Luke's 2D Blog

Image Essay #12 (Value Pattern)

2006-12-08T23:20:00.000-08:00

In this work entitled Read My Apocalips by Robbie Conal, the president is seen as a rough-textured looking man. But the way he looks in the picture it seems as if he should have “Let’s have some war” indirectly written all over his face. The title of the composition also does this justice by suggesting a war theme. The value pattern work is incredible; the president’s every last emotion is clear through the rough texture and variations of the gray scale.

The use of shading and creating the illusion of light is also key, making the image look three dimensional and more realistic. Different values of gray are very limited, the light and dark areas in the middle of the face are very contrasted, causing a lot of tension and when you create a political piece of artwork it is meant to have tension. With the image having a lot of tension and contrast it carries vast amounts of visual weight causing the image to look you in the eye and jump out .The patterns used also effect the immense effect of symbolism. Robbie Conal works a lot with political pieces and his style carries a lot of visual weight so it will leave an impact when his fans and viewers see it.

ARTWORK: Robbie Conal Read My Apocalips

Image Essay #5 (Symbolism)

2006-12-08T19:30:00.000-08:00

This work by Salvador Dali is represented as a surrealist kind of artwork which was his specialty. The composition’s title, The Endless Enigma, perfectly demonstrates the symbolism in the artwork. Life is always being questioned and by looking at this piece you are wondering just what the hell is going on in the picture. There seems to be a head, a guitar neck, mountains, and plenty more elements to sit and ponder about. And as long as you look at it you will be questioning what each shape represents. I think that was Dali’s purpose as to why he created it the way he did. So many pieces of art are looked at, recognized, and then are look past. This one particularly will keep your eyes fixed for a longer period of time.

Symbolism is something that is present in the majority of artwork that has ever been created. If it has meaning, you shouldn’t be blunt about it. Hide the information so that viewers are attracted. Dali worked in this way along with artists who have long past gone away and those that are still with us creating symbolist art. By using the techniques learned in 2D this semester I now know of better ways to express symbolism in my compositions.

ARTWORK: Salvador Dali The Endless Enigma

Image Essay #14 (Analogous)

2006-12-08T18:55:00.000-08:00

Pablo Picasso was never one to use a solid set of analogous colors in many of his pieces of work. But in this specific piece entitled Guernica he did. This artwork was titled one of the most political images in modern art. In the composition he is depicting war, hate, pain, death, and grief. The colors he chose to use perfectly describe the emotion going on in the frame. Broken swords and fallen soldiers painted in the cool blues represent the emotions that he felt. If he would have painted it with any other colors in it the same message wouldn’t have gotten across as well. When we see anguish we think of dark gloomy colors and that is what this presents.

This piece is another example of using your colors wisely, if you have a set mood for the piece of art its good to have a little bit of insight on what you’re going to do as far as colors go. Having your colors picked out before you have any idea what you’re going to compose isn’t always the smartest thing in the world, when speaking in terms of emotion and symbolism. If you’re leaving it up to the viewer, use any colors you like because it's usually up to them to think what they want at that point.

ARTWORK: Pablo Picasso Guernica

Image Essay #10 (Risk Taking)

2006-12-08T17:37:00.000-08:00

Taking a risk in a piece of art can either make or break the composition. It’s all about how you look at it and perceive it. Jackson Pollack is infamous for his risk-taking as his style is mainly splattering paint all over a huge canvas. In Number 8, Jackson utilizes his materials to create a composition with aluminum paint and oil on canvas. He usually works on much larger canvases but with exception to some; including this one. Using aluminum in a piece is ultimately a huge risk; you have to think about the aluminum’s state and how you are going to apply it to your artwork. Not displayed in this piece but Pollack originally painted whole rooms with splattered paint, which to me is taking a risk. But then again, taking a risk is what art is all about.

In our class, every assignment we were pushed to take risks. The class would take risks, but we would be told that we could have pushed ourselves further. And I completely agree with this because I don’t think you could ever push yourself too far. There’s always a risk to take. But if that risk is worth taking or not is another question.

ARTWORK: Jackson Pollock Number 8

Image Essay #13 (Seven Color Questions)

2006-12-08T17:17:00.000-08:00

How do you interpret each color?

