The Uncanny Art House is hosting 17 OU art students for their senior projects, implementing personal and social messages to encourage locals to connect with art.
The work of Emily Dangott, an art, technology and culture senior, is the first piece viewers will encounter as they walk through the exhibit. Dangott said she mostly creates video-based art, but wanted to challenge herself by creating a sculptural installation in collaboration with technology.
“I've really been interested in exploring tactility, and touch, and sensory play within art,” Dangott said. “So I thought that if I could create something physical, it would really satisfy that desire to include sensory and tactile exploration.”
OU art, technology and culture senior Emily Dangott's exhibit at Uncanny Art House.
Dangott's piece, “Gyna Sapien,” is inspired by feminine surveillance.
“I think the message that I'm trying to communicate to an audience is that we're all victims of surveillance and invasion of privacy,” Dangott said. “I think that through this work, I can really bring that to the forefront and communicate that even though you may not feel like you're under attack, you are.”
According to Dangott, art is easily overlooked, but she hopes people will take time out of their day to visit the exhibit and experience local artists.
“I think a lot of people tend to see art as something very unserious,” Dangott said. “This show is a way for people to also see the seriousness of art and its relevance within our current climate. Art isn't unimportant in the culture, and I think art is actually a huge part of what makes people people. Art has been something that has been present throughout the entirety of human existence, and instead of degrading it, I think it's something that should be embraced.”
Jillian Macias, a senior double majoring in studio art and psychology, is presenting a collage of four paintings inspired by her mother's family.
“I just wanted to … create a narrative to discover a connection between family members that I've actually never met,” Macias said. “They've passed away, actually, and I don't have any connection to my mom's side of the family, which is why I wanted to create these works — to just kind of give myself a connection to a family that I haven't known.”
Macias said the paintings are reimagined family photos, so she studied figure drawing and anatomy to create proper proportions of human figures. She said she experimented with complementary colors to add depth to her paintings and hopes viewers will connect with her work.
“I'm excited to have an influx of people coming in and seeing the work, …” Macias said. “They're kind of getting an unbiased experience, and so they're able to come in here and create a connection themselves.”
OU studio art and psychology senior Jillian Macias' exhibit at Uncanny Art House.
Lane Houk, an art, technology and culture senior, experimented with mixed media to tell their story.
“It's photography, crochet and then acrylic cuts, but it's a protest and a response to recent institutional violence towards queer people,” Houk said.
Houk is displaying two photographs, in which they are pictured in a crocheted outfit that serves “as like a tangible, outward look of my queerness.” The first photograph shows Houk between two locations on campus where they were verbally harassed. The second photograph is of Houk in their bedroom, a place where they said they can be themself.
“The message that I would want people to take away from this is that there are queer folk on the Norman campus and within the Norman community, and that we are here,” Houk said. “We are humans, and that our existence is a resistance to the heteronormative status quo.”
Houk’s use of mixed media brings their photographs to life by adding parts of their crocheted outfit and plants from their bedroom. According to Houk, this exhibit will help the public see the depths of art.
“Art is more than just paintings, it's more than sculptures. It is something that transcends language and cultures,” Houk said. “I think having (the exhibit) on Main Street gives us more access to showcase to the public that art is more than that.”
OU art, technology and culture senior Lane Houk's exhibit at Uncanny Art House.
Another studio art senior, Mariah Seedorf, is using ceramics and sculptures to reimagine Aesop’s fable, “The Frogs Who Desired a King.”
“It kind of takes a societal view on how our world is right now and how we got here,” Seedorf said. “This is kind of an envision of what the potential (is), where we could end up and what could have possibly been.”
Seedorf found her love for ceramics and sculpture during her junior year at OU. Her piece is titled “A Frog with No Free Will is a Dead Frog,” and implements layers of both ceramic and sculpture, standing almost 5 feet tall.
Seedorf expressed that The Uncanny Art House will allow her to share her passion beyond campus.
“Art to me is like, kind of, painting one's soul; all the experiences that they've gone through is shown up in the work, and how every decision that they've made, you can see,” Seedorf said. “Art to me is just like my whole life. It's been a part of me since I was a little kid, and I don't think it'll ever stop. Art to me is just another language, and it goes beyond words.”
Mariah Seedorf, OU studio art senior, setting up Uncanny Art House exhibit.
Langston Reynolds is a senior art, technology and culture major, and his piece is titled “Crown.”
“The reason for that is in African-American culture our hair is seen as a crown, a centerpiece, something that stands out when you see us,” Reynolds said. “A lot of times in normal business practices, our hair is attacked, and we are told that we cannot wear it a certain way.”
Reynolds created a silhouette of a Black woman with an afro and used a 3D printer to create hair tools surrounding her. He also created two videos of his favorite artists and music videos to implement in his sculpture.
Reynolds drew some inspiration from the song “I Killed You” by Tyler, the Creator.
“Our hair is almost like an elephant in the room at times because of how expressive it can be, and I want this piece to basically stand for that is just being like an elephant in the room, something that you can look at and something that you have no choice but to acknowledge, given the space,” Reynolds said.
Reynolds said his love for art was rekindled after meeting OU professor of art, technology and culture KT Duffy. According to Reynolds, all the artists featured in the exhibit have “shown up and shown out,” and displaying their pieces at the Uncanny Art House has been a testament to their hard work.
“I believe that everyone who has a creation here has something for everybody and it's a topic of conversation for anybody, whether you're interested in art, or if you're just interested in anything in general,” Reynolds said. “I think you should come out and give it a try. Give it a shot. It’s free.”
OU art, technology and culture senior Langston Reynolds' exhibit at Uncanny Art House.
The exhibit is available for viewing through April 26 at Uncanny Art House.
This story was edited by Madisson Cameron. Andrew Higgins and Tori Pham copy edited this story.
