Panic can’t last forever. By the time we had our second meeting, most of us had started to get a feel for things, and several of us had gone out to get books and magazines on the topic of art, marketing and art-related business, in addition to increasing our caffeine addictions.
The first decision we made was a theme. With so many artists working together, we knew we needed something to unify our show, something to make it look less like a collage from hell or kindergarten show-and-tell. After much discussion, emailing and occasional phone calls and chatting on AIM, we decided on “Level Orange”, based upon the then-current media frenzy with US “Terror Alert Levels”.
Following this, we sliced and diced the group up, determining (via whoever called a post first) who would see to press releases and advertising, catering, show postcards, making the artist statements look good, and any of the hundreds of other decisions that had to be made. We would go to meetings with the results of our work, and if there were multiple options (such as in the postcard department) choices were made by popular vote.
There were no real big arguments that I recollect; and when things did seem to get confusing, we went over what previous classes had done, bugged our advisors, the secretary for our department, or went to the books, reading everything we could.
Somehow… it came together. Press releases were made, postcards were sent out, the gallery space was setup, pieces were decided on in a nerve-wracking evening, and paintings were hung while sculptures were placed, and outside the gallery, our statements were lined up on a wall outside the gallery, explaining our work, and the show.
The most important thing I learned from that first show was to not panic. To divide and conquer, and if guidance was not present to find information myself from other sources such as the Internet and books, and to trust my own abilities in this regard. There is nothing wrong with not knowing something; things may be learned. The hard part is figuring stuff out when you have no idea where to start or what exactly you are looking for.
What goes into a show pt2
November 29, 2007 at 1:27 am (Creative Process)
Tags: Making a Show
A good cup of coffee
November 26, 2007 at 11:11 pm (Art, rambling)
Tags: Art, Cafes, coffee, David Lance Goines, espresso, works in progress
I spent a decent portion of today running around, and towards the end finally had time to get to work on some artwork again. This time? I’m working on a diptych that will be a watercolor piece done on Windpower Smooth Bristol, by Strathmore. It’s nice 90lb paper, and it holds up decently well to various abuses. The frame’s from wal-mart.
The subject of the painting is … coffee. Perhaps a sign that I spend too much time in coffee houses, I’ve become somewhat of a local coffee snob – or espresso snob, as the case may be. I know my favorite drink, and what it is supposed to taste like, and this is Not Bitter. I’m not sure why one of my local places has been pulling bitter shots, but that is how it has been, and most of the locals don’t know that this is Not Right. Anyway. Back to the painting. The top piece is heavily influenced a painting by David Lance Goines, which was done in 1980. The bottom? A coffee cup. Because I wanted to paint one. The finished work will be done in bold colors; sepias and other russet earthy tones, and most likely some navy blues.
Wierd Art Crimes
November 25, 2007 at 3:08 pm (news)
Tags: crime, wierd things
Strange things happen in the arts world. Hey, we’re artists, it goes with the territory. Sometimes the intersection between law and art isn’t that funny; the following articles make me cringe just a little.
Student Suspended for Drawing a Gun. Talk about a harsh critique!
6-year-old girl gets in trouble for drawing in chalk. PS. Chalking is a gateway to crime! Who knew the dangers of drawing with chalk (even on your own sidewalk)? I didn’t!
Free Rice
November 25, 2007 at 1:11 am (Other Sites)
Tags: freerice.com
Freerice.com is a site where you go, and donate rice to poor, starving and otherwise hungry folk. You do this not by giving them money, but by matching words and their definitions. It is fun, and easy, and helps people.
Snopes Article on Freerice.com
Dr.Sketchy’s anti-art school
November 24, 2007 at 1:52 pm (Other Sites)
Tags: Dr.Sketchy's
Dr. Sketchy’s is one of the more interesting ideas I’ve heard of this month. Mix life drawing and cabaret, and you end up with a great, and relaxed, atmosphere for adults to work on their art skills.
For my local friends, there’s also a Detroit Dr.Sketchy’s group!
Step back from the photocopier, and THINK.
November 23, 2007 at 4:11 pm (Creative Process)
Just because you can do something, and its cheap, doesn’t mean you should. When designing something, the cheapest solution, and the handiest one, isn’t necessarily the best, and poor materials and craftsmanship can give the wrong impression, especially if you are trying to get “taken seriously” as “a professional”.
