Module 16 Final Blog Posting!

1.) My expectations for this course were to learn something about art that I didn't already know.  i also wanted to be able to identify some artists that I wasn't once familiar with.  Yes, these expectations were absolutely met.  I now am aware of multiple artists that I had never even heard of before this class, and I have also learned many new terms, art curator being the top one that i really was unaware of until this class.

2.)although I don't believe there can be a cookie cutter definition of art, to me, art is a piece of work someone creates, and is inspires others, weather they are fellow artists or not.   My initial posting was very general, where as now I feel much more confident in my knowledge of what art really is.

3.) My favorite artist s Andy Warhol.  In my initial posting i never mentioned an artist because I did not have a favorite.  I love Warhol because of his fun and laid back artwork, while also he was the first artist we talked about that I could relate to.

4.) This online course went very well for me.  i was apprehensive at first, and now I would feel good about taking another online course as long as I had another reliable and accessible professor.

Project 4 Reflection

This project really took quite a while for me.  I found it very difficult to find 10-15 images that I felt fit my theme of science is art.  Although both fields are extremely related, finding pictures that I could explain why and how so was a challenge.  I really did enjoy looking through Artstor and viewing all the different types of digital art there was available to me.  The most difficult part of this project for me was explaining how the artwork related to my theme.  I enjoyed doing this because it forced me to understand Artstor and other links that could lead me to many databases full of art that I had no idea existed prior to this project.  Being an art curator for this project was also enjoyable.  I thought that the way I organized my pictures made sense, and flowed nicely.  It was a very pleasant task to re arrange and play with this project until I felt it looked the way it should, as a real art curator would do when creating an exhibit.

Video Responses Module 13 and 14

1.)Main ideas from The Lowdown on Lowbrow:

Lowbrow became applied to artwork after being used in relations to paintings having nude girls in them.  The term was not well liked.  Many artists who create lowbrow material, like the meaning of lowbrow surrealism more so.  Lowbrow is associated with pornography.  Newbrow is now becoming a term as well.  Surrealism is a huge part of what Newbrow art is becoming.  comic books, and tattoos are a huge impact from lowbrow art.

Displaying modern Art: The Tate Approach:
Displaying art is a Key component in art  How people perceive the art is very much based on how it is presented.  Artists explore the political and social receptiveness of the museums often before their artwork is displayed.  Concerns of how the artwork would be displayed is very great when dealing with an artist and the artwork.  Displaying modern art is what the curators are responsible for.  Each section should provide a theme or principal theme for each exhibit.

An Acquiring Mind
Montebello, an art curator explains how he decides to display the artworks in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.  This video goes on to run through certain artworks and their importance.  The expertise of the curators is considered the most valuable of all knowledge in the museum.

2.) Some parts of each of these videos related to my exhibition.  They all spoke about the importance of order of the works of art are displayed, and the paths that lead to acquisition.  I took a lot of time designing my project to flow well with each artwork making sense for the place that I had placed it.

3.) My opinion of these films were that they added to my depth of understanding of what an art curator does daily, and what their overall impacts are.   I learned a great deal from these short films that I was unaware of previously.

Module 12 Video Responses

1.) The first video I chose was the Art of Henry Moore.  I picked this specific video simply because I need have heard of this person/artist.  I wanted to know what he was all about, and his significance.

The second video I chose was the Andy Warhol video.  This was an easy choice for me because I always was interested in this artist, and thought it might be a nice review of the information I had already learned based on a prior unit in an art class I took in high school.

2.) Henry Moore was an incredibly impacting artist of the 20th century.  He lived an average childhood, and then began to develop his liking to art.  Henry Moore has created multiple sculptures and works of art that influenced other artists.  I found it extremely interesting that Moore created sketches and drawings of his memories from world war II, rains, bunkers and etc.

