It has been a busy week of many lessons.
One of the best lessons was encountered in critique. The further I progress in art, I am shocked over and over again by how pervasive some of my high school teachers rules and mantras can be. I look back on my high school art education favorably, so I am frequently surprised how much these principles can hold me back. This week's lesson: breaking the concept of "filling up the page." No, it isn't always necessary as you might have thought, and it can often push the drawing very far in the wrong direction. A positive lesson learned.
The lesson was reinforced in Ambrogio Lorenzetti's murals in the Palazzo Publico in Siena..... there were large areas of loss..... and Julia pointed out the effect this has on what is depicted there, and some of the figures hovering in the middle of these big empty spaces did have quite an impact......also the textures surrounding them were beautiful..... Something to think about: big spaces and interesting textures.
Today was spent exploring the section of the map of Florence that has been assigned to my group. I worked out a route, that brought me back and forth across the area on the largest avenues. I took pictures of Virgin Mary shrines along the way. My interest in them has been around just about as long as my interest in cemeteries.... so I just latched onto them as anchoring points for my walk. Another perception, is how the walk brought me back and forth past some of the same areas a number of times.... and allowed me to see some of Florence's most important monuments from a number of different perspectives.
I also have a unique perspective in that I live in my section of the map..... a general sentiment that characterized my walk was the progression from the well known to the unfamiliar as I moved out from the center to the beginnings of the periphery of the city.... perhaps a representation of this movement will occupy my efforts in the coming project.
Saturday, February 9, 2008
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
the bus space
My piece is exploring the space inside a bus. i have had some difficulty with it. i wanted to explore the people in the space but i ended up exploring the "roomness" of it more. i intended originally for the "room" to be the stage on which my characters would play but sort of got fixated on the "spacious-ness" of the room and never actually added characters. we have been doing all this erspective stuff in my sketchbook class which i am frustarated by so i ended up manipulating the space to m personal preference of how it should be so there would be a space for all of my characters. the bus is normally to small to squish a lot of people and i wanted to include 8 pple or parts of people. also the idea of motion and space has been very "trippy"for me so i wanted the space to seem warped. i found this calender with esher drawings in it at the end of last year and some of them where really warped and this space reminded me of that and i wanted to create that same sense. i am satisfied with some aspects of this piece though i sort of want to add another layer or two with characters and possible put it on wood or a board and hang it over my space.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
vidya
The best way to describe my experience with my space is in terms, I feel, of this growing relationship we have. I have put so much energy into trying to record and understand and use this bar, and am thwarted every time, usually by Maria, the proprietor. I’ve taken covert pictures, done speedy drawings while tense and afraid, and had awkward conversations with this woman. Not to sound horrid and mean, but I have coined for her the name “Purple Ogre Fairy.” She has a frowny, droopy face. If you don’t believe me, go there some time during the day.
Anyway, what I found most interesting about my relationship with this place is that it’s a bit like unrequited love. I love to hate it. I am simultaneously attracted to and repulsed by this paradoxically colorful and unfriendly place. This is the basis of what I want to convey in my subjective rendition of the Snack Bar. Though I felt this last week, I tried to draw my objective drawing of the space as most people perceive it: a delightful little café run by two friendly ladies. I, however, feel a freedom from the claustrophobic interior when I step outside (though, of course, those are also the times I wish I were inside. The contradictions I’m thinking about are interior/exterior and dark/light, both in literal and figurative terms. I plan to work in mixed media with collage, painting, and that energetic drawing that resulted from my haste while sketching.
Excuse the onslaught of photos; I would have posted many of these last week if I had had them.
Ciao, belli!
Anyway, what I found most interesting about my relationship with this place is that it’s a bit like unrequited love. I love to hate it. I am simultaneously attracted to and repulsed by this paradoxically colorful and unfriendly place. This is the basis of what I want to convey in my subjective rendition of the Snack Bar. Though I felt this last week, I tried to draw my objective drawing of the space as most people perceive it: a delightful little café run by two friendly ladies. I, however, feel a freedom from the claustrophobic interior when I step outside (though, of course, those are also the times I wish I were inside. The contradictions I’m thinking about are interior/exterior and dark/light, both in literal and figurative terms. I plan to work in mixed media with collage, painting, and that energetic drawing that resulted from my haste while sketching.
