Artist Statement

Cortney McNamara is an emerging artist from Rochester, New York, currently working in Tampa after receiving her Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Tampa, with a concentration in photography and sculpture.

In her younger years, she moved often from place to place,  forming a desire to find methods for preserving fading memories and capturing the ephemeral. Her current work explores curiosities of time and memory.

Through photographic and sculptural approaches, she locates methods to preserve memories and construct critical fictions. Archival, alternative photographic processes parallel the endless deterioration of lived experience and the fragility of perception. Sculptural processes of casting and woodworking juxtapose one another to highlight wood’s decline into decay and resin’s ability to preserve. This creative practice involves dissolving the boundaries of disciplines and creating space for constructing moments of suspended reflection.

Curriculum Vitae

 

  • Bachelor of Fine Arts, Photography and Sculpture
    The University of Tampa | Tampa, FL. 2024.

  • 2025

    1st Place Award
    Artists Helping Artists 1×1
    SRQ East Studios | Sarasota, FL | Juror: Mary Davis Wallace
    March 2025 – April 2025

    2024

    Charlene Gordon Award Recipient
    The University of Tampa | Tampa, FL

    Gillespie Award Recipient
    Women’s Caucus for Art Florida Chapter | Tampa, FL

    Most Outstanding Studio Artist
    The University of Tampa | Tampa, FL

    2022

    Most Outstanding Foundations Student
    The University of Tampa | Tampa, FL

    2021+

    Dean’s List
    The University of Tampa | Tampa, FL | Fall 2021 – May 2024

    2019+

    Presidential Scholarship
    The University of Tampa | Tampa, FL | Fall 2019 – May 2024

  • 2025

    Vice & Virtue Juried Show
    Art Center Sarasota | Sarasota, FL | Juror: Jessica Todd
    May 2025 – August 2025

    99 Bottles
    Florida CraftArt | St. Petersburg, FL | Juror: Rachel Rearick
    May 2025 – July 2025

    Annual Juried Members’ Exhibition
    HCC Art Galleries | Tampa, FL | Juror: Amanda Cooper
    May 2025 – June 2025

    Always Welcome : In Honor of Dorothy
    Ferman Center for the Arts | The University of Tampa | Tampa, FL | July 2024 – June 2025

    Learn More

    Tampa Regional Artists : 18th Bay Area Exhibit
    Old Hyde Park Art Center | Tampa, FL | Juror: Joanna Robotham
    May 2025 – June 2025

    Artists Helping Artists 1×1
    SRQ East Studios | Sarasota, FL | Juror: Mary Davis Wallace
    March 2025 – April 2025

    2024

    Sculpture Student Showcase
    Ferman Center for the Arts | The University of Tampa | Tampa, FL | August 2024 – November 2024

    BFA Capstone Exhibition
    Scarfone/Hartley Gallery | Tampa, FL

    Student Juried Show
    Scarfone/Hartley Gallery | The University of Tampa | Tampa, FL | Juror: Jessica Todd

    2023

    Members’ Show
    Florida Museum of Photographic Arts | Tampa, FL

    Student Photography Exhibition
    Ferman Center for the Arts | The University of Tampa | Tampa, FL

    Student Juried Show
    Scarfone/Hartley Gallery | The University of Tampa | Tampa, FL | Juror: Nathan Beard

    “Homecoming,” SPE National Show
    Rocky Mountain College | Denver, CO | Juror: Jess T. Dugan

    2022

    Evening of Experimental Dance
    Scarfone/Hartley Gallery | The University of Tampa | Tampa, FL

    “Redbloom” RISE Grant Exhibition
    Scarfone/Hartley Gallery | The University of Tampa | Tampa, FL

    “Redbloom” Rise Grant Exhibition
    Ferman Center of the Arts | The University of Tampa | Tampa, FL

    Learn More

    2021

    Student Juried Show
    Scarfone/Hartley Gallery | The University of Tampa | Tampa, FL