Blog Reflections

Looking back to my first post, I had said that "I expect to learn all of the fundamentals of art and become a more artistic person in the process." I have learned the fundamentals of art,but my artistic skills did not grow as I hoped they would. I hoped that I would be able to draw better, but my drawing skills are not quite up to par. 

Now that I've made it through the course, I would define art as a way of expressing feelings, emotions, experiences, etc. through different styles and methods. Although that is a very broad definition, I didn't want to write anything too specific because each artist is different and each artist uses art for different reasons. 

Now that I've taken this online course, I do think that I will take another online course. I liked being able to do all of the assignments in the comfort on my own home. I liked that I didn't have to get up and go to school for this. I honestly feel that if I took this class in the classroom, that I wouldn't have been so successful. In my first posting I had said that I had heard from other people that taking an online class was not a good idea and that I was capable of keeping up with an online class. I do believe that I was successful in this online class.

(In the first post we did not have to choose a favorite artist, so I can't answer point 3)

Extra Credit, Final Chance

The assignment that I enjoyed the most was project 4. I enjoyed creating my slideshow/project. I liked how every student was able to use their own ideas and that we were able to view others and critique them. I enjoyed finding the pictures for my project and creating an exhibit. 

The assignment that I least enjoyed was module 4, the color theory. I did not enjoy using acrylic paint at all. I had to redo mine at least 3 times. I did not have the paint and didn't want to buy any because I knew that it wasn't likely that I'd use it again. So, I borrowed the paint from my neighbor. Luckily, he is very artistic. He did not have some of the original colors though, so I had to mix different colors until I found what would work. I know it was a simple project, but I put a lot of work into it and it really didn't turn out as well as I hoped.

I liked using ANGEL. I liked how the modules opened fairly early, so that I could manage my time well. I liked how we incorporated blogger with ANGEL to do reviews and discussions. It is easy to check my grades too, which is a plus.

I would recommend this course to my peers.

I am sort of disappointed that my artistic skills didn't really grow all that much. I picture things to turn out well in my head, but then when I draw them out, they look terrible.

If I could change the course, I would make it mandatory to view different art exhibits for each visit. I went to Albright Knox Art Gallery for the first visit and then I went to Burchfield Penny Art Center for the second visit. It was nice to see what each gallery had to offer. The material was different in each.

I would also try to incorporate an actual workshop at least once. That way all of the students could meet and help each other out, with artistic skills. 

Week 15: Self-Portraits

Lady Alethea Talbot, Countess of Arundel

Peter Paul Rubens

1620

Oil on canvas

Comtesse d'Haussonville

Jean-August-Dominique Ingres

1845

portrait, 52 x 36 in

Portrait of Edith (the artist's wife)

Egon Schiele

1915

painting

All pictures were taken from google art project. I chose these three specifically because of the way their hair is styled. If I were to do my self portrait of myself with my hair down, it would be a giant mess. For that reason, I decided that my self portrait would be based off of a picture of me where my hair is styled up, which is exactly how each of the women in the pieces I've chose, are styling their hair. Two of the three women have curly hair, just like me. All three are pale too, which matches my complexion.

I chose to re create the picture of myself with pencil. I find pencil to be the easiest, since painting with watercolor would be a major disaster! and that I don't have the patience to wait for the paint to dry. This piece represents me because I am usually smiling and am a happy person. It was summer when the picture was taken and I remember it was very hot out that day, which is why I put my hair up. I chose this picture as one to re create because my hair looks so different when it is up and I feel like my smile looks much brighter.

My recreation turned out awful. I had the idea in mind, but my ideas don't translate well onto paper. I started out fairly well, with my smile, but then as I continued I realized that all hope was lost. I didn't know how to draw my hair, because it is wild in person, and I'm not quite sure what the best way to draw curly hair is. I tried to incorporate shading, on the lines of my face, the darkness of my eyes, and my smile. Overall, I feel that my picture looks as if I am a boy. It did not turn out well. I wish that I had artistic skills, but I guess I'll just have to keep practicing!

Module 15: Art Criticism

Before choosing which project to critique, I viewed at least 5. I then decided to critique Sarah Jacobs-Ferderbar's exhibit, Get Nude Dude. I was hooked just by the title. The pieces of her exhibit kept me interested and I learned a lot about each piece. Some of the projects I viewed seemed sort of boring to me. I'm not saying that I enjoy looking at nudity, but the pieces weren't too vulgar. I always get sort of nervous when critiquing my peers work because I don't want to hurt their feelings, but the only negative thing I had to say about the project I critiqued was that the titled didn't really match the pieces. The title seemed sort of humorous and the pieces were from previous centuries. I correlated the title to be with something from this generation. I would like to read what my peers have said about my exhibit. I like the criticism because it opens my eyes to things I didn't notice before and it helps me improve. I rated my article a 7. I rated it a 7 because I didn't want to go into to detail about every piece that was included in the exhibit, but I did list examples and point out important parts. I did enjoy working on this project because I like to see what my peers come up with and what originates in their heads.

Week 15: Video Review

Greenberg on Art Criticism: An Interview by T. J. Clark:

Greenberg thinks writing about visual art is tougher than writing about literature or music. Visual art doesn't have a score like music does. He says he that several times he let his preferences come out, but he accepted what was good. He said you need to keep an open mind. He states how he is not fond of abstract art, but that he kept an open mind when looking at it. He explains how abstract did well.