Excuse the onslaught of photos; I would have posted many of these last week if I had had them.
Ciao, belli!
Christy Nigh - week 2
OK. I’ve been thinking a lot about my space in terms of the people who occupy it in time. A defining factor of my space is that it is both personal and public because it is normally occupied by only one or two people who seem to be seeking some privacy from the bussle of the city located just over the wall of the bridge. In that way the space is private, but in another way it is public because there is in many ways a line of people who are waiting to use the space. They are waiting for their chance at some privacy, or at least a beautiful view.
These people do not just occupy the space they leave something of themselves behind. The result is a layering of dirt, trash, and graffiti. It is on this concept that I am basing my subjective drawing. It is the layers of things that really make up the place. The evidence of the personal space of thousands of others layered on top of the rocks. Showing this concept visually is not a simple task, but I decided to use an additive and subtractive procedure for creating the layers. As I have lain in the first layer (an ink drawing) the space is so pristine looking (rather idealized in some ways). I have a feeling that as I continue to add in new layers (beginning with the texture of the rocks the place is built on) the space will start to begin more cluttered, but also give an understanding, not just of the physical space, but also of those people who have occupied it in the past.
These people do not just occupy the space they leave something of themselves behind. The result is a layering of dirt, trash, and graffiti. It is on this concept that I am basing my subjective drawing. It is the layers of things that really make up the place. The evidence of the personal space of thousands of others layered on top of the rocks. Showing this concept visually is not a simple task, but I decided to use an additive and subtractive procedure for creating the layers. As I have lain in the first layer (an ink drawing) the space is so pristine looking (rather idealized in some ways). I have a feeling that as I continue to add in new layers (beginning with the texture of the rocks the place is built on) the space will start to begin more cluttered, but also give an understanding, not just of the physical space, but also of those people who have occupied it in the past.
Stefania Ford
So I've been really sick, and being sick in your first few weeks of being abroad is possibly the uckiest thing ever... because everyone else is going out and enjoying the city... and I laid in bed at home. I thought about choosing my spot while I was ill and was unable to get out and explore new places, so after a little more thinking, i chose a place i fell in love with my first weekend here, Piazza Santo Spirito. I was suppost to be meeting a group of people there to go to a market, got pretty lost, and stumbled upon it anyway. I loved the festival like atmosohere of the market. All the different types of people, sounds, smells, were all so exciting. I love looking through old things and cool markets back home, so I loved it right away.
This weekend I went to carnevale in Venice and on our last night we all got confettied, and it made us so happy and excited I wanted to use confetti in an art piece.
Thinking about the atmosphere of the Santo Spirito market, i thought confetti would be the perfect visual stimulant for a peice about the people in my space. We'll see how it turns out!
This weekend I went to carnevale in Venice and on our last night we all got confettied, and it made us so happy and excited I wanted to use confetti in an art piece.
Thinking about the atmosphere of the Santo Spirito market, i thought confetti would be the perfect visual stimulant for a peice about the people in my space. We'll see how it turns out!
Emily Hishta
Exploring my space was a dusty process that involved my climbing on precarious objects. This jungle gym activity allowed me a certain freedom to root through objects and crawl through spaces with a sense of curiosity that was surprisingly uplifting. In my gathering process I made a few quick sketches, but I found the most information in collecting objects. Because my space was so cluttered and packed full of objects, my objective drawing became a sort of scientific slice to view the layers of rubble piled up to the ceiling.
