Upside Down

Last week in class we discussed how the class should be run, and the lack of discussion we've been having. I agree that there is way too little discussion. Personally for me it is hard to pay attention in an art class that is mainly about reading and discussing. I thought it was going to be an art class where we were learning to draw or paint, and not write about art. Also meeting once a week tends to put the class in the back of my mind as hard as I try to not let that happen. Blogging is also something very new to me and remembering to do that isn't very natural. For the art projects I think we came up with a good amount of expectations and a good rubric to follow and totally approve of us grading each other. I think this will get us to focus a little more. As far as drawing last week, I loved it. I got a kick out of realizing how hard it is to draw once you realize you're not just drawing a series of lines in a row of boxes. I actually loved the way my drawing turned out and so did my friends. I really do wish this was more of an interactive art class. It's hard to read this art book because it vaguely talks about artists and we are supposed to compare and contrast them based on a few paragraphs and it's boring. As much as I have a passion and intrigue to art I am finding it harder and harder to sink my teeth into this book. I really need to get back on track with the readings, but I am curious to know if anyone else is having this problem.

Life Sin Electricity

Our first and last art project was assigned last week to challenge us to go from dusk to dawn without electricity of any kind. Living in a world where everything is powered by electricity this seemed much more daunting than it actually was. I got all of my studying, texting, facebooking, and driving out of the way before the sun set. I stayed so busy and went on a long run to ensure that it would be easy to fall asleep. To be safe I lit a few candles I found around the house to give me some light to draw and read. Not only was my cozy room filled with the scent of autumn harvest and vanilla orchids, the romatically dim area inspired to draw freely. Sitting in such beautiful silence allowed me to doodle whatever images or thoughts popped into my head without the scrutiny of bright lights. I am all about some alone time but with the use of so much electricity this was really alone time. Time to be completely submerged in my own feelings, ideas and imagination. I had a great time and was shocked that I didn't just sleep for 12 hours. This project made me feel inspired enough to consider doing this more often with changing variables and posting the artwork, writings, etc. that I come up with during that time. I might have to use electricity just for music though because that would create a whole other experience that I feel would be incredibly healing and fruitful. For anyone who just slept the entire time I would really recommend trying to meditate or draw by candle light in the silence. You will be surprised what comes up when you silence everything around you.

Mad Love for Graffiti

The graffiti movie last week was rad! I love graffiti art and have a few friends that are artists out in LA. I think it's a magical thing to be able to color the black and while urban world we live in using something as simple as spray paint. The documentary we watched was fascinating. I have watched other documentaries that highlighted artists that were in this video. I loved the color schemes of the graffiti and the acceptance of it in Sao Paolo. I thought it was all so beautiful and truly "wall art". I am not as interested in just looking at tag artist work because writing a name over and over is so repetitive. Artists adopt characters and little stories with their work to cover up the blandness of broken down buildings and walls is much more impressive to me. I really wish in Southern California we were more tolerating of graffiti art, living in such a cement society. I view the world as a canvas and all who inhabit it should be free to color it however they choose, be it with architecture, music, billboards, or graffiti. I do not agree with vandalizing personal properties or places of authority and meant for privacy but the areas the public pays taxes on to keep running are technically "ours" so who is to say we cannot paint some life into it?