Kyle Kenney

Kyle Kenney

Game, Animation, & Simulation Design

Artist Biography: Kyle Kenney is a 2-Dimensional and 3-Dimensional artist from Magnolia, Arkansas. He took interest in art as a child when he found himself bored or interested in something he saw and went on to pursue Video Game Design at Southern Arkansas University as an outlet for creativity. As an artist, Kenney primarily focuses on the surreal or abstract while also paying attention to detail, texture, and color in an attempt to mix realistic detail with unreal substance. His works bring the viewer to other worldly areas and situations that draw strong emotions such as fear, despair, confusion, and sadness as well as intriguing the viewer and creating questions as to the nature of situation in the art piece. Many of Kenney’s works include scenes of destruction and violence stemming from an inherent attraction to chaos.

Kenney takes heavy influence from the surreal art of Zdzisław Beksiński and Dariusz Zawadzki as well as musical artists such as Tool and A Perfect Circle. He developed an obsession with them during his time in high school and college, an obsession that helped shape his artistic style and the messages he conveys through his works.

He also had to deal with several mental disorders and conflicts in beliefs throughout his adolescence. OCD, ADHD, anxiety, depression and, later during his college years, an overwhelming sense of nihilism that caused him to have a very unusual way of approaching life. This approach would shape the general theme of his art into metaphors for each burden his mind bared. Religion was another subject of despair for Kenney as he grew up in a very religious society while being unable to understand or believe it himself. The conflict of beliefs between himself and those around him caused him to fear religion and life’s aftermath in hopes to find out life’s real answer. This, in turn, gave him something to use as a tool for creating his works so that he could better piece together the similarities in the beliefs of those around him and those of his own mind.

Kyle's Work

Torn
Torn

A re-imagining of Yin and Yang

Ruined
Ruined

A glimpse of biblical events

Mars Landscape
Mars Landscape

Realistic representation of the surface of planet Mars

Alien World
Alien World

A taste of what parts of an alien world may look like

Senior Capstone Presentation of Work