When I see the basic primary colors of blue and red together I instantly think of Superman. Growing up with him and being a big fan that mindset sticks with you.

Who taught you that meaning?

My parents primarily taught me how to perceive colors. But In a way I sort of taught myself in a way how to see each character’s color in the superhero world.

Can it have more than one meaning to you?

It has to. Seeing blue and red together can’t always mean Superman. From a more important standpoint, Iron Man contains the colors red and yellow which are also two colors you see together everyday. The key colors in a traffic light. You need to have a different meaning instead of just Iron Man.

How was that meaning interpreted by your culture?

In popular culture, we learned that Superman could represent the American culture. And by saying this, red and blue stands for America. The RED, white, and BLUE.

How is it different from other cultures?

If you hadn’t grown up in America, your portrayal of red and blue would definitely be different. Superman to you then would just be another phony, made up character in a book.

What feelings or emotions can color evoke?

Depending on the hue, color creates a lot of emotion that makes viewers feel the way they do when they look at a certain piece of artwork. For an example, warm colors can make you feel happy but at the same time make you feel sad depending on the elements in the work. It all depends on the subject matter and how it is juxtaposed.

Can you ever just choose color randomly?

Yes, I do believe you can. Jackson Pollock once did it by splattering color on his canvas and leaving it up to the viewer to decide what it was about. But if you want to emphasize a certain mood, know what colors to use.

ARTWORK: Andy Warhol Superman

Image Essay #9 (Dynamism)

2006-12-08T16:14:00.000-08:00

I chose this artwork of the X-Men by “MAD!” For my description of dynamism. The piece has a lot going on in the frame and therefore has a lot of motion. The expression on each of the heroes faces presents a different mood of action; some are angry, sly, serious, and the list goes on. The way that they are presented is signifying that they are in action and presents a forceful image that is jumping out at you; especially Wolverine and Gambit which are looking at the viewer while they attack. Along with force, they are full of energy. It adds dynamism that each one is ready for battle as they are performing their superpowers. Teamwork is also present because they are going in the same direction, fighting for the same team. The colors also are so vivid and bounce off of each other in such an awesome manner. Complements playing off of each of the intensified colors create a good sense of contrast.

Dynamism is imperative in artwork because motion and energy work together to keep the viewer interested. When it comes down to a gallery or the media it’s usually proven to keep the average eye on the piece for a longer period of time.

Down The Rabbit Hole (Extra Credit Opportunity)

2006-12-08T15:43:00.000-08:00

Our final project was to create a self portrait using certain aspects of Alice in Wonderland and to tie those into my first year at college. My idea was to take the Hookah Caterpillar and transform it into a real life situation, growing up. On the bottom is a variation of me exhaling smoke which interchanges into the frame above. I chose greens as a freshman color to portray a caterpillar that has yet to turn into a butterfly. The figures in the top frame represent colors of a male monarch butterfly, and are exhaling smoke also in the same colorful pattern as themselves. The smoke that I’m exhaling represents knowledge that the upperclassmen, in the frame above, already have achieved. This leads into the text at the bottom that reads “Time to grow up. Fill your lungs up.” But to lead the eyes down there, the words were scrambled at the top and segregated on each side. As your eye follows the text to the bottom it circulates so you follow the smoke back to the top.

After the crit day, it was said that my colors were rather muted and was hard to tell which was the dominant figure. So I have decided to add marker and outline myself with a green hue. And to make the colors more powerful add complements in the hair of the upperclassmen. Also, to make the shirts of the two on the right a color of some sort.

Image Essay #11 (Color Scheme)

2006-12-08T14:04:00.000-08:00

The album artwork from the band described in my first blog entry is what I chose to emphasize on. It comes from the cover of Brand New’s Deja Entendu. The color scheme present in this particular piece of art is a sense of split complementary. The complementary color is the bluish green of the water versus the complements of that which is represented by the warm tones of the sky and the clouds. The use of the astronaut as the dominant figure is beyond me, I’m really not sure about what they were going for by using this. It could and probably is completely random. The negative space around “Neil” is enriched with colors which make the composition beautifully contrasted. But all in all that’s what complementary colors are meant to do. Just by looking at the work, the complements give off a sort of brownish, earthy hue. Which is also another characteristic of complementary colors. If the colors of this piece were all analogous, either warm or cool, it wouldn’t be as attractive as we see it. When we are looking at things in terms of generality we instantly become attracted to things that contrast and stand out, so it is very easy to see as to why musicians choose their album artwork carefully.