This video helps with the project because even if you necessarily don't favor a piece of art, keeping an open mind is always the best choice. That was something that I definitely had to work around when finding pieces to add to my project because researching what to put in it was hard and at times I found pieces that I didn't like, but I added them for the overall project. I kept an open mind while critiquing them.

The video was alright, it did give me insight, but it was hard to follow along with. The two kept talking over one another.

The Colonial Encounter: Views of Non-Western Art and Culture:

The 1900 Paris World Fair was the largest fair in history and it exposed nationalism. The image of the colonies of the late 19th century and early 20th was not coherent or consistent. The people of France did not favor the exhibit of the Dahomian people. They didn't favor the structures. The images displayed in the fair showed the Dahomian people in scenes of violence and gore. The people of France saved the Dohamian people from themselves. They saw the Dohamian people as a threat to themselves and to others.

This video does correlate to the project, I think, because even though the people of France didn't like what they saw in the images of the Dohamian people, they still chose to rise up and save those people from themselves. The people of France thought the Dohamian people were barbaric and dangerous. Even if you don't like a piece of art, you can still choose to incorporate it to show others and keep an open mind.

Project #4

I actually liked this project. I changed my theme many times throughout the thinking process, which is why I waited so long to complete this. I'm glad I did wait because I loved the way my powerpoint turned out. My final decision on my theme was to incorporate art that emphasized women. I titled my exhibit,  The Beauty Within. I gave my exhibit the title because I truly believe that every women is beautiful, inside and out, and in her own unique way. I had a little bit of a tough time picking the images for my exhibit, but everything turned out great, in my opinion!

Module 13 and 14 Video Review

The Lowdown on Lowbrow: West Coast Pop Art:

Lowbrow means different things to different artists. The actual term for lowbrow is a person regarded as uncultivated and lacking in taste. Who is to judge what is a lowbrow though? Generally lowbrow images were images of naked girls and cars and urinals and things like that. Lowbrow is pop culture, car culture, and a people thing. Lowbrow artists have a common ground, a common experience. People can relate because there is a historical reference, that is more personal than something that is esoteric. Everyone, average workers, became artists.

Displaying Modern Art: The Tate Approach:

The Tate Modern houses modern art in four sections. Each of the sections has a specific theme and selection of modern art. History is embodied in the collections. Art should be more than entertainment. Artists wanted to use aesthetic effects, using emotion. Viewers should keep an empty mind, without any previous knowledge. Each room was dedicated to specific artists or a specific theme. Art was self contained. The movements evolved in reaction to each other.

Bones of Contention: Native American Archaeology:

Bones of tens of thousands of Native Americans have accumulated during the collection of  the genocide in the U.S. against the Indians. The Indians want the remains of their ancestors back. The Indians felt discriminated in 1971 when a women's husband was a construction engineer that found a cemetery that was found, with 26 white people. They were taken out of the graves by the state archaeologists and they were reburied, but the Indian women and her baby were taken for studying and were not reburied. The Indian people felt discriminated and the wife was told that she needed to stand up for what she believed in. She demanded the remains of her ancestors. A law was established in Iowa that protected Indian burial sites. Other states followed with the law. Brain studies were constructed that concluded that the size of a person's cranium has relation to intelligence. So, Indian skulls have been collected and put in museums for storage. Native American's don't want what the scientists' have to say about their ancestor's remains.

An Acquiring Mind: Phillipe de Montebello and the Metropolitan:

Montebello guided the acquisition of more than 84,000 works of art. He is the longest tenured director of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The video states that a museum is not ever finished. The museum would grow to represent all cultures and all eras under Montebello. No one can know all of the history of art around the world, but one man says that Montebello comes close. Nearly 2 million objects are contained at the Med's glowing collection.

For my theme for the art curation exhibition, I chose animals. I feel that animals are just as in depth as humans and they are present in a lot of artworks. I would say that the only video that relates to my theme would be the lowdown video because the style of lowdown is a more personal style and everyone can relate. Everyone has or has had an animal or has had experience with animals, whether it be good or bad, and that is what lowdown art is based on; a common ground, a common experience.

I thought the films were interesting, to an extent. The first and the third video were the most interesting. I have never heard of lowdown art before and was very interested in learning about it from the video. I like that every artist has their own definition for it. I like the Native American video because I have learned quite a bit about Native Americans in all my years of school, but have never learned of the controversy of digging up the grave cites and having the bones be taken in for studying. Native Americans are people too and I can understand how they feel discriminated through such acts.

Module 12 Video Review

I chose the video on Andy Warhol and the video on Henry Moore because I have heard of the two, but have not learned much about either. Warhol's artworks are always very interesting and I'd like to learn more.

Andy Warhol: Images of an Image

This video focuses on the life of Andy Warhol. He had an untimely death in 1986. He was a commercial artist before he became a famous painter. He reproduced Campbell's soup cans with stencils and acrylic paint. He used the silk screen effect on Marilyn Monroe and multiplied it many times and this is what made him famous. He colored them and discolored them, which is what he did with a lot of his works. He became fascinated with Elizabeth Taylor and produced a silk screen image of her too. Warhol filmed too and made around 100 films. He added paint to silk screen images and that is what made him his money.

The book talks about Warhol's fascination of Marilyn Monroe and how he created works of her after she died. The video takes this fascination a step farther and tells of how Warhol became famous because of Marilyn Monroe and the way he transformed one simple image of her into many.

