Unexplainable Stories

Song I'm listening to by Cloud Cult. I fell in love with them after listening to "Everybody Here is a Cloud." You should look them up.

Anyway, I wanted to show my other piece from my senior project.
This one is "Balance," and it another layered piece. First layer: splattered watercolor. Second: marker "picture frame." Third: Ebony pencil (a friend modeled for me). Fourth: marker balance.

I thought of this one as how my attempts to make things perfect just make them worse. Plus, I feel that the "person" in this piece believes they are balancing the picture (in the picture...), when really they are off balance themselves. However (as I explained before), you can interpret it however you want. I'm just giving my idea of what it's about. Honestly, I don't know the true meanings of each of my pieces, which I think makes them a little more interesting. ;)

So, I'm leaving tomorrow for AGS, so I most likely won't be able to post for a month (oh noes). Hopefully I'll have plenty of artwork to show you afterwards, though. So, goodbye all you lovely people (if there is actually anyone that reads my blog, if not, ttfn all you lovely imaginary people).

No Reservations

I'm such a nerd for the Travel Channel (Anthony Bourdain in particular). I can't help it! The sarcastic, alcoholic, smoking ass is so entertaining! Plus, this episode's on Jamaica.

Anyway, I thought I'd post another piece from my concentration pieces.

This piece is "Train of Thought," and is adapted from one of my sketchbook doodles. I used one of my fellow Advertising Design classmates as my model. I sketched him in ebony pencil, used sharpie for the train tracks, watercolor, and marker (the trains). All of this is on a recycled piece of mattboard.

Here is a closeup of the piece. Once again, I tried to focus on the elements and principles of design, especially color, line, repitition, and proportion. Also, I incorporated raised areas (the trains) to create layers.


I'm counting down the days 'til AGS!

the times, they are a'changin

Just reflecting on my past few years. How much I've changed since being in high school, and how much those around me have changed as well.

Anyway, here is one of my senior project pieces (my concentration pieces). I decided to start early on my senior project so that I could focus more on getting into the college I want (that is, when I decide where I want to go...), than trying to finish up what I need to graduate.

My senior project is a little hard to explain... Basically, it's the freedom of interpretation through concepts that are present in my life (such as my own characteristics and emotions). I had tossed around a few ideas for my senior project the past few years, but they all seemed to restrain me to a certain topic. I wanted the freedom to do whatever I want (after all, it is my project, and what better way to express myself).

My inspiration was when I was with one of my good friends. He asked me to draw him, and for the life in me, I could not get his head right. So, he told me to "replace it with something." I was really confused at first, until he started spouting out random things such as "goldfish bowl," "flower pot," "octopus," etc. Eventually, I chose a goldfish bowl for his head. And that is how my idea was born. Each piece of my project will contain (for all intents and purposes, I call it a character) a "character" that has no gender, ethnicity, or name, and "its" head is always replaced with something. The purpose of that is so anyone can project themselves into the picture and interpret whatever they want out of the piece. I give my viewers a witty name, and they determine what they see. I have my own interpretation of the piece, but I don't present it to the viewer. It gives not only me freedom, but freedom to the viewer as well.

Confused yet? Maybe you should just see a piece.

This one is called "Knowledge Vacuum." I interpreted it as my love of learning (sucking everything like a vacuum), but a friend of mine presented a different idea: a vacuum can be described as an absence of matter, so it can possibly be seen as the absence of knowledge. I wanted to focus on the elements and principles of design (what I have the most trouble with when creating a piece), with a clearly defined background, middle ground, and foreground. I used cardboard to create the different layers and to mount the piece on. In the foreground, I used pen and ink, focusing on the people in the picture (I took the picture in a classroom at my school). In the middle ground, I used conte for the next closest thing: the teacher. Lastly, in the background, I used pencil and ebony and focused even less on detail to give the illusion that you're actually looking at the scene. The vacuum is in color (my vacuum at home, that I had to draw from memory because I lost the first attempt), to bring attention to that area. As you can see, one of the students has the vacuum for a head, pertaining to my theme.

