Browsing by Author "Petranek, Stefan"

Now showing 1 - 10 of 14
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    Apologies: A journey toward self-discovery through an unraveling of the masculine tradition
    (2018) Walsh, Justin; Petranek, Stefan
    What is the Measure of a Man? Before allowing the brain to run away giggling with euphemistic glee, consider the import of this question as it has effected boys for centuries as they grow, not only in personhood but inexorably toward the four-walled confinement of what is defined as "Manhood." Being a man in my early 30's I am increasingly confronted by how my own identity is shaped in relation to this box. Thus, within my current body of work one central question arises that forms the foundation upon which all other thematic notions find their footing; What kind of man am I?
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    Childhood Unraveled
    (2023) Edgerly, Brianna; Setser, Meredith; Petranek, Stefan; Potter, William; Baldner, Karen
    Through the exploration of handmade paper with nostalgic imagery I have been transforming the fragments and sorrow of my memories into a cathartic experience shared between the artist and the viewer. I use Van Dyke brown printing to translate photographic imagery that reminds me of my childhood and create my version in the form of an abstracted illustration. This translation from photography to drawing allows for a personal reprocessing of the original memory. I print the illustrations onto handmade cotton paper that together create an aesthetically intriguing collection of objects. They are a physical record of how the artistic process has also been a healing one when it comes to my mental health. It also offers the spectator a moment to slow down and reflect on how they process their memories by witnessing how I have processed my own. As a result, my work creates a stronger empathetic understanding of how someone’s past can affect them in the present moment. The delicately intricate use of the material creates a curiosity in the spectator to further interact with the work. As they move in closer to inspect the work, tears, stains, and other imperfections litter both prints and cast forms alike. By allowing the natural processes of hand papermaking and analog printing to create these imperfections, I can embrace and redefine my own. Through paper making and analog printing, I can embrace my own imperfections, redefine them, and find beauty in them.
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    Cosmic Indifference in the Anthropocene
    (2018) Panfil, Matt; Petranek, Stefan
    My multimedia thesis work depicts confrontations between humanity and both natural and supernatural entities and forces, as well as examines the implications of cosmic indifference: a philosophical and literary ideology wherein humankind exists at the mercy of ambivalent, and often cruel, machinations of nature. I synthesize disparate media to create immersive installations, cut-paper collages, experimental films, and sculptural assemblages designed to unsettle and transfix my audience, in order to transcend faculties of normative human reason.
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    The Effect of Pet Therapy and Artist Interactions on Quality of Life in Brain Tumor Patients: A Cross-Section of Art and Medicine in Dialog
    (MDPI, 2018-04-27) Petranek, Stefan; Pencek, Jennifer; Dey, Mahua; Neurological Surgery, School of Medicine
    With the evolution of modern medical treatment strategies, there also comes the realization that many times we reach a point where traditional goals of medical care, such as overall survival or disease-free survival, are not realistic goals for many patients facing devastating illnesses. One such disease is malignant primary brain tumors, known as malignant glioma (MG). With median survival of only 20.9 months following best available standard of care treatment strategies, including surgery, chemotherapy, radiation, and tumor treating fields, MG is one of the deadliest malignancies of the modern era. Along the course of treating patients with MG, clinicians often realize that traditional treatment therapies can at best provide incremental benefit of symptom management without any survival benefit. However, even in these difficult situations, it is possible to make significant positive changes in patients’ health-related quality of life (HRQoL) using creative, non-traditional interventions. In this paper, we describe the initial findings from our project that takes a unique approach to studying the intersections of clinical care and art by using pet therapy and art-making as interventions for patients diagnosed with brain tumors. Our preliminary findings suggest that pet therapy and the ability to reflect as well as speak about their journey through a life-altering disease significantly increases patients’ overall feeling of wellbeing and reduces anxiety about future uncertainty.
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    Extinction
    (2015) Eickhoff, Matthew; Petranek, Stefan
    Four days before I began Herron’s graduate program, my close friend, and former boss, Ed Funk committed suicide. This event would forever influence my graduate research and my artwork. I began to search for a deeper understanding of life through the pursuit to tell a story and a desire to explore new materials. Up to this point, painting had primarily dominated my approach to art. The goal of my Master’s work was to break through the divisions of artistic medium and discover an overarching theme that would refine myself as an artist independent of medium.
