Seminar I

In The Artists Mind & Studio Part 1

What is the speaker’s philosophy towards art making/design? How do they talk about their ideas?

Stephanie Syjuco likes to use the world around her and ask questions about that world to make her art. A lot of Syjuco's work is based on the questions what is authenticity, what makes something authentic. I think the best example of this in her work would be her crochet counterfeit project and the "I Am An American" banner. Syjuco's work also takes things often ignored or pushed to the background and launches them to the forefront. Projects like her chromakey photos or "CITIZENS" are a great example of this.

How does the speaker think about the materials they use and their processes?

The materials Syjuco has worked with, consist of, but aren't limited to, chromakey, black & white checkered fabric, & yarn. Syjuco likes to take these mundane materials and make them the focus. Yarn is used to create "designer" bags, Chromakey becomes the subject instead of a screen something "more interesting" can be projected on to, and checkered fabric is used to protect and hide someone instead of being the symbol of something that's been cut out.

Does the speaker reference any biographical information? Do you feel this information is relevant to their work? Why or why not.

Syjuco talks about her experiences being Filipino but moving to America at a young age. She says that this rises the question of what does it mean to be an authentic Filipino or American. Syjuco also talks briefly about the process of becoming a US citizen and how that didn't happen for her until she turned 26 even though she'd been here since age 4. I honestly believe that these things influence her view of the world and allow her to come up with these questions that are almost impossible to answer like "who decides if something is authentic or not".

Recall the images of the speaker’s work you looked at before you watched the video. Do you feel like you have a better understanding of them after hearing them talk? Why or why not?

I do. Looking at the pictures alone there was a lot that I didn't fully understand but after hearing Syjuco talk about some of the pieces and the reason behind creating them I feel like I have a better understanding. One piece that really confused me before watching the video was the chromakey photos. At first glance it honestly just looks like a lot of green fabric. I tried think about what it could represent, production, environment, and many other things, but never in a million years would I have thought "green screen". After hearing Syjuco talk about this piece it has honestly become one of my favorites. I love the Idea of taking something usually seen as the background or ignored, brought to light and made the subject.

What questions are you left with after watching your video? These could be questions pertaining to something specific about the speaker or their artwork, you might have questions about the creative process in general, or you could have questions about new terms, words, or processes that you had not heard of before. Your reflection must include at least one question that you are left with after viewing the video.

What has your art taught you. Has it answered any questions for you, has it caused you to ask more questions? Have you learned things about yourself, have you learned about others?

In The Artists Mind & Studio Part 2

Video

More Information

Do you have any “roadblocks”? List the items that you struggle with or are challenged by in your daily life that keep you from being the student or artist you want to be.

Of course I have roadblocks, name a person who doesn't. For me I struggle with fear and procrastination. Like most people, I always feel fear when trying something new and this fear causes me to procrastinate. I have a fear of "messing up" and making something "ugly". It's as if I forget how much practice it took to master the things I believe I'm good at making and this is my biggest roadblock as an artist.,

How do you motivate yourself to do tasks/activities that you don’t want to do?

Getting myself to do a task/activity that I don't want to do is a bit of a process. Firstly I wait. Giving myself an hour or 2 to do whatever it is I wanted to be doing at that time allows me to not only mentally prepare to do the task but also assures that I will be focused on the task when I finally start to do it. Next I set the room. This can look different depending on my day and mood but usually it's classical or lofi music playing low, coffee or tea with in arms reach, and comfy clothes. I think that at this point my mind has associated the music with "time for work" and the clothes and drinks help me stay calm and not be overwhelmed by the task/activity at hand. Lastly I take it slow. I'm the type of person that must handle things in small chunks or Ill get overwhelmed. I work section by section, take a few short breaks and I'm done with my dreadful task before I know it.

What are your reactions to Tharpe’s advice? Quote one of her thoughts and reflect on why that quote is meaningful to you.

" Lift the bar as high as possible because everyone wants to be challenged, and when people are challenged to work, they do better than when they are not." - Twyla Tharp

As much as I hate to admit it, I think this quote is very true. I think that when you set the bar at a level people know they can reach they put in only the effort required, no more no less. I also think that when you set the bar too high people don't try. I think that when you set the bar just high enough, truly challenging someone but not asking the impossible, they will push themselves and shock you both. I think most people see this is a bet, a dare if you will, it's almost as if you said "prove it" and for some reason it's almost human nature to never backdown to those words.

