artlessalma

[artlessalma]

FINAL INDEX

1. BODILY STRUCTURES Line, Circle, Line

2. BODILY STRUCTURES Welded Frame Photos 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5

3. BODILY STRUCTURES Sketches 1 | 2 | 3

4. BODILY STRUCTURES Neutral Setting Documentation + Reflection

5. PHANTOM BODIES Sketches 1 | 2 | 3

6. PHANTOM BODIES Casting Tests

7. PHANTOM BODIES Neutral Setting Documentation + Reflection

[artlessalma]

PHANTOM BODIES Neutral Setting Documentation + Reflection

This piece began with an exploration of parts of my body where I have marks, moles, and other small details. These marks are not always things I hate, but theyre things the I notice suddenly. Once Im aware of their existence, my relationship with my body changes, making it feel strange or too weird to be seen as beautiful or desirable. I chose to cast these different parts of my body and place them ot of order to emphasize that disconnection. I wanted to explore the concept of these marks no longer belonging to my body as they floated misaligned in a surrogate body. The worm-like form doesnt follow human characteristics—its soft, segmented. To me, this created a sort of map or even creature that held and carried fragments of my insecurities. 

I chose to display the piece suspended against a wall, slightly curved like a body that can’t quite hold itself up. The flesh-toned materials, the stretching of the fabric, and the cluster of cast pieces all reference a human body without imitating it.

The process of making this piece was challenging, which mirrored its emotional content. The plaster was unpredictable and fragile. Pieces broke, crumbled, or didn't cast properly. At first, I got frustrated, but eventually realized this breakage and imperfection served the concept. These weren't supposed to be polished or be an idealized representation. They needed to be fractured emotionally and physically. 

[artlessalma]

 PHANTOM BODIES Casting Tests

[artlessalma]

PHANTOM BODIES Sketch #3

Ivana Bašić

[artlessalma]

PHANTOM BODIES Sketch #2

Shea Noland

[artlessalma]

PHANTOM BODIES Sketch #1

Lidó Rico

[artlessalma]

BODILY STRUCTURES Neutral Setting Documentation + Reflection

For this project, I explored the relationship between the human body and structure through the medium of steel and fabric. Inspired by Marina Abramović’s Rest Energy and the abstract, fluid installations of Janet Echelman, I focused on ideas of tension, weight, and endurance. I wanted to create a sculpture that felt both strong and vulnerable.

I used the rebar to create an arched steel form, intentionally bending it to suggest strain, like a spine holding lot of weight. The structure is suspended from the ceiling with chains, creating a fragile balance that echoes bodily vulnerability. I incorporated heavy and textured fabrics — denim, and stretched canvas — allowing them to hang and pull downward, emphasizing the sculpture’s weight-bearing tension.

This project taught me to think more deeply about material properties, not just as aesthetic choices but as conceptual tools. Welding, bending, and assembling the steel by hand made me more aware of the effort behind structure in art and the body. I wanted the final piece to feel alive, as if it were still bearing an unseen burden, straining just to hold itself together.

[artlessalma]

BODILY STRUCTURES Sketch #3

Artist Inspiration: Abraham Cruzvillegas

[artlessalma]

BODILY STRUCTURES Sketch #2

Artist Inspiration: Marina Abramović

[artlessalma]

BODILY STRUCTURES Sketch #1

Artist Inspiration: Katie Truk

[artlessalma]

BODILY STRUCTURES Welded Frame Photos

[artlessalma]

BODILY STRUCTURES - Line, Circle, Line

[artlessalma]

BEGINNER SCULPTURE - MIDTERM INDEX

1. APPENDAGE Sketches

2. APPENDAGE Inorganic Setting Photos (1 | 2 | 3) | Video

3. APPENDAGE Neutral Setting Documentation + Reflection

4. de-TABLE-ization Table Video

5. de-TABLE-ization Table Selfies

6. de-TABLE-ization Sketches 1 | 2 | 3

7. de-TABLE-ization Neutral Setting Documentation + Reflection

[artlessalma]

de-TABLE-ization

This sculpture deals with the relationship between machines and humanity. It is a robotic figure in a pixelated way that still holds a profoundly human element--a beating heart. The use of cubic pieces and paper mache gives the sculpture structure and character. The weathered texture created by the grey oil pastel makes the surface feel more innate and mechanical, in contrast with the raw and almost visceral interior. These elements along with the recorded heartbeat, add a deeper emotional layer to the piece, making it interactive and more immersive.

The process of deconstructing a table to then build something out of it was such an interesting concept. The process itself mirrors the sculpture's themes of evolution. and transformation; breaking something down to rebuild it with a new meaning.

[artlessalma]

de-TABLE-ization

[artlessalma]

de-TABLE-ization

[artlessalma]

de-TABLE-ization

idea #3