Karen Snouffer joined the department in 1998 and received her MFA from Ohio State University. She teaches painting, drawing and installation. Her work, which concentrates on installation and painting, is exhibited nationally.

Areas of Expertise

Drawing and Painting

Education

1987 M.F.A., The Ohio State University, Painting and Drawing
1968 B.S., The Ohio State University, Art Education/Fine Arts

Courses Taught

Arts 102: Drawing I
Arts 250: Fundamentals of Painting
Arts 351: Contemporary Painting Practices
Arts 480,481: Advanced Studio

Artist's Statement

"Investigating the common object as a metaphor for the human condition is a direction I have explored over the last eight years. I have become increasingly sensitive to the psychological weight that the ordinary may carry, being particularly mindful that this deciphering centers on personal experience and cultural meaning. In my recent work, the act of remembering moved to the forefront of my emotional and artistic concerns, as I addressed the death of my father. Referencing some of his common and not so common objects gave me the opportunity to aesthetically resolve and discover innumerable definitions of memory.

"As a multi-media installation artist, I am fascinated with space and have incorporated painting, drawing, three-dimensional forms and video together or alone in my environments. Because photography is closely associated with memory and the transient, it has also become a genre that I utilize in single pieces or larger site-related works.

"How do these approaches impact my teaching? I encourage students to value mastering traditional processes while being open to experiencing the excitement of searching out and discovering non-traditional methodologies. I want students to learn that art making involves both anguish and exhilaration and that these emotional states are necessary for artistic growth. In the midst of a dynamic liberal arts setting, I encourage a student to utilize an interdisciplinary approach to art making, confident it will aid in the development of a broad yet deeply enriched visual language."