The goal of this problem was to incorporate clear nylon monofilamnet in a series of weaves traditionally chosen for their absorbent virtues that in these cases would achieve interesting textural effects and light-reflective qualities in addition to varying degrees of transparency.

In the fall of 1972 I was required to read Dee Brown's "Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee" as an "atmosphere setter" for a seminar on artists of the westward expansion in the United States. When I first started making drawings of some of the Indian leaders, I had no idea of doing a series. I also had no idea that Indians and more especially those of the West, would be consuming so much of my time and thoughts for such a long period. In the beginning the drawings were prompted by a fascination with the bone structure of the Indian faces. The high cheekbones, the prominent noses and unusual eyes caused marvelous patterns of light and dark, making the faces very conducive to caricature. As I began to know these faces as individuals and personalities, however, I knew that caricature was not the direction which i wanted to pursue.

Two ways of apprehending reality were intimated; reality as a function of purely visual stimuli and reality as a substantial object. The problem was, therefore, an exploration of reality as a purely visual sense and reality as concrete form. In pursuing the project, I explored how each reality distinguished itself by separating each in the prior conception of the work and in the subsequent discussion.

As a painter, I have been working the past few years to develop a mature pictoral image and the concepts of space that were flexible enough for me to produce what I believed was a valid art statement. I have investigated several avenues for improving my work, i.e., acquiring certain technical painting skills, reading more to broaden my concepts and imagination, and visiting various art galleries and museums. During an earlier critique it was realized that the majority of my paintings were all very similar in scale. I decided to approach my work on a much larger scale than previously attempted in the hopes of discovering a better, or at least different painting concept.

My problem was to combine warp ikat woven in crowfoot satin weave with supplementary weft techniques, in order to increase visual depth and maintain visual unity.

The purpose of this problem was to investigate the advantages and limitations in the use of blacksmithing techniques combined with the construction techniques of arc welding and the use of power tools to construct large outdoor sculpture. Specific questions will be asked to determine the suitability of this method of working. The questions are: 1. Can blacksmithing techniques be used in the construction of large outdoor sculpture? a. what specific techniques are appropriate? b. Will some techniques be used more than others? 2. Will these techniques be used more than others? 2. Will these techniques take an inordinate amount of time and make them impractical for the artist to use?

In the history of ceramics my interest centers around times in particular cultures when ceramic containers were an essential part of life. I am most interested in functional pottery produced in nineteenth century North America between the years 1800-1870. This was a period in which some of the finest pots used for containing things were produced.

In this proposed study, I hoped to discover compositional elements that once added to the work would convey my conceptual ideas. I was interested in exploring the addition of deep pictorial space and increasing the size disparity between the figures as possible solutions for injecting a level of irony and/or eluding to the subverted agenda of the content. I wanted to see if these two secondary compositional adjustments subtly conveyed not only a strategic contradiction of the art historical concept of expressionism but the numerous accepted truths in society.

The purpose of this project was to manipulate imagery present within the Tarot in a symbolic and visual space working through my own process of preconception. Each of the finished pieces was to be derived through an initial traditional process and then altered by use of monoprint methods and the incorporation of found object directly upon the print surface to give the illusion of a three-dimensional character, or actually contain the print in a three-dimensional format.

I resolved to consciously examine the role of precise and spontaneous aspects of my drawings as my creative project. I felt that an investigation into the use of precise and spontaneous elements and their relationship to each other would strengthen my understanding of my own work.

The problem of this investigation was to determine if there was a relationship between scale, forma and technique in the making of welded steel sculpture, and to determine the best method(s) of working on three size categories and in two basic categories of form. The size categories were two to four feet, four to eight feet and over eight feet in any dimension with the other dimensions such that the sculpture enclosed a volume of space. The two categories of form were geometric or inorganic (forms based on geometry or mathematics) and organic (forms found in, or resembling those in nature). The effects of scale, form, and technique(s) in the production of these sculptures were observed and a determination was made concerning which technique presented the most advantageous approach to the creation of welded steel sculpture in each category.