Image Essay #8 (Figure/Ground Reversal)

2006-12-08T13:07:00.000-08:00

Swans by M.C. Escher is just one of his many symmetrical figure/ground reversal pieces, this one was originally a wood carving and you can tell by the grain of the wood in the background. But this particular one contributed a lot to his success as an artist. Your eye is constantly jumping back and fourth between the values contemplating what to look at first; significantly in the middle where the swans alternate positions and constantly tease the viewer. Another name for a figure ground reversal is positive negative interchange and in this case I think it would be more appropriate to use positive negative interchange because of the separation of the area of focus; your mind is interchanging what to look at in the piece. If you would need to pick out what you ultimately see first, the white would take the gold because of the value in the background. If the background was a higher key, then the black would stick out. A lot of M.C. Escher’s other figure ground reversal works don’t leave room to decide which one you see first. The answer is both the high and low key values because of the lack of background, three dimensional structures, and distance in space.

ARTWORK: M.C. Escher Swans

Image Essay #7 (Focal Point)

2006-12-08T12:16:00.000-08:00

This photograph by Andy Goldsworthy represents a good example of a focal point, or area of focus. The piece is entitled Dandelion Line which really defines the purpose of the photo. The eye is automatically attracted to the bunched up line of dandelions which fade back into space. The dandelions all seem to be evenly distributed throughout the image except for the line which is another reason as to why it is the area of focus. Going against the grain can make an area of focus extremely vivid in a piece. The colors also do this piece a lot of justice as Andy Goldsworthy is usually noted for his interesting color work. There are only two main colors present in the picture primary yellows and secondary greens. While the green grass serves as a structure the yellows are really what stand out because in fact the area of focus is yellow. If the artist would have made the line a different type of flowers or colors the focal point may have been altered.
In most works, the focal point is obviously what the viewer is supposed to see first. On the contrary, some artists choose to not include a focal point so that the viewer can make his/her own portrayal of what they want to think or believe.

ARTWORK: Andy Goldsworthy Dandelion Line

Image Essay #6 (Unity)

2006-12-07T23:02:00.000-08:00

In this piece by M.C. Escher entitled Drawing Hands it strongly exemplifies a sense of unity. Although the piece is not symmetrical it still is very unified through the values used and the focal points. It doesn’t take symmetry to make something harmonize but because each element is very close to being spinning images of each other it adds a lot of stress on the unity. The artist seems as if he knew that if he made them slightly different it would draw a lot more attention to itself rather than if the hands were the same. As for the area of focus in the piece my eye was specifically drawn to the hand on top because of the casting shadows from the pencil and darker shades in between the fingers. The light source is coming from the southeast corner of the image, and this makes us to be sort of drawn away from the lower hand.

Unity seems to be specific in this piece with symbolism as well. The hands are working together to make each other complete they are working as a team. If the hands had been drawn separately drawing two separate hands, and not each other, it would have changed the meaning immensely.

ARTWORK: M.C. Escher Drawing Hands

Image Essay #15 (Temperature)

2006-12-07T22:44:00.000-08:00

The album artwork for Maybe I'll Catch Fire by Alkaline Trio is an above average representation of temperature of color. The warm toned presented send a message that is topped off by the name of the album, Maybe I'll Catch Fire. Also, if you look closely the figure in the picture resembles some of the traits of a fireman with the helmet and a large jacket of some sort. The bright yellowish red orb in the upper right hand corners serves as one area of focus while the silhouette of the fireman serves as another through negative space. With or without the title on photograph we could still tell that fire or heat was being depicted and we can tell by the temperature of the colors and the symbolism. The two run parallel with each other when speaking in terms of color.

