3.31.2007
Allison Glazer
This week I combined my two nut ideas into one project. The two basic ideas were the changing 2d and 3d space and my personal interaction vs. the viewer's interaction. I used these nuts to sort of change my project into a self portrait. I wanted to put myself in the space and have the viewer recognize where I was without my actually being there. I set up some mirrors in part of the courtyard where I found the reflections interesting (similar to my midterm project). Then I picked out the parts of the reflections that were important to understanding where I was standing. I painted onto the mirrors part of the reflections (the poles, windows, doors) that defined where I was. This way, when I stand in my spot, all of the lines on the mirrors line up to where they are in the reflection so that they blend together. But when someone else is standing in my spot, since they're not the same height the lines wont line up and the mirrors will be uneven. In this sense, it is a self portrait of where I was standing at that time so that for me the painted lines lined up with the reflections. I don't know if that explanation made sense but hopefully my pictures will make the idea clear. I'm not sure how this will work at Officina. Hopefully I will be able to install mirrors there. It would be interesting to trace my motion through the mirrors - maybe I can install mirrors that show how I move through the bar and what I see at my eye level reflected in the mirrors placed throughout the bar. Or maybe I can install mirrors in the bathroom - in the stall and by the sink - which is a location where mirrors should be - and highlight with the mirrors what is seen in the reflection. I like where my project is going with the self portrait idea and putting myself in the space.
3.30.2007
Allison Shellito
This week we are getting into gear for the end of the semester show, which is both exciting and terrifying. I had great feedback from my group in Theme Sequence, who advised me to go ahead with making videos (which is also terrifying and exciting, as I have never done this before). My videos are going to show the spinning better than any 2D attempt I have made thus far, I think. My challenges are going to be making good transitions and not making the "plot" too predictible. I am excited to see where this goes. A presto! Allison
3.29.2007
meredith nelson
so after feeling lost and hating this project for several weeks, things came together really well the night before and morning of critique before spring break. thanks to some of janna's suggestions i finally put things together in a more interesting and effective way. i was pretty excited to get back to work after break as i was at a point where i had a lot of new directions i could take things. following the nuts assignment, i decided to keep working with the space in the sink area. i liked the way the vines worked, some i'm basing my main project off of that, having more material coming in and out of the wall, and blending it with drawing. i'm putting more up in there and incorporating new materials. the other nut i tried was picking a new object and doing essentially what i'd done with the stems and petals before, basically, drawing it a lot. i had a shell left over from some of my source materials so i did some drawings and tried to get the feeling of something curling in on itself, to compliment my earlier drawings which were all about growing out. i don't think its really working for me. if i kept it up i could probably get something new out of this, but i'd honestly rather just focus on my other work, i feel like it's already at an interesting place.
Adell
So I was fooling around with textures and 3-D elements, and it was supposed to go somewhere, and then it didn't. Most half-baked ideas of mine don't. Also, I've been ill. So last night, a little frustrated, I decided to think about the kind of art I do when no one's looking, the kind of personal drawings that I have never shown for crits and have never considered making into final pieces, and that I often destroy or give away. I'm going to try and incorporate that kind of work into larger work, and attempt to take them beyond sketches and into pieces. Even if this doesnt go well, at least I'll enjoy the process.
3.28.2007
Cassie's Long Overdue
Oh my. What can I say, I am so sorry to be so late. Ridiculously late. I am not good at this! Okay, so the midterm critique. I heaped a pile of grass onto my desk and a stack of cardboard boxes. And then I called it a waterfall. I tried to loosely imitate the movement that I saw in the Arno waterfall - the changing stages, the gravity pulling the water (or top substance) from one level down to the next, and the feel of one material covering/laying over top of another. For me, this felt good. I liked the way it looked. But as an object, as something that was put on display for "the viewer", for others to see and react to, it did not arouse much of a reaction, other than Zoe asking, "Can I roll around in it?" and Alessandra wanting to stick her feet in it. After this critique, I question what it is, exactly, that I am trying to do. Am I making this for myself and only myself, or do I want to offer it to others? The answer is yes, I do want to give something. To the world maybe, or maybe just to my friends. Maybe just to this class because I know that the people in it are excited to see what I have to say. But what about everyone else? Sure, I'll do it. Photo and video material have been the media that most accurately portray to others the thing, the feeling that I want to communicate.
What is this thing?
It's the feeling of being comforted by being covered, even if that means covered with sunlight or submerged in open air.
It's the visual sensation created by a steady, constant, either slow or fast but definitely pulsating movement.
It's the smell of earth and things that are natural to it (grass, dirt, mud, mold, wood, moss, flowers, manure.)
It's the tactile sensation of plushness and softness.
It's the oratory sensation of quiet that arises from a combination of absorbing and tuning out background noise at the same time.
I think it might be meditation, although I'm not really sure what that is.
