Tis the Season

Solstice/Yule went without much issue, I smudged the house to chase away any remnants of negative energy of the previous year. Now its just being patient and seeing through the traditional observances of the season. I'm completely exhausted and yet exhilarated, the new year promises to be a decent one in so far as finding myself artistically and possibly even spiritually to a degree, there's always room for more positive growth. I have officially graduated, the ceremony is in May however, but I finished with a 3.62 GPA which means I get honors on my diploma, that excites me, growing up feeling I was stupid. I still fight with that nasty voice that likes to point out my failings, despite the fact that I am more than capable. We may or may not spend Christmas with family this year, bad weather and illness seem to be conspiring to keep us at home by ourselves this year, perhaps fate is trying to teach us to learn to be self reliant....still sucks for Rhiannon, who hurts and is now looking at missing her Christmas with grandma. So no I have to apply for my license which should be a formality, and I will officially be a teacher.....not so sure where I'm going to get my mentor ship year done with..or when. Anyway, such is life, best wishes to all in the new year.

Year's End

The year is coming to it's inevitable conclusion, I have been selected as one of 172 entries to be exhibited at the Five State Photo Exhibition, this is out of 489 applicants. I have seven days left of student teaching with only my final reflection needing to be turned in (this will be done shortly). I have no idea how well I have been doing save for the occasional comment from my sponsors and my advisor. The grade itself is something I will likely not see until after the class is done by a week or so. If I get an A....great, my GPA goes up to a 3.6+ for graduation, otherwise I'll probably pass ok. Been feeling kinda yuck lately....hard to describe it as anything else other than yuck. That voice in the back of your head that trash talks you, some people may not be aware of this creature, but many of us know who it is. Well, he's been tossing nasty comments my way, trying to weaken my self-confidence. Then there is the soreness in parts of my body that just won't go away, the right elbow to be more precise, which makes doing what I enjoy very difficult indeed. Suffer for thine work.....I know, I know....I'm just hoping it will all work itself out over time. The financial burdens, graduate school, working to become a "master photographer" and have it actually mean something more than just a diploma with my name on it. Anyway, we'll see what the next section of our journey has in store for us, more time for me to practice both drawing and painting and photography, Photoshop and Indesign. Looking at a two year membership to NAPP (National Association of Photoshop Professionals), getting more gear to help me do some amazing things, hopefully.....we'll see.

Midsemester

Well, I managed an Honorable mention at R.O.A.R., another student at FHSU got first place mixed media in the amateur category, but being as he is a grad student he really should have been in the professional category. The main reasoning for this is the rules state that if you have a Bachelor's degree in art, you are considered professional. Something I will be, next competition as I should get my degree after Christmas.....and being a graduate student means you have already achieved your bachelors degree...or so I thought....anyway, c'est la vie.

I have also made a decision to stay away from games like Evony and Travian, I spend time on them seeing how developed I can make my cities, this relieves stress for me.....go figure...micromanaging helping to alleviate stress. Anyway, I can put up with the occasional attack from random people setting me back a little, but all I seem to encounter are the trolls who spend every waking hour, and most of their RL resources buying themselves up, as well as allying themselves with groups of like minded cretins. One even had the nerve to send out over 6 attacks my way and then was expecting to have amicable negotiations with me to ask me a favor.....don't know about you guys...but if I get slapped in the mouth, I'm not inclined to be amicable with the person doing the slapping...let alone doing it multiple times. So I'm done with these truly unpleasant encounters, with truly unpleasant little twits.

My sponsor teacher and I will be co teaching the week leading up to the 23rd, gearing all our classes to make decorations for the cafeteria for a special day put on by the students and art club, then I will have two weeks left of teaching high school and return to the elementary school for my remaining five weeks. I have had awesome reviews by my university supervisor, and I get along well with my sponsor teacher as well, which is a plus. Her advice has been of great help to me in many ways. I look forward to finishing my tests and my FPA, then making sure I have copies of them so i may send them to other districts to apply for teaching positions. Mock interview day is on the 23rd as well, so I'll miss out on the festivities, which is unfortunate.

