Contemporary Drawings
by Michelle Flanagan

This drawing was created in the fall of 1996 and I included it in my MFA exhibition in the spring of 1997. Formally, it reflects what has become a signature style. Parts of the drawing are treated like shorthand with cartoon like or stylized features while other areas reflect the concentration and patience required for realism or representation. The representational charcoal drawing is based on a James Dean photograph and it is attached to a lower, larger piece of paper. The imagery of the underlying drawing was left sparse and 'simple' because it is symbolic. It supports the drawing physically and conceptually.