Echoes of Service: Personal Narratives and Community Resilience

Abstract

This thesis describes the chronological process and the technical application of Social Art Practice concepts in ART-illery community workshops and subsequent themes that culminated in the work on display in my Masters of Fine Art (MFA) thesis exhibit Echoes of Service: Personal Narratives and Community Resilience, on display in April 2016 at George Mason University’s Fine Art Gallery. Special articles of clothing can trigger vivid memories of the past, whether it’s a worn t-shirt or a formal uniform used during the most special of occasions. It’s the personal narratives in the woven materials trapped during the course of one’s life experiences that touches us deeper and captures meaning beyond a mere garment. This thesis demonstrates a multi-disciplinary use of artistic practices of papermaking, printmaking, and sculpture to broaden and deepen community relationships as well as apply concepts from the humanities such as sociology and group ethnography through active participation.