Embedded Files
Taught by Betsey Garand at Amherst College, Fall 2025
Memories - Ink Drawings - Series of 10 - 15 x 11 in
This brush and ink drawing depicts my cat, Midnight, being flash-bombed by my Instax camera. I thought this image was visually interesting as he is an all-black cat, but the lighting makes him look white in some spots. It’s funny to me how his black fur and yellow eyes are almost the same color, and the lower half of his face disappears into the shadows. He was my first childhood pet, and after his death, this picture has become part of his mini shrine and the way I see him most often.
Western Cape Series - Monotypes - Series of 8 - 15 x 18 in
In the spring of 2025, I studied abroad in Cape Town, South Africa. This series depicts several landscapes around the Western Cape that I encountered. The series is ordered chronologically based on the date and time the reference image was taken. I think monotypes of this size really lend themselves to creating landscapes. I experimented heavily with pochoir to detail my landscapes, while using my plexiglass plate to show the ombre of the sky.
Ancestral Regions Data Visualization - Multimedia - Series of 8 - 18 x 15 in
This watercolor series depicts the ancestral regions of my family members of the two generations before me. The format is inspired by W. E. B. Du Bois's data visualization sets, which were revolutionary infographics included in the 1900 Paris Exposition on the status of Black Americans. The specific data portrait of Du Bois that my series is based on is "City and Rural Population, 1890," as I was drawn to the contrasting linear and spiral lines. The data on my parents and my own ancestral regions comes from AncestryDNA tests, and the data from my grandparents is ascertained through my parents' DNA tests, which can determine which parent you inherited certain genes from. Each color represents a different region, and the length corresponds with the percentage (1/2 inch = 1%). The European ancestry is all linear, while the African ancestry is curved into a spiral. For many European Americans, ancestry is more rigid and often better recorded, while African Americans are much less likely to know their roots in more detail than the continent itself, and it creates a certain fluidity within that past. Along with that hidden history, it is fairly common for black Americans to believe they have some Native American ancestry based on stories passed down, so when my father's DNA test showed that he did actually have some, albeit a very small amount, he was shocked that it was actually true in his case. The name plates are decorated with a bit of frottage in the color corresponding to that individual's plurality or majority ancestral region. The names are attached using a blanket stitch, the first stitch I learned from my maternal grandmother. The map features frottage more heavily and shows the regions color-coded to match the data sets.
MNANDI TEXTILES - Installation: Print - 15 x 11 in, Fabric - Series of 4 - 72 x 42 in, Print - 30 x 22 in
MNANDI TEXTILES - Edition of 10 + B.A.T. - 15 x 11 in,
When I was studying abroad in Cape Town, South Africa, I took an African Dance class, which required us to go to a shop to pick out a lappa, a piece of fabric we would tie around our waists when we danced. Our professor recommended Mnandi Textiles, which had dozens of skeins of fabric stacked along the walls. The burnt sienna base print brings a warmth to the print. I wanted to capture how colorful the various choices were, and I did this by hand coloring the edition with colored pencils and using pochoir in areas where I wanted to contrast two colors besides burnt sienna. Using different pressures in the colored pencils offered various tones that I enjoyed playing with.
Raspberry Patch - 7 ½ x 5 ½ in
Raspberry, Hand Colored - 5½ x 5 in
Ilanga - 18 x 15 in
Page updated
Report abuse