Looks matter.
Saying you’re doing it for a certain “aesthetic” doesn’t work, especially when it’s obvious you are doing it because it is cheap, and you don’t want to put any effort into finding something better.
If you claim to be doing something for design reasoning… back it up. Don’t have visual presentation and content conflict with one another. You can have the most wonderful writing out there, but if it’s presented on crappy paper that tears if you look at it, with smeary ink and no one can read it, your content will not matter.
All papers and inks are not the same, and they can greatly impact visual presentation and appeal of the work in question, especially if it’s a magazine. Slick, glossy pages look nice, but overly shiny paper can be hard to read, especially if the ink is equally shiny. Newsprint is highly acidic and yellows and degrades with age. It’s not meant to last. Some inks also react to sunlight, with the colors fading or changing the longer they’re exposed. There are millions of different papers out there.
Everything you create says something about you, your values or the values you are trying to represent. Why give others the impression that you don’t give a damn about your product, your work, your creation? Cheap materials and poorly executed work can make the end result of even the best designs look like crap.
Step back. Use what time you have, and make your decisions wisely. Don’t just take the simple way out and think about how your materials and methods reflect on yourself. What do your choices say about you and the project at hand?
What is Art?
November 20, 2007 at 7:12 pm (Art History, rambling)
Tags: Dada
Dada. I love this ‘art/literature’ movement. Not that I can rightfully call it a movement, as it seems to me more of a creative panic attack in the face of what appeared to be a rather horrific future, and the thread of connection between the groups and members was not one of matching style, but was one of friendship. The people in Berlin, Paris and America knew each other, exchanging letters and occasionally visiting each other. But I will not say it was ever intended to be a movement or something glorified by such a title in the annals of art history. People have been trying to apply meaning to it, to shoe-horn it into a nice pigeonhole, but Dada, by its nature is un-pigeonholable. It wasn’t about doing things in this style or that, about being ‘cool’ or just randomly throwing a fit and calling it art, it was about questioning things and attacking the values of the current- and apparently non-viable (to the eyes of the young dadaists)- society. It was angry teenage and 20-or30-something art made by angry, intelligent young people who were not satisfied with the world they saw around them or the way how people accepted things merely based upon the labels given.
Is something art because I say it is? Because it has been placed in a context we associate art with, such as a gallery? Because it was made by a human? Because it managed to get into some textbook?
Bananagrams & the Zombie Question
November 18, 2007 at 11:48 am (rambling)
Tags: bananagrams, coffee, Play Time, watercolors, zombies
This morning I got out my bananagrams. I’d bought the game earlier this weekend on a whim. I like UpWords, Scrabble, and similar games, and this one comes in a banana-shaped bag. I also got out my watercolor kit, and proceeded to do a quick sketch painting of some of the tiles after dumping them from the bag, to get back into the swing of watercolors and see if I remembered how to do perspective.
I also asked the Zombie Fight question to more people. My own answer was a little drink parasol, and the answers given locally included:
A mini espresso filter, cutting board & tongs, a toilet plunger, a plastic drink glass, an industrial kitchen mixer, Bacardi 151, hot salsa, and fryer oil.
Zombie Attack
November 17, 2007 at 10:56 pm (Uncategorized)
Tags: Play Time, zombies
Play has long been known to be something that is important to people. In children, it helps us learn basics of many skills we’ll need as adults, and as adults, it can help boost creativity.
At work, and while painting, I try to keep a playful attitude about things, to help alleviate stress, and keep my mood up. Among the things I do are ask people weird questions.
Today’s question is:
If zombies were attacking, and you had to use something from your kitchen to defend yourself, what would you use?
Rules are thus: No Knives, No Guns. Otherwise, go with the First Thing you think up that is in your kitchen, no matter how silly it is.
Edit (11/19) I keep on asking random people this question. Answers are being kept track of. So far, Fryer oil is really popular. Toilet Plunger is my favorite, and the idea of using a lemon zester makes me cringe.
ANSWERS
Internet Folks
Ursula Vernon - “Tea Kettle”
arianaosborne - “Coffee carafe probably– it’s always full and hot, and would give me time to grab one of my butcher knives”Co-Workers
Toilet Plunger, drinking glass, hot salsa, throwing co-workers at the zombies, bacardi 151, hot fryer oil, scisors, the mixer, fire extinguisher, a table leg
