5 "Touch Points"
1. Death of my grandpa
2. Changing high schools
3. Middle school friends
4. Going to college
5. Tramatic event my freshman year *
5 Adjectives to describe touchpoint
1. shattered *
2. distrust
3. reform
4. uncovered
5. trapped
5 Metaphors
1. beautiful struggle
2. painful growth
3. hitting bottom
4. secrets and lies *
5. end of a chapter
For my touchpoint, I chose a tramatic personal event in my life that occurred my first semester of college. This event changed my life and caused me to rethink who I was (person I was vs. person I wanted to be) and where my life was going. This event really took me by surprise and changed my life immensely, and still has an impact on my life a few years later. I chose this touchpoint since it has been such a big part of my life and I still haven't gotten totally over it, so it is still fresh in a way with more to explore. For my adjective, I chose shattered because in a way that is what this event did to my life, it shattered my expectations I had for how my life would go. I feel that I can definetely make artwork based off of this word. I enjoy making things, breaking them, then reassembling them in a new way. For one of my pieces last semester in ceramics, I worked this way. For my metaphor, I chose secrets and lies because I like the way it sounds and it fits in well with my other two choices and can but used with my other choices to create an art work that interests me. Additionally, for a while, secrets and lies surrounded the event I used for my touchpoint, some of which still exists today.
My original idea for this piece was to do a black and white photo collage with triangle cut outs of pictures and solid colored triangles interspersed together at different angles. I also thought that I might maybe want to make it 3-D. Then, today when we met in groups during class, my group members had some really awesome ideas for how I could push this project further and more unique ideas for materials. I wasn't really sure what I was going to use for materials, probably card board and black and white copies of photos. Then, someone in my group suggested that I used foam core board to arrange the photos and then cut it up and rearranged it on another foam core board. Then, someone in my group suggested using a mirror and I really liked that idea. I think the mirror will really capture the idea of being shattered. Additionally, sometimes mirrors can be used to decieve. Not everyone knew what was going on in my life, so in using a mirror, it is kind of like exposing it and reflecting it back. Also, the mirror can reflect my shattered image because that event really changed the image I had of myself and caused me to question who I really was and what was really true. I am planning to copy images from this touch point in my life with tracing paper, then create stencils and ultimately paint a more simplified silhouette of the images on the mirror using black acrylic paint. I think that if I were to use colored images it would not be as effective and like the tone that the dark silhouettes on the glass establishes. To me, that gives a kind of creepy more unsettling and nervous feeling, which is what I want. For a while, some of these memories from this touchpoint were like a dark shadow lurking over my life. I am also thinking about doing a simplified self-portrait as well to intersperse with the other images to reflect the changed image and questioning of myself during this time. Once I have all of the images on the mirror and they dry, I am planning to shatter the mirror with a hammer. Then, I am planning to use the shattered pieces along with wooden dowels to form a new and different whole using a building technique similar to that employed by Roy Strassberg in his Holocaust angel pieces.
Thursday, January 22, 2009
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Nan Goldin Reading Notes
1. -What was this artist's intent in chosing the photos/moments she chose to capture?
-Does this artist find or photograph these pictures?
-Are some of them staged or real?
2. -I think the idea of a photographic diary is rather interesting.
0I wonder if she sees someting we don't in the moments she chooses to photograph.
-The pictures are from her life of her and her friends.
-I think it is interesting to see pictures of other people's lives and how they live, although I personally do not like some of her pictures that are in the book. In a way, they are all a more intimate look into the life of her and her friends, but I think some are more taboo than others and don't care to see the more taboo ones. There are some things that happen and that people do that I don't care to see pictures of.
-I do appreciate how she tries to capture the sponaeity of life in her pictures. The pictures I take are often staged or I take multiple shots trying to get the picture just how I'd like it, where as she just shoots it how it is and captures more of the actual moment.
-It would be kind of cool to have someone capturing the events of my life on film that I could look back on, although I wouldn't want it to be so extreme and would like to retain my privacy. I probably wouldn't want to remember all the sad times though.
-I kind of don't/wouldn't feel right looking at some of her pictures. Even though she is choosing to share it, I wouldn't feel right looking at it. I am more conservative.
