Foreshortened Self Portrait Artist Statement

Artist Statement

For this project, I knew that I wanted do something that had a very deep meaning to me and portrayed an actual emotion that I feel. I spend so much time in my room (where this picture takes place) and I wanted to capture that feeling that I get when I am finally able to escape away from the day and be alone. I wanted to capture that feeling where everything comes crashing down to you at night and you drive your self crazy with your own thoughts. For me personally, I keep everything bottled in and when I get to my room at night thats when I am able to let everything out and sometimes it takes a huge toll on me (which is what this picture depicts). Overall, I love the way that this photo turned out. I worked foreshortening into the poses that I took and think that I did a nice job of it. Also I think that I had great craftsmanship with all of the editing that I had done. I was able to create a complex composition through a very well thought out design and different poses which give depth to the piece. Also, I think one of the strongest parts about this piece is the nice rhythm that I have throughout it. I think I could have done a better job with shaping the figures in photoshop but it was also very hard because the quality was not very high. The second picture that I have posted was made from pictures that I took for fun when it has snowed. I had some extra free time for this project and decided to put together a piece that showed how we are still able to be young at heart even though we may be getting older each day. While this photo isn't as strong compositionally as my other one, it does a very nice job of demonstrating foreshortening which is why I decided to show it. Overall, I was able to create pieces that show a high level of concept and composition as well as foreshortening. 

Self Portrait Proposal

I will meet the criteria of this assignment by creating a very complex composition with at least 8 of my own original photographs. I will show foreshortening in the figure by positioning the camera at different angles/places which will accentuate a certain spot of my body. I want to show foreshortening through my hands somehow and the placement of them because I feel like hand gestures are something that portray so much emotion just in themselves. Throughout this portrait, I really want to portray my true inside feelings although you can not see them from the outside. I really want to portray what it really feels like to deal with anxiety and how it really impairs you to do certain things. What I have planned for this piece is multiple ghostlike shots of myself in a woods like setting all combined into one. This will portray the idea that I am haunting myself everyday and my mind is always consumed. This is a very significant topic for me because I deal with it everyday and also not many people know it about me. 

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/572309065118829970/

Self portraits in square by Aneta Ivanova:

I love the ghostly feel that this self portrait has and I want to portray something like that in mine.

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/452752568761350680/

This piece is very inspiring to me because it makes me feel the same emotion that I want to portray, It also gives off the effect of that I want to create.

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/69383650480272386/

Photography by: Michelle Ferrera

I love the foreshortening in this picture and the placement of the body. I want to do multiple photographs with foreshortening just like this one in my piece.

City/Landscape Artist Statement

I was able to create two complex compositions (one cityscape and one landscape) by having great craftsmanship, compositions and creativity. For my cityscape I knew that I wanted to do something with some of the photographs that I took at MIAD. There was one photograph in particular that stood out to me, that reflection of buildings in a puddle. It was one of my favorite picture I took that day and it sparked a great idea for me. My concept for this piece was about the idea that we are slowly losing so much history each day and things are just slowly being forgotten about. I portrayed this idea by creating a mixed media piece where the reflection of the buildings in the puddle represent all of the history and the marked cityscape represents all of the new things in life that are slowly overpowering the history. Overall, I love the way that this piece turned out, it has an almost abstract feel to it and it was one of the first true mixed media pieces that I have done. For my landscape piece, I decided to use collage. As I was scanning through some magazines I came across a photograph of all of these new windmills and that that sparked my idea for the piece. This collage represents the idea that we are so incredibly consumed in technology now-a-days and how if we would just look up from our screens we would see such a beautiful world. I love the way that each part of the collage was very separate but I was able to put them together in a way that could be mistake as a true photograph. Overall, I believe that I had great compositions and concepts for both of my pieces but if I could change one thing, I would have loved to do something different with the boarder of my cityscape. Overall, I was able to create two complex compositions by having very strong concept, craftsmanship and creativity.

