Sunday, October 12, 2025

Secret Lives of Color

Color 1: Avocado

Avocado

The Hass Avocado

Needle-felted wool over foam

3 ½ in × 2 ½ in × 2 in

In my piece, I recreated an avocado through needle felting, using a foam base and layers of green and brown wool to form a life-sized Hass avocado. I mixed different shades of green to capture the realistic texture and tones of the fruit’s flesh, while the dark outer skin and brown pit completed its natural look. The choice of avocado connects to my Hispanic background, as it’s a staple food in my family and culture. Historically, the color avocado became symbolic of nature and environmental awareness during the 1970s, when society began to link green tones with ecological consciousness and back-to-nature values. I liked how this meaning paralleled the avocado’s modern reputation as both an everyday food and a symbol of health and sustainability. Through this piece, I wanted to show how something as simple as a fruit can carry cultural and historical significance, representing both personal roots and a broader connection to the earth.

Color 2: Scheele’s Green

Scheele’s Green

Nathaniel’s Necromancy

Digital Illustration

In my piece, I used Scheele’s Green to embody the tension between the beauty and danger that defined the pigment’s history. The color’s vivid, otherworldly beauty made it extremely desirable in the 18th and 19th centuries, yet its hidden toxicity led to slow, invisible deaths. Henceforth, I reflected this story through my character Nathaniel, who uses necromantic abilities. His powers mirror the deceptive charm of Scheele’s Green: both give life and take it away. Historically, the pigment’s use in wallpapers, fabrics, and even candies showed society’s obsession with beauty despite the risk, a theme I echoed by surrounding Nathaniel in luminous green fog that symbolizes the deception beneath elegance. Through this, I aimed to communicate how Scheele’s Green represents humanity’s willingness to embrace beauty even when it kills.

Thursday, September 18, 2025

Speaker Events

Speaker Event 1:

Innovation in Foods

Danielle Brooks, Beekeeper and Owner, Honey Truck Company, Flagler Alumna 2009

Speaker Event 2:

Tea ceremony

Mai Ueda, performer, keeper of tradition.

Friday, September 5, 2025

Experimental Sculture Collection

Experimental Sculpture Collection

Mother Lan, Belial, Luma Airhead

Mother LAN

wood, yarn, wire, packing tape, tracing paper, ink, hot glue

size

Luma Airhead,

wood, ink, watercolor paper, masking tape

size

Belial

packing tape, tissue paper, yarn, hot glue, wire

size

In process images

Mother LAN

Luma Airhead

Belial

Reflection Statement

The three sculptures visually communicate Repetition (Mother LAN) through the continuous use of green yarn weighted down by glue, Negative Space (Luma Airhead) through the empty space within, and Focal Point (Belial) through the use of color and line.

While exploring materials to construct my sculptures, one thing I found imperative to focus on was identity and uniqueness. How I could push the boundaries of what is expected, challenge norms, and move beyond my comfort zone. As I observed the other sculptures around me, I wanted mine to stand out. To do this, I looked through the class blog for inspiration and made sure not to shy away from unfamiliar processes, such as operating wood-cutting machinery.

At times, I felt my work lacked height and visual interest near the base. This happened multiple times, but each time I resolved it by adding a bottom tier and incorporating something unusual such as the feet/leaves on Luma Airhead, the strings on Mother LAN, or the lattice wall and glue stones on Belial.

For future projects, I plan to continue experimenting with paper and wood, and to learn more advanced techniques for wood cutting. This piece opened up new possibilities in woodworking and introduced me to creative methods, such as using packing tape to build a figure. It is surprisingly sturdy when enough layers are applied.