Communication Studies and Media Arts undergraduate students enrolled in MMEDIA 4ST6 (Senior Thesis Research and Production) are presenting their final research-creation projects in an exhibition called Media Mayhem.
Media Arts 4ST6 offers fourth year students the opportunity to develop their own capstone media projects. The final projects are a culmination of research, development, and creation using skills and ideas learned in the Communication Studies and Media Arts program at McMaster University.
Media Mayhem and will be featured on the Factory Media Centre website from April 25 to May 9.
The artists in the exhibit are:
Sereen Aziz
Gabriella Bassil
Carley Chapman
Landis Clark-Smith
Ken David
Yanxi Hu
Maia Lee-Thomas
Alexis Porter
Nadia Singh
Rachel Taylor
Ryan Trotman
Advisors: Andrew Mactavish, Chris Myhr, and Liss Platt
Sereen Aziz
WIn the Hands of AI
Artificial intelligence (AI) has infiltrated nearly every field, and now more than ever has the tremendous ability to impact our lives. We are increasingly turning to AI and machine learning algorithms to make important decisions as a means to be more objective or to eliminate human biases, including in fields like the criminal justice system. “In The Hands of AI” is a scrolling and interactive infographic exploring how algorithmic tools used in the criminal justice system are perpetuating inequalities in society.
About the Artist:
Sereen Aziz is a Media Arts student at McMaster University who’s had a strong interest in the arts ever since she was little. While she loves to work with a variety of mediums, she is most passionate about design. Sereen especially loves learning about the ways in which technology is transforming our world for better and for worse, and enjoys finding new ways to visually communicate ideas.
Gabriella Bassil
Rise N Fall
Rise N Fall is a photo poetry book that depicts the shift of emotions from one season to the next as a result of Seasonal Affective Disorder (S.A.D). The book delves into a certain style of photography, poetry, and design. The goal of combining the two arts is to achieve a successful combination of technology and art. While the visuals depict literal meanings, the poetry depicts metaphoric and interpretative ones. Both parts express and heighten the impression of emotion, and they work in tandem to allow for more interpretation. I convey my own hardships through the photo poetry book while also seeking to raise awareness about the disease that many young adults endure.
About the Artist:
My name is Gabriella Bassil, although I go by Gaby. I am Lebanese Canadian, but I grew up in Canada. As a Media Art’s student, I have been able to explore and combine many of my passions. Through Media I have been able to capture and practice a variety of new mediums. Through the program I have had the opportunity to merge nature, life’s beauty, and my own emotions through digital mediums.
Carley Chapman
The Iron Horse of New Aged Pestilence: Prior, During & Present
I wanted to create something using remix/mash-up culture. The series is set to display pre, during, and “post” (now) of covid. I used collage, photography, found images, and artwork of my own to create the series. Pre, I want to point out the red horse. I used it throughout to symbolize covid and tell the story. Keep an eye as it moves throughout the three scenes. Other symbols throughout this scene include the ideas of travel, gathering, public, and freedom. During, this scene represents the thick of covid. I tried to describe the hard times and stresses we all felt throughout. Moving your eye from left to right, you will be able to see the negative impacts become more prominent. The symbols within this scene include; adapting, loss, new habits, connection, and love. And, of course, our red horse is front and centre. Present, this final scene aims to represent the world as of now regarding covid. Everything is opening back up, and how we’re adjusting. The scene includes ideas of happiness, hope, new beginnings, the past, and the future. But, it’s not all roses. Included in the work are ideas of what we are coming out of. Covid is not gone; all eyes are on it, and it’s closer to all of us than ever. But slowly making its way out and allowing us to adapt.
A message from the artist:
Soon, I will be graduating from McMaster University with a degree in multimedia. As I have pursued this degree, I have realized my passions and interests. I am passionate about creating, and I want to tell and depict stories through art and build meaning through visuals. Whether I am painting, taking photos, or creating something digitally, I focus on my interests. I make a story in my head and attempt to display it visually for all to appreciate and connect to. I have a great appreciation for mixing styles old and new so that we can keep breathing life into our classics and enjoy them in a modern setting. When creating my own art, I want to keep the classic tone and add a modern edge.
Landis Clark-Smith
Colores del Soul
Throughout my degree at McMaster University I have been drawn to the idea of “abstract portraiture”, for my final thesis I wanted to delve into this theme and apply my digital skills, as well as practice my hands on work. The piece is a mixed media collage on 16” x 20” cradled wood panels. I have always found the interrelated concepts of identity, nationality, and ethnicity both intriguing and confusing. This project allowed me to explore my own relationship with identity and question the foundations that have shaped me. My piece is a representation of my own understanding of the intermingling of ones perceived identity and the unpredictable surroundings that truly affect ones growth. I chose to combine the human form with an array of plants and flowers to symbolize the grounding and flourishing that takes place in ones life. The deliberate arrangements of the elements in the collages reflect my belief that we are not defined by our appearance but by our experiences and our growth. The collages include elements from my own experiences of being raised in Mexico as a Canadian, elements I gathered either digitally or physically included – Mexican plants and flowers, Monarch butterflies, sand, tiles, fabric, magazine clippings, and corals.
About the artist:
My name is Landis Clark-Smith, I was born in Toronto, Canada, and raised in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. I returned to Canada with the aim of finishing high school and completing my university degree. Soon to be a graduate of McMaster’s undergraduate Media Arts program, I hope to use my passion for design in my future endeavours. I have put my skills to use while working in film as a set decorator and graphic designer, as well as applying my graphic knowledge in the occasional freelance work. As a graduate student I am looking forward to experiencing new countries and cultures, and to eventually pursue a career that allows me to explore my design skills and love for interior design.
