Artist Bio
Dr. Audrey Reeves, who joined UVU in 2019, is the program coordinator for the Art Education degree in the Art & Design Department. She earned a PhD in Arts Administration, Education, and Policy from The Ohio State University with an emphasis in Art Education, a Masters of Arts in Art Education from Arizona State University, and a Bachelor of Science in Art specializing in Art Education from Miami University. She currently teaches the classes Art 2100 Teaching Art for Children, Art 3500 Secondary Art Education Methods I, and Art 3510 Secondary Art Education Methods II. Her research interests include teacher mentoring, teacher self-care, trauma-informed pedagogies, and arts-based research. Prior to coming to UVU, Dr. Reeves taught a wide range of students, including preschool through 12th grade students in public and charter schools, undergraduate students, and senior citizens, in various locations including Ohio, Arizona, and Belize.
Artist Statement
I find art to be a type of meditation and a therapeutic outlet. When I am constructing my abstract drawings or paintings, I get lost in the feel of the materials as I push, pull, and sculpt the vibrant colors like icing. I am inspired by the colors of meditative and calm spaces I find in nature. Overwhelmed by intense feelings, I make sense of, articulate, and explore this space again, recreating that pocket of happiness in my artwork. While I am drawing or painting, on occasion I let the music I am listening to control the movement and gestures I make. My mind concentrates on the flow of the music and the world seems to vanish. In this state, art is not only a type of meditation, but also a form of creative play and experimentation.
This series came from engaging with and reflecting on the powerful forces of the natural world. In these charged moments in nature, I broke free from the constant chatter of my mind. I sat still, deeply listening and being absorbed by beauty and appreciating life. Looking back on my photography of these moments, my mind wanders back to a calm mentality. Intrigued by this mentality, absorbed by and responding to process, and inspired by the colors, textures, and movement of the world, I reengage in that feeling in these drawings, which transports me back to a state beyond myself, a state of mindfulness.
Arches
Pastel, 2020
Montage
Pastel, 2020
Water Wheel
Pastel, 2020