Why did Tharpe read 5, 19th century authors, complete collections of works?

Twyla Tharp wanted to better understand these novelists. She finds their style and the way they do things informative and the amount of dedication they had to their work inspirational

Tharpe mentions having 40 years of documentation of her work! Why is this valuable to her? Can you relate her thoughts on documenting her own work to the process of keeping this digital sketchbook?

Having this documentation allows Tharpe to look back at her career over the last 40 years and see her style gradually change and evolve. I think that keeping this digital sketchbook will allow me to also watch my work evolve over the years and it will allow me to better judge my work and understand my style, what works & doesn't, and how to move forward.

Introduction to Contemporary Art and Practices

Chapter

“What defines a work of art is not the medium….but the way it questions what art actually is.” Do you agree or disagree with this statement? Why?

I agree with this statement. If we were to try and debate what can and can't be considered art we would be debating until our last days. First we'd debate traditional vs digital art, then it'd go into the debate of is design considered art, next we'd have to think about performance art like singing or dancing, and the list goes on. Every person has a different definition of what art is and no one is right or wrong. I think that if someone can make the argument that something is art, its art.

Why is the location, or style of presenting an artwork, an important consideration in contemporary art?

Half of the process of making a successful art piece is the presentation. Debuting the piece in a place that fits the art piece and around people that you will believe will have the best reaction to the piece is crucial. You wouldn’t present a sculpture of Zeus in the middle of an alleyway. Talking about a piece before you present it is also very important. When introducing a piece to an audience you should say things that raise questions and make the piece seem more interesting. Presenting a piece should be a performance.

Consider Donald Kuspit's claim that art/design is either about making the world better, or is a form of sophisticated entertainment. Which do you agree with? Try to support your answer with an example.

I think that art/design is about making the world better. I think that people make art out to be a lot more complicated than it is. Art isn't some crazy sophisticated form that only those who have studied it for 10+ years can understand. Artists make art to express emotion. Artists make things that they think are beautiful. Artists create because they like to, if you ask me that's all there is to it. When people look at art they pull a thousand different meanings from the piece, most of which the artists never thought about. Art is fun, it makes people happy, it brings people together, and it entertains people.

What does it mean when the author states, “Great works of art seem to look different every time one stands before them.”?

Art is forever evolving. When you look at a work of art everything around you is affecting how you perceive it. An artwork can change if you put it in different lighting or a new position. The way you interpret a piece can also change based on your day and emotions at the time of viewing. Even time passing can change the way you see a piece. When someone looks at a great work of art they are able to find a new meaning and feel a different emotion almost every time

Fashion Photography

Tim Walker Website

Resource

Fashion photography- A genre of photography devoted to displaying clothing and other fashion Items.

Tim Walker is a fashion photographer, published author, short film producer, and so much more. Walker earned his BA photography degree at Exeter College of Art and went on to shoot his first fashion story at the age of 25 in 2005. Walker is self employed but enjoys working with and collabing with different people and companies like vogue ,W, and Harper's Bazaar. The job of fashion photographer can be done anywhere but lately Walker has been experimenting with shoot infront of a blank white wall and letting the clothes, poses, and props bring the energy. Walkers portfolio is an important part of his job and career. Being someone who works with other people frequently he need to have a place where he can constantly upload his best work and past work for future partners to see.

Tim Walker

Learning Styles & Strategies

Scores: Multimodal

Visual 8
Aural 12
Read/Write 5
Kinesthetic 14

Strategies

Multimodal learners learn best when using a mixture of strategies from different learning styles. Because my main learning style is kinesthetic, strategies like moving when studying notes or reading my notes aloud, could work well for me. To please the Aural side of me, creating a song could be very helpful, and using charts, tables, pictures, etc, could be helpful because of the visual learning style. The reading/writing learning style is my weakest but I can still use strategies like writing short explanations for charts, graphs, etc on the sides or back of my notes.

Finding Your Artistic Voice (Part 1)

1) Artistic voice- “All of the characteristics that make your artwork distinct from the artwork of other artists…”

2) Finding your artistic voice is the process of “constantly straddling the planes of belonging and independence” it’s like “uncovering your own superpower

3) The five major elements of an artistic voice are style, skill, subject matter, medium, and consistency

4) Style- “The look and feel of your work”

5) I’m interested in the idea of introducing more texture and layering to future pieces. I already use lots of different colors and I love playing with different shapes. I think adding texture and layering could take my pieces to the next level and make them more interesting.

