artist essay #4...mike kelley

Mike Kelley has an extremely strange style and a wide variety of art work. He focuses on pieces that include stuffed animals and also performance art. On ART:21 they showed the filming of one of his performance arts pieces that was inspired by a high school yearbook. The stuffed animals don't have anything to do with him having a bad childhood, he just enjoys using them as a media in his art works.

artist essay #3...sally mann

Sally Mann is a photographer who is notorious for taking photographs of her children while they are nude. While she is not taking any pornographic photography, it is still easy to find some of the photographs offensive. She claims that when she was a child, it was normal to run around playing without any clothes on, and so she thought that it was perfectly fine that her children weren't wearing clothes, and she was just photographing them playing. The thing I liked the most about Sally Mann was that she said she did photography just for fun and she didn't have to have a reason.

artist essay #2...andrea zittel

Andrea Zittel is an artist that used to breed animals and found that they have everything they need in a very small space, and this is what influenced her to create these pieces. She worked to create her own space where she could have everything she needed in a very tiny spot. One of her projects included making an entire island out of concrete and living on it for a month with no contact to anyone else. Some of her other works include the Uniform Project and the A-Z Comfort Zone.

artist essay #1...Barry McGee & Margaret Kilgallen

Barry McGee and Margaret Kilgallen were a married couple with a child that mainly focused on graffiti art. All of their art-works were hand painted, and most of it was influenced by folklore. Their work varied from installations, to canvas paintings, to painting on trains, and many other subjects.

Barry's work is basically a representation of the hard times he had growing up in an urban area. The pieces are all very abstract and have a very and sad gloomy feel to them.

Margaret's works were mainly murals and paintings that were representations of folk art. She was influenced by Mexican art works. Margaret dies at the age of 33 from breast cancer.

blog entry #4...great works of color

Great Work #1-"The Yellow Cow" by Franz Marc

Great Work #2- W.J.T. Mitchell, "Iconology and Picture Theory"

Great Work #3-Frankie Morello at Fashion Week

1. These works have contributed to new and different understandings of color in the world because they have stepped outside of what is traditional and expected and came out with something new and fresh.

2.The Yellow cow is different from other works in the same genre because it has warm and cool complimentary colors that pop and give the entire piece an exciting feeling.

3.This piece of Frankie Morello's is very different from his other pieces because it is bold and bright, while many of his other styles are dark and don't stand out as much.

4.Dominance is used by all of these artists to help the viewer visualize the most important factors of the composition.

5.The human form is addressed in these works as a blank canvas. You can start with absolutely nothing and the end come out with something beautiful.

6.After seeing these works, it has influenced me to take risks and step out of the box in everything I do and every aspect of my life.

blog entry #3...ART:21 Place and Stories

ART:21 PLACE

1. I believe that depending on the situation, either a place can define us, or we can define the place. Some places can cause us to create memories because of the purpose of the place. For example, a lake where you would go camping is a place that is meant for you to create memories. But a place like a doctor's office isn't a place that's meant for you to create memories. On the other hand, there's often places like high school, that are not meant for you to make memories, but rather for students to learn. Even so, most students graduate high school and have made a whole mess of memories in those four years.

2.Each of the featured artists are influenced by their own personal places. The things that happened to them and the memories that they retain from them are carried out in the art that they create.

3.I felt the most connected with Sally Mann. She is a photographer and I very much agreed with her when she said that she makes art just for fun and she doesn't have to have a reason. I believe this is very true and many people overlook the simple factor of making something just because you think it is beautiful.

4. -Cabin in Michigan-mischievous
- Barn-home
-Bedroom-safe
-Optometrist Office-repetitive
-Pole Vault runway-fearless

5.My barn is a place where I spent a lot of my time as a child. Most of the objects were pretty large, like the stalls, the stocks, the wheel barrel, bales of hay, and bags of oats. Although the lighting in the barn wasn't particularly good, we were usually out there during the day so the sun lit up the place very well. Even if the lighting was dreary, in my mind it will always be a bright, happy place.

