KEMst

2010-02-25T11:39:00.000-08:00

PLURALISM

In “Learning to Live with Pluralism”, we take a journey through the years of how art is viewed. Pluralism in art is a fundamental transformation of self consciousness with many different theories of interpretation. One way of understanding pluralism is that not one time period is “the” correct style of art, but all time periods have art forms that are valid.
There is no historically correct opinion - no one way of producing art has priority over another. There is no correct or incorrect art form. I agree with Andy Warhol’s statement in 1963: “How can you say one style is better than another? You ought to be able to be an Abstract Expressionist next week, or a Pop Artist, or a Realist without feeling that you have given up something.”
We have grown up in a time of freedom of style and medium. We are able to combine different concepts and incorporate them into new interpretations without justifying them.
Imagine if the great artists of the past were able to work in this type of environment what their art work would have been.

hers

2010-02-14T12:30:00.000-08:00

grind her wheels

2010-02-14T12:29:00.000-08:00

2010-02-10T12:13:00.000-08:00

After reading Clement Greenberg’s article, “Modernist Painting 1909”, I could understand his perspective of where the art would had come from and where it was headed. Greenberg stated that he had to simplify and exaggerate the rational of the modernist movement in art. He felt that modernism equaled the whole and what is truly alive in the culture (which I agree with).
Clement Greenberg also felt that modernism uses art to call attention to art, which is also very true today. Greenberg realized that modernism was not meant to break away from the past, but to unravel tradition. I feel that it is the changing of ideas, material and medium that keeps art interesting and challenging for both the viewer and the artist today.
Modernistic art makes all theoretical possibilities possible, with still having appreciation for the masters of the past, growing together and moving with culture.

2010-02-10T10:53:00.000-08:00

February 4, 2010

In the article “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction”, Walter Benjamin, (1892-1940), brings up many interesting observations during the early nineteen hundreds. He questions how the reproduction of art work will impact the public. His concern: Will the reproduction of art change the original intent of the artist if the masses, (some uneducated), view it? He questions whether it may make a difference if we view works of art in large groups, or if you can not trace the art work’s ownership.
Walter Benjamin realizes that early art work was used in rituals, and then also in religious worship. What he is concerned about in his article is if art is mass produced, will it lose these original intentions?
In film, Benjamin is concerned that we will not have enough time to study a frame, and the camera man will be determining what we should think instead of forming our own opinion of the framed picture.
For me, it is hard to understand why he feels the privileged should only be able to view art and original art as well. It is presumptuous to think that the uneducated can not see the same beauty or meaning in a work of art as the wealthy educated class. Another question he addresses is: Does mass producing of a piece of art cheapen the original work, or is there value in mass producing art works? Benjamin leans toward that it indeed cheapens the art works and is not therefore beneficial.
I think as a student it is valuable to see as much art as possible, and even if mass produced reproductions do have some flaws, (they may not have the exact scale, color and textures), if it was not for these reproductions, many people would not ever even experience what the artist had created. But, of-course, seeing as many of the original art works will leave you with no doubt as to what the piece really is.

2010-02-10T10:31:00.000-08:00

encased in glass, a large blue pixel is set in a white gold ring setting in a dark blue Tiffany jewery box challenging the viewer.

2009-12-05T08:08:00.001-08:00

2009-12-05T08:07:00.003-08:00

2009-12-05T08:07:00.001-08:00

2009-12-05T08:06:00.001-08:00

2009-12-05T08:02:00.001-08:00

2009-12-05T07:59:00.004-08:00

2009-12-05T07:59:00.003-08:00

2009-12-05T07:59:00.001-08:00

2009-12-05T07:58:00.000-08:00

2009-12-05T07:48:00.000-08:00

2009-12-01T05:37:00.001-08:00

2009-12-01T05:36:00.002-08:00

2009-12-01T05:36:00.001-08:00

2009-12-01T05:35:00.000-08:00

2009-12-01T05:25:00.000-08:00

2009-12-01T05:23:00.000-08:00

2009-10-25T10:34:00.000-07:00

2009-10-25T10:33:00.002-07:00

2009-10-25T10:33:00.001-07:00

2009-10-25T10:32:00.002-07:00

2009-10-25T10:32:00.001-07:00

2009-10-24T15:01:00.000-07:00

2009-10-24T14:57:00.002-07:00

2009-10-24T14:57:00.001-07:00

2009-10-24T14:56:00.004-07:00

2009-10-24T14:56:00.003-07:00

2009-10-24T14:56:00.001-07:00

2009-10-24T14:55:00.004-07:00

2009-10-24T14:55:00.003-07:00

2009-10-24T14:55:00.001-07:00

2009-10-19T10:49:00.000-07:00

There is a time in every man’s education when he arrives at the conviction that envy is ignorance; that imitation is suicide; that he must take himself for better for worse as his portion…
It is the harder because you will always find those who think they know what is your duty better than you know it. It is easy in the world to live after the world’s opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after our own; but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude.
A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds…
Ralph Waldo Emerson
“Self-Reliance”

