Reagan Herndon

BFA ’20 Painting and Drawing

Larger Than Life

We are faced with expectations every day from family, acquaintances, strangers, society, and even ourselves. However well meaning, this pressure, coupled with constant reminders and idealized versions of what life should be, shape us and our choices. I have come to learn that life is not always what you want or even what you expected. My paintings center on the board game, LIFE. Objects from the game such as cars, buildings, and cards are arranged to create various visual narratives.

Though I am communicating my own experiences, the works reference issues that I feel many viewers can relate to. For example, in the piece Settle Down a car is seen crashed into a church with a pink player thrown from the car. This painting depicts my frustration at the constant questions of “When are you getting married?” or “Do I hear wedding bells?” Through talking with my friends and peers I realized that many people can relate to this pressure and constant reminders that “You are not getting any younger.” The subject matter is mischievous and colorful to imply a lighthearted playfulness to real-life situations. When faced with pressure and tension, I often use humor, and my work does this as well. The humor from the visual narrative allows the viewer to engage with the work and the content without the tension and heaviness that serious matters can imply. Through the creation of these visual narratives, I have been able to confront these expectations of myself and I hope it allows viewers a chance to look at their own as well.

Due to Covid-19 and the shutdown, much of what I wanted to accomplish for my senior exhibition is no longer feasible, at least for the time being. I never expected to land on the square that said ‘Pandemic quarantine closes everything. Go home with no senior show. My hope for my senior exhibition was for the viewer to feel like they were pieces on the board game of LIFE, a parallel of our own life’s journey. I made the pieces and game parts quite large, so as to feel closer to life-size. I had also begun the construction of an over-size spinner like the one in the game of Life, that viewers could spin to allow a chance to immerse themselves in a colorful, thought provoking world. Even with the change in format I hope my work is presented in a way that gives you an idea of the overall experience I wanted to convey. I am grateful that everyone can still see the work I have created, and with the online format I am glad that even more of my friends and family can participate. You can view more of my work at reaganherndon.com.