#gocadowntown

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Artist Feature: Mia Mras

What’s the tastiest shape?

A circle, because without it we wouldn’t have pizza, cake, cookies, or an easy way to tell time through a clock.

Classiest font and why?

Wing Dings, why? Because I think it is such a fun font to use cause no one can understand you.

How do you plan to take over the world?

Simple, I will follow the steps from Pinky and the Brain. One of those plans are going to work eventually.

What is your art about?

The feeling of being weak and uncomfortable; a victim to being bullied and insulted for the gender you are. Someone out there has been through the same thing and others don’t feel comfortable in their own skin. I wanted to create something where those hidden wars could be seen without you having to fear being found out. This work is a canvas to show your weakness, pain, identity, and judgement without needing to think of repercussions. It is almost like a way to escape those thoughts and help you identify what really has gotten under your skin.  A place to help those who see it, understand that they are not alone and that feeling ashamed of your own body's natural form is healthy to speak out about. This work is to make hidden warriors finally speak out.

Mia Mras is a senior in Visual Arts at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs. She was born into a military family in Amsterdam, Netherlands but raised in Gelsenkirchen, Germany for a few years. The experience helped shape her ideas for art. After moving to Atlanta, Georgia she began to draw. Her work since a young age has expressed ideas of fantasy, emotion and the body. Her inspiration for this type of art recently would have to be how many young women and men are uncomfortable with how they look because of social media, but also the large movement of the LGBTQ+ community in the recent years. Showing light on this is an internal battle not many people will notice. Making her want to make an external representation of it for people to see.

Mia Mras, detail of Family (Print #5), relief print, 9 x 12", 2019.

See the work of Mras and her fellow UCCS VAPA Seniors at Unapologetic. at GOCA Downtown (121 South Tejon, Suite 100) starting April 19th, and running through May 18th. 

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Artist Feature: Nicole Brewer

Biggest thing you changed your mind about in life?

That it’s not only okay to admit you don’t know something, but it’s also the easiest way to learn and grow.

How do you plan to take over the world?

In high school I drew a musical symbol on my wrist and then friends asked me to draw it on them as well. Later in the day I got called down to the office for starting what was being called the “Nicult”. This method seems fairly easy to scale.

What are you the least sorry for?

Aggressively hating the color yellow

What is your art about?

Stillness abounds in these celestial landscapes. Taking a breath from the everyday dissonance, I escape into the limitless freedom of the wilderness. The tranquility of nocturnal solitude combines with these strong animals in their natural habitats. Take a step into the fantasy of a magical forest and be liberated by the feeling of belonging. This enchanting escape is healing to the soul in both the process of creation, and the silent serenity that flows out of these captivating pieces.

Nicole Brewer was born in 1997 in Levittown, Pennsylvania. She grew up involved in music and arts and was always learning new instruments and experimenting with new artistic mediums. In 2017, she moved to Colorado Springs and transferred to the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. She is currently a senior and will receive her BA in Visual and Performing Arts in the fall. Brewer has already been included in various exhibitions including Young Hot Shots at The Modbo, Colorado Springs, Colorado, and the Penn State Abington art show of 2016 and 2017.

Nicole Brewer, Detail of Thrive, water and alcohol based ink, dimensions vary, 2019.

See the work of Brewer and her fellow UCCS VAPA Seniors at Unapologetic. at GOCA Downtown (121 South Tejon, Suite 100) starting April 19th, and running through May 18th. 

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Artist Feature: Grace L Rouse

Are you improving with age or worsening?

I’d like to think that I’m improving… in the ways that count at least, but the older I get, the more I realize that I really don’t know anything.

First concert you ever went to?

Fall Out Boy at Red Rocks Amphitheater - it’s in there with all of my most precious memories.

Favorite candy/cereal/board game as a kid?

My favorite candy was Bit-O-Honey, so retro now.

What is your art about?

My work couples the struggles of modern day life with our deep detachment from the natural world. Our relationship to Earth is fragmented, and our heart’s ache for her. As a child, I explored the woods and beach behind my home daily, embracing the divine connection to the universe, my humanity, and to the spirituality that was found there - in communion with the plants and animals. Now, I crave the stillness of nature and the night sky, to silence the overwhelming quality of life. Through my art, I aim to convey a celebration of all things in the universe, contrasted with the challenges of current existence, femininity, motherhood, and mental wellness.

