Virtual Sketchbooks

Art Appreciation with Marta

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Documentation of “the big idea”

For this art project, I decided to combine the skill of painting and the skill of sewing. This is because I wanted to challenge myself with skills that I have never tried before, and to force myself to be creative. I really like abstract art, and it was my favorite section to learn about during this semester, so I decided to make an abstract painting and mix it with something real in life. The work consists of an abstract background that has pastel colors with three different shades of pink, and the subject is the outline of a flower that is budding. The materials I used were a 9inX12in canvas, acrylic paint, a flat brush, a N.16 rounded end needle, a black string, and a flower outline sample. Firstly, I painted the background with some abstract shapes and different shades of pink and violet. After the paint dried, I chose a flower outline from online, and I traced it on the canvas. Then, I used the needle to make tiny holes in the canvas following the outline of the flower, and then I started sewing (this process tricked me at the beginning because I did not know how to make a continuous line with the string; then I realized that in order to sew a continuous line I needed to put the string back and forward each hole, and going through a hole 2 times). Even though this project is easy, it requires a lot of determination, patience, and creativity. For instance, it took me 3 hours to sew the entire flower. 

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“The Big Idea”

Title: “Abstract Life”

Meaning:

I entitled this work of art “Abstract Life.” This painting represents the perfect life, where the life of the flower symbolizes joy, peace, and pleasure. The the color pink signifies a loyal love that will last forever; the coral pink represents happiness and gracefulness; and the pastel violet means royalty and symbolizes elegance and admiration. I call this abstract life because it is not something real, the life we live in is completely the opposite. This is a message that we need peace in the world and not war. 

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ART PROJECT

(abstract, non-representational artwork)

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WRITING, THINKING AND LOOKING CRITICALLY

How did Jackson Pollock go from studying with Thomas Hart Benton and using abstract imagery in his paintings to removing all imagery in his famous “drip” paintings? 

Jackson Pollock was a very famous painter, and he was well known for his “drip paintings.” This technique was all about pouring the paint, making the paint drip, and splash it on the canvas. Pollock went from studying with Thomas Hart Benton and using abstract imagery in his painting to removing all imaginary in his paintings. This is because he wanted to express his feelings in his own way without any restrictions. In order for him to feel good, he would show his feelings through paint splashes, lines, and the use of different colors rather than illustrating his feelings. He was a direct painter, and he never wanted to base his works of art on drawing or color sketches. In his paintings I can see a lot of chaos, and at the same time a lack of harmony and lack of structural organization. Therefore, this reflects all the feelings and moods of Pollock that he would put in every painting. He was able to transfer the chaos and all the feelings like anger and happiness that were in his head into the canvas. In conclusion, he started making paintings with no imaginary and using the drip technique to fully express his feeling and be straight forward. This was his own way to let out his emotions.

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Ringling Museum

(Attendance Proof)

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VISUAL ANALYSIS

The work of art Narcissus from Gerard Van Kuijl is an oil on canvas painting. The dimensions of the painting are about 4.8 feet width and about 3.7 feet hight, so it is relatively big, and it looks bigger in person. The main subject in the painting is a man that is looking at his reflection in the water. He has brown curly hair, and he has a serious face with blushing cheeks. The guy is covered with a red mantel, and he is only wearing light brown sandals. 

The artist use a lot of dark colors in the background to represent the forest, and the few vibrant colors that he used are red, pastel blue, and a light warm pink. The bright red is used to represent the mantel and it can signify all the emotions of the guy, such as passion, love, anger, and vigor. The mantel has many lines with shadows and points of light, this is because the artist wanted to make it look very flattery with also harmony and rhythm. The body of the man is very brilliant and bright. Kuijl used circular patterns and high contrast on the body to make defined muscles, so that he could highlight the beauty and the masculinity of the man. On the top right corner, the artist painted a spot of sky, and It is the only colorful spot in the background. The artist used different shades of blue: from intense blue to pastel and lighter blue to blend the colors together. The color blue in this work of art can signify calm, peace, and trust. The overall painting has a lot of contrasts that have unity and variety, and there is a balance of emotions that go from anger to peace. Proportion is mainly emphasized in the body of the man; for instance, the hands, legs, feet, face, and arms are very proportionate to the unity of the painting. The contrast and the colors make the painting harmonic and unique. 

