Frick... I forgot to post the link to the "Exit Through the Giftshop" trailer I mentioned earlier. Here it is:

http://trailers.apple.com/trailers/independent/exitthroughthegiftshop/

Hannah

A Chihuly blog... cause I can

When I was at the Oklahoma City art museum, besides the Jason Peters exhibit there was a big Chihuly exhibit also. As usual for Chihuly stuff, it was stunningly beautiful and a festival to the eyes. We looked at all of his stuff and before leaving checked out the giftshop. There are dozens of books written about this guy. I mean, his stuff is everywhere. The Wichita art museum, the art museum on KU's campus, in rivers in Finland, over the waterways in Venice - I mean seriously. Everywhere. I can't even imagine how much money this dude pulls in from blowing so much glass all the time. I've read a little about him - how he started out as a student of interior design and sculpture and picked up blowing glass along the way and became a pioneer of sorts for the medium. He has a whole posse of glass-blowers to help him make and assemble all of the pieces. I do admire his work, though, it's always so gorgeous and resembles a wild Dr. Suess-like world of glass flowers and vegetation. Plus, to create a style that's so highly revered to be placed in virtually every region of every country is impressive. If you find an aesthetic that's pleasing to so many people, that's respectable. I can dig it.

Here are some pictures, since everyone likes to look at pictures. The first two are from his "Chihuly Over Venice" work, and the last is from the exhibit I saw in Oklahoma.

Hannah Scott

Cecily Brown

Sorry for the barrage of posts - I guess it's obvious that I had to catch up on a few of these blogs...

Anyway, the most recent assignment in my Intro to Acrylics class is to choose an artist from a list and recreate a few of their works (changing the color and composition of two). I chose Cecily Brown without ever seeing her work before. Now I feel stupid for saying that, since researching her I discovered she's one of the highest selling contemporary artists out there. Her work appeals to my own aesthetic of the human figure and movement, usually involving nature or a familiar environment. She uses coarse, complicated brushstrokes, placing her figures (who are usually coupled - most of her pieces are pretty erotic) in chaotic and disjointed settings. The forms are never whole, leaving your eyes to fill in what Brown left out. Her style is wispy and rugged, and her palette is oozing with organic color - deep meaty flesh and bright vivid earth tones. I found some images of her work - I would suggest Googling her for some more - they're all great.

Hannah Scott

Exit Through the Gift Shop

Recently the trailer for an upcoming movie, "Exit Through the Gift Shop" was released. This movie is made (or is at least about) the elusive street artist Banksy and his plight as an anonymous social commentator through the use of graffiti and public installations (usually without anyone's permission). His work is satirical, usually about pop culture, politics, or the pitfalls of society. He's painted on the Israeli West Bank barrier and even entered the Louvre in Paris, hanging a replica of the Mona Lisa with a smiley face replacing hers. I'm not sure how I feel about him as an artist - some of his pieces definitely are clever and they're successful in completely stripping so many situations and people of their "grandeur". He's interesting and has definitely paved the way for more graffiti artists to become successful through its popularity, but with books and now a movie - not to mention so many artists virtually replicating his style - it's hard to say it doesn't grow old after a while. Almost like Warhol? Anyway - check out the trailer and if you want to look at some of Banksy's work his website is www.banksy.co.uk

Hannah Scott

Jason Peters @ Oklahoma City Art Museum

In February I took a day trip to Oklahoma City and visited the art museum while I was there. As part of their "New Frontiers: Series of Contemporary Art" installation, New York-based artist Jason Peters was presenting the current exhibit. I had never heard of him, but I was immediately interested in what he does. Luckily they allowed photography, but the photos struggle to capture how cool the exhibit was:

So basically this guy uses ready-made objects (like chairs and buckets) and assembles them into giant, complex forms usually suspended from the ceiling. He used large mirrors for several pieces and activated space - creating illusions of holes or that the rooms were bigger than they appeared. It was an awesome exhibit and will be up until April 11th. Go check it out of you get a chance!

Hannah Scott

Dream Critique

I always feel like such an amateur when it comes to critiques (and art - what is good, what is bad, etc), because even though I have my own opinions when it comes to aesthetics, there's always the occasional piece I find that I adore and all others seem to hate. So, I guess when it comes to critique, they are most helpful for me when the viewer is honest and gets real with my piece. My skin isn't so thin that I'll be hurt at criticism. I welcome it, but I also wish for the viewer to explain why it doesn't work for them. It gives me a deeper understanding of personal preference and how they view art - what art in general means to them. Most importantly, I would love for the viewer to initially voice what the piece communicates to them, so that I can decide whether what I was trying to communicate was successful or not. It makes things easier for me so that next time I can be more precise with what I make.

