Art, Art History and Design, School of
First Advisor
Aaron Holz
Second Advisor
Matthew Sontheimer
Third Advisor
Stacy Asher
Date of this Version
Spring 4-2018
Document Type
Article
Abstract
Chimera has three definitions, each so equally fitting of my work that this word has come to embody what I consider my own holy trinity. One: a firebreathing female monster in Greek mythology, often read as an omen for disaster. She was a hybrid animal made up of three – lion, goat, and serpent. Two: an unrealizable dream, a fanciful illusion composed of discordant parts – improbable but dazzling, wild. Three: an organism formed by multiple sets of distinct DNA, human, plant or animal. Chimera – a hybrid monster, an impossible dream, a harmonious organism composed from disparate origins. There is family folklore I was told from a young age about generations of my grandfathers in Hawaii serving as Kahuna ninau ‘uhane. Kahuna means “keeper of secrets” and ninau ‘uhane is “one who speaks with spirits.” The story goes that one ancestor generations back had contacted a bad spirit and made a deal he could not keep. As punishment, the spirit laid a curse upon our family line and promised to torment every generation to come. ...
CHIMERA rising formed through dream logic, instinct, and play. The works are amulets, totems, votive objects – their intended function is an offering to you, the viewer. Regardless of each unit’s actual supernatural powers (or lack thereof), they aim to physically manifest impulses just beneath the arena of the conscious, where there exists tension between mysticism, emotion and rational thought. They want us to know that what we believe is always our own.
Comments
A THESIS Presented to the Faculty of The Graduate College at the University of Nebraska In Partial Fulfillment of Requirements For the Degree of Master of Fine Arts, Major: Art, Under the supervision of Professor Aaron Holz. Lincoln, Nebraska: April, 2018
Copyright (c) 2018 Rosana Ybarra