The students in the School of Communication, Media and the Arts (SCMA) are tasked with working on a capstone project for the duration of their senior year. A mix of the creative theories they have learned are used to create something for their portfolio.
Students are given creative liberty to do what they are passionate about and wish to showcase. Projects can include a documentary, podcast, photojournalism story or an original feature-length screenplay.
Two senior students who are working on unique projects are Samantha Cuniff and Connor Smith.
“My senior project is a series of oil paintings on the theme of unrestricted creativity. It consists of three large oil paintings that are reflective of Surrealist and Cubist artwork. My body of work is titled ‘Conversations with my Imagination,’” said Cuniff, who is an Art & Design major.
Cuniff’s senior project allowed her to explore a new avenue of art, reaching out of her comfort zone.
“I have really enjoyed experimenting with a new style throughout this project. I am used to making representational pieces, such as portraits and landscapes, but this project has challenged me to expand my boundaries as an artist and make more abstract, unique paintings,” said Cuniff. “I feel as though I have pushed the limits of my creativity past where they used to sit comfortably. Taking risks helps us grow not only as artists, but as humans. I want that to come across in my work.”
Studio arts students’ projects look a bit different from other majors. “We have to create artwork in our chosen medium(s) and curate our own section of the Art & Design Gallery in the Edgerton,” said Cunniff.
There will be an exhibit of their work on display in the Edgerton Atrium, and their Opening Reception is on April 10. This year, there are four studio art majors presenting their works in the gallery.
Smith is creating a 3D model of the Martire Family Arena. “I do a lot of video creations, I shoot for the hockey teams and I do video editing for them. I’ve done some things with animation before where I do 3D motion graphics so that would be what this is,” Smith said.
Smith took his passion and made it into a project. He was inspired by a video from the Entertainment and Sports Broadcasting Network (ESPN) to begin this project.
“I saw a video from ESPN from before a football game where they did a 3D animation of the arena and then they cut to actual footage of the arena, so that is where I got this from and I want to incorporate it in some of my videos somehow,” said Smith.
Smith has done things like this before and has always felt rewarded after he was finished with the process. “Being able to build something this big and this cool and seeing it all pay off in the end is very rewarding,” said Smith.
A lot of the current seniors were inspired by the creative minds of their fellow classmates. “I strive to be as free with my ideas as they are,” said Cunniff.
Jessica Balogh contributed to this article.
Source: Mark F. Conrad, Sacred Heart University
