Mayssa @mayssamayssamayssa - Tumblr Blog

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Final Tumblr Portfolio Index

AUTOMOBILE

Estranged Bodies: Reference

Estranged Bodies: Process

Estranged Bodies: Final

Estranged Bodies: Organic

Estranged Bodies: Inorganic

De-Table-ization: Process

De-Table-ization: Final

Structuring the Body and Bodily Structures: Process

Structuring the Body and Bodily Structures: Final

Phantom Bodies: Reference

Phantom Bodies: Process

Phantom Bodies: Final

Readymade Bodies: Process

Readymade Bodies: Final

Final PDF Portfolio

50 Artists

Passages

#ART2701C #Final Index #Beginning Sculpture #Portfolio Index

Kara Walker 50 Artists Reupload

Here is an image of Kara Walker’s Art work. I presented on her but unfortunately the post I made about her got flagged so here is a single image of her work.

#ART2701C #Beginning Sculpture #50 Artists

“The Session” Ready-Made Bodies Final

With this project I got inspired by what was said about my previous project “Music Box”. I wanted to create another atmosphere using the furniture and light. I decided to go a different route and create an interactive piece. All of my previous pieces were controlled and always how I wanted them but I thought it would be interesting if I was able to make a piece that makes the audience change and control the experience. I made “The Session” based upon a therapy session. As someone who lives with Bipolar Disorder and had to be in and out of therapy I know the feeling of the environment changing when the conversation changes. I wanted to visualize that idea and make viewers come in and make noise or start a conversation to change the mood of the entire room. If I had more time and more resources I would make an actual room to give privacy to those who encounter the piece. I wanted to create a safe space or a way people can express emotion without feeling judged,

#ART2701C #Ready Made Bodies #The Session

Ready-Made Bodies Progression Photos

#ART2701C #Ready-Made Bodies #Beginning Sculpture

“Modern Renaissance” Final Photos, Video + Artist Statement

Link to video:

https://spark.adobe.com/video/uGOweRpsRuK2K

The idea of molding my hand reminded me of how Hellenistic and Italian Renaissance statues looked. The idea of being the ideal and being so beautiful and graceful had me thinking of how I can incorporate that into my piece. At first I was going to pay homage to great pieces like “Dorphoros” (Spearbearer) however, the mold did not come out as planned. I decided to make a satirical piece and idealize someone that would not traditionally be the “ideal”. I chose to model the piece after my Aunt in Panama, who is the most interesting, colorful person I know. Being around her there is always excitement (both good and bad). She paints her fridge, has long blingy nails, blingy jewelry, animal print exploded all over her home and she is constantly cleaning. I also decided to make this piece not mechanically sound as traditional fountains to show case that yes this person is not perfect but that is the beautiful part. I feel it will be easier to idealize my Aunt as a figure because in some instances she is one of many with a big personality. I changed my idea of the fountain due to mechanic issues such as the wall fountain backing not sticking full to the base of the ceramic, for materials I chose all “fake” items to construct this piece and some even say they did not notice it was fake. I wanted to create that illusion of being regal while showing the reality of it being fake.

#Phantom Bodies #ART2701C #Beginning Sculpture

“Modern Renaissance” Progression Photos

#Phantom Bodies #ART2701C #Beginning Sculpture #Progression shots

Experimenting with Reflection ft My mom #11-20

#Beginning Sculpture #ART2701C #Phantom Bodies #Reflections

Experimenting with Reflections ft My mom #1-10

#Beginning Sculpture #ART2701C #Phantom Bodies #Reflections

20 photos of Body Part Reflection Experiments & Reflection inspo

Inspiration:

Experiments:

For Phantom Bodies, will most likely will be playing with hands in project wanted to play with different angles (kinda hard with the small mirror lol)

