Thursday, March 17, 2016

Kayla Varnell
Art Education ~ BFA


Heaven help the fool that falls in love. Art is my love. It's my driving passion, the reason I wake up in the morning, and the one thing that keeps me up at night. Art has become more than a hobby or a pastime. The art I create is what sets me apart from the rest of the world. In fact, I would go as far as to say that creating my view of art has become my world. The way I view anything has been forever changed since the moment I picked up a paint brush. It keeps me grounded. It is my therapy. I can communicate things through my expression of paints, drawings and sculptures that I can't describe with beautiful words and neatly typed font. It's more than just a thing hanging on a wall. It's my thoughts, feelings, opinions. It's a piece of me that's so exposing, it is a little thrilling and terrifying. Art is an important thing in this world that's constantly changing, moving, and growing. It's a driving force that will never be stopped. It's a language that communicates through time and space. Decades of artists are still speaking to people long after they've left this life. History would be totally altered without the strong presence of art. It brutal! It's honest! It's absolutely incredible to see how much art can affect people that you've never met. The visuals connect us on a deeper level than I probably will never understand. I'm so grateful for the love and support I've received over the years. I know that I will be a lifelong learner. There are no limits to what can be created through art. My decision to pursue a career in art education will help shape future generations of students that haven't yet discovered the amazing gift of art. It's always had such a positive influence on my life. It's been a sweet escape for me. 
Each piece I create is different. It's a journey from start to finish and basically forever as other people view my art and feel something totally different than what I intended it to be. The viewer has had their own life experiences that occasionally is drawn out by just looking at someone else art. A lot of the time I don't write an artist statement or even title my art. I really enjoy when people tell me how it makes them feel or what they think I was trying to project. It gives my work another layer. It gives it more history.  I love when people take home my art it means it's not just sitting in a closet or under my bed. It's being looked at, picked apart, talked about, and loved. I'm no writer but I could talk for days about art. Not just my own I love looking at other artist work both old and new. The world they have created is beautiful and inspires me and influences me to want to work harder to become better to affect more people. As an artist and instructor, I believe I can make a difference is someone's life, change their perspective or send them on a path that they never thought was an option. My desire is to educate and learn new things for myself and about myself as well as further my skills and talents through hard work by instructors at Weber State University. 

Wednesday, March 16, 2016


#14
Varnell
Title: Rooted
Medium: Mixed Media, tread. acrylics, watercolors, newspaper.
Size: Three 10x10 canvas
Self Directed
Date: 2016


Saturday, February 20, 2016


#13
Varnell
Title: See me as I am
Medium: Collage, Mixed media 
Final Project 2D 2015


#12
Varnell
Title: Out West 
Medium: Cardboard 
Size: 38x 25 
Weber State Covered wagon Project 2015


#11
Varnell
Title: Paint me pink & blue
Medium: Watercolor, Ink
Size: 14 1/2 X 10 1/2
Self- directed 2016


#10
Varnell
Title: Honey Bee 
Medium: Watercolor, Ink
Size: 14 1/2 X 10 1/2
Self- directed 2016 


#9
Varnell
Title: Rainbow Gardens 
Medium: Acrylic on canvas
Size 36x 12
Plein Air Ogden Arts Festival event 2015