juliapcpsarts

[juliapcpsarts]

Complete Progress

This project was interesting. The whole point was learning about my emotions and developing my painting skills. I personally think that I accomplished both of those things. For several of my paintings, meditation was key. Two of them were the colors that I saw while meditating during yoga. One was the colors I saw during mantra meditation in my workshop. For those paintings, I would experience the meditation and see the colors and then I would paint them within an hour of meditating, or I write do a detailed description of what I saw in my head, and then paint later.

For the other three paintings, it was a matter of painting how I felt at that moment, which was more challenging, as I didn’t have anything to go off of. My Happiness painting was the only one that had some sort of non-abstract form as a part of it. That painting, unfortunately, resulted in a sunburn. The Loneliness painting was kind of odd in that lonely wasn’t exactly right. It was like a combination of feelings that I can’t really describe, but they weren’t all bad.

There’s more for me to write, I’m sure, but I’m very sick and I feel like I’m going to pass out so I’m going to stop here.

[juliapcpsarts]

CPSA250:                        Conference Report

 Fill this form out in its entirety & submit it via email to all three of the Arts Scholars faculty (Jess, Harold, and Kenna) within 48 hours of your conference (i.e. if you met with Jess at 2 PM Wednesday, your report is due by 2 PM Friday). Copy this information over to your Scholars Tumblr site as well (tagged as CPSA Capstone Advising). Failure to submit this form on time will result in losing half the points for the meeting process!

NAME: Julia Peigh

ADVISOR: Kenna

MEETING DATE & TIME: Friday at 11:10 am

In 3-4 sentences, please describe what was discussed during your meeting.

We talked about my finished paintings, and how I wanted to present them. Kenna gave me ideas about how to label and orient my paintings. We also talked about my poster for the Academic Showcase.

 In 3-4 sentences, please explain what the next steps you will take with your project will be.

Next, I will make my labels for my paintings, and decide what I want on my poster for Arts Fest. Plus, I will make my poster. I will also update my Academic Showcase poster now that I’ve finished all 6 paintings.

 Please use the space below to indicate any further questions, concerns, or confusions that were NOT addressed during the meeting.

Is there a standard for posters for Arts Fest? I can’t remember the ones from last year

[juliapcpsarts]

The other people in my group have such interesting projects, and it’s so interesting to see how different they are. I love that there’s a visual element to all of our projects. It’s really cool to see them. Emily’s project is very similar to mine, especially given what she’s posted so far about her paintings. Katie made a comment about how she thought it was interesting how different people in our group were expressing emotions, and I really agree with that. Connie also mentioned how she thought seeing an animation of some of the pieces would be really cool, and I love that idea because when the colors are in my head, they do tend to pulsate and move. I wish I actually knew anything about animation, but I don’t so I probably can’t do that.

[juliapcpsarts]

Connie-

Oh my gosh. I am simultaneously terrified and so excited to see your final project. The story of Bloody Mary has scared me since I was little, so I am very interested to see how this turns out. What excites me more is the script. You make Mary into this character that I am both sad for and scared of. Mostly the latter. You convey so much in so little. I’m really just...so excited for this. I’m already getting visuals in my head about the color scheme and dramatic moments. This is just so cool.

The first step of my project was to develop a script for the film. I adapted a horror poem I wrote based off of the urban legend of Bloody Mary, into a comprehensible plot.

[juliapcpsarts]

Katie-

First of all, I am so sorry to hear about your grandfather. I can’t imagine how difficult coming back to your project has been. I am so sad for you. 

I can understand the intense emotions. That’s what my project is all about. It feels like you’re being swallowed by them, and sometimes you don’t even fully understand it. However, I am fully confident that these emotions will be useful in your creations. As hard as they may be, emotions often are the thing that brings art to life. Because you have suffered, your art will blossom, and I am so sure that your grandfather would be so proud of what you create in his memory. I am so pleased with what you said about gaining motivation to do well so others may see how he was. When I read the statement prior, I was worried for you and your project. Grief can make people shut down. But you came back with such a beautiful vigor. I am so, so, so excited to see your finished project. I can’t wait to see what your grandfather was like! :)

