In The Dark I Always Feel Like Somethings Staring At Me

Rebecca Salas

There are many psychological factors that contribute to why we fear both the known and the unknown. In the eyes of evolution, as a species we’ve grown to be naturally fearful of predators that pose dangerous threats to our survival. Genetically, specific fears and anxieties are passed down for generations creating entire family trees full of anxiety. There is even evidence that fears can be conjured just by hearing about them in a social setting. Then there are more commonly obtained trauma-induced fears where the individual has gone through a scarring emotional or physical event that causes them to completely avoid the stressor. The term fight or flight is an accurate description of what happens to a person's body during a frightening situation. For my senior project, I chose to frame all of the entities I’m afraid of. At this point in my life, my list of fears is longer than what I’m not afraid of. To cope I have found ways through art to create something beautiful out of something horrifying, and have come to terms with my anxieties. Flower Flood is a triptych based on my fear of thunderstorms and natural disasters. When I was younger I would have terrible meltdowns over thunderstorms, and my mother would tell me to pay attention to the smaller things happening throughout the storm, to “look at how the blades of grass are happily dancing around because they’re being fed and cared for.” Just Plane Wrong is composed of 3 panels that explore my fear of airplanes. The view through the airplane window shows the potential tragedy of airplanes raining out of a storm. I Didn’t Mean To Scare You is based on my fear of the paranormal. It is believed that ghosts are just lost souls and they don’t mean to scare you, they just don’t know where to go. Something Staring is based on my fear of the dark and having the feeling that there is always something there staring at me. The bottom panels are broken to represent the idea that this is an issue that I still deal with and can’t be contained. Each of the works in this exhibition is framed by a window; the dilapidated windows frame the fears that I am still grappling with, while the sturdier, more intact windows represent the fears I’ve been able to control. I have used unconventional surfaces and found objects such as wood, masonite, and glass to represent these ideas. Most of the masonite panels come from previous projects that I had done. The frames were found in various thrift stores, and I have added sand and layers of paint or varnish to enhance the already aged look. The web for Distracted is created using fine silver embroidery thread hand-sewn into the canvas, while the spider is constructed with canvas and wire to make malleable legs. Fear is a Mirror is made from broken porcelain dolls and red vinyl to match the reflectiveness of the mirror.