Megan McClure Art Scholars Tumblr

This is my tmblr for my Art Scholars Colloqium I Class at the University of MD.

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Last Wednesday I attended a presentation entitled “Better Women, Better Sisters, Better Friends” with some of my sorority sisters. The purpose of the presentation was to encourage us to find new ways to connect with one another and come together as women. One of the activities the speaker had us do was to write down or draw things we liked about relationships we valued. We did so while sitting with a “new friend” in the room in order to test our new communication skills and to share things we valued in friendships. I really liked the speaker, she was lively, captivating, and her presentation was heartwarming and encouraging. After leaving, I called a few of my close friends to thank them for being there for me and supporting me unconditionally. It was one of the best events I’ve ever attended!

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Today, I went to see Dream Girls at Savoy theatre in London with my friends Zach and Abby! The vocals were fantastic, I was blown away by the power and stamina of all the actors on stage. I really enjoyed the glitz and glamor of the show, and since this was my first time seeing it, I was extremely engrossed in the plot. I left the theatre singing “we’re your dreeeam girls!” and couldn’t stop raving about all the talent in the performance. It was especially interesting seeing this play in London and considering how others in the audience were interpreting the show as it was set in America. Overall, the show was fantastic and I’m very grateful I got to enjoy it!

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Yesterday, I visited the National Gallery of Art in Central London! I got to see Van Gogh and Monet’s work in person for the first time, as well as the work of many other famous European artists. I noticed that there was a generally religious theme throughout most of the pieces, many of which were ordained with beautiful gold sculptural elements. There were also many hyperrealistic portraits of well-dressed men and women of the 17th century. My favorite section to visit was the room with the impressionist paintings, as that is one of my favorite styles of art. 

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Today, Tienne & I attended the School of Music Spring Showcase. This performance included a variety of types and styles of music, some of which I had never been exposed to before. There were some really beautiful classical piano, violin, and quartet pieces, as well as a swinging jazz number with an amazing vocalist. The pieces that stood out to me the most, however, were the ones that shocked me in their originality. A particular piece that I found extremely riveting was entitled “Caprice No. 24″ and was performed by violinist Antranik Melikseitan, a syrian musician. It was thrilling to experience, with many rhythm and mood changes, taking the listener on a journey with the piece. I also saw the violin played in a way I had never before witnessed, the violinist was simultaneously plucking and gliding the bow across the strings with such amazing speed and producing music that reminded me of that you would hear in a climactic movie scene. I really enjoyed this show and would definitely want to attend more events from the School of Music in the future.

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On Friday, January 26, I attended a performance of the new broadway musical “On Your Feet” at the Kennedy Center with my mom and sister! The show was a true story based on the lives of Gloria and Emilio Estefan, how they met and their struggles and journey to fame. It was witty, funny, captivating, and really did make you want to get on your feet and dance (which I did when one of the dancers came down the aisle and pulled me up to dance!). It was one of the best shows I’ve seen to date, the acting, dancing, and singing were astounding and despite it being set in the past touched on issues that are extraordinarily relevant today like immigration and race. I wish I could see it all over again. I’ve been raving about this show ever since I saw it!

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On Sunday I visited the Bethesda Art Festival which featured local artists in working with almost any media you could imagine! There was amazing glass work, pottery, clothing, wire art, photographs, paintings, and so much more! I even got to speak with a few of the artists about their work and what it meant. There were a few in particular whose works were aimed at social justice or took on political issues and were truly amazing to look at. One artist in particular (whose work I was not allowed to photograph) was aimed at problems with immigration and racism in the United States. The artist used “house”-like structures and filled them with figures that told a story. There was one depicting the horrors of the mexican border and another three-tiered house focused on racism and socio-economic status. The art I saw was truly inspiring and so amazingly diverse! There were some pieces I was in awe of -- I never would have thought that art could take such forms. Go local art!!

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Today, I attended a concert in close quarters featuring Jamieo Brown. He began by speaking to us about his goals as an artist and showed us on of his music videos. The video featured a song called “transcendence,” which was based around a “work song,” of recorded prisoners from the 50′s. The song has relevant historical undertones and hinted at the racial inequities still present in our society. While I did have to leave early to attend a class, I did get to see the majority of their first piece. It featured a soundtrack of what seemed to be an Asian woman singing, to which they played along and added their own bluesy/techno twist. It was unlike any other music I had heard before, as those genres had always seemed so distinctly separate to me. The saxist was really killin it during his solo! It was a very interesting group of performers. I don’t know if it’s necessarily the type of music I personally enjoy, but it was cool to have the opportunity to expose myself to more new genres.

