Shopclass as Soulcraft

If I were to become a trades worker I think I would have to choose becoming a construction worker. Not on roads or things like that, but to build houses. Frankly, I couldnt exactjy see myself pursuing a career in the trades but if it camedown to it this is what I would pick. As a construction worker I would be able to be outdoors and also working on homes. I really enjoy the process of creating a home, from architectural design to interior design (both careers I see as possibilities for myself).

How does the author suggest we determine the value of our work?

The author of "Shopclass as Soulcraft"suggests we measure the value of our work by usefulness. I agree with the author in many of his assertions that often times trades workers can be more useful than ultra-wealthy cubicle workers. However, I found more value in the authors concession statement that for some people, knowledge jobs are more fufilling. This leads me to believe that part of the usefulness the author is discussing is happiness, or a sense of accomplishment for the worker. Also, part of this idea of usefulness, if it is connected to happines is also connected to the happiness of others. So, like Smitty said, directing reality TV may not solve a problem or further workers' knowledge like a mechanic, there is a shread of usefulness still applicable to the dumber parts of the entertainment industry because of the happiness they bring people, whether or not it is the best form of entertainment around.
The other key message I took away from the reading was the idea of self-sufficiency. Obviously not everyone can be completely self-sufficient but the value of having multiple abilities, even if they have not been mastered, is important. If a specialized worker has some ability to use his or her hands to complete a task separate from their profession there is not only value in that because they are able to solve more everyday problems but also there is more of a connection to the world around them and more respect for people of other professions. Lastly, the more skilled workers are in the United States, or the more people that are willing to learn to have a skill, the fewer jobs will be sent overseas.

transition period

The lion is done as of about one hour ago... Thank god. I like the way it turned out overall. Bob gave me my favorite critique response - that it's a self portrait. And he's right... About a third of my way through my piece I started thinking of it as just that. That, and I thought it would look cool. A little cartoony and the color, pattern, and subject matter were the focus. Result? Acceptable. Happy about the self portrait. There's a bunch of pictures of the process that I hope to post soon.. But here's the final!

it just hit me

Who wants to be a flag?

FINALLY!
Inspiration has hit me.
Two projects combined.
I can tell this is the idea for me because I just keep getting more inspirations and my mind can't stop thinking about this project.
Election? Yes, I may HATE it, but I have an incredible idea.

Get ready to be patriotic :)

I promise I'm not copying you Emma

Another Breif Update

I realized after my lion post that I really haven't done much of an update on my work so far this year (not that there's much finished anyways!) But here's a breif recap of where I'm at right now...

Gargoyle Drawing (more finished now than shown here)

not a very good picture, but this is my gargoyle scratchboard in the first gallery show

Last year's project right? ... Not for long. With a different subject matter, I'm going back to this style background and graphics for my next project... A bit of a self portrait... but about the election... ( I don't know how my idea's going to be recieved - but I'm REALLY excited for it!)

Big Canvas, Big Challenge

One of the pictures I have been using as a reference/inspiration 

I thought just a quick note on my newest project would be in order since I posted nothing about it before starting as I usually do. I decided to paint a lion, and to be honest I don't know why. So now, I have a 24x36" canvas with most of a lion painted on it.
I can't exactly decide what I want to do for the rest of the canvas.. solid background? a little more artsy and creative? another jungle cat? (that'd be a challenge).... but I'm going to just try to get through the lion first. This alone is a challene because I'm actually oil painting! I never thought I'd try it again. Definitely a good idea to practice with it more; I think it's been beneficial. Is it my new favorite medium? Absolutely not, but I'm glad I gave it a try. It's been fun. One thing I have noticed: I really like working BIG! I expect to finish at least the lion in the next week.

I've kept this picture around on my easel too.. just for fun :)

whatever wigs and whatever other ideas i'm swirling around my head

I love the concept of "Water Wigs," and the idea of using the body as a canvas. I thought the choice of using bald men was clever so that the viewer was more able to conceptualize the water as the hair. The use of the triad of colors, thus how the photos are enhanced to take a simple action of dousing someone's head with a water balloon, make not only the idea - but the individual images themselves truly unique. The idea is ingenius, and the use of human models in art is exactly what I want to be doing for my first project. Rather than using a canvas to paint, I'm going to use people as my canvas. Focusing on the head and shoulders, I plan to paint scenes, or "twenty first century" tribal designs (it made more sense the way Smitty explained it) onto people. It's fair to say that at this point, before I'm too frustrated with paint, I cannot wait for my materials to come in! :)

summer thoughts

i've set up a miniature studio in my room and i've been practicing watercolor. at the end of this year, i realized i really love the medium. i've dead set on getting good enough to have watercolor be my medium-of-choice in the studio come September.
however (dare i even say it?) i have been intrigued by pencil once again.
thanks to the lovely Stumbleupon, i have found yet another talented artist (this is the same place that I found my favorite mentor, Marion Bolognesi)....
Presenting My Summer Doodling Inspiration: Laurie Lipton 

Laurie's subjects, almost exclusively focused on people (or skeletons as the case may be) range from comical to creepy. However, that is exactly the kind of subject matter I am interested in! A few works include, though I dread to admit it, charcoal; should I even contemplate attempting that deathly medium again? Though some pieces may be a little unnerving, I am LOVING this work!

