Community Connection #6
5/31/11
Artist: Todd Marrone
- Artistic doodles
- Ink/ watercolor materials
- Cartoon like figures
This artist reminded me a lot of Justin Mellon’s work with the simple yet complex doodles throughout his portfolio. These characters are very interesting to me because of the color choses and the surfaces he decides to place them on. I noticed he uses a combination of ink and watercolors in his pieces. They also have a cartoonish kid-like feel to them as they are just odd lines put together to create an interesting series of work.
Community Connection #5
5/10/11
Artist: Ej Hauser
http://www.ejhauser.org/index.html
- Vibrant colors
- Abstract pieces
- Series of paintings and drawings
- Layering
I feel I can see a lot my abstract techniques in Ej Hauser’s work. He uses a lot of vibrant colors which draws the eye and intrigues the viewer. His work consist of thick and random lines layered with paint and varies series of text. They also are very similar to each other in the sense that he uses shapes from the previous one.
Community Connection # 4
4/12/11
Artist: Christopher Wool
- Quick and thin brush strokes
- Urban style to pieces
- Solid colors
- Large scale work
I found Christopher Wool’s work to be very interesting and curious. I had to really study each individual piece to figure out what they were trying to represent with the line work throughout. He uses a limited color palette with dull and somber colors. Wool also has a very unique urban feel to his style with the quick and thin line quality that makes the eye travel to different areas of the piece. And several of his works in fairly large scale with the corporation of images.
Community Connection #3
3/15/11
Artist: Dolan Geiman
http://dolangeiman.com/artwork/constructions/533/baltimore-crab-collection
- Uses a wood base for all his pieces
- Collages different images together
- Style is very vintage and antique
I see a lot of my collage work in Dolan’s when I looked through the various pieces on his site. His style is very vintage and gives the viewer a sense of being old fashioned and passed times. He uses a lot of images to depict their meanings through landscape, animals such as birds, deer, foxes and horses. Gieman also includes mixed media with paint, wood and paper which create depth to his pieces.
Community Connection #2
3/1/11
Artist: Nancy Nicholson
http://www.nancy-nicholson.com/biography.htm
- Uses stain glass windows to create her pieces
- Photographs in the squares giving it a washed out look as though it was painted with water colors
- Silhouettes of cityscapes
Looking through the list of artists on Mr. Miller’s word press site, I found a very interesting artist who goes by the name of Nancy Nicholson. All of her artwork is placed in the center of stained glass windows and uses water colors over top of the glass surface to create a watered down effect. She has twenty five years under her belt with experience in glass. Her signature works are that of a photograph of a cityscape in cased in the glass. Nancy explores the layering of light, color and dynamic forms of the urban environment.
Community Connection #1
2/28/11
Artist: Jonah Criswell
http://jonahcriswell.com/section/11256.html
- Realistic representations of still life
- Using everyday scenery and objects
- Brush strokes give texture to the piece
I came across this artist while browsing Mr. Miller’s word press site and he seemed to be a very interesting individual to do a community connection on. Criswell uses dull and neutral colors in order to create his pieces. He also is able to appreciate the value of material objects with the space provided. He feels the most important of those objects is the one in which we dwell. For Criswell, domestic spaces are sites that distort the self that reveal truths about our fears, desires and unavoidable realities. He presents a vision of the viewer engaging them in the process of decipting meaning from an arrangement of symbols and relics. In doing this, he hopes the viewer will respond emotionally to the isolation of intimate and familiar of objects in their lives.
Community Connection #4
2/15 /11
Artist: Elizabeth Frank
http://www.elizabethfrank.com/
- Ceramic elements built in
- Uses three dimensional objects along with clay figures
- Abstract
- Human figure as a form of sculpture
Elizabeth Frank lives in southern Arizona, creating exquisite sculptures by carving from fallen aspen wood. She combines elements such as old furniture and vintage objects found around the house. Frank received a BFA from Arizona State University and continued her studies in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, and Albuquerque, New Mexico. Elizabeth’s work has been displayed in various galleries, museums and festivals around the country.
