Colorado College Senior University Thesis Exhibition - Self Portrait Storyboard

Medium
Oil paint on canvas
Location
Colorado Springs
Date
October 2026 - February 2026
For my Senior Thesis I have created a ‘Self Portrait’ storyboard comprised of 13 paintings which draw upon an archive of childhood/staged photos. I’m focused on themes of memory and identity with this series, exploring the way place and time shapes identity. The series is painted with oils on stretched canvases of varying dimensions.

Instead of the typical self portrait, my goal is to craft a selection of imagery that feels autobiographical to me, and which in some, not entirely discernable way, feels cohesive, unified, and descriptive. My compositions are meant to evoke filmic shooting conventions, and storyboarding. Many of the non figurative images draw from specific visuals that remain fixed in my memory from childhood, referencing adventures, conflicts, moments of discovery, fear, and joy. Some pieces are painted from life this past year, representing current memory and identity. Many of the figures are not self portraits either, instead they are individuals who have had central roles in shaping my identity at different times.

A certain speed, saturation, and emotional embellishment in these paintings are all an attempt to convey my reverence for those visually striking, emotionally resonant, and often unnoticed vignettes that carpet daily life. These are images and moments that typically drift from memory, but which gain personal significance and some amount of permanence with the creation of this series.