After working in class on the mapping activities and exploring different themes or points of view on my space, my subjective drawing seems to be meandering along a path of turning the storage room into a domestic space. Since I’ve been in Florence I’ve spent a lot of time cooking in the kitchen, which has been a satisfying experience that is now spilling into my drawing space. The antique and dusty objects in the room have the same used and loved feeling of the appliances in my kitchen, but there is still the contrast between the rustic and the modern.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/23219926@N02/sets/
After working in class on the mapping activities and exploring different themes or points of view on my space, my subjective drawing seems to be meandering along a path of turning the storage room into a domestic space. Since I’ve been in Florence I’ve spent a lot of time cooking in the kitchen, which has been a satisfying experience that is now spilling into my drawing space. The antique and dusty objects in the room have the same used and loved feeling of the appliances in my kitchen, but there is still the contrast between the rustic and the modern.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/23219926@N02/sets/
Jessica Wetterer (SubjectiveSpace)
For my subjective space, I have decided on a mixed media composition on thick paper. After the objective space project, which I drew, outlined and colored in with colored pencils and inkpen in such a style so as to achieve a sort of simplistic/ pseudo- cartoon look, I want to take the subjective project and portray the most essential elements of the garden-- the parts that left the most lasting impression on me, in a much more organic style.
These elements were: the headless lion statue, the baby swing, and the madonna and child emblem.
As I processed these objects, their relation, and the overall feeling of the garden, I came up with some very rough compositions. As it is going, I plan on using a mix of watercolors and conte. My ending thoughts about the garden is that is is very much so a place of secrecy and remoteness, isolated and guarded . However, as my first post relayed, it is also a world of possibilities of the imagination. I plan on combining these intonation into the style of the piece and working with the previously listed elements... I'll let you know how it went on sunday #3
These elements were: the headless lion statue, the baby swing, and the madonna and child emblem.
As I processed these objects, their relation, and the overall feeling of the garden, I came up with some very rough compositions. As it is going, I plan on using a mix of watercolors and conte. My ending thoughts about the garden is that is is very much so a place of secrecy and remoteness, isolated and guarded . However, as my first post relayed, it is also a world of possibilities of the imagination. I plan on combining these intonation into the style of the piece and working with the previously listed elements... I'll let you know how it went on sunday #3
kaityli
Even after going back to my place a few more times, I'm still unsure as to what to do about my subjective drawings. There are just so many things I want to explore, and it's hard to tie everything together with a central theme. I think what's most compelling about this place is that even though it's relatively empty of simultaneous activity, people have left proof of their presence in the form of confetti, cigarette butts, and graffiti all over trees and benches, despite signs asking people to respect the space. There are all these moments of permanence touched by the ephemeral.
Whenever I stay for a prolonged period, I see very interesting people pass through this space. There are well-dressed sophisticated people on bikes, well-dressed people with their children, and well-dressed and possibly delinquent youths hanging out. I love this convergence of types of people. I'm a little conflicted because I love the idea of the anonymity and abstraction found in the former idea, but I'm still trying to figure out how to combine that with the distinction in personality found in the latter. Whatever, I still have four days.
Whenever I stay for a prolonged period, I see very interesting people pass through this space. There are well-dressed sophisticated people on bikes, well-dressed people with their children, and well-dressed and possibly delinquent youths hanging out. I love this convergence of types of people. I'm a little conflicted because I love the idea of the anonymity and abstraction found in the former idea, but I'm still trying to figure out how to combine that with the distinction in personality found in the latter. Whatever, I still have four days.
Liz Walworth
I was only able to add a few photos because flickr was being difficult (I love technology!), but I was able to include an inspiring photo of bench, a night view, and a thumbnail sketch idea for my subjective piece. I want to describe the movement and the layers of activity that the space experiences, so I'm going to play around with different materials to see what I can do. I was also thinking about the ideas of change and stability...like the people rely on the space or the view. The people are the change and the space is the constant...so I guess I'm thinking people vs. space. Something along those lines. Great.
Amy Trummer 2.3.08
I went back to Santo Spirito a few times this past week and still the atmosphere was different every time. I’m having a good time tracking the path of the shopping cart that is always in a new spot when I visit. Sadly my favorite drunken homeless dancing man wasn’t there this week. Hopefully next weekend he’ll be back.
