Michael Mady

EMU ARTS 290 Fall 2017

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Finalized Photos for Project 1: Time

Here are all of the finalized progress photos of Project 1. (81 photos, 81 days)

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Project Statement: Time

 This process for doing this project, in regard to the concept of time, was interesting to say the least. Beginning on September 28th, I began writing adjectives of how I was feeling every day until the very end of the semester, onto a grey t-shirt that I had pinned on top of a piece of black mounting board. Depending on my mood, I would match the color of the word to my mood for that specific day. After writing the adjective of my mood on the t-shirt each day, I also photographed the progress of this project to see the progression of the shirt getting filled with various adjectives. The process was difficult, due to the fact that sometimes, life would get in the way, and I would sometimes forget or run out of time to write the adjective for a day. Luckily, I remembered how I was feeling on the days that I missed. This project was a huge commitment, and I think I pulled it off quite well. In the end, I wanted this project to be a reflection of my semester and how I was feeling each day, and overall, I think it can serve as a daily journal and a reflection of what my first semester at Eastern was like. It will definitely be interesting looking back on this piece in the future, and thinking about what life was like as a college student.

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Post-Critique Response: Place

During the critique for our second to last project, place, I think that I received some great feedback, and I think that everyone enjoyed looking at it. I was extremely happy in regard to the way the end result turned out, as I spent quite a bit of time working on this watercolor painting, and with that, I think that my hard work showed. I was very happy to hear, from experienced watercolor painters, that my piece was excellent, especially for someone who is not a watercolor painter every single day. I also enjoyed he fact that I was able to tell everyone about how my piece is very much family-oriented, because the painting takes place in Greece, which is where my relatives are from. In regard to suggestions of improving my work for the future, I did not receive any, which I think is a good thing, because I was very proud of my work. My attention to the details in the piece are what really struck my attention, especially after looking at it hanging on the wall during the critique. My strengths in this piece were the details, especially on the harbor structure with all of the stones that were hand-drawn and painted over, and also the tree that is next to the harbor. The tree was the first thing I started painting, and I think it turned out excellent, even with the different values in both the trunk and leaves of the tree. I was very impressed with myself, and this may be my favorite project of the semester.

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Project 1: Post #11

More progress on project 1.

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Project 1: Post #10

More progress on project 1.

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Project 1: Post #9

More progress on project 1.

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Project Statement: Place

The concept of this project, place, has a lot of personal meaning to me. Being half Greek myself, I have always wanted to visit Greece and take in all of the beautiful scenery, such as the crystal blue ocean and the unique architecture. Last year, my mom took a trip with her sister to visit family in Greece, and while she was there, she took amazing pictures, including a landscape featuring the harbor in Nafpaktos, which is where my relatives are from. I decided to do this watercolor painting of the harbor, because it is a beautiful stone structure, and instead of painting the familiar blue-domed churches, I chose something different and unexpected. The process of creating this painting was relaxing and mellow, which is just what I needed, especially with finals coming up. The overall content of this piece relates more toward family, because my family is the most important thing in my life, and with being Greek, I felt that this painting was perfect. This painting is also unique, as I worked from a family reference photo, instead of a stock image from the Internet.

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Project 1: Post #8

More progress on project 1.

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Project 1: Post #7

More progress on project 1.

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Research Journal- Place: Post 5/5

1.)   Tom Uttech, “Nind Andaki from Wisconsin Sesquicentennial Portfolio,” 2011. Etching.

Link: http://www.mmoca.org/artontour/time-and-place/artwork/nind-andaki

Form: He showcases the wildlife that he enjoys and that inspires him in the North using etching.

Content: He gets his inspiration from nature and wildlife, and he illustrates his views from the wetlands of the North in Wisconsin.

Process: Etching and color adds a depth to the natural feel of this piece, in addition to the trees and animals depicted.

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Research Journal- Place: Post 4/5

1.)   Vincent Van Gogh, “The Starry Night, 1889, oil on canvas.

Link: https://www.moma.org/learn/moma_learning/vincent-van-gogh-the-starry-night-1889

Form: He uses oil paint to illustrate his beautiful views from his asylum room.

Content: He tells a story of what he sees in the wheat field every day when he wakes up. He also incorporates the sunrise in the piece as well.

Process: He paints with oils on a canvas using lines of paint instead of solid forms.

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Research Journal- Place: Post 3/5

1.)   Leonid Afremov, “The Bridges of Amsterdam,” Date unknown. Palette Knife Oil Painting on Canvas.