ART:21 STORIES

1.The most important stories told in our lives are ones that are relevant to your personal being, to what makes you, you. If I had to be certain that one story passed on, I would want to make sure that it was the story of 9/11 and how patriotic our country got after the disaster. Even though it was a horrible tragedy, more flags than I had ever seen went up, and people remembered why it was good to be an American.

2.I think the reason why some stories are told and stay alive opposed to others is simply because they're more interesting. If there's a good twist, a great ending, or even a nail-biting plot, the stories interesting or has a quality that makes people remember that story and want to share it with others.

3.Artists featured in "Stories" used journals and sketchbooks, along with other mediums to interpret their personal stories. A sketchbook is a work of art because it shows someones emotions. Someones story is told in a journal or sketchbook, and everyons's story is a work of art.

4. "I am a 15 year old Freshman at Liberty Center High School. My life consists of cheerleading (I just made the JV squad-I scored high enough to be on the Varsity squad but Freshman aren't allowed to be on it), being a majorette, and school work. I put my heart and soul into cheering and twirling, and do what I have to for school. I wish I had a boyfriend, but I don't really have time for one. Hopefully soon I'll find time!"

Looking back, I realize that I'm still very similar to how I was then. My life consists of riding horses, going to BGSU, and going to Toledo Academy of Beauty. I put my everything into every one of these aspects. I still don't have time for a boyfriend, but I've made time and have been dating him for the past year. I guess some things never change.

image essay #10...texture

Texture is something that is all around us. It is in everything we do, in every aspect of our lives. In this photograph, for example, the tree bark has an amazing and intense texture. Trees are a part of almost everyones life. So this makes you wonder, how much texture am I not aware of in my everyday life? When you look at a beautiful photograph, or painting, or any other piece of art, it helps you to appreciate the texture that is in the composition. Many pieces have texture that looks so real that it makes the viewer want to touch it to see what it feels like. Texture draws you in to the piece and makes it more interesting for the viewers.

The reason I think this photograph is such a great example is because the closeup of the tree trunk causes the viewer to see the texture in great detail. It also allows the viewer to see the precious butterfly that is resting on the tree and allows you to notice its smooth, delicate texture compared to the rough, hard texture of the tree.

image essay #9...area of focus

This photograph caught my attention because of its ares of focus. Obviously, the main component is this composition is the horse and jockey that are winning the race. Even though there are other horses and jockeys running in the background, when you look at them it just causes you to look at what's in focus and at the main point of interest. I also am very drawn to the amount of movement that is captured in the horses feet. I love how the picture is caught mid-frame and the dirt is sopped in time, hanging in the air. The main horse and rider also show a lot of emotion because they are so much more detailed because they are what is in focus. The jockey is obviously thrilled of his victory and is celebrating by throwing his arm in the air. Meanwhile you can obviously see the effort and hard work coming from the horse. This photograph captures the feeling of being there, and most of that is captured in the area of focus.

image essay #8...value

This is a painting by the artist Sanford Robinson Gifford. This painting was in progress between the years 1823 and 1880 and is entitled "The Wilderness." It is believed that the mountain was modeled after a mountain in Maine. This painting actually is currently on display at the Toledo Museum of Art.

The reason this is a good example of value is because it has both extremes. The whites in the water as almost as pure as they can be, while the dark, dark earth tones of green and blue are almost black in the shadows.There is a huge variety of different values in this composition. other than just the extremes. There's very light values in the sky and mountain and highlights in the trees down by the water. There also are some darker grays and halftones that are distributed throughout out the entire piece, including the mountain.

Adding light to a color makes it a tint while adding dark to a color makes it a tone. There is obviously a wide range of of tints and tones in the composition, which makes a good variety of value.

image essay #7...balance

This image is probably very familiar to most people. This is the Starry Night by famous painter Vincent Van Gogh, it was painted in 1889.

This composition is an excellent example of balance. One side does not feel heavier than the other because the visual weight is distributed evenly throughout the entire composition. The size of the stars and the swirls in the size balance out the city and even the size of the huge mountain. The juxtaposition of the colors also helps balance this piece. The dark, cool colors in the landscape tend to blend up into the blue sky, where the warm and bright yellows from the stars and moon tends to also work itself not only into the sky, but back down into the town and even up in the dark, almost black mountain.

