Reflections of AED 200

My expectations for the course were to learn about different ways to look at art as well as to learn about many different artists. These expectations were definately met. I learned about more artists than I think I can even remember. I also wanted to learn about the different uses of art materials and the videos were great for that, as well as the art exploration assignments. Art to me originally was just something visual to look at, such as a painting. Now I would describe art as something that is everywhere I look. Art is in architecture and books and everything you look at can be described artistically. Art is a way of defining the world around you and recreating it. Van Gogh is still my favorite artist. I just really enjoy his colors and brush strokes in his works. I still feel the same about taking an online course. I like the online classes better because it allows me to work on my own time at any hour of the day. It just takes some time management skills and self-discipline, but if you have those traits online courses are great.

Art Criticism

The projects that I reviewed were "Change" by Meisner, "Surrealism" by Mejak, and "A Child's Impact on Impressionism" by Bojak. I selected the exhibit by Bojak "A Child's Impact on Impressionism" because I really found the theme interesting and it was the exhibit that stood out the most to me. My biggest challenge was decided how to begin and end my article. I overcame this by starting it several different ways until I found an entrance to the article that I deemed fitting. I feel the same about critiquing my peers work as I would critiquing an exhibit in the art museum. It is an objective review and meant to give feedback to the curator. It did not bother me at all to be the one to critique a peer. I would deffinatly like to read the critique of my curator project. It is interesting to see how someone else felt about my work (unless my project was not critiqued by anyone). I would give my finished article about an 8 because I believe it is well written, but I am not a professional art critic and could have done better with more practice. This project was pretty enjoyable to work on and see other's work. I think it was most interesting to see the different paths that people took in their projects.

Self Portrait

Self Portrait With A Pipe

Vincent Van Gogh, 1889

OIl on Canvas

51x45cm

Self Portrait with Monkey, 1938

Frida Kahlo

Oil on Masonite

Self Portrait

Paul Cezanne

1898-1900

Lithograph

I selected the inspiration pieces because they were the ones that stood out to me the most, as well as because they were each done in a different style. I used pencil and colored pencil for my self portrait because I thought it would turn out the best by drawing it and adding some color. The challenges that I faced were mainly figuring out how to draw the self portrait and deciding which media to use. It worked out that I overcame them by using the pencil drawing because I could erase any mistakes. This piece represents me because it is me. It was the best reflection of myself that I could draw. I used line and color in my work and I also believe that there is a balance in the blue and brown on each side. The project was enjoyable to work on. I found it fun to try and create a self portrait and it was interesting to see how it turned out. The finished product, in my mind, was pretty good and a good reflection of myself.

Video Review

Greenberg on Art Criticism, discusses that criticim comes from a value judgement and taste. It mentions the importance of being relevant and that relevance is the only limitation one should have. They investigate the idea that a value judgement from an art critic comes from some art history. Greenberg on Pollock's key ideas are on Greenberg's criticism and relationship of Jackson Pollock and how Pollock himself reacted to criticism of his work. It talks about how Pollock referred to his works as "just easel paintings." In An Introduction to the Italian Renaissance we learn that the Roman Empire gave way to an area for art to flourish before the Empire was overtaken. It focuses on how Giotto led to the birth of art and revived the interest of recreating what we see in depth. He used landscapes and architecture to create a scene of depth and realism. A large part of the Italian Renaissance style of art was realism, perspective, chiaroscuro and the video discusses how different artists used these concepts. The Critics: Stories from the Inside Pages's key ideas to me that were professional art critics must use intelligence and have a real passion for the work they are doing. It talks about how if enough critics say something or believe something, they will have an impact, instead of how in the past a single critic could change opinion. The Colonial Encounter discusses the 1900s world fair and the impact of the french government. The view of the french of the dahomians were that they had no infrastructure. Colonialism was justified by the idea that Africans were savages or barbarians who might turn against Europeans. The Jackson Pollock video's key ideas were on Pollock as a modern artist. We also learn about quality of art and how quality can be judged by an artists ability to articulate conditions of humans at a moment in time.

The videos did relate to the creation of my art crticism project in that I believe it is necessary to have some knowledge of art history and to see many of the works from that time period to properly criticize an artist's work. I also agreed with the idea that an art critic's idea comes from a value judgement and taste because I would have been more likely to be harder on those works that I didn't have a taste for.

The films taught me a lot about art criticism. I can understand the process from a professional critics point of view. The films were very educational.

