Stressssssed. A lot. About Art.

Blog about art. Art. I should be making art, not blogging about it at this point. But alas, this blog is an assignment and I don't have any motivation at this moment to make art - so BLOGGING about art it is.

The reason I desperately NEED to do art more than ever right now, instead of this blog, is because it has just come to my attention that many of my pieces that I had planned on using in my breadth portfolio for the AP exam cannot actually be used, because they are photography, and I'm doing a drawing portfolio, because my self-portrait concentration portfolio is all drawing. So what exactly does this mean??  - I have around ten freaking projects that I need to whip out by May 6th. ONE Month, to do ten projects. I'm typically barely able to produce three decent projects in one month (as I often find myself lacking in motivation/inspiration). I hate myself. I've definitely found myself under a bit..er, um, a LOT of  pressure (At least some of my previous projects done under pressure have turned out to be some of my strongest pieces). 

I'm stressed out. It may not show at this point - as I'm trying to approach it with a calm attitude - buuut, I am still incredibly stressed. Probably almost as much as Martin is. (She may be just a bit more stressed about my portfolio than I even am, jeeze, have a lil faith in me?) 

Anyway, 

Project Ideas???????????? Please :)

My Ridiculous Blog Post

How am I? What has this portfolio class done for me so far? 
-Well, I don't exactly know how to explain how I am. I'm pretty much going to try to explain myself, but it'll just end up being a bunch of jumbled words of confusing crap. So here goes nothing! . .I'm pretty well, just a lot of weird/different things are going on in my life right now, but I'm actually incredibly happy. <--this hasn't quite showed up in my art yet though. My goal is to just be open minded (I do fail at this goal occasionally...ok, maybe a lot). I want to approach everything that is thrown at me without anything making my opinion based on biased thoughts. I NEED to be more willing to receive new ideas, knowledge, and experiences. So that's my goal for the next few months - BE OPEN MINDED! :) Now I just have to repeat that to myself a few hundred times to get it to stick. 


Now that I've successfully trailed way off topic, I get back to what I'm supposed to be blogging about:


1.) What are 3 art related things that you have learned so far this year? What have you tried, improved upon, or conceptually thought of?

1) I've have discovered a few artists that are new to me and whose work I really enjoy. Sally Mann and Levi Van Veluw , just to name a couple. 

2) I learned that focusing on one topic/concentration can really help further my abilities/help me come up with new ideas. When I did my first self-portrait, it actually turned out way better than I had expected. I sort of discovered a talent I didn't really know I had, so when I was encouraged to explore it more by my teachers, I did, and it has grown into a portfolio of self portraits and taught me a lot about myself, my art, and has really improved my 2d art capabilities. 

3) I have (sort of) learned how to put together, organize, and present my portfolio. I say sort of because I still don't quite know which of my pieces to keep in my portfolio, and which ones to just hide digital copies of somewhere in my flashdrive, only to be used as a reference later for what NOT to do. Also, I have found that the way in which I order my portfolio really does make a difference in the overall presentation and flow of it. I have done two 'real,' in person, portfolio reviews so far, one at Robert Morris which was still sort of laid back as there was nothing on the line, and one at Webster. Although I did feel way more confident in presenting my work than I did before this class, I know that I still have a long way to go with knowing what to say and how to present my work. 

I'm adding a forth too, 4) I have discovered that I really ENJOY writing this blog. Which I know, a lot of you probably think I'm a freak, because everyone else seems to hate the blog assignments. I have also gone out and looked for other blogs to read and follow. I have found a few artist blogs that I enjoy going to every once in awhile, they're actually quite motivational/inspirational. I also love reading baking blogs, but that has nothing to do with art. 

2.) What areas of art do you still need to improve?

I desperately need to improve my concepts in most of my pieces. As I have mentioned before, a lot my pieces seem to lack meaning. 

I also need to sketch out more ideas. I have such a hard time coming up with new projects, I often just waste whole class periods trying to figure out what my next project will be. This really has cut down on how many projects I have produced this year. I haven't actually gotten nearly as much done as I should have, considering I'm in the art room for all of 5th and 6th hours, and sometimes most of 4th.  

3.) Where do you see yourself, art related, in 3 years? Will you still be pursuing art and trying new things or do you think it will take a back seat in your lives?

In the next 3 years, I hope more than anything to be attending a liberal arts university, with an art major - as of now the plan is for that school to be Webster University or Alfred University. I see myself as an art education major, however, that may change. No matter what happens or where I end up though, art will be a big part of my life. I really hope that I am able to make a career of my passion for art. 