Hannah Scott

What I want from a critique

During a critique, I would like to hear what the initial reaction to the piece was. I would then like to hear about the formal aspects of the piece and how they add or detract from the meaning or aesthetic attributes. I would like to hear questions on how I did things within the piece or how I achieved a certain look. One thing I don't like, but I know is necessary is how I could make something better or how that person would have done something. I liked the critique we did last week, although it did fail a bit, we were instructed to talk about what we saw, not what we wanted or would do. I thought is was difficult, but it was nice to write and discuss what was there, not that was possible or could have been done.

-Aaron Rivera

What makes art Christian?

I found an article a couple of weeks ago and have been thinking a lot about what it said. The article was discussing what makes art Christian art. In the article, the writer was introducing many musical artists, including one of my favorites Sufjan Stevens. Although he was not suggesting the ideas in a manner to cause argument, it was easy for me to find fault in his logic. He suggested that his music was Christian because of the titles and how the music causes the listener to long for something more meaningful.

“their work, like Tolkien's, casts wide nets of longing, questioning, devotion, anxiety, suffering, redemption, and grace. In this sense it could be no more Christian. In this sense it's more Christian than much of what you might find in Christian bookstores and Christian music aisles.”

To me, this is simply art. Why is it that normal art cannot cause one to long, question, and have feelings of devotion and anxiety? People that are constantly trying to relate everything to a religious metaphor are ruining what art is. Sure, you can make Christian art, that is to say that the work, to the artist, may be that of religious inspiration. But to so easily dub art Chrsitian art seems to be denying it to those not of religious belonging.

At one point, the author writes,”does this song make us stop? Does this book make us think?” Personally, I think all art is capable of doing that. To read more, visit the site…

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/christopher-cocca/what-makes-art-christian_b_506283.html

-Aaron Rivera

The Neverhood

Hi! I completely forgot to post on here, like, twice. I really ought to keep some notes around to remind myself.

AAaaaaaaaannyway, I remember an old game from quite a while ago that my older brother downloaded called The Neverhood. What's cool about it isn't necessarily the game, but the medium that was used to create it. It's all clay! It's...uhmmm...well, it's pretty amazing, actually. I think the only other games like this are the Clay Fighter series.

I always like claymation of any kind. I think it's because of how real it always looked. I mean, despite the fact that it's fake. I'm a stickler for authenticity.

http://www.hardcoregaming101.net/neverhood/neverhood.htm

Check it.

-Salem

Welcoming Color - Emily Ritter

Lately, I have been trying to not be so afraid of color. In my art and in everyday life. I have been very fond of monochromatics and limited color, but now trying to break away from that (along with hands and mouths, since they are constantly my subject matter). I remember having a conversation with Monika about welcoming color. The loss of color in art sometimes stems to a deeper subconscious place.

Anyway, with screen printing, color is incredibly important. Here are some artists I found that use a lot of color in interesting ways.

http://www.divinereflections.ca/gallery/

http://www.jackmorefield.com/

http://www.stinapersson.com/portfolio/watercolour/

art crit

I have found myself at a loss for words during the past two art crits. I feel like a novice when evaluating art. [which I am]
Even with this lack of knowledge, I feel like a honest critique is the best type. I would like the honest opinion of the viewer.

I think I would benefit most from multiple points of view. Art is relative to the viewer, his or her experiences, the setting in which the art is presented, etc. With this in mind, art is evaluated differently from different people. If I receive feedback from all the class then I can see if the meaning behind the art is conveyed even with it being relative.

