Blog #1: Amy Newton
Let me first say two things; one, I dislike reviewing other people's work, and two, I was lucky enough to have to review my sister's blog found here. She has always been a very good writer and a frequent reviewer and analyzer of various media, so reading her entries was fun for me; we generally like to snoop on each others assignments anyway.
I thought her elements matched pretty well in each of her photos. While her thematic choice was clever and convenient, I feel it kind of restricted her in some ways. Still, she was inventive and clearly inspired by the assignment so I can't knock her on that. While some of her images obviously had other elements in them (texture being almost unavoidable in any photo), I felt her photos were focused on the elements they were meant to focus on.
Amy and I both chose Niagara as a piece that related to us, and for the same reasons. I find that funny in some ways; we went to the museum together, but we did our assignments and photos separately, yet we came up with the same piece for the same reason. Just goes to show the family traits I guess.
Since we went to the gallery together, we actually got to talk about the pieces as we were viewing them. So, I don't think I could say that she picked any that got my interest more than while we were there. Walking Soldier (1917), by Alexander Archipenko caught my attention at the museum, but for a different reason; I just think its odd looking and weird. Call me narrow-minded if you must, but I just don't see a person in it; in fact, I'm not really sure what I see in it.
Blog #2 Amber Racette
This is why I dislike these projects; the need to be polite overrides the desire to be brutally honest. I thought her photo choices were appropriate, none were mismatched or unbelievable. However, I really felt like she didn't put any effort into the post about the project. Not that she needed to go in depth and individualize like Amy, but I wish there was something there that was interesting to read.
I'm convinced she didn't go t the Albright Knox; I've been there numerous times and have never seen those pieces ever, any of them. Not that that is a bad thing, quite the contrary; but I wish she again, put more information into her post. There aren't even titles on her blog posts, which made finding and commenting on her posts very difficult.
All of her selected images piqued my interest, because I've never seen any of them. Which is why I really want to know where she went, so I could see these beautiful works for myself.
As I said before, and will say again; I really dislike having to review peer works. Even in the discussion forums, where I try to be as uplifting and encouraging as possible, I find it frustrating to have to pull meaning out of someone else's opinion; and that's only after I figure out if they actually followed the prompt or not. Personally, I find it embarrassing and anxiety producing to have my work viewed by my peers. It isn't that I think I do poorly, it's that I don't want to have to cater to an audience; especially in my reflections, which I have tried very hard to be honest in. All of this "blogging" is nerve wracking for me as it is. I don't have a large interest in socializing to begin with, and less so on the internet, so sticking my opinion out there is just asking for trouble in my opinion. I don't feel like I get anything out of it either; I'm sure that makes me a little strange for a 26 year old nowadays, but its just not my thing.
As I said before, I don't like the idea of people even seeing my work, so reading the comments was kind of scary. At least I knew my sister was going to read mine, which made me feel better because she always has such helpful things to say. The other comments weren't awful, very nice things were said, but I didn't feel like they thought much about it. It was more "I did this too!" and that was all. But its all I ever expect from assignments like these, so I'm not really surprised.
Saturday, October 8, 2016
Module 6: Video Review
1.) I though Through the Eyes of the Sculptor was a really interesting video. I had seen many things on the methods for sculpting and always thought they were interesting. However, I'd never sen anything quite like this; getting to see the sculpture through all of its stages was really nice, and hearing the sculptor's opinions and plans was really enlightening. I did not know that there were artisans, whose entire job for a piece is shaping the form out of the original slab. Granted, I was aware there were different specialties in every art form, but I was not aware how specialized it could be. I really enjoyed watching the idea become reality. From sketch, to small model, to full-scale model, to plaster copy, to finished work; it was fascinating to see the attention to detail and effort put into keeping the form and design the same between each stage. Remarkable that from initial model to the finished work, there was very little variance or change.
The video on Ceramics and Glass was pretty dull; I already know how glass and ceramic is made, really like the old TV show How Its Made and they did an episode on it. I did enjoy the visuals; watching glass blowers is always fascinating and seeing the giant complicated machinery is always amazing. I hadn't heard of cold press ceramics, so that was really interesting; it looks like a very convenient way to make dinner plates and I really liked watching the guy glazing them by hand, it looked really cool the way he did it. I loved how out of date it was; it was from 1993, which means its 23 years old, so its only to be expected. The projections for the future of glass was pretty funny.
2.) The first video was very relevant to the text, it basically covered all four basic methods of sculpting; modeling, assembling, carving, and casting. In the process of making his sculpture, the sculptor in the film begins by modeling a clay figure, then he casts a plaster mold, and finished by carving the statue out of marble. The only method we didn't see in the videos was assembling, unless you count the work the sculptor did for that driveway entrance; the two horses and male in the middle, had to be assembled on their pedestals when the individual figures were done. The first video also covered a variety of materials mentioned in the book; like clay, stone (specifically marble), and plaster. The second video covered chapter 12; the sections on glass and ceramics and their uses.
3.) I think the first video was interesting, and was a nice addition to the readings. The second video seemed unnecessary, as I thought the chapter covered them very well and they are common and familiar materials for most people.
The video on Ceramics and Glass was pretty dull; I already know how glass and ceramic is made, really like the old TV show How Its Made and they did an episode on it. I did enjoy the visuals; watching glass blowers is always fascinating and seeing the giant complicated machinery is always amazing. I hadn't heard of cold press ceramics, so that was really interesting; it looks like a very convenient way to make dinner plates and I really liked watching the guy glazing them by hand, it looked really cool the way he did it. I loved how out of date it was; it was from 1993, which means its 23 years old, so its only to be expected. The projections for the future of glass was pretty funny.
