Even More Pics

Too bad you cant smell it. I believe the wax is Dewberry Dreams. YUM.
The two-toned is cool. I really like the pale pink with the whiteness of the coffee filters.
Group shot

More Pics

Straws and push-pin
Circle stickers.
Wax "roses"

Pics

Colored wire twisted around a dowel. Fun decoration for my desk space.

Having fun playing with straws. this is the bendy part cut open.

Flowers??

So time for another update. Spring has def. sprung at the Beav and all around Newton. There seems to be flowers and green everywhere, and what could put anyone in a better mood then fab weather and flowers? NOTHING. I have also had a lot of fun making some cool "flowers" out of different found materials in the room. They come in many forms, and are easy to adapt to different materials, based on what you want to make with them. I know spring and flowers are kind of a cliche combo, but on a BEAUTIFUL day like today (May 20th) it is hard to ignore they great pair they make.

So I think I might be heading down the "abstract-flower-bouquet" road. I am really liking what I have so far. I played with dipping coffee filters in wax to make some cool two toned flowers. They look awesome when they are bunched together, and smell good because the wax was from a scented candle. I have also been playing with the traditional dot and dots around shape, and trying to funk it up. I used cut up straws and a push pin to make a spiky flower. I think today is going to be spent experimenting, and finding more materials to spring it up.

Senior Project

Well I hope this one finally works, this is the third.

The past two weeks have been a lot of fun. I have had ample time to play and experiment. Found materials are super fun to work with, and a challenge because of their un-known-ness. I have been having fun experimenting with weaving and wax, a procedure i have not worked with recently, and a material I am not super familiar with.

Weaving came to me after looking through some of my elementary school artwork. We did a huge unit on weaving every year. Kindergarten was weaving paper through looms my teacher had cut, and then by fifth grade we were advanced and weaving with string and yarn on looms we had made ourselves. Weaving can be done with an extremely large variety of materials, so it is a great thing for me to play with. I have weaved some newspaper, and it is cool to see the patterns that evolve from the cris-crossed pattern. I hope to continue with this idea and weave more materials. I have been brainstorming, and will see where this idea takes me.

Wax is a material that had been living in Ms Roberts room, and has tempted me so I though this would be the perfect time to play around with it. I had seen what it has done to paper, and to have it on top of other materials, but I was intrigued by wax itself. I though about making a mold, and used the rubber that the mixed media class earlier had used to make rubber stamps. I carved much deeper into the rubber. I was hoping to create somewhat of a dome shape, but when I poured in the melted wax, what came out of the mold was more rose shaped. I really liked what I had created, and have been making a bunch, adding more pink and white wax to vary the color. I am hoping to do something like an abstract rose garden. The little rose bud have been living in a small mason jar and they look cool, all together, so maybe adding in some more color would spice it up...? we shall see

I am happy with what I have done so far, and am excited to see what will come in the future weeks. Pictures are soon to come.

Final Reflection

The deposit is in, the send-off is over, and it is time to reflect. Senior studio has been a great experience. I am so happy with what I have learned and what I have been able to accomplish. I came in with an idea and was able to continue with it throughout the term. One of the big things I learned with manipulating the different materials I played with during the term. I learned which materials worked better on certain surfaces, and how to create different textures to enhance my project.

I really enjoyed playing with color. It was cool to bring color to the black and white materials of photography. I was happy to give these materials a "second life" by coloring on them. I like the mysterious side that people might see when they see the items.

Overall, I am really happy with how senior studio went. I was able to learn a lot from my self, and from my classmates. We had a lot of fun helping each other with suggestions, even when it wasn't critique time. I am excited to continue with what I have been working on and super pumped to see everyones work in the gallery!

7 Days in the Art World

7 Days in the Art World was an interesting reading and got me thinking about the different types of critiques there are and how they affect different peoples work. Because the artists were in charge of their own group, it was interesting to see that they were able to manage it properly and receive the necessary feedback. Some artists waited to see what others had to say before saying their meaning, or feeling about the piece being critiqued. Without the explanation before, the artist is able to get uncensored comments about his/her piece. The critique-ers will be able to make comments without prior knowledge of what the piece means, and what it hopes to look like in the future. I think it would be cool to have this kind of critique. Although it is kind of stressful and nerve-wracking, it is cool to be able to have a fresh set of eyes view your work and give you constructive criticism on your possibly unfinished work.

PROM

Lovely people during a lovely night

Working towards the END

A start to what will hopefully result in my final project.
A birds eye view of the final(ish) project

Nity Crity Part 2

Just had another small critique in order to really start bunkering down for our show which is coming up soon. I have started playing with my colored film more and incorporating it with some plain film. My critique group liked but thought that I could take it to the next level by incorporating the film with canisters, or the boxes I previously colored. They had the idea to pop the film out of the canisters and incorporate the film with the canisters. We will see where this takes me as I continue to finalize plans for the final show

Whats up?

