One of the larger projects from my senior design course at LSU was the “Catalog of Influences․” This project represented the most open ended of school projects I have worked on․ The prompt was simple꞉ condense your artistic influences into a book and elaborate on them․ The book can take any form or shape‚ and should reflect a theme that runs through your influences as well as allow you to explore and elaborate on what has given you the artistic approach you hold today․
My book‚ “The Funny Guy Always Wins Sometimes‚” is a personal tribute to history’s artists who possess (or possessed) a unique knack for being funny․ The artists are not chosen solely for being funny‚ they are included for their innovations‚ and selflessness in how they can deliver a quirky smile through a complex work of art․ Examples include Charles Adams‚ Saul Steinberg‚ and Giuseppe Arcimboldo‚ among others․ All of these artists possess a kindred sense of humor that puts miles between them and their contemporaries․
Kicked off by my favorite Groucho Marx quote‚ the book is meant to be slightly sardonic in its presentation while staying honest in its copy and portrayals of the chosen artists․ Despite the seemingly haphazard nature of the book‚ there is a strict grid system and layout used for the standard artist portrait spreads․