2009-10-11T15:50:00.000-07:00

The Bourgeoisie:
Bourgeoisie, the middle class, came about as the result of the advancement of industry.
The middle class grows with the expanding market and consumer consumption. But
as the masses of laborers crowd the factory, they become slaves to the middle class and the middle class manufacturer. Now begins a new struggle for the bourgeoisie, with machinery increasing its productivity and needing less labor.
Communism:
-brings the common interests of the group
-interests of the movement as a whole
-abolition of private property
-no inheritance
-equal requirement of all to work
-free education for all children

2009-10-09T17:46:00.000-07:00

2009-10-09T14:17:00.001-07:00

2009-10-09T14:14:00.000-07:00

2009-10-09T05:57:00.002-07:00

Freud for Beginners
Liz Marchuk

On a visual journey of Freud’s life, the authors cleverly travel through Freud’s triumphs and failures. With complicated material, it is broken down to the level of a comic book. Whether you are a believer of these theories or not, you will be able to understand the thoughts of Freud during his long life time of work.
From theories on Hysteria to Self-Analysis, study of Dreams to Sexuality the book simplifies very complicated subject matter.
Freud for his time was very radical in his ideas and most certainly opened a vast area for exploration. Today his theories have been well studied and with much research some have been disproved.

2009-10-09T05:57:00.001-07:00

2009-10-09T05:56:00.002-07:00

2009-10-09T05:56:00.001-07:00

2009-10-09T05:55:00.004-07:00

2009-10-09T05:55:00.003-07:00

2009-10-09T05:55:00.001-07:00

2009-10-09T05:54:00.003-07:00

2009-10-09T05:54:00.001-07:00

2009-10-09T05:53:00.002-07:00

2009-10-09T05:53:00.001-07:00

2009-10-09T05:52:00.000-07:00

2009-10-02T14:19:00.000-07:00

2009-10-02T14:15:00.002-07:00

2009-10-02T14:15:00.001-07:00

2009-10-02T14:11:00.002-07:00

2009-10-02T14:11:00.001-07:00

2009-10-02T14:10:00.003-07:00

2009-10-02T14:10:00.001-07:00

2009-10-02T14:09:00.004-07:00

2009-10-02T14:09:00.003-07:00

2009-10-02T14:09:00.001-07:00

2009-10-02T14:07:00.001-07:00

The Uncanny

2009-09-27T12:09:00.000-07:00

Freud” The Uncanny”
In the story “Sand-man” written by Hoffman, a little boy is told that if he does not go to sleep the sand-man will come and take his eyes out. Several nights he observes his father and an eerie man doing experiments. One night the visitor sees him and his father has to come to his rescue or the visitor will remove the boy’s eyes. Several evenings latter the father is found dead, killed by an explosion. When he is older he buys a spy-glass and observes a silent and motionless young woman named Olympia and falls in love with her. He one days see her eyes being removed (she is really a doll or robot) and goes insane. After he recovers he is about to marry and then see the very same man who has removed Olympia’s eyes and goes once again insane and jumps to his death.
For Freud, being robbed of your eyes or some type of a frightening event from your childhood will lead you back to what is known and familiar. Freud feels that the fear of losing one’s sign is often a substitute for the dread of being castrated

2009-09-25T12:29:00.000-07:00

2009-09-18T10:01:00.000-07:00

Whitney Museum
September 17, 2009
Liz Marchuk
In Dan Graham’s ‘Triangular Solid with Circular Inserts v.e. 1989-2007’ we watched with amazement as we walked around the structure, our viewpoint changed. The glass felt as though it was moving in each panel. At one moment you were outside then you were looking in. The sculptor was beautiful in shape to look at yet felt eerie to interact with.

In one of the many Abstract paintings painted by Georga O’Keeffe, I was drawn to one which she used a wide range of blue. In the paintings upper 3rd was a series of arks that curved towards the top of the canvas. The uses of many shades of blue, blue-green, and white were blended. There was a feeling of movement almost like the sun rising. In the middle 3rd section of the painting it changed to a color pallet of deep purple-red- pink. There is a cloud like shape. In the lower 3rd the color pallet has changed back to blue. There is a large blob form that takes on a skin or flesh like fell. Now that being said, was it a life form or might it just be a landscape instead.

In Sadie Benning instillation ‘Play Pause’ she uses video projected on two simultaneous running screens. The information on the screens is wealth of years of fragmented figures and abstraction. The two screens appear to be unrelated to each other. One could be color dotes and the other childlike drawings. The experience reminds me of watching old film projected on a wall. The room is very dark and has just one bench forcing you to stand or sit on the floor making you feel as though you do not belong.

In Lucinda Childs’ instillation playing on the white museum wall, is a beautiful film of a small dancer. You are invited to watch a choreographed slice of her day. She floats across the stage with ease. The stark contrast between the large white wall and the black projected film with the little dancer is magic.

