Digital print 1/3

Framed

Artist Statement:

The prints in this exhibition investigate serious play as a generative force within creative practice. The work is deeply informed by the same ideas that inspired the collaborative sketchbooks shared with my mentee - an approach that embraces experimentation and intuition as essential components of making. 

Rooted in the spirit of inquiry rather than outcome, these digital compositions were developed in Photoshop through an open-ended, responsive process. Each piece unfolded through an ongoing negotiation between shape, color, and spatial relationships. Rather than beginning with a fixed concept, I allowed forms to emerge, collide, dissolve, and reconfigure. This method prioritizes curiosity, attentiveness, and a willingness to follow unexpected visual pathways.

The resulting works hold traces of decision-making, revision, and discovery. It is through this serious play that new possibilities arise and uncertainty becomes a site of potential. By engaging in this process, I demonstrate the value of experimentation as both a teaching and artistic strategy, one that invites continual learning, exchange, and transformation.

Artst Bio:

Bethanie Irons is an artist, designer, and educator living in Columbia, MO. She holds a Ph.D. in Art Education from the University of Missouri, M.F.A. in Art from the University of Missouri, and B.F.A. in Art from the University of South Dakota. She serves as an Assistant Professor of Art at Columbia College.

bethanieirons.com Instagram.com/bethanie_irons