BFA Thesis Exhibition - Dream Rebound by Maria Brooks

BFA Thesis Exhibitions - Spring 2023

Dream Rebound by Maria Brooks

May 10 - 16

Opening reception: Thursday, May 11th, 4 - 6 pm

Dream Rebound is a short digital animation that explores the relationship between the
fragments of our waking lives and the shape dreamscapes subsequently take. Several months ago, I got
into the habit of logging my dreams. As soon as I’d wake up, I would scramble for my phone and write
down as much as I could remember in my notes before it completely slipped from memory. In
developing this project, I pulled excerpts from these logs to inform the fragmented imagery and
narrative. The animated components have been entirely created using vintage advertisements, medical
illustrations, and found objects, which were then scanned and distorted through analog manipulation
of the images during the scanning process. These sequences of still images were then edited together
digitally to capture the uncanny way our brains deconstruct and reconfigure the very elements that
make up the whole of our lived experiences.

Maria Brooks is a multimedia artist and animator from Massachusetts. She is graduating from
University of Massachusetts, Amherst with a BFA in Fine Arts in animation. Surrounded by strong
artistic women growing up, art has always been an integral part of her life. Much of her work is inspired
by the relationship between the beautiful and the grotesque, and she is often drawn to creating imagery
that both intrigues and unsettles the viewer. Utilizing a mix of digital and traditional media,
printmaking, and animation, their work intends to explore a personal mythology of existence through
a surreal mixture of micro/macro biology, folklore, science fiction, and pop culture.

This event was made possible with generous support from the UMass Fine Arts Council.

Gallery Hours:
Mon – Fri: 11 AM – 4 PM
Sat: 1 PM – 4 PM
(Closed on Sundays and state holidays)