appropriation

After doing some research on several sites, I have read mixed reviews but one common underlying theme: appropriation is copying another artists work. It seems that generally appropriation is illegal aside from its use for satire or criticism. When using a substantial amount or the entirety of a persons work, permission needs to be granted by the original artist especially if it has a copyright. Knowing this information by this time is helpful to all art students, especially those who are over 18 and display work in shows. Growing up, my art teacher would give us magazines or calendars to pick something we would like to paint. Don't get me wrong, we didn't always do this-we had plenty of still life exercises and painted outside landscapes, but I still painted plenty of photographs that I didn't take. As a kid, this is a good way to learn all the important things that contribute to painting (color theory, proportions, ect) especially since young ones don't typically have great photography skills. That being said, it still doesn't make it legal. This makes me sad because I feel like all my greatest paintings are a lie! I wish appropriation wasn't an issue because there are plenty of works that inspire me and I would love to copy them, but I also understand that it isn't fair to steal other peoples creativity. I think learning about appropriation is necessary for all artists for not only legal reasons but also to remind them that creativity should be an original thought. With the art community on the same page of appropriation laws, the possibilities of weird/awesome art are endless.

spring break challenge follow-up painting

So I'm finally doing something that I love, a unicorn painting. I've had serious ADHD when it came to this concentration piece (how ironic) and I produced a lot of small, shameful works of art that I shouldn't even give the courtesy of calling art. Now I have more confidence in what I'm doing and I really look forward to going to the studio again. I tried to break out of my comfort zone with various types of sculpture like soapstone and clay, but it just wasn't for me. I must have overlooked how bad I was at ceramics last spring. Regardless, my unicorn painting is fulfilling my unicorn dreams. I've never used silver paint and I think it will really make the lighting pop. I'm also using acryllics which is out of my comfort zone, in addition to my first night-time painting. Research needs to be done on how to create a river and grass at night. I'll be interested to see who likes the unicorn theme if we do a show this spring.

update

It's been a while since I've blogged, so I thought I would do an update post. We've finally moved on to our last piece that combines elements of our sketchbook challenge and our concentration pieces, and I decided that I would take the approach of making certain things stand out in my last unicorn in a similar way to the drawing I did about being a makeup artist. I want to highlight the things that really catch my attention when I look at a unicorn, so I might just draw the eyes, horn, mane/ears, and tip of the snout while leaving the rest undefined. Oil pastels will be the medium I use, and I would like to stick with bright pinks and purples for my color pallet.

artist Victoria Florio

I stumbled upon Victoria Florio's blog with Ms. Smith, and a lot of her stuff really interested me. She's incredibly talented at drawing, painting, and print making. I'm very impressed with her work, and she's my age! Portraits seem to be a common theme in her portfolio, which drew me to her because I like making portraits as well. Her inspiration may come from expressions or emotions because most of her paintings or drawings have a close-up expression very different from the next. The detail, shading, composition, and line come together very nicely, pulling the viewer in. Her work is really inspirational to me, and quite humbling to be honest. I definitely know I'm not the greatest artists, but shit! (Sorry for swearing smitty, and I'm scared for college now). My favorite piece of hers is her monochromatic self-portrait because not only do I love self-portraits but I also love the color choice here. I'm not sure where she got the idea to draw her lips blue, but it reminds me of eating a blue lollipop or costume makeup. She continues to use blue as a form of shading and skin tone, and it pulls everything together nicely. This girl must be interested by expression. Maybe now I should try painting or drawing faces that display a variety of emotions, it might help me develop as an artist. If you want to check her out, here's her blog: 

http://vickysportfolio.deviantart.com/art/scrunch-212440902​

concentration piece

As I stated in my last blog post, my concentration piece is Unicorns. I've been out of school with the flu, Headmaster's weekend, Caribbean studies, and my grandmother's funeral. My work has been put on hold during this, but I've been trying to work quickly and efficiently since I've returned. A few of my pieces aren't turning out as well as I thought, but I've had this problem before. I have faith that somehow I'll work it out and actually enjoy my work. When I came up with this idea, I wanted to paint a unicorn like "really cheesy van art" as smitty would say. I literally just let my hands work without thinking too much about it, and now I have the issue of not liking what I created. However, I started a black and white painting of a unicorn yesterday after school. I'm really enjoying it so far, and it will probably be my favorite of the four. The background is subtle and gray, drawing attention to the white unicorn. There's something about it that reminds me of a mix between a photograph and a dream. Hopefully I can do this last one quickly and move on to the next project ready to work uninterupted and motivated.