Grace L Rouse was born and raised in a small town in Michigan, along the shores of Lake Huron. Rouse studied Fine Art at Spring Arbor University in Spring Arbor, Michigan for 3 years, before moving to Colorado to finish her Bachelor of Arts in Visual Art at University of Colorado Colorado Springs.  She has exhibited in group exhibitions at Ganton Art Gallery, Spring Arbor, Michigan, The Modbo, SPQR, and GOCA 121 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Rouse currently works out of her home studio in Colorado Springs. Her art commentates on the divide between the natural world and modern day life.

Grace L Rouse, detail of Untitled, Graphite, gouache, and collage, 11″ x 17″, 2019.

See the work of Rouse and her fellow UCCS VAPA Seniors at Unapologetic. at GOCA Downtown (121 South Tejon, Suite 100) starting April 19th, and running through May 18th. 

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Artist Feature: Chavez Padilla

Biggest thing you changed your mind about in life?

Not giving up on a relationship with my mother. (edit) maybe not

What are you the least sorry for?

My vagina.

Are you improving with age or worsening?

Improving in the greatest way.

What is your art about?

Exploring the feminine through its tropes of elegance, beauty, fragility, and ephemerality. These constraints provoke dialog and my works question those stereotypes. Floating veils are the ghosts of the feminine, the mold and facade that is adhered to in contemporary society. The feminine ideal is characterized by the triad Virgin, Novia, and Muerte. The fabric takes on the shape and characteristics of a body, but its translucent appearance elevates the figure into the metaphysical ideal. The creation of idols in three stages constitute a stigmatized theology. I have chosen to revise this theology, contrary our contemporary understanding.

Chavez Padilla was born of Mexican-American parents in Southern California and raised in Colorado Springs, Colorado. CHAVEZ is obtaining a Bachelors of Art at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs and a minor in Japanese language and Culture. A textile artist, CHAVEZ works with delicate materials such as lace, thread and glass beads - creating imposing ephemeral sculptures. CHAVEZ began working with fabric in her childhood and participated in a summer course for pattern-making at fifteen. CHAVEZ’s work often addresses aesthetic feminism, traditional female craft making, and the power of ceremonial dress in contemporary society.

Chavez Padilla, NOVIA, tulle, salt, wire, fishing line, 8.5′x5′x5′, 2018.

See the work of Padilla and her fellow UCCS VAPA Seniors at Unapologetic. at GOCA Downtown (121 South Tejon, Suite 100) starting April 19th, and running through May 18th. 

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Artist Feature: Deborah Schoen

What single expenditure do you regret the most?

A treadmill. My dog used it more than I.

Biggest thing you changed your mind about in life?

Having children. I made my husband wait 9 years.

Are you sorry for anything?

I’d like to apologize - ahead of time - to my children for any emotional distress I might be responsible for as I navigate the complex waters of parenthood.

What is your art about?

When I was young, my mother taught summer Home Economics classes. As the trend of “home” training phased out with the rise of feminism, those early experiences introduced me to the push and pull of “women’s work”. Although times are different, the “double day” phenomenon continues to challenge my thoughts on domesticity, the working woman, and the fantasy of the American dream. It is through my investigation of three generational and matrilineal dialogues that I explore traditional notions of femininity, the transformative qualities of female personas, and the value of one’s time. My work explores the fluidity of found-materials, the deconstruction of the old, re-contextualization of the new, and allows me to use “domestic art” to measure the boundaries that continue to challenge the modern-day woman.

Deborah Schoen is a daughter, mother, spouse and artist who lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Born and raised in southern California, she grew up in a busy, eccentric home, which felt familiar after she married into the military. Since then, she has moved nearly twenty times and has lived all over the country and overseas. In the fall, Deborah will be graduating with a Bachelor’s in Visual and Performing Arts and a minor in Art History. Her process as an artist involve the use of found materials that explore fantasies within the domestic sphere. Schoen’s work has participated in both solo and group exhibitions in Virginia and Colorado. Her awards include the Linda Holmgren Jensen Endowed Scholarship for the Arts, the University Village Center Public Sculpture Scholarship and the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs LAS Faculty & Student Creative Works Grant.

Deborah Schoen, Altered series: Patch and flap, recycled clothing, cotton, wool, plastic buttons, 8″x17″, 2019.

See the work of Schoen and her fellow UCCS VAPA Seniors at Unapologetic. at GOCA Downtown (121 South Tejon, Suite 100) starting April 19th, and running through May 18th. 

