Studio Project Reflection

With my preferred artist, or sculptor, I was pushed to analyze limits we hadn't covered in our class before.  Gabo use different mediums that could be found in an upper-level 3D/sculpting class.  The running theme occurring in Gabo's post-constructivism pieces is the monochromatism of glass, metal, or wire and angular/geometric movements to create a pattern and rhythm.  With this in mind, I decided to:

1. Change the medium of my reaction piece
2. Use a bright, yet slightly analogous color scheme
3. Make a piece that demonstrates the opposite of Gabo's work

The medium of my reaction piece was acrylic paint on paper.  I used four different colors all very near in the color wheel to one another.  I made one piece that demonstrated constructivism, one piece that demonstrated the opposite, utilizing organic shapes rather than geometric ones, and a conglomeration piece that mixed the two concepts together.  This was to reveal or display the flexibility in making a piece of art with the guidance of inspiration.

2017 Annual Student Exhibition

Today I toured the Annual Student Exhibition in Loyola's Evergreen Campus Art Gallery.  While I did not ask the people working why the pieces did not have names or titles attached to them, I was intrigued by this all the same.  The Gallery had a mixture of art works which ultimately made it difficult to choose, but what caught my attention the most was a cumulative piece that included hand drawings of dogs.

The layout of the piece is what initially caught my eye; the spacing between each work was pleasing to the eye.  What then caught my attention was the apparent disconnect with the photos and the collage they were in.  While I mostly focused on the hand drawings of the dogs, I didn't understand why there were other pictures (I believe of ink) included in the collection.  Here is a picture of the collection:

Left

Right

The entire collection gave mixed feelings and insights which gave it even much more depth than it could bare.  The picture in the top left corner of a sketched drawing of a cat with wings is unrealistic, but the three drawings of dogs are as realistic as a hand drawing could get.  The ink paintings of an eye and what seems like scissors cutting a noose turned this somewhat happy art collection into something much more somber.  Overall, the entire collection left me wondering which is why it made such an impact on me.

Postmodernism Project Visual Analysis

Denotative (physical description of the piece):
This piece was derived from the quote by Jean Baudrillard, "Americans may have no identity, but they do have wonderful teeth".  The key terms I decided to focus on within the piece are "America(n)", "Identity", "Perfect", "Teeth", and "Unknown".  Visually, the piece have a dominant square or rectangular shape that includes a conglomerate of colors from the color wheel.  This allowed me to choose from a multitude of colors to pull out with paint from the original Photoshop collage image.  Ultimately, I felt that light blue, diluted red, vibrant red, and vibrant blue would be the best colors to choose to exemplify the colors that depict America.  My attempts to "draw out" these colors and where they originate from on the printed collage are shown through different brush strokes with the paintbrush and a dripping effect with the color red in the bottom right corner.  Because the Photoshop collage had a demanding rectangular shape, I thought it would be best to cut the Bristol pad it was pasted onto into an organic shape.

Connotative (emotions and associations):
I do not feel as though looking at my piece would be able to immediately reveal the quote it was based upon.  I like this because it leaves room for interpretation.  I feel like the incorporation of the colors from the American flag can help the viewer associate it with America on a basic note, but also the presence of teeth (both perfectly aligned and individual) gives it a feeling that should combine the two themes.  My attempt at covering the Statue of Liberty, Austin Powers, and the unknown person's mouths with perfect teeth was to make the viewer uncomfortable or hyper aware of America's obsession with perfect smiles.  The quote about the UK and character versus America with white teeth helps reveal the difference between the two nations, thus highlighting the skewed preferences.

Postmodernism

Kandinsky Postmodernism Art

• Postmodernism is introduced as "the explosion of new communications technologies and the continuing fragmentation of cultures into thousands of little cultures"
• Coca-Cola helped unveil the Postmodernism phase
• Three stages: realism (1), modernism (2), postmodernism (3)
• Postmodernists are misunderstood

Hyperreal and imaginary

• Somewhat philosophical, negative outtake on Disneyland...?

Jameson

• Very difficult to grasp because of the over embellishment of words and their usage; would like to dissect in class

The Shape of Time

According to George Kubler, biographies possess multiple limitations or restrictions.  Biographies and catalogues alike only have the ability to give a general idea or outlook on the nature of artistic traditions.  They cannot easily depict the 'historical questions in artists' lives', which is the question of how they can connect what has come before and what will come after their artistic periods.

Individual Entrances

While the life of an artist is typically a sector of a biographical series, it is almost fruitless to make it the central piece of the series.  Doing this doesn't allow for a rounded explanation of experiences, occurrences, and general happenings that took place during the lifespan of the appraised artist.  Instead, the situation should be looked at and addressed as if an artist's lifework has the ability to precede as much as it does to surpass him or her.  The entrance of the artist, as said by Kubler is what differentiates the artist from that instead of a copyist.  This entrance enables the start of a tradition that only the artist is responsible for.  While there are "good" or "bad" entrances, this solely depends on the placement of the connection between the artist's personality or disposition (temperament) and a "favorable position" into a sequence.

Talent and Genius

Here, Kubler has pointed out that while talent is regarded as an aspect of predisposition belonging to individuals, it cannot be categorized in degrees, but rather different kinds.  Further on, it is stated that the term "genius" is continuously used incorrectly.  While most people think of it to be a predisposition, Kubler believes it has to do with a "fortuitous keying together of disposition and situation into an exceptionally efficient entity."  Personally, I read this as the people we deem "geniuses" have been able to effectively take advantage of every opportunity given to them at the right time to generate exceptionally beneficial outcomes throughout their lives.

Biological and Physical Metaphors

Style is introduced as a metaphoric plant; its first section of leaves start out small, while the midsection is fully formed, and finally the last leaves are small, yet prominently defined by their shape.  

While "material culture" would have been a better phrasing to Kubler than "history of things", both emanate from different works crafted and reworked by human hands with the help of guided ideas developed in temporal sequence.

The Invisible Chain

Among artists, prior events that occur before them determine the previously mentioned sequences.  Additionally, these prior events paired with future opportunities determine the position of every work of art.

Solitary and Gregarious Artists

Commonly, the appreciation of works of art and what actual work has been put behind them is only revealed after the artist's death.  Kubler believes that all important artists belong to this "lonely class".  Yet occasionally, the artist will be seen as a rebel.  But today the artist is neither a rebel nor an entertainer.  Being rebellious requires external effort away from the actual work than the artist wants to make.

     

The Art of Data Visualization

Although personally for me, the actual definition of data visualization was not as clear as it could have been in this video, I did pull some important aspects from the clip.  For instance, data visualization is apparently a "history of science" due to the fact that analyzing and depicting difficult or incomprehensive versions of natural sciences or similar conditions as pictures has been going on since the time of the caveman.  Additionally, data visualization follows the same linear process of a "few basic principles" that an ordinary individual's mind would follow when looking at or constructing a work of art:

1. the artist's perception
2. the viewer's (reader's) perception; knowing that they will be different aside from the original artist's
3. the raw truth given from the work of art (data)

Simply put, data visualization is an effective method of gathering difficult or even conflicting information, and making it as straightforward as possible through pictures, graphs, and visuals alike.

Whitescapes