UNC junior Julian Caldwell—also known as JSWISS—was trying to sleep one night when he started to dream a conversation between studio art and hip-hop.
“I was wide awake thinking to myself, ‘what can I do that is different in order to set myself apart in the music world,‘” he said.
So Caldwell decided to ask UNC art students to produce artwork based on his six-track rap album, “Cool Grey.”
One of these students, Megan Fredrick, artistically interpreted Caldwell’s song “World Tour.”
She represented the song with a simple pale white background penetrated by varying weighted black lines.
Fredrick said she began with a multi-faceted bright color scheme to describe the delicious tastes of travel and experience, but then altered her design to appeal to the simplicity of praise necessary for a beautiful experience.
Devon Abdo created her piece “Occupy Octipy” after hearing the JSWISS track “War.”
Her piece presents the image of an octopus gradually strangling a guitar.
The bright colors Abdo chose for the piece create an upbeat feel that matches the tone of the song, bridging the gap to discuss the deeper issues surrounding the Occupy movement.
Caldwell’s song “Game Six” captures the feeling of accomplishment that occurs once these struggles are over.
Megan Shank’s printed piece shows the contentment of a young boy on a 1970s fluorescent orange couch, smiling toward his observer.
“I made this piece to capture the feeling of accomplishment,” she said.
“The background is ambiguous so that a viewer is not trapped by a single accomplishment, but can instead imagine accomplishment over whatever obstacle.”
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