• Skip to Content
  • Skip to Main Navigation
  • Skip to Search

Indiana University Bloomington Indiana University Bloomington IU Bloomington

Open Search
  • About
    • Areas and Programs
      • Architecture
      • Ceramics
      • Comprehensive Design
      • Digital Art
      • Fashion Design
      • Fibers
      • Graphic Design
      • Interior Design
      • Merchandising
      • Metalsmithing + Jewelry Design
      • Painting
      • Photography
      • Printmaking
      • Sculpture
    • Facilities
      • Virtual Tour
      • Fabrication Labs
        • Fine Arts Fabrication Lab
        • Kirkwood Hall Fabrication Lab
        • Wood and Metal Shop
        • Columbus Fabrication Lab
      • ArtShop at Eskenazi School of Art
      • Museums + Libraries
    • Centers and Collections
      • Eskenazi Technology and Innovation Lab (ETIL)
        • Members
        • Research
      • Center for Innovative Merchandising
      • ServeDesign Center
      • Sage Collection
    • Accreditation
    • History
    • Careers/Opportunities
      • Part-time Position Descriptions
    • Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access
      • Community and Student Success Committee
      • Cultivate and Create Scholarship
      • IDEA Impact Fund
      • Kudos Corner
    • 2030 Strategic Plan
    • Emergency Preparedness
    • Staff Directory
    • Contact
  • Faculty
    • Leadership
    • Faculty Directory
    • Faculty Research
  • Undergraduate
    • Majors
      • Comprehensive Design B.S.
      • Fashion Design B.A.
      • Interior Design B.S.
      • Merchandising B.S.
      • Studio Art B.A.
      • Studio Art B.F.A.
    • Minors
    • Creative Core
    • How to Apply
      • Laptop Requirement
    • Scholarships + Financial Aid
    • Visit/Contact Us
  • Graduate
    • M.Arch (Architecture)
    • M.F.A. in Studio Art
    • How to Apply
    • Graduate Student Funding
    • Schedule a Visit
  • Current Students
    • Career Preparation
    • Student Organizations
    • Student Resources
      • Curricular Forms
      • Academic Advising
      • Career Advising + Internships
        • Talk to a Career Advisor
      • Student Emergency Relief Fund
        • Eskenazi School Student Emergency Relief Fund Application
      • Applying to the B.F.A. Program
        • Studio Art B.F.A. Application
      • Scholarship Awards
        • Scholarship Application
      • Studio Art Thesis Exhibitions
      • Graduation
      • Eskenazi Ambassadors
      • Student Special Project Fund
      • Undergraduate Teaching Assistant/Intern (UTA/UTIN) Application
    • Overseas Study Programs
  • Exhibitions
    • Grunwald Gallery
      • Call for Entries
      • Exhibitions
      • Archive
        • 2024
        • 2023
        • 2022
        • 2021
        • 2020
        • 2019
        • 2018
        • 2017
        • 2016
        • 2015
        • 2014
        • 2013
        • 2012
        • 2025
      • Online Exhibitions
        • MFA / BFA Thesis Shows
        • Alumni Exhibition
    • Miller M.Arch Gallery
      • Exhibitions
      • Archive
    • Sage Collection
      • Archive
      • Exhibitions + Events
  • News
    • 2025
    • Eskenazi School News
    • Vision Magazine 2023-24
  • Events
    • Speaker Series
      • McKinney Visiting Artist Series
        • Archive
          • Folder Name
          • 2023-2024
            • Barbara Tannenbaum: Photography
            • Brad Vetter: Graphic Design
            • David Hytone: Painting
            • Reinhold Engberding
            • Lauren Fensterstock: Impermanent Conditions
            • Nina Sarnelle and Selwa Sweidan: Touch Praxis
            • Theresa Ganz
            • Roos van Haaften: Shadow Laboratory : light works based on Bloomington’s Astronomy Glass Photographic Plate Collection
            • Endi Poskovic: Dream and the Paradox of Image
            • Curtis Hidemasa Arima
            • Daniel Vlček and Tom Kotik
            • Sunshine Cobb
          • 2022-2023
            • Saša Bogojev: Painting
            • Thomas Madden: Metals
            • Kei Ito: Photography
            • Yuri Kobayashi: Creative Core
            • Akirash: McKinney International Artist in Residence
            • Christopher K. Ho: Sculpture
            • Tiare Ribeaux/Jody Stillwater: Digital Art
            • Ben Cuevas: Fibers
            • Wuon-Gean Ho: Printmaking
            • Nicole Dotin: Graphic Design
            • Paul S. Briggs: Ceramics
          • 2021–2022
          • 2020–2021
          • 2019–2020
          • 2018–2019
          • 2017–2018
          • 2016–2017
          • 2015–2016
      • Miller M. Arch Lecture and Exhibition Series
        • Archive
          • Folder Name
          • 2023-2024
          • 2022-2023
          • 2021–2022
          • 2020–2021
          • 2019–2020
      • Design Speaker Series
        • Archive
          • 2023-2024
          • 2022-2023
      • Bill Blass Speaker Series
        • Archive
          • 2024-2025
          • 2022-2023
          • 2023-2024
      • ETIL Noon Talk Series
        • Archive
    • Special Events
      • Archive
        • 2024-2025 Events
        • 2023-2024 Events
        • 2022-2023 Events
        • 2021-2022 Events
        • 2020-2021 Events
        • 2019-2020 Events
        • 2018-2019 Events
        • 2017-2018 Events
        • 2016-2017 Events
  • Alumni
    • Alumni Connect
  • Giving
  • Connect
    • Contact Us
    • Staff Directory
    • Community + Collaboration