Nature is Art-art curator project

I thought this project was actually quite fun. It took a lot of work along with quite a bit of thinking. Coming up with a theme was the hardest part for me. There are so many themes you could use in creating an exhibition. Pieces that are inspired by nature always stick out to me so it seemed like a fitting subject. I grouped my pieces by the content of the piece and also by the medium used. The last few are watercolors while most are oil paintings. I chose the design of the powerpoint because it seemed to give light to and emphasize the works of art. All of the images came from the ARTstor database. I am really interested to see what others in the class chose and how they set up their exhibitions in powerpoint.

Week Nine Video Review

The Lowdown on Lowbrow: West Coast Pop Art is based on the concept that a lowbrow is a person regarded as uncultivated and lacking in taste. In the art world is referred to works of certain images such as naked women. It discusses the difference between lowbrow and surrealism. The video also explores the idea of women artists in lowbrow art and the role they play.

Displaying Modern Art: The Tate Approach explores the key ideas of the intellectual issues with displaying modern art. It describes the chronology of the art exhibit as well as the way modern art was displayed by being posted on the white walls with reflective lighting. It discusses the idea that exhibits are theme-based.

Bones of Contention: Native American Archaeology discusses the idea that Native American bones have been kept in Museums for science, but the Native American culture alive today feels it is degrading to a point as it reminds them of the poor treatment of the past. It focuses on the protection of Native American burial sites and how it is limiting the work of archaeologists who may or not know that the bones they investigate are in fact Native American.

George Eastman House: Picture Perfect discusses the idea of the legacy of George Eastman and his work through photography and motion film. The George Eastman house is the mecca of the medium of photography and the largest motion film library around the world. It investigates the impact that Eastman had on the world.

I don't believe that the videos really relate to the creation of my art exhibition project in that my theme is different from that of the videos. The videos focused more on modern and pop art whereas my theme is the natural world. They do however relate to the project in that they spend some time disussing the ways in which an exhibit may be arranged.

I thought these films were exceptionally interesting and absolutly added depth to my understanding of the art concepts I am using in the art curator project. They gave me ideas that I could use in arranging my exhibit.

Video Review Week 8

I selected each of the videos, Matisse and Picasso, Abstract Expressionism and Pop: Art of the 50's and 60's, Uncertainty: Modernity and Art, and Expressionism, because they were topics they stood out to me while doing the readings. Matisse and Picasso as well as Pop art of the 50's and 60's were topics that I also used in other assignments for the course so I thought it would be interesting to learn more about those topics. Some of the videos are similar topics which seemed like a better idea to choose than watching four unrelated videos.

In the Matisse and Picasso video some of the key concepts were that Matisse traveled the world and often took very little with him in search of artistic inspirations. Matisse struggled to find his latest paintings a great deal of the time. Picasso, in contrast, did not travel much. He spent much time in his studio and drew inspiration from what was around him. His name, however, traveled far and wide.

Abstract Expressionism and Pop: Art of the 50's and 60's, we learn that emotions were meant to be expressed through abstract use of colors in the paintings. The video teaches us how to look at abstract art, by looking up close at all the small details and then taking a step back to understand the full meaning of the work. The key ideas focus on describing the different abstract and pop artists of the time and each of their key works. It also goes over the transformation of Abstract Expressionism to Pop Art with Andy Warhol.

Uncertainty: Modernity and Art focuses on how modern life evolved out of old ideas, similar to how modern art evolved out of older art styles and ideas. The key concept is how uncertain modern life can be. It talks about how more modern art changes with modern life through different styles such as Abtract Expressionism and then Pop Art.

The video, Expressionism, defines the style of Expressionism and its use of colors and how this style changed from the formal use of color of Fauvism. The color use in paintings are meant to express a certain emotion. There is often some kind of facial expression or action taking place. The emotional response is meant to be part of the viewers experience.

Each of these four videos relate very closely with the readings from the text. They covered topics from the readings and went into much more detail. They focused on the evolution of styles from one to another and how the artists worked to include these styles in their paintings and other works. It also goes into detail on some of the works that were seen in the text.

The videos really add much more knowledge to the fundamental lesson we've had from the readings. I really like that they focus on single ideas and really take what we've already learned to a new level.

