Eschewing Control Leads to Passionate Art

 

Will Copps ‘08 uses media and technology to create “video paintings.” The constantly changing works, which combine music and visuals, are fueled in part by the unpredictable symptoms of Tourette syndrome, which Copps has lived with since childhood.

It’s hard for Will Copps ’08 to describe the art he creates from light and sound because he’s not quite sure himself what it is.

“Yes, it’s weird,” said Copps, whose media include computer technology and sonar sensors. “I find it exciting to think about the possibilities of technology and how to tie them into art.”

One piece, Digital Synthetic, creates an image only when a viewer stands in front of it. It consists of a flat screen with changing shapes and colors that form a different “video painting” for each viewer. “It captures the uniqueness of that moment,” he said. “I really like incorporating the user.”

Others in turn have really liked his work. Copps, 26, was among those chosen for Momentum: A National Juried Exhibition for Emerging Artists With Disabilities last year at the Smithsonian Institution’s S. Dillon Ripley Center in Washington, D.C. One of 15 artists chosen, Copps received an award of excellence and $2,000 for his part in the exhibit, which was sponsored by the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the Volkswagen Group of America, and VSA, the International Organization on Arts and Disability.

Copps has always had “a creative nature,” he said, but that’s not all that shapes his art. He has Tourette syndrome, a neurological disorder that causes people to make repeated, quick movements or sounds that they cannot control. The condition grew stronger when he was a high school student growing up in Alexandria, Va. “I turned to playing drums, where I could get it all out. And my art really started from my music.”

He began playing in bands and then mixing video into those performances. “All of that fed into the art; it’s all connected,” Copps said. “I really like the spontaneity and things being a little bit out of control. It’s kind of a reflection of me.”

At UMW, Copps ran the school’s student entertainment service, Giant Productions, where he learned a lot about the music business. He studied English and was editor of the student newspaper, The Bullet.

“What I loved at Mary Washington was I could get involved in so much,” he said.

Copps worked closely with Professor of English Steve Watkins, then faculty adviser to The Bullet. “He was always great and supportive,” Copps said. “He always asked about what I did, not just the paper.”

Watkins isn’t surprised his one-time student is creating art that’s drawing attention. “He’s such a Renaissance guy and so eclectic,” Watkins said. “And part of Will’s genius is he is utterly unfettered by the bounds of media.”

His work Digital Synthetic was on view last year at the Smithsonian’s S. Dillon Ripley Center in Washington, D.C.

When he’s not creating art, Copps works as a staff officer at the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency in Springfield. And, this spring he is set to marry Emily McAlpine ’09, who recently completed a master’s degree in art history at American University.

Next up for Copps: finding a place to display his most recent work, Self Portrait, an ever-changing computer-powered piece. It includes a sculpture of a tree and two laptop-sized screens that show the artist – moving – in red, blue, and yellow. “It is an interesting way for me to look at how I interact with the environment,” he said.