Artist Olivia Cobb seeks sitters for McNair project
Olivia Cobb is looking for faces in the Lamar community crowd. The art major is seeking volunteers to sit for portraits as part of her McNair project.
Cobb is a student in the program, researching old art masters and applying their techniques to her own work.
“My project is completely based off of painting portraits,” Cobb said “I am opening it up to everyone at Lamar — students, faculty and staff. There’s this idea of bringing together the Lamar community through art.
“Painting these portraits will be very interesting for the history of Lamar, because it’s not just pictures being taken.”
Created to honor Ronald E. McNair, the McNair Post-Baccalaureate Achievement Program seeks to assist low income, first generation, and under- represented students in their undergraduate studies. McNair was the second African-American to fly into space and was killed in 1986 when the Challenger space shuttle exploded shortly after launch. The McNair program is usually granted to STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) projects, but it is open to anyone willing to put in the hard work, Cobb said.
“I am a painting major and the McNair program helps me to pursue a PhD in the arts,” she said.
Cobb is looking for volunteers to be painted. The sessions would entail brief 30-minute time slots.
“I am interested not just in the Lamar student body, but its population and what’s making up the Lamar culture,” Cobb said. “I will make an effort to make sure everyone who sits for me will (at least) have a print of their painting if not the original itself.”
The goal of Cobb’s project is to take the skills and techniques of painting through the years and apply them to 70 paintings in a year’s span. As with any experiment involving people, Cobb has to get this approved by the Institutional Review Board (IRB) before she can move on. All the work Cobb is doing currently is preparation for her actual project.
“The goal is ever growing as I learn and discover,” she said. “I just want to bring people together through art.”
To volunteer, email ocobb@lamar.edu to schedule an appointment.