6) Skill- “the ability, coming from one’s knowledge, practice, aptitude, etc, to do something well” Skill is developed through practice. Practice until you can consistently repeat something with ease

7) Subject matter- the external picture of what we want to express. This can be an object, landscape, person, etc.

When Sean says “develop your vocabulary” he's talking about going out and seeing what's possible; learning from other artists and the world in general. He talks about watching movies, listening to music, reading books, looking for what speaks to you.

8) When Sean Qualls talks about vocabulary he speaking about expanding your knowledge of possibilities. He talks about going to see movies, reading books, listening to music, looking at other art, and being inspired.

9) Media/medium- "the substances and tools you use to give expression and form to your voice”

10) Consistency- “When you repeat elements within and among your works”

11) The author states “Your story is everything about you.” This includes the things you’ve been through, what you like, what you’re passionate about, even what you think about. Your story is also your struggles, its fears and regrets. Your story is your identity, your culture, race, dreams, your background, everything about you.

12) Making work only to please others is unsatisfying. As artists we should make things that we find interesting and that we can truly dive into and the people who like it will come. Making work simply for others will run you down and make you tired, making work you love will make you want to keep making more, it will inspire you.

Finding Your Artistic Voice (Part 2)

Journal entry: Travel- Growing up my brother played AAU basketball so we got to travel a lot. Because of this I got accustomed to long road trips and flights at an early age. He stopped playing when he got into high school and we of course stopped taking so many trips. My brother went to college in Florida and this gave us an excuse to travel again. I never noticed just how much I'd missed traveling until then. My brother and all of his activities have played a huge role in my love for traveling and seeing new things.

Journal entry: Musical interest- I have a very musical family and naturally I love music too. My father plays the drums, my brother is somehow a natural at every instrument he picks up, and my mother, sister and I sing. I’ve been in a choir, school or church, since the fourth grade. I’ve always loved singing with my family, it’s the way we bond.

Journal entry: Daydreams- I was one of those kids with a very wild and vivid imagination, and I still am. Everyday I daydream about something. Magic, dragons, even mundane things like living somewhere different.

Subjects from Travel

Father, mother, brother, sister, Arkansas RimRockers, planes, rental car, basketball, Full Sail University, Florida, college, trips,

Research

Reflection

I like the paper planes and I think that making a sculpture with multiple of them could be really cool and interesting. Incorporating my love for travel into my art was never anything i’d ever thought about, as obvious of a theme it is. This new pool of research has given me a couple of ideas and I’m excited to try them out.

Gallery Exhibit Critical Viewing

Paper

Artists Statement

Kaitlyn Maxwell

Twenty-four

Color pencils on drawing pad paper

Twenty-four is a piece based on recorded data of what I did and thought for one day. I am inspired by Nathalie Miebach and her weather sculptures. I’m fascinated by how her sculptures tell the stories of events. Every part of her sculptures hold significance, and to honor that aspect, I did the same in my drawing. I split my recorded data into six general categories and assigned each category a color. During the day of recording I wrote that I was feeling very calm, so I used ribbons to represent that calm, flowing feeling. The amount of folds in each ribbon represent the amount of times I did the thing in that category. All the ribbons touch and tangle together because all of these categories worked simultaneously to make up my day.

BFA Senior Exhibition Talks

Name of the Artist: Dalton

Briefly describe the artist's work. What is the primary subject matter and media?

Dalton is a graphic design major. Most of the work he showed was from his “design for the Modern Church” collection which mainly included posters, shirts, and cards. He also showed us a few of the things he’s made throughout college like a piece from printmaking and a stone and hammer sculpture.

Does the artist use any formal language to describe their work or influences? If so, give one example of how the language was used.

He didn’t use much formal language when speaking about the pieces but he also didn’t speak much about the “artistic” side of the pieces. I think Dalton really focused on the concepts and messages he wanted to share when speaking to us, so there wasn’t much formal language used in regards to the look and structure of his pieces.

Does the artist give insight into why they used specific subject matter? If so, give an example.

Dalton uses his art as a way of expressing and figuring out his thoughts and feelings. A lot of his pieces are connected to his emotions and struggles of the time that he was making them.

Does the artist give insight into their materials, technical processes (physically how it was made), or use of specific media? If so, give an example.