Mask Making

My own mask uses symmetry in that each side is identical. I also used a unique design and line from to make it my own. I used colors that I knew family from my past really liked and incorporated it in a flower design that I felt represented my own ancestors the way other masks do. I felt there was also a balance with the use of color and symmetry. There is some value in the color with the light and darker blue and variety with the shapes on the masks. It is a simple shape with added design. I thought creating the mask was a fun experiment and wished I was a better artist to really make it stand out. If I had the material, created a 3-D mask would have been a creative experience. The finished mask was alright, but wasn't really what I envisioned.

The mask of the Royal Sister and Wife of the Kuba Kingdom in the Democratic Republic of the Congo is a realistic mask of a woman with hair and beads on it. The eyes are shut and the mouth slightly open. There is an almost perfect symmetry with the paint design and black and white are used to create different shapes on the face. The blue and white beading goes along the hair line at the top and there are white beads in the red material hanging from the sides of the mask. The texture of the face appears smooth, while the hair appears rough. I selected this piece because I thought there was a very unique use of design on the face which highlighted the features and the use of beading was very unique as well.

This is the mask of the Beautiful Ancestress of the Chokwe Peoples. This is a three-dimensional mask of a woman. The eyes are shut and she appears to be wearing a headdress of some kind. The mask is a bronze color with white and blue also used in the band of the headdress as well as on the lips and in the markings on either side of the face. There is symmetry and shape used in the mask in the eyes, nose, ears and mouth. The face has a smooth texture, while the head dress looks like it has a rough or furring texture, perhaps similar to a net. I selected this mask as an inspiration piece because I found it very interesting and visually stimulating. The expression and shape of the face caught my attention and I liked that the markings were simple but noticeable.

The Aztec Mask of Xiuhtecuhtli is a mask of a face in symmetric form. The eyes, nose, and mouth are relatively identical on each side of the face. It uses a traditional shape of a face and is flat across the top. There is an excellent use of color. It uses bright greens and shades of greens that fade into a turquoise blue. There are also different dots on the mask that add texture and design. It has a rhythm with the repeating of colors and texture throughout. This mask was an ispiration to me because of the use of color. It stood out and made me pay attention to the use of color. The shape is simple but even the expression of the face draws your attention to it.

Video Review

I chose the four videos: Buddhism, The Great Wave (Japanese Art), Islamic Art:India and the Middle East, and African Art. Each of these videos I chose because they were things I remembered specifically from the readings in the book. Since they stood out to me more than other parts I decided they would be the best videos to watch.

They key concept of Buddhism was that each individual needed to find their own way to enlightenment by freeing themselves from those things that inflate the ego. It meant seeing the world in a different way. It also displayed the way Buddhism spread and how people continued to honor Buddha after he died. This video relates to the readings because it explains the path to enlightenment as the book did and also shows some of the art and architecture that was used and created during Buddha's time and how they related to his life and lessons. African Art key ideas I thought were that many of the materials used in African art did not last long, so although they displayed forms of art that were very old, the works themselves were no more than a few hundred years old. They also talk about how the art represented ideas, such as success in the hunt. There was also a difference explained in conceptual and perceptual art and how these flow from either objective reality or the artist's imagination. It also talks about the use of ritual or performance art, which relates to the book in that we learned about how masks were used in rituals as a means of spiritual communication. The Islamic art video discusses the key idea of how images of humans and animals were forbidden. Plants, flowers, and patterns were primarily used in Islamic art. This relates to the readings in that the readings emphasize the use of geometric patterens and script in Islamic art that made it very beautiful. It also examines the architecture in Mosques and places of worship, also seen in the readings. I also like how it said that Gothic style owes so much to Islam. It gives an idea of how styles were adopted from other cultures and expanded. One of the key ideas of the Japanese art video was that The Great Wave is probably the best known image of western art and that no other image represents the same feeling. Also, that the images were not necessarily of Japanese tradition, but of European style, especially in the use of the writing which normally goes vertically in Japanese. I thought this was the more interesting of the videos because it really went in-depth explaining every detail of The Great Wave and makes you want to understand why each detail was included. This video really expanded what was said about Japanese art in the book while explaining a great work of art.

In my opinion the films were a great educational tool to use to reinforce the readings from the book. They capture your attention better and let you learn about the different styles individually and visually instead of trying to take in all of the cultures of art in the chapter at once. I thought they were enjoyable to watch and make it much easier to learn about the concepts of art that the book is teaching us through the readings.

