Short Story : ' N The Screen ' And Koons '

Throughout my early teen years, I was exposed to different mediums of art and discovered that I could express myself through more channels than just paper. Although Barry found comfort in her 11 x 17 newsprint and some paint, I was able to focus my energy on making music and taking photographs. Without my art teachers, I wouldn’t have the expressive outlet I do today. My childhood was not filled with unhappiness as Lynda Barry’s was, but from both backgrounds, we found a warmth from the exposure of art that the educational system gave to us.

Over the years, I have flirted with visual art. It started with pencil drawing, continued as an affair with marker illustration, then a dalliance with lettering, and I now have a relationship with photography. However, my favorite art will never be displayed in museums or galleries. It is not static and immutable. Rather, my chosen medium is fluid, living, volatile. No matter how well rehearsed, it will never be the same again. That’s the beauty of performance art.

Arts sole purpose is to evoke an emotion out of its audience and influence them as well. Whether art makes you feel euphoric or sad, it resonates within every individual differently. In this day in age, artists utilize the internet as a method of sharing their work freely with others. According to Lethem, “The American commons include tangible assets such as public for public assets such as public forests and minerals, intangible wealth such as copyrights and patents, critical infrastructures such as the Internet and government research , and cultural resources such as the broadcast airwaves and public spaces. They include resources we’ve paid for as taxpayers and inherited from previous generations” (222). This suggests the Internet is a creative resource that is invaluable to the art community; however, it should be used with caution. The internet is not a resource that can be owned or privatized, which is why individuals can be exposed to anything at any time. On the internet, many images pop up quite frequently and they evoke little to no emotion from those who see it, because they have seen it a numerous amount of times. This is unfortunate, because the quality of one’s work is being diminished if people have become indifferent towards it. Nelson argues that, “But there are also perils. And one is that in cultural moment defined (by some, for some) by image flow, the question of what one should look at, along with attendant inquiries into nature and effect of images blowing by, has creepy way of overtaking almost all other questions” (304). This infers that image flow is something that alters how individuals are affected by art and the feelings one should have toward it. Although technology has been beneficial to the art community, image flow continues to damage the effect that art is intended to have. Seeing

The pencil liberates my stresses and sorrows. Bare and unimpeded, my mind is able to isolate itself from anything that was happening in my life. At my art table, which is merely an escape from reality, my curiosity is able to wander. Within this room, five blank canvas's look in on me as I become a mold of my imagination. A step inside my world develops into a sea of color and exploration. The vibrancy of the walls resonates throughout. Over the years, my room has served as my oasis. It’s my escape from monotonous and mundane routines. It’s my exploration of another side of me. I observe such works of art almost as much as I create. Taking notice of my classmates’ innovations and inspired by their creativity, my paintbrush begins to alleviate stress. I strive to produce pieces others will appreciate, but often find myself to be the true admirer. My pride, in this world, is driven simply by my own curiosity to express myself. I credit this side of me as the “passion” that supplements my insane drive for success. This passion has sparked critical thinking in me as well as how I see failure. Life is a blank canvas and you can truly draw whatever you want, and if you fail, you start over and don’t make that same mistake again! Hard work takes ideas quite far, but true success is derived from ingenuity and the generation of

The exhibit I observed was the Michael Brown and Lesley McSpadden art piece. This particular piece stood out to me once I took a glance into her eyes and saw pain. The artist of the exhibit was Aaron Fowlers he was born in 1988 in St. Louis where the tragic event took place, but currently lives and works in Harlem, NY. Aaron Fowlers installation describes the eulogy that Michael Brown mother delivered for her son which whom was killed by a police officer in Ferguson, MO. This piece was made from using mix media and a variety of cool colors.

The wayback-background begins with two very understanding and supportive non-artsy parents that stocked their house full of every pencil, marker, and paint set imaginable. Jessica grew up knowing she wanted to do something art related for a living but had no idea what graphic design was until Sophomore year of college. She took an intro course and was hooked. Design was satisfying in a completely different way than fine art—everything was like a puzzle you had to solve. As a nineteen-year-old from Nowheresville, Pennsylvania who lived a relatively charmed existence, she didn’t feel like she had much to “express” yet. Being able to think and execute artwork on the behalf of others—to address their needs rather than her own—was a giant “Eureka!” moment.

