For many a college student what I am about to propose is something that you may have only heard of, but never experienced. Imagine a life where the internet was not active in your youth but rather kicked off as you graduated college.
For Jessica Henderson, an Assistant Professor of Design at Bethel University in St. Paul MN, this life, its questions and feelings are what propels her to make art. Henderson works along the lines of self- actualization in the social media age to figure out how smartphones and social media form/formed her.
The walls of Northwestern’s Te Paske Gallery are currently filled with upwards of 40 pieces from Henderson with the exhibit titled “Look Am I.” Henderson’s unique and often layered, two-dimensional work is created through processes such as vinyl cutting, CNC routing, digital printing and screen printing.
Upon first viewing of the exhibit, it is not hard to notice that Henderson primarily uses the neutral colors of black, white and gray. This use of minimal colors allows for certain aspects of the pieces to stand out, including her use of metallic accents and refractive materials, that catch the viewer’s eyes when the pieces are hit with light. Once the viewer notices how the light and angle affect the work, they are encouraged to get different perspectives of the pieces.
If a viewer is to step closer to the pieces, the intentional layering from Henderson becomes more evident and intriguing. Throughout several pieces, phrases and words can be seen, with some being hidden and others being the forefront of the piece. It is through this artful language that Henderson’s intention of exploring social media really starts to bleed through. The work is littered with phrases such as “so alone,” “Trying to figure this out” and “the world is not real.” These statements, which seem to be a plea for help, could be Henderson commenting on the negative effects that social media has been seen to have on people’s mental health.
Problems with self-worth and body image have long been tied to social media and the lives that are portrayed in them. Henderson, trying to reflect her history with social media openly admits to trying to distract the viewer from the deeper meanings in her work. On her website Henderson says, “The work itself contains mixed media pieces that play with material, dimensional, conceptual and process-based tension. Slick, flat, screen-like acrylic surfaces are disrupted by gestural shapes and the action of seeing is challenged by various forms of camouflage, layering and overt distraction through the use of materials like mirrored vinyl.”
Perhaps this camouflage is a way for Henderson to comment on the distractions that social media can bring about, or how people willingly use social media to distract themselves from other issues. Whatever Henderson is trying to communicate could be interpreted differently by each viewer. In a time where technology and contact around the world sits in our pockets, we all have different stories and experiences with social media. Henderson’s work puts the viewer in the position of storyteller, it calls for the viewer to dig into their own lives and see how they have been formed by the digital age.
