DANIELLE FERNANDEZ

Memories and storytelling are a significant part of what makes us human. Through my work, I explore transferring memories and nostalgia into physical art objects. Some of my work is hazy, playful, and surreal with a sprinkle of humor, to reference the absurdity of dreams. My work is often gestural and builds up texture and mark with the addition of each layer, similarly to how memories are slightly altered each time we revisit them. Both personal and found objects come together to provide context for my installation based sculptures. I explore symbolism and relationships between people, animals, and objects in our surroundings by injecting character and personality into both human and non-human creatures and objects. My love for combining elements has also sparked an interest in collage. By making art, I can tell stories with visuals instead of words. 

 I’ve also explored various ways to illustrate the blend of joy and turmoil that can arise from interpersonal relationships. Through portraiture, I can delve into the many stories that can be told through facial expression alone. I play with color and mood association to develop these stories further. I often use source imagery, but I purposefully add changes to them based on the story I want to tell, combining factual source imagery with either collective or personal thoughts. I’ve also considered how one's understanding and portrayal of self image can alter others perceptions of an individual. Recently, I’ve explored the impact of technology and social media on the way that we portray ourselves to the world. I’ve begun to research the parallels between fandom and religion to explore the effects that being a part of one of those communities in particular can have on an individual. My recent work makes reference to the information heavy and chaotic nature of the internet. My goal here is to engage familiar information in an unfamiliar, illustrative, and visually interesting way.