The Core Program is an absolutely vital component of the undergraduate experience at the Department of Art and Art History. In their sophomore year, students are challenged to apply concept and technique into work of creative and personal insight. Sophomores build upon their freshman experience, cementing relationships among a like-minded student body that they can rely on for critical feedback and support. We sat down with three students from this year’s Sophomore Core class to learn more about their experiences. Read through to hear from Hyo-Jung Jeon, Weatherly Sawyer and Kalissa White!
Hyo-Jung Jeon was born in South Korea and immigrated to California when she was one year old. She moved to Houston, Texas in the first grade, and has lived there ever since. Growing up, she developed a love for art and always known she would go to an art school. She chose UT Austin, however, because she believes in the importance of being surrounded by different ideas from different people.
The following Q+A has been edited for brevity and clarity.
What was your Freshman year like in the Art and Art History department?
In a lot of ways, it was really hard. Growing up is a painful process, and I did a lot of that my freshman year. I also pulled a lot of “all-nighters” for my art projects - talk about painful. Despite these challenges, I have met so many incredible students and professors here in the UT Austin community that it all feels worth it. I’m so happy to be a part of this community!
How did your freshman year change your practice?
I had only ever been exposed to particular kinds of artwork, and had been taught that there were ways that art should look and feel for it to be legitimate. After my first year of college, I learned that my art is whatever I want it to be. More importantly, I learned that my art is deeply tied to who I am as an immigrant, as a Korean-American woman, and as a daughter, granddaughter and sister. I’ve also learned that art has the power to address societal issues in a special kind of way, and I take this to heart every day when I think about the kind of artwork I want to produce, and what message I want to convey to my audience and to myself.
Which assignment in which core class do you feel most proud of and why?
I have always been really interested in participatory artwork, where the audience is allowed to interact with the object and space. In my Core III class, we used polyethylene sheets and duct tape to create an inflatable balloon. This project was my first attempt at creating art with which my audience could tangibly interact. My inflatable balloon was shaped into a cube, and was built so that when someone entered the balloon, they would be enveloped by it. My goal was to make the participant feel like they were being enveloped in something safe and secure, to feel like they were in a kind of home. My classmates enjoyed being able to interact with my project like that, and I loved seeing people so tangibly interact with it. I felt like I had accomplished something so big.
Where on campus do you feel most inspired?
James Turrell's The Color Inside in the Student Affairs Center and the Blanton Art Museum are probably my two favorite spaces on campus. It’s hard to find a quiet place to be with your own thoughts on a campus so busy and bustling like UT Austin, but The Color Inside is the perfect and rare exception. It’s the most wonderful place for me to exit reality and enter my own world when I need time to think. The Blanton is also a great place for me to draw inspiration. I go often to look at what professional artists are doing and learn from them. I also go for my Art History sections and have great discussions there with my classmates about the art we view. Both are also free admission, which is a nice bonus!
Weatherly Sawyer is from Dripping Springs, Texas. For Weatherly, UT Austin seemed like the easy choice, with a reputable art school and being in the center of Austin. She was excited be able to get into the art scene and have all kinds of new experiences and connections.
How has your process changed at UT?
The concepts I learned in the Core classes really resonated with me - they were ideas that I had never been introduced to before. They peaked my interest in the practice of art and made me start to really think about the art I make and give it somewhat of a message. I would not say my style has changed necessarily - that is, assuming I have a style - but I am definitely more conscious of my work than before. Some of my main concerns now have to do with how and why I am making something, what is worth making, how to allow the message of my work to translate effectively and how to execute a concept from start to finish.
How have your Core classes changed or evolved from your Freshman to Sophomore years?
