Inventing Narratives

November 16, 2013 – February 20, 2014

Perkins Gallery

Storytelling has always been an important part of the human legacy. Through stories handed down from one generation to the next, cultures have been defined, traditions have been established, and histories have been embellished. These stories have often been subjects for many works of art over time. Although paintings or illustrations may pertain to a specific story, it is difficult for us to refrain from applying our own creative interpretations to the story, which may over time become completely transformative to the original story.

Works of art are often open to our unique interpretations, which may or may not relate to an artwork’s intended meaning. Although the stories we create about a work of art may be different from the artist’s original intent, it does not necessary mean we are incorrect in our interpretations. It is only human nature to apply narratives to artworks that we may not understand completely.

This act of creating stories out of unfamiliarity is actually another form of art; although we may not fully understand a work of art, we still rely on our inherent creative abilities to construct some sort of relative narrative.

This exhibition is intended to spark those creative abilities within the viewer. The sole intent here is not to simply explain a work of art to the viewer, but rather to keep the meaning of a work of art hidden from the viewer so that they may create their own narratives.