4.) What have you gotten out of this class?

I feel like I have already sort of answered this question in bits an pieces throughout the other questions. I have learned new things art related, I have discovered new things about myself and my art, and I have begun to learn how to present my portfolio. I have also pulled through with some of my strongest pieces I have ever done, even if it hasn't been as many as I had hoped for. I have become more confident with my abilities and myself as an artist, and I have found what I think I really want to do as a career, art education. To sum it up, this class has given me 90 mins everyday of art, fun, learning, and a bit of pure frustration! 

I think too much, then I write too much of it down. And confuse people. And myself.
And when I don't have an idea of a new project to start, I use most of the class period to write my blog. Ending up with all these ridiculous blog posts. 
I'm having a good week. I'm happy, and I love life. 
aaand since I don't think blog posts without any pictures are any fun . . . 

This is my most recent pieces. I really surprised myself, and think it was quite successful. There are definitely areas where I think it could be improved, specifically the ribcage, but I believe that this is so far my strongest piece, out of both 2d and 3d work. 

. . .Sorry about the long read! :)

All over the place..

This post is gonna be all over the place. . .There's a lot on my mind. 

I'm not getting anything done. Nothing. At all. I just don't seem to care as much. I WANT to care so bad, I just have so much going on, and it seems like my art is taking the fall for it. The projects that were due for January and February? . . .I think I still have 3 or 4 that I haven't even come up with a concept for. Looks like my grade will be falling. . .far. I really just have no desire to do three dimensional work right now, I did that all of first semester and now I really just want to work on my two dimensional skills. Even in 2D work, I'm struggling to come up with concept - it's so easy to just do a self portrait, but what does it mean? I can come up with an interesting technique and a nice looking portrait, I just find myself disappointed with the outcome of the overall image due to it's small amount (or complete lack) of meaning.

Someone seriously, slap me in the face. Make me feel something.

I talk about not having any ideas; however, at the beginning of this semester I did get inspired to do a self-portrait showing imperfections. I never actually did it, so maybe I'll attempt is this week sometime. Maybe. It's going to show imperfection through my scoliosis (a curving of the spine, causing an "S" or "C" shape), and the surgery I had to have to correct it (as much as possible). I'm going to do a portrait incorporating an X-ray I had after the surgery, showing my still somewhat curved spine and the metal rod and pins used to 'fix' it. I plan on using charcoal. My plan is to make a realistic portrait, with the abdomen sort of morphing into the X-ray, revealing the hidden imperfection.

^ here's my X-ray that I'll be using as a reference. 



On a completely different, non-art related note,  my sister left today for basic training for the Navy. Being that she's only eleven months older than me, I've had a pretty close friend in her for all of my life. It's so odd to think that as of today, she no longer lives with us and that I can't even talk to her other than in letters for two months. I'm pretty sure this is going to throw me for a loop, whether it be good or bad. Hopefully it inspires emotions in me that I'll be able to express through my art. Most likely, it'll just put me in an odd, "I don't want to do anything" sort of mood. I still haven't fully grasped the idea of her being gone.
To top off my sister leaving, life had to throw in a few curve-balls for my family. First of all, we weren't even expecting Raech to be leaving until Tuesday, so we lost a day there. Then, my dad just so happened to be coming home from a three week long business trip on Friday, and 20 minutes before his plane is supposed to land in Tokyo, the earthquake happens. What is the likelihood of that?? So they manage to land at a different airport after flying around for a good hour not knowing where to land. He ended up being stuck in Japan for a couple days, before finally being able to get home Sunday night.

That all has nothing to do with art, it just sort of explains what's going on in my life right now, and if I seem to sort of be emotionless, that just may have to do with some of it. When strange things happen to me, and I find myself in a complete funk, unable to do anything productive.

On a more positive note, I'm super excited for the Mid Illini show this week! :)

Also, I'm super excited for Bloom this year, I LOVE Bloom! I'm not to worried about getting in (though, maybe I should be due to my complete lack of focus this year),  but I have NO idea what pieces I would like to submit. Picking my top three favorite pieces is so hard, because there are aspects to all my pieces that I love, but also parts that I hate. It's tough to decide which I think are my strongest pieces. I'm also worried that my sister's boot camp graduation is going to be the same night as Bloom, which would be horrible. I absolutely do not want to miss either of the two, but her basic is supposed to be 8 weeks long, and graduation on a Friday. That lands right about the day of Bloom. It better not be; I'm gonna be so disappointed if it is.