I found Frank’s work to be very interesting and I could see similarities in the technique of incorporating three dimensional objects and vintage styles. The sculptures she creates resemble that of a human form however has an element of abstract to it. Her artwork has a very organic feel to it with the use of old furniture and various household items.
Community Connection #3
1/3/11
Artist: Carlos Estevez
http://www.medaid.org/www/art/artists/cestevez/works.html
- Oil and pencil on canvas
- Uses the anatomy of the human body
- Incorporates measurements and blue prints
Carlos Estevez is one of many artists featured in the Clark Gallery, filled with all kinds of contemporary art. He was born in Havana, Cuba and studied conservation and restoration at the Instituto Superior de Arte, photography at the Fototeca de Cuba, and film at the International School of Film and Television. However his work involves installation, sculpture, painting, and drawing and uses various media. He also uses images of the human body and skeletal form of animals in his pieces.
Estevez conveys these forms with linear drawings to suggest they are puppets on the canvas. And shows measurements, blueprints and constellations to fill around them to get this effect. Some of his most recent solo exhibits include Dreamcomber, Bakalar Gallery, Massachusetts College of Art, Boston ,The Dark Theater, Alva Gallery, New London, Connecticut. His work is also featured in collections in Cuba, Mexico, Brazil, Germany, Spain, and the United States.
Community Connection #2
12/13/10
Artist: Ward Schumaker
http://wardschumaker.blogspot.com/
- Stencils
- Layers of text, paint and other material
- Abstract paintings
- Quick and aggressive brush strokes
I was introduced to Ward Schumaker by my art teacher, Mr. Miller and his process of making his abstract paintings really intrigued me. I noticed he uses stencils as text just as I do in my own artwork. And lately I have been making miniature abstract paintings like his. Schumaker’s pieces relate to names of people and simple yet complex ideas and he collages layers of text, paint and other materials to create them. He also uses thick and aggressive brush strokes to make the series bolder and has a lot of dull colors to set the tone of the piece.
Ward Schumaker’s work has been shown in San Francisco, Shanghai, UC Berkeley, Los Angeles, Charleston, and Nashville. It includes a collection of artist such as painter Eric Fischl, television commentator Rachel Maddow, photographer Susan Mikula, designer Woody Pirtle and several others. His work was also featured in the Los Angeles Times, New York Times and San Francisco Chronicle. He lives and works in San Francisco with his wife, artist Vivienne Flesher.
Community Connection #1
12/7/10
Artist: Ian Williams
http://ianwhitewilliams.wordpress.com/
- Series of abstract miniature paintings
- Used acrylic paint, paper, water colors
- Limits his time frame for each piece
I have known Mr. Williams for several years now, and I became interested in this series of miniature abtract paintings he has been doing in his free time. He seems to any material such as scraps of paper or just pieces of things found around the classroom in order to create these simple yet complex paintings. He also seems to apply text to represent a deeper meaning to go along with the flow of lines across the page.
Mr. Williams uses materials like acrylic paint, gesso, charcoal, construction paper and marker to create these pieces. However, these pieces have a limited time frame in order to complete them. It takes him about five minutes to finish each piece and does this during class while his students are working. This allows him to make a large series and build a portfolio in a short amount of time.
New Semester
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Community Connection #4
11/16/10
Artist: Bradley N. Litwin
- Hand-operated, kinetic sculptures
- Constructed from paper board, with a few bits of wood, metal, or plastic
- Complete with instructions and display recommendations.
Bradley N. Litwin is a multi-discipline artist making his way through craft, manufacturing, multimedia production, music and fine arts. With this, Litwin has been constructing hand-operated machinery. He relied on demonstrated skills and knowledge that he gained from a continuing practice of self-direction and observation.
