anievesdesign
Info
anievesdesign@gmail.com
April 10th, 2025 - April 28th, 2025
To cap off senior year, all BFA students take part in a group exhibition at the Elsie B. Rosefsky Gallery in Binghamton’s Fine Arts Building. My goal was to make works that all engage in a dialogue with each other, forming an experience that exists in its own world
for viewers to step into.
April 10th, 2025
40x Screenprinted T-Shirts (Black FN Ink)
Sizes S, M, L, XL
I decided to make a pseudo-brand called “What makes you happy?”, and screenprinted 40 T-shirts to give away for free at the opening. I made four different designs in my sketchbook, which were then edited in Photoshop and printed as screenprinting positives. The concept surrounding this project aims to discuss how many large companies dictate the identities of their customers with their products. Customers sacrifice some amount of their identity to fit in with others who are also consuming the product from a fear of missing out, rather than buying products that actually speak to them. Many of those who got a shirt on the day of the opening did not get the design they wanted or a properly sized shirt, yet still got whatever they could.
April 10th, 2025
Birch 1/4 in. plywood, masonite, drawer slides, compression springs, lock mechanism
40 UV Printed Cards (Mohawk Superfine Eggshell White 24 PT)
To be paired with “What makes you happy?”, I wanted to print out cards that customers must fill out in order to receive a shirt for a more interactive exchange. One must first write down what makes them happy and then circle what design they would like. I then built a locking drawer meant to imitate a cash register, which would store the cards. The idea for “Even Exchange” was to imitate the exchange of currency for products, and in this case, happiness. While the buttons have no function, the drawer locks with a key and is spring-loaded, so it slides out on its own after being unlocked. “Even Exchange” adds further irony to WMYH, as the information on the card may have nothing to do with the products the company has to offer you.
March 31st, 2025
Adobe Photoshop, InDesign
8.5 in. x 11 in.
I frequently posted promotional material for my pseudo-brand leading up to the opening on my Instagram, and printed over 50 promotional flyers, which I put up all over the Fine Arts Building. Each week, I would put up 8 flyers, gradually filling the halls with WMYH. My intention with this rollout was to ensure that people were excited about my project and the exhibition in general early on. On the day of opening, there was a line going out the door for my shirts, which sold out in 20 minutes.
April 9th, 2025
Oil on canvas, Maple Lumber, Masonite Board
24 in. x 42 in.
The final piece that I submitted to the BFA Exhibition. This is a painting of myself when I was eight in the room I grew up in. It perfectly tied into my “What makes you happy” concept. The room is full of products: Legos, Minecraft posters, Pokémon on the TV, books, Yankees merchandise, etc. The painting shows that I am not exempt from consumerist tendencies as well. The key distinction is that the objects themselves aren’t what bring me happiness, but instead the memories I have that are attached to them.
In addition to the painting, I constructed a custom frame with help from Austin, the woodshop technician. The stain and finish were specifically chosen to mimic the frame of the bed in the painting.
April 3rd, 2025
Adobe Photoshop, After Effects
1920 px. x 1080 px.
Due to the high volume of students involved in the exhibit, BFA students were tasked with making a short artist talk video that walks attendees through the meanings of their pieces while telling some information about the artists. These were accessible via QR code placed next to student work. Each student created their video in the style of their preference.