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Week 12- Artist- Abramovic & Althamer

Marina Abramovic is a Serbian born artist who specializes in conceptual and performance art. She is involved in a lot of her artwork and is often the subject of doing something dangerous where she could possibly be hurt or even killed. 

Having been an active artist for over 40 years now, she likes to refer to herself as the “grandmother of performance art.” She also feature members of the audience in her artwork with her, in some cases performing the act or focus or the picture with her. 

Pawel Althamer is a Polish sculptor, performer, collaborative artist and creator of installations, and video art. A lot of his work like Abramovic is based off of participation from other people as well as himself in the art. His goal of his work is sending socially suggestive messages. Since Althamer’s focus is on the communicative and community-forming power of art, some of his works leave hardly any material trace, based on the live sculptural and performative traditions.

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Week 12-Public Art

My project for public art was just to play a game through Snapchat with my brother in Maine. I got hurt in practice and haven’t been very mobile for the past few weeks, so this was one of the few ways I could interact with the “public” while stuck in my room, while also staying socially distant. The idea was to play the game by screenshotting the game board and sending it back and forth. I chose to post the one game I ended up winning, because my brother was surprisingly good at this game and kept whooping me every time. One thing I think I could do differently in the future would be to include a few more people and expand the size of the game. That might allow me not to get beat every time and would add another dynamic to the game. 

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Week 11-Artist-Choice

The artists I chose are Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo because they’re the name base for my two favorite Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

Characteristics in common: The thing they have in common is they’re both famous artists from the High Renaissance era with an interest in the form and shape of the human body, which they both show through their artwork. 

Differences?

Leonardo da Vinci’s is primarily most famous for his drawings and paintings, but he is also an inventor and engineer that created full sized models of the inventions he created. His main fascination was with the anatomy of the human body and to gain a greater understanding of it, his paintings were the product of how he worked to gain this understanding. His main focus was the workings of the human body more than being just a great artist. 

Michelangelo is known for his great paintings but preferred to sculpt more than paint. He had a fascination with the human body as well, but it was more based on how the body created its expressions and movements below the skin than the actual science behind it. This is why in some of his paintings, some of the proportions of the body are exaggerated to draw attention to what Michelangelo is trying to get across more than being anatomically correct. 

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Week 11- Art Activity- Choice

First attempt

Second attempt

Real artwork for reference

I chose to create my project out of things I had in my room and relating it to something that I really like. I initially planned to use crushed Doritos since I had a bunch of bags that were close to expiring but it didn’t work as well as I planned. So I went with using flexi-tape and pre-wrap that had left over from taping my ankles. 

The next question would be what did I actually make? It is the special eye called the Sharigan that is possesed by my favorite character, Kakashi Hatake. It is one of the most recognizable character features from Naruto, so I thought no matter how bad my project came out, fans of the series might be able figure what it is. 

What was the process of creating the project? I first tried ripping the tape apart and shaping it with my hands which was a lot harder than I thought it was going to be. The tape didn’t rip as clean is I wanted it too but was pretty easy to shape since it stuck to itself. My second attempt I found a pair of scissors to cut the tape with which helped with the extra strands hanging off. 

How did the project turn out? Both attempts came out okay but I actually liked my first attempt by hand better. The lines were a little cleaner with the scissors, but I think the actual shape looks better than when I used the scissors. 

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Week 10- Art Activity- Intermedia

My idea for my project was how my life at the moment revolves around basketball and improving my physical health not only through my training but how I recover and heal my body. I demonstrated this through a sort of sculpture using items that I use daily during my training or after when I’m taking care of my body. My other two forms of media were a montage of the time that I spend in the gym, weight room, and at my physical therapy place, or screenshots of my schedule clipped together just to show how much time I spend working out or training. Those didn’t work out as well as I’ve been in quarantine and didn’t get to visit my PT place nor had access to a printer to clip my schedule together. 

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Week 10 - Artist- Joseph DeLappe & Micol Hebron

Joseph DeLappe is an American artist that is based out of the UK where he is a Professor of Games and Tactical Media in at Abertay University in Dundee Scotland. The focus of his work is very broad, sometimes making political statements as well as work criticizing modern society and culture. His work includes a very wide range of media, including sculptures, video game art, photos, videos, and mechanical art. 

