Senior Project Proposal

Name:	Glenda D. Roasa
Exhibition Title:	Disinfectant Delusions
Work Title(s):	Insanitize
	Hygiene Hypothesis
	Germ Free Nation
	Repetitions on a Lather
	Purified Contamination
Project Statement:	Starting with my introductory explorations in nontraditional drawing materials, I have found that I am drawn to both media and surfaces that have some level of transparency such as plastic sheets, clear embossing enamel and glycerin. In further working with glycerin and soap, I have discovered a material that is both texturally and intellectually interesting. At first I was only interested in the material and how it worked as a medium, but once I began to explore the idea of soap, its history and its use in the world today the significance of the material became more important to the project. In today’s society through advances in science and increasing access to information, we have become more and more aware of things that we cannot even see with our bare eyes. Though the proof of germ theory has been around the scientific sphere since the end of the 1800s, the invention of the scanning electron microscope in the 20th century and the proliferation of those images in the media and online has infiltrated the subconscious of everyday thought. Not only has there been a rise in antibacterial soaps and detergents, there has also been a rise in actual products that are antibacterial. Hand sanitizers have escaped from restrooms and can be found in the lobbies of campus buildings, entrances of grocery stores, business women’s’ purses and on key chains in handy travel sizes.
Objective:	Create a mixed media series of objects based on the concept that the world is made of microorganisms which have the capacity to harm our health and well-being and that society is combating this hygiene issue to the point of creating new harmful effects. Images and text will be encapsulated as layers in soap and presented on shelves and table displays with other “antibacterial” products/objects as if it is a scene extracted from a cosmetic retail store. Each large piece will consist of a bottom layer image depicting an image of a microorganism (i.e. common cold virus, avian flu virus, staphylococcus, e. coli bacteria, H1N1 virus) overlaid with visual poetry addressing the paradox of society’s obsession with cleanliness and affects on health. The soap will be infused with essential oils in mixtures which claim to help alleviate symptoms and causes of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder. In order to allow the audience to handle and/or smell the objects, the soap will be shrink wrapped in a perforated polyolefin which allow the odor to permeate.
Materials:	Glycerin Melt & Pour Soap, Ink and Colored Pencil on Paper, essential oils Soap works shrink wrapped in perforated polyolefin. Displayed in the style of trendy cosmetic retail stores. Titles, labels hand-written in chalk on chalkboard painted surfaces. Hand sanitizer dispenser with altered signage and altered foam sanitizer.