"The Self Destructive Optimist"
one of the happier pieces for sure even though the title is a bit gloomy - the girl is so cute!

"Tete a Tete"
there are some other similar pieces to this one on her website - i think they are incredible!

"The Illusion of Control"
probably my favorite. i love the pieces she did that focused on gadgets and machines, the detail is so cartoony yet intricate. this looks like it belongs in a storybook! 

Fork in the Road

Next project idea? Yeah.. I'm at a loss. I have two options that I'm thinking of.

Possibility #1:
This option would be based off of the prompt we were given to "have a discussion with a mentor." My mentor, Marion Bolognesi (see previous post) does portraits I reallyyy enjoy! I think part of the reason I appreciate her work so much is that it involves some of the same elements and principles, as well as mediums, that I have been experimenting with recently. The focus on dark, graphic lines combined with dripping, bold paint relates to what I focused on in my last project, The Snake Lady. Doing portraits like this (preferably more than one, I liked making a series) is VERY tempting.

Possibility #2:
Dare I say it? ... oil paints. It seems crazy, even to me, to go back to a medium I struggled with sooo much the first time around. I don't know what I'd want to paint though. What I do know is that I would want to either do one large painting of something simple, that I could focus on rendering with or a series of very small paintings in bright colors (like flowers). I haven't really developed this idea much but I want to be a better painter so it's on my mind. Picking a subject matter is definitely the hardest part.

Ok, I lied. There's a third option I just remembered...

Possibility #3:
Street Art. Graffiti. This style of artwork, the kind you see on buildings, has been inspiring me lately. I don't mean the curse words people crudely write onto subways; I like the detailed, stenciled or freehanded, elaborate pictures, or tags like the kinds I saw in Paris. My inspiration for this idea came from a friend of mine who does work like this in his studio, the artwork I saw in Paris, and my always inspirational stumble upon account. I want to experiment with spray paint SO BADLY! I don't really know how else I could develop this idea, but it's been on my mind for a very long time. The street art inspiration underlying my last project was really fun for me to think about and I liked where it took me, so I might want to try again.

Artist Statement: Kristen N. Mabie

Kristen N. Mabie

            My art is my way to express how I see the world. When I can’t express myself through language, I turn to art. Though I love focusing on the little details of a piece, it is the larger message behind those details that helps my process what I observe and learn in everyday life. I make art because I want to show how I see the world. Art is my way to find the words I can’t quite find and make sense of the thoughts I can’t quite make sense of.

            I draw my inspiration from everyday observations and an acute attention to detail. Being very sentimental and optimistic, I try to see everything as being beautiful. However, as I have worked to convey through the Snake Lady series, I am more complex, both as a person and an artist than just “sunshiny.”

            My art focuses on two-dimensional images, most often drawings, or lately, mixed media. When I see something captivating my first reaction is always “how could I draw that?” Drawing has always been the most accessible way for me to act on inspiration and try to understand why shadows, reflections, shapes, colors and lines create the emotion and image that they do. Line is my element of choice. By having more than one image present in any one piece, I feel like the meaning of the piece is more profound and has more of a narrative.

The series, “The Snake Lady,” is rooted in personal conviction that there is more to me, and most people, than appearance may suggest. As the project continued, the message, the snake, and the woman began to evolve. The work began to flow more naturally, and I was merely telling a story rather than forcing an idea to work. In my mind, the lady and snake had become complex characters with an unfolding narrative that stretched beyond my four pieces. The narrative told through the lady, modeled after myself, and the snake is one I am very invested in. Though I don’t plan to continue this subject matter in my next piece, The Snake Lady series has been one of the most profound messages and effortless processes to date.

mentor

Even though I do not actually have a mentor post due anytime soon... I found one. Using the brilliant website "stumbleupon" I have "stumbled upon" Marion Bolognesi.
Reasons I LOVEEE this work:
- i hate drawing heads, i love drawing faces
- it's watercolors rather than oils
- the dripping watercolors is a technique i have been using in my most recent series
- ever since the last portrait project i have been on the lookout for cool portrait ideas
- these images all have the "person's look" without being a completely detailed rendering

www.marion-b.com

My Spring Break journal (which has turned into both my new sktchbook and the book i attempted to make in the studio) is being brought on my flight to France in an hour - can't wait to be inspired by another country's beautiful art!!

