The Creative Process

Chelbi Robinson is a senior at Florida State University working toward a BFA in Studio Art. Chelbi describes herself as an interdisciplinary artist, but her specialties are installation and public art. At the moment, Chelbi is working on her senior thesis project, which is a piece that focuses on class issues and the infrastructure that is vital for low-income areas. For the project, she decided to work with concrete to illustrate these issues and bring awareness to the public.

Chelbi accredits her passion for art to her father, who is an artist himself. During her childhood, Chelbi was always surrounded by his art and artistic processes, inspiring her to pursue a similar path. Also, like her father, Chelbi struggled with the decision to pursue art as a lifelong path. She took a brief hiatus from art until high school, where she decided to take the leap and follow her passion for good. During high school, she eased back into art by beginning in acrylic paint, but her artistic mediums have evolved since then. Presently, she describes the style and direction of her artistic vision as intentional. She focuses on concepts that are close to home for her, including themes of sustainability, class disparities, experiences from her childhood, and other personal elements.

Like any artist, Chelbi has experienced numerous instances of art block, especially with her senior thesis project. She states that her method of overcoming an art block is to speak her ideas aloud to others and be open to advice. She also finds that writing out her ideas, instead of sketching them, helps her artistic process. For the senior thesis project, all students are required to present a research paper that supports the message or concept that they are illustrating through their art. For Chelbi, this portion of the process has been very helpful to her. Chelbi’s senior thesis project, “Revitalization Without Gentrification”, proposes the concept that practicality should be the priority for infrastructure instead of aesthetics in class-disparaged areas. Through her research, Chelbi has found that infrastructure built solely for aesthetic purposes in low-income areas can often feel intimidating and uninviting, ultimately gentrifying the area and driving residents out.

Chelbi’s work is unique and “ironic”, as she describes it, because most people think of art as something to please the eye. Chelbi’s art aims to convey the message that this mentality can sometimes be harmful. She is taking her project one step further and creating art outside of her art studio. She plans to travel around Tallahassee and repair pieces of concrete sidewalk that have been damaged and left unaddressed by city officials. After repairs, she will leave a plaque at each site stating that the sidewalk was not repaired by the city of Tallahassee.

Her purpose in doing this is to make a social commentary about how low-income areas are often overlooked by city officials. At the showcase, there will be a piece of concrete sidewalk made by Chelbi that visitors can walk across as they look at photo documentation of the sidewalk repair process. Chelbi’s senior thesis project will be on display at the Carnaghi Arts Building on April 14th. Visit chelbirobinson.com to learn more about Chelbi and her art.