-It is kind of wierd/interesting that if you were to look at her exhibit, you can kind of see part of a persons life unfold. Almost as if it were a fictional character in a movie, but it's not, it is a real person.
-I like the idea of healing as a topic for artwork in a way, it applies to me although not in the same way.
3. -The artist's intent was to capture the souls of her friends and give back something to them, as well as to document or capture their lives as they were. I think she does a pretty good job of capturing real-life moments.
-The artist does not find these pictures, they are photographs she has actually taken from her own life and the lives of her close friends.
-The photographs are not staged, she took the pictures of actual events happening.
4. -If she did not choose to capture such intimate moments, would her photographs have been as effective at protraying the everyday life of her and her friends?
-How is it that in the spontaneous snapshots, the gesture of a person and their demeanor is more apparent?
-Should anything go in art, or should there be some sort of boundaries?
-Does this artist find or photograph these pictures?
-Are some of them staged or real?
2. -I think the idea of a photographic diary is rather interesting.
0I wonder if she sees someting we don't in the moments she chooses to photograph.
-The pictures are from her life of her and her friends.
-I think it is interesting to see pictures of other people's lives and how they live, although I personally do not like some of her pictures that are in the book. In a way, they are all a more intimate look into the life of her and her friends, but I think some are more taboo than others and don't care to see the more taboo ones. There are some things that happen and that people do that I don't care to see pictures of.
-I do appreciate how she tries to capture the sponaeity of life in her pictures. The pictures I take are often staged or I take multiple shots trying to get the picture just how I'd like it, where as she just shoots it how it is and captures more of the actual moment.
-It would be kind of cool to have someone capturing the events of my life on film that I could look back on, although I wouldn't want it to be so extreme and would like to retain my privacy. I probably wouldn't want to remember all the sad times though.
-I kind of don't/wouldn't feel right looking at some of her pictures. Even though she is choosing to share it, I wouldn't feel right looking at it. I am more conservative.
-It is kind of wierd/interesting that if you were to look at her exhibit, you can kind of see part of a persons life unfold. Almost as if it were a fictional character in a movie, but it's not, it is a real person.
-I like the idea of healing as a topic for artwork in a way, it applies to me although not in the same way.
3. -The artist's intent was to capture the souls of her friends and give back something to them, as well as to document or capture their lives as they were. I think she does a pretty good job of capturing real-life moments.
-The artist does not find these pictures, they are photographs she has actually taken from her own life and the lives of her close friends.
-The photographs are not staged, she took the pictures of actual events happening.
4. -If she did not choose to capture such intimate moments, would her photographs have been as effective at protraying the everyday life of her and her friends?
-How is it that in the spontaneous snapshots, the gesture of a person and their demeanor is more apparent?
-Should anything go in art, or should there be some sort of boundaries?
Willliam Kentridge Reading Notes
1. -What is the significance of this artist's work?
-Why does he employ the stylistic choices he does?
-Is there a significance in his choice to leave the picture looking unfinished?
2. -I wonder if his studying of mime has an influence on the choices he makes in his work. For instance, the use of gray scale.
-I do get a sense of emotion in the selections of his work that is shown. A great deal of this comes through in the actual expression of the figures, but I think his line and color choices
also help to push this idea.
-cruelty --->harsh, unfinished, rough lines?
-Possible metaphor ---> person with the doctor
-It is wierd to think that things like South African apartheid can happen. Maybe the minority operates off the majority's fear or through intimidation?
-Normally, I don't think of video work as being art.
-There are some pretty serious issuses being addressed that I think could be used by those involved to produce some pretty powerful art.
-The images make more sense after reading his background story.
-The artist seems to be telling about his feeling and maybe that of those around him ---> collective identity.
-Through a fictional character, metaphor of an unconcious person in a coma parallel to apartheid and its end?
-Makes me think twice about things going on around me that I don't partake in, but also don't actively try and change.
-His artwork makes more sense when you know the history behind it and what South African apartheid was.
-He has an interesting technique to create his movies. It seems more effecient than making lots of drawings, although it would not work in every situation, for every idea.