The courses became more abstract in my sophomore year. The learning experience makes a shift from somewhat tangible ideas and concepts, into new ideas, concepts, and prompts that are highly interpretive and ambiguous. The majority of the prompts that I have received in my classes this semester, in anything from my studio courses to my art history classes, have had little instruction - if any at all. Whereas the first-year core classes will prompt you with a concept or artist or process, the second-year courses tell you some materials you should use for a sculpture or readings to inspire a performance piece, but then you are on your own and the rest is up to you! You're taught using words, concepts, examples that nudge you in a few directions, and then send you off to find your way through abstract concepts that influences your final work. This was a little confusing and overwhelming at first, but I have found it to be liberating in terms of my practice and realistic in terms of an artistic career.
How has your Art History class influenced you?
The Renaissance to Modern Art lectures really captured my interest and inspired me to consider past artists’ inspirations and the evolution of artwork throughout history when making my own work. I have worked off of and been inspired by similar concepts that inspired those movements, artists and works. I'm thinking of movements like the Sublime Movement, the Feminist Art Movement and Modern Realism, and artists like Mark Rothko.
What experiences have you had working with other Art History, Studio Art, and VAS students?
Working with other majors in the art college is great - everybody brings their own background and perspective and it shows in the work they create. Critiques and collaborations are especially interesting because of the differences in the creative thought process between of each of the students; whereas a design student might have a more functional, commercial idea, an art history student may have an idea rooted in a specific artist or period in history. The students feed off of and inspire each other, so that a Studio Art student may be more interested in including Design principles in their next work or a VAS major might think about including some ideas from ancient Rome or the Baroque.
How do you keep Austin weird?
It’s a work in progress. I have my plans.
She may be born in San Antonio, but because her mom was in the Air Force, Kalissa White has lived all over Texas and in multiple states. UT Austin was her dream school when she was growing up, and her interest in graphic design grew out of an interest in computers, website design and videography.
How do you think the Core program has (or will) influence your practice as a designer?
My Core classes (which I only really began this Fall as a Sophomore) were different than I initially expected, which meant that there was a bit of a culture shock that I had to get over. Over the semester, the Art Core classes have challenged me to work harder and gain some more skills, but I can definitely say that I still draw like a five-year-old. But I think those traditional media skills will probably be useful to me in the future—even the charcoal drawing!
Where do your interests lie in Design? Did you have a specific goal in mind when you applied?
I am interested in the way that people interact with spaces and the effects that specific objects or design have on humans. I feel like there is always an easier or more efficient way for a product or space to function and interact if there was more consideration taken for human behavior, psychology and other attributes.
What has taking Art History courses been like as a Design major?
My Art History courses have actually been really helpful with my projects in Design and Core. I am influenced by the ways that stylistic periods of art have meshed together or transformed over time. Every artwork seems to be related in some way, which is really interesting to notice and decipher. Art History has turned out to be a big help in a lot of my classes. I just started a project in my Core class that was influenced by one of the artists that we’ve talked about in class, Aaron Douglas. I was inspired by Douglas’ representation of people of color in society, which is important to me because I don’t really see representation happening much in the art world, in today’s society, or even right in front of us—on UT campus. I appreciate Douglas’ morals and mission as well as the simple, unique way he delivered a clear message. I aspire to that in my own work.
How has your practice or work changed over your freshman to sophomore year?
My freshman year I was a Liberal Arts major, so I took several classes that required a lot of reading, writing essays, lab assignments, and written tests. Design is something that I really just stumbled upon. As a Design major, you aren’t given the answers from reading through a book, and there are no multiple choice questions — it’s all about your processes, extensive research, and building upon your ideas to get closer to better ideas or renditions of your work. My personal projects last year were very safe and I tried working on newer things, but they were all somewhat similar. This year I am trying new processes, trying to learn different methods, use different materials and media, and create projects with significance.
What is your favorite part about Austin so far?
Whenever I have the time or a free weekend, I love to go hiking or swimming in all of the different parts of the town. It’s nice that you can get away from the craziness of the city with a short drive across town or a bike ride a mile or so down the street. I feel like it can sometimes get overwhelming, but we are given the unique opportunity in a big city to have all of these natural spaces around us.