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    The Fall Creek: A Localized Understanding of the Anthropocene Era
    (2019) Faris, Tim; Petranek, Stefan
    My creative work surrounding the Fall Creek is a photographic take on the junction of nature and the human made, as well as a personal account of the environment. It is my hope that through my work, I will begin to understand a more globalized quality of nature in the Anthropocene Era we are living in. My work seeks to examine why humans place hierarchies on the natural environment and how this affects our perception of the natural world.
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    Feminine, Like
    (2019) Pierce, Tiffany; Petranek, Stefan
    To help better understand the world around us, we develop shared assumptions about our experiences. These assumptions, or social constructs, are useful because they create order through the use of categorization. Categorization helps us quickly define, organize, and comprehend experiences. The effect of social constructs and their byproducts of categorization should be considered, as they often influence significant facets of our lives. Specifically, our idea and understanding of gender constructs is a fundamental concern because gender impacts many of these important facets. My multimedia thesis work examines the social construction of gender, and the coinciding expectations that are created. The work aims to question the validity of the stereotypes associated with gender in order to explore their limitations. The work utilizes self-portraiture and symbols, often pulled from popular culture, as well as performance to exemplify and exaggerate gender ideals. My recreations of social constructs examine how assumptions can limit our perceptions or potentially restrict our behavior.
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    The Genetic Portrait Project
    (Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research, 2014-04-11) Petranek, Stefan
    As new milestones in medicine, agriculture, and synthetic biology are reached through the study and manipulation of genes, scientific research is being translated into technology that is poised to have dramatic affects on each of us. This innovative project explores American sentiment toward genetics by asking individuals from a variety of cultural, educational, and socio-economic backgrounds to respond to the question: “How do you think genetics will affect the future?” Photographs and videos of the individual along with their written/drawn responses are made to document our culture’s current understanding of this timely subject.
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    The Genetic Portrait Project: An Art Initiative at The American Society of Human Genetics
    (Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research, 2015-04-17) Petranek, Stefan
    Abstract: The Genetic Portrait Project, an ongoing photo documentary which uses art to explore society’s current perceptions of genetic research and the implications for the future, created an interactive art initiative at the American Society of Human Genetics Annual Meeting and the American Society of Bioethics and Humanities National Conference, from October 16-21, 2014 in San Diego, CA. Over 230 individuals from these two prominent genetics and bioethics conferences were photographed alongside their response to the question: “How Do You Think Genetic Research will Affect the Future?” The aim of the initiative was to provide an engaging and fun means for geneticists, bioethicists and associated professionals to reflect on the larger social impact and implications of their work. A unique outcome of this initiative was the creation of an on-site evolving exhibition that expanded as more people participated. The interactivity and awareness of the project was strengthened using social media to broadcast, catalog and provide an additional mechanism for feedback and reflection. This project was supported by an IUPUI Arts & Humanities Institute grant, an Individual Artist Grant from the Indiana Arts Commission, Canon USA Inc., and the American Society of Human Genetics. ©Stefan Petranek Visuals/Logistical requirements: At the IUPUI research day, I would like to use an HD projector (I will provide) to share images taken from the project. I would need access to electrical (I can provide an extension cord), an ability to place the projector on a pedestal 10 feet back from a projection surface (I will provide the pedistal). A white wall or screen would be equally good as a projection surface.
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    INVALUABLE
    (2017) Yun, Boyeon; Petranek, Stefan
    Does everything that exists have a meaning? Does everything that exists have value? As humans, we question these existential quandaries endlessly. We will never know how and why we, and the world around, us exist. The only truth is that we exist. We get happiness, sadness, and frustration from existence. We agonize about our existence, mostly related to the existence of others. For instance, we find pleasure in certain things: we may find meaning for our lives from the existence of a dear person or we may find happiness from the possession of a special object. When we build a relationship with someone or something, it creates new meaning. The meaning and value of existence are changeable depending on where and how something exists. For instance, even though it is a lifeless object, if I have a strong attachment to the object a new meaning is created. This meaning is different from the previous meaning of the object, it therefore now exists for me as something unique. My studio practice explores the meaning and value of the existence of things, including humans, and reveals them through photography, video, and installation. My art consists of giving new meaning to abandoned or forgotten objects and considers the essential meaning of human existence. Drawing on Semiotics this paper documents how my work considers new meanings for ordinary objects and situations.