Table of Contents Iris Ruvalcaba Sidney Stadelmann Lily Witsoe Meghan, Barnes Alie Mueller Stephanie Wittstruck Gabrielle French Felicia Winfrey Mason Voogt Ciro Hernandez Griffin Crawford Sarah Mason Mikayla Dalton Olivia Macleod Molly Keenan Anna Fucarino Sasha Kramer Jacob Hall Jivan West
3 4 6 7 8 9 10 11 11 12 12 13 14 14 15 16 17 17 18
Arianna Mckinney 19 Brooklyn Schreiner 19 McCall Phoenix 20 Jasmine Hernandez 20 Zach Lawton 21 Skyler Kasnoff 21 Haley Ekstrand 22 Yuridia Rodrigue 22 Rose Knopper 23 Taylor Wherry-Rice 24 Sancy Emken 24 Polly Torian 25 Annalie Haralson 26 Elijas Sliva 26 Magdalena Mckee 27 Aidan Bane 28 Ella Pastorius 28 Arabella Blair 29 Brodie Buermann 30 Ashley Sanchez 30 Alexandria “Alex� Johnson 31 Melanie Barba 31 Faith Senary 32 Nemat Khlaifa 32 Dianna Lucy-Nicholson 33 Caleb Rydland 34 Alaura-Anastasia Johnson 35 Aliaksandra Kamliu 35 Sadie Holguin 36-37
Cover photos top: Luca Upper @lucistan | bottom: Rob Curran @curranrob on unsplash
IRIS RUVALCABA BARBIE WORLD, 2020 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPH 3
SIDNEY STADELMANN PLAYHOUSE, 2020 ACRYLIC PAINT ON WATERCOLOR PAPER
No Business During Play Hours Spring 2020 For this exhibition, high school students from throughout the Denver area submitted original artworks that responded to the theme Work vs Play. Teenage life is inherently tumultuous. It is a time of transition, change, and growth, especially in the chaos that has emphatically defined 2020. Academic standards rise incessantly as we bridge the gap between youth and adulthood. But this coming of age is often turbulent and rarely clear. As we become adults, do we have to sacrifice what makes us young? Have we already abandoned our teenage youth in the face of social and familial expectations? Failure Lab asked these questions and used them as the basis for the 2020 catalogue No Business During Play Hours. The team put out a call asking Colorado high school students to submit artwork that relates to the ambiguity of young adulthood, especially in the face of a global pandemic that has halted society in its tracks. Together with support from staff Failure Lab evaluated over 80 submissions, all of different style, tone, and meaning. They curated a selection that best reflected their call into this catalogue. Initially this was set to be an exhibition installed in the Idea Box at MCA Denver. However, COVID-19 pushed the team into a digital presentation that is No Business During Play Hours. Curated by MCA Denver’s Teen Leadership Program: Failure Lab. Curatorial support by MCA Denver’s, Curatorial Assistant & Octopus Initiative Administrator, Krista Lauer 2019-20 Failure Lab Interns Daisy Benitez, Desiree Howard, Eric Montes, Evelyn McSpirit, Gabrielle French, Iris Ruvalcaba, Jeremy Cashion, Kiki Dunn, Milo Martinez, Naomi Jaffe, Sanyu Kibuuka, Soah, Teo Patterson, Wilson Lenhart, Zea Ramirez
5
LILY WITSOE LESS OF ME, 2020 COLLAGE ON PAPER
MEGHAN BARNES COMPLEX SIMPLICITY, 20219 PEN AND INK ON PAPER
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ALIE MUELLER LIGYROPHOBIA,, 2020 MIXED MEDIA ON CANVAS
STEPHANIE WITTSTRUCK BREATHE HEALTHY, LIVE HAPPY, 2020 COLLAGE 9
This painting is all about playfulness and nostalgia. I was inspired by lazy afternoons spent eating cheerios and watching Wes Anderson’s The Life Aquatic With Steve Zissou. In this image I am exploring the experience of play and leisure through manipulation of proportions and juxtaposition of colors. It is slightly abstracted, as I did not want to rely heavily on realism in such a playful piece. I aimed to express the honesty and innocence of childhood that we carry into our experience of being teenagers.
