Student Scholar Spotlight – Thais Lloyd
Student Scholar Spotlight – Thais Lloyd
Featured student work during their time as a college scholar in the College of Arts and Sciences.
Thais Lloyd
Hello all! During the spring 2021 semester, I took time off from school to re-center and refocus myself, and luckily, I was able to do just that! I submitted a proposal for my first ever solo exhibit through Gallery 1010 in downtown Knoxville. It was accepted and my exhibit, Men Say Things to Me, was on display September 17-19, 2021.
The idea of the exhibit was to show people how female-presenting folks experience sexism in everyday interactions, from someone commenting on their clothing to saying that childbearing people are failing if they do not have more than two offspring. This fits perfectly into my program, titled “Women in Art with an Emphasis on the United States,” because it brings together all aspects of my studies into one experience. I designed my program to help me curate, execute, and paint exhibits that focus on true representation of the female-presenting form, and this exhibit does just that.
With the help of my family, I cleared out our back shed and converted it into a painting studio so I could work on the 12 pieces included in the exhibit. Originally, I requested my exhibit to be in November so that I would have more time to execute each piece, but it was slotted for mid-September, so I have really had to learn how to appropriately budget my time and finances in order to make sure that I am going to be able to meet my deadline. Even though at the time of this writing, the exhibit is yet to happen, I have already learned so much about what goes into curating an exhibit and what it means to make a collection of works that flow together and are impactful to the viewer.