Here are some new developments in my exploration:
I’m not focusing as much on the transportation aspect.
For the subjective drawing, I will be focusing more about roundness and round shapes/objects. For example, the bike tires, lamp posts, fountain, most of the church, some windows, coins, bottles etc. ( I won’t list it all now, it’s written down in my notebook). That idea feeds into my idea about female and male forms/lines in space. Female being the rounded shapes and male being the straight and angular. I am interested in how they work/fit together and are separate.
Other ideas still floating around my head:
Open/closed spaces/stores
The dirty beautiful things, as in how the last time I visited it was clearly pigeon mating season (a beautiful concept, i guess even if they arent the most wonderful animals on the planet..their cooing is cute) and it was also garbage day, stinky and loud. The collocation of the beautiful and the dirty or ugly is all too present in Piazza Santo Spirito and I am still working on a way to map it.
Here are some new developments in my exploration:
I’m not focusing as much on the transportation aspect.
For the subjective drawing, I will be focusing more about roundness and round shapes/objects. For example, the bike tires, lamp posts, fountain, most of the church, some windows, coins, bottles etc. ( I won’t list it all now, it’s written down in my notebook). That idea feeds into my idea about female and male forms/lines in space. Female being the rounded shapes and male being the straight and angular. I am interested in how they work/fit together and are separate.
Other ideas still floating around my head:
Open/closed spaces/stores
The dirty beautiful things, as in how the last time I visited it was clearly pigeon mating season (a beautiful concept, i guess even if they arent the most wonderful animals on the planet..their cooing is cute) and it was also garbage day, stinky and loud. The collocation of the beautiful and the dirty or ugly is all too present in Piazza Santo Spirito and I am still working on a way to map it.
Hillary
This past week in Santo Spirito has yet again provided some interesting experiences. First off, it is mating season for the pigeons--meaning that they are insane. They walk all around the piazza cooing at each other all day long, searching for "the right one." As for human activity, it was pretty quiet. One of my visits this week was on trash day, so the majority of the people I saw walking around were collecting garbage from the stores and streets. There were heaps of vegetables thrown to the sides of the roads, broken down cardboard boxes, and mountains of trash bags. As I was watching the trash collectors, I thought again about the 'theme' I've become obsessed with, which is how traces of things and people stay (or don't stay...) in a place. The garbage workers were removing all kinds of things from the piazza, erasing all evidence of human interaction with the space. I'm planning on going back tonight, maybe some trash will have made its way back into the streets..
As for my project, my plan is to do a photo collage of the piazza area with an overlay drawing / painting / outline / not exactly sure yet what it will be-- of how I imagine or have seen things come to be in the space.
As for my project, my plan is to do a photo collage of the piazza area with an overlay drawing / painting / outline / not exactly sure yet what it will be-- of how I imagine or have seen things come to be in the space.
Kate Owens
When brainstorming ideas for my subjective drawing, I was most interested in the view of the space from the context of sitting on a bench. From a bench, the more constantly changing properties of the location it resides can often be more interesting than the stationary aspects. I concluded this for my space (Piazzale Porta Romana) when I realized that most of my notes were not about details of the space itself but of the people that passed by. I would begin by describing the sights, smells, sounds, etc. of my space and quickly get distracted by a man and his dog walking by or two Italian students crossing the street in front of me. Also through referring to my notes, I was interested in how different aspects of my space kept on changing hierarchical importance the more I sat. For example, In the beginning I was interested in this giant pink stucco Classic Hotel, then it was the mysterious building behind me enclosed by a rod iron fence, and than it was a couple who walked together without saying a word.
In terms of what my final drawing will be, I’ve done many thumbnails in charcoal of pretty active perspective space scenes with elements that have been erased or redrawn. This process is supposed to demonstrate not only the transient properties of the people passing by but also the transient properties of what in the space stays most memorable. I plan on my final product being more realistic than abstract and I have not yet settled on how dramatic I want the erasing and redrawing to be.
