Date of Award
5-1-2016
Degree Name
Master of Fine Arts
Department
Mass Communication and Media Arts
First Advisor
Needham, Jay
Abstract
My thesis work explores the spiritual embodiments of 21st century culture by creating a set/series of sights, sounds and other sensory experiences that are symbolically representative of a new pantheon called The Neoterics and its mythology. It examines the human quest for stability (survival, community, and mental/physical/ financial stability) in a world of constant change. The exhibition introduces the six members of the pantheon as the embodiments of the primitive or basic needs, contemporary wants, and future desires of humanity, at least from the perspective of Westernized culture. This paper looks at mythology’s role in the 21st century. It examines the artistic process of creating and representing mythological entities in the gallery and museum space. It peers through the lenses of the literary theory of ‘carrier bag fiction’ and the theory of the artistic gifts in relationship to the exhibition. Finally concluding with where this new mythology might go as it expands and grows in the future.
Access
This thesis is only available for download to the SIUC community. Current SIUC affiliates may also access this paper off campus by searching Dissertations & Theses @ Southern Illinois University Carbondale from ProQuest. Others should contact the interlibrary loan department of your local library or contact ProQuest's Dissertation Express service.