Body

            Our bodies are the foundation for much of our actions and thoughts throughout the day.  Our bodies enable us to do everything, and yet we often forget about it completely.  My artwork often reminds viewers of their bodies and their place in the greater society. 

First, I often create work in large scale formats.  I want my work to catch the viewer’s eye and make them stop in their tracks to take and look.  Large scale works often have this effect on the body and I strive to replicate this.  Furthermore, the creation of my murals, large drawings and paintings, and sculptures require a lot of body movement.  Instead of being able to sit at a desk and paint on an intimate scale, I challenge myself to working with larger scales that require me to get on my hands and knees. 

Secondly, I enjoy making series of works to be presented at one time in an exhibition.  With a series, the viewer is encouraged to walk and move in order to see all of the pieces.  Of course, the spectator can see all of the works from a distance without much movement, but in order to see details, they may have to approach the works individually.

                The majority of my work is centered on themes about contemporary society and cultural issues.  These themes deal with the human population and our thoughts, decisions, and ideals.  I use a lot of symbols in my work and I commonly use a simplified, symbol-like image of the human body to represent deeper themes.  For example, in a series of drawings about the relationships between the individual and society I used cross-hatching lines to create a rough representation of the human figure.  I created a group of these figures on one corner of the paper and then a single, larger cross-hatched figure in the middle of the page (see below).  In this case, the inclusion of the human bodies was not a depiction of the physical human body, but the societal associations of the body.

                Although it is not often a central theme of my work, the body plays a role in every one of my artworks, whether it is during the creation process, the viewing, or the what the body represents in our world.

Identity

In classed we looked at the theme of identity in art.  It is a popular theme, especially for contemporary artists.  Contemporary art relies less on historical subject matters, although it often references historical events and such.  Much of the current art is driven by a need to identify one’s individual or, perhaps, one’s collective identity.  I have noticed that even when the central theme of an artwork is something other than identity, the concept is still very present in the work.  For example, even if the theme of the work is consumerism, both the artist and viewers naturally begin to reflect on their relationship to consumerism or their role as a consumer.  Therefore, identity inherently becomes part of the theme.


Defining one’s identity can take many forms.  It is influenced by many variables such as gender, race, sexual orientation, religion, class, and age.  Sometimes people choose to associate themselves with one or some of the categories, and other times they avoid any sort of association.  In my opinion, artists have an incredible opportunity to confront the questions of identity and encourage people to see people and groups either with or without these associations.  Catherine Opie’s work, specifically her series of portraits of lesbians in drag entitled Being and Having, approaches identity in a new way that challenges viewers to think differently about the concept of identity.

Being and Having (set of 13), 1991
Catherine Opie
Color photographs, 6.6 x 8.6 in.


The text Themes of Contemporary Art by Jean Robertson and Craig McDaniel writes that identity art often addresses the following questions:

How does the world view you? 
How do you view yourself? 
How do you view others? 
What does it mean to be human? 
Who am I as an individual? 
Who are we as members of groups? 
How large a group do you identify with? 
Who is making visual and verbal claims on behalf of your group?

My art is about expression in the sense that through my art I am able to share my thoughts and opinions, work through concepts that I am struggling with, and as a result, learn more about myself, the world around me, and the relationship between us.  My most recent work is inspired by questions that I have of society, even though I may not be able to answer them myself.  I challenge social and cultural norms with these questions and the resulting art.  The creation process becomes an experimental, problem-solving process with the hopes of learning how I feel or what I believe about that question.  More than my own identity, however, my work challenges viewers to evaluate the identity of the society they belong to as well as their individual character.

Lastly, one of the reasons that I love working with the theme of identity (in all of its different forms) is that it is ever-changing.  Identity can be forever constructed and reconstructed.  No matter how many different artists work with the concept, it can be different.  And no matter how many times a single artist comments on identity, it can produce new work and original concepts.   

Artist Statement

Maya McFaddin

Fall 2011

An older gentleman on the bus sits down next to me noticing my Portland Trail Blazers t-shirt and offers his insight on the upcoming basketball season.  The kids on the playground welcome newcomers to their bilingual duck-duck-goose game and teach them the new words.  The commuter pulled over to help fix a flat tire for a fellow bicyclist on his morning ride to work. 

Inspiration for my art comes from the expansive collection of new perspectives, conversations, and relationships between people.

I see art as language; an interdisciplinary language that communicates new ideas and concepts and a language that is understood by all.  I believe in art’s power to create awareness and social change.  For these reasons, I use art as a means of expressing perspectives on political, social, and cultural issues.  I create art that depicts a current issue that is important to me.  During the creation period I can reflect on the issue and offer a new perspective through my art.  Most importantly, my work is about humanity and compassion for all.  Recently I have focused on immigration debates, resource depletion, communication norms, and tolerance and acceptance of diversity.  My art aims to raise questions and challenge comfortable thinking.

My work focuses on color and often includes recognizable symbols or objects, giving it a graphic quality.  I am fascinated with the possibilities of incorporating text into my drawings and paintings.  Like art, words are universal, and I am interested in exploring the combination to reach a larger audience and further the meaning and impact of the work.

"United"

United

2010

Site-specific project, three-paneled mural located in Willamette's athletic building