Mikhaela created her man-sized puppet Boris Jenkins from ecycled materials and a bit of inspiration.
By Mara Pattison-Sowden
MEET Boris Jenkins.
He was a creation for Mikhaela Shafran’s year 12 studio arts project.
He may have had several name changes, be made out of recycled material and have a hard time fitting through Mikhaela’s front door, but he earned her top marks in the subject for her VCE at Healesville High School.
Boris Jenkins will be exhibited and celebrated along with a variety of outstanding work from top graduating visual arts students across the Yarra Ranges.
Now in its fifth year, the 2012 VCE Creative Showcase exhibition promises a challenging and rewarding visual art experience and a unique opportunity to see the world interpreted by the emerging artists.
Mikhaela, 17, developed her idea for Boris through exploring the topic of how society works, stereotypes and freedom.
“I started thinking I’d do a sketch, then I looked at photographs and distorting them,” she said. Mikhaela crafted a nose out of papier-mâché but “I didn’t think that was ambitious enough so I decided to create a man-sized puppet”.
With the help of her mum, they took Boris into the city in a wheelchair for ease of transportation, and Mikhaela took photos of people’s reactions.
“Most were absolute surprise, some were smiling but we had a few kids petrified of it,” she said.
Mikhaela used Photoshop to zoom into the reactions, cut out the shadows and print them onto canvas for the second part of her project. She said some people wanted to be in photos with him but, despite the celebrity, she doesn’t know what to do with Boris after the exhibition.
“He can’t live in the lounge room forever,” she said.
Yarra Ranges Mayor Graham Warren said the exhibition provided inspiration for young people considering art as a VCE subject, while also celebrating the work of the students.
“Not only do visitors get to see high quality work on display, the students have the chance to have their work professionally presented,” he said.
The VCE Creative Showcase exhibition is proudly supported by the community bank branches of the Yarra Valley and works will be on view at Upper Yarra Arts Centre in Warburton, with the opening at 2pm on Saturday 18 February.
