Lila Voss is one of 33 students participating in the Visual Art & Design Showcase, which is entirely online in 2021. Click the button below the site to see Voss’s work, view the comprehensive gallery, watch video artist statements and leave comments.
Lila Voss has an eye for photography, and like so many Tigers, she came to Columbia for the world’s No. 1 School of Journalism. But Mizzou also boasts a breadth of degree options, and Voss quickly discovered she had deeper interests in women’s and gender studies, English and art.
At Mizzou, Lila Voss started in journalism but found her calling in women’s and gender studies, English and art.
“I’m definitely into more modern and conceptual art,” says the junior from St. Louis. “My main art pieces are usually about the body and constructing and deconstructing realities.”
Voss’s interest in photography began her senior year of high school, and her passion for art still resides within the photographic realm. She previously explored mostly film photography, but she’s strictly digital now.
Voss collaborated with friend and former classmate Petey Botts to create their 2021 Visual Art & Design Showcase submission “Untitled Collaboration.” She describes the work as best understood from younger generations that are digitally native. Voss found her inspiration from a book titled Glitch Feminism.
“[Our submission] shows how online and real life are kind of the same now, or how digital seeps into the real world,” Voss says. “It’s basically about glitches in everyday life, and if you apply that to real life, it’s like a mistake or something outside the norm.”
Voss says combining her women’s and gender studies major and Bott’s engineering major was a fun and practical experience. To achieve their final product, they tried many different options including videos, black-and-white photos and even people. However, the team stayed dedicated to their vibe and are happy with their final submission.
“ ‘Glitching’ creates a space for us to be free, and that is what I wanted to show,” Voss says.
Outside of school, Voss is also a part of the indie pop band Instant Oatmeal. The group has a library of tracks but has struggled to create music long-distance with her band mate living in Memphis, Tennessee.
As Voss approaches graduation next year, she hopes to continue taking pictures wherever she lands professionally. She also hopes to work with kids with ADHD.
“I have ADD, and there should be way more accommodations for people,” Voss says. “Especially with so many people having it.”