In terms of what my final drawing will be, I’ve done many thumbnails in charcoal of pretty active perspective space scenes with elements that have been erased or redrawn. This process is supposed to demonstrate not only the transient properties of the people passing by but also the transient properties of what in the space stays most memorable. I plan on my final product being more realistic than abstract and I have not yet settled on how dramatic I want the erasing and redrawing to be.
Laura
mmm... another week.
So I'm completely in love with the piazza San Marco, part of my space. It's such an interesting and lively place (during the day when people have to catch buses at least). What I didn't realize is that the Accademia is RIGHT THERE, so I could just wander in and see the David which I haven't done yet. My favorite thing is eating lunch there - last week on Tuesday I walked over there, ate a caprese bruschetta, and just drew people for an hour. And then I walked back. And then I went back after class on Wednesday and just sat in the piazza and drew more people for two hours. One of the guys who I was drawing noticed I was drawing him, and came up to me and started talking to me in English which was a bit of a relief. So now I know that drawing people is a good way to meet them.
But both times I've been back there the church has been closed, which strikes me as completely odd because I was under the impression that churches were all open all the time during the day. But no, San Marco is only apparently open for masses. Well, whatever. I went in last Snday and drew for a while, I think I may have already talked about that in my last post.
What really interests me about the church, that I'm working into my subjective-view project, is the multitude of different perspectives coming into the church. There's the obvious difference between the tourists and the faithful, and the faithful and the clergy. but what I hadn't really considered are the subtle degrees of variation from one person's religion to another's. After all, everyone has a different life experience. And while some people may have similar lives, they're not the same people. I always have thought of Catholicism as a very unified, cut-and-dried, one-size-fits-all religion where there are certain rules set out and if you don't believe in them, then you're not really Catholic. But in considering the difference in lifestyles of the Catholics i know in America, and those I know even in California versus the ones I know in Missouri, descriptions of those i don't know, and what I have observed in Italy, I've come to the conclusion that it's more of a personal thing than I first imagined.
i've also come to the conclusion that i love mind maps.
so in my subjective-view drawing, i'm focusing on the personal associations i have with various things inside the church, like the statue of the madonna and such.
I'm also interested in the habituality of action inside the church, which I may focus on in the future.
On a completely different note, I had the most amazing birthday EVER during Carnevale in Venice. I love it there. But it's so creepy, because it seems like there is nothing there that doesn't cater to tourists. The only shops sell masks, glass, artwork, or designer clothes, and there don't appear to be any legitimate regular inhabited neighborhoods. It's kind of like a real-life Disneyland,
So I'm completely in love with the piazza San Marco, part of my space. It's such an interesting and lively place (during the day when people have to catch buses at least). What I didn't realize is that the Accademia is RIGHT THERE, so I could just wander in and see the David which I haven't done yet. My favorite thing is eating lunch there - last week on Tuesday I walked over there, ate a caprese bruschetta, and just drew people for an hour. And then I walked back. And then I went back after class on Wednesday and just sat in the piazza and drew more people for two hours. One of the guys who I was drawing noticed I was drawing him, and came up to me and started talking to me in English which was a bit of a relief. So now I know that drawing people is a good way to meet them.
But both times I've been back there the church has been closed, which strikes me as completely odd because I was under the impression that churches were all open all the time during the day. But no, San Marco is only apparently open for masses. Well, whatever. I went in last Snday and drew for a while, I think I may have already talked about that in my last post.
What really interests me about the church, that I'm working into my subjective-view project, is the multitude of different perspectives coming into the church. There's the obvious difference between the tourists and the faithful, and the faithful and the clergy. but what I hadn't really considered are the subtle degrees of variation from one person's religion to another's. After all, everyone has a different life experience. And while some people may have similar lives, they're not the same people. I always have thought of Catholicism as a very unified, cut-and-dried, one-size-fits-all religion where there are certain rules set out and if you don't believe in them, then you're not really Catholic. But in considering the difference in lifestyles of the Catholics i know in America, and those I know even in California versus the ones I know in Missouri, descriptions of those i don't know, and what I have observed in Italy, I've come to the conclusion that it's more of a personal thing than I first imagined.
i've also come to the conclusion that i love mind maps.
so in my subjective-view drawing, i'm focusing on the personal associations i have with various things inside the church, like the statue of the madonna and such.