Eskenazi School
of Art, Architecture + Design

  • Home
  • About
    • Areas and Programs
    • Facilities
    • Centers and Collections
    • Accreditation
    • History
    • Careers/Opportunities
    • Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, and Access
    • 2030 Strategic Plan
    • Emergency Preparedness
    • Staff Directory
    • Contact
  • Faculty
    • Leadership
    • Faculty Directory
    • Faculty Research
  • Undergraduate
    • Majors
    • Minors
    • Creative Core
    • How to Apply
    • Scholarships + Financial Aid
    • Visit/Contact Us
  • Graduate
    • M.Arch (Architecture)
    • M.F.A. in Studio Art
    • How to Apply
    • Graduate Student Funding
    • Schedule a Visit
  • Current Students
    • Career Preparation
    • Student Organizations
    • Student Resources
    • Overseas Study Programs
  • Exhibitions
    • Grunwald Gallery
    • Miller M.Arch Gallery
    • Sage Collection
  • News
    • 2025
    • Eskenazi School News
    • Vision Magazine 2023-24
  • Events
    • Speaker Series
    • Special Events
  • Alumni
    • Alumni Connect
  • Giving
  • Search
  • Connect
  • Home
  • Exhibitions
  • Grunwald Gallery
  • Online Exhibitions
  • MFA / BFA Thesis Shows
  • Fall 2020 BFA Thesis Shows

Bethany Habegger

"Those Forever Feelings Never Stay", 2020, 37.5" x 29.5" x 2", Oil
"Those Forever Feelings Never Stay (Detail)", 2020, 37.5" x 29.5" x 2", Oil
"Those Forever Feelings Never Stay (Detail)", 2020, 37.5" x 29.5" x 2", Oil
"I Am Not Worse For Wear", 2020, 45" x 38" x 2", Oil
"I Am Not Worse For Wear (Detail)", 2020, 45" x 38" x 2", Oil
"I Am Not Worse For Wear (Detail)", 2020, 45" x 38" x 2", Oil
"I Could Use Something to Hold Onto", 2020, 60" x 50" x 2", Oil
"I Could Use Something to Hold Onto (Detail)", 2020, 60" x 50" x 2", Oil
"I Could Use Something to Hold Onto (Detail)", 2020, 60" x 50" x 2", Oil
"Things That Were Aren't Here Today", 2020, 20" x 16" x .5", Oil
"Things That Were Aren't Here Today (Detail)", 2020, 20" x 16" x .5", Oil
"Things That Were Aren't Here Today (Detail)", 2020, 20" x 16" x .5", Oil
"I Remember Your Voice and Your Clothes", 2020, 60" x 50" x 2", Oil
"I Remember Your Voice and Your Clothes (Detail)", 2020, 60" x 50" x 2", Oil
"I Remember Your Voice and Your Clothes (Detail)", 2020, 60" x 50" x 2", Oil

Bones of Abandoned Futures

Bethany Habegger

Degree: BFA

Area: Painting

More from the artist

Thesis Statement

To many, abandoned places would be considered an eyesore, a blemish on their maps. To me, I see a sacred space that acts as a time capsule. These monuments loom over us, they remind us of a not so distant past and what those times represent. They are an artistic lineage, feeding my work with new images every time I explore them. There is something so satisfying about the peeling paint and overgrown areas of these buildings. They have a serene feeling to them, it's almost spiritual.

These buildings are weathered, they are an archive of whoever has visited it. When painted, it adds another layer to its history. It is almost like photographing the house, but the paint allows you to feel the surfaces of the objects and decay. You can visit the same house over a period of time and find new things every visit. The walls could be blank in the winter and spray painted in the summer. What many people don't realize is that abandoned places like this house act as a refuge for the obsolete.

In my work, I wanted to show the beauty of these lost places and how they age. I explore the passage of time and utilize the medium of oil paint to demonstrate this through texture. I represent these spaces in a highly naturalistic way but withhold information from the viewer. Objects are represented by different painting languages, trompe l'oeil fabric, impressionistic walls, loosely handled window frames. They all combine to create a hyperreal space. Certain items look as if you can feel them. The way these abandoned places are interpreted through paint show how they must be preserved and respected. That they are not a waste of space, abandoned places are a reminder of what our culture has gone through and how everything changes when they are lost and forgotten.

Back to Gallery

Eskenazi School of Art, Architecture + Design resources and social media channels

  • Faculty & Staff Intranet
  • COLLEGE OF ARTS + SCIENCES
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • LinkedIn

Indiana University

Accessibility | College Scorecard | Privacy Notice | Copyright © 2025 The Trustees of Indiana University