This is composition is also an example of an asymmetrical balance. The mountain on the left side is not reflected on the other side of the composition, and the starts in the sky aren't exactly the same on both sides either. Not being symmetrical does not make a piece any less balanced, it just makes it different, and often more esthetically pleasing.

image essay #6...positive/negative space

This composition is "Hands of Ataaneous" by Salvador Dali. This is a great example of positive and negative space because for the most part, the plane is broken up very evenly. The hands and the scene between them is the positive space, and the main focus of this composition. The negative space is the rest of the composition that is basically the background.

Negative space is just as important as the positive space. It is needed in the composition to balance out the piece. Like positive shapes, there also are dominant, subordinate, and accentual negative spaces. In some compositions, the negative space is actually more dominant than the positive space. In this piece that is not the case, but the negative space is still crucial. Negative space is everywhere. There is also more negative space in the scene between the hands and even between the fingers.

It is also interesting to notice that the basic shapes of the positive and negative spaces are all triangles. These shapes of the spaces cause the piece to have a sense of unity.

image essay #5...dominance

Dominance is also a very important principle to a composition. The dominant structure is the main focus of the page, its what the viewer is initially attracted to and should contain the most detail. Most pieces have a dominant, subordinate, and accentual shape. This causes the piece to become more dimensional and realistic and also allows your eye to move around the piece so that you stay interested in it.

Movie posters often carry out this principle very well and that's why they are a great example. This Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl poster is a good example of dominance. Johnny Depp is obviously the main component of this composition, which is shown by his size, his placement in the foreground, and the extreme detail. The skeleton bones in the front left and the ship in the back right corner help to also move your eye around the page.

image essay #4...Line

A line is a connection between two points, a moving point in space, or an implied connection. Lines can be of different size and texture. They can be used to create tension in a composition and set the mood altogether. A variety of lines in a composition also can make it more interesting. Lines are a part of everything around us. They are located in different shapes, and a group of lines put together can create a new shape.

This is a sketch by Paula Becker and is a good example of line because it has different varieties. The lines in the tree trunk are very ridged to show the bark, while the lines in the grass are smooth. The vertical lines in the sky also help to create a unity.

image essay #3...color/color scheme

The color scheme is important in any composition, especially when concerning Graphic Design, which if my main concern being that that is my major for my Bachelor's degree. The color scheme can set the mood for the entire piece, especially when they deal with color psychology and color symbolism. People react differently to different colors, and it's good to keep that in mind when choosing a color scheme for any composition. This is a photograph from colorconnections.com, and is a great example of a color scheme. The color scheme being used is one of earth tones.There are several different kinds of color schemes that include monochromatic, analogous, complementary, split complementary, triadic, and tetradic.

Monochromatic are different values of one color, for example, a composition where everything is in a shade of red.

Analogous color schemes include colors that are next to each other on the color wheel, for example, blue and green.

Complementary colors are those that are opposite on a color wheel, like purple and yellow.

Split complementary colors are are opposite on the color wheel and then an additional color that is next to one of those colors. An example of this is yellow, purple and blue.

Triadic color schemes are 3 colors that are equal distance on the color wheel. An example of this is blue yellow and red.

Tetradic color schemes are when 4 colors on the color wheel have a relationship, it's like using two sets of complimentary colors.

image essay #2...gestalt principle of repetition

The Gestalt Psychology is six principles that suggest that "the whole is greater than the sum of its parts". This simply means that when you look at something, you look at it as a whole first, and then you break it down into pieces. One of Gestalt's 6 principle's is the 'Principle of Repetition.' This repetition occurs when the same visual element is reused over and over again. The principle works best if there is a shape or effect used repetitively, and then there is a break in the repetition. It kind of spices up the piece more by making it more esthetically pleasing. This photograph of a building is a great example of the principle of Repetition because it shows the same square shaped windows with the break of the balcony making it more interesting. Not only are the rectangular windows repeated, but the same colors are also repeated. The entire composition has a grayish or blue cast that uniforms it.