Whew! So this week, I talked to Julia about some of this, and decided to make a series of bed/chairs that will be called "resting places". They will be cushion-y seats placed in various places near school (depending on weather: the courtyard, the sidewalk, a seldom used street with a nice view...) and will be meant for people to use as an escape from...anything. They will be filled with substances (so far I have settled on "grass" and "cloud", surprise surprise, and for this project's time line, they might be the only ones) in which the sitter can feel submerged and comforted, but at the same time, still has access to the surrounding environment.
I hope that this project will work out. In some nervous moments (nervous because I was afraid this project would not cut it), I thought I would also like to try filling a room (one of the classrooms upstairs) with grass, like FILL it, and create a welcome-ramp at the door, invite people to come in, and then place signs on the wall (made out of grass, as well) inviting people to lay down and/or play in the grass. This invitation would be entirely set up through visual clues, I would not play a physical role in the piece. I'm not sure how possible it would be to convince Regan to let me do this, but I think it would be awfully nice and I'd love to try it...
Jana - I hope all is well back in the states and thank you again for a wonderful two months! (and I promise I will be better with the updates in the future...)
:-)
ps. the photo site: www.flickr.com/photos/cassiehamrick
What is this thing?
It's the feeling of being comforted by being covered, even if that means covered with sunlight or submerged in open air.
It's the visual sensation created by a steady, constant, either slow or fast but definitely pulsating movement.
It's the smell of earth and things that are natural to it (grass, dirt, mud, mold, wood, moss, flowers, manure.)
It's the tactile sensation of plushness and softness.
It's the oratory sensation of quiet that arises from a combination of absorbing and tuning out background noise at the same time.
I think it might be meditation, although I'm not really sure what that is.
Whew! So this week, I talked to Julia about some of this, and decided to make a series of bed/chairs that will be called "resting places". They will be cushion-y seats placed in various places near school (depending on weather: the courtyard, the sidewalk, a seldom used street with a nice view...) and will be meant for people to use as an escape from...anything. They will be filled with substances (so far I have settled on "grass" and "cloud", surprise surprise, and for this project's time line, they might be the only ones) in which the sitter can feel submerged and comforted, but at the same time, still has access to the surrounding environment.
I hope that this project will work out. In some nervous moments (nervous because I was afraid this project would not cut it), I thought I would also like to try filling a room (one of the classrooms upstairs) with grass, like FILL it, and create a welcome-ramp at the door, invite people to come in, and then place signs on the wall (made out of grass, as well) inviting people to lay down and/or play in the grass. This invitation would be entirely set up through visual clues, I would not play a physical role in the piece. I'm not sure how possible it would be to convince Regan to let me do this, but I think it would be awfully nice and I'd love to try it...
Jana - I hope all is well back in the states and thank you again for a wonderful two months! (and I promise I will be better with the updates in the future...)
:-)
ps. the photo site: www.flickr.com/photos/cassiehamrick
lee graf
so through thinking about what the "nuts" of my project are, i came up with a few essential parts. of course, the rhythm and patterning of light reflection based on audience interaction. but also a kind of quirky, off, subtle humor as well. sound in conjunction with the visual is also important to my idea i think. so going off of these things, and by talking to julia, i brainstormed a couple of ideas that i have no idea how to carry out. the first, which ive mainly been working on but failed miserably, was a callback to chianti when i was spinning my wine glass and it was making all sorts of crazy beautiful reflections on the white tablecloth. thus, i tried to imitate this with...not appropriate wine glasses. the reflections are alright, but theyre not really what i was looking for. i also tried to string them together as i did for my other video, but it just is not working as id like. i think i either have to shoot the videos with more planning, but then that kind of takes away from the idea of the quirky/jerky randomness of the rhythm that i was aiming for. so that was idea number one that im rather unpleased with.
another idea was to make a room with the same contraption as the box, and at the same time to have the video projected in the room in order to make the audience feel as though they are in the box. this can't really be done due to...many reasons including money, space, supplies, etc etc.
then the third idea is a preliminary one. julia showed me an artist who made these huge clear globes and put them in water. i think this would be so cool to make to capture the reflections on the surface of the globes of the light while also having it interactive with the viewers who get to play with the objects to get the random rhythm involved as well. i have not as yet figured out how to do this. i think that really i need to find a material i can use to make a small scale version, and see if it achieves the different parts of my concept. so as of right now, i think i may need to leave the video realm and go in a different direction with this project.
another idea was to make a room with the same contraption as the box, and at the same time to have the video projected in the room in order to make the audience feel as though they are in the box. this can't really be done due to...many reasons including money, space, supplies, etc etc.
then the third idea is a preliminary one. julia showed me an artist who made these huge clear globes and put them in water. i think this would be so cool to make to capture the reflections on the surface of the globes of the light while also having it interactive with the viewers who get to play with the objects to get the random rhythm involved as well. i have not as yet figured out how to do this. i think that really i need to find a material i can use to make a small scale version, and see if it achieves the different parts of my concept. so as of right now, i think i may need to leave the video realm and go in a different direction with this project.
Sam week 9
Hi Jana!