The purpose of this research was to develop a body of work which exhibited unity between form and surface, but which relied upon a combination of deliberate intent (specific form, glaze, firing temperature, etc.) and the occurrence of random accident to achieve this unity. The project dealt with the integration of altered wheel-thrown and hand-built organic clay forms with a variety of surface treatments. The firing/glazing techniques chosen (which included cone 9 reduction firing, raku firing, and saggar firing) could be controlled to some degree. However, even minor differences in glaze and/or firing treatments evolved through a variety of chance incidents into marked differences in the finished piece.

The purpose of this project was to create and present groups of stelae which contain personal imagery derived from archetypal feminine symbols used as hieroglyphs. The groupings of the stelae, by nature of the problem, took on a ritual appearance. Two groups of twelve stelae each were constructed with materials and techniques used in a fiber tradition. Each individual stele was designed to function alone as well as in a group.

The project involved producing a group (16) of audio-visual installations that successfully displayed and exposed various Muzak situations. The following questions, relating to individual pieces, were of concern: 1. What is the basic intent of each installation or piece? 2. Does the piece communicate the intent of the artist? 3. Which installations or pieces will adapt to any space? 4. What visual documentation is necessary to preserve the idea?

In this creative project, I investigated the problems of producing, selecting, presenting, and installing a one-person exhibition. I executed a series of 31 drawings, paintings and prints from which 21 pieces for the exhibit were selected. From the body of work executed prior to and during my graduate study, 21 pieces were included based upon the relative quality of the imagery. There were no restrictions with regard to media or size. My goal in this project was to assemble and present a coherent and harmonious exhibit in the North Texas State University art gallery.

My interest in pictorial representationalism began when I started painting and drawing as a child, and my concern for working realistically continued and developed through my undergraduate years in college. In this investigation i explored the working processes used in a representational approach to contemporary woven tapestries. A brief discussion of the origins of representational woven tapestries with concentration upon Twentieth Century textiles was followed by an analysis of the influences upon my work by artists and stylistic trends.

The content of my work focused on examining the relationship between certain elements of nature and of human beings and was also based on the question of what true life is. The woodcut process - combined with the other printing techniques such as intaglio, collagraph, and monotype - was adopted as a potentially successful medium for conveying the content of the work. Overlay printing techniques and repeated textures were utilized as well.

I wished to explore ways to introduce my futuristic symbols in my work that have a relevant universality, support a primordial mysticism, and maintain a personal spirituality. This would be achieved by utilizing imagery with both contemporary and futuristic connotations. This type of imagery would require specific sculptural techniques more refined than was previously present in my work. The sculpture would consist of solitary, tensely postured, monumental figures composed according to a classically proportioned totemic model.

Our problem was to produce art in a collaborative manner. Due to the nature of our problem, we proposed to explore specific aspects of collaborative art and answer these questions: 1. in what ways is the co-artist's input beneficial? 2. How are the artist's skills broadened by working with a fellow artist? 3. What is involved in developing a professional working relationship between male and female artist? 4. What understanding of differences in working styles is acquired? 5. What are the differences reflected in each artist's earlier works as compared to the collaborative pieces?

I believe the frame or housing of a printed image plays an integral role in the context of the work. It functions as a vehicle for possible interpretation. It should respond to and complement the concept of the central image. The image presented in a vessel or reliquary format should instill a meditative or religious response.

The abstract expressionist movement aided in the development of this new personality for the clay world. An entire new dimension was added with extreme manipulation of ceramic pieces. My work reflects feelings and ideas concerning today's society and the status-quo. Common, everyday images recur in my art objects, with a major interest in cars, food, slogans, and puns. These are all a part of the hysteria of the American scene today.

The investigation concerned itself with the following questions: 1. What was the relationship of the structural grid system to the layered materials? 2. How much of the final results of the works were dependent on the process of constructing the pieces? 3. What processes were used to change surface quality? 4. What were the various methods of installation in a gallery?

I believe that an artist needs a mechanism(s) built into his or her working method out of which the greatest number of options may arise. I suggested that, for me, painting on paper could be one such mechanism. I wanted to pursue paper as a viable surface on which to paint and discover to what extent it would influence my choices in the working process.

This descriptive report is designed to document the development of this conceptual structure. The purpose is to clarify each aspect of the metaphor and its relationship to the conceptual structure thereby providing more organized , as well as new material to strengthen future work. This metaphor serves as a triggering mechanism for visual imagery.