So the five state is this November, I'll try and find the entry fee somewhere, otherwise...I won't....I have pieces in several other competitions, but I always feel like I'm just missing it.....it would be nice to figure out what I need to do to get that nudge that would take me from just being on the edge of being good, to actually winning something more than once.....heck I'd be happy for a consistent second or third place.....guess that's just life, I just need to be patient until the right person sees the right piece and allows me some of that recognition that I'm doing alright.

Frustrated

Well...after having my new camera only a couple of months, I have to send it in to the service center of my choice on either the West Coast or the East....I kept getting "Error 30" every two or three shots, and occasionally it would happen every shot, so it made getting any decent shots even harder than usual because I was having to turn off the camera and turn it back on constantly. Everything I have checked on it says its a shutter malfunction and that new products are more likely to malfunction, well now it gets sent in under its warranty, of course the cost for insurance and shipping is mine, at least to the manufacturer....better that than lose almost a grand in camera equipment I guess. Frustrates the heck out of me as i won't see my camera again for at least three weeks.....maybe more, but its only three months since I got it ...or thereabouts. Will try to remain positive, and take my pieces down to ROAR next weekend......weekends seem shorter now I am technically working full time, but the days seem to fly by.

Another good talk

Another absolutely brilliant talk about creativity.

Progression

I have been student teaching for almost three weeks now, I am thoroughly enjoying myself and looking forward to some of my lesson ideas to see how well they do and how well they are enjoyed. I have lettering in the morning (otherwise known as artistic typography) and drawing, both are small classes and I feel lucky to have been able to start with them, despite some communication issues in the earlier class. I will be working with painting, Intro to art and crafts as I progress....the crafts class is the biggest and probably the most onrey, as it is the last class of the day and the majority of the students are freshmen...fun fun. I missed one day due to a migrane which I was annoyed about, and I am waiting for the FHSU education department to finish the new KPA, because I would like to get started on it. My university supervisor liked my first reflection even if the person who I'm supposed to turn them in to wasn't entirely happy with it....something about following a conceptual framework, which I thought I had.....but I guess that's the problem with conceptual things, if one is unaware of exactly how it needs to be framed or structured. Anyway, I will be doing lots of photography, though mostly of the journalistic variety, being Kappa Delta Pi historian and all, and trying to be involved in school events at my sponsor school and taking yearbook pictures along with the students. Financially, things are already beginning to be uncomfortable, and we are having to take a tougher stand with our daughter to try and get the message through to her that misbehaving and tantrums are not something she wants to pursue. I have also entered this years Photographer's Forum College contest, Popular Photography's contest and American Photographer's contest as well, though I can't shake the feeling its money wasted, you can't win if you don't try. Now I just have to figure out what I want to submit to R.O.A.R. and The Five State, go deeper into debt entering and printing/mounting the images I want in, then patiently waiting to see what happens. Guess that will do for now, I teach two photography classes for yearbook next week so I am stoked for that.

Disappointment etc.

Well, it seems I never made it past the finalist selection in a couple of places, that tends to be disappointing, but we move on and keep creating. I don't expect that I'll really get a lot of recognition, I always seem to be good, but not good enough. I know I need to get out and shoot/draw/paint more, and after my student teaching I really want to try, I also want to get some more tools to help improve the quality and impact of my work, both software and hardware wise. I also have to keep reminding myself that art and how well it fares is completely subjective, and I'll be pretty happy to find a teaching job where I can impart passion and skill to even a few kids, pay all my bills and allow us to live comfortably....that's the really important thing, and something I lose track of while trying to be competitive. I have accomplished more than some people ever get the chance to, and if I had just a little more raw talent and/or time to add to the skills I've developed I might actually manage a little more. For this reason alone I am looking forward to my grad studies, so I can have that time to work on things that I feel will help give my images just a little more impact, both photographed and drawn

Fall Semester Looms.......

Well....it doesn't bode well for fall....it'll be pretty lean as far as making ends meet. Not to mention that I'd like to submit to ROAR, The Five State and Photographers Forum again....each of which will cost me at least $120 total plus another 25 in gas to get to Russell and back. I am going to hold some finances in reserve from disbursement, but bills come first as always. I have been selected as a finalist in two competitions, but I am wary to say more than this for fear of ruining my chances at even an honorable mention. I will be thrilled to get anything of the sort, but that shows I am doing something right so far as my photography.....I have one or two other sites to get pieces on so I can get my images seen, and I need to get more on Flickr as well. I will be riding my nieces scooter to student teaching, losing that $600 work study per month really does hit hard, but working and doing student teaching I'm told is something that would likely burn me out. If things are pretty easy to manage, I might apply for an evening job at Hastings...hey books and DVD's....and it's walking distance from home. I have been learning as much as I can about curves and layers, and I hope to be implementing them more effectively in the near future, making my already pretty spiff pics even better.