Breadth - 2 Free Choice Pieces

Artist Statement

From the start, I knew that I wanted to do something with portraits for this project. After filming for my experimental video class, I fell in love with the footage that I had produced and decided that I wanted to experiment with taking stills from the film. While I was planning on going on a separate photo shoot for this project, I decided to turn my film into photography. I was able to use strong composition, craftsmanship and creativity through combining multiple edited stills from film into two beautiful photographs. I wanted to continue the theme of my video into my photographs; my film was showing the inside emotion of my brother who deals with bullying at school. I wanted to portray the idea of hurt and pain, both being stuck but wanting to run away from it all. Both of these images really hit home with me because I feel that I did an excellent job with portraying the exact mood. Not only that, but I believe that the viewer will be able to feel emotion when looking at my pieces. The one thing that I had wished was a little better was the quality of the images but you have to remember that these are multiple stills from film and in some ways, the slight fuzziness adds to the mood of the pieces. Overall, I was able to create two very complex compositions for my breadth section by combining multiple stills from film into 2 complete photographs.

Third Ward Field Trip

This sculpture was made using ceramic and acrylic and is titled 'Undecided' by Beverly Mayeri. I was  particularly drawn to this sculpture because it did a very good job at portraying an emotion. The artist utilized emphasis a lot in this piece. There is a huge emphasis drawn to the eyes of this sculpture. The strongest thing about this piece how amazing and realistic it was sculpted which is evident when you can see how beautiful the highlights and shadows are on her face. I would say the least effective thing would be the color of this sculpture, I think it would have been a little bit stronger if she had used more contrast.

This piece was created using sand cast glass and steel and is titled 'vector' by Jeremy Popelka. I was really drawn to this sculpture due to how beautiful it was in the natural light. I have never really seen a glass sculpture like this one and was really intrigued by how it was created. This sculpture utalizes the use of symmetry very well. The strongest thing about this piece is how beautiful the coloring is on it. This photograph doesn't really do it's beauty justice. I would say one of the least strongest things about this piece would be the size. I would have loved to see this on a bigger scale.

This piece was created using acrylic on canvas and is titled 'Navigation' by Jason Rohlf. This was one of my favorite pieces that I had looked at all day due to how strong it was from a design stand point. It kind of reminded me of the look you get through 'glitch art'. It also does a great job using balance, you can tell that each portion of this piece was very well planned out for optimal design. The strongest thing about this piece would be its use of lines, it is so well designed that I would love to see this pattern on clothes! The least effective thing about this piece would be it's size, I think it would be a lot more impressive if it were on a bigger scale.

When I was walking back from lunch I was drawn to this barb wired fence. It was on the boarder line of the area that was very run down and shady and I felt that this fence almost acted as a divider from the 'good and bad'. It really got me thinking about safety because you usually don't see barbed wire anymore. I chose this picture of one of my three because I really loved how well the feeling that I felt in that place was portrayed through the photograph. This picture reminds me of the idea of freedom and how at our age all we want to do is escape and grow up.

As I was walking past an old building I decided to peer into the window which showcased a huge, empty warehouse. This photograph was actually shot through the dirty glass window but truthfully I think that it really adds to the effect. I love how solitude this photograph feels. This is such an unique space because it was hidden away and you would have no idea that this was the inside of the building looking from the outside. Also, I am always drawn to abandoned places and the lighting in this space was extremely beautiful. This place reminded me of the idea of death, my dad owns a warehouse for his wood working business and this space reminded me of his but only worn down and empty which is what his currently life filled warehouse will become in the future.

As I was talking a walk along the river, I was drawn to all of the beautiful sight lines and archetechure on the strip. Everything seemed so still and perfect walking down this path and noticed how beautiful the reflections were in the puddles. All of the buildings down there are beautiful and most are fairly old. I decided to take some shots through the puddles and they ended up being some of my favorite shots I took all day. This is such a unique point of view because it portrays looking back into the past of Milwaukee and just how beautiful the city actually is. Not only that but I have never seen puddles that were as clear as these were. The overall feel of these pictures remind me of the idea of looking back into the past on something that you miss. 

Free Choice Proposal

For my next free choice project I plan to take a set of three portraits. I want this portraits to portray the idea of walking away and out of someone's life that you have been in for a long time. I want them portray that feeling of being unsure because you are about to make a decision that will change your life completely. Also, I loved the portrait unit in Photography 1 and really want to try taking more portraits have them portray a certain mood/emotion. I love taking pictures of people because there are so many emotions in the world to capture and there isn't a better way to do it then through human beings themselves. Although I do not have an exact plan on who or where I am going to take these pictures, I know the emotion that I want to portray and those decisions will most likely be on the spot depending on what my mood is.

