IB Visual Arts
Kristie kriaris-tsotras
“What’s outside the frame?”
My exhibition draws on the concept of “What’s outside the frame?” by presenting artworks that by being pieced together by the audience may spark thought on how the “frame” whether considered literally, or figuratively such as: a frame of mind, may not encapsulate an entire story. I hope that by my audience undertaking the task of mentally configuring each piece to find their subliminal messages they will reflect on their own behaviours such as: understanding that instead of examining situations in their lives with a rather reductionist approach, they can approach things from different perspectives, and really consider what may be outside the frame. Simply, my intention is to convey the notion of open-mindedness, a concept that I believe to be somewhat lacking in our modern 21st century society. These past 2 years during my IB Diploma the world has faced some of its greatest battles to date: a global pandemic in tandem with high stakes human rights campaigns such as Black Lives Matter protests. I feel as if communities have been divided due to individuals either refusing, or willing to be open-minded to other perspectives, therefore, through my exhibition I intend to convey how a consideration for what may be outside the frame can result in a more complete picture.
There are two very strong directions that are evident across majority of my artworks in this exhibition: one symbol being the concept of creating an artwork based well recognised artworks, and the other being motif of hands. “Creation of Moments”, “Samothrace”, “Creation of Hands”, and “Van Gogh”, are artworks that have stemmed from widely acknowledged paintings and sculptures, specifically: The Creation of Adam, Samothrace, and a collection of artworks by Van Gogh. All of these pieces subsequently link to my overarching concept as they depict a visual extension on those notable artworks. All of the pieces containing the motif of hands are paired with social interaction, crafting the idea of the impacts of COVID19 amongst communities with explicit relation to the loss of human touch. The technique explored most prominently when creating my artworks was drawing out focal points in artworks and emphasising them further, occasionally in a contrasting manner. This can be understood if we consider the original Winged Victory being headless as a prominent large focal point thus, through the addition of the head of Samothrace, I have emphasised a focal point of the original artwork antithetically. This can be understood if we consider the original Winged Victory’s missing head as a ‘missing’ focal point, thus evidencing my reasoning behind creating a head for Samothrace.
Immediately when presented with my exhibition, the audience is faced first with two plaster hand sculptures in tandem with a life-size ceramic bust positioned in a higher position behind the hands. Behind these two artworks, a large frame contains various flowers and meadows, which are accompanied by suspended flowers on either side of the frame. This specific composition while being viewed from the front will mimic a singular artwork in that: the two hand sculptures, along with the bust, through manipulation of space, can be assumed to be all encapsulated within the artwork of “Bloom”. However, the suspended flowers lend focus to the idea that artworks are outside of the frame, subsequently shifting focus to the 3 sculpted artworks being standalone pieces as opposed to within the actual frame. The left-hand side of the central sculptural and textile installation depicts my artworks based on digital photography and photo-collaged imagery, while the right-hand side shows my paintings. There are other sub-themes occurring in my exhibition such as: royalty, femininity and floral imagery. Through this structure, the audience is presented with an exhibition format that initially depicts my concept of “what’s outside the frame” by requiring the audience to deconstruct their perception to find all of the individual pieces, coupled with the sides of the exhibition having artworks categorised by their art form, serving as further examples of the overarching ideas.
Kristie Kriaris-Tsotras
The Queen
Digitally manipulated photocollage (sourced imagery)
27 x 40cm
COVID-19 has impacted everyone and the funeral for Prince Philip showed how difficult the past year has been for people to console others in times of grief, instead faced with loneliness and isolation. Using sourced imagery, I digitally created this photocollage of the Queen sitting alone at her husband’s funeral to show the sadness of grieving alone. The surrounding figures are late members of the Royal family: the Queen’s mother and father, Princess Margaret and Princess Diana. While these people were unable to physically support Her Majesty, I have depicted them in spirit, similar to the way people have felt over this past year with periods of isolation.
The Wedding
Digitally edited photography
30 x 45 cm, 30 x 20, 30 x 45 cm
This triptych includes two of my snapshot photographs from my debutante event earlier this year, showing the aspirations of ordinary girls, juxtaposed by a found photograph of my mother on her wedding day in 1998. These photographs imply themes of entering womanhood with the monochrome sepia filter creating a vintage atmosphere, symbolising the backward nature of a woman’s place in society being defined by patriarchal values, and its perpetuation in society. However, the elegance and beauty of these women also symbolises the collective power and strength that has been used to work towards overcoming these norms.
