare we all lived through. The room itself reflects the idea of everything falling apart. William and myself worked on 3D models to accompanying the viewer as a sense of them not belonging in the space, longing for the outside world. However, is this the world you long for? The world of black and white, love and hate, violence and peace? The idea of wanting to escape, but thinking if this is what you should escape to, the pain and destruction of the natural world.