The Art of Henry Moore:

Henry Moore explored the human figure in forms that were natural for sculpting and painting in the 19th century. He believed that beauty is a deeper concept than perfection. As a child Moore always wanted to be a sculptor and he believed that too many people focused on his upbringings of coal mining. He always drew, everything. He was obsessed with the figures of mother and child, which was one of his themes, the reclining figures.

The book does not talk about Henry Moore, but Henry Moore had his own artistic style, as did Warhol. Both having artistic style makes them both unique.

Module 11 Video Review

Dada and Surrealism:

The Dada movement came about after WWII. After dada came surrealism, that opens up the unconscious mind. A state of chaos in Germany left artists to see a world made up on nonsense. Kurt Schwitters structured a house within a house. He chose to choose one object out of many and where to put it. He included rural objects in his art, as well as the concept that light danced off his objects.

Expressionism:
Expressionism came after fauvism. It was unlike fauvism in that it did not emphasize color quite as much, but the colors were emphasized in expressionism for the emotional properties. The video shows many examples from different artists of the new style that dealt with color in a way that broke away from the use of loud and intense color. The artists listed in the video tried to break from the mysteries of sexuality, one showed their personal experience in his work, and much emotion. Emotion was very heavy and were emotions that laid beneath the surface. These emotions were not conservative.

I chose these two videos because I remember reading about them in the text and wanted to know more. Both relate to the text because they further explain surrealism and expressionism and show examples. The book touches base with each, but the videos further explain and give me a better understanding of each. The videos were dry, but informative. I can see how powerful the emotions were in the artists paintings through the videos.

Art Visit #2

Title of exhibit: Disclosure: Women of the Burchfield Penny Collections

Theme of exhibit: Artwork created by or about women

Type of lighting: There was dim lighting within the exhibit. No bright lights were used because they will ruin the content of the artworks. There were lights on the ceiling that lit up the walls and there were individual lights for the artwork in the middle.

Colors of the walls: The walls were not as dark as charcoal, but a tad bit lighter.

Materials used in interior architecture?: The exhibit consisted of only one room, with artwork on the 4 walls and a few artworks in the middle of the room. Some of the artwork in the middle of the room was housed by glass, to keep it protected.

Movement of viewer in gallery space: When entering the exhibit, there is a small wall in the middle, telling what the gallery consists of. Depending on the person, either the viewer can go left or right and circle the room, seeing both the artworks on the walls and the artwork in the middle.

How are artworks organized?: On the right wall of the room, the subjects of the paintings were women; faces, etc. On the left wall of the room and in the middle of the room the subjects of the artworks were not directly of women. Most were objects.

How are artworks similar?: The artworks are similar because most were housed in frames and the ones that were not had their own distinct borders. All of the works are similar because they were either made by women or are of women.

How are artworks different?: The artworks are different because there are some that show objects; like a chair, a cave, and a wool craft. Some of the artworks are paintings, while some are hand crafts.

How are artworks framed?: Some of the artworks did not have frames and some did. Some of the artwork that were actually pictures from a camera did not have a frame, but one did. Most had frames that went along with the content of the artwork.

How are artworks identified and labeled?: Next to each piece of artwork in the exhibit, there was a plaque. The plaque listed the name of the piece, the artist, when the piece what made, and what the artwork was (painting, oil on canvas, etc.)

Proximity of artwork to each other: Along the walls, the space between each piece was about two feet. The room is open and has plenty of viewing space. The pieces in the center of the room had plenty of distance between each other, at least a few feet.

What did you think of visiting the Gallery and purposefully looking at the exhibition from a different perspective - the physical space, the architecture, theme, etc.?
Personally, I liked visiting the Burchfield Penny Art Center. I have been to the Albright Knox Art Gallery a few times and wanted to mix it up. I enjoyed the content of the Burchfield Penny Art Center. The artwork was different from what I had seen before at the Albright Knox Art Gallery. The galleries were not very big, but the content was incredible. There was a lot of space between each piece at this gallery. I know that this gallery had been built recently. The gallery that I chose to take note of for this visit caught my interest. I really enjoyed that all of the artwork was made by women. It is incredible to see what women can create, despite their prior status within history when compared to men. Each piece has its own meaning and it is interesting to try to understand each piece. The women artists in this gallery have a lot of talent.

 

Alice O'Malley

Justine Kurland, New York, 2005

gelatin silver print on paper

Anonymous Gift, 2008

 

 

The woman's stance in the photo reveals that she is confident with herself. She appears to be pregnant. She is not clothed, except for the shall over her shoulders and the boots on her feet. It looks as if it is a photograph of a photography session. In the upper left hand corner we see the backdrop folding over and behind the woman we see more details of the backdrop. The element of line is used to determine that there is a backdrop behind the woman. Also, line outlines the shape of the woman's body. There is emphasis on the woman's naked body. The eyes are drawn directly to the belly area. I think O'Malley was trying to say that women are powerful and should have confidence, like the woman in the photo. It appears that the woman is confident in her stage of pregnancy and I think that is what the artist was trying to show, that every woman has the capability to be confident, no matter the situation they are in.

 

 

Jolene Rickard (b. 1956)
Two Canoes, 1987
color photograph collage
The M&T Bank Collection at the Burchfield Penny Art Center, 1991

This artwork shows two trees standing next to one another and then below it, two individuals standing next to one another. Both the trees and the people are very close to each other. The artist uses line, to show the length of each picture. Color is also used as well. The picture of the trees has more color, but the picture of the people uses more intense colors, drawing the eye directly to it. I think that the artist was trying to depict that the trees and the people are one in the same. Both stand tall. Texture is used. There is texture on the bark of the trees and there is texture on the peoples' clothing. The title is not very helpful because there are not canoes present in either photograph, but I think that Rickard was trying to show that the trees and the people are canoes of life. They stand together as one.