I told you, this post was all over the place.

Collagraph Prints

Today, my blog won't let me add pictures.
I am not happy at all.


Anyways, I was going to post a few pictures of what I've been working on for the past few days. It's called collagraphy, and no, that is not calligraphy spelled wrong, although they do sound a little similar. I don't think collagraphy is very well known, at least, I had never heard of it before a workshop I went to. So, in case you're wondering what it is, here is a definition:

A collagraph is a relief print pulled from a "plate" that is made by placing textured materials on a surface.

Basically, it is a print made of a collage. The collage is supposed to be made of various materials to make it very textured, and when a print is made, the textures show up in the ink and create varying shades and values. 

The few prints that I did didn't turn out exactly as I wanted, most likely because we didn't have the correct consistency of ink and it was my first time experimenting with this type of print. I don't want to give up with the piece though, so I have been experimenting with different ink colors and adding watercolor and colored pencil to the print after it has dried. So far, the result has been fairly decent, and I think I'm going to use a watercolor technique on my final one. 




Here is a link that I found pretty helpful for more information about collagraph printing. 

Show Season

I love art shows, museum exhibitions, and pretty much anything to do with artwork. Even if I don't have work up, I really enjoy going to shows and seeing what other artists are displaying. I'm not saying by any means that I don't like to be in shows - I absolutely love it, who wouldn't? With the show season quickly approaching this year, I've really started to reflect on the pieces I have done this year and which ones I think are the best. I really wish I had more motivation and had produced more pieces this year. I know I did manage to complete a few really good pieces, but I just don't think I have worked up to my potential. With that said, here are a few of my favorite pieces that I would like to be entered into art shows:

87 Boxes - I really enjoy how this piece turned out. I like that it is sculptural, functional, and even considerably comfortable.

Pieces of Time - My other favorite 3D piece is also functional. I think this piece really stands out against my typical 3D work, which is more feminine and nature-like.

Times Square - This semester I have worked a lot with color in my 2D work. This piece really sort of started it, with it's sort of surrealistic feel from all the colors reflected by the lights and water. This is probably one of my favorite photography projects.

Feathered Hair - This portrait shows that experimenting with color I was talking about. I just recently did this self-portrait, and I love how it turned out, I just think it needs a little bit more work.

Sitting Amongst Shoes - Surprisingly, this piece turned out to be one of my favorite pieces in my portfolio. I really surprised myself with how realistic the two heels in the back ended up.






I have a few other pieces in my portfolio that I would also really like to see submitted for shows, but I think these five are a good example of my work. My feelings towards specific pieces changes all the time, one day I like it, and the next day I find something about it that I hate, then go on the next day once again to think, "wow, I really did that?" So, as of this very second, these few pieces are my top choices, but who knows, tomorrow I will probably go back to hating one of them.

I feel like my art work stands out from my peers by the sole fact that it is individualistic and falls under my own style. Everyone in this class seems to have a very unique style, and I don't think there is an easy way of determining who exceeds who, being that we all have our own type of work. I believe that we all are in this portfolio class for a reason - that being the fact that we find a passion for art and excel in our work.

PanPastels!

Today Molly and I went to Webster University for our art portfolio review that determines whether or not we get into the school of art there. I was a little nervous, but I think I feel confident with how it went. Hopefully, by next week or so Molly and I will know, (fingers crossed)! 

Anyways, that's just some boring information, the real content of my blog comes from a different part of our trip  in St. Louis. We were driving along with our little GPS, when we passed this place:

At this point Molly may have yelled out "Artmart," you know, how when you're driving along and you read the signs you pass out loud? It was sort of that type of situation, but that's besides the point. How could we pass up this magnificent find?? We're always tempted by art supply stores, and often time whenever I go to Hobby Lobby or Michaels for something, I end up spending way more money than I had planned. So, we quickly turned around and, as the Garmin freaked out because we weren't following her directions, we made our way to artmart. And, you know, we both just HAD to stop to take a picture of the wall outside. We went inside,  and I sound like a complete art nerd, but this place was wonderful. 

As were were exploring, I came across something called PanPastels. I've never heard of them before, but they sounded interesting.

 

Aren't they so pretty!!

So this is what this interesting new(for me) medium is:

• PanPastel Colors are genuine artists’ quality pastels, uniquely packed in a pan format, available in a range of 60 colors.  PanPastel Colors were developed so that artists can easily lift, apply and control pastel color, just like true painting! The pan format holds the color like paint for easy application. 

