2/24/10 Daily notes Gomez-Pena, Walker, Lasansky

Guillermo Gomez-Pena - was trying to portray the American view of Latinos, public enemy number one. I think he actually is portraying his own insecurities. I didn't see anything in his art that I felt represented the view point of anyone I know. The only part of his performance that I appreciated was the heart bottle that he would blow into as though he was creating a heart beating.
Kara Walker - draws beautifully and I appreciate her art. I found some of her work to be offensive, but it makes a point. Her work is backed by history and pain. I really like her style of using silhouettes and her panorama, but I found part of it disturbing, especially the lady dancing as she gives birth.
by Mauricio Lasansky's "The Nazi Drawings" were interesting and also conveyed history and pain. I think the message convey was watered down from the way the felt.

Why is this art political?
Gomez-Pena - Seems to be anti-American, because of the way he thinks Americans feel about him. Walker is showing her views on slavery and white Southerners. Lasansky is portraying his anti Nazi viewpoint.
How is it displayed to the audience?
Gomez-Pena uses shock value, Walker protests in a pleasing manner, Lasansky uses more of a muted shock value.

Consumption (Advertising kimono)

I chose my project because of the consumption of magazines, books and newspaper, paper in general. I narrowed my focus to fashion magazines, and then my focus changed to fashion and magazines. As I scanned "In Style Magazine" I tore out the interesting pictures quickly, in one pass. I altered the pictures and created my own advertisements as collages. A lot of the pictures in the magazine where ridiculous before I redesigned them. If my ads were added to a magazine, they'd fit in well. I took a face and added sunglasses, a lady was stomping a car, a huge dog sat behind a lady in a tub, a nude lady was behind a large bottle of nail polish, etc.



I was impressed by the kimonos we saw at the Mint Museum the other day and thought that would be a good way in which to convey my message. Although I do not sew, I was able to make a modified kimono as a canvas for my ads on consumption. I used iron on transfers and my scanner to produce the look I wanted. My project was well received. Perhaps I will create a kimono out of silk and cover it with ads.

2/17/10 Kinkade and Beecroft

Thomas Kinkade
1. What inspires him to create art that looks like 1980's wall paper? He works with a corporate empire to spread his vision of pece and harmony throughout culture. pg20 - He is inspired by the same aesthetic that emerges from market surveys of public taste. p21 - he is a romantic idealist.
2. Does he paint what he likes or what sells? attention is directed to create distribution outlets. (The man is a marketing genius)
3. Does he paint in any other styles? no
4. What does he plan for his future in art? more of the same
5. Who are his favorite artists? n/a, it appears to be himself.

Vanessa Beecroft
1. What mediums does she use? p229 - She draws and paints but her main works are live people and only girls.
2. What is the vision behind VB 35? p224 - The "girls" display the unachievable, media-constructed standards by which legions of impressionable women regularly measure their self-esteem.
3. What does VB35 mean? this was not explained.
4. What inspires her? p224 - She plays up the good ole boys mentality towards women, obsessing on appearance, ignoring intelligence or accomplishments.
5. What other art work has she done? "Despair 1993" exhibited her diary and women off the street that looked like her.

2/15/10 Class notes (Film)

Helvetica - I didn't know a font could be controversial. This is one of my favorite fonts.
I enjoyed the films we viewed because of my interest in marketing.
- David Carson I like his use of various fonts as a part of his graphic art projects. The words are interesting as art, not just a way to convey a written message.
-Stefan Sagmeister's work is truly inspiring as he creates fonts from trees, vines, duct work, paper cups, hole punches, etc. Lou Reed's cover with the writing on the face was awesome. You should really take time to go to his web site and check it out. http://www.sagmeister.com
"Supersize Me" was a good look at marketing at it's worst. It's sad that any given large consumable product manufacturer spends more to promote products that are bad for you than, money that is spent on healthy food choices.

Mint Museum (On Randolph Rd) 2/10/2010

Lois Mailou Jones 1905 - 1998 - Wonderful artist. One of the best I've never heard of. She had a wide range of talent in her painting. There weren't any pieces that I didn't like. My favorite is "Mob Victim" 1944. I was drawn from his shirt to his multicolored face and hair. At first I thought this man was just meditating and then I looked down at his bound hands. "Palm Trees" and "Design for Crelonne Drapery Fabric" were beautiful in both design and the strong use of colors. I liked the "Ville d'Houdain, Pas-de-Calais, France" because of the way she used straight lines and geometric shapes to create a landscape.

02/08/10 Consumption Artists

Nick Cave - I love this guy. His sound suits must be seen dancing and heard in order to appreciate the whole picture. The suits standing alone do not complete the picture. His art must include performance in order to be complete.
Michael Ray Charles - is extremely talented. I liked that he draws inspiration from Greco-Roman art. I didn't consider the cultural/political messages in his art, I enjoy it because of Charles' obvious talent and subject matter. I think it is sad that someone destroyed his flag inspired work because they were so outraged by it.
Matthew Barney - Interesting, The horses wearing spandex suits and prostheses were very inspiring. I also enjoyed the iron worker series. The busted lips were strange.
Andrea Zittel - I liked her "intimate controllable situations" created in her living units. I appreciate her influence from everywhere she lived. I think its weird that she wears an outfit for four months and went through a time period of only wearing rectangles. She may need help. The island is awesome.
Mel Chin - I appreciate his transforming burned houses into worm growing farms? I mean (?) I don't get it. I think the revival field is great for the environment but not art. I liked his work with Carpets from Iran and Turkey, and software.

Nick Cave - Museum and You Tube 2/07/10

The sound suit we saw on our 2/3/10 trip to the Museum of Craft and Design was interesting. I enjoyed looking at it, but it, alone does not appeal to me. Although Cave is a very talented artist,his talent does not shine through unless you see and listen to his videos. I have seen his video along with a sound suit at the McCall Center and seen the videos on You Tube. I find them to be mesmerizing. I normally wouldn't like this kind of art. I was entertained and enjoyed Cave's work.