Word Project (Ephemeral) Artist Statement

I was able to create 10 finished quality works of art related to my word, 'Ephemeral' within the given time requirements. I was also able to interrupt my word in a literal and metaphorical way. In the beginning, my plan was to run with the idea of 'beautiful things never last.' I started out with wanting to create works of art that show the opposite side of beautiful things. With that being said, my mind decided to run off and I put my own spin on my word. I decided to bend the word to fit into my own life. I decided to run with the idea of time and that it is the one thing that all human beings chase after. We all want more time in our life and feel as if time just flies by and by the time you know it, your life is close to over. Therefore the idea of 'time' is ephemeral. With that being said, I created 10 quality works of art by having good time management and spreading my projects out within the time limit. I also was able to use a range of media (collage, watercolor and acrylic). Overall, I used this project to really let myself go and let my mind take me from project to project. This was the first time that I was truly able to let art flow out of me without feeling pressured. Overall, I was able to create 10 finished quality works of art related to my word, 'Ephemeral' within the given time requirements.

Word Project Research

This photo is a really good inspiration of what I want to capture for this project. I want my project to revolve around the idea that beauty never lasts. With that being said, for all of my final pieces I want to capture the decay or downfall of these once beautiful things. This photograph of a wilted and dead flower captures exactly what I hope to do in my work; the decay after beauty.

Ron Pope - Fireflies Lyrics

Above is a link to the lyrics of the song 'Fireflies' by Rob Pope. These lyrics are a good inspiration to the type of emotion that I want my pieces to give off. The song talks about young love and all of the beautiful things that never last for long. The song captures the downfall/decay of all of those beautiful things and does not focus on the actual beauty of them. If there was one thing that I want to accomplish with my pieces it would be to bring the emotion that this song has and have the viewers feel that.

Aging Father's Decline: A Son's Photo Journal

The link above brings you to a site with a very deep story. Just to summarize, a son photographs the aging decline and death of his father. Each photo is very moving but the main point of this as inspiration is that I want to create pieces with the feeling of these pictures. The idea that beautiful things never last (beauty being anything from emotions to true beauty).

Overall, all three of these examples are a great inspiration to what direction I want to take with my pieces.

Final Project 3

This photo is by far my favorite one of the entire summer. We had taken a super short 3 day trip up to Michigan for my Dad's job. On the way up there we came across this giant sunflower field! Naturally we had to stop to take some cool photos. I had never seen a sunflower field before but I had easily learned that they are one of the most peaceful and beautiful places on earth. This is one of my favorite photos shot there! I did a lot of editing on this piece to take out somethings in the background and jet trails in the sky but in the end I am super happy with how it turned out. I also tried to do an image transfer with this but it did not turn out so well so I decided to paint some acrylic over it, which also did not turn out so well! I decided to keep it thought incase someday I wanted to go back and turn it into something beautiful!

Final Project 2

This is my second final project. I took this photo on a photo shoot I had with my friends in mid August. It was a total blast and I had so much fun. It's hard to believe but this photo was not staged! she just started frolicking down this path and I was able to take some awesome pictures. Not only that but using Photoshops Lightbox allowed me to do some pretty awesome editing to it! I really love this photo because it shows the free spirited mood that this girl always has! The coolest part about this picture is that I also did an image transfer of it onto a canvas which I had explained earlier in a blog post. I have the image transfer here which I will be able to show you guys as well!

Final Project 1

So here is one of my final projects for my summer homework. The reason that I am posting this so late is because I found out today that photoshop was allowing a 30 day free trial download of lightbox which I was insanely excited about because I've always wanted to give lightbox a try! Anyways, this is a photograph that I had taken with a slow aperture to get the full strokes of the sparklers on 4th of july. After the big fireworks my family and I always come back and do fun things such as sparklers, snakes, stink bombs, ect. I really wanted to capture that fun moment of all of us together. The hardest thing was trying to hold the camera still to get the clearest picture possible but overall with all of the fantastic editing that lightbox allowed me, I am super pleased with this final product!

