By: Mary Freda
Six years ago, Shannon Mehaffey moved back to Muncie. However it wasn’t until a year-and-a-half ago that the Pendleton-native regained control of her life.
After Mehaffey, who studied photography at Ball State, graduated in 2010, she moved to Texas to pursue a master’s degree. However, she moved back in 2012 after she left a violent relationship.
“I was a victim of domestic abuse and I did have to escape that situation. So, I did feel very isolated and alone and having to work through that. That's where the power lines come through. They're like a tie to the past and moving forward and like the derelict landscapes,” Mehaffey said.
“Feel like that broken down, that like having to rebuild yourself and having to build up from what was a crumbling and torn foundation of what you thought was yourself.”
Mehaffey has worked at Cornerstone Center for the Arts for a year-and-a-half where she started as an event host and eventually worked her way up to receptionist. This past summer, she started teaching watercolor courses — 12-week courses in the fall and spring and eight-week courses in the summer.
And about six months into her new job, the gallery coordinator at Cornerstone asked Mehaffey to showcase her work in the newly renovated Judith Barnes Memorial Gallery.
The exhibit, “Studies in Isolation,” uses what Mahaffey refers to as a “dirty aesthetic.” The 17 pieces in the collection are inspired by photos from her childhood and memories — both good and bad.
“They're a series of painting — they're mixed-media works. They start with a wash of watercolors, like what wet into wet watercolors and I start with a photograph. It's either a Google satellite image like street view or something that I've taken myself,” Mehaffey said.
The process starts with photo inspiration. However, the first step is laying watercolor down on canvas. Then Mehaffey transfers the photo to canvas using Citra Solv. After the photo is completely transferred, she goes back in with a pen and more watercolor to add the details — each piece from idea to final product took about eight hours.
“I've picked a lot of different locations and the titles are kind of akin to the locations,” Mehaffey said. “Working through that trauma is like the landscapes and a lot of them are derelict and vacant locations because through the trauma I felt like I was very alone and having to work through that process by myself.”
Mehaffey’s work will be on display at Cornerstone through Dec. 14.
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