Andy Warhol is one of the  most famous artists that I am aware of, this video helped recreate Warhol's works and explained his printing process.  Andy Warhol was a part of the pop art movement, he once said he never wanted to be an artist, he wanted to be a tap dancer.  Later in life he decided to become a famous artist.  He would use magazine clippings and what not to begin his famous works.  Marilyn Monroe's face made him famous.

3.)  Both videos gave background on the wrists.  They both referenced the time frame that the artists were impacting.  The pop art movement, and the 20th century included here.  The text explains the significance of both of these factors.

4.) These videos were relatively interesting.  I now have a lot more knowledge on Henry Moore, for I have never even heard of him before this module. The Andy Warhol video did not really give me any new information, but did broaden my thoughts on how exactly he came to be.

Module 11 Project

Step 1: The Exhibition

The exhibit I viewed was called Presence By Janelle Lynch at the Burchfield Penney Art Center.

The theme of this exhibit was nature.

Step 2: The gallery

The type of lighting included spotlights on the ceiling to highlight some of the art and wall sconces.
The walls were mainly different shades of white, a subdued white and grey at times.
Walls and tile floors were the main interior architecture of the gallery.
The gallery provided a nice flow throughout, each exhibit path led from one to the other in a very nice manner.

Step 3: The artwork

The artworks were organized in almost a line form.  All the pictures were mainly hung at the same height as out walked your way through each section, pleasantly spaced out.
The artworks were similar in their framing choices.  Also, certain exhibits follow a certain color tone.
The artworks differ in the fact that they are all different mediums.  There were some done by watercolor, while others were photographs and some were sketches and prints.
The artworks are framed under glass with a metal or wood frame while other pieces were table top framed under glass.
The artworks are identified and labeled by a large white square stating the artist, name of the piece, and some information regarding the exhibit and piece.
The artwork is evenly spaced out to give enough room for the viewer to see each piece one at a time.

Step 4: Art criticism exercise

Janelle Lynch

Presence 1

Photography

1969

Burchfield Penney Art Center

1.) This photograph has beautiful lighting that captures the reflection of the trees, I liked this photograph because of the disposition of the bent tree opposing the straight lines.

2.) Trees, water, reflection in the water, multiple different shaped and sized branches based on nature.

3.) Line, is used in this photograph in the natural line shapes that the trees form, the lines seen here are not exactly straight.  Contrast is also seen from the light background to the darker values of the trees in the foreground.

4.)This photograph reminds me of the teeth of a comb.  The tree branches hunched over could represent the curve of the comb while the other seemingly straight trees remind me of the actual teeth of the comb.

5.) I believe the artist was trying to capture the spring image here, I believe she wanted to show the snow melting by the water pooled up under the trees, an the branches damaged over from a harsh winter.

Janelle Lynch 

Presence 3

Photography

1969

Burchfield Penney Art Center

1.)This photograph captures a time in nature very well.  I am drawn to the one tree in the foreground, I liked this picture because of this.

2.) This photograph shows many trees in a space but the main tree you take notice of is the center tree in the photograph along with the vine that is wrapped around it in a swirling manner.

3.)Movement by the vine is shown here.  The shape of the line of the vine draws your eye to move around the swirls of the vine and tree.  This photograph is also showing balance because even though you are drawn by the center tree, it is balanced on both the left and right sides of the photograph because of the trees in the background.

4.) The center tree looks figure like, almost as though it is dancing. 

5.) I believe the artist was trying to say in this photograph the nature within us is similar to the nature around us. I came to this conclusion because of the center tree appearing to be dancing with the vine.

Janelle Lynch

Presence 13

Photography

1969

Burchfield Penney Art Center

1.) This photograph has beautiful colors in it, and captures the trees changing colors in a subtle way.

2.) This picture has various amounts of colors and leaves from light to dark.  The sun is peaking through the trees giving a soft effect to the painting.

3.) Color is used here by the different tones of the leaves from red oranges to greens, texture is also present because the background looks light and soft while the foreground looks rough and darker.