I'm also interested in the habituality of action inside the church, which I may focus on in the future.
On a completely different note, I had the most amazing birthday EVER during Carnevale in Venice. I love it there. But it's so creepy, because it seems like there is nothing there that doesn't cater to tourists. The only shops sell masks, glass, artwork, or designer clothes, and there don't appear to be any legitimate regular inhabited neighborhoods. It's kind of like a real-life Disneyland,
Alison 2.03.08
I have always been good at the brainstorming process of any sort of project, and my space was no exception. For my subjective view I was able to narrow it down to three different ideas: the graffiti that covers the area, the reflections cast in the Arno, and the sense of danger that accompanies being there. However once I had thoroughly brainstormed these three ideas and chose to focus on graffiti and the idea of what is considered art or simply vandalism, I was stumped as to how to transform this idea into a visual image. I came up with various ideas, but none seemed to really interest me. I then decided it would be best to completely change tracks and instead focused on the danger aspect of my space. I was interested in the irony between the US where we have warnings on coffee cups that the contents might be hot (well, obviously) to Italy where there are no restrictions or even warnings about climbing over the bridge to sit on a triangular platform overlooking the Arno. This idea also caused me great issues, mostly because I got stuck on one idea and my visual presentation of it was not working. I ended class on Thursday with basically no idea as to what to do, besides an array of different ideas. Instead of stress about it, I decided it would be best to take a break and not think about it for a while. With this break, I was able to come back fresh and decided that to return to one of my brainstorms about the graffiti. I've decided to reproduce a section of the wall on grey paper in the materials that were used on the stone (to the best of my abilities) and then create a image of a frame in which to place the image in. I want to challenged the idea of what we consider to be fine art.
Allegra
After a week of working my site, the Cimiterio degli Inglese, I have become very familiar with the location yet I still have many questions about its history and place today as a "monument of Florence" (what the sign next to the visitor log claims). I became very interested in who visits the cemetery: tourists who seek it out, tourists who stumble upon it, locals who visit it or those who drive by it on their commute. The location seemed to play an important part in visiting as it is outside of the main city center and surrounded by a major intersection. Also, I was attracted to the different styles of graves and how they are packed in so tightly. I counted all the graves and divided them into categories based on their general shape. Counting was frustrating because of all the cemetery rules about where one can walk and also the sheer number of graves--I counted over 350. Of the different style of graves, I am most intrigued by the crosses because of the variety of everything from a simple rectangular form to ornately detailed and decorated ones. The different styles of graves raised a lot of questions for me about who was buried there, periods of popularity with the different styles, various degrees of piety or affiliations, and also my frustration with all the unknowns I have of the cemetery.
In creating my subjective image I would like to explore what is unknown and difficult for me to access about the cemetery as well as what I find overwhelming and attractive. I have begun working with layered images of the graves and views looking in from the outside.
In creating my subjective image I would like to explore what is unknown and difficult for me to access about the cemetery as well as what I find overwhelming and attractive. I have begun working with layered images of the graves and views looking in from the outside.
John Witty
Subjective Representation.
