Functional Graffiti

When I was at an art fair this year, I picked up a functional graffiti stool (see picture) made out of cardboard.  Over 400 lbs can be placed on it, I use it as a foot stool.  I believe graffiti is an art form, though in the past it was considered vandalism.  Now, building owners hire graffiti artists to do artistic graffiti on their buildings.  Even galleries carry artwork by graffiti artists.  There is still some graffiti that is unwanted, especially if gang related.  But the creativity and use of color by graffiti artists cannot be denied.  Enjoy!

Venus of Willendorf

Venus of Willendorf, 24,000 to 22,000 BC

Art is a continuing dialogue that stretches back thousands of years.  According to Kit White, "what you make is your contribution to that dialogue...Therefore try not to repeat what has already been said...Study art history and stay alert to the dialogue of your moment."  For me, art history is the foundation that allows me to explore art in new ways.  Knowing what has already been done, prevents me from doing the same thing, and urges me on to something new.  Enjoy!

Artist Trading Cards

Alice Cook, Artist trading cards

According to Wikipedia, "Artist trading cards (or ATCs) are miniature works of art about the same size as modern trading cards baseball cards, or 2 ¹⁄₂ by 3 ¹⁄₂ inches.  Cards are produced in various media, including dry media (pencils, pens, markers, etc.), wet media (watercolor, acrylic paints, etc.), paper media (in the form of collage, papercuts, found objects, etc.) or even metals or fiber."  While cleaning out my studio, I came across a binder containing artist trading cards that I made several years ago.  The one on the left was an oil painting I did on a canvas pad.  I didn't like the painting as a whole, but thought the flowers were okay, so I cut it out and made it into an ATC.  The one on the right is part of a paint by number that I never completed, so I cut it up and created another ATC.  Enjoy!

Prismacolor Colored Pencils

Around a month ago I picked up a 72 count of Prismacolor Colored Pencils.  I have done a few pictures with them, and am currently using them in my Drawing 2 class.  I like the softness of the pencil, which gives intense and rich color depending on the pressure you use.  I like to work on paper that has a medium tooth for creating layering with the colored pencil.  The only con is that it is a bit sensitive to sharpening due to the soft tip, it has broken on me a few times.  Otherwise I would say that if you are interested in using them for a professional grade artwork it is worth the price, which is steep.  Enjoy!

In the Studio

I was in my studio the other day doing some cleaning and organizing and I ran across a sketch pad and a book called, A Guide To The Elements.  My love of science made me stop and check it out.  To my surprise in the sketch pad were drawings of the elements in graphite.  Then I remembered that I began a study in drawing the elements as pictures and putting there atomic number on top and atomic weight on the bottom.  This picture was a study on the element Cadmium.  Here I decided to draw my paint tube of Cadmium Red, since it contained the element.  This was a fun discovery, in which I am going to continue with drawing the elements.  Enjoy!

Tradition In Art

J.M.W. Turner

"Tradition is the record of imaginative experience," said Kathleen Raine.  "The tradition of making art is the record of exploration and "traditional" art is the product of exploration in a particular time and place," according to Kit White.    Art can tell us where we have been, where we are and where we are going.  It records the past, reports the present and foretells the future.  Turner was a romantic landscape painter and was controversial during his time due to the way he depicted landscape that was different then what went before him.  Now he is considered as an artist that elevated landscape painting.  Enjoy!

Piet Mondrian and Composition

Piet Mondrian, 1921

Composition is the foundation of image making.  According to Kit White, "it is the spatial relationship between all of the parts in an image...how a thing is composed determines its look, its feel, and its meaning."  Composition assists in what the image communicates.  Mondrian, during his Neo-Plasticism Period, used geometric shapes outlined in black with some color.  Since the subject matter was limited, composition was crucial in order to express the right feeling to the painting.  In my own work, sometimes the right composition comes naturally and sometimes many sketches are needed to get the right feel.  Enjoy!

Tree In Pastel

Alice Cook, Tree Number One, 2013

Yesterday, feeling a bit anxious in the studio, I decide to take a break from my acrylic painting in order to do some pastel.  Trees have always been a bit difficult, so I thought I'd give a try at a tree in pastel.  First I layered in the sky, with blue, yellow ocher and pink, then the ground with off white and sap green.  Then up went the trunk and branches, then the cluster of leaves.  Many layers were placed on  the paper through trial and error with some blending.  I really enjoyed the spontaneity of the process that I went through.  I have decided I need more practice with pastels and forming trees, so I am going to start a series of trees in pastel.  Enjoy!