2.) The first video was very relevant to the text, it basically covered all four basic methods of sculpting; modeling, assembling, carving, and casting. In the process of making his sculpture, the sculptor in the film begins by modeling a clay figure, then he casts a plaster mold, and finished by carving the statue out of marble. The only method we didn't see in the videos was assembling, unless you count the work the sculptor did for that driveway entrance; the two horses and male in the middle, had to be assembled on their pedestals when the individual figures were done. The first video also covered a variety of materials mentioned in the book; like clay, stone (specifically marble), and plaster. The second video covered chapter 12; the sections on glass and ceramics and their uses.
3.) I think the first video was interesting, and was a nice addition to the readings. The second video seemed unnecessary, as I thought the chapter covered them very well and they are common and familiar materials for most people.
Sunday, October 2, 2016
Module 5: Museum Visit #1
A.) There were many works at the museum that made an impression on me; that's the funny thing about the word 'impression', it's a very vague term and it leaves a lot of room for interpretation. I think the two pieces that had the greatest impact on me were Wall Drawing #1268: Scribbles: Staircase (AKAG), and Untitled (Mylar), pictured below.
The first thing that struck me about the Scribbles was it's absolutely immense size and it's ridiculous effort to make! It is literally composed of nothing but scribbles of Graphite pencil on a three huge walls; it took over 5,000 man hours and over 1,700 pencil leads to complete! Standing in the stairwell was quite an experience; you're literally surrounded by a never ending sea of various shades of ever so slightly shiny black. But when you look very closely at the whiter sections, you realize it is all composed of tiny individual scribbles working together. It was a strangely moving experience for me.
(Mylar), on the other hand, left a very visual impression on me; not emotional like Scribbles. The way (Mylar) reacts to the lighting makes it appear as though it is made of something alien; something otherworldly, that is showing us a reality we could have only dreamed of. It is a strange mix of shadow and shine and looking at it was surprisingly entertaining, without being dizzying.
B.) In terms of feeling 'connected' to the works, I can't say there were any that I specifically felt connected to. There were pieces that moved me; many works made me feel something, but none really 'connected' with me; except for maybe Niagara. This obvious reason this piece connects with me is it is focused on Niagara Falls, right in Buffalo's backyard. It's also concerned with the pollution in the river, something I too take very seriously.
The other work I would say I felt connected to was Ground III; part of the Joan Linder: Operation Sunshine exhibit. The entire exhibit connected with me, again it was based in WNY and dealing with pollution; but the exhibit contained many locations I recognized personally, places near my home and workplace. One of the sketch books on display showed the bridge to Grand Island and the fuel refinery in the background; I travel past there almost daily on my way to and from work, and the refinery is owned by the company I work for, Noco. Ground III was particularly moving for me because its so simultaneously large and small at the same time. The photo below isn't very good, mostly because the piece is very large, but contains many intricate and small details that my camera just couldn't capture.
C.) There were several works that just had me asking more questions than finding answers. The first of these works was The Flying Fish, pictured below.
There isn't much in this image that doesn't make me scratch my head. Those are clearly husband and wife in their wedding garb, but why are they standing in a bouquet of roses? Why is that house upside-down? Where did the rooster come from, and why does that flying fish have an arm holding a candelabra? I found no sense in the image, and yet it didn't seem random or unplanned; this is what piqued my curiosity.
The other work that grabbed ahold of my curiosity was Reckless; a large floor sculpture of bright colors and strange shapes. The first thing I thought looking at it was it looked like bacteria growing across the floor, or was it a garden? It was brightly colored and full of shapes, but it was flat; like someone had just painted all over the floor. It made me rethink what 'sculpture' really was; here was this sprawling floor decal sitting among three-dimensional forms, yet it seemed more full and alive than the rest of them. Certainly it was less...disconcerting than some; I did not care for that large wooden pumpkin baby thing.
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| Sol LeWitt
Wall Drawing #1268: Scribbles: Staircase (AKAG), conceived 2006; executed 2010
Graphite on three walls
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| Tara Donovan; Untitled (Mylar), 2007; Mylar and glue |
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| Detail from Scribbles |
B.) In terms of feeling 'connected' to the works, I can't say there were any that I specifically felt connected to. There were pieces that moved me; many works made me feel something, but none really 'connected' with me; except for maybe Niagara. This obvious reason this piece connects with me is it is focused on Niagara Falls, right in Buffalo's backyard. It's also concerned with the pollution in the river, something I too take very seriously.
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| Frank M. Moore; Niagara, 1994-95; Oil on canvas |
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| Joan Linder; Ground III, 2014; Ink on paper |
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| Marc Chagall; The Flying Fish, 1948; Oil on canvas |
The other work that grabbed ahold of my curiosity was Reckless; a large floor sculpture of bright colors and strange shapes. The first thing I thought looking at it was it looked like bacteria growing across the floor, or was it a garden? It was brightly colored and full of shapes, but it was flat; like someone had just painted all over the floor. It made me rethink what 'sculpture' really was; here was this sprawling floor decal sitting among three-dimensional forms, yet it seemed more full and alive than the rest of them. Certainly it was less...disconcerting than some; I did not care for that large wooden pumpkin baby thing.
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| Polly Apfelbaum; Reckless, 1998; Synthetic velvet and fabric dye |
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