AUBREY BODINE

Aubrey Bodine is a senior in illustration. Through her art, she wanted to pay tribute to her experience growing up in Tooele. Her BFA exhibit consists of three digital illustrations as well as two 3D forms crafted from felt. Each piece tells a story about her hometown and the impact that it has had on her as an illustrator.

According to Bodine, a major theme of her exhibit is the feeling of being in “a state of decay and growth simultaneously.” This state of conflict is something that she has tried to highlight through her art. “There’s a lot of people moving there constantly, and there’s new housing developments, and the population is growing significantly. At the same time, small businesses don’t last there, and it’s just kind of a place to live but not ‘live.’”

The three digital illustrations were drawn on Bodine’s iPad using an application called Procreate, and her two soft-sculpture pieces were sewn by hand. One sculpture is a boxelder bug, something Bodine associates with her hometown. “I wanted them to feel handmade and plush, like a child’s toy, to kind of play on the fact that I was reflecting on my childhood and being raised in Tooele.”

Bodine’s advice to younger illustrators is all about community.

“Talk to your professors. Build connections there because they are going to be the people that help you have connections after graduation,” said Bodine. “Make friends with the art students. It’s so helpful to have people that you can bounce ideas off of and will understand what you’re going through.”

Talia Woodbury

Talia Woodbury is a graphic designer who centered her final project around the relationship between color theory and spirituality. Her exhibit is called “Reveal,” and according to Woodbury, it was based on the question, “What do your true colors reveal?”

“Rainbows have always meant a lot to me, and the rain has that symbolism,” said Woodbury. “The rain falls, it cleanses everything, and then the reveal of the rainbow. I took that idea, and I used it to kind of formulate my project.”

“Reveal” includes a collection of cards that pair a specific color with the spiritual concepts that are associated with that shade according to color theory.

For Woodbury, this exhibit is important because it is all about self-exploration. “I can either conform and figure out how other people want me to design, or I can stick true to how I feel,” she said. “I’m revealing how I interact with my artwork and how I want other people to interact with my artwork.”

During her time at SUU, Woodbury learned how to follow her own artistic sensibilities, and her advice for the next generation of designers is to do the same. “Have some confidence,” she said. “It took a second for me to be like ‘no.’ I feel like I’ve done a pretty good job in my classes of saying, ‘No, this is my direction.’”

To see these exhibits and others from the art and design program, visit the Southern Utah Museum of Art. Admission is free, but donations are encouraged. The museum is currently filled with amazing artwork, and the Cedar City community can take pride in the talent of the graduating class of 2023.

- Written by Nick Stein