The theme of the exhibit was Pop Goes the World. The theme of the exhibition was Pop art from the 1960's. This included familiar images from everyday life used in the artwork. The type of lighting used was bright lights that were meant to spotlight each work. The color of the walls were just a bright white and the interior architecture included metal running spotlights, wooden benches, and flat painted walls. The exhibit was a big square that circled around with a room on each side of the center for the viewer to enter. The artworks were organized by sculptures on one side of the exhibit, larger paintings with words on them in another room of the exhibit and flat paintings along the walls. The works were similar in that they contained household objects, mixed materials and bright colors. They were different in that some were lifesize, some were bigger, some were small. They had different color schemes as some were bright and mixed colors and others were gray scale. Most of the works were not framed, but the ones that were had wooden or black frames. All of the artworks of the exhibit were identified by a small plaque on the wall next to the work. The works had about 3-4 feet of space between them.

Work 1:

Tom Wesselmann

Still Life #20 , 1962

Mixed Media

The work is partly abstract and partly realistic. It includes real life objects such as the sink and soap, but also includes more artwork on the work itself. There is an emphasis on the sink with the light and the red contrasts the lightness of the rest of the piece. There is a balance with work in each of the 4 corners of the piece. The piece reminded me of someone's home. Either the bathroom or kitchen. I think the artist was trying to represent a person's home. It may offer a comforting feeling.

Work 2:

James Rosenquist

Nomad, 1963

Oil on Canvas, Plastic, and Wood

This work is a more abstract, non-representational piece. Is has movement with the orange flowing through to keep your eyes moving. There is attention drawn to the left with the bright yellow and the words. It has an excellent use of colors and value in the black shading to balance the brightness of the color. The materials in front look like the piece is meant to represent a piece that has just been finished. It almost reminded me of a billboard, or an artists home where they were working on it. My emotional reaction was confusion because I was not really sure what message I was supposed to see.

Work 3:

Marisol

Babygirl , 1963

Wood and Mixed Media

This is a realistic wood carving that is meant to represent a babygirl. It includes wood, white fabric and paint. There is a smaller piece on the leg of the girl that seems to symbolize the girl's doll. It is modified slightly in that it is larger than life-size and the work has no arms.

Video Review

I chose the Drawings of Michelangelo video because I find his finished work amazing. It is very interesting to see how his drawings turned into such amazing works as David and the Sistine Chapel. Leonardo da Vinci's works are also very interesting to me, which was why I chose that video as well. The Albrecht Durer video I chose because we read about him in the book and I thought it would be a good idea to see the ideas in the video versus the book. The Gothic Art and Architecture video I chose to learn more about the Gothic style.

The Michelangelo video goes into much detail about how the political situation of his country was reflected in his David sculpture and influenced Michelangelo's own life. He also enjoyed displaying the beauty of the human body. Every work of his goes into detail on the lines and curves of the human form. I feel this relates to the readings in the book because we read that the human form was popular during the Renaissance and that artists often used politics to influence their work.

Leonardo stressed the idea of spiritual thought in his works. He also uses the contrast of light and dark in his work. The light figure in the front compared to the dark background adds depth and volumn, which the book mentions as an important style of art that had evolved. A key concept of the video was the painting is done based on the 10 aspects of sight and these are displayed in the paintings that we see in the book and the sames ones in the video.

An important idea of the Durer video was that through Durer, Italian Renaissance forms and styles were brought into gothic Germany. Durer painted many religious scenes, which the book taught us was an large characteristic of the Renaissance, as well as the realistic view of the human form and face that we see in some of his works. A large part of the video was that Durer did many woodcuts and engraving.

We learn in the Gothic video that the styles and architecture used in the Gothic period were meant to always outdo others. This was explained in the book as well that the style of Gothic architecture was used by those building Chapals and such that wanted to make theirs bigger and better. One of the important concepts is that it was the look that was important in Gothic art and architecture along with the attention to detail.

I enjoyed the films. I thought they were very educational and an excellent supplement to the readings in the book. It helps when you can hear the readings reinforced in the video. The videos go much deeper into detail, however, and that adds to the knowledge and gives us a better understanding of the artists and the types of work they created.

Art Installation

One way to describe installation art is that is it the placement of artwork in an exhibition space. It is a 3-D work of art where a specific space and everything in that space is seen as a single work of art. It is a space you are meant to experience.

Any materials that the artist wishes to use can be used in installation art. 3-D objects such as lights, doors, buckets or anything else imaginable can be used as well as any art material such as paint.