Ok, so when you look at my photos it will look like I'm just doing another storyboard- but THIS TIMe I'm making a crude sort of animation- its set to music and everything. I'm also planning out an illustration depicting the inward idea of choices. For the animation, the theme is "moving forward". The ideas are still very much drawn from the self, but I'm trying really hard to give them universal appeal,
welp, hope things are going good
Ok, so when you look at my photos it will look like I'm just doing another storyboard- but THIS TIMe I'm making a crude sort of animation- its set to music and everything. I'm also planning out an illustration depicting the inward idea of choices. For the animation, the theme is "moving forward". The ideas are still very much drawn from the self, but I'm trying really hard to give them universal appeal,
welp, hope things are going good
Emily Gordon
It took me a while to grasp the whole nut concept but I started thinking about which drawings I put up for midterm critique and how the whole theme of water and flooding pertains very personally to my beginning experience in Florence. The first concept that I’d like to explore is aftermath. This refers to the image of the water on the ground after the flood. I started to think about what happens after the flood? What is left? Is it problematic or is there relief that it is over? Next I started to explore the idea of control. How can I prevent the overflow and flooding of water? Is it beyond my control?
In my meeting with Julia, we talked a lot about whether it was important what the liquid is that was overflowing, or if what I am drawing is something found or set up. I realized that I really like the photographs that I created in the first half of the semester as source material and I decided that I want to produce a combination of photographs and drawings, to play around and see what fits the concept best. Julia pointed out that I should be careful about the objects and where I photograph them and the choices I make in general. Also in her slide show, she showed me two photographs of people who had submerged parts of their bodies in water which gave me the idea that I could also use myself to represent my ideas because depicting the fountain basin is not as important to me anymore. Then my two ideas kind of morphed together into a progression of flooding, from the overflowing (lack of control) to an attempt at control, to the aftermath and finally to being ok. I’ve been thinking about a lot of ways to express these nuts but the first thing I came up with (an decided to execute immediately) was to photograph my hand expressing these stages (the pictures of this are posted). I’m working on other ways to show the aftermath of flooding. I might continue to work on my watercolor drawings as well and see what happens if I try to separate the nuts, because that might lead in an interesting direction as well.
In my meeting with Julia, we talked a lot about whether it was important what the liquid is that was overflowing, or if what I am drawing is something found or set up. I realized that I really like the photographs that I created in the first half of the semester as source material and I decided that I want to produce a combination of photographs and drawings, to play around and see what fits the concept best. Julia pointed out that I should be careful about the objects and where I photograph them and the choices I make in general. Also in her slide show, she showed me two photographs of people who had submerged parts of their bodies in water which gave me the idea that I could also use myself to represent my ideas because depicting the fountain basin is not as important to me anymore. Then my two ideas kind of morphed together into a progression of flooding, from the overflowing (lack of control) to an attempt at control, to the aftermath and finally to being ok. I’ve been thinking about a lot of ways to express these nuts but the first thing I came up with (an decided to execute immediately) was to photograph my hand expressing these stages (the pictures of this are posted). I’m working on other ways to show the aftermath of flooding. I might continue to work on my watercolor drawings as well and see what happens if I try to separate the nuts, because that might lead in an interesting direction as well.
Kelly Diehl
JANA.
Meeting with Julia was encouraging. For this week, I'm making another small-scale thingy in a different material and making something that interacts more with the space. My last thing was only a frontal viewing...experience (?) and too much like a drawing. So, onto the next step. I'm using nice paper and working from a drawing again, more loopy-twirly this time. I don't think I'm going to just hang it somewhere though. I might actually attach the pieces somewhere in the room, somewhere. The damn heater has completely obliterated my last one. That's an exaggeration, but, it bugs me. I have to think about my "nut" still. What is it all about? Every project has been a process in itself, a cleansing of sorts. Like you said about my little clay "relationship balls" as Julia called them. Ha ha. What is it that's left at the end? Those little gray lines at the end of last week's thing? What are those? I guess I'll figure it out. Stuff.
Meeting with Julia was encouraging. For this week, I'm making another small-scale thingy in a different material and making something that interacts more with the space. My last thing was only a frontal viewing...experience (?) and too much like a drawing. So, onto the next step. I'm using nice paper and working from a drawing again, more loopy-twirly this time. I don't think I'm going to just hang it somewhere though. I might actually attach the pieces somewhere in the room, somewhere. The damn heater has completely obliterated my last one. That's an exaggeration, but, it bugs me. I have to think about my "nut" still. What is it all about? Every project has been a process in itself, a cleansing of sorts. Like you said about my little clay "relationship balls" as Julia called them. Ha ha. What is it that's left at the end? Those little gray lines at the end of last week's thing? What are those? I guess I'll figure it out. Stuff.
3.27.2007
Allison Shellito
I can't believe how quickly the second half of the semester is going!! We are already discussing final projects and in a few days it will be April. I had a lovely spring break trip to Athens and some Grecian islands, and now it is time to buckle down and finish the semester. I was stuck for a long time with my spirals, but this past week has been very inspired for me, which is a relief. I finally know what I want to do: I am depicting the spiral using photo and video from different vantage points and from inside and outside of the spiral. I wanted to include places around Florence (such as piazzas) in the spirals, but for some reason (no matter how I adjust my camera), I am only able to get the effect I want in my photos when I take pictures of people. However, I have been pleased with the photographs I have taken so far and I soon hope to make some videos to add to my work. A presto!! Allison
P.S. Love having Julia here- she is very inspirational. Miss you Jana!!!
