Cameron University will showcase the work of senior art major Luena Comas with a special exhibition in the Sciences Complex. A painter, Comas will present a gallery talk at 3 p.m. on Thursday, September 24, to introduce the exhibition.
Comas relates that curiosity is a word that dominates her every waking moment.
“I have always been a person with a thirst for knowledge,” she says. “It is my constant curiosity and drive for answers that plays a huge role in the creation of my art.
Referring to her creations as “symbolic and surreal,” she explains, “The more personal the concept, the more surreal and dreamlike my artwork becomes. Starting out with a concept is easy but the part I find most challenging is trying to find an icon or symbol to stand for what I am trying to convey without being very obvious about it. This piques my curiosity, and I begin doing research about how other painters used iconography - the subjective, symbolic meanings of subject matter - within their paintings. My art holds symbolic meaning that is personal to me. It could be something as subtle as using hues to represent a person in my life or something a little concrete such as an item to represent a part of my concept or subject matter in my work.”
Comas is a senior pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree with a concentration in painting. A native of Lawton, she first became interested in art in the second grade, when she was introduced to clay as a medium. Self-taught until she took her first drawing class as a high school senior, she enrolled at Cameron as a biology major and enrolled in art classes solely to improve her art skills. She began to feel more passionate for creating art and learning the methods and history of art and eventually exchanged her biology degree plan for an art degree plan.
She served as an instructor for two summer art programs, Creative Expressions and the Fine Arts Summer Art Institute. Her work “Memento Mori: Heart’s Judgement” earned an honorable mention citation at Cameron’s First Student Art Competition in 2019 and was also selected for the Irene Rosenzweig 2017 Juried Bicentennial Exhibition.
Comas was one of two art students selected as winners of the Cameron University Holiday Card Competition in 2019 and her artwork, “Merry and Bright,” was printed and distributed. “Musical Harmony” was a winner of the Playbill Art Contest for the Chisholm Trail Arts Council for 2018-2019.
###
September 20, 2020
PR#20-106