GABRIELLE FRENCH SATURDAY AFTERNOON, 2020 ACRYLIC PAINT ON CARDSTOCK PAPER
TOP: FELICIA WINFREY
BOTTOM: MASON VOOGT
UNTITLED, 2020 COLLAGE ON PAPER
DISTANT HORIZONS MINECRAFT MAP ART 11
TOP: CIRO HERNANDEZ,
BOTTOM: GRIFFIN CRAWFORD
ROSTRO NOPAL, 2020 ACRYLIC PAINT ON CANVAS
9 TIMES IN SPACE, 2020 PRINT ON PAPER
SARAH MASON HOLDING THE FUTURE MIXED MEDIA 13
TOP: MIKAYLA DALTON
BOTTOM: OLIVIA MACLEOD
UNTITLED, 2020 MIXED MEDIA
AWARE, 2019 EMBROIDERY ON CANVAS
MOLLY KEENAN INDI IS CHANGING, 2019 MIXED MEDIA 15
ANNA FUCARINO THE FUNDAMENTALS OF LADYSHIP, 2019 DIGITAL COLLAGE
TOP: SASHA KRAMER
BOTTOM: JACOB HALL
VULNERABILITY, 2020 MIXED MEDIA
SEVERED, 2020 ACRYLIC ON CANVAS 17
JIVAN WEST WORK IN PROGRESS, 2020 DIGITAL COLLAGE
TOP: ARIANNA MCKINNEY
BOTTOM: BROOKLYN SCHREINER
DOUBLE SIDED, 2020 COLORED PENCILS AND ACRYLIC PAINT ON CANVAS
UNTITLED, 2020 PAINT ON PAPER 19
TOP: MCCALL PHOENIX
BOTTOM: JASMINE HERNANDEZ
SILHOUETTE, 2019 ACRYLIC PAINT ON WOOD
OH BROTHER. 2020 MIXED MEDIA
TOP: ZACH LAWTON
BOTTOM: SKYLER KASNOFF
UNTITLED, 2020 ACRYLIC PAINT ON PAPER
BIRDS OF PRAY, 2020 DIGITAL ART
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TOP: HALEY EKSTRAND
BOTTOM: YURIDIA RODRIGUEZ
A CHILD’S CORPORATION, 2020 MIXED MEDIA
BEE-ZY. 2020 ACRYLIC PAINT
ROSE KNOPPER JUST LIKE TEETH, 2020 COLLAGE ON PAPER 23
TOP: TAYLOR WHERRY-RICE LABELS, 2020 PENCIL ON PAPER BOTTOM: SANCY EMKEN UNITITLED, 2020 CHARCOAL AND COLORED PENCIL ON PAPER
POLLY TORIAN OVERWHELMED, 2019 GRAPHITE AND COLORED PENCIL ON PAPER
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TOP: ANNALIE HARALSON
BOTTOM: ELIJAS SLIVA
BREAKING POINT, 2020 MIXED MEDIA
UNTITLED, 2019 CORK CARVED PRINT ON PAPER
TOP: MAGDALENA MCKEE SELF PORTRAIT 1, 2020 ACRYLIC PAINT ON CANVAS 27
TOP: AIDAN BANE
BOTTOM: ELLA PASTORIUS
REPOSE, 2020 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY
UNTITLED, 2020 DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY
ARABELLA BLAIR GOOPY, 2020 ACRYLIC PAINT ON CANVAS 29
TOP: BRODIE BUERMANN
BOTTOM: ASHLEY SANCHEZ
SMILING THEBE, 2020 MIXED MEDIA
NOTHING IS WHAT IT SEEMS, 2020 DIGITAL COLLAGE
Sum 41 Stencil originates in youthful creativity. Reflecting the artist’s future musical ambitions, the work articulates the simultaneous ardor and levity with which teens dream. As they prepare to encounter adult life in full force, such genuine inspiration and aspiration retain the positivity and hopefulness of childhood.
TOP: ALEXANDRIA “ALEX” JOHNSON
BOTTOM: MELANIE BARBA
SUM 41 STENCIL, 2019 WATERCOLOR PENCIL ON PAPER
TIME AND SOLITUDE, 2019 PAINT ON PAPER 31
TOP: FAITH SENARY
CENTER: NEMAT KHLAIFA
YELLOW, 2020 MIXED MEDIA
LET’S CHANGE, 2020 DIGITAL ART
TOP: DIANNA LUCY-NICHOLSON UNTITLED, 2020 CHARCOAL ON PAPER 33
CALEB RYDLAND ONE PASSED TWELVE, 2020 PAINT ON PAPER
TOP: ALAURA-ANASTASIA JOHNSON
ALIAKSANDRA KAMLIUK
MY STORY, 2020 MIXED MEDIA
JUST TEENAGER, 2020 COLORED PENCIL ON PAPER 35
SADIE HOLGUIN SEEN UNSEEN, 2019 GEL-TRANSFERRED PHOTOGRAPHS ON WOOD BLOCKS 37
artwork by Sofie Birkin @sofiebirkinillustration
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