This painting makes me feel empathic towards the guy. I like how this painting makes me feel because I can really feel all the emotions that the man has. I can understand that the man has a sense of self pride, but at the same time he is not fully happy, and also he seems very exhausted of something that has happened to him. I feel like this because of the way he is looking at himself and how he is seated down. Another detail that makes me feel like this is his right hand on the chest that gives me a sense of rancor but at the same time of sadness.

Kuijl was a Dutch painter, and he was from Gorinchem which is a city in the Netherlands. He was famous because he made paintings that have similar styles of Caravaggio. Kuijl’s styles is very identifiable for its realism and for the use of the chiaroscuro technique, which is the use of shadow and light. Kuijl made this painting to represent the story of a Greek myth. The painting is about this beautiful man that is in love with himself. This happened after a nymph made some magic on him and made him fall in love with his own reflection, so that he was not able to love anyone else or anything else. Because the man was only caring about his beauty and loving himself, he then dies.

This art work is a mythological painting, and it is associated with the period of Renaissance and Baroque, and it was made about in 1645. It was then commissioned by John and Marble Ringling Museum of Art. This painting shows that this artist really liked Caravaggio’s style, and he decided to repurpose this painting in a similar style. From this painting, Kuijl is trying to say that it is not good to only think about yourself because it can lead to depression and not being able to love anyone else, and therefore being alone for the entire life. This message is very clear because I can see that the man in the painting is not happy and he looks lonely.

Overall, I chose this painting because when I saw it I immediately felt the pain that the guy has from his face expression. I also like the colors and the contrast that the artist used because they make the painting simple but at the same time with many emotions, and with a clear message.

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Photo/ Design

Interactive design is the process of designing interactive digital products, services, environments, and systems. Interaction design is also useful to create physical products, and exploring how a user will interact with it. The purpose of theses designs is to create products that allow the user to achieve their objectives in the best way possible. In addition, the interaction between a product and the user involves elements like aesthetic, motion, space, and sound.

TOP 5 INTERACTIVE DESIGNS ACCORDING TO MARTA

https://www.fern.team

https://earthmonth.redwoodempirewhiskey.com

https://www.joinviolet.com

https://decaturdan.com

https://www.danielsee.com/work

My favorite interactive design from the five above is the first one. I like the way this websites is structured because it has animations, illustrations, and storytelling. The website also offers many ways for people to interact. For instance, it includes horizontal scrolling, animated text, GIFs, and video backgrounds. In my opinion, a good interactive design has to be easy to navigate through; it has to be something that you can interact with and, at the same time, learn some new topics. In addition to that, i like when interactive designs that are able communicate feelings, and emotions, like the GIFs in the website I chose.

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Art project

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Connecting art to my world

“Color” is the effect to our eyes of light waves with different wavelengths and frequencies. Colors affect people directly by developing their thoughts, moods, actions, and even our health. In addition, every single color can affect people in a different way. For instance, the human brain associates warm colors, such as yellow, orange, and red, with a different range of feelings including comfort, passion, anger, and power. On the other hand, cool colors, like blue, green, and purple, have an opposite effect, creating a calming atmosphere. Colors change a lot my mood, and it also depends on what color prevail more in the environment I am in. For example, colors like yellow, orange, pink, peach, and lilac make me very happy, and this is because they are bright colors with high intensity. The brighter the color is, the more happy and optimistic it will make me feel. When i want to relax and want to feel calm, I turn on the lights with a color of light blue, green, or aqua. In conclusion, if I had to pick a color scheme in my life, I would pick the Analogous color scheme. This scheme is formed by paring one main color with the two colors directly next to it on the color wheel, and adding two additional colors that are found next to the two outside colors. Analogous structure are typically used to create a soft designs with less contrast.