My gathering process brought me back to the cemetery a number of times. It also led me to a quote that I had read in a book by Nathaniel Hawthorne last semester, The Marble Faun. Speaking of marble busts, the quote laments the fact that "Posterity will be puzzled what to do with busts like these, the concretions and petrifications of a vain self - estimate." Like most 19th century cemeteries, the Cimetero degli Inglesi is filled with many sentimental sculptures and portrait busts and reliefs. To me it is an embodiment of the ideas and tendencies of that time. Many 19th century artists and intellectuals who were active in Italy are buried in the cemetery or connected to people who are. Looking at the sculptures in the desolate, empty cemetery led me to the Hawthorne quote. As a part of my brainstorming process I went back to the quote and circled the words that stuck out in my mind. I especially like the ideas I connected with the words "concretions" and "petrifications." The cemetery itself is one great concretion, figuratively and literally. Viewed from the outside, across the busy boulevards that surround it, it is one great accumulation of prickly vertical forms - all elaborate funerary sculptures. These sculptures in turn are symbolic representations meant to represent and honor people buried there. Standing in the middle of the cemetery, one is surrounded by a great accumulation of symbols. Some frequently recurring symbols are portraits, wreaths, roses, angels, praying girls, and perhaps my favorite, real pomegranates that have been planted in front of the grave of a famous English poet. With my objective drawing, I will seek to recreate the feeling of this overwhelming mass of symbols. My sketches led me to a composition that investigates the repetition of round forms in the cemetery, including wreaths, roses, pomegranates, and possibly a profile portrait on a Russian woman's grave.
Other current explorations include the hallways of the Uffizi, for Regan's sketchbook class. I love this space. When I sit at the end of the hall, I like to think about how it is most definitely amongst the grandest hallways in the world. I wonder how many representations of the human body are in front of me as I sit drawing, trying to make them fit into a scale of perspective. There are also many busts in the hallway, created in ancient Rome to memorialize or honor. Certainly a space that to me embodies the concept of "The Body and Architecture."
Also included is a picture of a sketch from Giorgion'es "The Tempest," just because it is a painting that I love, and seeing it was something that I felt was necessary for my life. The sense of mystery it portrays is heightened when one stands in front of it, and the strange woman's expression is bold, ambiguous, and captivating.
My gathering process brought me back to the cemetery a number of times. It also led me to a quote that I had read in a book by Nathaniel Hawthorne last semester, The Marble Faun. Speaking of marble busts, the quote laments the fact that "Posterity will be puzzled what to do with busts like these, the concretions and petrifications of a vain self - estimate." Like most 19th century cemeteries, the Cimetero degli Inglesi is filled with many sentimental sculptures and portrait busts and reliefs. To me it is an embodiment of the ideas and tendencies of that time. Many 19th century artists and intellectuals who were active in Italy are buried in the cemetery or connected to people who are. Looking at the sculptures in the desolate, empty cemetery led me to the Hawthorne quote. As a part of my brainstorming process I went back to the quote and circled the words that stuck out in my mind. I especially like the ideas I connected with the words "concretions" and "petrifications." The cemetery itself is one great concretion, figuratively and literally. Viewed from the outside, across the busy boulevards that surround it, it is one great accumulation of prickly vertical forms - all elaborate funerary sculptures. These sculptures in turn are symbolic representations meant to represent and honor people buried there. Standing in the middle of the cemetery, one is surrounded by a great accumulation of symbols. Some frequently recurring symbols are portraits, wreaths, roses, angels, praying girls, and perhaps my favorite, real pomegranates that have been planted in front of the grave of a famous English poet. With my objective drawing, I will seek to recreate the feeling of this overwhelming mass of symbols. My sketches led me to a composition that investigates the repetition of round forms in the cemetery, including wreaths, roses, pomegranates, and possibly a profile portrait on a Russian woman's grave.
Other current explorations include the hallways of the Uffizi, for Regan's sketchbook class. I love this space. When I sit at the end of the hall, I like to think about how it is most definitely amongst the grandest hallways in the world. I wonder how many representations of the human body are in front of me as I sit drawing, trying to make them fit into a scale of perspective. There are also many busts in the hallway, created in ancient Rome to memorialize or honor. Certainly a space that to me embodies the concept of "The Body and Architecture."
Also included is a picture of a sketch from Giorgion'es "The Tempest," just because it is a painting that I love, and seeing it was something that I felt was necessary for my life. The sense of mystery it portrays is heightened when one stands in front of it, and the strange woman's expression is bold, ambiguous, and captivating.