Virginia Cuthbert (1908-2001)
Self-Portrait, c. 1941
oil on board
Gift of Virginia Cuthbert Elliot, 1994

This painting is titled Self-Portrait, so already the viewer knows that Cuthbert is showing herself. I think that the artist is trying to show how much strength she really has. She made herself the subject for this piece. I think she wanted to show the world her talent and what it is like to be her. Line is definitely used in this piece, to outline each little thing upon her table. There is color, but not a very wide spectrum of it. The colors all seem to mesh as one. There is visual texture on the walls, on her desk, the paint brushes, and definitely her shirt and her hair. This piece has a lot of detail and a lot going on.

The sizes of all three artworks were not listed and all were displayed at the Burchfield Penny Art Center.

Module 10: Mask Making

 

I chose these three masks because they caught my attention. They weren't just of one color, like many I had seen. They are colorful and all three look as if they are trying to tell a story. The design and craftsmen ship is amazing and very detailed.  

 

The first mask appears to be of a long face. The eyes are left open, for there is just a space without actual eyeballs. The mask appears to be all of one surface, there is not actual texture on the surface of the wood, but the designs all over the mask give visual texture.

 

The second mask has a lot going on. There are many different lines, designs, and textures. The shells towards the top of the mask are real, giving it a sort of rigid texture. It is full of color and different patterns, that all connect to one another. The eyebrows and flaps on either side towards the ear also have texture.

 

The third mask has texture all over it. There is texture at the top, where the fuzz and feathers are. There is texture at the bottom where it looks like it could be hay or straw fanning out from the chin. A ton of color is present, along with many lines, patterns, and designs.

 

All three of the masks are visually appealing.

 

 

 

When making my own mask, I wanted to make it look like my face, with curly hair and everything, but I'm not that artistic and wanted to save myself from the humiliation. So, I turned down different road. I wanted to make a mask that was different on both sides of the face, but that didn't cover the mouth. I wanted to show that everyone is different, hence the different sides of the mask. I included lines, patterns/rhythms, and lots of color. Using these elements and principles, I thought it would make the mask that much better. I liked creating this mask, I just wish that I could've done a replica of me, but that would've been quite the challenge and I used what materials that I had.

Module 10: Blog Review

African Art: Legacy of Oppression:

Belgium's Tervuren Museum has the biggest collection of Central African art. In the Congo, there are more than 250 tribes and with these tribes comes many artistic styles. African art influenced Picasso and other European artists. Masks were used because they thought to contain magic and were full of emotion. The masks were supposed to dictate how people acted and scare them to act correctly. Masks were also used to intimidate enemies, but they proved to be failures as they did not stand up to the weapons the enemy had. African art explores the nature of existence.

African Art:

Art is a part of life in Africa, in clothing, hairstyles, traditional African rituals, and utensils. Ritual artifacts were made of wood and straw. Most museum pieces are from within two hundred years because they deteriorate due to the materials used. Artwork is passed down to the generations. The oldest African art is found in regions that are drier, like the Sahara. Paintings in drier regions are of animals, to strengthen the hunt. African art, most of it, flows from the artist's images that they had in their head. There is a lot of diversity in African art, but each culture in Africa adds their own to the traditions.


I chose the videos on African art because I've always wanted to travel to Africa and I'm always willing to learn more about what the continent has to offer. How a culture uses art and depicts their art says a lot about them.

I liked the videos and found them interesting, but I thought that the speaker in the African Art: Legacy of Oppression video talked very fast, making it hard for me to take notes as I listened/watched. The videos did not really expand my knowledge, I felt that it just touched base with what I already know from past years in school.

The videos relate to the text because they talk about African art and how it is unlike any other region's artwork. The text talks about what is traditionally used in African art and the videos tell and show examples of the symbolism of the artwork.

Module 9: Exploring Line

1. What was it like using your hand as subject matter for a drawing?

- I thought that using my hand was a fairly easy object to draw. It was really difficult trying to shade in the correct places, even with both hands.

 

2. What media did you select - pencil or charcoal? Why?

- I used pencil because that's all that I could find in my house.

 

3. How did it feel to create a drawing with your non-dominant hand?

- Before I started drawing I thought that using my non-dominant hand would be a disaster, but when I was drawing it wasn't as hard as I thought it was going to be.

 

4. Compare and contrast your final drawings. Do you think they are successful studies?

-  I don't know if I'd say successful because I don't really have any artistic ability, but I think for an amateur the drawings look okay.

 

5. Would you consider using your non-dominant hand to create artwork in the future?

- I would consider using my non-dominant hand to create artwork in the future because it looks almost as good as the drawing that I did with the dominant hand and it could be challenging to draw something else other than a hand. It would be interesting to say the least.