Drawing 2, Week 3

Alice Cook

Building on what I did week 2 of drawing class, the graphite drawings, I did color pencil studies on top of the same graphite drawings.  I tried complementary color schemes, analogous color schemes and triad color schemes from the color wheel.  According to the teacher, this color scheme of orange and mostly blues had the most unity and balance in the picture.  So I went with the teachers recommended color scheme and arrangement of the colors.  Next is to do a large version of this color pencil drawing in a more refined way.  Enjoy!

Why Master Your Technique?

Ingres, 1862

According to Kit White, "A poorly executed image remains insignificant.  A well-constructed image of something seemingly insignificant can be masterful.  In all great work, the subject and the means by which it is rendered are inseparable.  Master your technique to protect your content."  For me, I have struggled to create the artwork that I see in my head due to not having mastered the technique needed in a certain medium.  I love drawing and painting the human figure, but I admit that hands and feet are troublesome for me, I have yet to master them.  Does that mean I give up doing hands and feet, no way!  I will do the best hands and feet that I can do now and will continue to learn to master them.  Enjoy!

Screen Printing Kit

Recently I received as a gift a Speedball Screen Printing Kit.  Since in the past I have done some print making, such as drypoint and linocut relief, I was aware of screen printing.  Though I am glad to have received the gift, I really know nothing about the process, so here enters Wikipedia.  According to Wikipedia, "Screen printing is also a stencil method of print making in which a design is imposed on a screen of polyester or other fine mesh, with blank areas coated with an impermeable substance. Ink is forced into the mesh openings by the fill blade or squeegee and on to the printing surface during the squeegee stroke."  I an excited to work in this print making technique and will be posting future artworks from this technique.  Enjoy!

Robert Smithson and Process

Robert Smithson, Spiral Jetty

Art is the product of process.  According to Kit White, "whether conceptual, experimental, emotional, or formal, the process you develop yields the image you produce...the cumulative result of that process is a body of work."  For Smithson to create this land art, it took a great deal of planning before the actually work was created.  In my opinion, a lack of process will be reflected in the final artwork for either good or bad.  Though spontaneity has its place and who can define how much process needs to be done.  Some artists can spend as much as a year and some minutes on process.  Whatever you do, enjoy the process.  Enjoy!

Drawing 2, Week 2

Alice Cook

The first week in drawing 2 class, I had to take pre-cut foamboard, in the shape of small rectangles and squares, and create a 3 dimensional shape by gluing the pieces together.  Not many instructions were given, so I went ahead and created my 3D shape.  Then I was instructed to take the 3D shape and create a 2D composition of it on paper with pencil.  Unfortunately my 3D shape was boring, so I threw out the foamboard and created a more interesting 2D composition from my mind.  It still had all the necessary shapes and form. The pictures here are the 2D compositions shaded in from a particular light source.  Enjoy!




Mark Rothko and Seeing

Mark Rothko, 1952

According to Kit White, "art studies the world, in all its manifestations, and renders back to us not simply how we see, but how we react to what we see and what we know as a consequence of that seeing."  I believe this applies to even abstract and non-representational artwork, like the work of Mark Rothko (see picture).  I have looked at a numerous amount of his pictures and I see nature throughout.  Not always the pleasant parts of nature, but the storms and blackness.  Color in and of itself, evokes a certain feeling.  Rothko was a master of color, and he could put colors together that communicate a certain feeling.  Enjoy!

Design 2

Alice Cook

These past two weeks in design 2 I have been making three dimensional geometric shapes.  First I started with a two dimensional drawing of the shape, this a called a planar net.  Then carefully folding it and gluing it to form the 3-D shape.  The first shape was a cube (or hexahedron).  The second shape was a octahedron (looks like a diamond to me).  The third shape was a truncated tetrahedron (looks like a rock with the corners cut off).  Finally, was the quartile, a shape the teacher made up, it has a curved surface.  It wasn't the most exciting project, but according to the teacher this was just practice for a more creative 3-D project forthcoming.  Enjoy!

Learning to Draw?

Rembrandt

Learning to draw well is important to me since I am creating a graphic novel, but is it important for all artists?  I have met installation artists and performance artists that have stated that they cannot draw a straight line, yet they have done well in their particular art field. I think learning to draw well depends on one's aspirations for their artwork and in their art career.  According to Kit White, "whatever its form, drawing transforms perception and thought into image and teaches us how to think with our eyes."  For me, drawing has definitely strengthened my paintings and gives me a blueprint to follow and to work out my ideas.  Drawing is a mainstay for me.  Enjoy!

