On March 24, the Staniar Gallery opened its annual exhibit that features studio art majors’ thesis projects. These students have spent the past academic year creating their cumulative projects, but are also showcasing artwork they created in previous years at Washington and Lee that aligns with their thesis theme.
The exhibit, called “Conceptual Boundaries,” features four senior theses, completed by artists Brianna Benoit, Sarah Eaton, Izzy Griffith and Alyssah McGuire.
“It’s been a joy for me personally to work with the [students] and see these works in development over the years,” said Kevin McNamee-Tweed, the director of the Staniar Gallery.
Brianna Benoit, ’25, has experience in multiple forms of photography, but for her thesis, she gravitated towards cyanotype, which is one of the oldest forms of photography. Cyanotype printing is done by exposing light sensitive chemicals to UV light to produce a distinct blue image. Using this method, Benoit said she took hundreds of pictures of waterfalls but selected just 12 photos to include her thesis.
Benoit said she wanted her work to capture how light interacts with water in an immersive way. Benoit said this is emphasized by the glass that the cyanotype photographs are printed onto, which brings out the transparency of light and water.
The Prussian blue of the cyanotype also has a distinct connection with the water depicted in the photos. “I feel like the blue gives the water a sense of life, not only in my photos but in the way it interacts with light,” said Benoit.
Sarah Eaton, ’25, centered her work around the Latin phrase Memento mori, meaning “remember you must die.”
“It’s a very important concept to me,” said Eaton. “Memento mori means to remember the dead, but also expands to mean being in the present and appreciating the little things.”
Eaton’s work contained cardboard sculptures and large murals of animal skeletons made with bleach on fabric. Eaton said she chose to work with these mediums because they allow her to work quickly while using accessible materials.
Eaton said her work also contained inspiration from her studies in environmental science. The murals depict skeletons of small mammals as a way of appreciating small creatures that are often forgotten.
“These animals are not often thought about as something to protect, but these animals are so important to the ecosystem,” said Eaton.
Alyssah McGuire, ’25, said she focused her thesis on experiences that played a role in shaping her identity. For her thesis, McGuire worked with a combination of laser woodcut prints and ink prints on plexiglass.
McGuire focused the subject of her work on memories and people that were important to her.
“I wanted to turn my memories into art that other people could enjoy,” she said.
For her process to create the wood cuts, McGuire chose pictures from her camera roll based on their composition, as well as the importance of the people and memories in the photos. Each wood cut contained a short explanation about the memory written in pencil, creating a personal, scrapbook-esque feel.
Her first print depicted a picture of McGuire and her younger brother wearing a large T-shirt with “this is our get along shirt” written across it. McGuire shared that when she and her brother fought, her mom would make them wear the shirt and walk their dog to encourage them to cooperate with each other.
“Taken together, these photos represent a narrative that makes up parts of my life,” McGuire said. “The one thing they have in common is my lived experience.”
McGuire’s exhibit also featured ink prints on plexiglass depicting close-up images of birds. McGuire found inspiration for this project from photos taken by a camera attached to her family’s bird feeder. The birds take on a larger than life appearance as they are depicted peering into the camera lens.
“Experiencing nature in such a unique and humorous way is part of who I am and what I like to do,” McGuire said.
Izzy Griffith, ’25, explored a wide variety of mediums for her thesis, including digital art, graphite on paper, oil on canvas and film. Griffith said she focused her work on her identity and personal evolution by creating original characters inspired by different aspects of her personality.
Griffith said she began developing an interest in character design from a young age, and she decided to take an autobiographical approach to her original characters. Her characters made an appearance in her film, “Shattering Reality.” Griffith said this film investigated how people use social media to create different worlds. Her other film playing in the exhibit, “I Hate Making Art So I Made Art,” explored her experiences with the creative process.
To present her films, Griffith created a living room set up with a couch and cozy decor to offer a comfortable place for viewers to enjoy her films.
“Conceptual Boundaries” will be open to the public until April 11.