The Alkaline Trio always seem to be focused on the warm colors and are said to be "a darker slice of punk rock". If they decided to pay more attention to cool colors rather than warm colors one day, people would be confused. For the fans of Alkaline Trio the colors they choose play a big part in who they are.

Blog Entry #5 (Chip Kidd)

2006-12-07T21:04:00.000-08:00

1. How has this artist contributed to the field of study which you plan to enter?
Chip Kidd has contributed to graphic design and film through his writings and artwork. He has many affiliates in each one of these categories, and his artwork makes some of the things what they are today.

2. What achievements or developments make this person stand out in this field?
His work with Frank Miller and Sin City, the cover art for Michael Crichton’s Jurrasic Park which also made it’s way onto the feature film’s trailers and artwork. He also contributed a majority of his career to DC Comics.

3. What impressed you most about this artist?
I was most impressed about his affiliation with Jurrasic Park, I didn’t realize that he was the one who created the skeletal depiction of the Tyrannosaurus Rex. Also while working in New York, he created over 900 book covers over 20 years.

4. How have they used dominance to organize or structure their work?
He uses dominance to make the area of focus scream. In his works it just seems to me that he wants the viewer to see what’s the most important, right away.

5. How do they address the human form?
He addresses the human form in a more realistic state, it’s still sort of cartooned but each figure contains more realistic features.

6. In what ways have you been influenced after seeing their work?
It just goes to show that you can do anything with art and become successful. Many say that majoring in art is taking a risk and I do agree to a certain extent. But all in all risks are what art is all about right?

7. How does this artist use color? What color schemes or other mechanisms, such as emphasis or temperature, do they employ?
From what I saw, he seemed to stick around warm colors and an emphasis on blue and red. But to argue that claim there were a few pieces that attained colors opposite of that scheme.

Blog Entry #4 (ART:21)

2006-12-07T18:52:00.000-08:00

PLACE

1. Do we define a place of does a place define us?

My vote goes for a place defining us. People act differently according to where they are, simply because everyone puts a guard up in a new place and once they get used to that place they become comfortable. An example of definition by place is a proposal on the top of a mountain, you'll always remember. Moreover, places have influence on us.

2. How is each of the featured artists influenced by particular places? How is this influence reflected in the artist's work?

The artists are influenced becasue the places that they've been have changed them and theis reflects through their artwork.

3. How has the program altered your notion of how art expresses place?

Art:21 has made me realize that you can't make art anywhere and have a lot of meaning behind it. Places influence our minds to create art a certain way at that moment in time.

4. Which artist do you feel most connected to and why?

I probably feel the most connected to Barry McGee and his grafitti, because I have always been one to express myself. When I express myself I want people to see it, hear it, or know about it and grafitti will do that for an artist.

5. Compare the media used by each artist and discuss how it affects the scale, composition, and accessibility of his or her work.

Looking at the scale by normal size, sculpture, photography, graffiti, and 3D displays all contain a different measurement. Each compostition is so much different in it's own way. I don't think I'm answering this question correctly, but the media used influences the outcome of each piece of artwork.

6. When you were young was there a place that interested you? A place that scared you? List five places from your childhood. Use one word to describe each of them.

When I was young, places had many different effects on me. Home to me just felt like a safe haven. At the cemetary i felt alone. In the country i felt free. In Walmart i felt disgusted. In another town i feel insecure.

7. Pick one of those places.

Cemetary, gravestones, trees, hills, gates; Rough textures, Dominant and accentual shapes; The lighting would never be bright, kind of gloomy.

STORIES

1. What are the important stories that are told in our society today?

Stories that change our perspective on society and the world. Also stories that change ourselves.

2. Why are some told over others? Why do some stories become forgotten over time?

It all comes down to importance of the subject and the story itself. Such as 9/11 will be remembered forever. You know where exactly you were and how you felt the day tragedy struck.

3. How do the artists use journals or sketchbooks? Are sketchbooks and journals works of art?

They use their sketchbooks to record current ideas and events that could further influence each of their artworks. Yes, I do believe that sketchbooks are in fact works of art. Without brainstorming you can't have a structured idea of what you're going to work on.