-benjamin

Truckee Art

Before moving back to the heart land, I ventured out to the west coast and found myself falling in love with a place i never thought i would. a small mountain town in northern california near the area of Tahoe. a town called Truckee, Ca. The People are wonderful and the views and nature are purely spectacular. on top of that, the art work that comes out of there is plentiful and quite good as well. I found a website that give the people of Truckee the ability to get their work out and to have it seen. and heres a link.

www.tahoeculture.com/category/art/

Todd Bryant

Chet Morrison

This is an artist that i happen to fall onto while looking through an old art&photo exhibition from 2008. Along with a number of other artist Chet Morrison really stood out to me. He uses a variety of different photos to create a collage through modern media and use of computers. His art work shows a funny side to an otherwise morbid world. interested? check it out. www.morrisonstudio.com

or for the art and photo exhibition www.artspacegallery.org/anjppe08/index.htm

enjoy.

todd bryant

crit

To me crits are extremely helpful in the sense of knowing what others think of my work. Good or bad, every comment helps. But when asked to tell what i think would make the process better, not many, if any at all, come to mind. Maybe before viewing each piece, everyone should write down a question on a piece of paper about an aspect of the work that is fuzzy to them. Than allow the artist to answer to the best of their knowledge. This may help spark conversation between others that normally would not talk or partake in the process. Than maybe for the showing of the work during crit, moving to a room where the class would be able to better view the work without crowding around a table to see what is laying there. More space is needed for a more comfortable crit friendly environment.

Todd Bryant

The Pedro Friedeberg rainbow party

I remembered one of my old posts about Pedro Friedeberg, and today I decided to find more about him, and that curiosity brought me to a video about some letters that Friedeberg had sent to a writer call Duncan Fallowell, but those are not ordinary letters. Each letter is different from the other. Each letter contains a different message and a different pice of art. Is amazing how Friedeberg communicates affection by using art. If you have curiosity and want to see the letters feel free to check the information at the following site.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DL2gCCjDEAI

Information about Duncan Fallowell:
http://www.spoonrecords.com/fallowell.html

-Victor Villanueva-

Critiques

When critiquing a piece of my artwork, I would like to hear what is the message that my artwork delivers to the viewer. Another thing that is helpful is to hear information about the artwork, for example if the composition works, and if the artwork is visually balance. Also I want to hear if the artwork can be improve. All of those things can help me improve more and more. Well, that's what I would like to hear when critiquing.

-Victor Villanueva-

Chicago

I had lived in Michigan about 4 years, and Chicago was 3hours away from my house. In Chicago, there is the one of most famous art musium. It really fun place, it has the space where we can touch the art work!! However, I also enjoyed the outside of the museum. At the park next the museum, there is the silver object which created by Anish Kapoor and looks like huge jerrybean!!! Also, on the another side of the museum, there playing field which has the two television panels on each side. It was designed by Jaume Plensa. When I was there, it shows the human face, and the water came from the mouth. I really recomend you guys to visit once!!

Ichie Kawasumi

ImagineFX

So I went to the bookstore one day and I saw this interesting magazine called ImagineFX which is full of interesting artwork. I think most of it is made through computer technology instead of actual drawing and painting, but I still like the art work in it, mostly because I like illustration. They have a website, which I'm looking at right now as I type this, and they have many pictures to view.

http://www.imaginefx.com/

Lee Jones

Critiques

A critique for me is very helpful. Although I don't like to here peoples' opinions, it is quite a useful thing to have for artists' artwork. I would like to know how I could make my artwork better based on different artists' views of it. And their critiquing may not only help me correct a piece of artwork, but it also may help me make future art pieces even better because at times I wonder to my self about certain things in art projects; for example: "Did I use the right coloring for this project?" or "Did I communicate my message mostly clear?" because I know no one will understand the full message of what I'm trying to say in an art piece, but they should at least get somewhat of an idea of what I'm trying to communicate. In the long run, it'll help me and others become better artists.

Lee Jones

I fell upon this website that is pretty interesting. "The world Print Makers Artists and Their Work". It shows artists from all over the world and what kind of work they do. I found it inspiring to look at. The website is http://www.worldprintmakers.com. I found this artist Shi Yi from China to be very intriguing. Check it out!!!!

-Susie McHugh

Peter Marcus

While looking at these collagraph mixed media pieces the word that jumped out was STRUCTURE. Not only are these pieces consciously, eloquently and boldly structured but, most contain images of structures such as architecture and linear table-like forms. Color contrast is used minimally and effectively to denote focal points and/or fore ground elements (red moves forward while blue moves back).
Each piece has a definite foreground, middle-ground and background. These are created using variations of value, texture and detail as well as placement or relative size. In some pieces a well defined and rendered building is backed by more organic wet or dry lines and textures and overlaid by a linear, high contrast white graphic structure that pops out toward the viewer. Movement is created with repeated shapes, sharp value contrast, placement and line.Both depth and movement are evidenced through the use of overlapping. Marcus uses shading effectively to lend dimension to the buildings and value contrast to define windows, arches, etc. In many pieces fairly plane areas of mid tones make up background while more detailed, defined or high contrast forms come forward. I notice the weight is usually at the bottom of the picture plane.
Marcus masters the connection between his subject matter and materials.
His work demonstrates my first thought of using strongly defined areas of contrast to produce a structured collagraph rich in texture and tone. After seeing his work I feel confident to move forward.
Margaret