 

 

Module 9: Video Review

Albrecht Durer: Image of a Master Video:

Albrecht Durer was born in 1471 in German. He was a Renaissance artist. He was very talented. He was an apprentice to his father that was a goldsmith. Durer enjoyed painting hands. Durer carefully showed the process of aging in his works. He had a truthful and ruthless eye for the process of aging. When he was 15 he became an apprentice and in 1489 he set forth on his own journey across Europe. He managed to turned himself into a craftsmen.  He was skilled at making woodcuts. A touch of Narcissism was evident in his works. He was summoned back to Germany to be married 4 years after he set forth on his journey. 2 months after he was married he set off to go to Italy. The appeal of landscape came onto him and landscape became present in his works. He was the first true landscape artist in Europe. He grasped the mood of landscape. Durer visited many studios in Venice as he could on both of his trips to Italy. He painted a work for a church. Venicican art had an impact on him. The work he did for the church was natural and had vibrant colors. He learned how to employ the finest strokes of the brush without color manipulating light. He searched for perfect form. In Venice he claimed he was a noble and in Germany he was a nobody, but he was somebody once he returned to Germany. He bought a house that fit his new status. The main source of his income was printings. He had a space set up in his home to do just that. Durer's success in woodcuts was giving the events of the time, Martin Luther and the break from Rome, dramatic feelings and distributing them to the people.

Velazquez Video:

Velazquez was born in 1599. When he was 24 he was named court painter to Phillip the fourth and went to Italy twice. He was awarded nobility by the king. He captured the moment, the light and the air, timeless elements. His paintings look like they were caught in real time, in a shadow. He balances light and color and uses his mind to capture the truth. He doesn't use extravagant color in his works.


I thought that the Velazquez video was not very interesting and certainly not as interesting as the video of Albrecht Durer. Durer, in my opinion, had a more eventful life. Not much information is available on Velazquez, so that made the video pretty dry. I selected these videos because I've never heard of the two artists before and I wanted to choose something different than Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci.

The videos relate to the text in that they explain some of the key characteristics of Renaissance art. Durer and Velazquez captured art in the more natural state. Both artists further what was talked about in the text and the videos show and tell how both the artists had an impact on Renaissance art, making it better understood.

Module 8: Video Review

More Human than Human Video:

The human body is captivating to everyone. The world is dominated by unrealistic images of the body. The nomadic people of Austria left behind a statue of a women's body, but it was very small, only 10 centimeters high. It is housed in Vienna, Austria, along with many, many other artifacts. This statues is the first clue as to why the world is dominated by unrealistic images of the human body. Statues of the human body were exaggerated all over Europe. Studies of the brain show that the brain was programmed to operate that way. The prime evil extinct to exaggerate the human body didn't carry out to Egypt. Rather than exaggerate, Egyptian artists chose to show each part from the clearest angle. Egyptian style never changed. Egyptians made statues and images of the body to last forever. Egyptians had an obsession with order. They created images of the body because of their culture, not because of the wiring of the brain, which could explain the human body exaggeration of the human world. Culture is king.  The seagull experiment shown in this video directly correlates to one of the previous modules and readings. I think this video was accurate in that culture is king. Culture dictates many things in our lives, and how we perceive the body is definitely one of them. The video explains the ancient perceptions of the body and the art that came with specific cultures, like Egypt.

Cairo Museum Video:

I chose this video because the title had caught my attention and sounded more interesting than any of the other videos. Egypt is a land of forgotten tombs and unsolved mysteries. It has many secrets. In downtown Cairo there is an Egyptian museum. There are tens of thousands of objects within the museum walls. It may be the best museum in the world because of all of the artifacts and you cannot see anything like it anywhere else in the world. There are many, many, more artifacts hidden within the basement. The museum was opened in 1902. There are many boxes, some that have not ever been opened before. There are remains from some of the most famous rulers in Egypt upstairs in the public part of the museum. 40 mummies of famous kings were found in the late 1800's in the desserts of Lexor. The bodies were then transferred to the museum in Cairo.  There is so much in the basement that it is hard to decide which objects should be chosen for exhibition. Conservation begins in the fields, not in the museums. I'm glad I chose this video because it was very, very interesting. Who knew that there could be so many artifacts that still exist from thousands and thousands of years ago. The video touched a point on what the funeral room looked like in the tomb of one of the ancient rulers, which is what the reading talks about as well. In the video, they show how they had to prepare one of the artifacts to prevent it from ruining and it looked very similar to the "Seated Scribe" that is present within the text, which is a common sculpture type from that time.

Module 7 Video Review

The Prairie Style (Frank Lloyd Wright):

No other architect in history was as influential as Frank Lloyd Wright in the way we live. He came up with the Prairie Style, for a more wide open method of living. This style was to blend buildings into their surroundings and not destroy them. He designed a lot of houses for the single family, a series and layering of horizontal bans. He tried to create a harmony between the client and the architecture. He wanted it to be natural. He opened up the spaces between the rooms in a house so they could connect with one another. The ceiling level is brought down to emphasize the horizontal aspect. I thought this video was informative. When it explained this type of living, I pictured many different houses to try to link them together. It adds depth because it explains a different type of architecture that I've never heard of, which is also why I chose this video. Everyone has different preferences when it comes to a house, such as the type of architecture they prefer. Some people like arches to be in their homes, connecting rooms together, while some people choose to have horizontal and level connections between rooms, which is what the video describes.

Architecture: The Science of Design:

The discovery of concrete and steel allowed for the construction of skyscrapers. The superstructure and the underground substructure are the basis for a skyscraper. The substructure holds the building's dead weight and living weight. Wind influences the buildings. Whirlwinds make buildings sway and heavy winds can make a 100 story building sway a meter in a different direction, which could damage the structure and cause faults within the buildings. Architects test the effects of wind on the buildings and know whether to put trees around it to help with the wind. This relates to the text by further explaining the creation of steel and concrete and how it works for the building. I like this video, I feel like this one is informative as well. I was not aware that architects measure how the wind could effect buildings and I was not aware that buildings could move that much just from the wind. I chose this video because I thought that it would be informative, as it was. Science imposes a lot of depth so I curious to know what the video talked about.