Revolting Images

This series is about images that stand out. If nothing else is successful, I want the images I produce to be noticed. From the snake image I've gotten the reaction I wanted from people in the studio, repulsion, but also intrigue. I want the new pieces I create in this series to emulate the reaction I got from that, but be better. I'm satisfied with my snake piece, but what I'd really love is a series that's dramatic, connected, and proves my point that I'm not a happy sunshine artist/person all the time. My mixed media drawing that I've been working a lot with this year seems to still be taking over my ideas with drawing, ink, and now I'm considering the possibility of spray paint. I've liked using think, graphic, black lines so I'm going to continue that but I want a more developed background (hopefully one with spray paint!!!) I want dramatic, disturbing, but attention capturing images. I have some sketches in progress in my sketchbook addressing both the continuation of my snake image and a new one that I'm torn between, but at least I have ideas going forward!

Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?

Even though this is a little late, here's my post about Linda Nochlin's article I read over break, "Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?" Main summary of my experience with the article:

1. I annotated a L O T (i'll post a picture at some point, my english teacher almost wanted to PHOTOCOPY them! probably a little excessive note taking but it was helpful)
2. I could only read a page at a time (due to the annotation and dense writing)
3. I liked the piece more than I expected
4. Everyone else in the class did too... I honestly wasn't expecting an overwhelmingly positive reaction to the piece in class but we all thought it was decent, which made for good conversation. 

It's interesting to think that this is an excerpt from a book (I think it's chapter 7), because it was a well written essay on its own but struggled to come to a conclusion with substantial evidence but had overwhelming concession statements. Having this essay be part of a book would make the organization of the writing more effective for sure. 

The attitude towards feminism was intriguing too; by constantly referencing "the feminist view" Nochlin distanced herself from the group, but at times made feminists comments. In the beginning of my reading I was conflicted whether or not she was a feminist but by the end, and after our class discussion, I'm sure she isn't. 

One of my favorite parts of the piece was the references to the stereotypical "feminine" characteristics to a work of art, that as Nochlin proves, do not actually exist. Another part I enjoyed was when Nochlin was, sometimes subtly sometimes brusquely, that the environment and precedent people were raised with is directly correlated to their career as an artist. The part of this that was the most interesting to me was the emphasis placed on childhood influences. The third thing I really liked was her statements that problems were altered from actuality by people's views on them, such as the "women problem" and that the only way to solve this problem is to ask "the right questions," which confuses me a bit. 

The second half of the essay had a lot of basis in art history and though I found it interesting the actual use of language and her moral opinions did not catch my interest as much. I enjoyed the piece and thought it was a good thing to read!

"Sunshine" Inspiration

Kinda playing off the title of the last post including the word sunshine, but this time it's recurring to the sunshine STATE, not person. Slightly delayed, but these are some pictures that sparked creative interest when I was in Florida a month ago. Hadn't used pictures in a post in a little while.

A little bit of drawing over looking
 the ocean from the 18th floor :)

The red shows emphasis....

chandeliers made entirely out of ZIP TIES!

Didn't understand this but used really cool materials: carabiner, bells, and a spring

Classic piece with a twist (I'm a fan of this version)... transformation? :)

Just loving the colors

I love elephants! (and the others too)
paper mache- esque animals of
newsprint! 

Feather tree (and PINK!).... transformation again! 

Sunshine's Prospectus

After a lot of thought on the subject (no pun intended), I've decided to branch off from people's perspective of me and assumption of what my art will/does look like. I'm not going to be "sunshine" all the time. My subject is disturbing and unsettling pieces - revolting images. My challenge is going to be not just picking a disturbing subject and composition that can be viewed as disturbing but can actually induce a revolted emotion.  I want to distance myself from my comfort zone of subjects and messages of "happy sunshine." Also, for me. working with a gross subject will be hard for me to stay with. My biggest concern is that I will make it look too cutesy.

So that's the prospectus. It was written a week ago, before I had actually put pencil to paper drawing. Luckily, it still applies to my project. Recently I've been aware of a theme around me of trying to lose the "cutesy kid" image. For me, with nicknames like "sunshine" and the new, "fitness barbie" (thanks Doyle) my motive for choosing revolting images is increasingly clear. Just because someone may seem blonde, ditsy, bubbly, peppy, dumb, loud, childish, and sunshiney does not mean that is all there is to there character. I want to show that I have the ability to branch out and try something new and show that there's more to me than cartoon elephants, flowers, and hearts. I'm nearing completion of two of the three planned pictures and am decently satisfied with both so far. I'll try to post pictures of the fly on the eye and struggling serpent soon. I've decided to title the series and final picture, appropriately, "Sunshine's Prospectus."