emilyscpsarts-blog

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On Thursday, May 2nd, from 6:30-8:30 pm in the CCC, the Arts Advisory Board (AAB) held their last coffeehouse of the semester. The event was two-pronged: there was both a music and a painting aspect. Although there was a small turnout, the event was still fun and I thought those who showed up were happy to be there. This event really tried to target those in the Arts Scholars Program, which is why water coloring and karaoke were chosen as the fine arts that people could participate in. In the past, we have had success with both of these topics, but I think because of the location that we were placed and being so close to final exams, most people did not attend in the numbers we were hoping for. 

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On Friday, April 5, I attended LABash, a landscaping architecture conference at the University of Georgia. While there, I took part in several workshops and presentations. The workshop that is showed above was a hand graphics workshop that was led by a University of Georgia professor, Amitabh Verma. He was extremely helpful in guiding the process of drawing simple and effective landscaping elements, such as people, trees, and different terrains. For an amateur, I found his step-by-step tutorials to be most engaging and helpful, although probably too simple for those who can already draw well. I was able to speak with him in person the following night at a social event and found him to be most engaging and intellectual in his approach to general design and artwork, which was inspiring for my own difficulties with drawing. He especially emphasized, “Don’t judge yourself. It will discourage you from wanting to draw.” I was very lucky to have attended this event, since it is so relevant to my field of study. 

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Upon entering the Clarice, I was immediately greeted at the door by a ghost, who was sitting on the ground cross-legged and just staring straight ahead. I knew from here that this wouldn’t just be any version of Hamlet. On Saturday, March 2, my friend and I went to go see Hamlet Replayed under the misconception that we would be seeing an adaptation of our favorite William Shakespeare play. We were surprised to find out that this play was loosely based on Shakespeare’s original play and was shown through the eyes of the clown. The adaptation showed a group of clowns stuck in the story of Hamlet, who comment on Shakespeare’s characters, repeat scenes that delight them, and vacillate over the same bad decisions, attempting to deconstruct a way out so that they don’t all die at the end. As I was watching, I found myself enraptured in all of the existential musings, frequent breakages of the 4th wall, and the many comical moments. It was extremely well acted and you found yourself getting lost in all of the little intricacies of the play, especially as you watched some of the actors and actresses in the background, whether they were “reading Hamlet” or interacting with the audience. I think this adaptation especially connected with Art Scholars, which encourages students to experience things that are atypical of your normal schedule. 

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The Here and Now exhibit on showcase in the Art and Sociology building honors the generous contribution of donors that allows the Permanent Collection at UMD to continue to expand. This showcase occurs every five years and highlights the University of Maryland’s acquisitions from 2014-2019. Some of the art pieces that stood out to me were the Salvador Dali prints from the Tristan and Isolde series (pictured left) and the Paul Reed exhibit (pictured right). Over the year’s, I’ve always found Dali’s paintings to be extremely engaging and thought-provoking, but I had never personally seen his prints, which is why I think it drew me in. Dali captivates attention by using a perfect balance between the expected and unexpected, and has a way of making the unexpected appear normal at first glance. I had never experienced Paul Reed’s artwork, and I’m not typically a fan of minimalism, yet his painting “Mamara VII” (pictured above) managed to draw me in with the galaxy-like prism. Had I had more time, I would have stayed longer in the exhibit to explore more of the pieces, like Emil Nolde’s “The Large Bird,” but I still found the exhibit to be interesting. 

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Mr. Charles A. Birnbaum, CEO and President of The Cultural Landscape Foundation (TCLF), began his lecture Thursday night by talking about the lack of recognition landscaping architecture receives as an artistic field. As children, we are taught to recognize the beauty of architecture, and thus take more time and money to upkeep beautiful works of architecture, but when it comes to the landscape, we have a differing opinion. Birnbaum went on to talk about how art, culture, science, and nature are all inherent aspects of good landscaping designs, and said that a landscape was only successful if it could manage to integrate these themes on a site. Referencing several case studies, such as Madrid Rio and Governor’s Island, he delved into what made these designs so successful and what designers should emulate in terms of their cultural integration. In my opinion, I thought that his lecture was difficult to follow since he spent the first half of the talk reading from a manuscript, but I found his analysis of the case studies in the second half to be much more intriguing and his advice worthwhile. As a respected figure in the landscaping architecture field, I was happy to have gone, but wish I would have learned more about his own artistic opinion. 