Module 6: Video Review

1. For each video list/discuss the key concepts you learned.
In the sculpting video, I learned that many sculptors work on more than one piece at a time. Clay is sculpted and finished, then a life size plaster model is casted, then marble is carved. Many artist work as a team to create masterpieces. Each artist work on any given sculptor, all specializing in a specific part of it. In the glass video, glass is made from sand, but glass has different properties than sand. It is a liquid that stiffens when cooled. Glass is made with fire and components are added to improve fusion at high temperatures and prevent the glass from becoming too fluid. Molten glass then is taken out by the glass creator and the creator blows into the glass to mold it and glass is cooled by the air. It is then reheated.

2. How do the videos relate to the readings in the text?
Chapter 11 from the text discusses the different methods and materials of sculpture, while the sculpting video explains the technical side of the sculptor himself. The video provides more depth as to how long it takes for a sculptor to be created and how many individuals it requires. Chapter 12 discusses glass to be one of the most fascinating of materials, which I agree. To see how glass is created is definitely a great experience. The text explains what glass is used for, while the video explains how glass is made and what it is made of.

3. What is your opinion of the films? How do they add depth to understanding of the topics: Sculpture, Installation, and Craft?
I thought that the sculpting video was interesting. I was not aware that often, more than one person took part in creating a sculpture. I had previously thought that only one individual was left responsible.  It does seem like a lot of work for just one person, depending on the size of the piece being created. I personally like the glass video a lot. I've been to the Corning Museum of Glass many times and I really enjoy watching how a specific piece of glass is made, so this video is not news to me. The videos provide depth because they take what the text provides and makes the material more in depth to understand how it is made artistically. Our eyes are opened to how long it takes to create sculptures and to how glass is made.

Module 6- Reviewing Peer Responses

1. http://smanthayorko.blogspot.com/ and http://sarahjacobsartblogging.blogspot.com/
2. When looking at Samantha's first project on elements and principles, I very much so enjoyed her slideshow and how she captured the pool for each element and principle. I found that each picture matched with the elements and principles that we were chosen to capture. I thought that every picture she used was full of the element color. My favorite picture from her slideshow was the one that showed line. Texture was also present in many of her pictures, such as, the pictures for value, line, contrast, and balance. When looking at Sarah's first project on elements and principles, I found myself enjoying every picture in it. Her pictures that she used for color and for pattern, also showed texture.
3. Samantha and I chose two of the same artworks for the second project on the art gallery visit, but Sarah and I did not choose any of the same artworks. Samantha and I incorporated Lee Bontecou's Untitled and Giacomo Bella's  Dinamismo di un Can al Guinzaglo.  Samantha chose Lee Bontecou's artwork because it spiked her interest, being two dimensional, which was different from her assumption that artwork is flat. I chose Bontecou's artwork because I saw it as bulging from the wall, which I connected to my life that is full of stress, ready to explode. Although similar, Samantha chose Giacomo Bella's artwork in remembrance of her friend's dog, but I chose Bella's artwork in remembrance of my own dog. I connected with the artwork because I instantly thought of my dog's crazy personality. Samantha said she chose this work because she was there for her friend whose dog had passed away and that she felt her life was going by quickly, which directly connects to how fast the dog is projected to be moving in the artwork.
4. Sarah had used John Pfahl's View from the Bone Marrow Transplant Unit (#4), which is an artwork that I found very interesting. I connected to this picture because I love when it rains. I love having the window open just a crack, if the rain isn't too heavy or if there isn't much wind. Also, I love the way rain looks against a window. There weren't any other images from either Samantha or Sarah, that really made me look twice, like I did with Pfahl's artwork. I guess what I'd like to learn from Pfahl is what he felt when he was stuck in the hospital, having to watch the rain outside of his window.
5. I find that when viewing what my peers' took in from having to take part in the same project as me, expands my train of thought. When I read what another person thought on an artwork, it may be different from my own thoughts, but it then leads me to take another look at it, from a different perspective. I find that this is a great way to learn and to expand the brain's way of thinking.
6. Currently, there are not any comments on either of my posts from the projects, but when taking part in the discussion forums each week, I read what my peers think and sometimes I think to myself "I didn't think of it like that."

Comment for Samantha's first project:
http://smanthayorko.blogspot.com/2013/09/https1345.html?showComment=1380648679887#c8647702500669264829
Comment for Samantha's second project:
http://smanthayorko.blogspot.com/2013/09/module-5-art-gallery.html
Comment for Sarah's first project:
http://sarahjacobsartblogging.blogspot.com/2013/09/photo-project.html?showComment=1380648376350#c4011338919050959584
Comment for Sarah's second project:
http://sarahjacobsartblogging.blogspot.com/2013/09/albright-knox-art-gallery-visit.html?showComment=1380648058087#c7402561040486410408

Project 2

1. Thoughts about creating the logo: I liked the concept of creating a logo to represent myself, but I had to put a lot of thought into this. I wasn't quite sure what I should create that would represent myself. Every time I thought about creating a logo, different things popped into my head.

