Commenting On.

Finishing a Design I Final as a Programming Major.

Crudely drawn colored pencils from an iPad by finger. If the image didn’t load, it’s for the best.

I am not an art major.

I’m actually at the very beginning of a networking/programming degree.

Outside of some scribbles on paper, or some experimental points of time in middle school, I can’t say that I have ever created art in a serious manner. So, when I produced a final project, I have to say, I’m pretty proud of what I was able to accomplish.

The project requirements were to choose an artist from our art gallery, and review their portfolio. We would then select a piece that inspired us to create something.

Discovering Ralph L. Steeds.

I ended up deciding on Ralph L. Steeds’ work Man in a Storm as the main inspiration, along with One Summer Night, and The Time is out of Joint.

Artwork titled 'Man in a Storm' by Ralph L. Steeds. A portrait of a man's face on the right is heavily obscured by aggressive, swirling scribbles of black, blue, and red lines, creating a texture of chaos. To the left, a dark, dense, tornado-like column spins in isolation with a figure inside against a plain background.

> > Man in a Storm

Artwork titled 'One Summer Night' by Ralph L. Steeds. A surreal, layered composition featuring a classical statue figure on the left, a dark silhouetted man in a hat, and a faint, sketch-like face in the center. A dense red scribbled mass dominates the top right corner, contrasting with a crude, cartoon-like stick figure with a halo in the bottom right.

> > One Summer Night

Artwork titled 'The Time is out of Joint' by Ralph L. Steeds. A complex collage showing historical soldiers on horseback in the bottom left, overlaid with red dotted lines. The background is a mix of chaotic elements including a rocket ship, falling stick figures, a red spiral sun, and a large single eye inside a white triangle, blending realistic textures with crude doodles.

> > The Time is Out of Joint

Instead of re-hashing the artist statement I was tasked with making, I will instead share my completed work, and the statement below.

Before doing so—Please, check out Ralph L. Steeds work from his website. I don’t think you will be disappointed:

https://www.ralphlsteeds.com/lithographs.htm

The Final Piece.

A mixed-media drawing titled 'We Are All So Finite'. In the center, a massive grey stone gateway looms over a barren landscape; a single giant eye embedded in the stone watches a small, silhouetted human figure walking into the dark threshold. The sky is filled with chaotic dark scribbles and floating purple diamonds. In the bottom left, a simple, bright blue smiley face drawing stands out against the serious, apocalyptic tone of the scene.

> > We Are All So Finite

Artist Statement.

At its core, this project is an exploration of the fragility of the human condition. I wanted to visualize that specific moment of transition between the known world—represented by the desolate, rocky landscape—and the unknown, symbolized by the monolithic threshold.

To create this, I used a combination of colored pencils for the gradients and marker pens for the details. My primary inspiration was the work of Ralph L. Steeds, specifically his piece Man in a Storm.

I was captivated by how Steeds uses aggressive, swirling lines to create a “texture of chaos.” I adopted that same frenetic energy here. If you look at the lower sky, you’ll see sporadic red, blue, and black marker lines that disrupt the atmosphere. I wanted the air itself to feel alive—unstable, and perhaps even hostile to the small figure walking through it.

While Steeds provided the style, the central imagery is personal. This eye isn’t just a design element; it represents the Universe itself. It is a conscious, unblinking neutral witness watching the small individual walk into the void.

However, I didn’t want the piece to be purely terrifying. Inspired by how Steeds often mixes serious art with crude doodles, I added this element to my piece as well. The blue smiley face acts as a foil to the “Eye of the Infinite.” It represents the absurdity of the human experience—how we often just paste on a smile and pretend everything is fine, even when we are walking into the unknown.

Ultimately, this piece is a marriage of existential reflection and chaotic texture. It asks the viewer to consider the tension between our small, finite lives and the vast universe observing us.

/squawk <~

by untitled_operator

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#art. #showandtell.