Publication: “Intimate Distance” published by Wayne State University

October 30, 2012

“Intimate Distance: Negotiating the Urban/Suburban Divide”

Author: Whitney L. Sage

Sage, Whitney L., “Intimate Distance: Negotiating the Urban/Suburban Divide” (2012). Mid-America College Art Association Conference 2012 Digital Publications. https://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/macaa2012scholarship/4

Abstract:
As a native of Farmington Hills, a suburb thirty minutes outside of Detroit, I have always had a peculiar relationship with the city. As a child I visited Detroit often for family outings to the DIA and Tiger Stadium. Hours later we would be driving on I-96 returning west. All of my early memories of Detroit are happy and warm, however they are seen through the rose-colored glass of wide cultural and geographic separation from the city. In this way, my artwork, which discusses Detroit’s past and present through literal representation, radiates nostalgia and expresses both a sense of intimacy as well as separation. These three characteristics are always present within my art, though sometimes unconsciously, regardless of the thematic content of any one specific piece. In my recent work images of Detroit buildings are intimately created through the use of hand-made, domestic processes like quilting and embroidering, though distant through the depiction of architectural exteriors that maintain space between the seer and the building itself. Detroit and identity are major themes within my art and as a result, my suburban relationship with the city serves as both content and an obstacle in my everyday artistic practice.

For a link for a downloadable version of the full article, visit: https://digitalcommons.wayne.edu/macaa2012scholarship/4/

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