For this creative project, I decided to combine my love of music with my love of visual arts.
Synesthesia is a neurological phenomenon when two sensory pathways in the brain get tangled, resulting in an experience of one sense eliciting a perception within another sense, despite there being no such outside stimulus to create said perception. A specific type of synesthesia between sound and color that I personally experience is called chromesthesia; in my case, I experience strong associations between sound – particularly the tones in music – with different colors, textures, shapes, and patterns. I’ve used my unique experiences to create artwork that represents, in some way, the way I perceive music.
This project was both a personal exploration as well as something of an ode to the woman of Texas music. On the personal side – I tend to struggle to connect with music that was released before I was born, both due to the music sounding older, as well as the fact that I tend to most deeply attach myself to music when it’s just been released. Part of the goal of this project was to discover music that I genuinely enjoy, but might have missed out on otherwise solely because of the year it was released.
I made the decision to focus my music choices solely on female singer-songwriters. As a sort of “control,” I used a song by one of my favorite Texan musicians, Kacey Musgraves, and then took a dive back through time to find two other older selections.
The oldest piece of music I chose was “Piece of My Heart” by Janis Joplin, released in 1969. Joplin was from Port Arthur, Texas, but made waves in music across the country. She’s known a symbol of rebellion in every sense of the word. Unfortunately, her ongoing conflict of wanting to fit in, but also not wanting to conform, resulting in her infamous lifelong struggle with drugs that ultimately ended her life in 1970.
And each time I tell myself that I
Well I think I’ve had enough
But well I’m gonna show you, baby
That a woman can be tough
Janis Joplin
I, like many people, found myself drawn to the rawness Joplin’s music and voice. She didn’t hold back, neither in her vocals not her lyrics. I liked this particular song for its feminist undertones, of course in addition to a completely thrilling vocal performance. Joplin’s voice appears to me as a lime green and neon yellow; it’s bright to the point of annoyance. The song is rough lines and edges, which I portrayed in the angularity of shapes in my painting. However, there are still rounded edges and a softness that Joplin embraces about being a woman. The song, like Joplin herself, is loud and proud and incredibly freeing. This painting was by far some of the most fun I’ve ever had creating art.
The next song I chose was “West Side of Town” by Tish Hinojosa, released in 1989. Hinojosa is a first-generation Texan; her parents moved to America from Mexico before she was born. She’s the youngest of thirteen, and she and her siblings were raised in a traditional Mexican household – from the language they spoke, the food they ate, and the music they listened to. Her parents worked hard to create a good life for their family, instilling values in Hinojosa that would later become evident in her music. Their household became a “halfway home” for other family members looking to come to the States for work, many of whom were undocumented. Even with thirteen children, she notes, there was somehow always room for more – and the door was always open.
She was proud and lived on faith
He was strong in his own way
They were pilgrims that made
A good life the hard way
Tish Hinojosa
Reading about Hinojosa’s life provides an excellent explanation for why I found myself enjoying her music so deeply. There is a kindness and generosity to her music – her lyrics and within her voice – that is so comforting and soothing to listen to. “West Side of Town” tells a story not unlike that of her parents; it tells the tale of a man and a woman who immigrated to San Antonio from Mexico and built a life from the ground up. To me, the song appears majority blue and yellow, which are the color of the key (C Major). Hinojosa’s voice is a very pleasant mauve; the guitars and accordion add elements of red and navy blue, respectively. I tried to create a scene that encapsulated the story of the song – the red bricks representing the home these two characters have made, the blue roots digging deep into the ground, and Hinojosa’s voice gently tying it all together.
The last song I explored was “Slow Burn” by Kacey Musgraves, from 2018. Musgraves hails from Golden, Texas, and was drawn to music almost immediately. She started writing songs at age nine, and by 2013, she released her debut album Same Trailer, Different Park, containing the Grammy-winning track “Follow Your Arrow.” Kacey’s career only blossomed from there; she was seen something of a misfit in the country scene given her more liberal stances, and for the way she continued to push genre boundaries and challenge the idea of what defines country music. Her 2018 record Golden Hour and many of the tracks contained won a slew of awards at both the Grammys (including Album of the Year) and the Country Music Awards.
I’m alright with a slow burn
Takin’ my time, let the world turn
I’m gonna do it my way, it’ll be alright
If we burn it down and it takes all night
It’s a slow burn
Kacey Musgraves
I’ve been a fan of Musgraves for a long time, and “Slow Burn” is one of my favorite songs of hers. The song’s slow, steady pace almost forces the listener to take a breath and sit back. In a way, that laid-back attitude is a very Texan aspect of the music. Even with the slower pace of the song, every second is packed with expression and color. To me, Musgraves’ voice has something ethereal about it, with the glossy texture of smooth glass, and is a very pleasant pink-orange. The song evokes the feeling of floating through space; something about the idea of a circular orbit, two objects always in the right place no matter how rocky things get, encapsulates the overall message of much of Musgraves’ songs – it’ll all be alright in the end.
Works Cited:
Hughes, Richard B. “Joplin, Janis Lyn (1943–1970).” TSHA, 11 Nov. 2020, www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/joplin-janis-lyn.
“Kacey Musgraves: All of the Colors.” Country Music Hall of Fame, countrymusichalloffame.org/exhibit/kacey-musgraves-all-of-the-colors/.
Rodemann, Katharyn. “Tish Hinojosa.” Texas Monthly, 1 Dec. 2005, www.texasmonthly.com/articles/tish-hinojosa/.
