Welcome to the Artist Showcase, a new feature about student artists and creatives here at Indiana State, regardless of their major or academic level. Every other week, the Statesman will discuss a student creative’s art, process, journey, and inspirations. If you are interested in being featured in this column, please email: slee105@sycamores.indstate.edu.
The first featured artist is Chloe Simma-Martin. Simma-Martin’s Master of Fine Arts thesis exhibition, All Things That Are, is currently being showcased at the Turman Gallery in the Fine Arts Building on campus through Friday, April 4. A public reception celebrating the exhibition will be held this week on Thursday, Mar. 20 from 4-6 p.m. at the Turman Gallery.
In the following interview, Simma-Martin shared her journey, what makes the medium of her artwork both challenging and rewarding, what she hopes viewers will take away from her artwork, her plans for the future, and what inspires her.
Q: Please state your program of study here at Indiana State, and what you do.
A: Chloe Simma-Martin, Master of Fine Arts student with a focus in Printmaking. I specialize in a printmaking technique called Photogravure, a unique medium that combines my love for both photography and printmaking. Simply, I make photographic etchings.
Q: Why or how did you become interested in pursuing your art?
A: Throughout my bachelor’s work, I emphasized in photography, specifically through analog processes such as silver gelatin prints, but by my senior year, I became more and more interested in printmaking. Around that time, my instructor, Chester Burton, introduced me to the process of photogravure. The process seamlessly combined my interests in both printmaking and photography, so I continued to learn more about the process and practice the medium.
Q: What are some of the biggest rewards of your work? The biggest challenges?
A: Photogravure is a relatively uncommon medium, and one with many challenges. Photogravure has an incredibly high failure rate, and with so few artists working with the medium, I am often in the dark, attempting to troubleshoot. To produce a plate that is able to create a serviceable print can be incredibly difficult at times, so I think the feeling of creating a successful print is the most rewarding aspect of it all.
Q: Your MFA thesis exhibition, All Things That Are, is currently being showcased at the Turman Gallery in the Fine Arts Building here at Indiana State, with a reception held this Thursday. Could you describe the process behind this specific project, from conceptualization to exhibition? What do you hope people will take away from the exhibition? Your work as an artist in general?
A: With this body of work, I aim to sway my viewers to appreciate life in ways they haven’t before. By looking beyond basic objects and instead focusing on details, one may begin to question their perceptions of reality. Elliot Erwitt coined a phrase that photography is “the art of observation,” but I do not think this is an act only photographers should employ. The world and its offerings should not be so easily dismissed by passersby. The goal of my work is to reverse this dismissal; striving to use observation to create connections for individuals to be more conscious as a part of this world. Everything can be beautiful, so long as you shift your perspective. In its simplest form, this body of work is an appreciation for All Things That Are.
Q: What are your future plans or goals with your art?
A: Following graduation, I plan to continue my work with polymer photogravure. I hope to continue with my own work and share my process with others, perhaps through workshops, or through other teaching opportunities. I am also the Gallery Director at Java Haute, so I aim to continue providing local artists with the opportunity to share their work with the community.
Q: What are your current artistic concerns, interests, inspirations?
A: My surroundings are my greatest influence. I think anything and everything can be beautiful, so long as you’re willing to shift your perspective to see it that way. Nature is of course one of my greatest inspirations as well, and it will likely always be.
Q: Where can people follow your work?
A: My website is www.chloesimmamartin.com and my Instagram is @c.simmamartin