Michelle Israel 2/3/08
This week was a little more difficult for me - creating a subjective space is harder than I thought! Looking through my photographs and research of my space (the Pitti Immagine bus stop), I found that some common themes in all of them are: age, remembrance, mystique, light, shadow, and vintage. So I decided to try and combine these themes into my subjective drawing of the space. I am focusing on a door, to the right of the bus stop, which is always locked every time I visit. I always wonder why it is locked and what is behind that door. I want to carry on the mystery of this locked door in my drawing because that is what intrigues me the most about the space. Accordingly, I will create a drawing in black, white, and yellow to try and capture an effect similar to that of an old photograph. I will blend the charcoal and pastel to create a blurry , mystical effect to go along with the recurring themes from my research.
Additionally, I will try to capture the light and shadow of my space, because that is how I came upon it (I followed the Florence streets where the sunlight seemed brighter until I found the bus stop). Hopefully, with the addition of drastic light and shadow, the great mystery of the door will seem more evident, and so will my personal connection with the space.
Additionally, I will try to capture the light and shadow of my space, because that is how I came upon it (I followed the Florence streets where the sunlight seemed brighter until I found the bus stop). Hopefully, with the addition of drastic light and shadow, the great mystery of the door will seem more evident, and so will my personal connection with the space.
Andrea N... second post
Hey
So, where to begin?
First of all, I really enjoyed the work we did in Tuesday's class because it was definitely interesting/helpful to look at what other people were doing and to receive feedback. Also, the brainstorming time proved very useful because I came up with an idea for my project that I'm very interested in.
A lot of people mentioned that they were intrigued by the transience of my space, and Julia also noted that she liked the thought of me sitting still in this train station while everyone else moved around me in this huge space. I find these two points to actually be incredibly beautiful, and there is certainly a lot of layering that I could do to deal with these ideas.
In class I decided that I wanted to study the station as a transient space. I want to capture the sturdy, unchanging nature of the architecture itself versus the hectic, face-paced movement in this solid space. Thus I chose to draw the station fairly simply and layer on top of it photo-copy transfers of people in movement. Though I have experimented with both, I have not yet decided if I should use photos of my drawings for these transfers. I think that the photos would be interesting because of their blurry nature, but at the same time I love experimenting with the line quality that is needed to depict these fast-paced people.
Also, last night when I was on a train I received a whole new view of my space; now I was one of these travelers myself. Perhaps it is this notion that somehow inspired me, but I think it would be really interesting to put my paper down on the floor so that people walk over it before I draw on top. I think this would capture the idea of travel through this space in a new way.
We'll see!
So, where to begin?
First of all, I really enjoyed the work we did in Tuesday's class because it was definitely interesting/helpful to look at what other people were doing and to receive feedback. Also, the brainstorming time proved very useful because I came up with an idea for my project that I'm very interested in.
A lot of people mentioned that they were intrigued by the transience of my space, and Julia also noted that she liked the thought of me sitting still in this train station while everyone else moved around me in this huge space. I find these two points to actually be incredibly beautiful, and there is certainly a lot of layering that I could do to deal with these ideas.
In class I decided that I wanted to study the station as a transient space. I want to capture the sturdy, unchanging nature of the architecture itself versus the hectic, face-paced movement in this solid space. Thus I chose to draw the station fairly simply and layer on top of it photo-copy transfers of people in movement. Though I have experimented with both, I have not yet decided if I should use photos of my drawings for these transfers. I think that the photos would be interesting because of their blurry nature, but at the same time I love experimenting with the line quality that is needed to depict these fast-paced people.
Also, last night when I was on a train I received a whole new view of my space; now I was one of these travelers myself. Perhaps it is this notion that somehow inspired me, but I think it would be really interesting to put my paper down on the floor so that people walk over it before I draw on top. I think this would capture the idea of travel through this space in a new way.
We'll see!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)