2. Creative thinking skills and ideas for the logo: Like I said, I thought of many different things that I could incorporate into this logo, but what I decided to use was a round platter, to represent that I work in the restaurant business, a tea cup to represent my love of tea, my name, the polka dots represent a fun spirit, and a heart to show my love for my boyfriend and for my family. The way I did my name, with the m being bigger than the rest, shows that the m is bold, which is often what I hear when people describe me.

3. Most important discovery: I've found that my artistic skills are growing. I usually don't do anything artistic, that involves drawing or coloring. I liked that I had to do these things to create my logo, breaking me out of my comfort zone.

4. Most important information learned through the videos, powerpoint, etc.: My opinion of the video: To me the most important thing that I've learned from the material is that even though there were many different type faces throughout history, that all served a different purpose and were created for different reasons, with the creation of technology and the computer, everyone has the ability to create their own unique type face. My opinions of the video was that it held my attention and there were many different changes throughout the creation of type faces, and that in creating my logo, if it were some time from now, I could create my own type face or be inspired by a newly created type face.


Sketches:

Final logo:

 

 

Art Gallery Visit

The two artworks that made an impact/impression on me:

-Francis Celentano's Gamma, was created in 1970. It is an acrylic on canvas. This artwork made an impact/impression on me because it catches my attention. I feel as if I could look at it all day. It reminds me of a sunny and relaxing day. It also looked to me as if it was an illusion, due to the way the colors were set up.

-Camille Pissarro's Peasants in the Fields, Eragny was created in 1890. It is an oil on canvas. I really like the way Pissarro used optical color mixture. This use of color really interests me because it looks beautiful and really creative.

The two artworks that I felt a connection with:

 

-Giacomo Balla's Dinamismo di un cane al Guinzaglio (Dynamism of a dog on a leash), was created in 1912. It is an oil on canvas. I made a connection with the artwork because of the dog. The dog shown looks rambunctious and hyper, which is exactly how my dog acts, especially when on a leash. It looks like the dog is on the go, ready to take off. My dog often takes off when he's on a leash.

-Lee Bontecou's Untitled was created in 1960. It is welded steel, canvas, and wire. Through my eyes, it looks as if the work is bulging out, ready to burst. I connected to it because that's how I feel that my life is like at the moment. I am ready to burst from being so stressed out.

The two artworks that I would like to know more about:

-Arshille Gorky's The Liver is the Cock's Comb, was created in 1944. It is an oil on canvas. I would like to know more about this work because I could not figure out what I was looking at. So many possibilities of what it could be popped into my mind. With the help of the title, I kind of pictured the inside of the liver, but it still did not match up to me.

-Pierre-Auguste Renoir's Petit un Bleu, was created in 1878. It is an oil on canvas. I do not understand what this picture is supposed to depict. Why is the girl all alone, half naked, near a creek it looks like? What is her presence supposed to mean?

 

 

Module 4 - Exploring Value and the Subtractive Color Theory

1. I thought that the value scale was harder than it looks, because you have to make it slighter lighter each time. I thought the color wheel was challenging a bit too, due to the mixing of the colors. I spent a while mixing the colors to try to get magenta and cyan, I didn't go to the store, just used what paints that I had. And the mixing of the three primary colors did not equal black for me, but a weird color.

2.  I thought the color wheel was more enjoyable because I like using paint and it wasn't as boring as the value scale.

3. That the paints didn't turn out exactly like the diagrams I referenced.

4. My thoughts on the videos were that they were interesting and taught me more about the things that I thought I knew.

Elements and Principles Slideshow

I thought that creating this slideshow was time consuming, having to take the pictures, but I found it very interesting! I love taking pictures and I'm glad that we were able to incorporate that into this class. I did borrow a coupe images, because I was confused on what to take pictures of. I used previous pictures that I have taken a while ago for unity and for proportion. I did find myself having to check the definitions of some of the principles. Overall, I loved this project!

Color Theory and Emotional Effects

1. Color is the visual element that probably gives the most pleasure. Color can effect psychological and physiological responses. For example, red can promote hunger and pink can calm aggressive and agitated behavior. Colors can be described as warm and cool. Warm colors are reds, oranges, and yellows, while cool colors are blues and greens. Colors can be made more intense when two from different ends of the color wheel are mixed together. The more intense the color, the more intense the feeling. Colors can be associated with different things, such as red and green for Christmas.

2. To me, the color theory that most intrigues me is optical color mixture and pointillism. Optical color mixing is small patches of different colors being close together so the eye can produce a new color. With pointillism, a work of art looks like a bunch of dots mixed together, but at a closer look, the dots change into shapes, where the image can emerge. In Georges Seurat's Evening, Honfleur, the dots do not fuse completely, giving the painting a texture and a sort of shimmer due to the colors interaction with each other. I love how this painting looks. It promotes happiness within me due to the warm colors.

3. Artist can evoke an emotional response just by using color. The more intense the color, the more expressive the emotion. Artists, like Vincent van Gough, can express their own feelings into their work. Van Gough put his feelings of depression into one of his works about a café, with the colors of green and red. He used color to express himself with the clashing of the colors. He hoped that the clash of the colors of green and red would show to viewers his negative feelings. I find that, to be the most interest thing I've learned from this video regarding colors and its effects to emotions.

4. Francisco Goya, was dark, for he painted the unasked for, the uncomfortable,  and the unwanted. He painted his own imagination. Goya shows freedom going negative in his works. I find when looking at Goya's works, I feel disturbed. The way he uses color, he promotes negativity.