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Today, I attended the ZTA sponsored aerie “Bright Pink” workshop. This presentation was centered on women’s health, specifically on breast and ovarian cancer prevention in young women. They handed out these notebooks and encouraged us to get familiar with our bodies, record observations, and draw diagrams to track abnormalities. Specifically, to draw representations of our breasts and to get to know the shape and size and be able to observe changes in our bodies. We also did a short meditation session before the presentation began where we did a physical, mental, intellectual, and spiritual check. The woman encouraged us to get to know our bodies and to make mental notes about issues that need fixing, and to come back to them later with a creative solution. For her, this meant doing yoga, for others, she suggested, it could be playing music, writing, or anything that involved artistic internal reflection. I found the presentation very informative and relevant to me as a young woman. I’m very glad I attended :)

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On Saturday, I attended the 2:00 performance of “Antigone.” In all honesty, I wasn’t sure what to expect, as the description of the show was very vague, and I was worried I wouldn’t be able to follow as it was an ancient play and I knew it would be spoken in older language. I was pleasantly surprised! The show was amazing and so unique in comparison to everything else I’d seen thus far. It was historical, philosophical, and gut-wrenching. Although it was written thousands of years ago, it is still politically relevant -- there was a central battle between the government and personal will. It was a beautiful love story with dark undertones, and was eloquently, symbolically performed. I was captivated throughout the entire piece. I will definitely be attending more shows at the Clarice!

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Over spring break I also saw Beauty and the Beast! I’m a huge Emma Watson fan (and also a fan of Beauty & the Beast Musical) so I couldn’t wait to see the movie magic bringing one of my favorite childhood fairytales to life! There were some added bits to the storyline, such as elaboration on Belle’s past and the tragic death of her mother. The music was fantastic, and I especially loved seeing tony award-winning Audra McDonald make and appearance as the wardrobe (love my theatre peeps!). Overall the film was a blast to watch and I left with “Bonjour” stuck in my head the whole ride home!

Side note: i forgot to take pictures in the theater, but luckily my boyfriend took a video of us walking out so hopefully that will suffice!!

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Tonight I attended a panel discussion at the Driskell Center on campus entitled “Shifting: African American Women and the Power of Their Gaze.” The five panelists that spoke covered a wide variety of material, from historical to modern day examples of black women in art and their representation and messages through the ages. They focused primarily on how the “gaze” shifted from that of a white man upon females as a whole, to females taking control of their own definitions of femininity and beauty. They gave many examples of works of art, some of which were displayed in the very room we sat in, and discussed the particular message of the artist and how it works toward progressively changing the standards of what “black women” are and can be. 

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Tonight I attended Concert in Close Quarters featuring Ahamefule Oluo and Soulchilde. It was really interesting to not only hear their unique sounds, but also to be able to interact with the band members and ask questions. All of the men seem really down to earth and genuinely enjoy performing and creating music together, which I found very inspiring. In all honesty, I am tempted to learn how to play piano now, as I’ve always wanted to write my own music but have never taken the initiative to do so. It’s wonderful to see how happy they are in their lives and I’m happy for their successes! Rock on Industrial Revelation!

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On Friday evening I drove back to my hometown (Germantown, MD) to see my high school’s production of “Fame.” I was involved in the theatre program for all four years of my high school career and it holds a sacred place in my heart. I came not only to watch, but to visit old friends and my director, as well as help out backstage. The production was absolutely fantastic, and there were plenty of new talented freshman, as well as upperclassmen who were trying their hand at performing arts. There was singing, dancing, and phenomenal acting, as is to be expected from NWHS Drama! I am so glad I got to see the program flourish after leaving. Being an alum was a little strange, I was itching so badly to go up there and perform! I will definitely be returning to help with the spring musical, “Sister Act”!

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Tonight my boyfriend and I attended the UMD Treblemakers / Generics fall concert. I am personally a huge fan of a cappella and have performed in a few groups in my high school years, and have a deep appreciation for unaccompanied singing. The trebs were absolutely fantastic, their harmonies were perfectly balanced and they seemed to be genuinely enjoying their time in the spotlight. I unfortunately didn’t get to stay for the entirety of the boy’s performance, but they were incredible as well. Go A Cappella!

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On Friday evening, I attended the Art Scholars Halloween Coffee House! I got a henna tattoo and got to see a variety of acts from stand up comedy to singing and piano-playing. My favorite piece was an impromptu duet of “All of me” by John Legend. It was overall an enjoyable experience and I’d really like to perform at the next one! 

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Today I attended the Sketchbook Journaling Coffee House in the Bel Air Lounge. I was really inspired to start my own journal, whether I use it to write about my day or an interesting experience or simply draw and de-stress, I think it will be a fantastic way to express myself in an artistic way. While I don’t yet have a journal, going to this session and discussing the importance of art in everyday life made me really want to begin one. My peers and I got to experiment with many different materials including pastels, watercolor, markers, colored pencils, and collaging. I’m really excited to begin my journaling journey!

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Bob Moyer, a UMD Graduate (class of 2000) came to speak to us about his work at Pixar, and specifically to show us his work on the award-winning animated film “Inside Out.” What’s most inspiring to me about his story is that he created his own major (computer graphics) at UMD so that he could follow his dream and he now works for Pixar! It was so cool to get a behind the scenes look at just how hard these people work to make a 1.5 hour film. The details are absolutely incredible, he showed us how for just one character (Joy) they spent nearly a year perfecting her “effervescent” skin and hair, and making her into a glowing light source. It was absolutely fascinating to see the beginning sketches and compare it to the final results.