Ella Moye-Gibbons
Cafeteria Doorsien
Class of: 2027
Major: Design History and Practice BFA
Medium: Oil paint on wood panel
Faculty: Margaret Krug
Prompt: For our final painting of the semester, we were tasked with creating a doorsien, the traditional term for an interior with a view to the outside and/or a further interior space. The space we chose to paint was also supposed to have personal significance.
I lived at the 301 dorm this year, and there are a pair of trees that can be seen from the second floor cafeteria that have kept me company through the seasons. When looking for an interior of personal significance to paint, I was drawn to both the visual and metaphorical qualities of this view — the natural light that filters in through the large square windows, the dim and empty interior of the cafeteria, and the warm trees dancing in the wind outside, which both beckon you to leave and offer solace if you can’t. I sat at this table many times this year, whether it was to drink coffee, or write an essay, or wait for my laundry to be done. This painting was an homage, a thank you, and a goodbye.