#Phantom Bpdies #Beginning Sculpture #ART2701C

“Me Gritaron Negra” Metal Piece

Development shots

For my metal piece I knew I wanted to experiment with shadows and projection since those were pieces that involved light and shadow and I wanted to see what I could come up with. I got the idea of making frames that project when watching the Professor give a tutorial on different ways to manipulate the metal piece. I wanted to do a piece about identity and a problem that is still at times an issue I wanted to talk about Anti-Blackness in the Latinx community and how it develops into self hatred amongst Afro-Latinx. I come from a latin family that comes in all shades, hair types and colors, eye shapes but there would be some people on my mother’s side of the family would be offended when called “black” or being associated with “black”. Growing up throughout middle school and high school I became confused with my identity due to the feeling I had to choose one or the other or becoming forced into a category. At one point I completely detached myself from being “black” and associated it with negatives as well and tried to straighten my hair and avoid the sun to fit in and not be seen as a borderline of both. Especially since I was more influenced by my Hispanic mother’s side versus my African american father’s side. I was always not “Latina” enough because I did not look like the ones on TV and i was always not “black” enough because of embracing my mother’s culture (and features as well). High school I also dealt with dating Hispanic men who told me I could never meet their families because of how mad they would be that they brought a “negra” home and they wanted them to be with girls who looked like them not ones that looked like me. I have been followed around stores no matter how much I tried to align myself and had to “prove” myself that I am “Spanish” enough as well as been labelled as ghetto based upon how I look because of my hair, skin tone and facial features. I even became the “pass” for some people because I was not “too” black so I was “okay” to be around or to become associated with. It was not until I was a sophomore in college when I told myself I will accept both sides and accept I am both black and Latina and I am proud of being both. I started seeing more and more people that looked like me on social media platforms under “Afrolatina” and I embraced that title and I still do and I no longer carry the idea of :negra” as being a burden.

With the piece I gained inspiration from the poem “Me gritaron negra” which means they called me black by Afro-Peruvian composer, choreographer and activist Victoria Santa Cruz which describes the experience of being black and carrying it as something shame then growing up and becoming one with yourself and blackness. It is a beautiful poem and I remember coming across it and it always leaving an everlasting impression on and how strong it the piece made me feel.

As for the process of this piece I wanted to do the idea of framing and being boxed in this word. I left the piece standing weird and irregular in shape to show how confusing it was growing up and not being sure what your identity is and just being stuck in this label that you grew to hate. I wanted to project to be bigger than my body instead of projecting it onto my body because the word became bigger than be and it became me and no matter how much I denied it and tried to change I will always be black. I also included a collage of beauty ads that show women who follow Euro-centric beauty standards because that is what I saw growing up and that is what I thought what beauty was so it is a mix of ads from hair straightening as well as skin bleaching. On the other piece of cardboard I put on the piece I wrote “Don’t get to dark” and “Not black” repeating because that became a daily affirmation for me growing up and I kept trying to be the women in the collage instead of being myself. If I could change anything on the piece I would add more frames as well as more writing on it maybe even include my personal pictures growing up and seeing those changes to me now accepting who I am and what I look like. Due to illness I was unable to achieve those things but I would most likely revisit the piece in the future or make an extension of this piece.

Video of my piece:

#Beginning Sculpture #Structuring the Body and Bodily Structures #ART2701C #Me Gritaron Negra #Victoria Santa Cruz

1. In Advance of a Broken Arm, Marcel Duchamp, 1915

2. Bicycle Wheel , Marcel Duchamp 1913

3. Cadeau, Man Ray ,1921

#Presentation #Beginning Sculpture #ART2701C

De-tablization Final: Music Box

When starting this project I had difficulties on what can I make out of a table. My brain would automatically go straight into furniture but that would of course not fully become a sculpture piece. I decided to explore more what a table means to me. Tables I usually associate with family gatherings usually the typical eating around the dinner table with family where you would converse, laugh and bond while eating. I grew up in a toxic environment so I did not experience that perfect “Sunday Dinner” moment that I had seen on TV as well as experienced in other people’s homes. When I was upset or felt troubled I found comfort in my music boxes when I was younger and would constantly play with them to avoid or repress trauma that happened when I was younger. The music box would transport me into another world where I felt comfortable in my own avoidance. I was forced to find comfort in material objects and isolation instead of with family. I made it larger than a traditional music box as if to state how I am hiding my problems in this big beautiful box, all sides are decorated except for the back which shows how ugly and tangled with wires which reveals this truth of the situation and which can be seen by the viewer besides me covering it when playing the song. I decided to play swan lake but changed a few notes around to make it sound a bit off in it’s composition. I enjoyed how I was able to get different reactions from the song from it brought back triggers to outworldly to Shakespearean tragedy that was my main goal to evoke different emotions from the audience and I was glad to do that effectively, As for the song Swan Lake I do have a personal connection with it, growing up my mother put me in ballet to help me gain confidence at an early age it lasted for a short period before things throughout childhood got worse. I wanted to showcase the bittersweetness and pain that happened during that period in time. I found out this piece became a vent art piece because I ended up opening wounds that I thought healed with recovery. This piece can be treated as the end of that chapter.

Video: https://spark.adobe.com/video/zY7Wp7OkYmIRB

#ART2701C #Beginning Sculpture #Detablization Final Project #Personal #Artist Statement