Sydney Fort BFA Communication Design Thesis Spring 2017

In Visible Spaces

In a time defined by a fast pace and endless to-do lists, mindfulness and awareness of others are ideas often dismissed as trivial and not worth entertaining. However, there is an underlying desire to sift through our own thoughts and make them known to others, despite our ever-present digital devices which provide endless distraction. Looking to disrupt this distraction and bring the desire for introspection and expression to the surface, I began approaching people in one of the most routine parts of their day—on public buses. I presented individuals with an opportunity to share their thoughts anonymously and to be heard through small bus journals. These books, empty except for a simple opening prompt and equipped with a pen, were hung by small hooks on the seat backs in front of riders so they can easily find and interact with them.

My book, In Visible Spaces, captures the thoughts of ordinary people going about their daily lives, people you might have sat next to everyday and yet never spoken to. It is a collection of written responses and reflections providing a glimpse into the lives of those around you that are seen daily, yet too often go unnoticed. The book consists of two parts that alternate. The first is scanned journal responses of bus riders that I collected along with some of my own drawings, photos, and lettering that was created in response to that specific entry. These spreads are signified by yellow bars along the outer edges of the pages. The other part of the book acts as my own form of journaling that was done throughout the process, both done while I myself was waiting on buses and between sorting through what was collected on the bus.

What I want to touch on is teaching people to empathize, which is something sorely needed now. The areas in which we as a people are coming against each other are almost always stemming from a lack of understanding and compassion for the other person or people. People want to be heard, but people should also want to listen. The value of hearing another person out needs to be seen and that everyone has a story and that that story matters. Through this project I have been able to see glimpses of the lives of people who surround me on a daily basis, but that I never thought to interact with. There is a richness to the mundane now knowing that just because someone is quietly keeping to themselves that it doesn’t mean that they don’t have something valuable to say. I have also realized that to anyone else I am that stranger on a bus, and that these practices of mindfulness and slowing down are incredibly important.

Shyla Villanueva BFA Printmaking Thesis Spring 2017

Matthew Layng BFA Writing Thesis Spring 2017

Justine Highsmith BFA Intermedia Thesis Spring 2017

Aimee Sitarz BFA Photography Thesis Spring 2017

Alden Rodgers BFA Photography Thesis Spring 2017

Jesse Blalock BFA Photography Thesis Spring 2017

Andrew Saxon BFA Photography Thesis Spring 2017

Molly Carlson Animated Arts BFA Thesis Spring 2017

Cai Veronda BFA Animated Arts Thesis Spring 2017

Caitlin McIntyre BFA Animated Arts Thesis Spring 2017

Evan Stephens-Tiley BFA Animated Arts Thesis Spring 2017

Chaz Stobbs BFA Video + Sound Thesis Spring 2017

Tandy Kunkle BFA Illustration Thesis Spring 2017

Kaitlyn Nelson BFA Illustration Thesis Spring 2017

Colin Luton BFA Illustration Thesis Spring 2017

Elisabeth Young BFA Illustration Thesis Spring 2017

Joshua Hughes BFA Sculpture Thesis Spring 2017

Sage Cortez BFA Sculpture Thesis Spring 2017

John Wood BFA Sculpture Thesis Spring 2017

Kathryn Sifford BFA Sculpture Thesis Spring 2017

Hilary Hartner BFA Sculpture Thesis Spring 2017

Jamaali Roberts BFA Painting Thesis Spring 2017

Ashlin Bush BFA Painting Thesis Spring 2017

Valentino Quijano BFA Painting Thesis Spring 2017

Anna Marl BFA General Fine Arts Thesis Spring 2017

Cassandra Lankford BFA General Fine Arts Thesis Spring 2017

Lindsey Walker BFA General Fine Arts Thesis Spring 2017

Corey Ondrey Hernandez BFA Communication Design Thesis Spring 2017

Jourdan Simmonds BFA Communication Design Thesis Spring 2017

Mariah Currey BFA Communication Design BFA Thesis Spring 2017

Sydney Fort BFA Communication Design Thesis Spring 2017

Alexandra Gregory BFA Communication Design Thesis Spring 2017

Ellen Skiff BFA Communication Design Thesis Spring 2017

Elizabeth Karras BFA Communication Design Thesis Spring 2017

Alexander Roebling BFA Communication Design Thesis Spring 2017

Seth Lathrop BFA Communication Design Thesis Fall 2015

Vance McDermott BFA Illustration Thesis Spring 2017

Meredith Bardo BFA Illustration Thesis Spring 2017

Christina Brister BFA Illustration BFA Thesis Spring 2017

Hope Darby BFA Illustration Thesis Spring 2017

Subin Yang BFA Illustration Thesis Spring 2017

Bryson Kaps BFA Illustration Thesis Spring 2017

Brandon Gould BFA Illustration Thesis Spring 2017

Clive Hawken BFA Illustration Thesis Spring 2017

Samantha Fowler BFA Illustration Thesis Spring 2017

Zoe Kimball BFA Illustration Thesis Spring 2017

Joaquin Golez BFA Illustration Thesis Spring 2017

Grace Murphy BFA Illustration Thesis Spring 2017

Tess Rubinstein BFA Illustration Thesis Spring 2017

Seaerra Miller BFA Illustration Thesis Spring 2017

Joshua Bone-Christian Animated Arts BFA Thesis Spring 2017