Final Reflection

Over the course of this term I have learned to create art work without over thinking what I am going to create. I have learned that I do not always need to go into my project/art work with out a plan, but that I can just create what ever comes to mind. As the term progressed I pushed myself to just sit down and make many samples on scrap pieces of paper to see which materials I liked using. I also learned that I can change my ideas for the project in the middle of the term. In the beginning, I had an idea in mind that I felt I need to execute. Through out the term, however, I realized that I did not need to stick with this one idea and that I had the freedom to change my project as much as I wanted.

I am very proud of the artwork and my final piece that I created this term. It was really exciting for me to see how different my final piece was from my original sketch. My final piece was 10 times better and much more developed than I had ever imagined. I was proud of my self for going out side of the box and trying new ideas and I am glad that I choose to use the spray painting on my final piece. I had a great term and I was so glad that I took senior studio! It was a great opportunity to push my self and see how real life artists work.

Week 5

This week I accomplished a lot. I stopped thinking about what would look good in my piece and just used random materials on my art work. No specific item was really inspiring me so I just found items I thought seemed cool. My objects was to mess up my artwork and from there I would find the strategies I liked and did not like. I also experiment with spay pain on my piece. This coming I am going to start creating my final piece, I just bough the wood to put my project on.

Week 4

In the first new piece that I made this week I experimented with the sander. I painted black paint over my images and tissue paper and then once that dried I used the sander over the entire piece. I then experimented with putting other images and tinfoil over the tissue paper. After I created that piece, I realized I really liked the way my piece looked after I had sanded it and I liked the way the black paint looked. So, in my second piece I used both the sander and the black paint, but I changed the way I was displaying my 50's images. Instead of just cutting them into basic squares, I cut long strips of newspaper, colored paper, the 50's images, and magazine images and placed them all side by side. I then layered on the tissues paper and black paint and used the sander. I was really pleased with the way this piece turned out.

Week 3 reflection

This week I tried to execute my original idea but I did not like how it turned out. I no longer wanted to put the silhouette of the United States over all of my images. I then began to play around with putting tissue paper over my images and liked how the images began to look. Although I still did not know what I was trying to create anymore I kept on making samples. I realized that I liked the idea of the tissue paper and then I also like the way the wax looked over my pictures. When we get back from the weekend I am going to add on to this project and see where it takes me.

Alternative Exhibitions Formats Response

Personally, I find it more interesting when the artist displays their work in clever ways like Barry McGee. I sometimes find framed pictures to be simple and boring to look at. This type of setup fails to grasp my attention and interest me. With Barry McGee's work, I feel as if I am apart of the artwork and his format is visaully very appealing to all ages. His unique style/format helps me to understand the type of crazy and individual artist he is. It shows that he is not afraid to take risks with his artwork. McGee takes up a lot of space when displaying his artwork, spreading his work across various walls; some of his artwork even pops out from the walls. McGee also places his artwork so that they make interesting shapes and patterns. I think art work that is displayed in a fun and different format automatically attracts viewers.

Art & Fear, by David Bayles & Ted Orland

1. "But while you may feel you're just pretending that you're an artist, there's no way to pretend you're making art." (pg. 26) I can relate to this quote because when I first started taking art classes at Beaver I did not really consider myself and artist and was not taking my artwork as seriously as I should have. I did not think I was good enough to be considered an artist. By reading this quote I realized that I could not pretend to make and I to be an artist you have to create art work and that is exactly what I was doing.


2. "Your finger prints are all over your work, and you alone know how they got there." (pg. 36) Many times only the artist understands the meaning of the work. The public does not always understand or receive the message that the artist is trying to portray; the artwork is just simply meaningful for the artists. I like this quote because it is sending the message that even if the public does not understand your artwork and do not like it, the artist knows the message that he or she is trying to express.

3. "The lessons you are meant to learn are in your work. To see them, you need only to look at the work clearly- without judgment, without fear, without wishes or hope." (pg. 36) A lot of times I feel I have a lot more to learn about my artwork and my style, but am unsure how to do this. This quote helps me to understand that I need to just look at my work with out critiquing it or criticizing it and see how I feel and what are the message I get from my art work.

Week 2

This week I got most of the pictures that I am going to need and I though more about the message that I want to portray. I am going to look at more mixed media collage artists this week to see if I can get anymore ideas.

Week 1

This first week has gone well so far. I know that I want to make a mixed media colleague piece. I want my piece to show that objects and items from the 50's to now have modernized. We still have the same objects but they have just modernized over time. The background of my piece will be old fashioned t.v's, washing machines and telephones. I also want to cover the background in wax. On top of this, I want a silhouette of the United States and cover it in these modernized objects. This week I have been looking for images and then I am going to play around with them to see how I want the placing to be and which images I want to use for my final project.

Inside the Painters Studio by Joe Fig

How do the workspaces and routines of these artists support the work they do?
It was very interesting to see how different each artist works and what kind of atmosphere they need in to create their best works of art. One artist for example, Ross Bleckner needs complete silence when creating his artwork. He hardly leaves his apartment and cannot listen to the TV or radio. He works 7 days a week because that is the only way he can stay concentrated and stay in the rhythm of creating art work. For Mary Heilmann, the location of her studio really impacts her work. Her studio is in a barn and the wide open fields that surround her cause her to include a lot of green into her work. The barn and the wide open space surrounding the farm influence her to show the difference between deep space and flat space in her paintings. Alexis Rockman travel a lot to the Amazon and Long Island so location definitely influences his art work.

Which artist did you relate to the most and why?
I can relate to the artist Mary Heilmann. For her, the scenery really effects her paintings and I feel the same hold true to me. If I am in a place surrounded by mountains my art work will probably look different than if my studio were on a beach. Heilmann also takes breaks through out her day and is not working on her art work all the time. Similar to Heilmann, I cannot work on my artwork for an entire day. I am able to sit and work for 2 hours but I definitely need to take breaks and remove myself from my art work for a little bit. Lastly, Heilmann listens to the radio or her i pod while she works. I cannot work in a silent room, and I also need to be listening to music while I create my art work.

Me... The Senior Artist

When thinking about my process as an artist and my strengths I realized that a common theme was collages and mixed media.
When creating artwork, I have had the most success with using paper cutouts and magazine cutouts/pictures. Creating collages and mixed media pieces are definitely my strengths and favorite types of art work to create.
Although it was my hardest and most frustrating piece to create, I think my dice still life drawing stood out. Drawing is not my favorite or strongest medium to work with so it was definitely a struggle to create that piece. When thinking about my ultimate studio space I would like to be in an open spacious room with plenty of windows creating mixed media/collage pieces. I started creating art because I have a lost of fun doing it and it is a nice, relaxing break from a busy schedule. to music or the radio definitely help me when creating art work, but in order to create the most work possible I just need to try and stay very focused!