Category Archives: Patron interviews

This post is the second in a series focused on MFA students and their research.

Travis Donovan (MFA 2011) makes sculpture that is powerfully infused with cross-disciplinary research.  Recently, I was able to sit down with him to learn a bit about how he integrates a wide variety of sources into his working process.

"Molt", by Travis Donovan. 2011 (Materials: Down Feathers, Mattress, Mechanical Components. Dimensions: Variable.)

Donovan’s interest is in creating “poetic image[s] through the exploration of materials and processes.” In his current work he is dissecting feathers from a multitude of angles, examining “comfort, sensual qualities, but at the same time this history of loss.” His creative process involves gathering a wide variety of information, then “letting that come together in an image – a new experience but referencing back to its echoes in history.”

Although his undergraduate work focused on ceramics, Donovan’s research process has become increasingly cross-disciplinary during his time at UNC.  In his first year in the Master’s program he began to explore materials and processes more broadly. His research has taken him all over the UNC library system, including to the Kenan Science Library and the former Brauer Math/Physics library. Delving into scholarship ranging from philosophy to fluid dynamics, he’s interested “not just in the scientific and mathematical properties of material, but also the symbolic, poetic, and literary connections they might carry.”

Current reads? “Fragments of a Poetics of Fire” by Gaston Bachelard, and various works by preeminent phenomenologist  Henri Bergson. He has also been researching whiskey distillation and the thermal properties of certain minerals in North Carolina clays used for brick-making.

"Illuminationem", 2010. (Materials: Monofilament, Light, Motors, Wood. Dimensions: 20’ x 16’ x 17’.)

Of the resources that have proved especially useful, UNC Master’s theses and dissertations from various disciplines rank high on his list. “They present such a specific, condensed form of research – and local as well.”  While Donovan’s research draws on materials from across campus, Sloane Art Library is his home base:  “This library is my hub – where I start research, but also the place to get stuff and bring it back…it’s allowed me to feel comfortable checking out strange, odd books I wouldn’t otherwise access because I don’t know where they’re at.”

"Prometheus", 2009. (Materials: Fire, Acetone, Steel, Glass. Dimensions: 6’x 8’x14’.)

What would he check out if the library’s collection expanded beyond the usual media? “There are certain tools like microscopes that I wish were available – everything from electron microscopes to vibration sensors, things that allow for the dissection of a phenomenon.  It’s hard to get access to tools like that if you’re not in that field of study.  In an ideal world, there would be some access to those types of tools – with training, of course.”

– Madeline Veitch

Talking about research with MFA student Neill Prewitt

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from talking with UNC graduate students in studio art, it’s that their research process knows no bounds.  From colleagues to community members to obscure volumes in far corners of the UNC Chapel Hill library system, these students take an ambitious and tentacular approach to source gathering.

Working at Sloane, I’ve been lucky enough to witness small moments in this unfolding narrative. Curious about the bigger picture, I will be writing a series of blog posts about MFA students and their research – both in the library and beyond.

Dream Acts (installation view) at the former Chapel Hill Museum

Neill Prewitt, a second year MFA student, recently co-organized the exhibition “Dream Acts.” “Dream Acts” was a project featuring art made by and with residents of the Abbey Court apartment complex in Carrboro. The show was held at the former Chapel Hill Museum in June and July, and featured a wide variety of media.  Walls were covered with portraits of Abbey Court residents posing in front of fantastical backdrops. Fully furnished living rooms evoked a sense of home, while video footage made in collaboration with children from Abbey Court danced over walls and floors.  On the night of the opening, the space was filled with the sounds of celebration and sharing – communities meeting in a liminal, creative space.

I asked Prewitt how he prepared for the project: “There was a lot of primary research, visiting Abbey Court two or three times a week for a while before we started,” he explained.  He and collaborators Eleanor Blake and Lincoln Hancock also worked with UNC professors from a variety of disciplines.  Judith Blau, a professor of sociology at UNC who also serves as director of the Chapel Hill and Carrboro Human Rights Center, was a particularly important resource. The Center, which is located right at Abbey Court, has collaborated with residents on projects such as festival-planning, computer literacy programs, and fair housing advocacy.  Prewitt feels strongly about learning through interaction and dialogue: “So much comes out of it – it’s a living relationship that just grows and grows.”

Yuxtapongo Translucence, The Block Gallery, 2009

When Prewitt heads to the library for resources, he casts a wide net. “It’s hard to know what’s going to be useful…  I’m a big fan of checking out like 12 items and then maybe one of them might work out.” Though he reads a wide variety of literature (at the time of our conversation he was looking at two Bertolt Brecht plays and “The Shadow Factory” by James Bamford), there are particular sections of the Art Library that he frequents for both targeted and serendipitous finds.  “It’s important for information to be online but there’s no substitute for being in an environment like this [where you can] stumble across something on your way to getting what you were looking for.”

Hot tub for checkout.* (*Not yet available at time of publication...)

In an ideal world, what else would he like to check out from the library? “I would love a tool-sharing library along the lines of the tech shop in Durham – though that would require instruction.”  On a more serious note:  “I want to check out a hot tub for the weekend.”

-Madeline Veitch