One of the best talks I have ever heard

I think that maybe I should look into showing this video at one of the beginning design classes or something, or maybe see if the Creative Art Society could get her to come and give the talk in person. That would be spiff.

Hard Times to Look Forward to....

Well, as this month draws to a close, we have July to look forward to.....we should be able to barely make ends meet. Then Student Teaching begins at the end of August, without the workstudy money it'll be pretty rough......we have all our money planned out for the next five months and its going to be a tight run. No extra activities, or going out to eat, such is the price we pay for trying to make sure we have something for once I graduate. Looking forward to spring semester and starting Grad school, we might be able to get the rest of my studio gear through these two years, then even if I can't get a teaching job right away. I will also be sending all my paperwork to the BC Teachers College to get approved for a license in BC, a mere expense of around 600 cdn. I think if we can get through these next five months, even though Christmas will be a little sad, we aren't going to be able to do as much as we'd like for Sandy's Mom and Dad or Rhi.....I think if we can do this, we can accomplish virtually anything....especially if I get off my butt and start working on learning as much as I can about the stuff I've been putting off, and get more confidence in my own drawings and such......I think my mediums of choice have drifted into graphite, ink and marker. With the occassional painting.....which I do rarely because I have started doing partially sculptural paintings, which take four times the effort to prepare, before I even get paint on them.

Summer 2009

I have decided that i will continue to use this arena to voice my ideas and thoughts, Mosaic globe doesn't get terribly much traffic and is linked here anyway. I also spend more time writing on on DA than live journal or facebook. I'll make certain I link my Flikr page here as well. So, Behavior and Classroom management are very similar classes in the material covered, should prove to be enlightening classes in the long term, hoping that some of what I am learning I can apply to my daughter in helping her overcome this defiant streak that keeps getting her into hot water. Working with the 50D is interesting, have to figure out why I get a soft focus effect when I use my telephoto extender on my telephoto lens. hoping to connect with some people here on campus who would like pictures shot of themselves, especially as I'd like to try out the new toys I have for the flash. More to come later....

Postmodern Art

Postmodern Art is essentially an abandonment or deconstruction of many of the styles that came before, especially those of modernist theories and the doing away with high and low art. Increasing emphasis on identity in broad sense, especially with the introduction of Feminist Art and the attempt to remove the visible artists influence in art by introducing photography and other mechanical means of commercial creation. There is also a rise in performance style or installation art. Style over substance becomes the norm. They wish to pursue areas of enlightenment that modernists would have scoffed at or actively derided and avoid falling into their discrete disciplines, This in turn increases ones critical thinking or awareness. Art is no longer required to be representational, beautiful or realistic, nor is it required to have a subject or bear evidence of the artists influence.

Feminist Art falls into the classification of Post Modern because it also increases the way one critically views the world, by making the unseen, noticeable once again; it forms a messier concept of art, something more visceral. They question the basic principles of Aristotle and of the so called Masters of the art world and uses social placement to derive meaning. The works of Cindy Sherman are primarily photographic, though she does also use performance as a medium, and therefore they blend with the post modern idea creating simulacra of herself to compare against other similar images.

The artist I have chosen is Brandon Jacob Hudson, I want to experiment with integrating the photographic process and the drawing process, and he illustrates this integration in a colorful and thoughtful way. So I will be looking, at least in part to the way he achieves his finished products. In an abstract sense he also covers the aspect of Play, which is what I have chosen to attempt as well.

Formalism

Formalism is the belief that an artwork has the capabilities to stand on its own merit, detached from social, ethical or representational ideals as a pure construct of aesthetics by use of composition and abstraction. Overall, I would hesitate to remove any of the three artists from the category of Formalism, each in his own way explored the elements of this ideal with great success. They each capture intrinsically attractive or compelling images using simple forms and composing them in interesting and appealing ways.