Tumblr Process Assignment, Post 1

So this week we have the tumblr process binder assignment, and I have been putting off posting because I have not worked on my project at all lately. As other in the scholars program may know, my project is based on re-creating some of my grandfather’s drawings as shape poetry. Well my grandfather passed away last week, and the funeral was held yesterday. So emotionally I am in a very difficult place, and every time I have looked at my project since he passed away I can’t help but cry. I am not sure when I will get back to working on the project in any substantiative way, but perhaps I am working on it another way. When I had my first advising meeting, I was told that feeling the emotions should be as much a part of the process as the actual work. In that regard then, I have been doing an awful lot of work lately, and have hit on new emotions that I didn’t know could happen. Or rather felt emotions much more intensely than I would have thought. The experiences of the past week, and especially yesterday will likely shape my project in ways that I had not fully foreseen. For one thing, I was hoping to be able to show this project to my grandfather at it’s completion even though he might not have understood quite what it was. With him gone, I no longer have the motivation to do well so that he can see it. That has been replaced by a motivation to do the project well so that others can see, through the lens of my work, what a magnificent person he was and how I want him to be remembered. And now more than before, working on this project will be a coping tool as I learn to live without someone who meant so much to me. 

[juliapcpsarts]

Reyna- 

Oh my flipping goodness I am so excited by the pictures you’ve included here. I’m so intrigued by your project overall, honestly. Redesigning is such a cool idea. I really love the linear effect produced by these, because in so many museums I’ve been to, I have the hardest time figuring out a way to go through the whole museum in a good order, and I end up missing things. My path never makes sense and it bothers me. The only issue I can think of with a linear design is traffic. If there’s a particularly well known piece, a lot of people will crowd around it, and when something is linear like that, you either have to wait or skip the piece all together. You can’t skip it and come back. But that i something I think is worthy for sacrifice. Have you seen the work at the Hirschhorn in DC that is drawn right on the walls? The whole piece takes over an entire side of the circular hallways there, and it just moves you all over the place. It seems like something that would be an excellent sort of piece for a linear museum :)

Process of Defining the Goals of Redesign:

As Brianna and I begin to diagram and define our redesign objectives, we take a look at other museums that are similar to the Guggenheim with certain differences. The Greenland National Gallery of Art is circular is form, but unlike the Guggenheim, it uses layers that extend below the ground level to maximize the available space. The levels are connected with a continuous ramp system that is similar to the linear gallery effect that is also in the Guggenheim. By studying the ways that the two museums create a system of linear galleries, we can decide if the upward continuation of levels is more effective than the downward descend or vice versa. We are hoping to create a redesign idea that plays on a communal feeling while preserving a sense of mystery as one proceeds through the space.  

[juliapcpsarts]

Emily-

I love these inspiration pieces you found- probably cause it’s so close to what my own project is like! I like what you said about trying to understand the purpose of abstract art. I think the purpose of abstract art is probably just that- abstract! In my experience, art is made to evoke emotions, but everyone experiences them differently. You might be able to discern the artist’s intention, but everyone has their own association. For example, I recently read a play where one of the characters associated white with death because he saw snow when his parents were killed, even though most people would associate white with perhaps purity or innocence. I think the most you can do is put your influence into the work you do, regardless of how people will interpret it. The more of you in your work, the better. Even if you want to make people feel a certain thing, you can never guarantee it. I can’t wait to see how your project turns out. I’m curious to see, are you taking an abstract or representational approach to your paintings? I’ll guess abstract, based on this post! :)

Today, I decided to look at abstract art in various mediums to find commonalities that I can apply to my own work. I have examples here of paint, drawing, digital, and sculpture. I found that none of them have distinct recognizable form but they all make me think of something else. Not all of them use multiple colors but I’ve found that my personal preference is that the ones that use color are more successful at making me feel emotions. One thing I have trouble with is trying to understand the purpose when I look at abstract art. Without clear image depiction, it’s hard to understand what the artist wants the audience to feel. Colors help to make this more clear but so does shape and form and fluidity. Getting inspired by looking at both well known and amateur art has helped me with my thought journal and getting my ideas on paper.

[juliapcpsarts]

My colors stopped for a little while

In a previous post, I mentioned that I see colors. Well, last week, they stopped. I’m not sure why they stopped, but usually when I get them it’s after I’ve fallen into meditation. But last week, I took my best friend to yoga with me, and when I got to shavasana (final resting pose), I just couldn’t get into it. I’m not sure if I was tense or just nervous and self conscious because my friend was there with me, or if it was just an off week, but I just couldn’t get into it, and I was so sad that my colors were gone. This week, I went back to yoga and my colors came back, and boy did they come back strong. I haven’t had time to paint yet, but I wrote it down and also got my instructor to send me the song she uses for shavasana so I can recreate the context of my colors and paint them accurately.  Linked is the song Ellie uses for shavasana. I didn’t know this, but apparently this song is also used on the show Scandal? 

