“Beastie #4 Hanging out in the Fridge” by Kim Vaughter
(2011, Beastie (mixed-media), refrigerator, food)

 

Kim Vaughter

“During the cold winter month of January in 2010 whilst on break from intense schooling I sat in a sewing circle with some of my friends.  This was where the first ‘Beastie’ was born.  I wanted to create whimsical characters that were sewn together (pun intended) borrowing different animal parts to create brand new species.  The idea was generated when thinking of ways to stimulate (or mess with) my future children’s out of the box thinking, and has been continuing on for about a year now.  I have quite a collection containing such beasties at a LobsterShark, TurtleGiraffeDinosaur, HippoCrabSquid, and RhinoScorpion.  Creating these Beasties is a wonderful, relaxing way to spend my free time as an art student, and the collection will continue to grow in the upcoming semesters.” – The Artist

 

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What we were thinking: “Juxtaposition and personification are two terms that played a big role in why this cover was chosen. Let’s first explore “juxtaposition.” There are common things you would find in a refrigerator, placed next to a very uncommon thing. The proximity of these objects draws the viewer in because people are not used to seeing this when opening the fridge door, and it makes your eye wander around from the main focal point to all the groceries nestled on the shelves. “Personification” has been established by the human like characteristics this creature possesses such as limbs, torso, head, and eyes. Not only does it resemble a bipedal critter, the Beastie also suggests he/she has been up to some shenanigans inside the refrigerator and, now that the door is open, the jig is up. It is this body language and zonked out stare that gives the piece great impact. Kim Vaughter created this piece while on winter break. As a local art student, her goal was to make creatures that invoked out-of-the-box thinking.” – V1 Designer Josh Smeltzer