He uses three dimensional animation, graphic design and interactive multimedia production to create his hand made sculptures Today, as a sculptor as well as a singer, he continues to redefine himself as an artist. His most recent projects involve reaching out to the community, combining both visual and musical arts throughout the mid Atlantic and Midwest region of the US.
Community Connection #3
10/12/10
Artist: Brian Chippendale
- Ninja and Maggots are his well known comic series books
- Collision of ideas and genres
- Quick sketches
Location: Badman’s Presentation
Brian Chippendale is best known for his two comic book series, Ninja and Maggots. His story boards seem to collide with each other creating this claustrophobic feel. And they all are a collision of ideas and genre which I found very interesting. His style of drawing includes quick sketches, repeatition in the scenes throughtout, backgrounds usually filled with different shapes.
Chippendale’s work is very inspiring I thought because of the variety in elements he brings into his series. With his rushed sketches, he creates more depth and movement in his comics. The light and dark color contrast also make his pieces come alive.
Community Connection #2
9/28/10
Artist: Brian Marshall
http://adopt-a-bot.blogspot.com/
- Constructed out of various metal objects
- Commonly found or used objects
- Robots are posed in different positions based on their personalities.
I was introduced to this artist by a friend and decided to take a look at Marshall’s metal scuplture robots. This idea of creating miniature figures out of anything we can find reminded me of our own avatar project. Though we used a litter bottle to make ours, each one was unique to our personalities.
Especially with my series of avatars, I found simliar materials and ideas when it came to creating these figures. Like Marshall, my avatars had clever names that went along with each one and that fit it’s personality. After seeing Marshall’s robots I was inspired to use spoons and wire in creating my avatars. And we both position or have our figures doing some sort of action, which I thought was very interesting.
Community Connection #1
9/14/10
Artist: Joseph L. Castle
http://www.castlesculpture.com/home
- Abstract bronze sculptures
- The meaning of scupltures is very subtle
- His pieces expose bones in their raw form
My dad got the pleasure of meet this abstract sculpture at Chestnuthill where some of Castle’s pieces were displayed at. When I visited his site I was very amazed at the massive bronze sculpture Castle has created or is in the process of making. Though the meaning is subtle in his pieces, the titles of each piece gives you an insight on what Castle is trying to interpret.
What I thought was interesting was that his bronze sculptures expose bones in their raw form. He uses that to create a sort of motive through the piece along with the color scheme. Castle lets this motive tell the story of the piece in an unqiue way.
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2009 – 2010 School Year
Community Connection – Art Show
5.26.10
Artist: Justin Mellon
- Limited use of bright colors and texture
- Abstract elements throughout collection
- Pieces were of different sizes and shapes
This years art show is one to beat with all the hard working and talented artists at Wissahickon high school. Justin Mellon, a sophomore here produced several paintings that went well with his installation and personality.
His collection had many abstract elements to it that I found interesting. Though you were only able to identify some objects in the pieces, I felt it was not needed for the characters in a way created a story all their own. The colors in each of his paintings seemed to be limited however they all related to one another which was very effective.
Community Connection #4
5.10.10
Artist: Stella Kramrisch
- A lush region of lotus pools, fish-filled rivers, and tiger-haunted forests punctuated by rice and banana fields, rural villages, and teeming cities.
- The domestic arts made by and for Bengali women during the 19th and 20th.
- Drawn from a common pool of motifs and ideas that reflect the unique environment of the region, these creations provide a rare view into women’s everyday lives and thoughts.
Stella Kramrisch, an authority on Indian art, a teacher and a curator was born in Mikulov, Austria. She earned a doctorate of philosophy in Vienna. And when she became the first professor of Indian art at the University of Calcutta and published “Principles of Indian Art”, Professor Kramrisch started the systematic study of Indian art.
