Isolation is a common feeling that hovers over college students, and it has only amplified since the quarantines of the COVID-19 pandemic. But students find different ways to move past the feeling, and what senior Noah Hutchinson doesn’t overcome by spending time with his new cat named Feta, he solves with his art.
“The creative mind, this is something I’ve been thinking about a lot recently, comes from having a lot of time to yourself,” Hutchinson said. “And sometimes it comes out of loneliness and kind of feeling like there’s not enough in the world, and then there’s something you want to bring into the world. Especially after COVID, a lot of people have picked up hobbies.”
Hutchinson, a studio art major with a focus in applied drawing, is rapidly approaching his final day at Wichita State University and his senior exhibition for “Vox Nostra,” WSU’s School of Art, Design and Creative Industries senior showcase.
Hutchinson said that his piece for the showcase is one of the most conceptual things he’s created yet. The exhibit follows themes of privacy and escapism from social pressure.
“I’m using these bathroom stall walls and exterior shell type things because people associate bathroom stalls with the extreme symbol of privacy,” he said. “People escape there to avoid extreme social situations. I’ve done it. You go to the bathroom because you’re overstimulated and stuff like that. So it’s an escape.”
As a Wichita native, Hutchinson has been around Shocker Nation for most of his life, with multiple family members graduating from WSU. He also attended art events at the university before his time as a student, where he met one of his future professors, Robert Bubp.
“He actually came to one of our portfolio reviews, and I remember him quite well,” Bubp said. “He had some really, really nice work.”
The studio has become a refuge to create art and improve his skills, outside of his home.
“You’re surrounded by things you’ve already made, so you can kind of make more work based on the work you’ve already made,” Hutchinson said. “You’re creating this lineage of where your work comes from, because I feel like everything you make affects the one you make after that.”
Despite Hutchinson being perceived as a quiet individual by peers and others, Bubp said he has seen Hutchinson from a different perspective as his instructor.
“In fact, he isn’t that quiet,” Bubp said. “He has a lot of interesting things to say, and some really interesting perspectives. He’s very thoughtful and very fun … I really enjoy his interpretations on things in his dialogue. But I don’t see it as much actually in class.
“Knowing him … and having him in classes has been one of the most pleasurable experiences for me as an instructor. As far as student relationships go, he’s been one of the best.”
While Hutchinson’s upcoming plans are uncertain, he said he just wants to continue to make art and to travel the world.
“I feel like there’s so much of the world I haven’t seen, so if I get opportunities to travel, that would be great,” Hutchinson said. “What I’m going to do is make a portfolio. I’m going to send it in every corner of the world and every kind of occupation, whether it be a tattoo artist … for me, it doesn’t matter what I’m doing financially.”
As the end of Hutchison’s time at WSU approaches, Bubp said he hopes Hutchinson will never settle in whatever he does next.
“I just want him (Hutchinson) to keep inquiring and making, and move on to whatever the next step is and not settle,” Bubp said. “Not just sort of look around and go, ‘this is enough,’ but actually try to keep moving into whatever the next phase is from him and keep pushing.”
