Personal Details

Author

Ben Nathan, Utah State UniversityFollow

Date of Award

5-2023

Degree Type

Creative Project

Degree Name

Master of Fine Arts (MFA)

Department

Art and Design

Committee Chair(s)

Amanda Lee

Committee

Amanda Lee

Committee

Kathy Puzey

Committee

Stephen Shepherd

Committee

Dennise Gackstetter

Abstract

In 2022 I lost my Paternal Grandmother. I found that in addition to the loss of a dear matriarch I mourned everyday things lost to the past. From furniture to childhood relationships, I was made keenly aware of their absence. As I longed to spend more time in the past, I created a studio practice of printing and drawing, whereby I enable myself to spend hours a day in quiet introspection, just drawing and reflecting on my life as expressed by personal details.

My work melds renderings of everyday spaces and objects from memories of childhood and my present experience as a parent in order to highlight the significance of lived experiences, and to assert their worth for gaining an understanding of self. I share ordinary yet significant personal details with viewers to contextualize the importance of the quotidian in forming a personal identity. I further assert that there is valor in living a life full of personal significance, and that there is value to be discovered in ones’ own personal details. With the work in Personal Details, I invite consideration of the everyday things that add up to an individual life, while also providing a personal introduction by which I describe myself far more aptly than I could ever do with words alone.

Comments

Virtual tour of exhibition can be viewed here:

https://my.matterport.com/show/?m=yahTCxdWU2x

Recommended Citation

Nathan, Ben, "Personal Details" (2023). All Graduate Plan B and other Reports, Spring 1920 to Spring 2023. 1715.
https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/gradreports/1715