Installation art is made as a way for viewers to see it and experience it. It is something that the audience can enter either physically or mentally and explore.

The installation that I found more interesting was without a doubt, Fireflies on the Water by Yayoi Kusama. I love that it is a space you can enter only by yourself that will shut out the world and let you explore only your own thoughts.

I mostly felt a connection with Fireflies on the Water, but also with My Bed. Both make me think of a place where no one else can go. It is your own space that takes your thoughts to wherever you want them to be.

I'd like to explore the theme of Self/Human Experience. Something related to memories or living.

I plan on using materials from around my house. I want the installation to represent my own self but give off the theme of Memories that anyone can relate to.

This installation will be located in a space that I create in my own room because I want it to reflect a place that each person considers their own. A bedroom is a place that belongs to each person and in a sense is a place that shuts out the world.

I would choose the title Everyday Life for my installation. I used basic materials from my house, such as blankets and pillows on my bed and objects, such as the computer, book, notebook, cell phone, headphones, and TV remote. Everything is lifesize. It is about 6 1/2 by 4 1/2 feet. There are a few basic colors included which are black, pink, and white that create a balance in the installation. Each object is placed in a matter that keeps it from looking to concentrated in any one area.

Planning and creating a site specific installation takes a lot of thinking. There are many aspects to consider and each piece needs to fit together to create the theme you are looking for. I think there is also the challenge of creating something that you can explain to the viewer. It needs to make sense in a way that you can describe. It certainly is much harder than I thought it would be.

Video Review

Through the Eyes of a Sculpture-Limestone can be checked for pureness and workability by hitting it with a hammer in various spots to be sure it isn't cracked. It stays at 12 celius always until it is ready to be removed and taken to an artist. An artist may start many sculptures at once to keep ideas fresh. The video also shows how silicone mold is made to keep the clay model form in case it is damaged.

Glass and Ceramics-Elements are added to the sand and heated to an extremely high temperature so the sand will break down and form glass. Ceramics are used for different purposes depending on the temperature that it was heated to and glass also can be heated and cooled to allow it to shatter or a certain way or prevent shattering at all.

Installation Art-When an artist creates an installation it is meant to bring the viewer into the work. It can take up space both inside and outside or entire buildings can be created as an installation in itself. It forces the viewer to interact with the work and that is a fundamental part of installation art.

Prairie Style-Frank Lloyd Wright wanted buildings to blend naturally into their surroundings and created horizontal forms that would do so. He felt the layering of horizontals made the buildings appear as if they grew out of the land. Architectural forms can be created to give spaces meaning.

The videos are a great supplement to the readings in the text. We learn about crafts and molds from clay in the readings and in the videos we can actually see this idea come to life. Once you see it being done you can appreciate the amount of work behind it and really see the artistic nature of it. We can see true life examples of how architecture is used as art and formed to give a specific meaning, such as a harmony with nature. The video on installation art brought the reading from the book to life and let us see what kinds of installations different artists create and the processes they take to get there.

I actually really liked the videos. After a good amount of reading in the book its possible to lose focus and just want to be done with it and the videos reinforce the reading really well. We can see real life examples of the same types of art that was in the readings. We visually learn how sculptures are put together from start to finish, see examples of artistic architecture and installations, and see craftsmen working creating their crafts as they would a fine work of art.

Logo Design

I thought creating the logo was much harder than I originally thought it to be. Before I started drawing I pictured this project as something that I could fly right through. It wasn't until I sat down to start drawing that I realized it was going to take quite a bit more thinking and sketching to get to a final logo.

The process of getting to a final logo was interesting. It really takes some creative thinking to figure out what you want to put down on the paper. My ideas for the logo centered around getting my name or initials in it somehow, along with a symbol or a picture that would represent me. I liked the idea the simplicity can say a lot sometimes, but it was hard trying to figure out what I could draw that would be simple, yet say many things about myself. I decided to go with more of a "business card" idea and focused on what I could fit on a card that wouldn't look to cramped, would say a lot, and would be visually pleasing. My final decision was to go with the Capricorn symbol of astrology because it is my birth symbol. When I thought about it I realized that the Capricorn symbold represented all things that are me. There was an astrology book that I once read and remembered thinking how closely the description of the Capricorn fit my own personality. I placed the stars around it because Capricorn is a symbol of the stars. Artistically speaking, the stars make your eyes move around the logo instead of focusing on just one spot. It is also balanced with the black of my name and the symbol on either side and the star in the top left corner brings together the stars floating around the symbol as well.