4. Describe and event from your child-hood in a present-tense voice.

My dad, my brother and I are on our way to feed the ducks. I turned 6 last month, I really don't think that it should be fun to feed ducks, we'll see how it goes. We're here and my dad has boxes of stale food. I'm kind of hungry, but I'm not sure if its a good idea to do that. My brother, Sam, just got into the box. I guess I'll have at it. No more food for the ducks, I want to go home.

When I was 6 years old, My brother and I went with my dad to feed some ducks. I don't remember where exactly it was in the middle of some town. I needed a video tape to fully recall what happened, but my face was full of expression the whole time. I was so happy to be feeding ducks. And there is video evidence that i did in fact eat a lot of stale food.

Image Essay #2 (Asymmetry)

2006-12-07T17:01:00.000-08:00

Heather Hannoura is infamous for her macabre and horror related work, which is clearly presented in this piece of artwork. She is currently the artist and merchgirl for the band Alkaline Trio. In this work, by Hannoura entitled Broken Buildings, there is an obvious example of asymmetry. First, to mention the buildings. They seem to be very jagged and serrated opposed to buildings you see in everyday life. They also represent a suggested theme of hate, threat, and death. In this piece the asymmetry symbolizes these themes because they are not good feelings and after looking at this piece you wouldn’t usually have a sense of happiness. Although, if the piece was in fact symmetrical the mood of the piece would completely change; it would strictly be a fact of temperature by color. The sky and the roses around the bottom add emphasis to the asymmetry.

Broken Buildings is a great reflective piece that can be related to our 2D class. In our first assignment we created an asymmetrical juxtaposition of shapes on a plane. Asymmetry is something that will be used in every piece of artwork, unless thinking about balance there is not much symmetry in a lot of artwork anymore. So this piece is an above average representation of what we see everyday in asymmetrical terms.

ARTWORK: Heather Hannoura Broken Buildings

Image Essay #4 (Tension)

2006-10-11T12:06:00.000-07:00

The tension in this piece is awesome. It is depicted through the colors, the shapes, the sizes, and juxtaposition; and for those reasons is why I chose this piece for the above average representation of the term. The color work in this piece is very contrasted along with the values. The colors sort of set up a road block for the eye, and to me that basically means that the colors don’t agree with each other and are causing the eye to bounce all over the place. The size and shape of the elements don’t really pull towards each other and the objects in the artwork are un-proportional which creates great tension. Another example of tension is how there could be more than one area of focus. The messy layout also makes it a great piece because while it’s messy, it’s stylistic at the same time.

The artist does a great job on making sure that the viewer will stay attached for a period of time, long or short. Tension can sometimes be accidental because a lot of times artwork doesn’t all flow together. But all in all many artists have made names for themselves because of the tension in their works.

ARTWORK: David Sharpe Reclining Nude w/ Flowers

Image Essay #3 (Juxtaposing)

2006-10-11T10:50:00.000-07:00

This image represents juxtaposition in an outstanding manner. The elements are mostly the same kind of structure, but not necessarily the shape. The dominant shapes circle around the frame with subordinates and accents amongst them. The image is composed so that the viewer’s eyes will remain on the artwork, and when an artist does that it’s a great use of juxtaposition. There are two main parts of the piece; the part on the left that goes to the bottom, and the part at the top of the right side that goes into the middle. Even though they don’t touch, each part has accents that are weaving in and out of textures and the detail enhances the appearance. It also looks like this piece of artwork tells a story or could tell a story. The color can also put a stress on the juxtaposition with the variations of value and different colors. When we were working on the juxtaposing project I thought out themes beforehand then executed my ideas. I think Jordan Mozer possibly used the same technique in this artwork. It’s probably the best example of an artist that I found who fully represented the principles of juxtaposition as depicted in class.

