Module 5 - Material Exploration #2: Logo Creation

1. Discuss what you thought about creating your logo.

Creating my logo was a fun exercise. I enjoyed brainstorming and refining the design. It was harder than I thought it would be to come up with a logo for myself!

2. Describe the process: creative thinking skills and ideas you used in the logo creation.

I wanted to create something that represents something that is important to me; and one of the most important things to me is hand embroidery. I do this in all of my spare time, and use this as my creative outlet, so I wanted to make a logo that represented that. I thought about the two most important elements to hand embroidery: my hands and thread, so I knew those were the two elements I wanted to embody. 

At first, I wanted to add the embroidery hoop, which you can see reflected in my earlier sketches, but as I kept refining, it looked too busy with the circle (hoop) outline and the thread. I then used the thread as the outline with a contrasted thickness, which I think helped to create movement and interesting negative space. I also wanted to include the name I work under (The Stitch Witch), so  I added my (poorly) designed type onto the fingers to emulate tattoos. I am a lover of tattoos and they are also important to me, so I wanted to also add that element. The last element I added was the nails for a touch of femininity. 

3. What was the most important discovery you made in the creation of your logo?

The most important discovery I made in the creation of my logo was how my thinking evolved as I moved along. While I knew the elements I wanted to add into my design, I found myself thinking about each element, how it would affect the design, and where to place it. I also learned that I am not very good at hand-lettering!

4. What is the most important information you learned from watching the videos, powerpoint, and reading material  for this project? What is your opinion of the videos?

 I enjoyed both of the videos. I never realized how much planning goes into brand and logo design. I guess I had somewhat of an idea, but seeing it in action was awesome. I think the most important things I learned were the importance of tradition, and how logos are essentially elements of design broken down into easily recognizable images. The Marmite video was especially interesting to watch. It was crazy to see how much time, effort and planning went into designing a squeeze bottle and new label. I enjoyed seeing how they worked so hard to keep the recognizable tradition of Marmite, but adjust it to changing times.

Sketches:

 Final Logo:

Module #5 - Project # 2: Museum Visit

A.) Which artworks make an impact or impression on me? Why?

I went to the Burchfield Penney for my first gallery visit. The first artwork that made an impact on me was Craig Smith's Inkjet print from 2008 titled Team Pictures (M.I.T.). This print was featured in a collection at the Burchfield Penney that is about violence. This piece specifically made an impression on me because it made me uncomfortable from across the room and drew me over to it. It makes me uncomfortable because it is a group portrait, specifically a 'team' as Smith points out in his title of what appears to be professionals in business suits and professional dress, they all look happy, and yet, they are all posed with guns. The image makes me feel as if they are every day people with a dark secret of some kind.

 The next piece that grabbed my attention was Jonathan Rogers' 2004 oil painting Secret Dance from the Little Dancer Series. This painting interested me specifically with the bright orange and red surface. As I drew closer, I noticed the painting featured a child dancing with what appeared to be ghosts or demons under an eclipsed moon. The painting reminds me of childhood and how childhood often affects us and shapes us into adults; dancing with our pasts.

B.) Which artworks do I feel a connection with? Why?

I felt a connection with this 1997 chromogenic color print below by Marion Faller titled Carvings #4 beech tree, south park, Buffalo, N.Y. November 1997. I felt a connection with this print because it conveys memory to me. My own work is often focused on memory; not only of my own memories, but memories of places. I've always been infatuated with abandoned structures, and homes, and objects I see there; specifically the memories they allude to. The carvings on the tree are a reminder of people who have been in the park and spent time there, leaving a mark forever.

The next piece I felt a connection to was the 1989 Valdez Chair, Lest We Forget. The chair is constructed from oil on plywood, pine and oak, fabric dye and a glass eye. It was created by Edith Lunt Small. The chair first drew me in because it was so cute and reminded me of a chair a child would have in their bedroom or playroom. As I read the artists statement, I learned the chair was created to be a statement regarding the Valdez oil tanker spill in Prince William Sound in 1989. Small wanted the viewer to be reminded of all the innocent animals that were killed and affected by this oil spill. This is a cause that I am passionate about, and it's very sad to me that we let human greed dominate our economy and disregard the lives of animals and our environment.

C.) Which artworks would I like to know more about? Why?