In creating my logo the most important discovery I made was that it can be very difficult to choose what symbols, letters, or pictures to draw that will be representational in a big way. It is a challenge to say as much as you can about yourself in a very little way. As a result of not wanting my logo to be too cramped or visually overwhelming I had to think even harder about ways to represent myself. I've never had to create a logo of myself before which also led me to quite a bit of thinking about myself. I discovered that the most important thing I would want to get across to somebody in a personal logo would be my personality.

From watching the videos and the powerpoints I learned that not only does it take many numerous copies to get a logo just right, but that even the symbols you use in a logo can say more than you think. A circle is more likely to represent energy than space. It is important to choose things carefully because they will make a big impact on your audience. I enjoyed the first video more than the second because it took you through the different stages of creating a logo and why the business liked or disliked different ideas.

Reviewing Peer Responses..hyperlinked blogs

http://cownd77.blogspot.com/

http://pettjm54aed200.blogspot.com/

I did something wrong when I tried to hyperlink the blogs into my first post so I created a second one to include them in my blog.

Reviewing Peer Responses

There was one image in the blogs that was the same as my own and that was "Mask of a Young Woman." It was chosen as a work to know more about, which was the same reason I chose that work. It just seems as if there is more behind the mask.

The Temple of Dendur work was one that I found I took an interest in and was something I would like to know more about. In the description of the work, we know that there were also statues in the display that we can't see and that it something I wish I could find more information on.

I do think other's reflections are a valuable learning tool because it gives you a different outlook on art and new ways of thinking about different works. One of the blogs having the same sculpture that I had chosen really let me see what else I would want to know about it and why somebody else might like the same work.

I see the comments as more of a learning experience. They are almost like a peer critique of your work, but with more interesting comments.

Art Exploration

Creating the value scale and color wheel were more enjoyable than I thought they would be. I liked getting to use the art materials. Mixing the different colors for the color wheel was fun and interesting every time to see what I could turn them into. Working with the watercolor was my favorite part of the project. It was nice to see how the colors would turn out and how adding little bits of different colors could change the overall outcome. I liked using the brushes. I created secondary and tertiary colors so that I could continue to play with the colors a bit more. While creating these I discovered that watercolor really is about spontaneity. By adding water you can manipulate the colors and continue to work with them, but you really need to have an idea of what you are trying to do. As far as the videos, I liked that they showed exactly how one can mix colors and how to create a basic color wheel. It helps that they explain which colors are secondary and primary while they are mixing them to keep you from getting confused. By using the color wheel to show people how colors relate to one another was one of the more interesting things I learned from the video because I've never thought of looking at a color wheel that way.

Art Gallery

Title: Projected Addition to the Albright Art Gallery
Artist: George Cooper Rudolph
Medium: Watercolor on paper
Year: 1960
Scale: 12 x 24"

I believe that this painting made a lasting impression on me based on the use of color and the scene in the picture. I found it very beautiful and the colors worked well together. It felt like a very realistic fall day.




Title: The Round Passion: Christ Carrying the Cross
Artist:Lucas Van Layden
Medium: etching
Year: 1509
Scale: diameter 8 5/8"

This print made a big impression on me because of the content. The artist depicts the scene of Christ carrying the cross with all the emotions and tiny details that go along with it. The violence and horror of the situation are evident.




Title: Damn Braces
Artist: Sam Francis
Medium: Two-color lithograph edition 44/75
Year: 1960
Scale: 35 3/4 x 24 15/16"

This work made an impact on me as a result of the colors. The bright blue and red splattered in the way it is makes it seem exciting and spontaneous. I thought it was interesting also how you can see an example of how a two-color lithograph looks as a finished product. The title also made me laugh.




Title: Children's Carnival
Artist: Paul Landacre
Medium: Woodcut print
Year: 1946
Scale: 10 7/16 x 14 9/16"

I felt a connection to this piece because is it a carnival. Everybody has memories of going to the carnival and this piece displays rides and balloons and really shines light on the whole thing in an interesting way.




Title: Backyards-winter (d)
Artist: Kevin B. O'Callahan
Medium: etching
Year: 1933
Scale: 12 5/8 x 9 3/8"

This print made me feel a connection as soon as I saw it. It brought me back to being a little kid at my grandparents in Buffalo and looking out at all the houses with snow on them.




