Name: Allison Hoffman
Year: Sophomore
Major: Studio Art (BFA)
Hometown: West Palm Beach, Florida
Website: Cargo Collective
HC (Her Campus): Congratulations on getting into FSU’s Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art program! Can you tell us a little about what the process was like? What art did you submit?
AH (Allison Hoffman): I had to submit about 20 pieces and set them up for review, and then I had to have an artist’s statement and get a teacher to accept my application. I did a bunch of figure drawings and paintings, and I did my pin-up boys series.
HC: Can you tell us some more about the pin-up boys?
AH: It’s a series I’m working on which basically puts male figures in provocative settings as a commentary on sexism in art and media. The overt sexualization of men rather than women shows the disparity between how men and women are portrayed in the media.
HC: So obviously feminism and gender issues are very important to you. Are you at all involved in the women’s studies program?
AH: I was really involved in the Women Student Union last year. I went to the Women’s Leadership Conference and was involved in the Women’s History Month committee and helped with promoting it as a volunteer.
HC: What projects are you currently working on in your major?
AH: Right now I’m really focused on exploring the figure. I’ve been saving a bunch of magazine covers that I want to look at and reference in future paintings. I want to do more pin-up boy paintings, and I’m thinking about incorporating gender-bent pop stars into that. I’m also interested in political cartoons, and maybe working on expressing the message that I’m communicating with the pin-up boys through fine art. I’ve been doing a project about art and class in society and I’ve been reading more about feminism and women’s representation in media, which are all things I’m interested in tying into my artwork.
HC: Are there any artists that inspire you?
AH: Well, there’s the artist Gil Elvgren who does pin-up girls that I reference for my pin-up boys. I also take influence from other illustrators like Rene Gruau, and like I mentioned before, magazine covers. A GQ magazine cover by Terry Richardson, who’s known for his exploitative photography of female subjects, was actually what sparked the idea for the pin-up boys series.
HC: What are some of your other passions and interests?
AH: I’m passionate about politics. I’m a blogger. I’m also just really into media in general, I’m constantly consuming it – music, TV shows, pop culture, you name it. But I’ve also been interested in landscape painting lately. Sometimes I’ll go driving around with my friend just looking at landscapes and at lighting to try and paint, or go to a park and paint there.
HC: So as an artist who’s really into media, what are some of your favorite TV shows that you’re watching right now?
AH: I love Parks and Rec. Amy Poehler is an icon. And I really appreciate that it’s a really funny show but the humor in the show isn’t offensive. That’s why I love Bob’s Burgers too.
HC: What are your plans for the future?
AH: I just want to be an artist active in media, representing women as they should be represented. Within the next year I want to apply to intern at Marvel. I think it would be really cool to just send in a portfolio of pin-up superheroes as part of my application. If that doesn’t work I’ll just change my entire personality and become a really mysterious performance artist, and if all that fails, I guess I’ll be in a reality TV show.