Joan Hall

Taking a quick look at the one web page I looked at a single mixed media work and artist statement. Hall's conscious use of materials that illuminate her theme of nautical subject matter goes along with our collagraph assignment's provision that, "...you will have to articulate your idea and how it connects to your chosen images...". Right on. Margaret

Margaret's Ideal Critique

Let's see now....what would this look like? I agree with Ann that it should give me enough detail and honesty to help me grow as an artist by improving my skills.
In other classes there are rubrics given to students showing how instructors assess assignments. I like the similarly constructed grading sheets we get in printmaking. The various grading categories are listed with possible points and supporting comments.
The crit we had on Monday was organized in such a way that we had adequate time to formulate our feedback before stating it. I liked that approach and the fact that we were given specific points to consider. I tend to be blunt and still worry about my classmates' feelings. I am also not yet very sure of my judgments. I need to build on the practice of critically looking at art that is offered in my classes. Hearing what others have to say about anyone's work is helpful.
This said, I invite critics of my work to offer as much perspective as possible. I know it is not my self being judged. Mostly I would ask that my composition skills be carefully critiqued with comments pointing out strengths and weaknesses. These comments should include the use of art and design vocabulary. Intuitive as well as thoughtful responses to my work are welcome. For instance, a variety of comments on what seems to work and not work along with shared feelings about specific elements that are bothersome to individual viewers. In short, my ideal critique would include specific feedback from as many perspectives as possible in order for me to have both variety and consensus among the comments.

Final Friday

I started at Shift Space. Didn't really get much out of most of it other than becoming more clear about my preferences. The videos were kind of boring. My feelings about litter and the fact that the whole balloon thing isn't unique override any positive feelings about that piece although the prints were just OK. I enjoyed blowing on the piece to watch it move.
My fave is Michael Miller's Chaoskampf. Like that he starts with only parameters of what he wants the pieces to be (outdoor, organic in appearance, etc) and allows his process with materials to let them come into being.

I went into CityArts because I like dogs and images of dogs. Didn't spend much time there. Was cheered by one of the sculptures just inside the door. Title: Pug Business. Life-size image of a pug with a cigarette in its mouth and holding a cell phone to its ear.

At Tangent Lab the videos were interesting. I watched part of the one with old buildings and houses with spacey meteor shower effect in background. Structures of memory and dream for me. The unsteady pile of self-help books was cute. The masked crazy disrupting individuals in peaceful settings bored me by the second sequence so I probably didn't give it a chance.
Summoning of Infernal Legions, set in a grave yard, was too much like The Blair Witch Project and scenes from Easy Rider. There was one that had tones of Surrealism called Holographia.
The two films I thought lived up best to the theme of non-narrative video were the one framed by TV test pattern images and the one titled Bora Bora Manta Ray. The liquid imagery in the last was beautifully musical in nature and incorporated the mirror image ink blot element very nicely. I felt that the sound track took away from this one. A single tone or silence might have suited it better. It had the peaceful, guided meditation look of a lava lamp or wave machine.
Margaret R.

interesting

haha...so random as it, there are some pretty interesting bathroom shower/bath designs attached to this url.http://weburbanist.com/2008/12/23/bath-shower-room-interior-designs/#22. I recomend looking around for a bit, some cool stuff on here!
Brooke Gluszek

The Perfect Critique

To begin with, the perfect critique is one where I learn something that makes me a better artist. A good critique should inspire one to want to go back and create an even better piece of art, either through reworking an artwork or in the next artistic endeavor. I really liked the formal analytic approach we took on Monday because it made us really look at each piece and consider each line, nuance, and compositional detail. Then we were able to make objective conclusions about what was going on in each etching. Sometimes, when we start with our own personal aesthetic opinions, we forget to talk about what went into the art making itself and the critique becomes more of an opinion poll instead. We don't learn as much, other than what someone else likes, and it can be hard or confusing about what we need to improve on while staying true to our own vision. The approach we took on Monday made us look and then really see how the piece was constructed and worked as a whole. ann

