Amber Odhner

= Division III =

This article is part of a Climax Div III Issue. By Keith Putnam, Staff Writer.

So Amber, tell me about your Div III.

I completed a Division III in painting. My project was a series of paintings inspired by invention and memory in the home I grew up in and also I did a series of wrestler paintings.

Wrestlers without arms?

Yes, without arms.

Could you explain them?

It was about expectation and surprise in considering a painting and also about what is necessary and unnecessary. It is also about how much is enough and how much you can get away with in a painting by subtracting things that are unnecessary like a skyline or houses, things that are just cluttering the space.

Was there a metaphor you wanted to convey?

Well really you can interpret it however you want. It means something to me but it almost doesn’t matter what it means for me. I have my own interpretation but one reason why I appreciated the wrestlers is because I feel that form can be interpreted in so many different ways. But I wasn’t meaning for it to be this profound thing, it was more just a tool and a subject for creating a painting.

Tell me a little about the Div III process for you.

From the beginning I had a pretty good idea of what I was interested in painting and in making, but it was definitely a stressful year. I put a lot of pressure on myself to do something unexpected and different. I feel painting is not something I can articulate very well, it’s such an internalized process. I was ultimately pretty happy with how the show turned out though. I was definitely ready to show.

Do you feel your classes helped you come to the place you are as an artist?

Oh yeah, definitely. I think every painting you make brings you closer… not brings you closer but teaches you something. I feel painting is not a linear process, it’s always circular. You end up coming back to the same things. Every time you take a class or work on a painting you’re taking another step… and not necessarily toward something, but I guess just gaining a better understanding of the process and what painting is for you personally. I think the Hampshire painting program is so important. We have all these different artists coming through, many who went to graduate school, and after talking with them I feel I am ahead of the usual process. I am already in the habit of making my own schedule, being in the studio every day, and making it happen. You really have to build that discipline. So I feel like I’m ahead of the game in those terms.

What are your plans for after graduation?

I’m going to go to San Diego and probably going to do AmeriCorps for a year. Eventually I think I will do grad school for painting but I’m really open to whatever happens.