4.) This reminds that life is full of changing moments, as the trees go through the seasons of change so do people.

5.) The artist was perhaps trying to say with this photograph that transformation is inevitable.  

I probably enjoyed this art gallery experience a little less than just going as a viewer to look at artworks on display.  Noticing the architecture, the lighting and space etc. while these things help to bring the artwork to life, I found myself focusing more on the surroundings than the art, which is not what I would have liked to have done.  However, looking at the gallery in this way allowed me to realize the importance of the display space, and all that comes with it for the art to properly be showcased. 

Module 11 Video responses

1.) I chose the Picasso and Matisse video first because I wanted to broaden my knowledge on Matisse.  I did not know much about him prior to watching, and was interested.  Also, Picasso being the famous artist that he is, I believed it would be interesting seeing how they compared the two.

I chose the expressionism video secondly because expressionism has always peaked my interest... t me it was always like the way the artists' broke the rules of art, and still got a way with it.

2.) The first video spoke about what intrigued the artists, and how they begun.  Picasso had an intellectual approach while Matisse came from a very different approach, more personal I believe.  Picasso Invented the first collage while Matisse wanted to bring Picasso down.

Madonna was a highlight in this video. The expressionism in this painting is a wonderful example of ecstasy despair and anxiety. Themes of life works by Munch show expressionism, paining was his obsession, so much that it led him to a nervous breakdown. Many arts done by multiple artists have been shown to affect people in all different ways based on their expressionism.

3.) These videos spoke about different ways of creating art, which is a common theme in our text.  Expressionism is an entire section worth of theories and examples that the second video I watched displayed.  Picasso and Matisse, being of famous are of course good reference points for this video, and our textbooks as well.

4.) These films were rather lengthy, therefore I found myself losing focus every once awhile, however they did a great job covering the topics they claimed they would.  I now feel much more confident in my knowledge on Matisse which was a subject I knew nothing about whatsoever.

Module 10 Mask Project

These are examples of Topeng Bali masks.  The reason I chose these as one of my mask inspirations because I found them to be unique, colorful, and dramatic looking.  Some depict animal forms or peoples faces with different expressions.  These masks use the element of color which allows them to sick out more than the average mask.

This Aztec mask shows a lot of expression in the facial features.  You also notice, the texture that was created on the mask, that looks like it could have been made from clay.  There are multiple topical features, which makes one want to touch it.  You can clearly see the symmetry in this mask which is also something that draws me to it.  Again, the colors in this mask are vibrant and allow the mask to stick out from the rest, which is another reason why I chose this as my second inspiration piece.

This last mask I chose is from Mexico.  This is called the Candelario Owl.  I really liked the color in this mask once again.  Also the artist uses shape in this mask by elongating the nose.  It is very enticing to look at.  The contrast of colors present here also makes me like the mask.

4.) In my finished mask I used the elements and principles of color, pattern, repetition, texture and shape.  For my use of color for the mask I chose bright vibrant colors that I was drawn to.  With my inspiration masks in mind, I thought I would use the colors red, blue, and yellow, while using black as my outline color.  I used the same pattern for the eyes and ears following a circular shape while also trying to give it dimension and texture by gluing the pieces of Himalayan salt to the mask.  This is also why I elevated the eyes, nose and ears.  I used the shape of a monkeys head in mind, using curved lines, and circles.  You'll find the repetition in the eyes and ears by repeating the pattern, giving the mask a symmetrical look.

5.) While trying to find my inspiration for this mask, I found it interesting reading about the many cultural purposes of masks.  In making my own mask, I wanted to add a little bit of myself in it, so I chose to do it with a monkey in mind, because they are my favorite animal.  Color was a huge influence on each mask I researched, and I wanted to ensure that I would incorporate that into my final mask.  Overall, I really enjoyed being able to create my own mask, and was very pleased with the final outcome!