Title: Village on the Marne
Artist: Andre Dunoyer de Segonzac
Medium: Oil on canvas
Year: 1927
Scale: 32 x 25 3/4"

The reason I felt a connection with this artwork was that it reminded me of a gloomy day in Buffalo. It was like looking out my window and seeing a gray, cloudy day right before it snows.





Title:Head
Artist: Pablo Gargallo
Medium: Wrought Iron
Year: Late 1920's
Scale: 3 1/4 x 2 1/8 x 2 1/2"

I would like to know more about why this is titled "Head." The title alone makes me spend some time looking and wondering how Gargallo created such a beautiful piece out of wrought iron. Where did his inspiration come from?





Title: Mask of a Young Woman
Artist: African
Medium: Wood with traces of Polychromy
Year: Late 19th to early 20th century
Scale: 11 1/2 x 6 3/4 x 6 1/4"

This sculpture intrigued me and had me wondering who really created it? We know only that it is African. I would like to know who the woman is and why they chose to make a mask of her.




Title: Metaphor and Movement
Artist: Robert Motherwell
Medium: Paper and acrylic on upsom board
Year: 1974
Scale: 48 x 36"

The title of this work immediately had me wanting to know more about it. I like that it is a collage of paper and acrylic, but I am struggling to see where the metaphor lies. I felt like I was beginning to grasp the idea of movement and I really enjoyed the colors.

Color Theory and Emotional Effects

A color's value, hue, and intensity each affect our emotions in different ways. Combinations of colors can make us think of different things and the lightness or darkness of a color can change our mood and the mood of the painting we're looking at. Bright, intense colors have a more vivid reaction that pale, dull colors. When we think of blues it may be calming like the ocean and reds may have us thinking of violence. Shades of yellow can take your mind to the happy days of summer. Different people may have different emotions for the same colors. Blues may also make a person think of birth, as in our society when we associate blue with the birth of a baby boy. I find it fascinating that simply by changing the value of a color, adding black or white, it gives you an entirely new color and can completely change the mood and appearance of a color. A dark, bright red has a very different emotional feel and intensity to it than does a pale, light pink. When I think of the difference in those two colors I have two extremely different ideas of what they could represent in my head.

In the color video the idea that made the biggest impact on me in regards to color was that artists often look at what they are painting not as a scene, such as a nature scene, but as separate individual colors. Van Gogh said in the video to look at everything as colors instead of objects. Instead of seeing a tree, look at it and see long streaks of browns and different shades of greens. Perhaps instead of seeing a pond as water, look at it as a patch of blue mixed in with the other colors. I really felt as though I could walk outside and just see colors all around me after hearing that, as opposed to seeing houses and cars.

The feelings video, I enjoyed that they described feelings and art as a battle ground between God and Satan and the use of color in art depicted feelings that led to a view on either side of the battle, using shades of blues, whites, and yellows to highlight God and his goodness. The use of color in any painting makes one think about what emotions the artist is trying to get across. It's the idea that artists choose their colors based on the emotions that they which to evoke from their audience that intrigues me.

Elements and Principles

Creating the pictures for this slide show required much more searching than I originally thought. I spent the day looking at all the tiny details of everything around me and thinking "does this reflect what I'm looking for?" It almost felt as if I was looking at everything for the first time because I was trying to see my world in a different way. I thought that the pictures for Unity and Balance were the most difficult, but I kept thinking of family for Unity so the picture of a friend of mine at her wedding seemed perfect and the whole picture really comes together nicely and gave a great effect. Balance was one I struggled with. I couldn't figure out how to capture balance in a photo. My favorite element to photograph was Proportion because I thought the picture of my friend's hand with her baby's hand was absolutly beautiful. Movement was also interesting. We see things moving around us all day long, so deciding how to capture the right kind of movement to photograph as art took some thinking. The photo of the dog was one that I felt made your eyes wander around the picture. I often thought about what I would want to see if I was looking at a picture of a certain element and modified my thoughts to what I could find around me.

Setting Up Your Blog

The process of creating a gmail account and setting up the blog is easy! Anyone can do it! The powerpoint is very helpful.

I am expecting to learn about different art materials and the uses for each as well as about many different artists. I would hope to learn a new perspective on what is "art" and different ways to look at it.

I really enjoy taking online courses. I am really hoping that this one will be just as good as any other online courses that I have taken. I often take more than one at a time because it is very convenient based on the fact that I work full time at many different hours of the day. It means I can get the work done on my own time, morning or night.