P.S. Love having Julia here- she is very inspirational. Miss you Jana!!!
3.26.2007
Katey Week ????
hey there!!
sorry i haven't updated in a while, things have been pretty crazy for the past couple weeks, and it completely slipped my mind. i'm continuing on kinda in the same direction, adding more tunnels to the cieling of the computer lab. i'm also going to try to work with the same idea of perspective in a bit of a more organic way, using paper still, but changing the type of space i'm using to not be so tunnel-like. i'll post some pictures really soon, so that you can see the transformation of the computer room in progress...unfortunately i forgot my camera, but don't worry....i'll remember in the next couple of days.
ciao,
katey
sorry i haven't updated in a while, things have been pretty crazy for the past couple weeks, and it completely slipped my mind. i'm continuing on kinda in the same direction, adding more tunnels to the cieling of the computer lab. i'm also going to try to work with the same idea of perspective in a bit of a more organic way, using paper still, but changing the type of space i'm using to not be so tunnel-like. i'll post some pictures really soon, so that you can see the transformation of the computer room in progress...unfortunately i forgot my camera, but don't worry....i'll remember in the next couple of days.
ciao,
katey
Zoe Hillenmeyer
So we've been focusing on "nuts:" what the core of our thoughts are. Not so shockingly, my nut, is actually nuts. Well, seeds - well, recreation. Germination, and how this relates to the human body, both as a child and as a conceiving adult (well, not currently, but having that potential). The human condition relates back to birth, and it is a common experience to have had lived within the womb. This fascinates me, and the way that it engages the interaction of protection, the maternal, PODS, private/public, and sex are really interesting. Upon more distillation, I've been working on my materials, and making sure that the materials I am using carry the weight of the concepts that I am trying to promote. The materials I am playing around with right now are honey and pipes (and still plastic, clear, containers). I like the way the honey drops slowly, I want to engage its smell and taste, as well as the way that it relates back to the natural world. I intend to spend a good chunk of time outside in the natural world, and seeing how some of the soybean/condom pod clusters look in a natural space. Rather than bringing the "organic" into a "sterile space" I am going to try to bring the "sterile things" into the organic space. I want to see if the honey can attract the bugs and bees. I think that perhaps changing the interactive participant could be interesting as well. Video, and photo documentation are open to this too. We'll see... as always, I feel like I'm on a bit of a branch, reaching out and not quite sure what I'm reaching for, but that's just fine... they say risk is rewarding.
hope you are well, Jana... we all miss you.
hope you are well, Jana... we all miss you.
3.25.2007
Joey
Please note: I’ve posted my 3 drawings from the midterm critique but only as closing
gesture, one last hooray before I depart from my ideas about meandering lines. No, no, this is not entirely
true. In fact, the ideas that I was working with earlier will probably always be present in the back of
my mind, they have been inside me from the very start. Which is why I can’t make art about them right
now. It is too big…
I am starting fresh, so very very fresh…
The process began with a brief walk through the streets of Florence, picking up scraps and
bits and things and strings. Back in the studio, I made a pulp out of the things that were
pulp-worthy, and selected a few object to display within a my pulpy sculptural thing. I used wire mesh to
make a form to spread the pulp over, creating niches in the shapes and sizes of the objects I wanted to
include (which happened to be a broken pair of glasses, a bunch of cut lock tops, and a cut bike lock
chain. I thought maybe there could be some sort of narrative here). After allowing the pulp to dry onto
the screen, I pealed it off and was surprised (and delighted) to find it held its shape quite well and
was rather strong. However, when I placed the objects into their respective niches, and took another look at
the piece, the combination was not that masterpiece I’d been envisioning. In fact, my reaction was more
of a “hmm, well there that is…” But I do really like the aesthetic and the conceptual possibilities
presented by a form made out of pulp from existing objects.
Next, I took all the envelopes from letters and packages my mom has sent me and made them
into a pulp. My original idea was to cast them into sort of a hanging nest-like shape, but that
didn’t quite go as planned. However, I do think im going to continue using materials that have some sort
of significance to me or my life. I might do a similar sort of thing that I did in at first
with niches, or at least creating the pulp form with certain objects in mind. I’m not sure exactly what
aspects of my life im going to deal with yet.
