Artists let public get behind the scenes of their art

by Tiffany Royal
Staff Writer

Rarely does one see the underlying influences behind an artist's work. And rarely does one see an artist's creative process - until now.

The School of Art at Ohio University offered an interdisciplinary seminar last quarter for graduate art students to study intensely the influences of their artwork. Using only 15-minute Power Point presentations, 12 students now are showing their individual artistic processes for the public to see and understand.

These presentations are at 7:30 p.m. tonight and April 30 in Mitchell Auditorium in Seigfred Hall. The other six students showed their presentations last week. Chuck McWeeny, director of the Graduate Program in the School of Art, led the seminar.

Adrian Hatfield, a first-year graduate student in the painting program, realized his influences come from his parents and their careers as scientists.

"My parents were really good about teaching that science was a tool for figuring things out," Hatfield said. "I became interested in exploring the mysteriousness of the world.

"I focus on similarities in science and art," he said. "My scientific reading influences my art a lot."

Bill Bitunjac, a second-year graduate student in the painting program, said pop culture is the influence of his work. After growing up in a conservative, midwestern family in central Nebraska, Bitunjac feels his influences are from current cultural productions such as movies, television, the Internet and fashion magazines.

"I was always looking at movies, TV and radio as a way to experience things that you don't get to otherwise, coming from central Nebraska," Bitunjac said. "A lot of the experiences that were non-agricultural were through TV and movies, since I was just surrounded by farms."

As a first-year graduate student in photography, Daniel Elsbrock found his influences come from personal aspects of his life.

"It's really based on a few separate experiences," Elsbrock said. "The earliest (experience) was of both of my parents dying at a relatively young age. I think it affected my outlook in life. It connected my way to the world in a way that I probably would have never seen if I had not lost them."

Although much of his presentation is about his works, Elsbrock said the big difference in the program is the extra special effects added to the presentations. But he said this is not a show that is supposed to emphasize special effects.

"It's to get down to our lives and what influences (art)."