Amy E. Fraser Art

Okay, I know, you are SO over hearing about the Feminist Ink series, but just one thing more, I promise. Since I forgot to include additional links and images for Feminist Ink in yesterday’s post I thought it might be fun to share the top ten Feminist Ink picks so far on Pinterest: Serpent Cycle by Amy E. Fraser Maternal Sacrifice by Amy E. Fraser Rooted by Amy E. Fraser Seedling Sentry by Amy E Fraser Broken Dreams by Amy E. Fraser Cerebral Gathering by Amy E. Fraser Gravid Bound by Amy E. Fraser Below by Amy E. Fraser Bone Curator by Amy E. Fraser Autumn Worship by Amy E. Fraser      I swear I’m not bragging, but I can’t deny that I am completely thrilled that people are showing an interest in these works. They may just be looking at it in horror for all I know, but whatever. I’m happy! I’ll take an honest reaction any day. And as they say, art doesn’t exist until someone sees it. So hurray, the work has es...

Guardians by Amy E. Fraser      The Feminist Ink series is complete! I just finished and posted “Guardians” today! It was the last of the drawings from my Dartmouth Thesis project. Wow! Was that a task and a half! What a relief to finally have it finished. I feel like I need a reward for all of that incredibly hard work, or perhaps even a vacation? Ok maybe not, it’s not like I got paid to do this project. Whatever the case I am elated that I actually stuck with it and completed the entire series of 32 drawings (at an average of 10 hours each). Oh did I mention that there were 32 drawings? Yeah, excruciating to edit, but yay me! I did it.       So not only was this project a major time suck but I must admit it has been pretty difficult traveling back in time into my old head space. However, now that I’ve made it to the other side, I get to decide what project to tackle next! The only problem with that being, I have so many projects on th...

Where does the time go? So much for my intentions of consistent blogging, apparently that’s NOT happening. Instead, I’ve been consumed the past few weeks with editing my “Feminist Ink” series. I found my collection of Thesis drawings over the winter break and thought cleaning up the 20 year old concept drawings to make available on AEFraser.com would be a fun little challenge. Challenge, definitely yes, fun, not so much. I scanned in the hefty stack of 32 [11” x 17”] pen and ink drawings, thinking Hey! These are cool, they will add some interesting depth and dimension to my “getting to know your artist series” that I started here on the blog a few months ago. I don’t know if you are realizing this about me or not, but nothing I ever do is fast or easy. The quick clean up that I imagined was going to happen ended up being a major rework on each image, some taking as long as 10-12 hours respectively. What was I thinking? You decide. Here is the before and after example of “Moon Blooming...

Photo of Amy E. Fraser from 2000      Sounds SO dramatic right? In all seriousness it really has been 20 years since I wrote my Masters of Arts and Liberal Studies Thesis: “Dissecting The Western Woman Artist; An Artist's Dialogue”. Much has happened in the two decades that have passed since I graduated from Dartmouth College. Sometimes it feels like that was forever ago and at other times, like it was only yesterday.      So, you may have noticed if you have been reading my blog posts over the past few months, I’ve been feeling a bit nostalgic. Although I’m not sure nostalgic is exactly the word for it. Maybe its melancholy, mostly I think I’m just suddenly feeling old? Without even realizing it, our lives happen along. We often set aside our original dreams and goals for, well, reality. This usually means that we work toward smaller, more practical accomplishments. We learn the art of compromise and we tend to whittle away our existence ...

Dissecting The Western Woman Artist; An Artist's Dialogue by Amy E. Fraser Bibliography Adams, A. E. 1994. Reproducing The Womb; Images of Childbirth in Science, Feminist Theory, and Literature. Cornell U. Press. Ithaca. Aggleton, John P. Ed. 1992. The Amygdala; Neurobiological Aspects Of Emotion, Memory, and Mental Dysfunction. A John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Publication. New York. Amadiume, Ifi. 1997. Re-Inventing Africa; Matriarchy, religion and culture. Zed Books Ltd. London. Antony, L. M. and C. Witt. Ed. 1993. A Mind Of One’s Own. Feminist Essays On Reason And Objectivity. Westview Press. San Francisco. Bartky, Sandra Lee. 1990. Femininity And Domination; Studies In The Phenomenology Of Oppression. Routledge. New York. Beckett, Wendy. 1988. Contemporary Women Artists. Universe. Phaidon Press Limited, Oxford. New York. Benzel, Kathryn N. and Lauren Pringle De La Vars. Ed. 1992. Images Of The Self As Female; The Achievement of Women Artists in Re-envisioning Feminine Ident...

Dissecting The Western Woman Artist; An Artist's Dialogue by Amy E. Fraser  Conclusion        Some autopsy services have a sign reading "This is a place where death rejoices to teach those who live". I believe this holds true in the case of the subject dissected for this Artist's Dialogue. Autopsy revealed a multitude of explanations for the cause of Amy E. Fraser's art.      Like the 'subject', the dialogue also took the form of a living organism. Similar to a living body, the body part chapters worked together to create one integrated whole. Concepts overlapped and intertwined like the processes of human systems. Each organ's cultural metaphor led to individual areas of study and personal perspectives that define my works. Each chapter is significant within itself, yet more complete as part of the whole dialogue.      The dialogue has taught the reader that art is a multifaceted process that includes many a...

Dissecting The Western Woman Artist; An Artist's Dialogue by Amy E. Fraser  Chapter 12 Brain  Gendered Thought, Female Intellect And Feminine Consciousness The Final Examination      Because the brain is very soft and easily deformed, it is not manipulated at the time of autopsy. Instead, it is hung up on a string in a large jar of formalin for two weeks. After the brain becomes fixed and has reached the desired firmness and consistency, it is rinsed in running tap water. Thus, the brain is ready for final examination.   Physiological And Cultural Aspects      By a most basic definition, the brain is the major organ of the central nervous system and the control center for all the body's voluntary and involuntary activities. The brain is assumed to be the sole organ responsible for the complexities of thought, memory, emotion and language. A further inventory of the mental features of a normal adult als...