Module 2

Video One: Aesthetics: Philosophy of the Arts
 1. The keys concepts that I've learned from this video are:
-Plato thought are things are beautiful and that we are attracted to beauty
-Plato's thoughts on beauty did not take into account the role of art and aesthetics
-Aristotle did not focus on beauty, but tragedy (plays)
-Aristotle's rules of composition of tragedy: unity of action:a single action and no sub plot, time: time frame of plot should not go beyond 24 hours, and place: tragedy should stay in the same location
-Idea of beauty was overwhelmed by dedication to God
-Neoclassical aesthetics evolved during the height of the Renaissance
-Neoclassical aesthetics is an aesthetics of proportion, symmetry, harmony, and order
-Foundations for aesthetics today was laid in 18th century England
-Idea that there is special attitude of disengagement that is essential in appreciating art
-Hutchinson believed human being has beauty and harmony
-Beauty and good are one in the same
-Inner sense of beauty is innate and spontaneous
-Kant claimed that sensibility and reason are brought together through aesthetics
-Hegel's thoughts on aesthetics were highly influential
-Almost every philosopher had their own ideas and meanings as to what aesthetics means

2. Which philosopher's theory on aesthetics is most important in my view:
-I feel that the philosopher from the 18th century, Immanuel Kant theory on aesthetics is most important. He claimed that sensibility and reason are brought together by the means of imagination. He states that there is almost nothing that you can't treat beautifully. He introduced that judgment of the beautiful is not ruled bound, but is based on feeling. I agree with this statement because not every person sees and interprets things the same, for it is true that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.


4. How the video relates to the readings from the text:
-The video relates to the text in that the text explains much of how art came to be, what aesthetics is, and how art is different; in themes, etc, which is exactly what the video talks about just in more depth.

Video Two: CARTA: Neurobiology, Neurology, and Art and Aesthetics 
1. The keys concepts that I've learned from this video are:
-Art evolves from the brain
-Art is influenced by culture
-Conscious and unconscious and emotions are affected when viewing art and aesthetics
-Art makes us aware on one's self

3. What I think about Changeux's and Ramachandran's scientific view of aesthetics and art and what to me is the most interesting fact I've discovered:
-I found it interesting that Changeux talked about the conscious and unconscious, but I think that Ramachandran's view was more interesting. Ramachandran's view is more towards visual aesthetics and how our brain looks at art and how art pleases our brain.

4. How the video relates to the readings from the text:
-The video relates to the text in that it explains in depth how the brain functions and they both explain the significance of art.

Article:
1. The keys concepts that I've learned from this article are:
- the brain allows us to be able to make sense of the lines, colors, and patterns that are on a flat canvas
-artists create allusions which make art seem more realistic, for example three dimensional
-we do not notice lines when we look at a room, but only when a drawing of an object is when we notice the lines
-the part of our visual system that picks out light and dark edges responds to lines too
-the brain has a special affinity for faces and finding representations of them, which infants can identify too
-the brain can find faces in art easily
-the amygdala happens to respond more to blurry images of faces that show fear instead of images that are more detailed (the amygdala is the part of the brain that houses the emotions of fear, etc.)
-we may be more engaged when looking at something because the visual system is distracted
-luminance tends to appear when there is color contrast
-luminance allows our brains to think something is brighter, even though it really is not
-artists use luminance in their works to give three dimensions, when there are shadows and different lighting used that make the art seem like their is actually depth to them
-the brain is tricked by this three dimensional element
-we often do not notice shadows and how they can be obscure shaped or misplaced
-the "peak shift principle" that animals that are attracted to a certain shape will be more attracted to it if it is an over the top version of that previous shape
-things can look out of the ordinary to us, but our brain enjoys them

2. Which philosopher's theory on aesthetics is most important in my view:
-Well I think that Picasso has a pretty important theory because he stated "we all know that art is not truth. Art is a lie that makes us realize truth, at least the truth that is given us to understand. The artist must know the manner whereby to convince others of the truthfulness of his lies." Picasso was from the 20th century. I think Picasso's statement is important because like the article says with this "lie" art would not exist and people would not enjoy art. Due to this realization of truth through art, people can understand the artist's motives, emotions, and feelings, which directly relates to the text from Living with Art.

3. What I think about Changeux's and Ramachandran's scientific view of aesthetics and art and what to me is the most interesting fact I've discovered:
-I think that Ramachandran's scientific view of "the peak shift principle" is very interesting. Through this principle our brains are tricked and to me that is very interesting. That if we associate a certain color with an object, our brains can be tricked if a different object shares the same color.

4. How the article relates to the readings from the text:
-As I previously stated in topic 2, I think that the article relates to the text and gives a more in depth reasoning as to why artist's create such works of art. The text talks about how art is created and why artists create works of art; to express their emotions and feelings and past experiences. This article justifies how artists can be creative through lines, colors, and shadows, etc.

My opinions of the videos and the article:
I thought that the videos were very informative and that the article was informative too. I personally liked the article better in that it the text was there and that I didn't have to go back like I did in the videos to remember what was said. Both the videos and the article go hand in hand with the book. All are very explanatory about art and aesthetics.

First Post!

1. How was the process of creating the GMail account and setting up the Blog?
 It was sort of tricky, but now I have the hang of it.
2. What do you expect to learn in this course?
 I expect to learn all of the fundamentals of art and become a more artistic person in the process.
3. How do you feel about taking an online course?
 Quite a few people have told me to stick to a regular course that you must physically attend, but I'm   up for a challenge and think I am capable of keeping up with an online course.