Conceptual Practices Journal

"Find some beautiful art and admire it, and realize that that was created by human beings just like you, no more human, no less." -Maya Angelou

[ashleyeconcepts]

The works of Daniel J. Martinez, Kara Walker & Barbara Kruger that inspired my "show".

[ashleyeconcepts]

Reflection

Overall I felt that this final project was interesting but more difficult than I was expecting it to be. Honestly... for most of the semester I thought we were going to be curating a show of our own work or maybe our classmates, so the fact that we had to choose 3 working artists was a surprise to me.

But I think that this project is a good way to understand how it may be to set up a show, which is a useful skill to have since hopefully, we will have our own shows some day or perhaps work in a gallery or museum showing the work of others.

I like my choice of artists and I believe that they're interesting, I enjoyed learning about Kara Walker and Daniel Martinez in class. Barbara Kruger I chose on a whim, but later remembered that I learned about her in my contemporary art class last semester. All of these people do what I hope to accomplish one day, create art with a message that awakens people to what's going on around them.

[ashleyeconcepts]

Ideas

Originally my idea was to curate this show around race issues in society, but during class someone brought up that it seemed exclusionary and someone else said I was being safe and predictable. I don't really agree with either of those since this is subjective, but I did switch my theme to "othering" in order to broaden my approach and to account for the change I made with one of my artists.

"By “othering”, we mean any action by which an individual or group becomes mentally classified in somebody’s mind as “not one of us”. Rather than always remembering that every person is a complex bundle of emotions, ideas, motivations, reflexes, priorities, and many other subtle aspects, it’s sometimes easier to dismiss them as being in some way less human, and less worthy of respect and dignity, than we are." -Source

Another suggestion I got was that I could use this as an opportunity to showcase a feminist artist, so I switched out Alesia Fisher for Barbara Kruger.

[ashleyeconcepts]

Curatorial Proposal

Theme: Othering

Title: Who Are “We”?

Artists:

Kara Walker (born 1969)

Daniel Joseph Martinez (born 1957, LA Based)

Barbara Kruger(born 1945)

Curatorial statement:  The process of “othering” is something that is ingrained in human nature. It starts on the playground when “we” won’t play with “them” and it is carried into adulthood and perpetuated through a vicious cycle. Disregarding an individual or group as being “outside” what is perceived as normal is disturbingly prevalent through history and is something that still occurs to this day. It ranges in form from a minor inconvenience to something extremely detrimental.

This show “Who Are ‘We’?” showcases the work of three artists that address the issue of being an “other” in their own unique voice. Kara Walker who is known for her silhouettes depicting scenes from the antebellum south as an absurd theater show, depicting stereotypes and caricatures of people in that time, but oddly enough are sentiments that are still (at times) attributed to modern day blacks as an excuse for othering. Daniel Joseph Martinez, who doesn’t consider himself an artist at all, but a self-titled “Tactical Media Strategist”; causes people to question how they benefit from or are controlled by political, social and economic power. The final artist is Barbara Kruger, a feminist artist known for her bold pieces that are usually photographic collages overlaid with text; her work usually addresses sexuality, the cultural construct of power and identity.

[uncle-tomfoolery]

On November 17, Columbia Law’s Black Law Student Association asked the school to wear all black in solidarity against police brutality. We held a luncheon for the Saying Their Names Project, wherein we told the stories of the victims, who are too often painted as just statistics. 

[ashleyeconcepts]

Progression of my PSA poster. I created this in photoshop with a ton of layers at 300 dpi. I had trouble with the color correcting though because no matter how I adjusted the red or darker tones in this image the still printed way darker that I intended...I feel like perhaps I should have stuck with the gray in the end but...you know...hindsight is 20/20.

[ashleyeconcepts]

Research links for PSA poster

Here are some articles and a video that are related to the subject of my PSA poster. *Note: the Eric Garner video is graphic and I recommend skipping it if you’re uncomfortable with seeing someone die on camera (he suffocated due to the chokehold he was in)

Please, remember these are just recent cases…unfortunately the disregard and taking of black lives in our country is historic and extensive. This act of violence also isn’t committed solely by police...and black women are at risk to be targets as well.