Another possibility: when I was talking to Julia about this, she mentioned that the cast
pulp looked to her like a topographical map. That’s not something that I’d seen right away, but
interestingly enough, when I started taking closeup pictures of the stuff for this blog, looking through the
camera lens totally made me see these structures are like huge land masses. Especially when photographing the
piece that included the objects, it almost felt to me like I was looking at a landscape with a pair
of huge glasses in it. So I think there’s some there. I think its pretty obvious that im not exactly sure
about what im doing at this moment, but I do feel on the verge of something. Clearly this blog entry is
so long because im trying to get all this stuff straight in my own mind…you all just happen to be
privy to my thought process!
gesture, one last hooray before I depart from my ideas about meandering lines. No, no, this is not entirely
true. In fact, the ideas that I was working with earlier will probably always be present in the back of
my mind, they have been inside me from the very start. Which is why I can’t make art about them right
now. It is too big…
I am starting fresh, so very very fresh…
The process began with a brief walk through the streets of Florence, picking up scraps and
bits and things and strings. Back in the studio, I made a pulp out of the things that were
pulp-worthy, and selected a few object to display within a my pulpy sculptural thing. I used wire mesh to
make a form to spread the pulp over, creating niches in the shapes and sizes of the objects I wanted to
include (which happened to be a broken pair of glasses, a bunch of cut lock tops, and a cut bike lock
chain. I thought maybe there could be some sort of narrative here). After allowing the pulp to dry onto
the screen, I pealed it off and was surprised (and delighted) to find it held its shape quite well and
was rather strong. However, when I placed the objects into their respective niches, and took another look at
the piece, the combination was not that masterpiece I’d been envisioning. In fact, my reaction was more
of a “hmm, well there that is…” But I do really like the aesthetic and the conceptual possibilities
presented by a form made out of pulp from existing objects.
Next, I took all the envelopes from letters and packages my mom has sent me and made them
into a pulp. My original idea was to cast them into sort of a hanging nest-like shape, but that
didn’t quite go as planned. However, I do think im going to continue using materials that have some sort
of significance to me or my life. I might do a similar sort of thing that I did in at first
with niches, or at least creating the pulp form with certain objects in mind. I’m not sure exactly what
aspects of my life im going to deal with yet.
Another possibility: when I was talking to Julia about this, she mentioned that the cast
pulp looked to her like a topographical map. That’s not something that I’d seen right away, but
interestingly enough, when I started taking closeup pictures of the stuff for this blog, looking through the
camera lens totally made me see these structures are like huge land masses. Especially when photographing the
piece that included the objects, it almost felt to me like I was looking at a landscape with a pair
of huge glasses in it. So I think there’s some there. I think its pretty obvious that im not exactly sure
about what im doing at this moment, but I do feel on the verge of something. Clearly this blog entry is
so long because im trying to get all this stuff straight in my own mind…you all just happen to be
privy to my thought process!
Rachel - Midterm
Hi, Jana!!!! Sorry, this is kind of late. I only have one picture on flickr - the pastel well - wasn't sure how to capture the flip book, but oh well. Anyway, midterm was exciting! Got food poisoning and all that good stuff :D But I managed to participate somewhat. I felt like I got some really good feedback. I really like the idea of working up toward a higher quality animation. That will be my ultimate goal - I suppose I am going to use this time to try to come up with subject matter.
Anyway - back to work!!!
Anyway - back to work!!!
Catherine Hite
i have three nuts:
heaviness/weighed down
lightness
and the transistion between these two things
i brainstormed about heavy and light things then went to tutto a 99cent and bought a bunch of random stuff. from here i played around with materials and came up with ideas for two of my nuts.
i bought fake apples and hollowed them out. then i filled them with metal nuts and plaster, wood chips, or sand so that they each have a different weight. it was quite an intersting experience going to the hardware store and trying to buy the nuts because i stil have no idea what they are called in italian and the men kept wanting to know what function i needed them for and it was well quite an interesting time.
for my second nut i am thinking about creating hand weights out of light materials. this would be for the lightness nuts so i guess perhaps an underlying thought is tricking the viewer or rather challenging their notion of what ought to heavy vs light.
-catherine
heaviness/weighed down
lightness
and the transistion between these two things
i brainstormed about heavy and light things then went to tutto a 99cent and bought a bunch of random stuff. from here i played around with materials and came up with ideas for two of my nuts.
i bought fake apples and hollowed them out. then i filled them with metal nuts and plaster, wood chips, or sand so that they each have a different weight. it was quite an intersting experience going to the hardware store and trying to buy the nuts because i stil have no idea what they are called in italian and the men kept wanting to know what function i needed them for and it was well quite an interesting time.
for my second nut i am thinking about creating hand weights out of light materials. this would be for the lightness nuts so i guess perhaps an underlying thought is tricking the viewer or rather challenging their notion of what ought to heavy vs light.
-catherine
Jane Philipps
After midterms I was so ready for spring break that I forgot to post! I thought my crit went well - I ended up making 4 small rice paper books using my previous images. I liked the effects that the paper added; the tactile quality was nice (and gave it a handmade/natural feel) and the way you could see through to the next page was an effect I liked. I also made a movie to supplement the books and it was interesting hearing the reactions that people had to the books vs. the movie. I didn't get very much feedback about how to move forward with my project, but in the last week I've come up with a few new ideas.
