Howdy! I’m Makenna, a multimedia artist currently working on developing my professional practice. I grew up in Hawaii, but I have been falling in love with the fog and rain of Washington. My original idea coming to Evergreen was to be a teacher, but within the last 2 years art has started to overtake those studies so at this point I’m fully accepting my fate as an art major. I’m now trying to listen to my passions and dive headfirst into the things that bring me joy. Art encapsulates every part of my life and I’m perpetually cycling between a myriad of projects- from jewelry to refurbishing furniture and crafting wall decor there’s always an unfinished piece nagging at my brain. I’m loving my Jack-of-all-trades practice.
CPJ: Was there a first moment you can remember where you fell in love with art? Or is it something that’s always been with you?
Makenna: I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t creating. It’s sort of like blinking—it’s just built into me. I remember setting up my dolls as a kid and drawing them like models, or even earlier making paint out of mud to draw on stream-bed rocks. I have always had the itch to create. There’s always that small voice that tells me “I could make that.” I think I’d find a way to make something in a void. I grew up on a rural farm off the grid, so as a child it was either entertain yourself or stare at a wall. So, from a young age I was used to working on art projects alone and used them throughout my life to work through feelings I couldn’t describe. During the early COVID lockdowns I had a lot of time to spend etching my feelings into a canvas. This connection between art and my ability to understand myself has cemented it as part of my being.
CPJ: When did you first decide that art was something you wanted to take seriously? Like, when you decided this was something you wanted to commit yourself to, go to college for?
Makenna: At first, I came to Evergreen to be a teacher and enter the MiT program after I graduate. I spent my freshman and sophomore years in education classes and trying to wrap my head around it as a career. Throughout these Education classes however, my projects and essays always seemed to lean towards art whenever possible. My parents are very supportive and kept encouraging me to follow my interests, which led to me taking more and more artistic classes, further away from teaching. Before entering my junior year, I wanted to think seriously about a career and I found myself somewhere between terrified and disappointed for all of the more conventional avenues I considered. Art was the only thing that has consistently been in my life and it’s where all my passion lies. It was a conversation with my mom that finally pushed me over the edge to commit to art as my full-time.
CPJ: Tell me about your favorite medium to work with? I’ve noticed that you paint often, is that your preferred practice?
Makenna: Mostly I work in acrylics/gouache, but I’ve also dabbled in collage and floral decorations—whatever is bringing me joy I try to follow. I am also in a love/hate relationship with paint pens and alcohol markers. Most of my final pieces however have several mediums. Usually paint, ink, marker, colored pencil, and gel pen are used in almost all my pieces. I love the textures that different mediums produce and layering those textures with color. I am a very hands-on painter, I want to feel the layers and texture as well as see them.
CPJ: What’s the process of creating art like for you? What fuels your creative process?
Makenna: My process of creating a new piece is very internal. I love layering in my art so that affects how I go about planning out a piece; usually I’ll work with one medium at a time, layering and blending until I get the desired effects. For me, a painting usually takes between 10-30 hours depending on the piece and I like to really tunnel-vision on a project. I love to be completely enveloped in my art, usually spending multiple hours in front of the canvas at a time with VERY loud music to keep me energized.
CPJ: Do you find yourself rooted in a sense of place? Whether that be where you find yourself now, or the places you come from? Does this influence your art at all?
Makenna: I don’t think place has an influence on my art. I think it derives a lot more from my feelings and experiences than a place necessarily.
CPJ: What would you say most inspires your art?
Makenna: I don’t want to say it’s selfish, but I do create for myself. I make things that usually either bring me joy or to work through a negative feeling. Some of my favorite pieces (I Wish I Had Wings and Kaleidoscope) were made during early quarantine when I was craving freedom and mourning the delay of what I considered when my life was supposed to start. I was supposed to move in 2020, but I had to instead stay home for that year and attended Evergreen virtually. These pieces are some of the most meaningful paintings I have because they were my attempt to taste what that freedom might have been like and express how I felt like I lost the light at the end of the tunnel. I make these things for myself, and I just hope that other people can find their own experiences in pieces like those.
CPJ: Has coming to Evergreen, and your experience at Evergreen thus far, influenced your work in any way?
Makenna: The biggest influence Evergreen has had on my art practice has been in the people I’ve had the chance to meet. This school is full of so many incredible creatives that I have been overjoyed to learn from. It seems like everyone has a passion project, or at least some artistic venture that they are excited to discuss. I love being able to have a conversation with someone and hear the wonder in their voice when they discuss their work. Meet your fellow artists!
CPJ: Is there a piece that you’re most proud of at the moment? Or one that you just really love?
Makenna: Right now I am in love with collaging. My piece Citrus is my favorite that I have done so far and it makes me so excited to make more. This piece was created during a wine-soaked craft night with friends and I hope that sense of fun and indulgence comes through the art, it certainly makes me smile when I look at it.
CPJ: Is there anything that comes to mind about your experience as an artist you’d like to share?
Makenna: I think a lot of us get held up on having expectations that every piece should be a masterpiece. Some of my favorite artworks started as doodles or just spending time with friends in low-pressure environments. An artist needs fluidity, they need space, and above all I think most artists’ biggest obstacle is putting the pressure on themselves to create something perfect. The reminder I repeat to myself is to loosen the reins. Rigidity can kill not just a painting but your passion for it.
CPJ: Lastly, something I like to close out interviews with, what does art mean to you?
Makenna: Art is inextricable from life. The creation of art for me is as essential as breathing—and sometimes just as unconscious. Art is truly the only thing I can picture myself doing for the rest of my life. How do you describe your sense of touch? Smell? Sight? Art has been the only way I have been able to express certain experiences in my life. More specifically, the act of creating a piece and putting the hours of work in is really the part. The exhaustion of pouring your heart and mind into something beautiful is the most important practice in my life and I feel so happy to have the opportunity to pursue it.
To see for of Makenna’s art, follow them on Instagram @mac_does_doodles
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