This years summer work I wanted to experiment with the "Babushka girl" by trying multiple mediums and deciding on which style I want to continue with in my future work.  What I really wanted to explore was what could be a symbol for refugees whether it be a pictograph or a embodied human representation of a refugee.  Although I am using an idea that I developed the past academic year I believe that I executed well but I do believe that I could have added more complexity to at least two of the pieces and that the composition of all three pieces could have been changed.  Besides that I am proud of my work and I am excited to begin work based fr

After receiving the feedback from my previous 2 weeks 1 work I knew that I had to break down the rigid structure that I instinctually build into my artwork.  So I began by scraping paint with a palate knife to create an abstract piece with a visual texture that would be able to carry the eye fluidly and easily.  I then covered the paint with glue to build multiple layers on top of each other, and then repeated.  Then once I had a layer of flue thick enough I started carving simple feather designs and short word phrases.  Once those were scratched in I rubbed paint into the cracks and then wiped the excess away.  Later I realized that the short word phrases were fairly hard to decipher so I outlined the individual letters to make it much more manageable to interpret.  From the feedback I received I was told that I should incorporate at least one illustration in this piece, in particular the morbid rabbit.  I am very proud of this piece and I wish to continue working in layers that combine the abstract and technical.

For my first 2 weeks 1 work I was inspired by my fellow classmate, Sara Oh, to incorporate original illustrations in my work.  To select which illustrations I was going to use I began brainstorming and doodling in my sketchbook and I decided that I would settle on a theme based on the morbid, a subject I am very accustomed to working with.  I settled on four separate illustrations that fit my subject of the ghastly.  The pride of these four was that of a decrepit rabbit who appears wild and red-eyed and in my opinion one of the best cartoon illustrations that I’ve have drawn thus far.  But I realize now from the feedback that I received, I unknowingly downgraded the quality of my work by arranging the drawings in a blocky-rigid structure that fails to carry the eye fluidly as well as failing to be aesthetically pleasing.

Following my first set of 10 works I decided to continue with building layers over that of newspaper cartoons.  But I did feel very rushed, and as a result I do not like the way that most of my pieces came out.  I believe that if I had received more time I could have produced something much more substantial.  Though, I was happy that this set of 10 gave me the continued inspiration that I needed to advance my skills at building multiple layers instead of keeping the work 2-dimensional.

For my first set of 10 works, I wanted to test my skill at layering since most of my previous works have usually been flat and have lacked texture.  So to begin, I started cutting out comic strips from the “funnies” section of newspapers, working on top of them.  For my subject matter I dove into my world of dark humor and cynicism, but soon I started looking for inspiration in old doodles from my sketchbook that coincided with my theme of the macabre. I have a multitude of images ranging from Mickey Mouse to a humorous ransom note.  I found these works a representation of myself as well as my personality, which can be humorous or sinister.  Through this process I have learned the aesthetic value of working in layers and it will most definitely be something that I want to continue with in the future.

Artist’s Statement

The idea behind my summer work was to create earthly, sculptural pieces came as my response to the growing concern over the environment and the impact we are making on it.  I used artificial moss as my link to the earth and providing another use of wine corks as my main link in between my works as well as its ability as a reusable material.  The combination of these two elements combines my artworks as well as my theme as a clear message, “repurpose and reuse.”  I also wanted to create an earthy quality to my pieces without losing any imagery of the corks; therefore, I used a mixture of grass, moss, and lichen to create a wood-like, nature essence that would capture and deliver my message to the viewer.

Intelligence

The creative challenge in my work was the attempt to repurpose wine corks into an ideal art piece while still having a specific meaning behind them.  While my pieces lack any specific techniques, they are purely driven by ideas and inspiration.  I decided to include earthly qualities and environmental tones in my works of art, for my motivation was to create an ideal representation of how I perceive nature.

Investment

I spent a good portion of my summer working on my art pieces, however I finished two weeks before school began.  Rather than apathy or poor time-management, the lack of available corks hindered reaching my goal of completion.

Difficulty

Rather than the process of creating my works, I struggled with the collection of materials,  for I ran out of corks multiple times, I had to stall and end up spending more time than I would have liked to.  I did,  gain an insight into the world of reusing and recycling common objects into pieces of artwork.  While I did enjoy creating my summer works, I would have preferred to stick to the macabre, grotesque, dark essences that I have included in my previous art pieces. 

Self-Assessment

If I was the instructor, I would give myself an “A” as a letter grade.  I put a lot of time and energy into my pieces and I believe that I did a very exemplary job.  I did decide to branch out from my comfort zone of the morbid and horrific to switch over to a more positive aspect of life and of art.