ARTWORK: Jordan Mozer Untitled Construction 2002-2003

Image Essay #1 (Dominance)

2006-10-10T09:09:00.000-07:00

I think this image represents dominance in an exaggerated manner because of the amount of detail work in the piece. The artist, Irene Hardwicke Olivieri, used oil on a 64 x 26.5 piece of wood. The main area of focus and the dump truck full of fries is obviously the woman on the swing. But what makes it even more dominant is the number of subordinates, accents, and their detail inside of the woman. The eye will now stay on the artwork for a longer period of time because of the fine detail put into the subordinates and accents. There is also text in the piece, and the text plays as the main accent. The animals and foliage play as the subordinates. There is also depth in the piece as you can see far into the background behind the tree inside of the woman. Negative space that borders around the image gives the audience more time to view the accents and subordinates. Overall, this piece depicts a good portion of dominance but touched on depth and both positive and negative space. Everything that we talked about in class about dominance is represented at least a little bit in this artwork.

ARTWORK: Irene Hardwicke Olivieri Heat of the day, cool of the night

Blog Entry #2 (Juxtaposing)

2006-10-06T12:19:00.000-07:00

To use juxtaposing as an entrance into 2D was probably the best thing to start with. It teaches us how to manage space and the elements we use. Juxtaposed images relate to each other in many ways. All of the elements share the same amount of space and are there to do one overall thing; To tell a story, make a statement, etc. They are able to do this because of the images’ placement, size, and shape.
On the third part of the assignment, a theme developed as I was putting everything into finalization. Although it was very segregated I think it told a great story, Skyscrapers on the bottom and the solar system on the top with stars in the middle. Simply showing that everyone is a star and when they die on Earth they are added into the sky.
The size of the images is one of the most important things. Larger images show exaggeration and pull the viewer into the frame as do the accents. Larger objects are definitely more powerful than the others only because they control most of the frame. The smaller objects have their own job and that is to attract the viewer and pull them closer to the image to analyze for a longer period of time.

Thanks for reading.

Blog Entry #3 (Writer's Questions)

2006-09-25T18:20:00.000-07:00

1. Before this Blog Assignment, had you ever kept a journal, diary, or blog? No

2. Before this Blog Assignment, had you ever written about art before? A few times

3. Have you ever written for fun (poetry, fiction or non, journalistic, or research)? A few times

4. When writing, do you use a dictionary or thesaurus? Both

5.If given a chance, would you rather discuss art verbally or through written means? Written, but Verbally if it was a pre-written speech.

6. How would you rate your overall vocabulary? Above Average

7. How would you rate your vocabulary of art terminology? Average

8. How would you rate your writing abilities? Confident

9. How would you rate your writing abilities when writing about art? Average

10. How would you rate your ability to use specific vocabulary when writing? Above Average

Thanks for reading.

-luke

Blog Entry #1 (Art to me, me to art)

2006-08-27T14:51:00.000-07:00

Art, to me, is a place your mind can travel to. It’s anything that can be created or manipulated through thought. If ‘art’ is looked up in a dictionary there are many more than one definition. Easily summed up, art can be defined as ‘the mind’. Art is everywhere; in the office, on the street, and everything you do after you step outside of your door. Art can be seen in music, video games, comics, and television. It takes a writer to make any of these things happen. Writing requires creativity and originality. Anyone can decide what art is. Like I said, I think art can be defined as ‘the mind’.

Now, on to me. I have been making art for as long as I can remember. Even when I was little my mother knew I had a creative taste. If I have an idea I’m sure to write it down so I won’t forget. Everything I see can be an inspiration. In the classroom, my options are limited. It helps when everyone around me is creating, including the instructor. I’m not saying that I’m the best or have the best talent; I just like to do what I do. I like being me. My medium usually stays within painting, writing, and photography. I’m constantly looking at the world through a camera lens. I try and make art to make a difference in my own life and possibly someone else’s. I think if I pursue art academically I can further pursue my dream of making a difference in someone else’s life rather than my own. But, I’ve always known I would someday pursue art. My friends are different, in a sense of not knowing where all of it comes from. They understand the common sense part of it, but not the creativity part. It takes a lot to make a Hollywood motion picture. And even more for an independent film company. I thought the best movie of last year was “The Weatherman”. It was a narrative drama and comedy about a weatherman whose life and family was falling apart. The script was just amazing and was such a good story. The last time I did something artistic was probably yesterday when I took a picture at my cousin’s wedding. I am currently listening to Brand New Deja Entendu. Thanks for reading.

My Intro

2006-08-23T14:19:00.000-07:00

Wow, my first post. Cool, huh?