Pretty much, it's pastels that are in a little container similar to a make-up compact, that you use little sponges and spongy brushes to apply to pigments. Of course, I wanted these, so I grab one of the kits to check out the price. It was a kit with colors ideal for portraits, including 20 panpastels and a few brushes. It cost $99. Oh No! Why are art supplies so expensive?? I didn't end up purchasing any, but I plan on ordering some, because I really enjoy pastels, and I think these would be really fun to experiment with. (Molly got some, so I may have to be trying them out, seeing as she never would have discovered them without me! ahahaha) 

The Crime of Plagiarism

 

 This is a beautiful piece of artwork. I love the expression of the woman, and the surrealistic details of the hair add so much interest. The artist is Carine Ma, a multimedia designer who has a background in both traditional art and multimedia design. Her work can be seen at Caramel Ink or here.

I found this piece about a year ago online while looking through Photoshop tutorials. I never attempted the tutorial, but found inspiration in it and copied the image to my flashdrive into a folder where I keep images that inspire me. I never intended to copy this in any way, but I look through that folder whenever I need inspiration. I really liked the idea and concept of it, and I was wanting to create a self portrait with a similar idea, but my own concept and artwork.

I'm bringing this up because yesterday at the Scholastics Regional Art Show in Springfield, I saw this image hanging amongst the other artwork that received awards or honorable mentions. It wasn't just a similar image either - it was the exact same thing, but submitted as student artwork. At first I gave this student the benefit of the doubt - maybe they followed this tutorial and made it with their own image and unique style, but upon further observation, it was definitely the same exact design. I believe it's even the same face. I looks as if this person simply copied the final piece and printed it with their name on it. 

Whatever the case is, I feel as if this work should not have earned the student recognition. If the student did indeed use the tutorial and create her own replica of it, it still is not her concept, idea, or design behind the artwork. It's Carine Ma's. So this student should not be able to take recognition, even if she did follow the steps, she used all the same images - the face, flower, trees, birds, and paint splatters. She copied the work exactly. She plagiarized the idea, concept, and design. 

It makes me so angry that someone would simply copy another artist's work and put their own name on it. Winning recognition for it only worsens the situation. I'm sure the real artist of this piece would feel the same way. It's so unsatisfying to have people copy work that you have done in order for them to receive recognition for it. I've had situations where I've just told someone about an idea I have and they go take credit for it later on, or where someone will copy a similar concept and idea that I used into their next piece,  and even just those situations make me upset, so I cannot even imagine how it would feel if someone made a replica of my art and put their name on it. I cannot even imagine how someone would steal artwork like that and receive recognition - i would feel so guilty. 

All in all, I completely understand why plagiarism is such a problem in the art world. It is such and awful thing, and I cannot comprehend what would make someone do something so pitiful.  

Disclaimer: I do not know the name of the student that submitted the artwork, and it could very well have been Carine Ma, and if that was the case, I am very sincerely sorry. BUT - I do know that this art show was a junior high and high school show, and that Carine Ma has been doing professional multimedia design for 6 years, and works for a design company, Caramel Ink. She also publishes tutorials online. It is very unlikely that she is the high school student who submitted this work.

Art is Subjective.

Art is subjective. I think that's all it comes down to. Not a single person will look at a piece of art and think the same thing of it, it may be similar, but never completely the same. We each have individual thoughts towards what we view in the art world and what we believe to be great art. I could absolutely love a piece, while another truly hates it. It happens for all pieces. So, why have these five become so controversial over the rest of the millions of pieces of art? - because they're widely known and create conflicting ideas and thoughts? I don't think there is one true answer to why these pieces have caused such strong feelings and disputes, other than that the artist was brilliant. I think that any artist that can cause such controversy in a piece is truly talented. Clearly, he or she has managed to evoke an incredible amount of emotion from the viewers. In my opinion, that's the best thing about art - the emotion that it creates within us when we view it. If it causes controversy, even better:)

I Need Some Concept!

As of now my portfolio consists of:

• Four 3d concentration pieces (functional ceramic art with inspired by natural elements)
• Around 6 or so 3d Breadth pieces 

• Eight 2d concentration pieces (self portraits)
• Around twenty breadth pieces...(I can't figure out an exact count)

Time to step it up! :)

My biggest weakness seems to be from a lack of continuous inspiration. I don't just have a bad day, I have bad weeks, where I go through multiple days of hating my work and completely lacking inspiration. This lack of inspiration really makes it hard to focus on concept, which is missing  in some of my pieces.  I'm especially having a hard time keeping up with my three dimensional work - this is probably due to the time it takes to produce a piece and an absence of new ideas for pieces. I find myself more interested in two dimensional work; whereas at the beginning of last semester I just wanted to get my hands dirty with clay. I guess my overall weakness in art classes would have to be my inconsistency. 