Micol Hebron is an American artist who’s work focuses on feminism and the lack of feminist representation in art. A lot of her artwork displays the female body and criticizes the censorship that it receives versus when a male body is used. She uses sculptures, pictures, videos, writing, public speaking and curating as media platforms for her work. 

Both artists are teachers at Universities and I think they use some of the methods that they use for teaching when deciding how to create work to get their message across. The similarity I see between the two is they both use very unique forms of media in their work as well as criticizing society but where they differ is their focus. Hebron’s work focuses more on feminism and the female body, while DeLappe’s topics vary from gun violence to how the United States misuses its resources to focus on military strength. 

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Week 9- Artist- Eric Singer & Ewa Xebra

Eric Singer is an artist who uses his knowledge of robotics and engineering to create machines that can play music alone or along side real musicians. The type of instruments that he makes are able to be coded to play different songs. In 2000 he founded the League of Electronic Musical Urban Robots, which is a group of people who make similar work and they create displays for places like museums as well as play concerts using their instruments.

His work is similar to a player piano because they are both able to play without a person actually using. They are different because the player piano is set to play however many songs it has to go over, while Singers work is able to be programmed with more ease as they are controlled by computers. 

Ewa Xebra is a doctor and amateur artist who took up the hobby of taking pictures of her daughter, Luna, every day since her birth. She has posted every photo of her daughter in a “Photo of the Day” blog. She does a good job at showing her daughter in different moods and times throughout her daily life and has a mix of posed photos as well as candid shots. 

The thing that hits me most about Ewa Xebra’s work is seeing a human life develop and grow every day. It’s amazing to see how every few photos you can see a little more development in either her physical growth or mental development. 

The artists are similar in they both used something outside of their normal fields of work to create a type of art. Singer is an engineer and programmer and used these talents to create music, while Xebra is a doctor and mother who used her daughters growth to create a series of photos that show the development of a human, which is what she does as a doctor as well. I guess the main difference is that Singer uses machines to create music while Xebra uses machines to take pictures. 

My musical robot would be programmed to follow me around and play background music appropriate for different scenarios that I find myself in. I would also have my own walking theme music programmed and entrance music to announce whenever I arrive somewhere. 

I think it would be interesting to take pictures of a face everyday for ten years just to see how someone can change in that amount of time. Not mine but maybe my nephews who are 1 and 2 at the moment. It’s already crazy to see how much they change every time I leave to and come back from school, so over 10 years would be super cool to see. 

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Week 9-Art Activity- Time Series Photography

My rule for this weeks activity was to take a picture of my team each time I beat a gym or member of the elite 4 in my recent play through of Pokemon Omega Ruby. I chose to do this because I have been in quarantine for the last 4 days and it was a good way to get something for homework all while playing a game. It also worked well because in this game there are 8 gym leaders and 4 members of the Elite Four plus a champion to follow. It shows how each time my team progressed a little bit as well as if you know the game, which pokemon I used most to beat each gym, which is what I was aiming for. 

I would use the strategy that I used for this activity in that I would have people work while doing something they enjoy. Watching Tv they could write something down every commercial break, or like I did write something down every time they die or level up in a video game. Having to come up with good ideas on the spot isn’t the easiest thing to do, but doing something that you enjoy helps you think a little more freely and make it seem less of a labor and I think that could help.

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Week 8- Art Activity- Photo Story

Toy Story 5: Battle for Cybertron

“Alright, I’m leaving”

Optimus Prime and Megatron get to action

Megatron gets the upper hand and tries to escape

Optimus will leave no lid unturned

Optimus speaks to the locals of the kitchen for info

Megatron springs a trap

Megatron attempts to gain the lucky charms to crush the Autobots once and for all

Optimus reaches out for the power of chocky milk to stop Megatron 

Refueled

Prime calls in a drone strike

And starts putting a magically delicious beatdown on megatron

“hold up, you hear that?”

“I don’t remember leaving these here?”

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Week 8- Artist- Addario- Cardiff-Miller

Lynsey Addario is an American photographer who’s work is focused on the every day and real life struggles of people living in conflicts zones and harsh environments, with a bigger focus on the women in these places and their traditional roles. 