She perfected this systematic study in a series of books known as, ”Indian Sculpture”, “A Survey of Painting in the Deccan”, “Indian Terracottas”, “The Hindu Temple” and “Arts and Crafts of Travancore”. Then she became the co-editor of the Journal of the Indian Society of Oriental Art. Soon after she moved to the United States, where she was both a professor of South Asian Art at the University of Pennsylvania and a curator of Indian art at the Philadelphia Museum of Art.
Community Connection#3
4.27.10
Artist: Dave Glass
- Coming from Camden South Carolina, born on August 29th 1972, a Catholic boy of Scottish/Irish decent.
- Moving more than 34 times holding several jobs
- His punk art can be traced back to the mid to late 1980s.
- His formative punk art first appeared in middle and high school years scribbled in pen and spraypaint on skate boards, hand cut linoleum blocks, brown paper bag book covers, spray painted stencils on T-shirts.
Dave Glass a Catholic boy of Scottish and Irish decent from Camdem, South Carolina. With his mother, he moved around more than 34 times. He held several jobs throughout his high school career such as, metal fabricator, nightshift plastic plant monitor, repoman, pizza delivery guy, landscaper, mechanics asst., demolition man, painter, ice cream man, pre press operator, shipping manager, screen printer, electricians asst., graphic designer, illustrator and drummer for countless music projects.
His punk art first appeared on skateboards scribbled in pen and spraypaint, hand cut linoleum blocks, brown paper bag book covers, and spray painted stencils on T-shirts. Now Glass’s designing and screen printing art tees and band merchandise are made by hand for Sour Puss Clothing, Tattooed Kingpin, and his own company Ink Runs Cold.
Community Connection#2
3.16.10
Artist: Willem Kalf
- Acquired several Dutch and Flemish still life paintings
- Limited use of brilliant color and range of texture
- Kalf’s monumental compositions mark a high point in Dutch still life painting.
Willem Kalf was a Dutch painter from the seventeenth century well known for his very detailed paintings. Today he’s considered one of the greatest still life painters in art history. Most of his paintings consist of images of gold or silver goblets, pitchers and bowls. His early works showed kitchen scenes.
A few paintings of Kalf’s are in the John G. Johnson collection at the Philadelphia Art Museum. Johnson acquired several Dutch and Flemish painting from the seventeenth century. With Kalf’s use of brilliant color and range of texture, viwers can see how remarkable each one of his paintings are. Willem’s composition is a turning point in Dutch still life painting.
3.13.10-3.13.10
Community Connection # 1
2.23.10
Artist: Arshile Gorky
2.21.10-2.21.10
- Armenian immgrant
- Taught at the New School of Design
- Works similuar to that of Cezanne and Picasso
- Dynamic personality and devotion to painting and drawing
Arshile Gorky was an Armenian immgrant who moved from Boston to Manhatten and taught at the New School of Design in 1924. Highly skilled in the crafts and styles of old masters such as Paul Cezanne and Pablo Picasso. Gorky’s personality and devotion to painting and drawing helped he to develop friendship with the members of the American Surrealist and Abstract Expressionist movements.
The collection in the Philadelphia Museum of Art includes 180 paintings, sculptures and works on paper of Gorky’s. Some of them were entitled “The Limit”, “Aerial Map” and ” The Black Monk. His style often changed and there was no way of knowing what direction he was going in.
New Semester
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Community Connection #4
Artist: George Krause
1.3.10-1.3.10
- Finest photographer
- Qui Riposa series- cementery monuments and tombstones
- Recieved the first Prix de Rome and the first Fulbright/Hays grant ever awarded to a photographer
- Studied painting, drawing, sculpture, and photography
George Krause is an American photographer who studied painting, drawing, sculpture, and photography at the Philadelphia College of Art. He went from documenting the culture of Soouth Carolina to photographs left opened for the viewer’s interpretation. These photos consists of cemetery monuments, relgious statuary, and an atypical series of nudes.