Suffering for your art

Today, Hannah and I learned what it means to suffer for your art. In our painting class, we had to paint a still life that consisted of dyed dead fish, ice cubes, rice crackers and vegetables. Visually, it wasn't bad, but the smell was horrible!!!! The point of painting the dead fish was so we would have to adjust for the difference in the fishes' appearance as they decomposed. At the end of class, the fish went into the freezer. On Thursday, they will come back out and the smell will probably be worse. This set me wondering if anyone else has had to suffer for their art in a similar or even worse way. I will let you know if we get through class on Thursday without passing out or throwing up due to the smell. ann

Mixing colors-purple?

So obviously I passed the 1st grade, I know how to make colors...but I could not for the life of me make a pretty, true purple for this last project! If anyone knows helpful hints for this please let me know!
Thanks!
Brooke Gluszek

Patience

...So if this post gets published twice, sorry-I tried posting something earlier and for some reason it sent me a message saying it didn't go through...so deal with me if this sends again! (I really am hoping I've been posting these correctly....)

One thing this class has taught me to have is patience! So many times I jump the gun and try and hurry on to the next task, but with screenprinting, I learned you can't do that. I found it very helpful to come in to school for a couple of hours and then go home for about an hr or 2 before returning to work on my projects. Over break I did this each day, and it helped so much! I left in a good mood, and happy with the results of my project. So, if you ever get frustrated, just sit back and relax, it'll all work out!

Brooke Gluszek

Behind - Emily Ritter

I'm finding it harder and harder to post on here. 1. To actually do it, and 2. what to write about. One thing I think is interesting and slightly irritating is that not a lot of people know what printmaking is. They know what screen printing is because of screen printing shirts, but a majority of people I have spoken to have no idea what I am talking about when I tell them my major is Studio Arts with an emphasis in Printmaking. I think when a lot of people hear the word "print" they automatically think reproduction, laser printers, and what not. How museums reproduce works of art. Apparently, print means not original. Grinds my gears, but it gives me a chance to teach them something new, which is good.

Now that my rant is over, here is an artist to check out. http://kuksi.com/artworks/

not art

Dadaism was an anti-art movement that rose from the ashes of the first world war. I can't imagine the turmoil of that time. The artists rejected standards for art and used this to display their frustration with the war.....it was more than just frustration with the war. It was anger at the current world in general.

Hans Arp and Tzara and other artists got together in neutral Switzerland and made art.

-ben

Art Work on campus

Hello, everyone. How is your spring break? I saw some of you at the printmaking class, and did the great works.

This week, I introduce the art work in the WSu campus. It's John Kearney's "Grandfathers Horse" and made by the silver metal. I chose that as my subject of essay in last semester. As my interest, I did a little research about his works. I couldn't finds his web page, but there is the video on youtube.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=u0i70c0Vcwg

or seach by words "The Chromosaurs- Chrome Dinosaurs."

Ichie Kawasumi

Craig Mullins

I have a good topic to right about, but it will be very long and time consuming to read, so I will save it for next week; as it is spring break, I am going to keep this short. I am going to share one of my favorite artists. His name is Craig Mullins. I like his work because of the process. He will create and oil painting and then Photoshop it to add some really interesting effects. He has done a lot of pieces for video game promo art. Check it out…

http://goodbrush.com

-Aaron Rivera

This is so frustrating!!

This project makes me so frustrating......Today, I printed the layer which was photo exposed. When I printed it on the paper, the photo exposin ink on the frame also put on the paper. The ink on the screen frame wasn't dry...... I think it's Ok when it happens on the fiest layer, but mine wasn't. Fortunately, I have enough time to redo this. Hey everyone, please make sure everything dry!! It really hurts you!! However, this project will be beautiful!!! Ichie Kawasumi

I am feeling really confident about this project. Even though it is a lot of work, after I print each layer I feel like a million buck's!!!!!


