Key West residency in works for alumna

Fine Arts alumna Julie Abijanac (CCAD 1992) has been accepted into The Studios of Key West Artist in Residency Program for summer 2012.

Abijanac is one of 25 residency artists from five countries and 20 different cities selected to advance the visual, performing and literary arts through an array of disciplines and mediums.

During the Key West program, Abijanac, an assistant professor of Foundation Studies, Media Studies, and Graduate Studies, will continue her work of the past few years on two dimensional paper pieces and digital drawings that address her personal experience with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.

The disease, a cancer of the lymphatic system, has lead her through an investigation of its psychological aspects and, most recently, the microscopic patterning of the disease. She explores the patterning of what is seen in a 'field stain' of a blood specimen and applies a controlled application of line, value and positioning of multiple compositions and/or parts to create larger works.

Abijanac said one of her goals for this opportunity is to give back to the Key West art community by providing work for an exhibition based on her time in the four-week residency. She hopes to create an installation for exhibit in the Armory Main Hall or in the TSKW Space 2.

Abijanac said a long-term goal is to venture into the world of installation. She will be on sabbatical during spring semester 2012 and then will participate in the residency program before returning to CCAD in the autumn to teach.