So I just looked over all that I have put up on the blog, and realized that it is a bunch of the same stuff over and over. I really like what I have done so far, but not all of it is up on the blog. I think those pictures that I have put up have been the most fun because they are very colorful and those objects pop out, and have been sitting with me for a while. But I have been doing other things too. In alternative processes, we have been playing with solvent transfers, so I have also been trying to incorporate that into what I have been doing in sr. studio. Another thing I had the idea of playing with was photo chemicals. I will make sure to post pics later, but right now I have little cups filled with all the different photo chemicals. some are for film and others for paper, but I am having fun playing with the concentration of the chemicals, and the order for which i develop the paper. I have also been doing the playing in the light, so that is another aspect of my experimenting that changes the image up. I added acrylic paint to the developer to see if that would affect the final color they paper develops to be. Ms Burman also had the awesome idea to add minerals or other chemicals and see what happens. She suggested asking the science department if there would be any minerals, even salt, that I could steal a little of and add it to the chemicals. these minerals could have a bigger effect on the paper then the acrylic paint did so I am anxious to try those out. I also had fun playing with the color the photo paper has become since it has been exposed. Some of the paper I got from freecycle was green when I took it out of the package, so it has been cool to play with that coloring. Hopefully all this messing around will result in beautiful art, but as of now, I am just having fun. we will see where this takes me...

More Pics

The film canisters I have been playing with in therms of color and texture. The one on the left is decorated with colored masking tape, a fun material, and a great way for me to get away from the paint markers. The one on the right is decorated with a collage of magazine cut outs.

A cool view of my colored film. I just finished coloring another strip of the film, so together they look AWESOME
The whole collection of photography things I have been using to make up my project. We will see what happens with them as we get closer to the show date.

More pics from around the studio

Critiquing
Helping Riki with some new ideas for her project.
Working hard

Alternative Exhibit Formats

The sideshow we saw was super interesting. It was cool to see that it is not just that art that you can control, but that you can also control how it is displayed. Many of the artists had instilations that took up the entire gallery, and some put their art directly on the wall and not in a frame. Sandy Skoglund sets up WICKED cool instilations and then photographs them like the picture of snakes and eggs above. SUPER COOL. Barry McGee also has super cool ways of displaying his work. he also does insitltions but they are directly put in the gallery as opposed to a gallery as opposed to a photograph of one. He collects random frames and clusters them together to make a super cool display. I def. am thinking about these different ways of displaying my art. I think they add another level to the show, and kind of mix it up from the usual.

Surviving the Critique

Critiques are often very formal, and kind of intimidating. I know that I am not a huge fan of critiques and usually wish the time used for critiques was used to make more art. But I also know that critiques are important to get feedback and help progress in work. Our senior studio class is very relaxed and being able to do what we want, usually leads us to doing things that we like and enjoy. Therefore it seems that most people are happy with what they are doing and have many set ideas in their heads about what to do with their time in the studio. But there are others, like me who like to hear constructive criticism to continue to move forward with their work. It is really important to have these critiques weather you feel they are necessary or not. Having a pair of "outside" eyes is super helpful to find new ideas and see things that maybe you have never seen before.

I think the way to get the most out of a critique is to take what you want from it. A critique is very open to what your peers can say about you. It is important to listen to everything, but to also take the ideas you really like and run with them! A new idea or thought said by a peer could spark and idea and it is important to follow through with that idea. After all that is what critiques are for...

In order to be a helpful participant in my classmates critiques,it is important to listen to them and hear what they have to say. They are the artists and their point of view is where the painting is coming from. So when making the comments about their work it is important to take into consideration what they think.

Nity Crity

Just had our first critique and was happy with the feedback I received. I showed off all of the stuff I have posted on the blog, and got good compliments and great suggestions. I worked with Riki, Sam, and Brae and both sam and Brae have been working in a space not so close to my table so it was interesting for them to see my work. They were surprised that I used the film boxes, and I was happy that it was a surprise for them. Riki was enthusiastic about the film I "bedazzled" and Brae liked my ink drawing. Right now I kind of feel like I am at a natural break in my work and am trying to find my next thing to do, so it was helpful to get some constructive feedback. Because what I have been doing is 2D, Brae suggested to maybe make a camera out of the materials I have been working with so far. Riki also suggested to try and combine the materials to make a 3D structure. I am not totally sure how I feel about combining them. I like that they still maintain their original shape, and look like the photo materials I started off working with. But I like the idea of reconstructing something to be something else. I got a camera lens, and was hoping to play around with that and now the idea to reconstruct it could be a wicked cool possibility. we will see where this take me....