Janet Cardiff and George Bures Miller are Canadian artists who focus on a type of work called Sound Walks or Video walks. Their work is often collaborated on together and are stories told about an area using sounds and pictures or videos from the area. These could either be stories that they do research through going to the place or gathering information from people that actually live there. Or they make the stories up and use the videos and pictures that they gather there to fill out the story. 

One of the biggest similarities in all the artists work is that they use real places and stories to add to their art work. Addario travels to the places in her photos and learns about the people in them and learns about their day to day lives in places that are destroyed or in war, or just economically struggling, and sees their roles. Cardiff and Miller do research on the places they use for their sound walks and get information from books and people around the area and their friends. Both artists do research for the areas they are putting in their art. 

The biggest difference is that Addario’s work is real images of women living their daily lives and having to survive living in very dangerous parts of the world. Cardiff and Miller are able to make up stories and create a narrative that fits whatever piece they are trying to make. 

I think having work like both of these artists create is important. Having different types of work that expresses different ideas is important so that the world isn’t boring but so that people have multiple ways of expressing their thoughts. Bringing attention to real life struggles and realities that people live in that people in another place might not even know are possible is important and can broaden what people think is possible. But having work that can tell a story and just be entertaining is good because seeing something from another person’s point of view or being able to see them express their thoughts through art is a good way for people to connect from all over the place. 

Personally, I like the idea of adding a story to a image or video and that style would be more appealing to me. Whether the story is real or not, words or sounds can add a lot more context to an image but can also change the whole idea of the image and I like work that is able to be interpreted in different ways.

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Week 7- Artist- Nan Goldin & Annie Leibovitz

Annie Leibovitz is a famous American photographer who is most known for her pictures of celebrities in a more natural environment, with the emphasis on them expressing their personalities. Some of her most famous work includes the last picture of Jon Lennon before he was murdered and being the first woman to be featured at the Washington’s National Portrait Gallery. 

I like this picture of Queen Elizabeth. Most settings you see the queen in are fancy places and she’s trailed by her security. While she’s still dressed elegantly, her background is a place where you could see any regular person. It isn’t the most expressive picture but you can see a some of the character that Queen Elizabeth has been known for and shown in the past. 

Nan Goldin is an American photographer who takes picture with the emphasis on the  LGBTQ+ community, drug abuse, and violence. Her work focuses on showing the reality behind the lives that people who are a part of the community or really face the issues of drugs and violence.

What I see from this picture is someone struggling but doesn’t want to share it. They’re only way of letting out their frustrations without letting anyone know is screaming under water. Her work normally being related to the LGBTQ+ community or drug abuse and that also shows in this picture. Someone struggling with their drug habit or facing any of the struggles that people of that community face. 

Leibovitz’s pictures despite being made to show real movement and emotion are still taken like a portrait. There’s more set up to her pictures while Nan Goldin pictures are real life moments and people being as real as possible with a camera around them. I think I would pick Nan Goldin to take pictures because it would be my real environment. 

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Week 7- Art Activity- Headshots & Environmental portraits

headshot

The basketball courts up the street from my house. I’m on the basketball team and play there every day for hours. I think it counted as my environment. 

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Week 6- Artist- Camille & Sarah Elgart

Sarah Elgart is a dance choreographer, director, and producer based out of Los Angeles. Her dances tend to take place in public areas like bus stations or a museum and tries to take these areas that people are familiar with and help them see it in a new or different way through the motions and rhythms in her dance. 

Camille Dalmais is a French singer/song writer whose music is classified as a chanson or pop. Chanson means her music is mostly driven by the vocals of the song and applies to her music since she uses her voice and sounds of her body as her biggest instruments. 

Both artists work is carefully planned out but allows the artists to have freedom in their movements and both actually encourage the performers to fall into a flow to perform. The motion of the performers bodies comes of as natural but energetic at the same time. I watched one of Camille’s performances and she crawled out onto stage at the beginning. Even if this is just part of the routine for her, it seemed like she got further and further into her stage persona and form with each step. 

I would say that their work is like automatic drawing in the way that your body just goes with wherever the weight of the hands take the pencil as the rhythm takes the dancer bodies in Sarah Elgart’s performances. 