Kandinsky is an artist who I draw much of my own inspiration, his use of form to interpret what music might look like is just one of his ideas that I find myself drawn to, it appeals to many people despite the language barriers, and presents itself as an almost universal translator, much like mathematics, and in this way he was trying to get people to see art the same way. This can be seen in pieces like Composition VIII and others, simple, yet elegant geometric forms composed with slightly imperfect biological looking elements. This is the way I interpret his particular aesthetic, and in my own way incorporate elements of this into my own style.

Malevich as well fits this definition quite well, his use of geometric forms and composition of those forms creates a rich backdrop which allows other artists and viewers to visually branch out from and explore the imagery, almost indefinitely.

I selected Gary Petersen as being representative of the work I am doing, although my work does have more organic elements he comes closest to really capturing the Formalist geometric elements for me.

Expressionism/Cognitivism

Expressionism is essentially a theory of art that tells us that an artist, who is inspired by his or her emotional experiences, uses their skill, in whatever medium they prefer, to express that emotion in such a way that it is supposed to evoke the same emotion in the viewer or viewers.

Cognitivism however, while being similar to Expressionism, creates knowledge of the things around us in ways unique to artistic expression that would otherwise be overlooked by the casual observer; essentially it is new ways of knowing the world around us. However, that form of knowing is subjective to the viewer’s experiences, and what may be seen as fresh and new to one, could easily be seen as shallow and escapist to someone else.
The difference between the two is that Expressionism uses the emotions of the artist to create a powerful and emotive artwork and Cognitivism uses emotion as simply a component in better understanding the world, events and subjects around us.

Tolstoy’s basic outlook on art was that for it to be truly expressive, it had to physically impart the emotion conveyed to the person viewing, reading or listening to it. If the piece was meant to inspire joy, the viewer should experience actual, physical Joy, and if the resulting message was one of rage, then the viewer should become enraged. Collingwood believes that artistic expression is collaboration between the artist and the viewer, the artist captures the emotions they wish to convey in a way that is able to be shared and in doing so knows themselves better, the viewer then uses their own imagination to recreate the emotions they feel are being portrayed by the artist, creating a truly cerebral and unique experience for each person that participates and in doing so come to know themselves better.

Louise Bourgois used many images to convey certain feelings and emotion, the use of red and of separating chambers to create spaces that felt like one was being voyeuristic and looking into portions of her own life experiences, and in a way they are. Her choices of image, color and how it is displayed has been seen as both insight into a trauma filled, sexually bewildering childhood and blood, sin, violence and sexuality. Although some critics have conveyed that they feel some of her imagery tells of the creative process, flesh and light and life.

Kiki Smith uses many ways to create metaphors in her work, the use of bodily fluids to impart both personal and socio-political impact within her works, and the exploration of the body as a whole to show weakness and frailty. She uses birds to represent souls, and the heavens or heavenly bodies to show interdependence between nature and man. These cover some of the areas in which both these artists play with metaphors.

After serious contemplation I settled on Nancy Blum, and while she doesn't represent the geometric elements as often, her attention to coloration, and details is something I appreciate and the flowing organic feel is something I often attribute to large portions of my own work.

Realism

In your own words define realistic art.

Realistic art is a depiction or representation of an ideal or object that is easily recognizable or translatable, despite the setting in which it may be placed.

How does Plato define good art?

Good art is that which is impersonal, belongs to the state and embodies correct moral values without any interference or alteration.

What would Plato say about Koon’s artwork?

He would have banished it from his ideal society, the works may fit into the concept of realism, but the subject matter would have been atrocious to Plato.

In your own words, how would Aristotle define good art?

It engages our attention and emotions almost as the real object or objects would, and that it makes the viewer think about the way in which it has been presented. Having function and fulfilling a purpose, in addition to possessing symmetry, proportion, harmony, size and order all contribute to this engagement of the viewer.

In your personal philosophy is “obscene art a contradiction of terms? Why or why not?

Personally, if the work was intended to make you think, it could still be seen as obscene by those who view it. My threshold for what I consider obscene and beautiful is pretty high, but I have seen some art pieces that didn't make me think, they instead made me feel a little sick or made me want to just walk away from it, holding my interest in no meaningful way. Although this was some time ago, I think that similar images might still affect me the same way. So I could not say that it is a contradiction in terms, instead, it describes accurately what some people are trying to capture or display.