The fist piece I'd like to know more about is Sara M. Zak's 2013 oil painting titled A Crowd of  Small Metamorphoses. I like this painting because of the motion Zak conveys. The subjects appear to be girls in dresses, and they appear to be in motion, or almost fragments of a memory. I'd like to see more of Zak's work, and also learn more about what and why she paints. 

The next piece I want to know more about is Jason L. Seeley's 2013 acrylic painting titled Backpack. I liked the way Seeley uses negative space in his painting, and specifically, the void his subjects are within. The painting was somewhat haunting to me in regards to the subject's body language, and it is enforced with the white space they are placed in. I want to know more about the context in which Seeley paints.

Module 4 - Art Material Exploration #1

Here is my Color wheel:

 Here is my value scale:

1. Discuss what you thought about creating the Value Scale and Color Wheel.

It was fun to create both. I found myself on the value scale going back and forth continuously to even out my values and making them darker. It was harder than the color wheel to execute, I think because the boxes made me feel more of a pressure to ensure the values were correct.

2. Which media did you enjoy working with the best and why?

Before I began hand embroidering, I was always a painter, so working with paint is something that is relaxing and comes naturally to me. I feel it's more forgiving than charcoal or pencil.

3. What was the most important discovery in the creation of these studies?

I have never heard of the subtractive theory of the color wheel! I feel like I've been lied to most of my life! It was neat to see how magenta, cyan and yellow created red, blue and green. It was also fun mixing the colors to get a good version of the color I was going for. Mine seem a bit muted compared to the colors in the video, but my guess is it was the paint I was working with.

4. What is the most important information you learned from watching the videos for this project? What is your opinion of the videos?

The most important information I learned was that red and blue are too dark to create proper secondary colors. The videos were informative and I am more of a hands-on learner, so I liked watching the person complete the activity before I did.

Project #1

This project was fun! I love taking photos when I am out and about, so I tried to do just that, however, it definitely made me much more conscious on what I was taking photos of and how I was getting to the end result.

It forced me to slow down a bit and to think and plan what I was going to take images of. I think it took me out of my comfort zone a little bit as well. I had to really think about what I was going to take pictures of. Even though I feel very familiar with the elements and principles of art, I found myself referencing that document often during the project to refresh myself on them.

I think I got some decent images that demonstrate the elements and principles of art, although it appears Photobucket has significantly reduced the quality of my photos. I wouldn't mind doing something like that again, it was a neat project.

Click here to see my images.

Click here to view slideshow.

Blog Post #3 - Module 3

1. Describe Color and it's effects on emotions. Use the appropriate vocabulary of color in your posting.

Color is a component of light, more specifically- reflected light rays. In 1666, Sir Isaac Newton discovered by passing light through a prism, it refracted into different colors arranged like a rainbow. He then discovered that if he used a second prism and combined the colors, they merged into white light once again. This proved that color was an effect of light, not a tangible thing.

Color consists of primary colors, such as red, yellow and blue. It also consists of secondary colors, which are created with the primary colors (orange, violet and green) and tertiary colors, which are primary colors mixed with adjacent colors. Color can be mixed through light or pigment. I thought it was interesting how with light, color tends to react almost the opposite of how it acts with pigment.

Living With Art states: “Color affects us on such a basic level that few would deny we have a direct emotional response to it. The problem comes when we try to find universal principles, for we quickly discover that emotional responses to color are both culturally conditioned and intensely personal.” I agree with this statement, as when an artist uses a monochromatic palette of say, blues, such as Inka Essenhigh’s In Bed, I tend to look at that painting and feel calm, but also a sense of somber as my eye travels around the painting, whereas someone else may look at her painting and feel something completely different. However, there is no denying that the blue palette she has chosen affects the viewer’s mood.  

2. What is a theoretical aspect of color that most intrigues/fascinates you? Why?

Primary colors are a theoretical aspect of color that fascinates me, and always has, because essentially, without red, yellow or blue, no other colors are possible. Secondary and tertiary colors are all created through the mixing or combining with a primary color. Theoretically, no other colors can create a primary, hence, without them, we’d be color-less!

3. In the Color video, what made the biggest impact on you in regards to color and it's effects on emotions?

In the Color video, the most impactful part of the video was when June explains how the mood of her painting was not quite right, and at that point of her process, her painting was heavily influenced by warmer colors and she explains that it feels “violent”, however, when she explains toward the end that it’s done, the painting has much more of a balance between cool and warm colors, which to me, gave me a feeling of calm of sense of tranquility. I also found it fascinating how intense she felt about getting the balance of color correctly, as she explained that her paintings are all about feeling. She also quotes “color has lots of meanings and symbols and ideas behind it” and I really think that comes through in her work.