Krause explores personal themes through human conterns like sensuality, morality, and mystery. With all the indignation, horror, pathos, or wonder, few visitors leave uninspired by his works. Many of which have been collected and displayed in several museums such as the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Museum of Fine Arts.
Community Connection #3
Artist: Frederick Sommer
11.27-11.27.09
- Produced a body of work that was reflected by surrealist ideas and were distinguished by his love for the art of photographic printing.
- Had broad knowledge of art history and keen sense of how the parts of a picture come together to create meaning
- Experimented with drawing, painting and collage
- Early imagery of animal remains and desert landscapes
This exhibit at the Philadelphia Art Museum is a collection of five decades of Frederick Sommer’s photography. Some include his disorienting pieces such as “Arizona Landscape”, and that resolves into a desert scene and “Max Ernst”, which Sommer experiments with layers of negative photos of a rock into an image of his friend Ernst. He also has about 40 images throughout his career along with several drawings and collages. Sommer had a wide span of knowledge in art history and had an eye for where pictures come together in order to produce a different meaning. Sommer was one of the leading artists of 20th-century American photography, although he also painted, drew, made collages, and wrote poetry and prose. An early example of his surrealist ideas was in 1939, when he got chicken parts from his local butcher and arranged them in a sink. Five of these bizarre pieces are the focal point to his entire collection, “Arizona Landscape” and “Max Ernst” are just two.
Community Connection #2
10.19.09
Artists: Unknown
10.17.09-10.18.09
• Lively music from all parts of the world.
• Inspirational techniques and artwork from people in the community.
• Family friendly, a little something for everyone.
• Handmade works by hundreds of craftspeople
• Glass, jewelry, pottery, wood, metal, fiber, clothing, furniture and more.
My family and I attended the Pennsylvania Guild Fine Craft Festival held at Montgomery County Community College.This is an opportunity to support region’s best craftspeople while finding functional and decorative craft. By buying handmade, long lasting crafts helps the environment because many craftspeople use reclaimed and repurposed materials. The entire fair had a very organic and family friendly vibe to it. The skills and professions varied greatly with each booth but in an inspirational and influential way. Some craftspeople excelled in glass making, jewelry, pottery, wood craving, metal shaping, fiber, clothing and elegant furniture making.
The whole experience was amazing and it felt so welcoming. You could shop, socialize with friends and family and try some of their delicious popcorn. And it was also interesting to watch these craftspeople demonstrate some of their techniques right in front of you.
Community Connection#1
9.21.09
Philadelphia Museum of Art
Artist: Marcel Duchamp “ Etant Donnes”
• Cubism, Dadaism and Surrealism
• Violating and awkward
• “Nude Descending a Staircase, No.2” was Duchamp’s famous piece.
• Saw the exhibit for myself over the summer.
Marcel Duchamp was a painter and mixed media artist, who was associated with Cubism, Dadaism, and Surrealism. He broke the boundaries between works of art and everyday objects. After his most famous piece “Nude Descending a Staircase, No.2”, he painted many other pictures. As early as 1913 he began his studies for an awkward piece named “The Large Glass or The Bride Stripped Bare by Her Bachelors”, Even. This was symbolic to his ideas of man, woman and love. He also produced the “Bicycle Wheel” and the “Pharmacy”.
My first impression of Duchamp was really violating and awkward. And the question of who decides what art is kept coming up while I was walking around the exhibit. His art was questionable because being an artist myself, I could not find the message or what the artist was trying to say in his art work. However the collection was very interesting to see how another artists’ thinking process and what inspires their work. Duchamp’s exhibit was the one that stuck out in my mind the most because it was indeed questionable yet intriguing in a way that he had a common theme within all of his pieces which connected them to each other. I saw his famous “Large Glass” and “Bicycle Wheel” which are both at the Art Museum in Philadelphia now. It was all just interesting to see all the art pieces that arranged together throughout the museum.
Honors 2009-10
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