bnguyen732

[bnguyen732]

Materials Used

White acrylic paint 

Wood

1-½” Nails

Multicolor green Yarn.

Black Yarn

Pencil

Hammer

            I've decided to name my work the “Spinning Frog,” Due to the abstract background. The background looks as though you have spun in circles  and are disoriented. Also the artwork can be spun in any direction there is no wrong way to hang up this piece.  This project brought me back to my childhood as I did a simplified version of this in my freshmen year geometry class. I loved doing this project back then because it connected something I don't consider myself very good at (art); with something I am very good at (math) to come together and make something beautiful. 

       1. I started by attaching nails to the border of a circular piece of wood as the base of my project. The wood was at least an inch in depth and each nail was spaced approximately an inch apart from each other.

      2.The next step I did was to use a pencil to sketch out an outline of an image in the center. I decided to do an outline of  a frog.

      3. Then I started hammering in the nails following the outline of the image. 

      4. Once I had placed all my nails into the wood. I grabbed the white acrylic paint, and coated the wood and nails as to create a seamless background.

      5.Now that I have coated everything in white. I took my multicolored green yarn and tied a knot to one of the nails. I started weaving the yarn in between each nail until  It started forming an abstract geometric background.

     6.The final step I did was to take the black yarn and tie a knot at the base of the frog. Then I followed the outline of the frog weaving in between the nails; this created contrast and made the frog stand out from the background. 

[bnguyen732]

Title: Biophilia

Artist: Garret Kane

Media: 3D printed sculpture and fake flowers

Date: 2018

              The art I chose to represent me is Garret Kane’s “Biophilia.” This sculpture is a beautiful combination of both nature and technology. I chose this piece to represent me because I am in school to become a programmer which is to represent the technology side of me. Most of my days I spend caring for my reptiles, I see this as my connection to nature.

            We form art, and art forms us. Art comes and many forms and every person has been affected by at least one art form. It may be painting, dance or maybe even music. But they all shape us in some way. They help us to feel less alone and more connected in emotions and expression of those emotions.  

[bnguyen732]

Title: Biophilia

Artist: Garret Kane

Media: 3D printed sculpture and fake flowers

Date: 2018

              The art I chose to represent me is Garret Kane’s “Biophilia.” This sculpture is a beautiful combination of both nature and technology. I chose this piece to represent me because I am in school to become a programmer which is to represent the technology side of me. Most of my days I spend caring for my reptiles, I see this as my connection to nature.

            We form art, and art forms us. Art comes and many forms and every person has been affected by at least one art form. It may be painting, dance or maybe even music. But they all shape us in some way. They help us to feel less alone and more connected in emotions and expression of those emotions.  

[bnguyen732]

Title: The Longshoremen’s Noon

Artist: John George Brown

Date: 1879

Medium: Oil on canvas

Style: Realism 

I would be inclined to shift towards realism as this type of style is more suited towards my interest. Realism is the form of art that tends to capture what people had to endure as it is based on everyday life of the common people. This type of style gave artists the inspiration to be able to record the period of time from which they lived. As John Brown clearly depicts the tired expression on the men’s faces, after what looks to be a labor intensive day. I find realism fascinating because it allows the audience to relive these parts of history and in some way still relate through the common struggles of life events.

[bnguyen732]

Chinese Buddhism

Artist: Tenzing Rigdol Title: My World Is In Your Blind Spot

Date: 2014

Medium: Silk brocade and scripture A quote from Tenzing Rigdol, “Both courageous and tragic, self-immolations challenge us, as witnesses, to either take action or to practice indifference”

        This art piece is part of a five panel collage series titled, “My World Is In Your Blind Spot” by Tenzing Rigdol. Each piece is made with silk brocade on a 72 x 72 scripture. The painting depicts Buddha engulfed in flames to bring awareness to the self-immolation protest by Buddhist monks happening over China’s colonization of Tibet. As seen within the hands of buddha and the center of the painting is a begging bowl which is to represent Rigdol’s explanation as  “basically to completely remove your ego because when you beg, you have nothing.” The background of the painting is a Buddhist sutra that is written in U-chen which is a script that is readable throughout all of Tibet and is to signify a united Culture. As an observer of this painting, I saw the beauty and the elements that this painting possessed, but the motive behind the piece is tragic and displays a deeper meaning beyond my initial thought.

