Understand - Limited Edition 8 of 8 Print

Theresa Devine is an Associate Professor in the New College of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences at Arizona State University. Theresa received her BFA in Painting and Printmaking at Texas A & M University- Corpus Christi in 1991 and her MFA in Painting at University of Houston in 1994. In her personal artwork she explores games, toys and play. Her work as lead of the Studio 4 Gaming Innovation research lab on the West campus focuses on developing table top and digital games which combine entertainment and conceptual depth. The Studio 4 also researches games to redefine and explore what they can be and how they can be used to initiate transformation in our society. ------- Artist Statement------- Ce n'est pas un jouet: This is not a toy. Why do we forget to play when we grow up? Why do we hurt each other? Everywhere I look I see distrust, miscommunication, and misunderstanding. This is followed with greed, selfishness, and pain. How can play help us to understand each other? Can play transform us and our world? Play is how we learn and gain trust from each other, so can play liberate us from the cycle of hurting each other? Through toys and games, I explore the intersection between adversity and play. Play is a serious venture and as the title says, it is not a toy. I invoke Magritte with this title because his work showed us that possibilities are only limited by our imagination. I believe that through play we release ourselves from adversity and open the door to new possibilities.