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Thesis Defence: Chasing the Echoes of Home
October 29 at 2:30 pm - 6:30 pm
Victoria Verge, supervised by Briar Craig, will defend their thesis titled “Chasing the Echoes of Home” in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Fine Arts in Visual Arts.
An abstract for Victoria Verge’s thesis is included below.
Defences are open to all members of the campus community as well as the general public. Registration is not required for in person defences.
Abstract
This body of work and supporting essay explore the interplay between movement and stasis within the concept of home, a theme drawn from my childhood experiences of frequent relocations due to my father’s military career. In my installation, Chasing the Echoes of Home, I display a series of small-scale sculptures of houses, constructed from reclaimed wood and found objects. The sculptures possess the kinetic potential to collapse and rebuild themselves with the turn of a crank. However, when exhibited in the gallery, the houses remain dormant (not to be touched by the audience) and instead come to life through motion-triggered audio recordings that play the individual sounds of each house’s movement.
This investigation contributes to discussions on the physical and psychological impacts of mobility and displacement, increasingly pertinent in contemporary art and migration studies. By integrating traditional sculptural forms with interactive audio elements, my work navigates the boundaries of material and experiential art practices. My choice to incorporate found materials speaks to themes of resourcefulness and adaptability, essential traits of my Newfoundland heritage and relevant to broader discussions on sustainability and community resilience.
My research aims to contribute to the fields of visual arts and cultural studies by offering an artistic exploration of home and identity in an increasingly globalized world. It examines how personal history and cultural background influence experiences of geographic and emotional displacement fostering a deeper understanding of the stability-home spectrum while challenging audiences to reconsider conventional notions of belonging and community.
