Makenna Douglas

Makenna Douglas

Makenna Douglas


My concept is based on perception of the world in two ‘lenses’, the natural and the civilized. Within the natural world, there is an energy which is so immense and encapsulating that it demands presence of body, mind, and spirit. Time, specifically, has an ephemeral quality when the body and mind are immersed in nature. In contrast with nature is the civil world. Civilization is tethered to many factors which can deceive, skew, and distract an individual's perception of themselves and the world around them. I believe that conjuring positivity, clarity, and creativity through the presence of nature, is truly essential. This is the root of my fascination with how an individual can experience the most authentic form of themselves. These ‘lenses’ are depicted using photo reference imagery from my life in Philadelphia, and the Adirondack Mountains. Images from the city represent the civil world, as the images from the mountains represent the natural world. Figurative elements are set in the spaces of land/cityscape to create relationships between the cohesive state of nature and the structure of material/enclosements.