Best Memory? Deeeefinately taking many crazy photos on photobooth with molly! . . and also getting a gold key on my self portrait portfolio for scholastics regionals. Oh, it was also fun when I made huge spread...er, a mess...  of cardboard all over the floor and got several people to help me cut out pieces for my chair. Even Wyse-Fisher helped out:)

This probably sounds lame, and a little egotistical, but what I've learned most about myself and my art is that I'm actually quite talented. In many cases, I don't really like my artwork, but I've started to enjoy my pieces more, and I know I have been given a gift with art. I've leaned to better appreciate my art and my God given talents. 

. . . so now I've admitted that I believe myself to be a talented artist AND I have a portfolio of self-portraits - GEEZ, I sound really conceited. I'm not trying to be. 

To improve this semester, I need to be pushed to focus on concept. I think it's the aspect that is missing and would make all my art so much better. Please push me to get a better idea of what I'm going to do before jumping in and getting stuck on a project, and make me turn in projects! :)

and because I like pictures in blogs, here's a piece I found while browsing Google for inspirations. I really enjoy it:)

Stuart McManus self portrait

A Very Long Blog Post to Reminisce on a Seemingly Very Long Semester.

This semester. . .
I choose to work on 3D work in art portfolio.

I started out really enjoying ceramics and throwing on the wheel.

but that got old...

..so I changed it up a bit and made a few breadth pieces...er..well I made two. A clock and a chair. I'm very happy with these two pieces, but still, only two? Laaame.

The chair took around a month of my class time, and I found myself behind schedule and scrambling to throw some pottery and create a couple more concentration pieces.

And I did. And it took forever to get them fired...ahem...Mason....And now I just have way too much to glaze and I HATE glazing.

...anyways, as I recollect this semester that seems to have lasted forever, I realize that I really didn't come up with a substantial number of projects. 2 Breadth pieces and 3 concentration pieces with a few scattered extra thrown pots that don't really count as fine art, and many thrown pots that I trashed before they even got to the kiln.

I really didn't get much finished this semester, as I am an extremely slow and sort of meticulous worker.

I also took many wonderful photos on photobooth with Molly. We're pretty photogenic as you can see..

SOOOO, to get on with the list's I'm supposed to make for this blog,

List number one: What I wish I would have done differently in these last few weeks:

• I wish I would have stayed on task and completed more projects.
• I wish I would have thought more about concept and functionality of my art.
• I wish I would have felt more confident about my work
• I wish I would have been more daring with my projects
• I wish I would have had more inspiration, and not have been so stuck in a funk with my work
• I wish I would have thrown more on the wheel in order to better my skills
• I wish I would have worked more in my sketchbook
• I wish I would have followed due dates
• I wish I would have. 

List number two: My Goals for NEXT semester

• I will work more diligently
• I will complete more breadth pieces.
• I will attempt to do everything that I wished I would have done in the first list.
• I will finish an outstanding portfolio.
• I will draw from observation more often
• I will blog more often. I will blog about my work, even when blogs aren't assigned. 
• I will continue to make self portraits, not to be conceited though.
• I will be more outspoken.
• I will DRINK MORE COFFEE
• I will make my art teachers proud:)

And I think that a list number three needs to be added: Positive aspects of the last few months:

• I made functional art.
• I tried new things.
• I also worked in 2D
• I'm beginning to make a concentration of self portraits in my 2D work
• I actually worked on art oven Christmas break
• I applied to the art programs of 6 universities. AND got accepted into all of them, with scholarship offers. I'm still undecided though.
• I got my very own easel for Christmas. It is wonderful. 
• And, I got a puppy named Claude. He is super fantastic and wears bandanas. This only relates to this list because he is named after a famous artist and a typeface designer. 

He's so cute:)

I feel as if my strongest 3D piece so far has been my cardboard chair, as it is functional, and it gets a lot of good reactions out of people. The next is probably my puzzle clock. 

My strongest 2D piece has probably been one of my self portraits, possibly the words one, or the charcoal one with lots of hair. I can't decide. Oh, I also need to be less indecisive this semester!

I don't have pictures of these yet though, so that's it for now! :)