getting to know the graduates
Graduating Student: Heidi Blunt (W21)
My goal as an artist is to encourage a celebratory embrace of fat bodies as imperfectly perfect. Contrary to the vast and intricate systems that shame and demonize fat bodies, I feel it is imperative to point out that having a fat body is neither a moral deficiency, nor intellectual failing.
“The Blubby Manifesto”, my Process Paper, explores my journey from personal experience, to larger social investigations, and into my visual arts journey as I ask: How do we craft our own visions of positive embodiment, a love for our fleshy forms, amidst the failings of our physical bodies?
What was on your play list during your time at VCFA?
I’m not a huge music listener. I enjoy the quiet, but I do have a record player in my studio. My favorite records include:
Band on the Run (Paul McCartney and Wings)
The Royal Tenenbaums Soundtrack
Who are your favorite protagonists in fiction?
I love the character Amélie, not only does she have the most adorable bangs, she lives in her own extraordinary world. The movie is innovative, moving, and endearing in my most favorite ways. My other favorite characters include the narrator from Down and Out in Paris and London, Gandalf from The Lord of the Rings, Leon Trout in Galapagos, and Bastian in The Never Ending Story.
How did VCFA change your approach to thinking about your studio practice and your community at home?
I have all of my Artist-Mentors to thank in regards to how my understanding of art-making has evolved during my time in the program. My relationship with materials transformed as I moved my drawings and paintings off the 2-dimensional wall and into 3-dimensional interactive installations and now moving into storytelling with video-based pieces. Throughout the changes in methods and materials, all of my Artist-Mentors fostered my drive to investigate the unapologetic fat experience.
What, or who, should you like to be?
I’ve never wished to be anyone else but myself, but I could imagine that experiencing life at a different time in the past, if just briefly, would be amazing! Life before electricity and cars, maybe even very long ago – I’d love to see how Neanderthals lived.
What is your favorite bird?
What state/country do you live in?
I live in Wisconsin and work in Minnesota along the shores of the amazing Lake Superior!
VCFA Library
Renée Bouchard (W21)
