ART

Featured Work: A Throwback

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"This charcoal work was completed in my undergrad when I was considering either adding a second major in art or minoring in it. Neither of those options became a reality, as I added music composition as my second major. The minor was one of the most demanding minors offered at that university, requiring the largest number of classes of all minors.

This piece of art was created in my third year of undergrad when I took the first drawing course in a series of drawing courses required for both majors and minors in art. Our assignment was to fill a 24"x36" page with a charcoal representation of something we saw around us (that is, a still life).

My inspiration came from my parents' house. In their living room I found something that I thought would create an interesting composition... I filled the page with charcoal...

I have continued to create art to this day, and every time I create something new, just like in music composition, I continue to progress and improve. It is my hope to someday combine the fine arts/disciplines into some sort of project or multiple projects where each is featured in a unique, yet connected way."

- Olivia Davis, written 2014 (work completed 2010)

A Quick Study

Where it Started

"I was born into an artistic family: my father a graphic designer, my mother and grandmother both painters (while not entirely professionally, certainly could have been), and many others in addition to all of the music that flowed through my family's and extended family's histories."

My Journey as Artist

"I always enjoyed art of any kind. My mother often did arts and crafts with me as a child and continued as I got older. Throughout my adult life, I would often Skype with my mother and have "craft days" with her. We would work on our own art, and talk to each other, enjoying each other's company and advice. When I was in my undergrad, I had considered minoring in art, but with the intense demands of a music double major, it was not in the cards."

Where it Brought Me

"I have had the pleasure of being an artist both professionally and as a hobbyist. I have painted murals, taken unique painting commissions, and handmade many creations. It has allowed me to continue enjoying making art in all ways, including on my computer (I often fit in some graphic design on the side too). I am privileged to have a life that I can do many things that I love and enjoy every day, visual arts among them."

AI and Art

"The painting to the right was my own quick acrylics study of an AI-generated image of a vase of flowers. As technology advances, I have taken it as an opportunity to grow as an artist—AI as a creative tool and starting point."

A Part of Me(dia)

Take2

The image to the right is the second piece of artwork that I created as part of my dissertation, "Liminal," which was an interdisciplinary work comprised of my original musical composition, and original artworks (with optional projection during live performance)

Brush

The first artwork in a series of artworks meant to accompany my dissertation. This work was created with charcoal and chalk.

Alchemy

This artwork maps onto my dissertation (musical) composition at the point in the music in which a transformation is acknowledged internally. Unlike the majority of other artworks in the series, it celebrates light through vibrant color, and illustrates a musical transformation through this as well as many other elements of art.

Acrylics at Night in Eugene for Austin

Painting with acrylics beside my mom, I paint the memory of the city-scape and river-shore of Austin at night. Still fairly new to the media, I explore color and lines. This image became part of a larger series of works, exploring brush strokes to create line, shape, and color. (2015)

(Full image not featured here)

Unfinished – a picnic beside a plate of rocks

I used to love drawing with pencils; but, as this (very old!) drawing of mine indicates, it takes dedicated time I unfortunately did not have. My life succumbed to two jobs, eighteen+ credits of undergrad university work, and multiple extracurricular activities not including the practicing and composing I also did outside of the aforementioned.