4. In the Feelings video, what made the biggest impact on you in regards to color and it's effects on emotions?

The biggest impact on me in the Feelings video was Goya’s paintings. It was fascinating to me that he lead a double life of painting commissions by day, but personally, creating dark, almost scary paintings of how he felt internally. The one painting that really stood out to me was his painting of Carlos IV and his family. Specifically, how he evoked unease through their clothing, their ‘homely’ faces, un-noble eyes, and how he painted himself in the shadows in the back. Evoking to the viewer that he is separated from the family he works for. Through the use of color and composition, he makes the viewer uncomfortable, impressing upon them how uneasy he feels.

I really enjoyed learning about the change in art from glorifying the divine to becoming more human.

Blog Post #2, Module 2

1. For each video and article list/discuss the key concepts you learned.

When I watched the Aesthetics: Philosophy of the arts, I learned that art and beauty are different things. The key concepts I learned are that art does not necessarily have to be beautiful, and is in turn, subject to the viewer’s on beliefs about beauty. It was interesting to me to see how the philosophy of aesthetics and art has evolved throughout history, and how each philosopher took the past theories and expanded upon them. I also thought it was interesting to see how the time period and art that was being created heavily influenced their theories. For example, Plato focused more on the idea of beauty, rather than art, which he considered popular entertainment, and he believed that all things were beautiful, and art was essentially cutting down that idea by copying the original forms or ideas. During the Renaissance, aesthetics was used very little, as the art that was being created was focused on religious themes and formal qualities. As we moved through the twentieth century, that is when the notion of art itself was questioned by both artists and philosophers

From the lecture given by Changeaux, I learned that as humans evolved, so did our brains and capabilities to produce and understand art and aesthetics. Changeaux defines art as something created by a human, whereas aesthetics are the emotions we feel from said art, to which he states that as we change as societies and humans, our art and our feelings about art also evolve. It was interesting to learn how Changeaux explains how we process art as humans- from visually processing a piece of art from the bottom up, to how our stored memories, object recognition ability and emotions influence how we perceive it.  I think the most interesting part of his lecture, however, was when he spoke about the “rules” of art and how it affects our brains. First, he explains how when the element of surprise is presented to the viewer, our prefrontal cortex is activated, yet when we are bored or experiencing the mundane, the same area of our brain is not activated. His next rule of art was the universal search for harmony, and how when a viewer is presented a piece of art that contains ‘harmony’ to the eye, our brains also react positively. The last rule was the artist’s concept or context that he or she is sharing with the viewer.

During the lecture from Ramachandran, the key concepts I learned were his theories on the universal principles of aesthetics. He explained that there are universal ‘laws’ that govern successful artmaking and how aesthetics influence the how viewer perceives art as ‘good’ or ‘bad’, regardless of their cultural backgrounds. He stated that these principles are: grouping and  symmetry, exaggeration, isolation, problem solving, metaphor as art and unique vantage points. One point Ramachandran made was ‘real art’ versus Kitsch art, and how Kitsch art is not as appealing to the brain because those while Kitsch may embody a few of these principles, the artists have not fully mastered the them, which in itself was interesting to me, as Kitsch has always been considered a ‘lesser’ art.

2. Which philosopher's theroy on aesthetics do you feel is most important? Be sure to mention the philosphers name, era (time in history), and contribution to the aesthetic theory in your response.

The philosopher’s theory on aesthetics I felt most important was Morris Weitz. In the 20th century, Wietz stated: “what I am arguing then, is that the very expansive, adventurous character of art, its ever-present changes and novel creations, makes it logically impossible to ensure any set of defining properties.” I thought this theory was important because until then, what made something art was heavily reliant on a set of rules or laws. However, Weitz brought attention to the fact that art is not static, and is ever-changing, as are we as a society, and as we change, so will art.

Weitz expanded upon this theory in the center of Dada and Surrealism, which were two movements that pushed the boundaries of the definition of art. Weitz suggested that instead of trying to define art, we should focus more on its role and the kinds of ideas it represents. I think that this theory still holds true today, as our society evolves at a rapid pace, along with the technology we utilize- so does our art.

3. What do you think about Changeux and Ramachandran scientific view of aesthetics and art? What was the most interesting fact you discovered from each speakers lecture?