Julia told us to think about the "nuts", or key aspects, of our project and I've come up with three: systems (or the Fibonacci sequence), infinity, and organic vs. inorganic. Though these are rather broad, I've started brainstorming about how I can illustrate each of these concepts. Since before break my thinking has changed and I am now more interested in working three-dimensionally. I like the idea of finding spaces that suit my concepts and working with them and, conversely, coming up with ideas and fitting them into spaces. I first thought about using the staircase inside the school because it is a pseudo-spiral staircase and people move through it going either up or down, which fits with my idea of how the spiral moves in and out depending on its direction. I wanted to mess with the system of banister poles that is already in place, but subtly, so that it's not necessarily noticeable at first. After some thinking and measuring, I've decided that the staircase is not going to work, but have found a new place for my idea. I still plan on using the Fibonacci sequence as a base system to work from, which will be the element that connects the different pieces I end up making. For my other two "nuts" I am thinking about playing with fabric and/or synthetic materials in some way, but I need to develop these ideas more. Pictures of mid-term work is up and next week I will have in progress pictures as well as more detail about the ideas I am developing for my next project.
Julia told us to think about the "nuts", or key aspects, of our project and I've come up with three: systems (or the Fibonacci sequence), infinity, and organic vs. inorganic. Though these are rather broad, I've started brainstorming about how I can illustrate each of these concepts. Since before break my thinking has changed and I am now more interested in working three-dimensionally. I like the idea of finding spaces that suit my concepts and working with them and, conversely, coming up with ideas and fitting them into spaces. I first thought about using the staircase inside the school because it is a pseudo-spiral staircase and people move through it going either up or down, which fits with my idea of how the spiral moves in and out depending on its direction. I wanted to mess with the system of banister poles that is already in place, but subtly, so that it's not necessarily noticeable at first. After some thinking and measuring, I've decided that the staircase is not going to work, but have found a new place for my idea. I still plan on using the Fibonacci sequence as a base system to work from, which will be the element that connects the different pieces I end up making. For my other two "nuts" I am thinking about playing with fabric and/or synthetic materials in some way, but I need to develop these ideas more. Pictures of mid-term work is up and next week I will have in progress pictures as well as more detail about the ideas I am developing for my next project.
2 in 1
a blog for spring-break/post-crit so this blog and subsequent pictures will attempt to fill in any gaps and bring everybody up to date. Chronologically:
For the presentation of my work I diverged a bit from my original plan, which was more like an outline at best in the first place since it depended on change and influence to exist at all…But anyway, I had originally intended to put the pieces of fabric up, mounted on cardboard rather like pictures on the wall in the main school. When it came down to it though that just seemed a bit too cold and like I would be trying for a clean picture plane or something that wasn’t actually there. So by virtue of a divine muse or lack of any other ideas I tried wrapping the bits of fabric around random cloth things I had around, rather like bitty pillows. This was all very informal, I think I used my scarf, a mitten, and an apron as filler material. If anyone had bothered to look on the bottom of the ‘pillows’ they would have seen some distressed looking masking tape holding it all together. Technically this wasn’t the best route, and even some masking tape could be seen on the sides (distracting!) Half the problem (not really a problem more like thing) was that I hadn’t intended to do this so the wool was a bit short and the fabric a bit random. This influenced my later decisions for this week….Okay. Then the wall/shelving in the studio itself just seemed the right place for the work.
reasons:
1. I wanted people to look down on the pieces rather than have them mounted up. Mainly this was because I thought it would reinforce the sense of surface imposed on top of something, ie how we look down on water.
2. the shelf size was long and skinny which inclined it to be a good sequential display area
3. the wall above the shelf had gaps and crags in the white paint that reflects not only the rather arbitrary shapes of water but also the color with this great neutralized teal color. Fantastic!
4. I used the other fabric I had bought (Jana said it was un-something silk…I had thought she was crazy and it was plain linen…but then when I thought about it that was probably why it cost an arm and a leg fool…) this gave a clean surface to present on and a softer, earthier brown/white.
5. It all very happily informal and surprisingly intimate, the wall especially allowed connections to flow up and down through the forms
Feedback from class: generally it went over well and indicated more than I had intended but perhaps what I had hoped for. The whole intimate nature and reception of it was not expected but did in fact reference things I had been thinking about when working on the project, the pillows were unplanned but led into that as well and referenced a feminine strand of thought I had been pursuing as well as an absolute comfort that I had been actively pursuing, the search was in fact the initial impetus for the project. the softeness of the fabric base also led to emphasize a textural quality I hinted towards (more on that later). Finally the works were received cohesively when they had about a 40% chance of being knaves of disorder. Also people said they got a sense of water which wasn’t necessary for the work but nonetheless nice because it is what I’ve been inundating myself with and it allows more speculation and well, peacefulness or connection because everyone can recall it even though its never the same.