In Photo Conceptualism, I was interested in the study Adrian Piper did in a series of gelatin silver prints. ‘Food for the Spirit’ a series of self-portraits, she has photographed herself in different stages of undressing. The photos are mysterious with shades of gray, almost foggy in nature.

Whitney Museum

2009-09-18T09:55:00.000-07:00

2009-09-18T06:20:00.000-07:00

2009-09-16T10:48:00.001-07:00

2009-09-16T10:47:00.001-07:00

2009-09-16T10:46:00.000-07:00

Group 2

2009-09-16T10:45:00.000-07:00

External Inspiration

2009-09-14T15:33:00.000-07:00

External Sources
Using his insight Scott Grieger designs forms and symbols which are products of chance encounters of his day to day life. Grieger feels that one person in a corporation can assign values which can then change the thoughts of many. Using a well known brand of sneakers as an example, he observes a student’s behavioral changes after wearing the brand. He is disappointed by the students’ new persona. He is able to use external sources like this to inspire new work.
William Kentridge, like Scott Grieger is inspired by externally by his day to day life. Although his inspiration is a product of the emotionally charged country he is from, and its’ turmoil of social unrest.
Chris Ofili sometimes tries to reinvent the wheel. Sometimes using sexual references and often using animal dung in his paintings of well known subjects, he offends many groups of people. He swings between artistically correct and politically incorrect. His external inspiration is part hip-hop culture and using a little of everything out there. It is a patch work of materials and subjects that blend to a work of art.
Hubert Duprat is inspired by Historic precedents. He examines when history altering innovation happens. Looking back before cave paintings, he imagines cave people creating silhouettes of animals on the wall.
Thomas Joshua Cooper draws from both internal and external inspirational sources. Cooper photographs seascapes. He shots horizon images excluding the sky, amassing information on the geographic and climate.

Horsing Around - Movie

2009-09-08T16:37:00.000-07:00

- Horse Sculpture in Progress - Sept 2009

2009-09-08T11:28:00.001-07:00

2009-09-08T11:27:00.000-07:00

elm tree

2009-09-08T11:25:00.000-07:00

2009-09-07T07:20:00.000-07:00

Inspiration
A mysterious component of the Artistic process, inspiration or spark where does it come from? Inspiration can lead to exploration and then creativity can come from external sources around you or from internal pulse that emerge from inside of you.
Jan Harrison’s’ inspiration is not a prerequisite for initiating a work of art, it is her destination. Journeying into her deep imagination, traveling some fearsome places Harrison draws from this type of experience to create. Great advice from her interview,
Art is not a popularity contest
Try to witness yourself
Do not put people on a pedestal and do not put yourself on a pedestal
If you are true to yourself, you will be special in your own way.
Harrison has a connection to animal/human interface in art.
It relates to the human psyche.
She speaks in a language she calls “Animal Tongue”
Pipilotti Rist
Rist is inspirited by her emotional turmoil’s, frustrations, disappointments, disillusionments, and regrets. She re enacts these situations in instillation and videos, describing a failed relationship from her past. She often falls into the trap of what a perfect love would be only to be disappointed. She is a fane of Pippi Longstocking and Mother Nature, both influencing her work.
Now a mother and married, will the past still influence her work or will she find a new happy emotional state?
Julian La Verdiere
La Verdiere inspiration is a steady, continuous flow weither working on a creation or thinking of the next project. He believes in an inspired state of mind as a norm. Drawing from History, he explores people who have not been celebrated. He did a tribute in lights to the 9-11 World Trade Center Victims.

Real Beauty

2009-08-31T16:33:00.000-07:00

Beauty in the eyes of the beholder

Plato, The Allegory of the Cave

2009-08-31T16:22:00.000-07:00

Plato has written a conversation that takes place between Socrates and his brother Glaucon. It is about humans which have been denied knowledge and what becomes of them after they are exposed to it. I believe that man understands his reality by what he sees, as he is shown new truths, his reality is forced to change. When put back in the old reality which does he see? As you acquire new knowledge, and return to the old base, it is hard to convince the others as to what you now know as true.

Artist Statement

2009-08-31T16:21:00.000-07:00

My work is a study of the nature around me. I walk the thin line of reality and non-reality. I have learned more from my failures then my successes, so I journey each path with a large learning curve.
I feel most comfortable using materials from the earth. My most resent venture is wood, I am drawn to its ever surprising beauty. Trees standing alone or in a group provide so many things, from shelter to shade, fruit to oxygen. I have draw and photographed them, sculpted them from wire covered them with hand made paper, and gone as far as to cover one with tile. Now I have started to approach trees on a different level. I strip them of their covering and expose their inner beauty. I work from shapes that surround me in my everyday life. Shapes I know by heart, that I can see with my eyes closed. I want for you to be able to feel the beauty with your eyes closed and see the shapes that form my world.

First post

2009-08-27T16:10:00.000-07:00

First post