Since I already have this anyway..

I'm not too good at updating things because I never think anyone's reading. Which they aren't. However, it feels necessary to continue with this. Over the summer I've done a few crafts already and I'm planning and starting a series of drawings.. more on that later.

This is not a dignified art blog or craft blog. this is STUFF.

BTW I have a tumblr that I pay quite a bit more attention to.

That's pretty much what it looks like in case you don't want to click on the link.

tootles.

I am behind.

You've probably noticed but I have not posted the last few lectures. Now I am going to catch myself up.

A few weeks ago Brett Cook came to talk about his projects. He started out by having us define Community on one side of the projection and Soul on the other. He then was able to compare his projects and what he was doing with our definition of Community and Soul. That aspect of the presentation was exactly what my world cultures teacher used to do so it was a bit of a throwback for me.

Anyway..

He creates community gatherings where he would engage everyone in his art. They would create what the community wants to see because the whole point was

for the art to be accessible to everyone.

Next is Melinda Steffy. She mostly spoke about her experiences selling on a site called Etsy. Melinda confessed it was not a place to advertise conceptual art but a place to sell fun things and jewelry. She had a lot of fun creating charts for us to see the difference between selling in person vs selling online. Melinda also stressed the importance of taking good pictures of your products before posting them on Etsy.

Melinda's links:

Fabrik

Julre

Double update!

I've been sick for about two weeks now and I'm still recovering. I have been able to go to the lecture series since it only involves sitting and listening. Here's the two artists I haven't spoken about yet.

Eileen Neff is a woman who works with the theme of "inside/outside". She uses photography, blows it up to a large size and paints over it combining the outside with inside elements. These elements can be made up with a chair and some treetops or furnishings of a bedroom with Mt. St Victoire inside the bed frame. The piece above is made up of multiple photographs of textures in water. They are all stood up to create a layered feeling.

Doug Bucci was the speaker the next week. He works with metals and primarily focuses on jewelry. He has made belt buckles for Viva La Bam and talked about how one shoots for working with the kind of people they want. Doug also created the jewelry rabbit with Jeff Koons and Stella McCartney. Eventually he was inspired by his diabetes and his body. I forget the exact logistics but he has a monitor connected to his body that checks his blood sugar. With this machine and a 3d printer he creates things relative to his health that day. The healthier he is the more aesthetically pleasing the piece of work. I thought it was really interesting how he connected his health with his art. This really demonstrates how technology can be used in art today.

Until next time

Jess

Sharon Louden

It's almost been a full week since Sharon spoke with us but I still remember what her art was all about and that's what counts right? Sharon is an artist. Not a painter, not a sculptor, not an animator, but an artist. She doesn't limit herself to one medium and tends to push herself. I really enjoyed listening to her talk about what she does. My favorite pieces by her tend to be the ones including glow in the dark materials. Below is an animation still from her piece 'Footprints'

Until next time

Jess

So last weeks lecture was a chaotic one. All foundation students were to get their schedules and relearn how to register. I am a worry wart so I was already stressed when the alarm started going off! Everyone tried to evacuate like it was telling us but Gerard eventually told us to come back in. The lecture went on with the highly annoying alarm system repeating itself and may have left some information to be desired.

If that wasn't enough I was one of the few who did not receive a blocked in schedule. My account, for various reasons, was put on hold. What a ridiculous hour! Ridiculous day! Horribly Ridiculous week.

Jess

Kate Cuffari

I was surprisingly interested in this weeks lecture. Kate was a very bubbly presenter and caught my attention immediately. When she described the process of getting in contact with artists about whether to preserve a piece or not and trying to restore art pieces even when it seems ridiculous, like smelling out rotten potatoes I was intrigued. I want a job like that. Maybe I will have some direction in my life.

But the purpose of the lecture, or what I picked up, was the importance of picking your materials. It was stressed a few times what can happen when a cheap and/or new material is used. New technology doesn't necessarily mean good technology.

Until next time

Jess

I have been asking around for hours what this guys name is and realized last minute I could probably find it on Blackboard. Alas I did not find his name, nor did I figure out where his awesome accent was from. I seem to have failed at collecting important information. Good thing I'm not trying to be a spy.

Anyway, what he was talking about is the important thing. He discussed at length how art and technology fit together in the mass of media, which was very informative for me since I am not taking Art heritage at the moment. Although, I have no clue where in art history the classes may be, and they might have not reached any point with bigger influences of technology.

What I do find funny is that every lecture we've had so far stresses the use of Twitter or Facebook. Everyone is so available now days it seems it may be even harder to be found as an artist with so many phonies out there. I guess it could be argued either way. The majority is looking toward the internet. I don't blame them. It's a strangely lovely place.