Are vivid sexual images more obscene that vivid images of violence, poverty, display of extreme wealth or sickness?

I think that for me, violence and the results of violence bother me the most, including when it accompanies sexual activity, a close second would be graphic representations of illness.

Find an artist on The Drawing Center’s Viewing Program Web site that relates to your drawing for this project. How does there art relate to your concept, subject and style?

I think Steed Taylor is a good example of what I have chosen to attempt. His subject matter and style are close to what I want to try to convey so far as identity go, and I think the ideas he has for bigger pieces being used as tattoos for the city streets is interesting. The tribal or gaelic influence was part of what drew me to his work in the first place, and while he uses other materials for his larger pieces, his use of graphite is what I will likely be drawing from, though I may try some other elements to better capture my ideas.

Beauty and Repulsion Pt. 2

Please cite one example of good art and one example of bad art. Explain why? You may provide a link to images of this art for examples.

Good Art - http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/kandinsky/kandinsky.contrasting-sounds.jpg

I believe, to me that this constitutes good art, the artist created something expressive that captures the attention and holds that interest. It especially appeals to my sense of aesthetic, but may not appeal to everyone, even though the use of color, space and other elements make it difficult to not find interesting on some level.

Bad Art - I could not in good conscience link some of this art, as for visual two dimensional works, there are pieces that are poorly done, for example http://www.museumofbadart.org/collection/unseen-3.html

Some of what I would consider bad art, often falls into the performance variety, and usually involves someone maiming themselves or causing themselves physical injury. This is not something that I really think should be necessary, and serves as a bad example to youth. We look at girls in high school cutting themselves as a psychological outlet for some trauma they have endured and this seems to me as much the same thing, and with the children we try and get them appropriate therapy, not gallery shows. In the case of the poor artwork, its just sloppy, poorly composed and a little trite, as well as being unnattractive. But again, these are just my opinions.

Define honorific art. Please answer in your own words.

In general this refers to the honorable qualities that we try to impart to "good art" and in some cases defines art as being valued for its own qualities and not what it contributes. It often falls into four categories that are often at odds with each other, Realism, Expressionism, Formalism and Poststructuralism.

Define classificatory definition of art. Please answer in your words.

Classificatory art is when one or two pieces are seen as art by members of the artworld and others are seen as objects instead. Additionally, the artwork is created within a certain framework of rules that help to define the piece as art.

Where in discussion of art and aesthetics do you feel most uncomfortable? How would you become less uncomfortable in this subject?

I feel the most uncomfortable in how a work is classified, and whether it even merits recognition as art or merely the undertakings of someone who is trying to titillate or shock for the recognition rather than genuinely create something with passion and creativity. I feel this is an area where I may never feel quite comfortable with, it irritates me when someone is allowed to mount dried or preserved feces on a pedestal...or create a painting by teaching an elephant to spatter paint on a canvas and they are able to label it as a social commentary, receiving accolades. With the Dada movement, I may not have liked everything that was produced, but at least some serious...or less than serious thought (ie: humor) went into most everything that was produced. Today it just seems like some individuals are taking away from people who have a message, or wish to create something to stand the test of time, simply for fame.

Find an artist on The Drawing Center’s Viewing Program Web site that relates to your drawing for this project. How does there art relate to your views of Beauty and Repulsion?

I chose Susan Harris Demmet, http://www.drawingcenter.org/viewingprogram/portfolio.cfm as I felt her work was close to my ideas of using life itself to represent both the beautiful and the repulsive, she attempts to ascribe a visceral element to her pieces while remaining in an abstract environment, and in my own way I am trying to do the same. Even though I have more realism in many of my elements, the underlying feelings that I get from her work is what ties it to my own own so strongly.

Beauty and Repulsion

Beauty: This piece represents beauty to me because of the brightness within it, and the multiple reflections, the mix of vivid colors, while some remaining muted helps to bring that feeling to the fore. The girls eyes show remarkable depth despite her being an artificial creature and the mix of technological elements with natural ones ties back to my desire and belief that both can exist in harmony.





Repulsion: This image is more akin to repulsion in my eyes more for what it represents, both in color and subject matter. Death and decay, fear and hatred, though these are subjects that I find ugly, the image still manages to have some appeal to it.