The unfamiliar way of life was so exhilarating. The museums and galleries, the burgeoning art mecca in Brooklyn, everything was just a subway ride away. I was eager to begin anew with my husband who was helping me recover my health. I embraced life without the burden of my family’s traditional values. This journey brought me great friendships, experiences working at a major art gallery in Chelsea and managing an artist’s studio. I eventually opened my own gallery in upstate New York where I collaborated with artists and curators to bring exhibitions featuring local artists and contemporary art focused on current issues. I also managed a public art festival for a local arts organization to cultivate and facilitate community engagement. Along the way, I discovered who I am and continued to develop my own

Baruch atah Adonai, noten ha’torah,” I passionately chanted before the congregation of Beth Shalom. The utterance of those five Hebrew words concluded my first aliyot; according to Rabbi Kosman, I was now a full-fledged man. No longer would I be sidelined to the kids’ table at family events or constrained by the ten o’clock lights-out policy. Rather, I would enjoy all the benefits that accompanied adulthood: R-rated movies, the occasional sip of wine at the dinner table, and access to my personal finances. Still prone to the sweat stains, voice cracks, and general awkwardness that came with being thirteen, I, unfortunately, remained a naïve, boy with much more emotional maturation-and physical growth- ahead. Four years later, I recognize the experience that truly catalyzed my transition into adulthood: the painting of a mural.

Kara Walker was born to Gwen and Larry Walker on the 26th of November, 1969. They, at the time of Kara’s birth, lived in Stockington, California with their two children Dana and Larry Jr. Gwen worked as an administrative assistant and Larry was a professor of arts at the University of the Pacific in Stockington; he taught a wide variety of studio classes while he worked there and often brought his projects home with him. Kara and her siblings all remember sitting upon his lap while he worked; Kara in particular has said in an interview with her father that “You [Larry Walker] held me and kept me around. There was a feeling of safety associated with making stuff and I got a good vibe from doing drawings” (“Kara Walker & Larry Walker”). Her mother and father also made it a point of taking their children to museums and art galleries throughout their childhood; Larry additionally allowed his children to come with him when he delivered artworks to various exhibits.

The graphic novel Blankets, by Craig Thompson, is an emotionally charged and painfully truthful account of the author’s life as he grew from a young child through the stages of adolescence to young adulthood. Thompson’s account of his life events represents many developmental theories and philosophies. Bronfenbrenner’s theory of systems, Vygotsky’s social development theory, Marcia’s theory of the identity, Arnett’s theory of emerging adulthood, and Kraft’s theory of the family system are all seen throughout Craig’s life.

In her graphic memoir Fun Home, Alison Bechdel tells the interweaving stories of her upbringing, her father’s life and death, and her own journey to come to terms with her sexuality. Bechdel tells these stories in a largely nonlinear fashion, arranging scenes by common theme rather than chronologicity. The only exception to this rule is chapter six, “The Ideal Husband”. This chapter recounts the summer of Bechdel’s fourteenth birthday, during which a number of milestones occur. By abandoning her preferred method of story-telling, Bechdel exposes the similarities between these events and also demonstrates the profound impact these events had on the course of her life.

The two works of art that I have chosen to analyze are 1) Jordan Casteel. Miles and JoJo. 2014. Oil on canvas, 54” x 72” and 2) Aaron Fowler. He Was. 2015. Mixed media, 134” x 165” x 108”. The themes that these works of art represent in regards to the exhibit are love, family, and pain. However, they also fall into other thematic categories. The main theme that seems to apply to both “Miles and JoJo” and “He Was” is Human Experience. Additionally, these arts differ in some ways.

Poet Gwendolyn Brooks states, “Art Hurts. Art urges voyages - and it is easier to stay at home” which is true for many viewers when experiencing Bruce Nauman’s work. Nauman is classified as a contemporary American artist whose works also incorporate ideas of post-modernism and minimalism. He has been making art since the early 1960’s and has moved through many different mediums as his art progressed and his style changed. At first Nauman was a painter who soon ended that career and turned to sculpting, photography, film, and video. Bruce Nauman’s works of art have interested me and inspired my final assignment by his professional legacy, inspirations, and techniques.

Some people say Damien Hirst has learned a lot from Jeff Koons. Like Koons’s basketball in the aquarium, Hirst likes to suspend things in tanks, encase things, make them last forever. Hirst is a great craftsman and a natural showman as Koons does. But Koons’s works almost always dazzles and flares for the first impression. There's an incredibly intuitive and glamourous to his work even the works sometimes don’t get approval. For some point his work is complex and elusive in meaning, whereas Hirst stays with the unexpected explicitness

Because I had never planned what theme or style it was that I wanted to develop, i feared that i was never going to own one. Now, I believe it is inevitable to hide one’s style. One way or another, every deepest part of one transcends into a unique, beautiful creation. Unconsciously meaning to, the main themes I have explored throughout the progression of my art are masks and identity.