Title: Atelophobia and the Figure

Name: Lindsey Keele
Mentor: Raymond Veon

Visual culture profoundly influences the actions, behaviors and opinions of citizens. In the United States and in countries across the globe, TV producers, social influencers, and social media users manufacture pseudo versions of life meant to entertain but that are frequently interpreted by consumers as reality. These fabricated, unrealistic ideals can lead to atelophobia: the fear of imperfections, failure or never being good enough. Having adopted unrealistic expectations of themselves and what their lives should be, people see themselves as failures. Depression and anxiety inevitably follow. Utah has consistently ranked as one of the states with the highest rates of depression, mental illness and suicide. As a Utah figurative artist completing my undergraduate degree, I have chosen to research and represent the complexities of atelophobia with the human form. The idea of this research stems from my own experience with eating disorders, body dysmorphic disorder, anxiety and depression. I chose a non-narrative approach to encourage viewers of my work to draw upon their own experiences and create their own interpretations. I do not embed prepackaged messages or stories in my work; I seek instead to create an opportunity for viewers to explore their own responses to my work on their own terms and in their own way. This highlights the difference between my art and the messages conveyed by social influencers. My goal is to empower self-agency, to expand the space in which individuals establish meaning in the context of their own experiences.

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