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WRITING AND LOOKING

Pablo Picasso’s artwork, Guerninca, combines cubist structures with a monochrome color palette which makes the painting more realistic. Pablo balanced the composition by arrange the figures into three vertical groups moving left to right, while the center figures are stabilized within a large triangle of light. The artist used strong aspects, such as unity, repetition, and movement in the painting as a whole. These characteristics contribute to add action, proximity, and alignment in the composition.

(Chapter 6.2, Fig. 6.13)

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Journaling

PRINCIPLES OF DESIGNS:

1) Unity and Variety: they are characteristics that go well together even if they are considered opposites. Unity is the aspect something similar and consistent, or the state of being united as a whole. Meanwhile, variety is the use of different elements, something that is diverse. For example, my friends and I we are united because we work and help each other as a group, but in the group there is some variety because we are all different from each other with different opinions and personalities.

2) Balance: something in balance is something that is in equilibrium and stable, where there is an equal distribution of forces. We always tend to put everything in balance. Balance living means taking in consideration all the aspect of life. For instance relationships, work, fitness, health, and emotional well being. We all get very busy with work, school, and family responsibilities abilities from time to time, but making time for yourself is necessary so that you can keep up with your responsibilities abilities and have a balanced mindset.

3) Emphasis: to show that something is especially important and needs a special attention. Likewise, in art emphasis is used to highlight a specific area and draw our attention to that spot. For example, artists shows emphasis in their paintings, or drawings with lines, shape, texture, movement, contrast, etc.

4) Directional Forces: they are different ways or paths that an artist creates in the painting in order to lead our eyes through the composition. This creates interest and keeps the viewer engaged in the work. For instance , in the print Bullfight, Francisco Goya uses dramatic directional forces in order to emphasize the drama of the man and the bull. By doing this, he was ablo to create suspense.

5) Reception and Rhythm: the movement shown in a art work which helps the eye travel through the point of focus. For example, from the rhythm of a painting we can understand is the work is more relaxed and calm, or if it is more energetic and active.

6) Scale and Proportion: Scale refers the relative size of one object compared to another object. When we experience the scale of an artwork, we tend to compare its size to the size of our bodies. Proportion refers to the relative size of parts as a whole. We always think of proportions in terms of size relationship within the human body. For example, the photograph Cruzeiro do Sul, by Cildo Meireles, gives viewers a sense of its unique scale.

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SELF-PORTRAIT

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WRITING A SELF-PORTRAIT

Hello everyone, my name is Marta. I was born and raised in Italy, and I moved to the United States with my family four years ago. At first, it was difficult staying here in the US because there is a different culture and different language, but now I enjoy living here. I currently work in a Italian restaurant as a server, and I am learning a lot from this job. In my free time I like going to the gym, hanging out with friend, and relaxing at the beach under the sunset. I also like learning about art, giving my own opinion on art works and talk about it with my friends. When I look at art I always want to understand what the author’s purpose is, and what he/she wants to tell me through his/her works. What makes me unique is the fact that I always want to learn and discover new things, cultures, and places.

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ART AND WRITING

This painting is very important to me, it has been hanged in my room since I was 12 years old, and my dad painted it for me. The media used is oil paints on canvas. I think that this work of art is beautiful because it represents a spring day when flowers start growing on the trees. The pastel colors in this painting expresses joy and calm, and the flowers represent a happy life. When I look at it, I immediately get in a good mood, and it makes me happy.

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Christo and Jeanne-Claude 1979-2005 The Gates. Steel, vinyl, fabric; 7,503 gates 16’ tall, 23 miles.

WRITING AND RESEARCH

The picture was taken in Central Park, New York City.

The entire installation was completed with the blooming o9f 7,503 panels on February 12, 2005.

Christo and Jeanne-Claude got married in 1959.

The purpose of their works was to bring beauty and joy.

The orange gates in the picture encourage the visitors to explore the park, and take new paths through the park.

When I saw this picture for the first time, I immediately thought that I would like to visit the Gates in New York City. I like how in this picture there is the contrast between the cold weather and those warm orange panels, and this shows calm and joy together. Also, the flattering sheets give me a sense of freedom and peace. The way that I look at this image now did not change from the first time. After some research about the image and the authors, I can conclude that the authors’ purpose was to show freedom and happiness through these panels.