Scholastic Art & Writing Awards Website

I did not know that there was a website for all of the scholastic art awards! It was super fun to look at all of the winning works of art but I especially narrowed in on the photography section because that is what I'm really interested in. Truthfully, every single one of the photographs were AMAZING and they all had inspired me to take something that ends up in there this year. I had no idea that there was a writing award either! Considering that I am super into writing as well, that is something I will definitely be looking into. Overall, just looking and seeing that all of these pieces were done by students my age really inspired me to do super good work this year and really get something to win an award.

http://www.artandwriting.org/student-showcase/award-winning-works/#subset=18&art=Photography&art_portfolio=false&writing_portfolio=false&year=2014&state=All&awards=All&grade=0

This piece is titled "Bed Bugs" by Alana Southwood from Fort Wayne, IN. I find this piece really inspiring to me for some reason. When I look at it, it really reminds me of the ending of a relationship with someone or being deceived by a loved one. The fact of the matter is that this picture really made me feel something and that is why I chose to share it. I hope that I can make something that can make others feel something this year.

http://www.artandwriting.org/student-showcase/award-winning-works/#subset=11&art=Photography&art_portfolio=false&writing_portfolio=false&year=2014&state=All&awards=All&grade=0

This piece is titled "Blowing Bubbles" by Derek Oliwa from Rockville, MD. I have always had a passion for black and white photography and this one really stood out to me. While a little kid blowing bubbles is typically something that should be happy and bright, this photograph really evokes the mood that it is something very dreary and unhappy. I really like that about this piece because it is not typical and the irony of it is super interesting. 

Wisconsin Arts Board Website

I had no idea that there was a website out there that displayed as much art information for one state! I started to dig really deep into the website and found so many cool things such as the poetry out loud contest and quilting classes for kids. It was super cool to see all of the interesting and helpful actives out there. It is also awesome that some organization "nurtures creativity" because without places like these, our world would most definitely struggle. I want to use this website to enroll in at least one of their contests that they put out for high school students. I believe that applying for all these contests will most definitely improve my artist ability! Although there are really no pictures on this website to post, I must say that I was really inspired by all of the amazing events put together in Wisconsin just to keep art alive. It is something very near and dear to my heart and I am so happy that it exists!

http://artsboard.wisconsin.gov/sublink.asp?linksubcat2id=2689&linksubcatid=3574&linkcatid=3728&linkid=1653&locid=171

This sculpture is called "backyard bee keeping" by Chris Watten. It is part of the Phantom Galleries. Personally I have never even attempted sclupture but there is something about this one that I really like.  It's super fun and makes me feel happy. Coming from someone who generally makes and loves art that pulls at my heart strings, I really enjoy this upbeat fun looking sculpture! 

http://artsboard.wisconsin.gov/sublink.asp?linksubcat2id=2691&linksubcatid=3574&linkcatid=3728&linkid=1653&locid=171

This painting is untitled by Kim Rahal. It was put in downtown Kenosha in empty store fronts to transform them. This was done with acrylics which really  intrigues me because the colors are so incredibly vibrant! I love how abstract this piece is and was really drawn in by the colors on it. I would love to know how she got her colors so vibrant and would love to try to create a piece like this! 

Portal Wisconsin Website

When first opening the website, I was a little confused at what it was all about but then I realized how awesome this website was! I love the fact that it is all about Wisconsin and the art that goes on in it. Another thing that I found super cool is the fact that you are able to submit your own work to be displayed on the website. I also really enjoyed looking at all of the local photographers and artists; it's super cool and inspiring to see all of the talent so close around you. Not only that, but another thing that I found super interesting was all of the categories of art you could look at! One of the main things I learned was how cool mixed media pieces were, I will definitly be using some of those ideas to enhance my artwork this year! I had also learned that woodworking was considered a form of art. although I always knew that sculpting and such was art, I had never really thought about wood. It would be super cool to try this year considering my Dad owns a wood shop. Lastly, I had learned about all of the opportunities for artists around Wisconsin! Seeing all of the lists of events and fun activities that artists are needed for is something i'd be super interested in checking out this year and that will be able to impact my artwork as a whole.

http://www.portalwisconsin.org/online_gallery_image.cfm?rid=40413&artist=975&sort=medium&i=1&medid=16

