laura mart returns from her sojourns

Spring Break was positively amazing, although after a bit more than a week I am done sleeping in youth hostels for a little while. The break saw many moods for me: antisocial art nerd time (during which I sat in a succession of several cafes/kavarny, bars, and restaurants drawing in my sketchbook and not really talking a whole lot), amazed-by-the-beauty-of-Prague time, guide book time, escapades in the night time, bonding with Julia time, antisocial art nerd in the museum time, shopping time.
The best part was getting to see Julia in Vienna and getting to chill with her. JULIA I MISS YOU!!!! COME BACK TO US!!!!!!!!!!!!! We got to see, among other things, Matthew Barney's Drawing Restraint 9, a weird film in which Matthew Barney and Bjork turn themselves into whales through some bizarre ritual involving getting dressed up in bizarre theatrical fur outfits, drinking ambergris mixed with green tea and slicing into each other's legs. On a whaling ship (that reminded me more of a tanker). It was visually engaging and quite beautiful at points, and at points too gross for me to watch.
Watching Drawing Restraint made me think a lot about ritual preparation in daily activities. The sending off of the whaling ship was surrounded by a large celebration involving traditional dance and dress and processions. The boat's departure was celebrated by classes of schoolchildren who showered it in confetti, and the crew threw streamers from the deck. The arrival of a tank of liquified vaseline was also made into a large spectacle: the tank was decorated like a whale, complete with faux water coming out of the blowhole. Bjork and Matthew Barney underwent several stages of ritual preparation for their transformation into whales. First, they had to board the boat: Bjork gets picked up by a man in a boat after sort of meditating on the coast, they meet up with the tanker and board it, Bjork takes an intense bath attended by several Japanese women in traditional dress, Matthew Barney gets his head partially shaven, they both get dressed by more traditionally-dressed Japanese women who put them in very strange and beatiful fur kimonos that are reminiscent not only of Japanese dress but also of northern Northern European fur garments and Inuit dress, then meet up with this Japanese guy who serves them the "tea" made from ambergris and green tea. There was also a side narrative about several female pearl divers that was quite beautiful, but I didn't quite get what it had to do with the story. But it sure looked cool.
So that element of the film made me think about incorporating ritual elements into my own work. I was mainly thinking of making everyday actions/happenings into elaborate rituals and the aspects of preparing the body for ceremony. I think this could tie in well with the Spectacle part of this week's assignment, we shall see. I'm going to probably go to Mass today (being as it is Holy Thursday) and witness the washing of the feet. How fortuitous. I just realized that it was Holy Thursday. I was thinking today was Tuesday.
So yeah.
Enclosed in the link are pictures from 1. my sojourn to Centro wearing my outfit from before, and 2. the break.
Prague really reminded me of my childhood (because it smelled like cooking on a fire outside; I used to go camping a lot), but I liked Vienna a lot also and went to many museums there. Andrea and Michelle and I figured out that we look like we could easily be under 18 so we got into a lot of museums for cheaper. It was good.
The last museum I went to was the Albertina, which I think was actually my favorite in Vienna. There was this awesome exhibit of Max Ernst surrealist collage novels, which I enjoyed quite thoroughly with John and Julia. Unfortunately I didn't get to see the Drawing Since 1970 exhibit there or anything else, and I really want to go back! If only.
I also had several existential crises on break, mostly involving my major. First it was, "Do I want to be a sculpture major?" then it was "Do I ACTUALLY want to be a VisComm major?" and now it's "I really think I want to be a Drawing/Printmaking major..." I don't know. I'm so conflicted. I think I may just pick my major out of a hat. I NEED SPIRITUAL GUIDANCE ON THE MATTER.

vidya, back from the break

Here I am, back in the Florence. My experience on the Amalfi coast was one of scenic landscapes and interesting characters. It was a well-needed and well-appreciated contrast to the week prior. I intended to continue my "momentos", but I didn't do any recordings. I think what needs to happen is that I need to find a way to treat these things one at a time and not feel as though they are a massive project hanging over my head - right now, I'm working on the finishing touch of the seal and the delay in sending them has me a bit anxious and a bit frustrated. I want to keep going, though. I think the form might change a bit, but we'll see.

Over break, I gave much thought to the idea of "home". When out on vacation, home is the hostel. From the hostel, home is Florence. From Florence, home is St. Louis/WashU. But from there, home is still the house I grew up in. There are two types of homes - the one where the heart is, but then, there's the one where you brush your teeth. I'm really interested in the possession we take over places...I guess that's what makes a place a space.

Feeling right now all kinds of inertia, but hopefully a new point of departure will stir something up. I can see it having to do very much with tactile materials. And touching them..among other things. I kind of miss my orange peels.

Christy Nigh- spring break week

Right, so it has been a while since I have posted, which is mostly related to being exhausted after mid-terms and being away on break. It was really great to just relax and see things. We spent a fair amount of time exploring random areas in the very beautiful Amalfi Coast. All in all, I feel refreshed and ready to get working again.

excuse the long absence - John Witty

Austria, Vienna.

Provided opportunities to see, absorb so many more of the things that have been interesting me. Not so many grotesques, but Adam and Eve paintings by Lucas Cranach, winter festivals by Dürer, Medusa heads by Rubens and Frans Snyders. Also Klimt paintings, even a Matthew Barney installation and video. Also, the personal spaces once lived in by the Hapsburgs.....

In the mad rush before the break, even though overwhelmed, I was asking some questions.

Maybe the grotesques really are just plain beautiful -- a variety of forms, colors, intense, busy, and varied compositions.....

The masterworks projects. Sadly to say it was a failure. No pictures of it here - stayed up till five in the morning working on it, then cut it up later that day. Knew it was a failure as it emerged - I fell into a mode of horrible suffocating stiffness -- though it was a great experience to go through - putting a lot of effort into that failure and then cutting it up. The other question - that goes along these lines. Is it possible for a double self portrait to not be trite after all the exposure we have had to the idea? I love the idea, it fascinates me.... a conversation with the self - but how to communicate it??? Vediamo.