As for this week I’m clarifiying a bit, nuts and all but I think it would be more fun to call them cheez-its right now because that’s what I’m thinking about. Just like nuts cheez-its are the coming together of critical elements (as the back of the box will tell you) and the purification of distracting elements. There is the ridged edges for improved grabbing quality, the specialization and saturation of chedderness and the addition of salt because, well, it helps. I’m gonna do that in my own work. Gonna add a little salt and saturate some bits so that people can grab it better. So what is all that? Tactility and flow. Here’s the bit I wrote up in class post-nut conversation:
The moment I connected with the work was when I let go of my restrictions, impositions put on my hand and the material and when I began to listen to my instinct and let the material determine itself. The main thing is to not forget that, and in turn, expand on it. Open the work to more experimentation. I need to free myself of my fear of branching off too far. In itself, that was a restriction. My instinct will impose enough restrictions through preference and if my instincts wrong then I’ll just change paths. This is all linked through ideas. In actuality, it means I’m going to not going to pre-cut my fabric (if I cut it at all) and I’ll work in the same give-and-take manner and hopefully on a larger scale of fabric, and maybe also thread, the work will stand as evidence of that process and give a continual sense of movement as before. I’ll add things in, threads, other materials. I’ve been eying a specific ribbon, and maybe expand beyond the thread world with what strikes my internal fancy or aesthetic. There are recurring concepts, frozen moments over change, consistency. Tactility and the way it feels to the fingers or skin in general. Specificity and detail against a larger sensual experience. This is all formal stuff. I think I am concerning myself so much with the formal because actually just sewing with that as a loose base gives me the time and the lingering mind to think about other things which I haven’t figured out yet (not on the whole, its impossible! but on an incorporative level)
In there is my reaction to the problem of my fabric being too small to tape around stuff in the previous presentation. I mentioned how I’ll hopefully work on a larger scale but that doesn’t quite seem to have my interest so I’ve axed it in one sense, but in another its still working on a larger sense because of the way I’m letting the strings just keep rolling on in one fabric even if the work is still activating the space the same way as before.
Alright now the time gap is closed and not a single question unanswered (what?! impossible, they never go!) seriously any major questions send along (the grapevine or email or whatever.) Maggie
ps I included some other fiber artists work and pics from class don’t forget to click on the space or place class set or it will be all jumbled!
For the presentation of my work I diverged a bit from my original plan, which was more like an outline at best in the first place since it depended on change and influence to exist at all…But anyway, I had originally intended to put the pieces of fabric up, mounted on cardboard rather like pictures on the wall in the main school. When it came down to it though that just seemed a bit too cold and like I would be trying for a clean picture plane or something that wasn’t actually there. So by virtue of a divine muse or lack of any other ideas I tried wrapping the bits of fabric around random cloth things I had around, rather like bitty pillows. This was all very informal, I think I used my scarf, a mitten, and an apron as filler material. If anyone had bothered to look on the bottom of the ‘pillows’ they would have seen some distressed looking masking tape holding it all together. Technically this wasn’t the best route, and even some masking tape could be seen on the sides (distracting!) Half the problem (not really a problem more like thing) was that I hadn’t intended to do this so the wool was a bit short and the fabric a bit random. This influenced my later decisions for this week….Okay. Then the wall/shelving in the studio itself just seemed the right place for the work.
reasons:
1. I wanted people to look down on the pieces rather than have them mounted up. Mainly this was because I thought it would reinforce the sense of surface imposed on top of something, ie how we look down on water.
2. the shelf size was long and skinny which inclined it to be a good sequential display area
3. the wall above the shelf had gaps and crags in the white paint that reflects not only the rather arbitrary shapes of water but also the color with this great neutralized teal color. Fantastic!
4. I used the other fabric I had bought (Jana said it was un-something silk…I had thought she was crazy and it was plain linen…but then when I thought about it that was probably why it cost an arm and a leg fool…) this gave a clean surface to present on and a softer, earthier brown/white.
5. It all very happily informal and surprisingly intimate, the wall especially allowed connections to flow up and down through the forms
Feedback from class: generally it went over well and indicated more than I had intended but perhaps what I had hoped for. The whole intimate nature and reception of it was not expected but did in fact reference things I had been thinking about when working on the project, the pillows were unplanned but led into that as well and referenced a feminine strand of thought I had been pursuing as well as an absolute comfort that I had been actively pursuing, the search was in fact the initial impetus for the project. the softeness of the fabric base also led to emphasize a textural quality I hinted towards (more on that later). Finally the works were received cohesively when they had about a 40% chance of being knaves of disorder. Also people said they got a sense of water which wasn’t necessary for the work but nonetheless nice because it is what I’ve been inundating myself with and it allows more speculation and well, peacefulness or connection because everyone can recall it even though its never the same.
