By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hay Post
Three Fort Hays State University master's in graphic design students have come together for an MFA exhibit that is on display now through Friday at the Moss-Thorns Gallery of Art.
All three have very different styles, but they have come together in an exhibit called "Synthesia."
Two of the students included work from community service projects in their exhibits.
Thomas Giebler of Andover cooperated with FHSU Professor Kari Simpson Voth to create a coloring book that will be distributed to children visiting their mothers at the Topeka Correctional Facility.
The book features a cloud named Ace that has many different emotions. The book depicts situations the children may experience, such as going through security. It also has a page where the children can draw pictures of the people they are visiting and write lists of things they want to do with their loved ones during the visits.
The coloring book is supposed to go to print this spring.
Minjoo Lee of Busan, South Korea, created limited edition prints that she sold for $30 and donated 100 percent of the funds to help families in war-torn Ukraine. Lee still has some copies of the prints available if anyone would like to purchase one to benefit the cause.
Lee's exhibit is titled "Mycelium," which is named after a type of fungi that breaks down dead material in nature.
Lee said her designs are heavily inspired by nature and the theme of her exhibit is turning negatives into positives.
She said she has used her time in graduate school to expand into the fine art realm. As an undergraduate student, she focused on pen and ink drawings.
She also has developed an interest in tattoos. For her thesis exhibit, she developed a series of tattoo images on paper for clients. She talked to the potential clients about what they did not like about themselves and how they wished they could change.
She then merged two animals — one depicting the negative aspect of the person with how they hoped to be.
Lee's tattoo image is a flying elephant. Lee was obese when she was younger, weighing about 350 pounds. Gastric sleeve surgery within the last few years has helped her achieve a healthier weight.
Schoolchildren often called her an elephant when she was a child.
"[The elephant] has butterfly wings, because I just wanted to be lighter," she said. "I didn't want to be pretty. I just wanted to be lighter."
She explained another drawing in the tattoo series.
She created an image of a bowerbird with a koala head for a client.
"When I asked that person what he feels self-conscious about, he said he felt like he had to be a perfectionist all the time and he has to be perfect all of the time to be loved," she said.
Bowerbirds create elaborate nests to attract mates, while koalas are perceived as being more laid back.
"It's my way of saying I know you're self-conscious about this part of you, but you can be loved. It's OK. You deserve to be loved.
"Everyone has something they hate about themselves, sadly," she said.
Giebler's full MFA exhibit is called "In A Small Sea." Toward the end of his undergraduate degree, he discovered animation and undertook several projects that required him to create whimsical characters.
He created the characters for a video game called Treeson. Visitors to the exhibit can watch a demo of the game.
An evil entity has taken over the magical tree world and placed all the trees in pots. A vegetable hybrid, Onyun, seeks to defeat the evil force but must use enemies like fire and termites to its advantage.
Giebler's portion of the exhibit has a couple of interactive elements. You can scan QR codes and see videos of other characters he's created, including entering the dream world of a child that has just slipped into a candy-induced slumber.
Caitlyn Frazer's master's thesis show is titled "Fraze." It's a play on her last name and the concept that many parts can come together to make a conceptual unit.
Frazer of Garden City said she draws from many mediums for her work, including sculpture and photography.
"I'm molding myself in the shape of whatever kind of artist I need to be," she said.
Frazer's thesis was inspired by her grandmother, Fran Lucas, and her childhood dream of owning a candy store. All the product branding for the store is inspired by her family.
It turned into this funky general store that sells candy, liquor and spirits aimed at helping adults feel like kids again, she said.
Giebler and Frazer graduated in December. This show completes their degrees. Giebler said he wants to teach graphic design and animation. Frazer said she will likely apply to work for an ad agency.
Lee will graduate in May. She is undecided about her plans after graduation. She is considering entering the industry, teaching or tattooing.