-Susie McHugh

Little Time

I'll be spending my break working on homework, including my printmaking. But luckily I'll have enough time off from work to get things done. Right now I'm working on setting up a printmaking studio area at home...I've got most of the materials and am now in the process of putting it all together. I spent today moving things around to make room for my printmaking area's. I'm getting a lot closer to having it complete, but I still have to order ALL the supplies to actually do some screen printing...it's cosing a pretty penny to set it all up, but it's all going to be worth it when I'm making some kick ass screen prints...eventually. Too bad this is only half of the complete process I'll be using to create my future art...which means I'll need to buy even more materials and supplies, but luckily I won't need to set up any special areas to complete that work. We'll I'm off to search for lights needed to expose photo emulsion to...--__Later, Jason R.__--

Art Magazines-Katie Brown

I just picked up a copy of Digital Artist today and found it to be very interesting. it covers pieces done in illustrator, artrage3, photoshop and corel painter but the reason i picked it over other art magazines was the free dvd. And the 25 free fonts! I am a bit of a font junky myself...and finding interesting free fonts online has become increasingly difficult as people realize the monetary value of freelance typography.

Anyway, I'm excited to experiment with these new fonts and read up on some new art techniques and tips on composition, large scale images and creating custom brushes.

Art magazines are a great resource and I'd go to Barnes and Noble newsstand and flip through one to see which is the best for your needs.

VvG[not std]

Today I walked through the art section of the library and pulled a book about Vincent van Gogh off the shelf. I was familiar with his work prior to today, but never knew much about his personal life.
His life was quite depressing in my opinion. He had a horrible love life, was unsuccessful in many careers, died at 37, and only sold one painting while he was alive. Nonetheless, he was a great artist. He created over 2,000 pieces of art in less than ten years.

im no van gogh but you can check his art out at http://www.vangoghgallery.com/painting/

-ben

I looked atsome work by Jeorge Santos online. It was cool, I usually don't care for super realistic art but the stuff I checked out by Santos was interesting & appealing to me. I liked his nude figures. The colors & the realism of the flesh is great. A lot of the pieces I looked at reminded me of looking through a photo album. Other pieces were totally bizarre depicting dream-like situations which is an interesting contrast to the very realistic way the image is painted. The way Santos paints water is awesome. I like "Rivers Edge", the circles of water comming out from the girl in the tube look really real like I can imagine exactly how the water would feel just by looking at the painting. I also personally dig the dog portraits "The Sultan of Straylandia" & "Queen Shedog". They don't seem to want to make me think too much & sometimes I appreciate that in art; I don't always want to have to figure something out. Just laughing or smiling when I look at a piece of art is a worthwhile experience.
Brenna Russell

Alec Parker

So, I'm not too keen on the rules of posting or anything...so I'm not entirely sure if we should just post "professional" artists or not. But I'll risk it anyway.

Alec Parker is a fellow artist and good pal o' mine who moved away some time ago. Before that, we would hang out and I'd watch him make all these really weird drawings, a good amount of which featured mouthless characters with giant holes for eyes. Groovy.

I recently found a MySpace page of his that features a good deal of his art, mostly new ones that I hadn't seen yet. And Alec was always a terribly busy artist. I don't think him not drawing, to be honest. I guess that really pays off, though.

He usually makes his art on wood or cardboard, or other 'found' materials. I always admired that, considering I just use paper, and I don't have the knack (or skill) to go further into it. His stuff always has a pretty hilarious morbidity to it, and that's what really does it for me.

http://viewmorepics.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=viewImage&friendID=400361677&albumID=334852&imageID=22708420

So I'll just start you off with a picture of a demented Pac-Man. That's pretty much what I always imagined him to be.

-Salem

Daim

I heart graffiti. I don't recall when exactly I got into it. I think perhaps I've always been fond of it (considering I grew up around a...uh, well, actually, I grew up across the street from WSU...so, nevermind), and I remember fondly staring at train cars, adoring the art splattered across them from rebellious young artists.

One of my favorite graffiti artists is one that I actually discovered just a year or two ago, by the name of Daim. His stuff, I think, completely separates itself from any kind of 'typical' graffiti, and enters into its own level of art. His art seems as if it is sculpted out of the walls. So, I guess one could say he 'sculpts with spraypaint'. Which sounds just a tad bit ridiculous. The realism he manages to give his pieces is staggering to me sometimes. Maybe I'm just overly amazed.

He's able to transform his letters and words into something a little more...enigmatic, I suppose. Perhaps his work speaks for itself, since I'm not doing so great with words at the moment.

http://www.daimgallery.com/

So check it out! RIGHT NOW.