-I think charcoal is an effective medium for what he is trying to express. As the book mentions, it does allow for reworking, and additionally, I think it does have the ability to portray more raw and strong emotions.
-I can relate to not really feeling like an artist, but rather as someone who makes art.
-It is nice how he is self-reliant with his films.
-I think he had some good advice for aspiring artists, and agree that it is a good idea to do something I enjoy, rather than what I feel others may desire.
3. -This artist's work deals with the emotions followed after the end of apartheid, more particularly, the guilty conscience of white South Africans like himself that witnessed the horrible deeds committed during the apartheid and the feeling of helplessness associated with it.
-I think there is more than one reason he employs the stylistic choices he does. The grayscale probably creates a more somber feel than color would. Through his choice of charcoal as a medium, he can create more spontaneous and emotional lines. Additionally, I think the charcoal works well for his films because it can be manipulated repeatedly with much ease. Also, by using the process he does, it is more efficient and he can be self-reliant in the creation of his films.
-Yes, there is a significance in his choice to leave the pictures looking unfinished. He likes to have a trace or evidence of what has been in his pictures, although it has been altered and is no more. In doing so, he plays off of the way history operates with the past influencing the future. Additionally, it helps to establish a certain feel, or tone, in his pictures.
4. -How did Kentridge come to employ the technique he uses in making his movies, was it something he witnessed others doing or did he develop it?
-Could he have used a different medium to create the same effects he achieved by using the charcoal?
-Could his artwork have the same meaning for others today?
-Why does he employ the stylistic choices he does?
-Is there a significance in his choice to leave the picture looking unfinished?
2. -I wonder if his studying of mime has an influence on the choices he makes in his work. For instance, the use of gray scale.
-I do get a sense of emotion in the selections of his work that is shown. A great deal of this comes through in the actual expression of the figures, but I think his line and color choices
also help to push this idea.
-cruelty --->harsh, unfinished, rough lines?
-Possible metaphor ---> person with the doctor
-It is wierd to think that things like South African apartheid can happen. Maybe the minority operates off the majority's fear or through intimidation?
-Normally, I don't think of video work as being art.
-There are some pretty serious issuses being addressed that I think could be used by those involved to produce some pretty powerful art.
-The images make more sense after reading his background story.
-The artist seems to be telling about his feeling and maybe that of those around him ---> collective identity.
-Through a fictional character, metaphor of an unconcious person in a coma parallel to apartheid and its end?
-Makes me think twice about things going on around me that I don't partake in, but also don't actively try and change.
-His artwork makes more sense when you know the history behind it and what South African apartheid was.
-He has an interesting technique to create his movies. It seems more effecient than making lots of drawings, although it would not work in every situation, for every idea.
-I think charcoal is an effective medium for what he is trying to express. As the book mentions, it does allow for reworking, and additionally, I think it does have the ability to portray more raw and strong emotions.
-I can relate to not really feeling like an artist, but rather as someone who makes art.
-It is nice how he is self-reliant with his films.
-I think he had some good advice for aspiring artists, and agree that it is a good idea to do something I enjoy, rather than what I feel others may desire.
3. -This artist's work deals with the emotions followed after the end of apartheid, more particularly, the guilty conscience of white South Africans like himself that witnessed the horrible deeds committed during the apartheid and the feeling of helplessness associated with it.
-I think there is more than one reason he employs the stylistic choices he does. The grayscale probably creates a more somber feel than color would. Through his choice of charcoal as a medium, he can create more spontaneous and emotional lines. Additionally, I think the charcoal works well for his films because it can be manipulated repeatedly with much ease. Also, by using the process he does, it is more efficient and he can be self-reliant in the creation of his films.
-Yes, there is a significance in his choice to leave the pictures looking unfinished. He likes to have a trace or evidence of what has been in his pictures, although it has been altered and is no more. In doing so, he plays off of the way history operates with the past influencing the future. Additionally, it helps to establish a certain feel, or tone, in his pictures.
4. -How did Kentridge come to employ the technique he uses in making his movies, was it something he witnessed others doing or did he develop it?
-Could he have used a different medium to create the same effects he achieved by using the charcoal?
-Could his artwork have the same meaning for others today?
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