This was the first piece of my senior project, and I'm quite happy with the results. One of the parts of our project is to talk about an artist(s) that inspired us. The first thing I thought was, "Well how the heck am I going to do that? I pulled this idea out of my butt!" Well, another friend of mine happens to have a vast collection of art magazines (I'm so jealous of her). While skimming through them, I stumbled upon a wonderful artist by the name of Tom Haubrick. He works in mainly sepia or black and white, with some splashes of color in his pieces. Also, he has a reoccuring "character" throughout his pieces whose head is often replaced with a common item. I was thrilled when I looked at his work, and I now have an artist for inspiration. Huzzah!

School's Out For Summer!

Ah, how much I missed summer. Anyway, a week until AGS, so I'm starting to pack. It's kind of sad how I'm more excited about the Spiderman trashcan and bed sheets my mom got me than I am about the minifridge I'll have in my dorm. I guess after spending all those years trying to be an adult, all I want to be is a kid again.

So, this assignment earlier this year was to make a tattoo-style piece while incorporating a hand. I swear, I think my teacher designed this assignment specifically for me. I squeeled like a moron when she announced it, while everyone else complained how this project was perfect for me (I love designing tattoos and drawing hands). I used this wonderful opportunity to create a sort of social commentary on how we are so bound to technology. I used only pen and sharpie for this piece, focusing on an industrial look. The hand in the middle is robotic and holding an organic/mechanical heart. This was when I had my mohawk (or shortly after, I can't quite remember), so I added a mohawk into the design. I like how this turned out, although I'm thinking of redoing it and entering it into my portfolio for my senior project.

Two Days Left!

Tomorrow and Friday of semester exams, and then it is OFFICIALLY summer! Speaking of which, I should probably be studying...

Anyway, here's another assignment from this year. Our goal was to create a balance of organic and geometric design into our piece. Naturally (what with me being obsessed with the human body), I used the heart and incorporated geometric shapes and patterns into the piece. I used pen, sharpie, and watercolor for this piece. Honestly, I'm not too proud of this one, but this being the fifth attempt, I was so ready to give up on the assignment. And now, I really need to study.

Out of nothing comes nothing...

One of my favorite quotes by William Graham Sumner. I've been busy doing absolutely nothing, so I thought I'd post some more of my work.

This is an observational drawing that I worked on earlier this year. The assignment was to draw the still life set up in the room, and incorporate us rambling on about how much we hate observational work. I had so much fun with this one.
My idea was to take the cow skull in the still life and turn it into a "person" getting sucked into the still life. So, basically, having conceptual work being swallowed up into observational work. I used pen and prisma color markers on toned paper.
Even though I wasn't planning on entering this one, it won 2nd place in Pen/Ink/Scratchboard Realistic at this years AYAA. I kind of threw it in last minute (literally, while I was at the competition) because I couldn't find the piece I wanted to enter. I'm glad I did, though!

Graduation

No, not mine, my little sister's. Tomorrow night is the big ceremony (oh god, I'm gonna be kidnapped and experimented on; they think I'm from another planet). So, she'll be joining me at my high school next year (nooooooooooo-). ... I honestly can't think of anything else to write (it's been a LONG day), so here's another piece.

One of my assignments earlier this year, a hallway drawing, with something unexpected thrown into it. Despite our school being built like a prison, the few rays of light that manage to get inside provide for a wonderful environment of stark contrast between light and dark. So, I drew near the cafeteria, and had a tree break through one of the columns. I used black and white conte on brown toned paper (my first time ever using conte, and thus, discovering my love for it).

Just a closeup of part of it. I'm rather proud of this piece (seeing as I hate observational drawings with a burning passion), and it actually won 4th place in its category at AYAA this year.

Well, I am keeping my fingers crossed for some potentially amazing opportunities to happen (I'll explain later if it actually happens), so I've been trying to keep myself occupied (mostly working on jewelry) rather then having a panic attack from the excitement. I'm trying to find the motivation to start studying for my semester exams (gee, I wonder how that'll work out), fretting over every time my dad makes me test out my new driving permit (no crashes yet!), and dealing with everday life one step at a time. Geez, I sound like some sappy motivational speaker... oh well.