Marcel Duchamp

Marcel Duchamp, Fountain, 1917

Art can be anything.  Kit White says, "Art is not defined by medium or the means of its production, but by a collective sense that it belongs to a category of experience we have come to know as art."  Look at Duchamp's Fountain, it is a urinal placed upside down, with the words R. Mutt, dated 1917.  The question rises, is this art or not?  Dialogue about art is essential and that is what this piece brings.  Enjoy!

New Acrylic Painting With Collage

Alice Cook, Outside of Time #2

Just finished a multi-media painting called, Outside of Time #2. it is part of a painting series.  The painting is done in acrylic with collage watch faces, size 24" X 24".  Last month I posted the first painting in the series, with a woman crouched down with watch faces falling around her.  This second painting shows the woman running at full stride with shattered watch faces at the bottom.  Here the journey in life continues and time has no power over her.  Enjoy!

101 Things to Learn in Art School

A couple of months ago I picked up this book called, 101 Things to Learn in Art School, by Kit White.  Since I am a fine art major, I thought it would be interesting to get another person's point of view on art school.  The book gives "lessons, demonstrations, definitions and tips on what to expect in art school, what it means to make art, and how to think like an artist."  I've read through the book once and will be going through it again, but more methodically and giving my own insights.  Enjoy!

Shout Out to Robert Motherwell

Rober Motherwell, Elegy to the Spanish Republic, 108,
1965 - 1967

I first came across Motherwell's artwork in the magazine ArtForum.  I was taken back by his use of color, including white and black.  Motherwell was a painter, printmaker and editor and worked during the Abstract Expressionist period.  In this picture, and in others, he uses black in bold and brave ways with splashes of color.  I have been told by other teachers that using black is a "no-no" but here it is used as the primary form and if I may say so, done well.   Motherwell is an inspiration to me as I pursue creating my own abstract art.  Enjoy! 

Landscape in Oil

Around five months ago I decided to tackle a landscape in oil paint with a bit of a twist.  I decided that the two canvases would be hinged together.  They would be identical landscapes, but one would have a hole with shattered glass across it.  So off I went to my local home depot to get some cabinet hinges, which worked great on the gallery wrapped canvases.  It was a challenge to paint the same landscape on both canvases, but it worked out.  Then I added the shattered glass effect to the second canvas.  The artwork is called Things Change, and I guess it could be considered that it makes a statement about society, but either way it was a joy to paint.  Enjoy!

No Room For Arrogance

Andy Mack

A teacher of mine recently poked fun at the artwork of Andy Mack (see picture), for he painted unicorns with bubbles or waterfalls.  He called it artwork "for the factory worker, so they can escape their existence."  In my opinion, there is room for all types of art in the art world, but there is no room for arrogance.  The type of artwork should not be labeled "art for the poor" and "art for the rich."  Anyone, rich or poor, that likes unicorns will like the artwork of Andy Mack.  As artists, one of the worst things we can do is insult other artists, for we are only hurting ourselves.  Enjoy!

Stress and the Arts

According to Eric Maisel, "many demands must simply be met if we are to reduce our stress...If we don't get it done, the stress will remain with all sorts of new stress piled on top of it.  Actually meeting demands reduces stress."  Procrastination is one of my worst enemies in art.  An artwork may be challenging, anxiety increases and then I push it off for some other time.  This "pushing off for some other time" only increases the stress and anxiety and, at times, I turn to TV or food to relieve it.  I have found that the best thing is to just show up in my studio and "just do it."  Sounds easy, but it really is an internal war that I fight on a frequent basis.  Be encouraged.  Enjoy!

Pokemon and Art

Is Pokemon's Pikachu art (see picture)?  Are any figures from Pokemon art?  Then we have to ask, what is art?  According to the dictionary art is "the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power." But then we ask, what is beauty?  Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.  So the Pokemon are certainly art, they require creative skill and imagination, they are done in some medium (digital or not), and to some they are beautiful.  Enjoy!

Abstract Last Supper

Alice Cook, Last Supper

I usually don't do religious artwork, but I was inspired by Leonardo da Vinci's Last Supper.  The following picture was done on watercolor paper with acrylic.  I was interested in making the characters into geometric forms around a table with Judas walking away.  Jesus is standing in the middle with a splash of yellow above His head in almost a halo effect.  The fact that they are in a upper room is represented by the two black bars forming the ceiling.  Enjoy!