As for this week I’m clarifiying a bit, nuts and all but I think it would be more fun to call them cheez-its right now because that’s what I’m thinking about. Just like nuts cheez-its are the coming together of critical elements (as the back of the box will tell you) and the purification of distracting elements. There is the ridged edges for improved grabbing quality, the specialization and saturation of chedderness and the addition of salt because, well, it helps. I’m gonna do that in my own work. Gonna add a little salt and saturate some bits so that people can grab it better. So what is all that? Tactility and flow. Here’s the bit I wrote up in class post-nut conversation:
The moment I connected with the work was when I let go of my restrictions, impositions put on my hand and the material and when I began to listen to my instinct and let the material determine itself. The main thing is to not forget that, and in turn, expand on it. Open the work to more experimentation. I need to free myself of my fear of branching off too far. In itself, that was a restriction. My instinct will impose enough restrictions through preference and if my instincts wrong then I’ll just change paths. This is all linked through ideas. In actuality, it means I’m going to not going to pre-cut my fabric (if I cut it at all) and I’ll work in the same give-and-take manner and hopefully on a larger scale of fabric, and maybe also thread, the work will stand as evidence of that process and give a continual sense of movement as before. I’ll add things in, threads, other materials. I’ve been eying a specific ribbon, and maybe expand beyond the thread world with what strikes my internal fancy or aesthetic. There are recurring concepts, frozen moments over change, consistency. Tactility and the way it feels to the fingers or skin in general. Specificity and detail against a larger sensual experience. This is all formal stuff. I think I am concerning myself so much with the formal because actually just sewing with that as a loose base gives me the time and the lingering mind to think about other things which I haven’t figured out yet (not on the whole, its impossible! but on an incorporative level)
In there is my reaction to the problem of my fabric being too small to tape around stuff in the previous presentation. I mentioned how I’ll hopefully work on a larger scale but that doesn’t quite seem to have my interest so I’ve axed it in one sense, but in another its still working on a larger sense because of the way I’m letting the strings just keep rolling on in one fabric even if the work is still activating the space the same way as before.
Alright now the time gap is closed and not a single question unanswered (what?! impossible, they never go!) seriously any major questions send along (the grapevine or email or whatever.) Maggie
ps I included some other fiber artists work and pics from class don’t forget to click on the space or place class set or it will be all jumbled!
Doves and baby mommas
So, I went to Assisi for an afternoon last Saturday and instead of being tickled pink by the churches and the artwork and the beauty of the surrounding countryside (which were amazing, by the way), I found my enchantment in the fake doves strung before all the major churches. The doves had the same shape to them as the chins that were included in the group of lids and lips at the start. This got me to thinking about creases: as in, the creases of the body. This is a "nut" of my focus, as Julia has phrased it. I discovered that the arch of the foot also has the same shape as that of the plastic dove wings. Plus, it's another part of the body with sense receptors similar to the lips in that they are different from those of the hands. I made plaster molds of my feet and will attempt to make them into bird like figures cast in ice ( back to that sticky stuff I misused/abused in shaping my mom's breast- lets see how it goes this time). I was thinking about the religious iconography where the crane pecks at its chest to lure out its own blood and guts to feed the babies. "I love my baby momma..." (rap song lyrics). There's a link there with melting ice.... not quite sure yet how to resolve it. Aside from that I've been going crazy drawing hands and feet: goes back to the main de venus idea (you can find the lid/lip form in the palm of the hand), so maybe I'll make a drawing exploring this further. And if that leads to nowhere, then...
there's always Paris.
(Bit of randomness never hurt anyone.)
~Nicole
there's always Paris.
(Bit of randomness never hurt anyone.)
~Nicole
Jessica Rogen
Sorry no pictures. I have nothing to show except for increased brain activity. Thinking about the knuts (nuts?) of my project, I pickd out two small things that I am intested in pursuing futher. The first is the idea of falling and the second is altered time sequences/narratives. This small things being kind of broad (or extremely broad as it were) I'm currently trying to narrow them down. For the falling, I am trying to figure out why exactly it is a frightening obsession/fear of mine. Currently I'm dropping things down the stairs trying to get at it. It's something about the lack of control and the way the body stiffens but can't stop itself.
Second is the alterned time. Stopping and starting and starting over again. I have no clue what I'm doing for this. I'm kind of thinking of the idea of negative space and if it can exist. More later (next week).
Jessica
Second is the alterned time. Stopping and starting and starting over again. I have no clue what I'm doing for this. I'm kind of thinking of the idea of negative space and if it can exist. More later (next week).
Jessica
Amy Scott
So this week we started brainstorming for our next project. I've chosen to focus on the actual box itself. What's it made of? What's a box used for? I'm pretty much just trying to think of different materials I can make boxes out of that will hinder the boxes function. The other focus for my project is confinement and breaking free of confinement. I'm still trying to discover ways to show this concept. Unfortunately I don't have any photos to share but there will definitely be some next week.
Daniel Lubniewski Week 9
This week I thought a little bit about some of the things about my art that makes it unique to me, and I've come up with a few things. The first thing is my ability to create things that can express abstract qualities, and the second is my interest with the textures one can create with wet media. There are also a few things that I have started to catch my interest in my art. The first thing is my interest in creating fictional characters, something that comes from my interest in cartoons and comics, and there is also my mostly untapped potential at creating interactions between characters and forming narratives. Over the weekend I started doing practice for a few projects that I will be doing next week. I created a series of characters that reflect parts of my own personality, and I continued practicing with watercolor pencils while I was at it.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)