Creation of Moments
Series of 3 digitally manipulated photography cut outs
20 x 30 x 20cm
This triptych references the familiar Michelangelo piece: “Creation of Adam”, however in a modern sense and alternatively to a God and a human, they present everyday figures in everyday settings. These sculptural artworks convey the essence of human existence and raw moments of human touch captured on camera mimic Michelangelo’s masterpiece to further imply the unexpectedness of human nature and how we endeavour to make decisions that can be considered “outside the frame”.
Bloom
Sourced image collage and cotton embroidery
A3 image collage, varying embroidery sizes
This installation combines a floral collage in a sourced frame and embroidered flowers that are hanging externally to depict the concept of “what’s outside the frame?” The collaged flowers serve as a metaphor to portray how the blossoming of life tends to be limited by our boxed in perceptions of it. Instead, we should think outside the frame, consider broader possibilities for life without constraints that we implement out of fear of the unknown. This artwork urges the viewer to move forward, live outside the frame, and bloom beyond it.
Samothrace
Ceramic with gold leaf
34 x 23 x 23 cm
Using clay and gold leaf I have modelled a head that otherwise goes unseen against its well recognised body, the “Winged Victory”. As I have Greek familial roots I grew up with mythology and stories including the Goddess Nike, and through moulding the clay I developed my own interpretation of Nike, drawing inspiration from Greek women’s facial features. The gold leaf is symbolic of the “victory” aspect of this piece and how I wanted to tie in the original sculpture with my own. This bust evokes feelings of power and strength for the viewer through the legacy associated with this goddess persevering through history.
Creation of Hands
Plaster mould Sculpture
overall size: 12 x 40 x 12 cm
This artwork mimics the outreached hands from Michelangelo’s “The Creation of Adam”, one hand coated in white acrylic paint as a metaphor for the perpetuation of white norms in Australian society. The other hand incorporates statements from members of the Indigenous community to shed light on the “Closing the Gap” movement, and the efforts that must be made by Australia to listen to these Indigenous voices, give back to Indigenous communities what is rightfully theirs, and be guided by their abundant knowledge of the land in which we benefit from.
In safe Hands
Oil paint on wooden board + own sourced digitally edited photograph
(Overall size) 61 x 25cm
This painting reflects the beauty of aging hands and the relationship between my grandparents which has always made me feel safe and loved. Hands are a wonderful way to exhibit human connection and the unwavering love that my grandparents promised one another in their marriage vows, as seen in the accompanying 1969 photograph. This past year has been extremely tough due to COVID-19 prohibiting most physical connection and having a sense of safety in our relationships, as well as offering a virtual helping hand to those in need, is what we as a community are working towards in these trying times.
Goddess Divine
Water colour paint and embroidery on loose canvas.
48 x 44cm
This artwork incorporates artwork elements of Raphael Sanzio, Gustav Klimt, and Orly Cogan to convey a powerful image of the nature of femininity and gaiety. Flowers, concentric circles, spirals, and colours stereotypically associated with societal constructs of femininity juxtaposed by the daring goddess Athena holding a weapon and a shield with the head of Medusa within a divine atmosphere, highlight the true power of women. Women have the strength and capability to refute these norms that have aimed for centuries to label them into a strict box, but now we break out.
Van Gogh
Water colour on paper
30 x 42 cm
This artwork is a culmination of 4 Van Gogh paintings: “Almond Blossom, 1890”, “Self Portrait, 1889”, “Evening Landscape with Rising Moon, 1889”, and “Femme Assise Dans L'herbe, 1887”. This artwork offers a view of Van Gogh’s life like a puzzle being pieced together as majority of the elements in each individual artwork are present across them all such as the alternating between warm and cool colours, as well as the subject matter including nature and the environment. Ultimately the Almond Blossom is the main focus of this piece as it is his most recognisable subjects and was completed in the same year of his death, inciting a sense of melancholy within the audience when viewing this piece.
YK Samothrace
Clay bust with blue glaze
12 x 8 x 10 cm
This smaller sculpture is a derivative of the life-size Samothrace bust and aligns with a smaller replica of the “Winged Victory” was created by Yves Klein. Similarly as he used his signature blue pigment, I employed a blue glaze to convey the modernised version of Samothrace as well as serving as a symbol for Greece as blue is the colour of their flag. This artwork of one figure taking many shapes explores the facet of human existence whereby we obtain many social-selves as opposed to just one personal self, and our intricate complexities.
Process portfolio
