El Fin :)

So I am excited to report that all of my pieces for the BFA Senior Exit Show are finished and being hung in the gallery.  It's such a relief to finally know that my semester of hard work is coming together!  The final pieces put in the show are as follows:

OCEANS

Ebony, Foam Board, Wood, Acrylic, Sand, Burlap

16.5" x 6" x 3"

BURMA

Ebony, Foam Board, Wood, Sand, Feathers

15.5" x 8" x 3"

MIDDLE EAST

Ebony, Foam Board, Wood, Acrylic, Sand, Burlap, Linen

16" x 6" x 3"

MEDIA

Ebony, Foam Board, Wood, Acrylic, Sand, Mixed Media

15.5" x 8" x 3"

THE ACT

Ebony on Paper

18" x 24"

The first 4 pieces listed are part of my 'Consequences' Series that I'm working on currently.  These are the aforementioned "shadow box" pieces, which boast a realistic drawing of a person atop a box.  The person depicted on top of the box has either negatively or positively affected the environment, people, or community shown in the box.  Pictures of the show work should be up by Wednesday at the latest, so stay posted please!  The last piece in the list above is an ebony pencil drawing inspired by a performance I did last semester at the Tampa Museum of Art.  The performance involved costuming and inspiration from Dia de los Muertos.  

I will also be posting a picture of this piece by Wednesday.  Also, I will be posting pictures taken at my performance for the Las Damas de Arte's, a group of art sponsors and patrons, 'Sunday in the Arts' gallery event.  My performance at the 'Sunday in the Arts' event tied into my 'Consequences' Series, by demonstrating the effect people have on the natural environment around them.  I had a handmade costume that represented the natural flora and fauna around us, and when people would touch me, look at me, or hang fruit (handmade) off of me, I would move and change according to what they did.  The performance was well-recieved and people enjoyed the beauty of the costume I created.

Now that the exit show work is finished and my performance is over, I can focus on my final painting for beginning design...my last art work of undergrad :)

Revised Artist Statement for Senior Exit Show

THERESA BERGMAN

Art is an expressed observation of a happening, through a visual.  I find that my art started as an observation of things going on in classes.  Figure drawings were a product of a model posing; Self-portraits were products of what I saw when I looked into a mirror.  Over time, these observations became more detailed.  My newer works started to be products of not only a visual observation, but also an emotional observation. 

This is when I became an artist.  My work was becoming in-depth and dimensional.  Still, my art was close to me, personal.  I studied abroad in Italy last summer and produced some of my best work.  It perfectly captured my experience living in Tuscany.  This year though, I wanted to push my boundaries by making works that had a wider perspective, works that weren’t “all about me.”  The decision to change the direction of my work was made in lieu of me feeling that a chapter of my artistic life (undergraduate study) was finishing, but the chapter was not yet complete.  I had worked so hard to show who I was through my artwork, but had not yet shown my opinions about what was happening around me. 

The idea for my shadow boxes emerged from the yearning to express my opinions about what had been going on in the media.  Atop the boxes are people who have affected an environment, place, or communities. Contained in each box is a representation of the area affected and how it was affected.  I wanted to show how each person in the media is put on a given pedestal because of something they said or did.  Whether or not the pedestal these people were placed on is correct or an exaggeration is up to the viewers to ponder or debate.  If my art can spark one new thought or conversation about what is going on in the world, then I achieved my goal of creating a dynamic body of work.  

Revised CV for Senior Exit Show

THERESA BERGMAN

Tampa, FL

EDUCATION

2011  Bachelor of Fine Arts Concentration in Drawing                                 Tampa, FL

University of Tampa                                                                                                      

2010  Studio art classes- Drawing, Metals, Sculpture                                    Cortona, Italy

University of Georgia’s Art School in Italy                                                                         

Lamar Dodd School of Art                                                                       

EXHIBITIONS

2010             Mostra (student showing of art)                                                    Cortona, Italy

2010             Art in the Dark - Dia de los Muertos                                             Tampa, FL

2010             Sunday in the Arts – Las Damas de Arte                                     Tampa, FL

2011             Sunday in the Arts – Las Damas de Arte                                     Tampa, FL

PUBLICATIONS ABOUT THE ARTIST

2010            St. Petersburg Times

Performance art for Las Damas de Arte’s ‘Sunday in the Arts’ show, featured in an article by Amy Scherzer, in print May 7^th, 2010

2011 Citi Times

            Performance art for Las Damas de Arte’s ‘Sunday in the Arts’ show, featured in 

            an article by Amy Scherzer, in print April 30^th, 2011

EXPERIENCE IN THE ART FIELD

2008 - …            Tampa Bay Outfitters                                                                  Tampa, FL

Sales Associate, Display Design                                         

Helped create several store displays to appeal visually to a range of customers

2006 - 07            Camp Minikani                                                                            Hubertus, WI

Day Camp Counselor, Lifeguard                       

Organized many art projects, crafts, and costumes involved in lesson plans for my new group of campers (ages seven to twelve) each week

2008 - …            Independent Work                                                                        Milwaukee, WI

Illustrator (Hand and Computer)                           

Worked on a few different projects independently-- creating illustrations for wedding invitations, save the dates, and thank you notes; creating illustrations as gifts for people to give during the holidays; have done photography (digital and manual) for children’s portraits and pregnancy pictures

WORK EXPERIENCE

2008 - 09            Talbots                                                                                            Tampa, FL

Sales Associate, Shipping and Receiving                 

An upscale store with specialty sizes in petite and woman’s, as well as misses sizes and accessories for everyone

2004 – 08            REI                                                                                                   Brookfield, WI

Customer Service, Cashier                                   

A large outdoors store carrying supplies and clothing for skiing, hiking, biking, camping, paddling, and exercise

SKILLS

Knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite, Adobe CS3-CS5 Suites, iMovie, iDVD; Proficient in Spanish