grand finale

i am very pleased with my work in senior studio. throughout this term, i've been able to produce 5 separate pieces that come together as two large compositions. in particular, i am very happy with the result of my cat piece. i feel like i accurately represented this animal while focusing on a theme of softness. i can't wait to see it hang in the gallery... i've decided to call it "plush". the entire piece will hang on a sheepskin, giving it a soft, fluffy feeling. i've also incorporated feathers and cotton balls to create the texture of my cat and her dreamcatcher-esque paws. while high school is almost over, i'm glad to say that my art is far from done. i plan to pursue this interest throughout my entire life. i can't wait to create as much as possible during my time at parsons. if it wasn't for the beaver art program, i doubt i'd be so certain of my life goals. this isn't to say that i definitely want to be an artist, but i know that it will always be important to me. i am going to miss this classroom and environment, but it is time to move on. this is the end of one chapter and the beginning of another (so corny). i'm ready for this new era after four years of being an angsty high school student. i will always remember my art teachers from this school... roberts, burman, brooks. each has left a different yet positive impact on my work. during my childhood/middle school years, i only knew how to draw. as i leave beaver, i am proud to say that my art is an eclectic combination of mixed media and traditional fine arts. my drawing has expanded to sculpture, painting, collaging, brain vomit... i am so proud of what it's become and where it's going.

http://www.moma.org/visit/calendar/exhibitions/965

Marina Abramović:

The Artist Is Present

i'd like to go to ny for a weekend in the near future to see this exhibit.

critiquin'

this picture makes me laugh. i am so animated in my description while paula and maeve have stone cold glares. we work together well as a group, alex included. unfortunately, i have no photographs of my current piece but it's really coming together. so far i've done my cat's face, paws and arms. the cotton balls are identical to fur when they dry after being painted with watered down pastels. today, i began building the puppeteer part. it's just an abstract combination of wires and yarn. i really like that i'm not making my cat hold a mouse or a fish. that seems almost too obvious, i want the piece to be my own. i'm not trying to convey anything, i just love my cat and making mixed media artwork. i am excited to share my parsons experience with paula, we will help elizabeth kenny represent beaver in nyc.

alternative exhibitions & seven days in the art world

after looking through the alternative exhibit powerpoint again, i have a distinct favorite. i am already a fan of cai guo-qiang's explosion/bomb-esque pieces, but this one is even better:

this sculpture stays true to guo-qiang's experimentation with explosions. it seems as though the animals are all bursting from the ground and then smashing against the glass wall. i love the setup and size of animals used. this would never happen, yet he decided to keep the animals realistic. everything about this is so imaginative and outside of the box. i would love to see this piece in person. i wonder how it would look while walking underneath. the animals almost form a bridge which eventually leads to a fragile wall. the shape in which these animals are traveling makes me think of a cow jumping over the moon. i love it, i love it, i love it. i hope to someday make an enormous, powerful sculpture like this one. cai guo-qiang is not afraid of anything, therefore his art is always innovative and unconventional. this particular piece relates to my current project in senior studio, though not very much. i'm creating a unique sculpture of my cat out of clay. the only real connection between the two is that i am working towards making a realistic animal too, yet mine will be extending from the wall instead of jumping across the room.

the excerpt from sarah thornton's "seven days in the art world" is incredibly relevant to me. i plan to attend art school, therefore the art world is going to be an important factor in my life from now on. i am excited to attend college critiques and eventually immerse myself in an art industry career. in this packet, the critiques seem to be very intense. all of the students, not just those presenting, take it seriously. thornton claims that it is not uncommon for a student to fall apart during a critique, to really take it personally. as i said in my previous post, i want to toughen my skin and take the criticism as an opportunity to better my work. william e. jones, a filmmaker discussed in this reading, sums this point up very well: "When artists are put on the spot, Jones feels, it helps them "develop thick skins and come to see criticism as rhetoric rather than personal attack."another aspect of this critique that i need to prepare myself for is time. while ours last week was short and sweet yet helpful, these are unbelievably involved and long lasting. i know that many of my foundations classes will require being in class for 6 hours, therefore i need to work on time management and my attention span. i cannot wait to experience the art world outside of high school. my visit to parsons this weekend was incredibly successful. i was able to walk through classrooms and dorms. i feel ready to move into the next phase of my life.... it's all happening!

crit-eeeek!

