Date of Award
8-1-2017
Degree Name
Master of Fine Arts
Department
Mass Communication and Media Arts
First Advisor
Needham, Jay
Abstract
This writing discusses the topic of lateness - mortality and how it affects my creative practice regarding the themes of memory and thought, experience and perception, depression and suicide, and their connection to the progression of my artistic work leading to my MFA thesis performance. I refer to my own experiences with clinical depression, anxiety, and suicidal moments to contextualize not only my own work, but also to extend Edward Said’s definition of late style. Establishing an analogy for lateness with hourglass imagery, I begin with the definition of perpetual lateness or late style and cyclical existence within Said’s linear episodes. Within the paper, I explore the impact of repetitious thought on my own issues with verbal and written communication and my creative approaches. Amongst descriptions of artistic influence and process, I express an interest in expressive art therapies, mindfulness, and exploratory meditation through sound. Through redefining late style and timeliness, I associate my processes in sound art with repetition, emanation, separation, isolation and their influential origins. I use the discussion of the progression of my sound art to inform how I arrive at the concepts for my thesis performance of The Human Reliquary, including the construction of experimental wearable instrumentation, costuming, and exploring butoh styles of improvisational movements.
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.