Lecture: Marianne Dages

     Marianne Dages is a young artist who is definitely exploring her career and uses of media. She seemed like a very indecisive and unsure person that has finally found her knack-- which for her is book and print making. Marianne is definitely inspired by nature and landscape, as seen in her work. She has a unique style combining subject matter and textures in her books that is very interesting to me. I also liked to hear about her artist friends that are on their own journeys and leading their own lives. It's neat to see how different artists do their work and live throughout the world. Her one friend rode his bike across the country, while her other friends got married and share their studio and artistic projects with each other. All together, Marianne Dages proved to me that having a community of other artists and friends and just people in general can really pay off from inspiration to critiquing, and everyone should be able to be around other people-- especially when they're creating art.

WARNING!

     Warning! This sign was made in Adobe Illustrator and is true... if you touch my knees I may seriously injure or kill you. The point of this assignment was obviously to explore shapes and colors to get a message across very clearly. I am very satisfied with my warning sign and I think the elements like line and thickness and color are used very well.

Illustrator Homework

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All of these images were created in Adobe Illustrator and completely out of text. The box is representational, and the 'falling' word acts with its connotation. The rest of the images are abstract... one actually spelling out thoughts while the other is just jumbled letters of text.

Lecture #3: Candy Depew

     I am so glad I went to this lecture even though I dreaded it terribly that day because Candy Depew is an amazing artist. Her work ranges from porcelin cast objects to ceramics and vinyl prints that are just unique and personal to her. I was most impressed by Candy's themes and styles used in her installations. I like how she incorporates drips and the smooth glossy glazes used to cover the drips really make them stand out from the rest of her installation that is fabric or some other material. Besides the cool things that Candy does, she also has been to many amazing places that I would love to experience one day. She kept mentioning a Kohler Factory and her studio in Times Square that I'm sure both were places any artist dreams of. And the last thing about Candy Depew that really interested me was her understanding of apprenticeships and the way she teaches people in exchange for help with her shows. I think it's humble and a special quality someone has if they are seen as such great artists and professionals like Candy Depew, yet they still think that they learn from young emerging artists just as much as these amateurs learn from them.

Online Photo Copyright and Videos Response

     I cannot imagine what I would think if I were ever walking around and saw a picture of myself on a billboard. I would first be shocked, then either flattered or offended depending on the picture and what advertisement was used with my photo. But regardless if I liked the photo or not, I would feel violated. I don't think it's right for anyone, especially large companies that have billions of dollars, to take random photos of people and use them in their advertisements. Everyone has the right to know where their photo is going and who has that photo. Websites like Facebook and Flickr many people are accustomed to using... but should we all really be using them? As a Facebook user myself, I have no clue on the copyrighting issues of my pictures or anyone else's that are on Facebook. For all I know, someone may be using my photo in an advertisement somewhere else in the world. But if we think about it now, copyright issues aren't enough to stop people from using Facebook and these other websites because our lifestlyes have become so accustomed to them. (Some people are even addicted to these things!). These computer revolutions and enormous influences of technology in our lives is what truly scares me... but then stepping back to think about the series of events it almost seems logical and necessary to be a part of this all because it is what society requires of us if we want to be an active part of it.
     I know in this blog I am most likely rambling on about how confused and scared I am of technology and copyright issues online, but the reason is because I really have no opinion and am totally stuck in the middle of this. No one is telling us what's right to do in this situation and we are basically all just doing whatever we want on the internet because we either don't know what's right or just don't care because no one is stopping us. This leads me to think that the first issue in all of this is that there should be set rules and set statements that everyone is aware of before we had gotten into all of this rather than now where we are all too wrapped up in everything that we can't make changes.

Foundation Lecture #2: Peter Hanley

     From my first glance at Peter Hanley I already though he was an interesting character. I mean... he does have a mohawk and a nose ring. But besides his appearance, I felt a connection with him as an artist. Peter Hanley described his artistic journey at this lecture and how he goes so drastically from poetry to generating technical computer art and installations. I specifically liked Hanley because I could tell that his mind is in twenty different places at once just like mine. And the fact that he goes through these artistic phases I can also relate to because I like exploring new media in the same way as him. But even though Peter Hanley currently works with mostly computer art (which I will probably never understand or care enough about), I feel as if he is just like me and every other artist-- constantly searching for a new way of expression and a new skill to master. Hanley is also a very down-to-earth guy and has great talent especially for having no college art degree, and seems like a great person to be around and work with. I am definitely going to research his work and exhibitions, and hope to actually see one in person sometime soon.

Exploring Philadelphia!

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     Since I am now living in Philadelphia and will be for the next couple years of my life, exploring of the new scenery was definitely needed. For my adventure I took the subway (for the first time!) to South Street and then to City Hall. South Street is a great place to be-- full of vintage thrift stores and artsy shops that I've come to love dearly. South Street is also reassuring to me because it reminds me of the downtown section of where my family lives with its handmade crafts, cafes, and thrifty feel. My main reason for traveling to South Street was to finally see Magic Gardens. One of my friends had been there and fell in love with the place, so I really wanted to see it for myself. As I came up to Magic Gardens, I was already in awe at the use of materials and the structures of the walls and composition of mosiacs. I absolutely loved the outdoor part of Magic Gardens. The walls made by Isaiah Zagar of bottles and porcelin pottery were amazing. The structure of the garden also impressed me because Zagar was able to intertwine his style with nature as well as other environments with man made walls and tiles. So after wandering about South Street and the nearby neighborhoods filled with murals for a few hours, I got back on the subway and got off at the City Hall stop in hopes of seeing the New York-ish buildings and LOVE Park. On arriving, I really didn't want to see the LOVE sculpture or the wedding parties flocking around it, but I did thoroughly enjoy the fountain and people at the park mostly because I was exhausted and needed to relax in the shade with my feet in the water. I'd like to fall asleep one day just laying on that outer wall with my shoes off and a big hat over my face-- but I know this is pretty unlikely of me to do. Once I tired of the misty air, I wandered over to the large sculptures and nearby buildings of City Hall. The architecture is truly amazing here and it is a nice spot to just marvel at the work humans and machines are actually capable of. I ended up returning to the Temple campus later that evening ready to sleep but having to draw my dorm room. Kind of a bittersweet day, but definitely a great start to college life and living in the city of Philadelphia.