This photo is called "Consensus" and it was taken by Lary Dickerson. I love this photo a lot, mostly because it was taken in the Milwaukee Public Library and that is where I had my best photo shoot yet when I was in Photography 1. Not only that but I love the composition of how the hand rails and mantle is aligned. It almost makes the piece feel a bit abstract.

http://www.portalwisconsin.org/online_gallery_image.cfm?rid=40418&artist=975&sort=medium&i=1&medid=16

This photo is called "Whirling Girlish" and it was taken by Lary Dickerson. I also love this photo by him because it gives almost a non photograph feel. I am always stuck to thinking that my photography has to be crisp lines and high quality but seeing something like this that is beautiful and blurry at the same time, I really do love it! This makes me really want to try new things with photography this year.

Image Transfer

So this is my first attempt at an at home image transfer. I'm hoping for it to be my last final project. I was just scrolling through my news feed on Facebook and this video popped up for how to do an image transfer to a canvas with plain printer paper. Naturally, I clicked on the video because I was totally interested. It turns out that you can do a transfer to a canvas with just plain printer paper with just using gel medium. So I went out to get some gel medium today and here I am! You have to let it sit for 24 hours and then use a damp sponge to peel the paper away and the ink is supposed to stay!! This is a super cool and easy/fun concept; I hope it works!! :) stay tuned for the final product tomorrow night!

Dream Catcher

Late night post: I've been having a lot of bad dreams so tonight I have decided to sketch myself a dream catcher before bed. Call me superstitious but maybe it will work! ;) this past week I have worked 5-7 days and had cheer practice Monday - Friday so I am pooped. But there is nothing a little late night sketching can't fix! 

Photo Shoot

After being inspired by getting my own senior pictures taken, I decided to grab some of my friends and take them on a shoot. I had so much fun and stayed up this late just to edit a couple pictures from the night (passion at it's finest). Granted I don't have the best camera here at home, I did the best I could and went through some editing to bring the pictures up to par! Overall I had a BLAST doing this and can not wait to start my future photography business! Here is a quick peak at one of the portraits I took tonight. :)

Senior Picture Inspiration

This past week I had gotten my senior pictures taken: it was a blast! I got them done by Jessica Lauren Photography and found out just how in love with photo I really am. Her name is Jessica and she does outdoor shoots with just her nice cannon camera and some things to enhance the lighting on your face. I was in awe of what she was doing and we talked almost the whole time about her path in choosing photography and all about her career. At the end of the session she had told me that any time I wanted to (probably next summer) I could come shadow her on shoots and she would show me some of her editing techniques and also have me help her along the way. I would be lying if I wasn't extremely excited! It's wonderful when things like this inspire you so much for your future! 

NEW SUPPLIES :)

Here is a random post for you guys. To start off, I hated sketching last year. I hated everything to do with it because I felt that I was terrible at it! To be honest, when I found out we had to sketch for AP I was not looking forward to it. Fast forward halfway into summer and here I am buying my own supplies and having to make my mom pull my away from sketching because I spend so much time on it. I have learned so much about my own style and how I like to work. I have also really learned how to sketch and have improved so much! Not only that but I am using cool things like different kinds of erasers (kneaded, gum and vinyl). Besides that I got my Caran D'Ache crayons which I am completely siked about using. So yeah, sorry for the scatterbrained post but I was just excited about my new supplies I got. :) 

Design Choices

This is a sketch I did a while ago but I have decided that I wanted to post the meaning behind it. When I did this sketch, I was planning on finishing the face and all of that. For the past couple of weeks I have contemplated going back to add on or not. Usually I would have said yes because the face should be completed but oddly I chose not to. I feel myself growing as an artist each day especially by the fact that I am making these odd design choices for my own work. I had decided that in this case, simplicity was beautiful. Not only that, but sketching facial features is becoming more and more easy to me each day which feels AWESOME! :) 

First Day In the Pool

After a year of planning and contemating, our pool is finally swimable. Yes, we still need concrete, a fence and patio furniture, but this is the beginning of my own paradise where I am free to be creative. This will be the place where I will be able to relax and let all of my stress float away. My backyard will be my creative get away where I can sketch and create peacefully! This so called paradise will be complete in about a week! Why yes sketching and creating is great anywhere, it will be even more wonderful in my own paradise where I am free to be creative, my own safe haven. Let the creativity begin! :)