[juliapcpsarts]

Building floods. It’s 3 am. Neither you or your roommate can sleep. What do you do as you listen to the dripping of water in your walls? I paint. It turns out to be angry painting: swift, short brushstrokes with black ink dripped on top in time with the water in your walls. Painting helped me relax, and by 4:30 am I had fallen asleep. Painting helped me get my anger out at being woken up at 1:45 and being made to stand outside while it snowed for an hour, just cause someone hit a sprinkler with their keys. This was a prime example of painting my emotions and having that help me deal with them in a healthy way.

[juliapcpsarts]

Here’s a fun fact about me. I see colors and shapes in my head when I’m in certain situations. I think this is called Closed-Eye Visualization or CEV. It basically means that I’m sort of hallucinating (no, I don’t do any sort of drugs, be quiet) when I close my eyes. This is enhanced significantly when I do things like yoga or meditation. Pictured is the multipurpose room in Ritchie where I do yoga on Thursday nights. I often get visuals when I do yoga, especially in shavasana (final resting pose). The first visual I got during this semester’s yoga was blue and purple swirls with yellow pulses of light. This was the first of my paintings for my project.

[juliapcpsarts]

At the Hirsshorn, there is an exhibition of Ragnar Kjartansson’s work, which is extremely expansive and incredibly strange. My favorite piece, by far, was a video piece entitled The Visitors. It is a beautiful, haunting piece, made by recording 8 different people and 1 group of people all singing the same thing and playing different instruments. The result is just...breathtaking. If you get the opportunity to see it, I highly recommend it. Attached is a video that includes stills of the performers and an audio clip of their song, as well as a (blurry) picture of the description of the piece and a picture of me at the museum.

Seriously, cannot stress enough that if you get the chance you need to see this piece. There was a girl in the room who was moved to tears, and my friend and I would have stayed all 64 minutes had we not had a prior commitment. Seriously. It’s so cool.

[juliapcpsarts]

Seeing Upright Citizens Brigade at Next Now Fest was absolutely amazing. They were absolutely hilarious, and they managed to get the entire crowd chanting profanities aimed at our not-so-helpful transportation system on campus. They interviewed a student and created a whole improv show around his interview and it was one of the most impressive things I’ve ever seen.

[juliapcpsarts]

I went to the exhibition opening at the Driskell Center. There were some really interesting pieces there made out of shoes, water bottles, iron burns on wood, and more. The masks and couch out of shoes were my favorite pieces, and going to an opening was really cool. I even got to have brie (on a Thursday!!!). Willie Cole’s work is really wonderful.

[juliapcpsarts]

I took a trip to DC with a friend, and one of the places I went was the National Gallery of Art. It was really cool. I’d never been there, and my goodness that place is massive. It was really cool, and there was a da Vinci piece there, Ginevra de’ Benci, which was amazing to see. I loved going there, even though my whole body hurt after walking through there and around DC.

[juliapcpsarts]

I attended the Gamer Symphony Orchestra concert this semester, which was really cool because I have some friends who play in the orchestra, and I sang in the GSO choir last year so I got to see some old friends. They played a great program, featuring a whole lot of Pokemon-themed pieces. It was wonderful seeing all of these great people making great music. 

[juliapcpsarts]

My mother and I attended the Holiday Singalong at Wolf Trap, which featured the United States Marine Band. My mom and I have gone 5 times over the last several years. It’s really cool for me because the band plays two of the holiday songs that I played in high school, so seeing them is a nice trip down memory lane. My mom laughs at me because I know every part of Leroy Anderson’s “A Christmas Festival” and sing along even though we haven’t gotten to the singalong portion of the program at that point.

[juliapcpsarts]

In a hilarious moment captured by my friend, Ellie, members of my section (including me) took a selfie before our portion of the Kaleidoscope of Bands concert. The marching band always takes part and plays some of the highlights from our previous season. It’s a great time that involves dancing and fun, and my friend, who attended the concert, said it was one of the coolest things he’d ever experienced at Maryland.