Link: https://afremov.com/THE-BRIDGES-OF-AMSTERDAM-PALETTE-KNIFE-Oil-Painting-On-Canvas-By-Leonid-Afremov-Size-30-x40.html

Form: He uses a palette knife and a variety of colors to showcase the liveliness of the city of Amsterdam.

Content: He loves travelling to Amsterdam, and he illustrates his experiences in the city with the bright lights and colors, and the textures from the paint and palette knife.

Process: A palette knife is used to give texture, and to blend the colors for a unique view of Amsterdam.

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Research Journal- Place: Post 2/5

1.)   Heidi Whitman, “Mental Map (49),” 2016, ink and gouache on paper.

Link: http://www.heidiwhitman.com/mental-maps/0wlhdie1mw52g3uya2whgjhzhe95ft

Form: She uses hand-cut paper, ink, and gouache to map out the mental place that she is in.

Content: She is interested in mental states of mind and she ultimately illustrates her mental place in this piece.

Process: She uses these hand-cut pieces of paper and uses them to layout a map of her mental state, along with using the ink and gouache.

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Research Journal- Place: Post 1/5

1.)   Keith Sharp, “Side,” 2015. Archival Pigment Print.

Link: https://www.keithsharp.net/projection-series/

Form: He uses a projection of natural landscape and projects it onto the side of a house to make it look authentic.

Content: He is trying to connect to his love of nature and his love for the natural world, which is why he projects the landscape image on the house.

Process: He simply uses an image of a natural landscape and projects the image on the side of a house to showcase his love for nature.

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Reading Response: Place

I think that, especially after reading this chapter, place is a really unique concept in art. I like the fact that it can both stand on its own as a single concept or theme, and it can also coincide with the concept of time as well. My favorite section of this reading was in regard to the fact that place has a sense of having value, both literally and emotionally. Places in a person’s world can occupy natural resources from its location, such as dirt, grass, and water, as mentioned in the reading. On a side note, I think that the concept of place is interesting, because the artist is not tied down to a single theme or idea; there are literally hundreds of ways to articulate the concept. I enjoyed the fact that, according to the reading, the concept or theme of place does not only have to be a literal place in the world; it can be a mental state of where the person is, was, or is striving to be in the future. The same thing can be said for a literal place as well; a person can investigate or showcase a place from their past, a place that they are currently in, or a place that they would like to be or go or live. Traveling is another big theme that coincides with place, because lots of people like to or would like to travel to different places around the country and around the world. Overall, the concept of place can be interpreted in many different and creative ways, and I think that this next project will be a lot of fun to begin.

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Post-Critique Response: Identity

Overall, I really enjoyed the concept of identity, and I enjoyed the process of making my piece. In regard to the strengths and weaknesses of my project, people seemed to have a positive attitude toward my piece, which was great to hear; I was ultimately going for a positive type of emotion, so I was glad that this came across to others. In regard to weaknesses, no one had anything to say, although there was a person who circled the emotion of stress during the critique. I suppose this could be a weakness, possibly in regard to the fact that the splatter effect was going everywhere instead of one direction, which can cause visual stress. There was not a list of things that I could improve on for this project, and overall, I love how it turned out, so I don’t think I would change anything about my piece. In the process of making this, I learned more Photoshop skills, especially in regard to tutorials about the brushes and layer masks to create the splatter photo effect. I would like to continue this project, but I think it would be confusing or difficult to continue, as I have showcased my identity efficiently. Maybe in the future, as I change, I can do another piece like this with a different portrait of how I would look then, and also use more photos of my life. Overall, this was by far my favorite project that we have done in Studio Concepts.

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Project Statement: Identity

In regard to the concept of identity and the process of making this piece, the experience was enjoyable. My piece is straight forward, as it is a hand-drawn pencil portrait that I scanned. I used Photoshop to increase its size and to create the watercolor paint splatter effect using paint brushes. Inside of the watercolor splatters are photos, drawings, and art pieces that I identify as parts of my identity and personality. There are photos of my family, my dogs, a drawing of my late Pappou (Greek for “grandpa”), and many other personal elements, such as my education. My family is emphasized, due to the fact that they’re the most important people in my life. I love being with my family, and I know that they will always have my back. Art is another element of my identity, which is why there are lots of colors in my piece. The watercolor splatter style can be seen a lot in my art pieces.

I also wanted some elements, such as my skull splatter piece, to act like an optical illusion, so that people take second glances to find pieces, and they are forced to look closely to see what is there. The content of my piece is a way to express my identity to those who don’t know me. We all have exterior qualities, but no one truly knows who you are until you open up, which is what I did in making this piece. The project has five framed pieces and will be hung to match my height with about 3 inch gaps in between (about 5’ 11”), which is another aspect of my identity.