Julia Pope

Date of Award

2017

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Humanities

First Advisor

Anderson, Kim

Area of Concentration

Art

Abstract

Mapping Paradise , an ode to all things peculiar that distinguish the geographic region of Florida from the presumably rational contiguous 48 states, is a creative studio project consisting of cut paper installations. Mythologized through stories including Ponce de León’s fountain of youth and Sarasota’s skunk ape sightings, the Floridian landscape is altered both by the oddities that precede the state’s reputation, as well as by the occupants who inhabit the state. The survival of Florida’s future depends on this close interaction between its inhabitants and the natural landscape, which I have mapped out and dissected in this body of work. Inspired by paper cutting traditions including the silhouette and Chinese folk art, the performative process of cutting in my work serves as a poetic device when examining Florida’s most pervasive ecological issues today. The exploration of such issues as harmful algal blooms emphasis the fragility of the Floridian landscape. With allusions to artists including Edward Burtynsky, Kara Walker, El Anatsui, and Motoi Yamamoto, commonplace materials and physical labor contribute towards my environmental critique.

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