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The 2018 Senior Variety Show is part of a legacy of great traditions presented by the John Carroll School. Every year, senior students put together skits that showcase the talent of their students, playfully mock the school, and sometimes inspire change. Although it is supposed to just be a comedy show, in years past, the variety show was so influential in shifting opinions that it was actually shut down by the school administration. As simple as this show is, it just goes to show how influential art can truly be. I personally found this show to be especially crucial in the variety show’s history because the two past directors were fired last year for difficulties with the administration and it was a great question to see if the show would continue. I was happy to see this year’s students and teachers support this tradition, as controversial as it has been in the past. 

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I’ve always been a fan of Corot’s landscape paintings, but I was most excited to hear that the National Gallery was showcasing his lesser-known “Women Paintings.” Rather than paint women in the style of the day - rosy-cheeked, and happy looking - he took a rather radical approach for the time period, showing the melancholy, everyday aspects of their life. I found out that unlike other artists of his time, rather than having his models sit still for hours on end, he encouraged them to move about and talk with him. He thought that his best paintings were done when his subject never sat still so he could truly see them in their everyday motion. I personally found his depictions to be quite breathtaking and thoroughly enjoyed the exhibit. I would encourage everyone to see these paintings as they are not only gorgeous to look at, but capture the essence of the women he painted. 

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Journeying to the Hirshorn Museum in Washington D.C., I was able to see the Sean Scully Landline exhibit, a never-before-seen collection from this well-renowned modern artist. His Landline paintings shift away from his previously hard-lined minimalist style to a more expressive style, using large horizontal brush strokes. His works gesture towards the land, sea, and sky (as well as the transitions between them), navigating the elemental relationships that comprise our world. While listening in on a tour group, I came to understand that these paintings were to be treated as “stripped landscapes,” which allowed me to interpret the rest of the artwork much better. While I do not always grasp minimalist artwork, I felt like I was able to connect with several of his pieces. Even if you do not enjoy minimalism, I would recommend at least going to see the exhibit as it makes you stretch your mind and gets you thinking. 

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At 8 o’clock on the dot, the empty space in front of the stage became swarmed with UMD students as G Yamazawa urged us all to come forward. With pure energy, G Yamazawa took the energy of the crowd from a 0 to a 10 and everyone was waving their hands in the air in time with the music. This poet-emcee blurred the line between poetry and rap as he challenged the audience’s perspective on race and culture, not afraid to make fun of himself along the way. He interspersed his rapping with stories of his own life that became perfect transitions into his next song. I was utterly amazed by the speed and skill that he showcased throughout the entirety of the performance and thoroughly enjoyed swaying and dancing along to his witty lyrics. I would recommend this artist to any poet or rapper out there because of how experienced that G Yamazawa was and the presence that he brought to the stage.

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From the moment you stepped into the Clarice, you could feel your whole body reverberating from the base brass of The Soul Rebels. This group has a serious beat that had people of all ages swaying and full-out dancing to the beat. With their fusion of hip hop, jazz, funk, and soul everyone had something that they could appreciate in this eclectic music, and you just couldn’t help but feel bouncy and happy inside while listening to them. Each musician had such a warmhearted charisma that was both purely human and alien. Each musician in his turn brought something unique to each song and bounced off of each other with utter flawlessness. It was truly an amazing band to watch and an experience that was purely entertaining and heartwarming. 

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Celebrating the world of Harry Potter, a couple of my friends and I attended a Harry Potter class presentation hosted by the Honors Program, where guests could dress up as Harry Potter characters and have a great time discussing and learning more about the world of Harry Potter. We even had Sirius Black present in his animagus form (i.e. a black dog). After receiving our Hogwarts letters, we set off on our brooms to Diagon Alley (disguised as Anne Arundel lounge), where we played trivia games, held debates on Harry Potter characters, and listened to the teacher of the class give a little presentation on the book itself.  As far as presentations have gone this year, I think this one was the most fun and engaging. It allowed a large group of students to get together to not only learn more about something that we all could geek out about, but also to just have fun while learning. 

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In a series of heart-breaking monologues, anonymous letters, piano pieces, and a video on women of color, this event touched on difficult topics that students try to avoid discussing, featuring stories about sexual assault, mental illness, family life, and suicide. Each performance was even more stirring than the next, evoking a flood of emotions from the audience as they came to realize that these events happened were real and were happening to students on our own campus. As a way of educating the public and spreading awareness of the things that go on behind closed doors, this event really put into perspective the harsh realities of the world and the importance of mental health care. As part of the #30DaysTooLate campaign, the event also featured a “talkback” session with the actors. This “talkback” allowed the audience to see inside the head of the actor and actresses, allowing us to see the reasons behind why they had picked each monologue and what it had felt to act a part in these incredible stories.

