Ceramics has me whiped

I would have had this blog done by 5pm, but I was in the studio with 7 of my classmates, I swear! We were all working hard on the wheel or on our molds. I went to make some slip with Michael and Amanda. It came out fine, but we did not read in our notes until the end that we needed to add the floccualnt FIRST. Well, we added it last (with lost of water) and it still was quite clumpy. Ruth was there and gave us some reassurance, but we still had to sieve it more than usual I think to make it a good consistency. It was then a bit thick and I made an owl that was definitely way to heavy. I am going to keep it to test my glaze I think.

The week consisted of wheel, and finishing my mold, which was like having a 50 pound bag of clay lifted off my shoulders! I noticed the mood of the class shifted a bit as we all completed our molds. My mold, in six parts, is pretty successful. Thanks Patti for helping me through the pain of figuring out the puzzle pieces.

The critique was helpful to most of the class. I received some good feedback on my immigration idea for the wheel project. I imagined very simplistic forms that are used to hold water, food etc labeled with my country of heritage in blue willow. They would then be placed on a tray that says American...Or better yet, a table! That would be nice. Maybe the pieces should be labeled with slang identities instead like Guinea, spic, chink etc. Signifying that we are all foreigners deep down...straight to the home. Well, I wish I could have mentioned that last part to the rest of the class for some feedback. The idea of the measuring cups with the spices of different countries will work to. I need play on the wheel more to perfect my skills and run things by my classmates some more. I will be in the studio on Sunday from 9am-2pm. Hopefully I will resolve this project.

For some reason Blogger wont let me post an image. I will when It will let me! :)

Altermodern and The Margins

The exhibitions to these two titles are as modern as you can get. The margins questions the stigma attached to the word "ceramic". It is a show that simply answers with the idea that "It is not about the materials, it is what you do with it." The Margins exhibition questions weather or not some sculptures needed to be in ceramic medium at all which further raises the questions about the validity of the medium.

The Alter Modern exhibition at the Tate museum last year (2009) was a revolutionary exhibition that reached new ground. I feel that some people were making art in this capacity ten years prior, but they were just hitting the tip of the iceberg of a new art movement or manifesto. The eight segments the Nicholas Bourriaud (curator) defined were: borders, travel, exile, viatorization, docu-fiction, heterochronia, energy, archive.
Even though these "continents" as he calls them are clearly efined, I believe that some artists dable in these concepts as well within a single piece odf art. My friend John Freyer is a perfect example of this. His book and website: All My Life For Sale
or www.allmylifeforsale.com (as seen on my blog list of favorite sites) is a nice example of thi. John photographed each object that he has collected over the past 10 years and put them up on ebay. Each object is attached with a story which is quite personal. After each object was sold, he went on a log journey throughout the us interviewing and photographing his buyers. His identity as a photographer has been blurred. and his art was a piece that did not belong in a gallery, everyone could take part in and reached extreemley contemporary ideas. It was global, sentimental and travel based. It was a huge success.

PROGRESS!

Today was a very fulfilling day. After the kiln demo, I was determined to make my plaster mold. As scared as I was, I am glad I took the plunge. It is starting to come out pretty well and I think it will be a success. I worked very hard on getting those lines perpendicular and clean. I never sweated so much in my life making something with clay. It was pretty exhausting! I hope that we get to work on them a bit tomorrow after the presentations. The kiln did not get unloaded because it took SOOOO long for it to cool down from 500 degrees to 200 degrees. Basically, I couldn't wait and hope to unload it tomorrow morning first thing before class. P.s. Made my celedon glaze too!

Location, Location, Location

It's not about the location, it is what you do with it...It is not about the location, it is how people interact daily with it (or at all). When making art in a location one must have a relationship with the space, then see how others interact with it. I am still feeling out how my location that I chose works with the art I am making. I want to make a piece that is worth viewing. I am actually very excited for Monday's crit, except it will be very hard to have people understand the location purely from video and pictures. We'll see what happens.

Miwn Kwon's Introduction to her book was a little difficult to read. The formatting was messed up, yes, but her sentences were extraordinarily too long. I wound up writing notes on the side of the article and looking up words like "agglomeration" (which means an action or process of collecting in a mass with objects from other places - not the same objects) to better understand the article. Overall it was a good read.