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Week 6-Art Activity-Drawing 2

My map has most of the areas that I go to the most and I started drawing from the Parkside dorms because that is where I live during the school year. Most of my classes take place in Liberal arts building so that is what I remember best. I don’t go to the engineering buildings often so it makes sense that I completely left that area off. Most of the areas I remember best are near the pyramid and athletic field areas since I am on the basketball team. 

The automatic drawing was an interesting time since the only person I had around to do this with was my 8 year old niece. Clearly she was the one in control of the pencils despite one of my hands completely covering both of her hands. I didn’t really get into a flow or any type of zone but spent most of the time laughing as she yelled at me to help because my hand was too heavy. 

This weeks drawings were different from last weeks because last week we used our eyes and short term memory to draw what we saw. This week I had to draw from memory a place that I haven’t been to in a while since I didn’t have any in person classes. I would say the drawing activities are similar in the way that it is my interpretation of what I saw or remember that I put onto the paper. 

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Week 5-Artist-Kara Walker & Russell Crotty

Kara Walkers work is created through silhouettes using the cut outs over a background which are normally white but some have a silhouette over an already drawn picture. I think her work is considered a type of drawing as she’s using scissors to cut fine lines like you would create with a pencil. 

I think most of her work is criticisms of social issues, but I think the way her work is done does make it more open to interpretations and hurts it a little bit because there aren’t details that can definitively be seen when created with a pencil. The titles of some of her work makes it easier to determine the message but still leaves a lot up for interpretation. 

Russell Crotty’s work is drawing landscape images on spheres and I would consider it drawing just on a different surface than a normal flat one. His work makes me think that he is showing they areas are like their own world. It also is almost the opposite of Kara Walkers work where Crotty fills in every part of his work while Walker uses the open space against against what she adds to create her work and create a message. 

I don’t really interpret much out of his artwork besides the area he is creating is it’s own world in a way. Like Walker’s work, some of the titles for the work allow the meaning to come off, but the work itself isn’t always self explanatory. 

Like I previously said his work to me shows that each individual area is it’s own world and that they combine into the world that we’re on.  

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Week 5- Art Activity- Drawing

I smashed the bottle that I was drinking out of for my second drink drawing

Where I live in Maine there isn’t that much nature around until you’re out of the city limits, so I drew plants around my apartment building. 

I did my best to show how skinny I actually am, not make myself look like i have abs. 

I used to be big into drawing so it wasn’t something I haven’t before. I’ve wanted to get back into it now that I’m older and have better coordination, but it hasn’t been something I’ve gotten around to. Practicing and having some instruction would probably help me get better, it would be finding the time to put the work in to get better would be the biggest issue.

My major is consumer affairs and drawings work very well because consumer affairs is about the protection rights people have when purchasing items. As a visual learner, graphics help me figure things out better than having to read about them. 

Some of the oldest writings we have are drawings, so I definitely think drawings are language. We learned about civilizations like ancient Egypt through drawings that were used to record things. 

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Week 4- Artist- Molly Soda & Girl Talk

Artist Greg Gillis, who goes by the stage name Girl Talk, is an artist who specializes in mashups and remixes of popular songs layered together. He posts most of his music on the Illegal-art website for free or with a pay what you want fee where the listener chooses how much to pay. While his work was described by one lawyer as “A lawsuit waiting to happen”, his work is legal because he doesn’t copyright any of the music he samples. I think his work should be legal seeing how most of it is free and the price he does charge is however much his fans choose to pay. I could see his work leading more people to the sampled songs than actually taking money from the original artists. I think his work would do well on an app like Tik-Tok and potentially introduce the sampled artists to a new wave of people.

My interpretation of her work is that is it critical of the society we live in and how dependent people are on the opinion of the people around them, so I think the idea of her work could have been done in a different way, but the materials she used to create and post her work would’ve only been possible during the era of the internet. 

Their oeuvres are similar as they are both based around technology but differ with Girl Talk being based on music while Molly Soda’s work is based around things like gifs and videos. 

Both artists do have some connection with artists of the past but in different ways from each other. Gillis’ work is based on taking things that are already created and popular, while a musician like Mozart was the creator of his work. Yes there is art in how Gillis constructs his music together, but he is still never the true creator of everything that is in his music like Mozart would be. 

Molly Sodas work would be similar to an artist like Picasso as to me both of their work is about interpretation and picking out what has meaning to the person viewing.