Ken David
Multimedia
A student struggles to keep up with his classes during his current world events. One day, his recent dream turns out to come true and he is given a device that can travel to different worlds. After using it once, he realizes that he can copy these worlds as his own work for all his classes. However, there may be something more to the device than he is currently using it for.
A message from the artist:
I have an expertise with photography and graphic design, but film is my biggest passion when it comes to media. Besides the creative industry and creating media with a business mindset, I am most passionate about create entertaining videos and artistic media.
Yanxi Hu
Ambiguity
In the early autumn of 2019, the protagonists left Beijing and head off on their own to two different countries (United Kingdom and Canada). The story is set in a reunion after a year and a half and is an opening scene in three chapters, with the story progressing through the seasons: summer-autumn-winter, where the reunion of summer is ardent and cautious; the sublimation of autumn is gentle and eager; the retreat of winter is sad and helpless. During these periods, the subtle shifts in emotions and relationships between the protagonists contribute to an untold story of abstraction and ambiguity. Symbolism is used throughout the work, with representative figurative and implicit concepts being developed at appropriate intervals. The injection of emotion is also based on “distance”, “ambiguity” and “ambiguous ” emotions, language, and mannerisms.
About the artist:
胡延熙 HU Yanxi is an artist(unqualified) from Beijing. He came to Canada in Grade 9 and majored in Media Arts with a minor in Theatre and Film Studies during his time at McMaster University. He is obsessed with astronomy, military and science fiction, and has become increasingly passionate about art in recent years, influenced by his friends and environment. In the field of media arts, he has explored audio, video, photography, modelling, graphic design and programming, but he considers his understanding of these to be at a superficial level.
Maia Lee-Thomas
Metre Long Seconds
Video, animation, and collage come together to explore perceptions of time, space, and reality. Each scene is a video-based collage, with drawings, photos, scans, glitch art, and other videos laid on top – themes focusing on liminality, time, and change. This combination of media explores how history and memory can be warped, blurring the line between reality and representation. My project focuses on my own past, including multiple photos from my own archives, but explores themes that can apply to almost anyone. The ambiguity of the narrative leaves it up to the audience to infer solid meaning, exploring how one’s experiences shape perception. Metre Long Seconds explores how time moves fast and also extremely slow, and the feeling of being caught in a limbo within ourselves.
About the artist:
My name is Maia Lee-Thomas, although I usually go by Maia Madison for art-related projects. I’ve known all my life that I wanted to be a creative, but I could never seem to choose a stream – working with video, photography, poetry, design, drawing, and other traditional art mediums. I love working with both traditionally and digitally, and combining them into designs and experimental pieces. Along with video art, graphic design, and prose poetry, I have a particular interest in themes of reality, identity, and nostalgia, exploring such through my own experiences and perceptions.
Alexis Porter
The Art Book Project
The Art Book Project involved 24 “Art Books” which were left out in public spaces for people to find. The books invited people to leave art within the books then return them to another public area, to be found by someone new and continue on. The project serves as an exploration into community engagement projects and mobility within cities. These compositions are the final result of a remix approach of the received artwork in the books.
About the artist:
Alexis Porter is a 21 year old soon-to-be graduate of the Media Arts and Theatre and Film program at McMaster
University. Raised in small town Frankford, Ontario, she moved to Hamilton in 2018 to pursue her degree. With an interest in the arts, music, community, and outdoor exploration she hopes to take her gained skills from the program and apply them new found experiences and jobs.
Nadia Singh
Layered
Immigration to first-world countries has resulted in an overall increase of second-generation immigrants in western societies. Second-generation immigrants are challenged to balance an inherited culture and an acquired culture. This project is an e-magazine that highlights the stories of five second-generation Canadians and their relationship with multifaceted cultural identities. The magazine offers a firsthand perspective to in-depth personal interviews alongside intricate collage work. The goal is to communicate the commonalities of having diverse connections with culture and allow individuals a space to share their perspectives and experiences. Culture is not stagnant but a layering of experiences, influences, and values.
About the artist:
I am a 21-year-old Media Arts student at McMaster University. I enjoy experimenting with photography, graphic and digital design. My parents immigrated to Canada from a small South American country called Guyana. I have lived in Canada for my entire life and unknowingly gained experience as a second-generation Canadian. I worked towards balancing my inherited Indo-Caribbean culture and my acquired Canadian culture. I want to generate work highlighting the complexities of cultural identity and commonalities of multifaceted ethnic backgrounds.
Rachel Taylor
Fly Theory
Fly Theory explores the topic of going through change in a place that never changes. Examining the dichotomy between movement and stillness, Fly Theory paints a complex relationship between oneself and their hometown and how that relationship can shift and change over time.
About the artist:
Rachel Taylor is a Media Arts and Communications student at McMaster University who is passionate about telling stories through images and words. In her work, she tackles themes of suburbia, adolescents and monotony through the lens of coming of age stories.
Ryan Trotman
A Tailor’s War
If we do not learn from our past we are doomed to repeat it. This Graphic novel is an Art narrative piece, chronicling the life of George Musolf (grandfather of the creator), as they survive through world war 2. First started as a tribute to family and the resilience of the human spirit. The work has evolved to be a tribute to the victims of the ambitions of Tyrants in our modern age. As well this work stands to be a reminder of the chain of suffering and loss that is created when those with the power act too late to stand up to Tyrants in whatever form they may take.
About the artist:
Ryan Trotman is a 23 year old undergraduate, soon to graduate Double Honours major in Multimedia and Communications, at McMaster University. Trotman has a strong interest in narrative exploration along with graphic and video design, always trying to find ways to discover and expand upon new stories and visuals. Heavily inspired by their family history, Trotman endeavors to bring the stories we all hold to the forefront.
This online exhibition is presented in partnership with McMaster Communication Studies and Media Arts:
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