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Artist Feature: Love Aritus

What’s the tastiest shape?

Triangle or any shape pizza comes in.

Are you sorry for anything?

Not apologizing enough.

Favorite candy/cereal/board game as a kid?

My favorite cereal was Cinnamon Toast Crunch.

What is your art about?

Illustrating the intersection of human emotion and intimate moments. My process involves transforming found imagery into line drawings that intertwine and push across the page. Full of mark marking, these drawings are grounded and capture the intimate moments in our lives. These human connections are significant because they allow us to reflect on the different relationships we have and the ways they shape our identity. Relationships imitate the ways in which we see ourselves, a major contributor to our sense of life’s personal meaning.

Love - Angelly Aritus was born in 1998. She will graduate University of Colorado, Colorado Springs, majoring in Fine Arts and minoring in marketing. Her work deals with the intersection of human connection and intimate moments.

Love Aritus, Release, ink on paper, 18″x24″, 2019.

See the work of Aritus and her fellow UCCS VAPA Seniors at Unapologetic. at GOCA Downtown (121 South Tejon, Suite 100) starting April 19th, and running through May 18th. 

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Artist Feature: Joshua Hardin

Are you improving with age or worsening?

Improving every day. Indeed, I’m in my prime.

How do you plan to take over the world?

Good hygiene and a nice smile.

What are you the least sorry for?

My wonderful and majestic Sailor tattoos.

What is your art about?

By evoking different emotions, one can gain insight from one’s own experience. In a world of pain and suffering, my art captures a glimpse of the trauma. I use texture, color and abstract forms to embrace the emotion I want. The process with my materials lend to a special mark with paint. This process has taken me to manipulate materials from their original or expected use. I have, with much joy, painted large scale which emphasizes its meaning.

Joshua Hardin was born in 1974 during the end of the Vietnam War. His mother was Mexican-American and father Caucasian-American. Raised in Northern California in a predominantly Mexican culture. Joshua was a Youth Correctional Officer in California and Colorado for sixteen years while serving in the Navy Reserves for eight years. The experience in youth prison and two deployments to the Middle East gives Joshua inspiration to explore trauma in his early work. Currently his artwork illuminates psychological and spiritual meaning.

Joshua Hardin, The Cross, acrylic on canvas, 20″ x 16″, 2018.

See the work of Hardin and his fellow UCCS VAPA Seniors at Unapologetic. at GOCA Downtown (121 South Tejon, Suite 100) starting April 19th, and running through May 18th. 

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Artist Feature: Brittany McNeil

What’s the tastiest shape?

A pear is a pretty tasty shape...

First concert you ever went to?

Elton John and he kicked ass!

Are you improving with age or worsening?

I’ll say that I am in a constant state of development... A perpetual piece of work; I am in my cocoon waiting for the moment when I step out, even if only to let my wings dry in the sun.

What is your art about?

My work is as an ode to the female condition as I experience it. When patrons view or experience my work, I hope that it energizes their spirit. Every piece is a prayer that has come into material fruition but you will not find religion here. Living art is sometimes worry and good spirit molded with good intentions and poured with empathy. This body of work is a reflection on girlhood, laughing at programmed ideologies of what it is to be lucidly aware of when you have not reached the peak. I bring to the discussion optics of the female body, the human condition and also spirituality. When it comes to enrichment of female bonds, it is my belief that we do motherhood and we create sisterhood but, it is "daughterhood" that will be the next reach for womankind. Daughterhood is essentially 'nurturing the mother' and I believe this one concept can heal our world.

Brittany McNeil was born in Fort Ord, California to Leslie and Doyle “Billy” McNeil. She grew up in the golden age of Saturday morning cartoons and knowing the world around you was going outside and seeing it for yourself. She is one of five children: Samantha, Delia, Deurian, and Brim, who is the youngest. Brittany graduated from Seaside High School. In 2009, she earned an Associates of Art degree from Colorado Technical University for Visual Communications and is currently working on a Bachelor’s degree in Visual and Performing Arts from The University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, where she is currently taking classes.  

Brittany McNeil, Charging Port, rock, acrylic paint, glitter, epoxy resin, thermochromic ink, rope light, 2019.

See the work of McNeil and her fellow UCCS VAPA Seniors at Unapologetic. at GOCA Downtown (121 South Tejon, Suite 100) starting April 19th, and running through May 18th.