[bnguyen732]

Virtual Sketch book 3 

The work that I chose is called Choachi and was painted in 1970 by the artist named Omar Rayo's. This piece was created using Acrylic paint on a blank canvas.  The dimensions of the piece are 48 inches by 48 inches. The canvas is rotated to form a diamond shape instead of a square. The painting contains three various colors: blue, black and white. There is a small blue diamond in the middle with alternating black and white lines. These lines create a pattern that catches the eye. My personal favorite part of the painting is the top where the artist has created an optical illusion that makes the art look as though it is folding inward onto itself. The art piece does not necessarily contain a subject, instead it's a play on shapes and perception. I believe the painting is very balanced; it is very symmetrical throughout the piece. The painting has a rhythm to it. The stark contrast of the white lines on the blacked out canvas is intense, but the painting's pattern flows to form a uniform piece. 

The piece makes me feel intrigued and the visual illusion is perplexing. The trick of the eye makes you almost have to do a double take to see that the folds have been painted on. After some research I have found that The artist is Colombian as well as a sculptor, caricaturist and plastic artist. Omar’s usual art style normally plays with shapes and optical illusions. Omar Rayo worked with abstract shapes primarily using the colors black, white, red and yellow. Hailing from Colombia and throughout Omar’s extensive travels throughout South America he took inspiration from various cultures such as woven textile patterns, architectural labyrinths and spirals as he eventually developed a fondness for geometric abstract. Omar was also a strong advocate for the Op Art movement, which was a movement by various artists who explored abstract patterns and created forms of art that stimulated the eye through optical illusions.

The artwork is correlated to the Op Art movement. The piece says that Omar has an eye for geometric shapes and how they fit together to form an illusion. From the artwork itself, you cannot tell what the artist is trying to convey. 

I was drawn to this painting due to its visual trickery. You almost have to look at the art piece twice to see that the folds are painted on and the painting isn't actually folding inward on itself. 

[bnguyen732]

4. Art Project - Artist’s Choice

[bnguyen732]

3. Connecting Art to Your World

     I own a reptile business, so color is very important to me. You can tell how healthy/happy a reptile is based on its color. For example, with Chameleons when they are happy, they turn a vibrant green. But when a Chameleon is stressed, it will turn a very saturated black color. The color scheme I would choose for my life would have to be green because not only are the majority of the reptiles I keep green but so are the foods they eat and the enclosure that they live in. So, my life is shrouded in green. 

[bnguyen732]

2. Writing and Looking

 I chose “INTERIOR OF A DUTCH HOUSE” by Pieter de Hooch Figure 4.5. The focal point of this oil painting is the man sitting with the yellow vest. The painting also contains lots of geometric shapes. For example, the rectangles that make up the roof. This painting is filled with neutral colors like tan and white. The artist used asymmetric balance when it comes to the placement of the people. Three of the people depicted are clustered together and one stands alone. The painting uses patterns like the checkered pattern that coats the floor and achieves a rhythm by the way the geographic shapes all flow as one. The entire painting is covered in both squares and rectangular shapes.

[bnguyen732]

1. Journaling Part 2

Asymmetrical balance- Is a work that looks balanced despite a lack of symmetry for example a garden, plants grow in all shapes and sizes and yet in a garden they seem unified and balanced.  

Emphasis- Is when you want to draw attention to something. For example, if you want to emphasize your car you might get a bright color to draw attention. 

Focal point- This is the place that the eyes go first, the place where the most emphasis is placed. For example, in this painting the water droplet is the place where the eyes travel first so it is the focal point. 

Contrasts- The dramatic effect that happens when dark is against light. For example, people put a contrast wall in bedrooms to have this effect.

Subordination- The areas of the artwork that are rated as less important. For example, in this photo the artist has chosen to make the body of the colored pencils the same muted grate tones making them almost blended into the background.

Directional forces- Are pathways designed by the artist for the audience's eyes to follow. For example, this artwork was designed to make the eyes move into the spiral.

Repetition- The recurrence of an image. For example, in a bunch of grapes you will see the recurrence of green oval shapes that overlap in various ways. 

Pattern- Is the repetitive order of designs. For example, this rug is decorated with a pattern. 

Rhythm- Is the complicated repeating of dominant and subordinate elements to make a sort of visual flow. For example, in this painting there is a repeating shape in both black (dominant) and white (subordinate) coming together to form an inward flow.

Scale- The size relation from one thing to another. For example, in this piece the artist has made the man sitting look very small because there is a large hand holding him. 

Proportion- The size relationship to parts and the whole picture. For example, in this piece the woman and the guitar are proportional to one another. 

Format- Relates to the size and shape of the painting. For example, this rectangular shaped painting could be oriented on the longer side to be horizontal this makes the painting look longer but more squished. 

Composition- Is how the artist chooses to organize the elements in the artwork. For example, the artist first chooses what item they were going to recreate then starts with a basic shapes as well as pick which direction there light source will be then they go in with color. 