The most interesting thing I learned from Changeux’s lecture was how viewing art affects us on a scientific and genetic level. It was really awesome to see the brain scans and how specific elements activated the brain- specifically with the element of surprise. I found his lecture engaging, and I really enjoyed learning specifically how the brain reacted with the different pieces of art.

Ramachandran’s lecture was also incredibly engaging. I always thought that one of the biggest influences on feelings about art was cultural influence. While that may one element that affects how we feel about art, I really enjoyed Ramachandran’s point of view on how we perceive art as humans in general. I liked learning about his theory of the universal principles of aesthetics and art, as I feel he kind of put how we perceive art into a new perspective for me. I think the most interesting fact I learned was when he spoke about how the piece that featured a woman under a shower curtain was more visually stimulating than an image of a Playboy model because when we are looking at it, it acts as a problem solving exercise for our brains. It was interesting to learn how scientifically the way that we process art leads to how we feel that art is either pleasing or not based on these recognizable universal rules.

4. How do the videos and article relate to the readings in the text?

The lectures and article both took what I read in chapters 1-3 and expanded upon how we interpret art, yet on a more scientific level. Living With Art defines aesthetics as “the branch of Philosophy concerned with the feelings aroused in us by sensory experiences- experiences we have through sight, hearing, taste, touch and smell. Aesthetics concerns itself with our responses to the natural world and to the world we make, especially the world of art.”  Both Changreaux and Ramachandran explain deeper how our brains interpret art as either pleasing or unpleasing based upon specific elements within the art. I thought this passage from the article further explained how a piece of art could be aesthetically pleasing: “Cavanagh explains that this may mean we are more emotionally engaged when the detail-oriented part of our visual system is distracted, such as in Impressionist works where faces are unrealistically colorful or patchy….the distorted faces of famous artists such as Pablo Picasso and Gustav Klimt may be hyperactivating our neurons and drawing us in, so to speak.” These statements were interesting to me, because in chapters one and two, I read about why artists make art and the importance of creativity. While creativity is something some people exercise more than others, when the viewer is looking at a piece of art, the same parts of their brains are more engaged and they have a responsibility to interpret whether or not the art is aesthetically pleasing. The statements above also further prove that when a piece of art follows the universal rules of art that Ramachandran touched on, it is more pleasing to us, as our nervous system is working to solve a visual problem, thus, feeling more pleasing.

5. What is your opinion of the films and article? How do they add depth to understanding of the topics in your reading in the text?

My opinion of the films and article is that they were pretty eye opening. I never really thought about the scientific level of how we perceive visual art, and how natural elements within the art affect my feelings about a specific piece of art. These theories expanded upon what I read in Living With Art in that while artists create art for specific reasons; perhaps for worship, creating tangible images of feelings or emotions, creating places for worship, and so on, whether they know they are or not, they are also creating something that is pleasing (or not pleasing) to us on a scientific level. The article and videos expanded upon what happens on the other side of art, and what happens when a viewer is interpreting a piece, whereas the book more explained the side of the artist’s role in artmaking and aesthetics.

Blog Post #1

1. How was the process of creating the GMail account and setting up the Blog?

The Process of setting up my GMail and Blog were easy and simple. I use GMail in my every day life, and have used Blogger before.

2. What do you expect to learn in this course?

I expect to learn how to further expand my ability to understand how context and history affects the creative process and end result of art, as well as the artists who create it. I also expect to learn how to improve my ability to write about art and explain my understanding of it.

3. How do you feel about taking an online course?

I am a bit nervous, but I was a bit excited to see there are many interactive elements to the class. My last online class I took was a bit hard for me to stay engaged.

4. What three things in the Growth Mindset (from Step 3) videos do you believe most apply to you?

1. It's been almost 7 years since I've graduated from SUNY Fredonia and been in school, so I feel a bit rusty. It was nice to refresh myself that if I apply myself and don't stop trying, I can get back into the groove of things.

2. I will be working full time while I am back in school, and the videos gave me a reminder that I need to be diligent with my time and prioritize my days and weeks so that I am able to balance both school and work without letting anything slip.

3. I liked the video of John Legend, because I am older now (an adult learner!) and I want to ensure I am looking at school this time around with a growth mindset to embrace the things that challenge me, and apply myself fully to becoming an art teacher. It took me four years of school, and a few jobs in the advertising field to realize it wasn't really for me, and I finally have figured out that I want to use my knowledge and skills to educate children, and I am excited to learn new things and apply myself.