He didn’t go into much detail about how any of his pieces were made except for one. The hot sauce bottle that was on the poster for this talk was his very first college graphic design piece. He drew a cartoon hot sauce bottle, he put some church people on it and added a price tag to the bottom.

Does the artist give insight into their content/concepts? These are the ideas/influences/meanings that are not immediately apparent by looking at the work. If so, give an example.

A lot of Dalton's pieces have messages about the church and his feelings towards the church, but there's one piece that stood out to me that actually had nothing to do with the church . The boxing gloves sculptures in the shadow box caught my eye and his message was interesting to me. The piece shows how Dalton feels about his relationship with his father and this is something that I would have never pulled simply looking at the piece. In the piece he quotes the saying “fight the good fight” which is something I think most people can apply to their lives in one way or another.

Does the artist contextualize their work within the history of art/design? Do they discuss any influences outside of the art/design world? If so, give an example.

He brought in a few pictures, showing the history of graphic design in the church. He also spoke about graphic design in the church and the conflicting feelings that he has about it. On the one hand he feels that it's an advertising tool which is a great thing, but on the other hand he feels almost like it's saying the church is something that can be sold. .

Rate the overall presentation in terms of clarity and depth. On a scale of 1-5, do you feel the talk provided a deeper understanding/insight into the artist’s work that was delivered in a way that you could easily understand? Give a brief justification for your score focusing on the overall strengths and weaknesses of the talk.

1 2 3 4 5

Dalton talked briefly about each piece and gave clear insight to what the pieces meant to him and why he made them. My only reason for giving a four is he didn’t speak much about how he felt about the look of the pieces or how the pieces were created.

Final Review & Reflection

Looking at my first year goals everything is in progress but nothing has been completed. Goals 1 and 2 are a little tricky to ever call “completed” because improvement will be happening even after I graduate. I’d say I have improved my knowledge and understanding of drawing and photography, and that has allowed me to improve my skills. I’ve completed about one fourth of goal three. In my studio B class, I cast a bowl, coffee mug and spoon with printer paper and newspaper. One of the things on my idea list is to create those casts, and set up a shoot. I think this, and goal 5, is something I can work on during winter break. My last first year goal was to pass all of my classes. Things are going well so far, but it's a goal I won’t be able to mark off until the end of the school year.
If I had to give my time management this year a grade it would be a B. I’ve managed to stay within the 4 unexcused absences we are allowed, and I have turned in almost every assignment and on time. In the beginning of the year, I don’t think I understood the amount of time outside of the classroom I would have to spend on projects and because of that the quality of my work wasn’t what I wanted it to be. Now that we’re wrapping up the semester, I can point out a few of my projects that I’m proud of. I think my biggest roadblock this year has been comparison. I’ve never been one to draw. It wasn’t something that interested me and so I never put practice into it. Being in my 2D class with all these amazing artists made me feel a bit dejected, and I could see that in my work. I think the way to overcome this roadblock is to simply focus on me. It’s way easier said than done, but if I can get to the point where my focus is on my work and that alone then I'll start to try things without the fear of messing up and being judged and compared.
I am pursuing a BFA degree in Studio Art emphasis in Photography.
For me the gallery exhibit critical viewing assignment was the most valuable and the learning styles and strategies was the least. I always say “I really love this piece but I can’t explain why.” and this assignment forced me to say why. I liked the guide questions we were given because they helped me look deeper at the piece and notice what I really loved and didn’t love. I also liked the guide questions because they were guides. They didn’t necessarily have to be answered and that made things easier since I wasn’t only looking at the piece so I could answer the questions on a piece of paper. The learning styles and strategies assignment was the least valuable for me only because I already knew those things about myself. I never had a specific number score of how I learn best but I already knew that I had a multimodal learning style. I think that the assignment could be useful to others but for me it was more of a confirmation than a learning experience.
I think of seminar, studio a, and studio b as art 101. These are the foundation classes and even if they don’t seem to have anything to do with your intended career, like me, there are still basic things that these classes teach that we can all take into our future careers. Seminar is the business side. It teaches us vocabulary, how to make connections, and how to think like artists. Studio A and B put the things seminar teaches us to use. These classes make us try things, speak to other artists about our art work, and critique other artists' work using our “professional vocabulary.” All three of these classes seem different but they are all working to set roots/foundations in us as young artists.