Even more studio happenings

Film canisters
Ink drawing

More studio happenings

Bedazzled film

Happenings around the studio

All of the finished film boxes
My table
From my advisory birthday party

Art & Fear (a little late)

"Some artists identify so closely with their own work that were they to cease producing, they fear they would be nothing - that they would cease existing."

I know that when I come to a stopping point, and then become frustrated with my work. The more frustrated I become, the harder and harder it gets to start back up again. I know that they best way for me to keep working, is to just play and doodle with random materials on my table. This ends up sometimes turning into another cool project, or can go the opposite way, and stress me out because what I am making is ugly, or weird.

"Art, after all, rarely emerges from committees."

I always over think EVERYTHING. Esp. when it comes to art. I want everything to be amazing and have a powerful and meaningful message and although I know this isn't always possible I try as hard as I can to make it happen. I am also not so into planning. I just like to take my materials and run. Experimenting with the materials is half the fun of actually making the art. I am also a HUGE fan of big white paper. It allows me to scribble on the surface I am working on which makes random doodles and marker testing very convenient. I big white paper under almost every surface I work on, including my desk at home and my table in the studio. They are convenient and with lots of pretty colors, always turn up interesting and fun at the end of a project.

"When your work is counted, will it be counted as art?"

I love simple art with lots of color. A lot of what I have been doing so far has been fun colorful line, and just random scribbles. To me, these seem like just fun time passers that I would do at home to annoy my mom or waster time, but is it really art? I am really enjoying all that I am doing, almost too much so that it could be considered something someone else would want to look at. But if you are interested in checking it out, GO FOR IT!

Let the Rain Fall Down....

Poor Annie Leibovitz. The ceiling leaked a little and while we were on spring break, some of the space in the studio got wet. The book now has "character" and smells a little moldy.
More wet Annie Leibovitz :(
The dripping wall.
PROTECTION. Just in case we covered our tables with garbage bags so our precious masterpieces don't have the possibility of becoming soaked with this ridiculous rain we have been having.
Garbage bags are super!

So Far...

Lots of color. YIPPIE
My workspace. Some different materials that I have experiment with. I have this idea in my head about the experimentation with different types of photography materials. Photography is a very unique form of art, where so much besides the final print goes into the process. With a painting, there is the brush, the canvas and the paint. Photography is made sure of countless elements. The camera, film, lighting, props, tri-pod, chemicals, darkroom, photo paper, everything. I think that these materials are an art within themselves. They are all such key parts of photography, and extremely interesting. I am not totally sure how or if I can test all these different elements, so right now, I am having fun with the boxes the film canisters come in. I have always thought how interesting their shape is, so I am having fun "bedazzleing" them.
Here is a sample of my embellishment of the film boxes.

Reading Response: Twyla Tharp

Problems are a big part of art. DUH. Just like any part of life. I have always run in bazillions of problems throughout my artistic life. so I guess if i had to list them:

1. Inspiration

2. Lack of Plan

3. Unlimited Resources (Kind of stole this from Leah but I will make it my own :)

I always have a tough time finding inspiration. Being in an art class, we are always expected to make projects surrounding specific themes and then turn them in with a deadline. I know last year, we were given a project surrounding the theme of environment and I struggled to find inspiration, and therefore turned in the project WICKED late. I was over thinking what I was trying to make, and therefore lost my inspiration. As stated by the reading, "The most productive artists I know have a plan in mind when they get down to work. They know what they want to accomplish, how to do it, and what to do if the process falls off track." I rarely have a plan. I usually work on the task I was previously working on, and therefore when a task is done, I hit a wall, and kind of go off track. I think with a routine and a plan I would be able to continue working as opposed to filling in the gaps with random busy work until I find inspiration again or start the next step. The problem of unlimited resources is a good problem but can become frustrating. when there are few limitations and boundaries it becomes hard to set your mind on something specific and then run with it. Narrowing down a focus can be helpful to maintain consistency surrounding a theme.

Artists at Work: workspace and process

Characteristics seen in many studios:

1. Lots of color

2. A sample of the artists work

3. A sample of work that has inspired the artist

4. Different materials necessary for making art

5. Little tokens or trinkets received and found

Why Reoccurring?

I think the studio/space an artist works in is a representation of the artists style and life. The choice of colors could reflect the artist personality and create a productive mood in the space necessary for work. Artist are often inspired by themselves and often find inspiration from previous pieces of their own and as well as other artists work. Having different gifts and fun junk can be a reminder of certain people that an artist finds important in his or her life, and create a home-y atmosphere for lots of good work!

How are these spaces developed?

These studios seen in the slide show seem to be "lived in". The artist has found what is helpful to him/her and has brought it to the studio to make for a productive environment. These artists have figured out what works for them in terms of how to become inspired, and know the proper tools to get the job done. Even if the artist is not a huge fan of the physical studio they have, each person creates the space into a unique and individual environment.