Eric’s Death at the hands of the NYPD (video)

Medical Examiner rules Eric Garner’s death a homicide

Why Does the St. Louis PD keep changing their story?

Why Vonderrit Myers matters

Amadou Diallo

Jordan Davis: Florida Teen Shot over loud music complaint

Another article about Jordan Davis

Eyewitness accounts about the Mike Brown shooting

Trayvon Martin shooting: Fast Facts

Black Lives Matter!

[luvallstuff]

The thing that’s so disgusting about the murders of Trayvon Martin, Mike Brown, Sean Bell etc (a very long list) is that it’s not like we’re trying to figure out who killed them. We know perfectly well. We’re just trying to figure out if that black kid deserved to die. Their humanity is put on trial, like being a person wasn’t enough. Black people literally have to prove that we’re worthy of living.

[ashleyeconcepts]

Readings

Choosing A Mission: This chapter really got me thinking about what I want to do and where I want to go with my art....more accurately it got me re-evaluating some things about the content I create. I was always happy just creating things I found interesting or visually appealing and sometimes things that reflected the chaos of emotions I deal with, but recently I began feeling that my work is empty and reading about how every artist chooses a mission whether by choice or in rebellion to things in their day to day lives got me thinking how can I create work with a stronger message that doesn't simply relate to myself and how can I possibly help others? I don't expect all my work to answer these questions or address every issue...but I feel that being aware trying to consciously work towards a mission(s) is a good start. Joseph David Martinez: His work was visually engaging and thought provoking in so many ways. While some of his work was subtle in its presentation it still spoke volumes on the issues he was bringing awareness to. I enjoyed his work that dragged the viewer into the piece, like the work he did at Cornell or the signs he posted up around Seattle...or even the badges he made at the Whitney museum because they brought a real tangible awareness to people about things like privilege or racism...they sought to cause the viewer to acknowledge things that they passively engaged in, in their day to day lives. However, the images of extreme violence and gore, while I understood them were too much for me. I'm not a fan of blatant exposure to violence and I know that seems odd given our culture today, but I still get really uncomfortable and squeamish about that sort of thing...even when I know the context and reason behind it.

[geofflichy]

[thenazzaro]

My NRA series I made in response to the press conference held by Wayne LaPierre. Two of these pieces will be on display at the Society of Illustrators museum in NYC from May 15th to June 5th. Very excited and happy to have won placement in their student show exhibition. 

[Facebook/Etsy/Twitter]

[robotcosmonaut]

Don’t Mix ‘Em

[ashleyeconcepts]

Ideas for a Topic

While brainstorming during class I came up with a bunch of things that make me angry with society, think about or that I feel strongly about and have caused tension between me and the people I know at times:

Police militarization & disregard for black lives

Civil Forfeiture

Agribusiness (Monsato, especially)

Feeling Powerless and apathetic about government/voting…etc

Environmental issues

Net Neutrality

Quality of Life

Wars

The cost and options for paying for higher education

…etc. I think a lot.

[krothroc]

[ashleyeconcepts]

Everyone looks so dope :)

[ashleyeconcepts]

Reflection

I really enjoyed all my classmates performances in this project. It was great seeing how we all interacted with each other while also maintaining our individual fantasies.

I had fun in my group and both Ryans made it easier for me to be up there since they were so active and balanced out how stationary and calm I was. Also, they made me laugh which helped me relax a little…I was thankful for that because I was uber anxious about being up there. Their movements allowed me to work with and through my shyness.

[ashleyeconcepts]

The inspiration for my fantasy/performance costume was Aaliyah. She was a huge influence on me from the time I was very young until her untimely death 2001. She was the reason I never let my mom cut my hair and made me feel like even though I was a tomboy I could still be cute and girly. And even though she's been gone for 13 years her music and style still have a place in my life even though I've grown and changed so much. I basically had a chance to revisit and be a part of the 90's that I was too young to remember completely but still longed to be part of.

[ashleyeconcepts]

The Mint Musuem Randolph was a great experience. That was the first time I had seen and ancient Meso-American art in person and not in a book or documentary. It was really awesome to see. I love the textiles from the 17th-19th century it's insane that people used to dress like that and that it was mostly handmade. The African art was interesting too, it was all really familiar to me though because I grew up seeing items like that family members homes and in museums on class trips.