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Ben Whishaw (Brutus) gestures backwards while holding a conspirator’s meeting with his other accomplices, while plotting to kill David Calder (Caesar). Nicholas Hytner’s production of “Julius Caesar” was a modern adaptation of Shakespeare’s original play “Julius Caesar” put on by Experience and National Theatre Live based in London. This play was a live recording of the play that was being performed on a mobile stage, with automated platforms and ramps. The audience surrounded the action on all sides of these raised platforms and, oftentimes, actors were interspersed throughout the audience, making the performance all the more enlivening. The director made several interesting choices in his portrayal of this classic play that really enhanced the performance. He chose several female actors, taking the liberty of modifying lines accordingly, to play the role of classically male characters, which added greater tension, sexual prejudice, and an underlying sense of romance to the play. He also set the play in a modern military-focused society (i.e. using guns instead of swords), which lessened the gruesomeness of the deaths but heightened the sense of chaos in the play. Overall, I thought the production was exceptionally well done, bringing the play to life with minimalistic sets (until Act V that is), modern allusions, and heightened sense of tension and chaos. The interspersion of the actors with the audience was an excellent choice of integrating the audience with the action of the play and was beautifully utilized at the proper moments. 

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John Driscoll and Phil Edelstein’s “Cluster Fields” (pictured left) and Ryoko Suzuki’s “Bind-6″ (pictured right) were two featured pieces of art within the exhibition Progress and Harmony for Mankind: Art and Technology circa 1970. This exhibition featured artwork from two different initiatives: Experiments in Art and Technology (E.A.T.)  and Art and Technology (A&T). By setting up artists with technology firms or providing artists with technological advancements, these two programs attempted to reconcile art with the up-and-coming technological scene. Some artists were able to complete their collaborative projects, successfully creating technologically innovative works of art, while others were critical of technology’s derogatory effect on the fine arts. Although not my personal favorite art exhibition, it was able to capture the tension between art and the technological world in the time of the 1960s.

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As pianist Jeremy Denk looked up at violinist Stefan Jackiw for an exaggerated second, he held the audience’s attention arrested at the tips of his motionless fingers. The duo, accompanied by the UMD School of Music Vocal Quartet, performed the notoriously difficult Charles Ives’ Violin Sonatas with pure mastery and mesmerizing enchantment. From the first variation to the final off-key note, these two artists had the audience on their feet by the end of the show with their exceptional stage presence and air of adroit dexterity. This two hour concert not only featured the four violin/piano sonatas, but was further highlighted by the powerful hymnal melodies of a vocal quartet, songs that Ives had based his sonatas off of. Including songs like “Beulah Land,” “I Need Thee Every Hour,” and “Shining Shore,” just to name a few, the concert hall was quickly immersed by the magic of Ives. Although some parts of the music were difficult to sit through, the experience was extremely rewarding and was a pleasure to listen to, even despite my limited postmodern classical music knowledge. 

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Kneeling down waiting for the next question to be asked, one of the actors in the play “Love and Information” stares into the light of her umbrella in speculation. In a funny, yet thought-provoking theatrical piece, “Love and Information” followed not one particular plot line, but many, ending in a total of over 70 scenes with different characters, human and non-human, from different time periods and different worlds. This play not only provided the audience with a unique visual perspective, but also provoked the mind with ambiguous dialogue and and existential references. The audience was stuck trying to piece together the meaning behind each scene only to finally figure out that there was to be no direct message. The play addressed the intricacies of what it means to be human both emotionally and intellectually, but provides no clear answer. This is a genuine must-see play for those who enjoy a modern existential twist and look to come to their own conclusions rather than be told by the director what to believe. 

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Rahim AlHaj, an Iraqi Grammy-nominee oud musician, composer, and activist (pictured right), answers a question about growing up in Iraq under the Saddam regime. Although AlHaj never picked up his instrument throughout the night, he still left quite an impression on his small audience Wednesday evening at the MilkBoy Art House. Surrounded by a small crowd of intrigued adults, AlHaj was interviewed by Anas “Andy” Shallal (pictured left) about a wide variety of topics, ranging from his definition of Iraqi culture to exploring his own style of music. A storyteller at heart, AlHaj digressed off of nearly every question and rather than answer conventionally, was able to get his point across through the art of storytelling. Of high importance to the artist was activism through subtlety in his artwork. Standing against the Saddam regime, AlHaj had composed several pieces that inspired hope in the oppressed people of Iraq, even if it meant facing life-threatening consequences. He said that one of the coolest moments was going back to one of the record stores, where his records were being copied and sold on the underground market to spread hope all throughout Iraq. A true testament to his culture, AlHaj has found a home in New Mexico, where he can explore the rich Spanish culture and spread his own message in a culturally accepting area.