Design- The process the artist takes to organize their visual elements and the end product of that process. For example, Jason pollock painting he uses first starts by picking a color scheme and then he starts spluttering these colors until the canvas is covered. 

[bnguyen732]

1. Journaling Part 1

Unity - Is defined as oneness for example how we arrange things so that they look like they belong with one another. We use unity when decorating a room. 

Variety- is defined as diversity for example I eat a variety of foods every week.

Symmetrical balance- Is defined as the near or exact match on both sides. For example, a butterfly's wings are almost identical to each of their wings.

[bnguyen732]

                                     5. Photo/Design 

Image #1

       The good layout design clearly identifies and establishes the theme of the page. The colors and the individual framing around each picture make it very easy to follow and keeps the eyes entertained as they skim the page.

Image #2

          The bad layout design combines poor color choice and at first glance makes the page rather grueling to look at. To start the words of this article are laid on top of the main image on the right making both the words and the image difficult to make out. Also, the colors chosen by the creator make the layout overwhelming to look at, making it challenging to distinguish the theme of the page. As well as the black text paired with a red background makes the two colors blend together, making the page hard to read.

[bnguyen732]

4. ART PROJECT (SELF-PORTRAIT) – Look at the work of Romare Bearden in Revel or online. He created collages that combine media (gouache, pencil, colored pencil) and photographs to express things from his life that he thought people could universally relate to. He was representing himself powerfully long before the advent of selfies. What are you fascinated by in your daily life? Create a self-portrait that somehow represents YOU. This could be a selfie (remember this is ART - your representation should encompass the definition as introduced in our text, and this is a graded assignment), a virtual collage, anything you assemble that communicates something to the viewer. But don’t let me (or anyone else) limit you – be as creative as you desire! Think about HOW your self-portrait will elevate the viewer's understanding of the subject = you.

[bnguyen732]

3. WRITING A SELF-PORTRAIT - Create a perceptual profile. What “baggage” are you bringing along when you look at art? Answer the following questions – How old are you? What is the gender you primarily align with? Where are you from? What is your ethnicity? What do you do for fun? Are you a member of any organized group? Where do you work? What makes you uniquely you? This helps us see from what exact point in the world we view and receive visual information.

       I am currently 27 I primarily align with the male gender. I was born in Phoenix Arizona and moved to Florida when I was 21. My ethnicity is Vietnamese, and my hobbies include taking care of my many reptiles. I am not currently a member of any organized groups. I work for Quick EMR which is a medical software company. I believe what makes me unique is my passion for breeding and caring for reptiles.

[bnguyen732]

2. ART AND WRITING - Select a work of art from your life. It must be something that hangs in your house or your room, something that is important to you or that you look at everyday. Include a picture. In paragraph form (4 sentences), tell me about the art – what media were used to create it? What use does it serve? Do you think it is beautiful? Why?

        The art that I chose is a wooden plaque with me and my fiancé’s reptile business logo burned into it. This artwork serves as a memento of what the businesses started from and what it has grown to become. The plaque is made from wood and the logo was carved out using lasers. Yes, I do find the plaque beautiful and quite sentimental.

[bnguyen732]

1.     As an introduction, tell us one little known fact about you.  

          My name is Brandon Nguyen. I grew up in Arizona and have currently been living in Florida for the past 6 years. I had originally moved to Florida to pursue an education in herpetology, eventually having to abandon my education due to personal predicaments. Fast forward a few years later, I now breed/sell reptiles as a hobby and I am currently working for a medical software company. I will be using the knowledge I attain from my studies at SCF to further my career with the company I work for.

 2.     Then, in list form, detail 5 new facts you were able to find out about your assigned artist or the artwork.

          I was assigned number 18 which is Betye Saar’s 1972 piece called The Liberation of Aunt Jemima.  

1. Betye Saar was known for an art called visual storytelling, where her art depicts a narrative story told by the art.

2. Betye Saar found the inspiration for the piece through a grocery list holder depicting aunt Jemimah.                            

3. Through her craft, Betye Saar played a large part in the black arts movement in the 1970’s.

4. Betye Saar decided to make this statement piece because she was so enraged by the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.

5. In the piece there is a vintage postcard showing a black woman holding a mixed child this was intentional to represent the sexual assault of black female slaves by white men.

3. Write a short paragraph (4 sentences) answering these questions: Did the way you think about the art change from the first time you looked at it? Do you see anything different in the art now?

        Yes, the way I thought about the artwork did change from the first time I looked at it. Honestly at first glance I was shocked by the blatant racist depiction of Aunt Jemima. After further researching about the piece, I found that it was a symbol of African American empowerment. The gun placed into Aunt Jemimas hand was a representation of power being taken back and the fist was a symbol of the black movements that had risen up.