-Salem

Book Covers-Katie Brown

"never judge a book by its cover" the saying goes but i thoroughly disagree. I was thinking on this subject after an afternoon in a public library. I doubt usually have any specific books in mind when i go to the library but rather pull them out at random. if i like the title and the cover design i will often not even bother to check the blurb before adding it to the pile to check out. While this might cause me to miss out on some good reads, in my experience a good book will have a well designed and executed cover.

The cover is an expression of the publishing houses faith in the book or so it seems. Books predicted to sell well will have a striking modern cover while the ones we've all picked up only to discard after the first chapter usually can be picked out by cheaply made graphics and paintings on their covers. while this is certainly not all inclusive and always correct it can be seen in several books.

Recently I picked up a copy of an old favorite of mine, Tithe by Holly Black, and was amazing to see it with a totally new cover. One which was printed on high gloss paper with luminescent embossing and what appeared to be a custom designed font. It's success, and other books by the same author, had prompted Simon & Schuster to give the entire series updated covers to help market them to a new audience.

Many books published in the last decade are getting face lifts and marketed to a new generation and not just Young Adult books. Atlas Shrugged is one of the most popular books of the last century and one of the only that continues to sell more copies each year than the year before. It is once again a hot read as economic troubles in the book and in society begin to match up once more. It has many different covers constantly evolving to entice new readers...

so next time you go to the library or Barnes and Noble, go ahead-judge a book by its cover

Late Paper

I went to El Dorado friday night to view the Pulp exhibit at Butler Community College. I found most of the work generic and unappealing. Needless to say, there were a few pieces that I enjoyed. Brandon Larson's work seemed to try to hint at a surreal Kansas environment which he did with somewhat success. Monika's work was beautiful with its vivid color and abstract shapes. Sara Kephart's piece which I believe was called "girlpile" was very humorous. It showed a pile of girls feeling up on each other.

here's the link to the showhttp://www.artslant.com/ew/events/show/94416-pulp-works-on-paper

-benjamin

Trying to catch up

The past few weeks have been kind of hard for me. Trying tog et everything done and stay on top of things. I have been sick more than I have my entire life. My art has been sort of lacking because of this. Things I have wanted to get done are not getting done. But I am slowly catching up. I finally have gotten my website up. On it I plan on displaying photos of my work and I have a blog on there to keep people informed on what I am working on. If you want to check it out, you can find it at http://aaronrivera.info .

-Aaron Rivera

looking back at some of evil prints links, i found an artist that really touched my soul. brandy baghead and her art is inspiring. her show going on display in Chicago out look on reality tv and the way people twist and contort to get themselves on tv is disgusting. and thorough her art she is completely accurate in displaying such emotions. check it out.

todd bryant

Awesome Art Museum

Before I moved, I had lived in Michigan for 4 years, and there are a couple awesome museums. One of those are in Toledo, Ohio. Actually, I can't concentrate to see the art works long time. However, Toledo Museum of Artis different from others. It holds the show of creating the glass work. The artist creats from the beginning which is melting glass at the kiln. Also, the audience can see how to bend, attach, and make the form of class work from the camera which closes up the hands. I was really excited to see all process.

Of course, there are the famous art works, such as Monet, Degas, and so on. I really recommend to go there when you visit the Ohio.

http://www.toledomuseum.org/

Ichie Kawasumi

Printmaking Techniques

I thought of getting more information, about printmaking. I found valuable information about the description of different printmaking techniques, such as woodcut, linocut, and many more. If you are interested on the topic, feel free to check the following cite.

http://www.worldprintmakers.com/english/pmtechni.htm

[ Victor Villanueva]

Getting late, getting late...

I meant to do my post on Wed...that turned into Thur....and now...Oh, well...better late than never. The reason I was going to write my post on Wednesday was because I spent 14 hours straight working on my print and during my 5th print I messed up too bad to just ignore it; meaning I got no usable print out of my 14 hours of work. Now if I said I wasn't disappointed I would be lying, but I don't really see it as a total loss, although I was bloody tired when I got home, I believe in the end I learned a lot about the printing process. I still enjoy the screen printing process and although at times it can seem like your going nowhere fast I much rather like the journey...I mean let's face it the art I'm making isn't going to drop jaws and I don't really expect it to. I know my limitations and am more interested in learning techniques and processes; great art can always come later. The biggest breakthrough I've had was to finally realize what medium and processes I'd like to use to create my future art. This may not sound like a big deal, but I've spend the last 2 and a half years contemplating what I want to use to create my works. Now that I have finally boiled it down I can now focus on mastering those processes as well as exploring just what I want my art to do and say. This, however, may be a life long exploration; my main goal now is to start this exploration. __--Later, Jason R.--__