The discussion we had in class about Tilted Arc by Richard Sera was a good discussion. It really made me think about the absurdity of public art at times and how it can just piss off people while concepts can go over their heads. It was a very formalist sculpture that was perfectly placed for what is was meant to do, so was it successful? I think it was, but no one liked it so maybe not. I need to research more about what Richard Sera's reaction to it being torn down was.

Damien Hirst £50m Diamond Skull

An artists comes up with the idea of an art piece. The craft (and artistry) of this art is MORE respectable if the artist actually does it, no doubt. Maybe we generally just respect the artist LESS if he/she has a factory or assistant do it? Yet, in this day and age I believe people respect entrepreneurs and business minded people very much. It is a capitalist nation after all. I firmly believe hiring a firm or company to manufacture your work, or having an assistant to make your work for you only adds to the respect factor by viewers that was originally missing by the artist not actually fabricating the piece. We all love people who figure out how to be famous, make lots and lots of money and have people working for them. It is a status issue as well..


This video was saying that Hirst was making a comment about money and art and how ridiculous extremely expensive art and art making is. If that is what you get out of it, then fine. Is it a great piece of art? I believe it is because it gets so much attention, everyone can relate to it in some way; everyone has a skull, which reminds all of us of our mortality, and everyone understands the power of money. It also receives so much attention and raises so many questions that do not have answers which keeps it an active piece even currently. It was made when the stock market was raging and there was a lot of money in the arts.

Art teaching examples

The sketches have begun

I went to Kingston Point today to make a mock up of what I'd like to be doing. Of course it was high tide and i couldn't work too much o the beach, but it was good to see and photograph. Things have changed a bit. My mind and ideas are still a bit "muddy" (no pun intended) and so I am not going to say much...but... Yes, that is a doily from a dollar store. Imagine a smaller one on a 15 more piles...in porcelain clay.

A place in question

The first project...here we go...

Our first project has to involve multiple objects made of clay outside of the gallery setting.

Which way do I go? Do I start with what I am passionate about, what I can make well, what concepts are strongest...? All I know is that this mini beach filled withbroken pieces of brick was calling my name. Maybe it is an art piece unto itself, but I would like to acknowledge that and emphasize that in a way that honors it. Not an easy task. I have to admit I watched some Andy Goldsworthy videos on Youtube to get inspired (cop out!) but I needed something. This is a new way of thinking for me. I started thinking about what the bricks represented and how the Hudson river was in a way reclaiming their existence. It has a sligt apocaliptic feel about it. How to I emphasise this energy? I am thinking of adding an element that is completely civilized that has a touch of "human" in it - like the brick has. I am thinking porcelain teacups imprinted with fancy lace. Teacups have multiple meanings; civilization, Brittish colonization, and since this is on the coast line BP oil possibly. I thought of displaying them high like on skyscrapers made of this decrepit water worn brick. When the tide comes in, it may knock them down or create an island motif. I would videotape the tide coming in if it is during the day. I was thinking of 15 different skyscrapers (or island shapes) that each follow the coastline. My back-up idea is making 12" driftwood pieces (with the same lace imprinting on them) and scattering them across the bricks and see who takes them home in a few months. Tomorrow is the first idea crit. Lets see what they think.

Some art photography examples

Starting to get inspired...or intmidated...

This site looks pretty nice. There isn't anything "outside of a gallery" like we are supposed to be thinking, but still some good stuff.

Introduction to my Past

This is the summer that I regress. Clay has always been my first love; I abandoned it 20 years ago. As a girl of paper photos and poetic analysis, I am not sure how to make my new, more mature thoughts work in mud. The first assignment has me stumped. Thinking that my thoughts are trite and "done before" (which I hate more than anything) keeps me from even sketching my ideas. Not good! Patti (our Professor) says I should write down what I know I have tendencies to do artistically such as political feminine issues, children or fairy tales. I suppose I should try to avoid all or some of those angles. I am sure there are more propensities I am forgetting. Maybe if I just pick one to focus on. I need a night to sleep on it. Ideas due in 3 days. Oi. I have some visions in my head, yet some are getting stuck and I can't move beyond them. It is like they are haunting me saying: "resolve me..." like a puzzle! Obsessive art ideas...is this common? Hmmmm. I am ready for the challenge.