after our first not so critical critique, i feel very content with the future of my work. our group had thoughtful discussions regarding each person's progress. everybody said that my first piece with shia, wayne & marc, is incredibly random and should be split into two or three sections. shia is black and white with grayish/brown undertones whereas the other two have true to life skin tones. again, i only plan to hang lil' wayne, so i'm not too concerned about presenting this first piece. my second piece of my cat, mushkie, is coming along great. i've finished her face and paws so far. each claw has a long string of yarn attached. i plan to work on designing the yarn in an aesthetically pleasing way. i'd like to get some beads and different colored yarn to add variety. my group, alex, paula & maeve, helped me brainstorm ideas for the bottom of the yarn. i plan to make this piece almost like a puppet. i wasn't quite sure what to suspend. before the critique, i had several ideas such as attaching a canoe to the bottom of the yarn or a miniature sculpture of a person. after our discussion, i decided to continue with the water themed bottom. my peers suggested adding fish to the water because canoe & cat is a seemingly random combination. i hope that i am able to finish this piece in time to try something else before the end of class. this term is going by so quickly! i am really pleased with my critique group, as well. we are all artistically inclined therefore the feedback is more beneficial. i can't wait for parsons critiques with paula. i believe that i've improved at receiving critical feedback over the past year. it is hard to hear about the negative spots of my work, yet i've learned to incorporate the suggestions instead of brushing them off or taking offense. my peers aren't judging me as an artist, they're simply breaking down my work to help me improve.

sketchbook & surviving the critique

http://www.flickr.com/photos/carolynpenn/

even though i created my flickr for college applications, i continue to post my new sketchbook work. here are the two most recent uploads:

in the past, i've been less than enthusiastic during critiques. i find it hard to sit and listen to somebody break down my work. i want feedback, but i find myself offended when my artistic faults are pointed out. this week's reading had one particular quote that displayed the professor and student's "roles" in a critique setting. i am anticipating many harsh critiques at parsons, therefore this quote is relevant.

"The professor's job is to give useful criticism, to deconstruct the object and evaluate its parts with an eye to offering the student practical solutions to perceived deficiencies. The student's role is to distance himself enough from the work so that he can constructively participate in its demise."

i know that i will have to toughen my skin for art school and prepare to be broken down with every assignment. this packet reminds me of a teacher i had last summer at pratt. she taught my class industrial design for two weeks. one time, she assigned us to draw an inspiration board with a word that describes us. i chose imaginative and drew one of my elaborate, intricate, crazy detailed doodles. i was proud of the outcome. during a classroom critique, my teacher took one brief glance at my drawing. instead of complimenting my effort, she simply said, "hm, you should've used the word 'exuberant'" and then moved on to the next student. she is fulfilling her role as a professor while i need to take her opinion into account as the student. i never revised that particular piece because it was just a homework assignment, but i will always remember that one teacher. everybody respected her so much because she told the truth and nothing but the truth. i think that our class should split up into smaller groups for a critique. it's easier to have a discussion based critique when the groups aren't overwhelming. i can't wait to study at parsons. i'm going to new york for a visiting day this weekend! i will take lots of pictures and try to work from those.

art & fear

this is my first finished piece from senior studio. i used acrylic paints, pastels and pencils to create shia labeouf, lil' wayne and marc jacobs. the subjects seem very random, yet i wanted to include an inspirational actor, musician and designer. i'm pleased with the outcome. however, i only plan to hang wayne in the final exhibit. i think that his portrait came out the best; it really captures his essence.

-"Talent, if it is anything, is a gift, and nothing of the artist's own making. This idea is hardly new: Plato maintained that all art is a gift from the gods, channeled through artists who are "out of their mind"- quite literally, in Plato's view- when making art."

-"Art is human; error is human; ergo, art is error."

-"The place to learn about your materials is in the last use of your materials. The place to learn about your execution is in your execution. The best information about what you love is in your last contact with what you love. Put simply, your work is your guide: a complete, comprehensive, limitless reference book on your own work."

the third quote, taken from a section entitled 'expectations', is my favorite line in the entire packet. it suggests the idea of working up instead of clearing your slate and beginning something new. while experimenting is important, there will always be traces of past work in every piece. whether it be subject matter, materials, or even format, previous work allows an artist to grow into their own personal style. i love looking through my past sketchbooks and reminiscing. even though the work may seem elementary, it is a place to start. it allows me to see the improvements i've made as an artist over the years.

my spring break was split between two exciting, inspiring places: new york city and puerto rico. over the break, i received my acceptance letter from the new school meaning i'll spend the next five years making art in manhattan. i can't even verbalize how excited i am. it feels unreal after waiting for so long... anyways, i began to brainstorm various project ideas, mostly in puerto rico. my family spent two nights at a quaint resort in the mountains of utado. i used lots of watercolors, painting the nature around me and filling in gaps with my usual gel pen designs. i hope to experiment with the sea in my future endeavors. the waves in particular are so beautiful, almost a splatter in the middle of a calm, relaxing environment. perhaps i'll try working with acrylics to recreate waves? i'd like to use some mixed media as well so it's not too cliche. right now, i'm working on a clay sculpture of my cat, mushkie. i think it will be a short, simple exercise with watered down pastels to represent her calico spots. tomorrow, during the double block, i want to work on a big, elaborate paper cut. even after many months, i still think about alexander demaria's work on a regular basis. it is so involved and detailed.. just my sort of thing. perhaps i'll do a little series of various paper cuts, different settings and objects? maybe i can incorporate the waves into this work somehow. i have a place to start and i'm just going to let my work flow from there.