PULP

I certainly hope my post is in the correct compartment! The header says WSUPrintmaking so here goes....
I attended the opening of PULP in El Dorado last night and found it enjoyable. There were installations and prints and paintings and drawings and collages and books and lots to take in. I enjoyed the prints the best and of those I found our noble instructor's to be the most sophisticated.
Monika's use of color and her diffuse technique result in such a rich product. The layers of images and spacial composition create works I feel that I could not only touch but enter. The interplay of hard line and soft texture draw me in. Found myself peeking at the back of the prints just to see how much ink penetrated paper.
There were a set of block prints and a set of embossed paper pieces in one corner that I found engaging. Maybe it was the color...a beautiful blue-green, or maybe the subject...sky and horizon. Maybe I'm just a sucker for paper.
One large mixed media piece by a fellow named Oehm reminded me of the work of James Rosenquist with it's pieced sections of various images...portraiture, industrial images, food...something for everyone.
Most of the works presented held personal meaning and nostalgia for the artists. One though, was a "Bead Curtain for Oscar Wilde" made of long green rolled paper beads inter-spaced between cut and folded paper chairs, cherubs, feathers, paper flowers and other things. Charming!
I'd say the silliest piece was a sculpture called "Deconstructed Paper". It consisted of a clear acrylic base with a yard long, vertical clear acrylic tube attached to it. Inside the tube was dry, powdery white paper "pulp". Oh well.
Margaret

Latte+Art=AWESOME

Okay, we all like latte's, and we all like art, or SHOULD! I was looking at some videos, and this is one of the coolest things I've ever seen! If ya want to see something awesome click the link!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsPd37HZ0Ok

Impact

Emily and Brooke said interesting things about the big art lecture this week. Brooke's comments about Kerry Williams remarks about art from the past influencing us as artists, like or it or not, resonates with something Annette LeZotte talked about yesterday during Sophomore review. Someone asked her why graphic designers and studio artists have to take so much art history at WSU. Her major point was that you have to understand art history so that you don't misuse it. She mentioned that you could end up using the wrong image in a graphic design project that could alienate or offend the customer or the public. The same could be said about any images that a studio artist creates. I also think that knowing about other cultures' art history is helpful too, but not just to artists. It helps the public understand and consider new or different kinds of art. Chris Ofili's The Holy Virgin Mary painting with a black primitive women, partly covered in elephant dung shocked and angered the New York public when it was exhibited there in the 1990s, but if people had understood that in Nigeria (Ofili's family came to England from there) elephant dung is sacred and used in everything important, perhaps their religious feelings would have been enhanced and re-evoked. Of course, Ofili was banking on causing controversy, but he had to know history to manipulate the audience he wanted to shock. Because of art history, one can argue that James Maplethorpe's nude male photographs are just a form of humanism instead of porn. Anyway, it's amusing that old, dusty ideas from the past are capable of generating lots of "buzz" when they are resurrected in a new way. ann

Artist talk and art. Emily Ritter

Kerry James Marshall's talk was a breath of fresh air, and quite educational. I enjoyed it very much, and enjoyed his work as well. I also liked the fact that his pieces were so big. It shows the impact of size and how it really can change the meaning of the piece.

Now for some interesting pieces and artists like I like and found on stumbleupon. I am a big believer in seeing what is out there and being exposed to it to get inspiration, or just to be aware. Hence me posting other artist's work constantly.

http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/5RzTnX/cityofskies.com/2009/10/13/invisible-people/

http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/6LY2UR/www.anaduncan.com/

Speaker

While listening yestreday to Kerry's speech, he said something that made me think. When I sit in Art History class, I tend to get so annoyed as the teacher is making up (what it seems to me since we have no definate documentation) of why these people from so long ago did art the way they did. I always think, what if this wasnt intended to be art? Maybe this is just an amature artist's peice, and your relying on this peice of work to describe a whole era? etc. But no matter what the peice of art were studying/looking at, Kerry's comment had an impact. He said something along the lines that everyone who has decided to be an artist, has decided so due to art they have previoulsy looked at, and the artist of the art that inspired them, were inspired but older art, and so on. So it made me think how the anciet pots and ugly art to me, really has had an impact one me and everyone else.

Brooke Gluszek