My exhibition consists of monstrous cyborg forms comprised of a variety of imagery of both biological and machine elements. The smaller works are constructed through the means of paper collage. The larger painting is built from discrete cut out shapes of plywood and canvas. I had the unique experience of growing up around both water treatment operations and the flora and fauna of South Florida. Those experiences were filtered through a fascination for the science fiction genre, and imparted with a dose of fearful imagination. This has resulted in personal anxieties concerning the future of the human experience. My work explores and utilizes expressive properties of paint. I utilize applications that range from the attractive and sensuous to the messy and grotesque. All of this adds up to a visual expression of the potential nightmarish outcomes created as a result of our manipulation of the environment. / by Joshua Hunter Davis. / Thesis (M.F.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2011. / Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2011. Mode of access: World Wide Web.

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Artists are exposed to numerous respiratory health hazards in the production of art. Little is known of artists' studio behaviors or of their health beliefs related to respiratory toxins. The Health Belief Model hypothesizes that individuals require a minimal level of relevant health motivation and knowledge before attempting to prevent a health condition, as well as a perception of their vulnerability to health conditions they view as threatening, conviction in the efficacy of preventive behaviors, and a perception that recommended preventive action entails few difficulties. This descriptive and exploratory study, conducted within the framework of the Health Belief Model, seeks to determine artists' knowledge, health beliefs, and preventive studio practices related to occupational respiratory health risks.