Dinner and A Movie

 Best Served Cold?

Ice, kitchen knife, candle, black fake roses, leaves, velvet robe

Inspired by the movie The Count of Monte Cristo (2002)

    My image explores the concept of revenge that is central to the plot of the movie.  The dish is frozen, playing on the expression "revenge is best served cold."  But as the protagonist learns in the film, revenge is never without emotional cost--it is never really served cold.  The knife wrapped in black roses is a cultural symbol for curses and revenge.  The protagonist spends decades of his life in prison after being betrayed and falsely accused by his best friend.  Even when he is released from solitary confinement and escapes prison, he is internally isolated.  The one burning candle represents his isolated life.  I placed my dinner setting on purple velvet, which symbolizes the wealth and riches the protagonist accumulated in order to exact his revenge on his former friend.  There are three roses to represent the three characters involved in the revenge plot: the protagonist, his enemy, and his true love.  This love triangle is what caused the antagonist to betray his friend, so the knife (also a symbol of betrayal--being "stabbed in the back") separates the protagonist from his love.  However, the candle also melts the ice near the roses.  The protagonists' heart begins to warm toward his enemy by the end of the film.  Though the protagonist gets his revenge, his life back, and everything he ever wanted and deserved, he feels regret and sorrow for his enemy.  No character is left unscathed by the end.

100 Objects

 

100 drink umbrellas installed in a sandbox

100 drink umbrellas installed on my bathroom window

100 drink umbrellas installed in my dishwasher

Touch Assignment

 

Unveiling Internal Physical Perception

Digital Artwork

 "What is a sense of one's self?  To a large extent it has to do with touch, with how we feel... Not that our sense of self is necessarily accurate.  Each of us has an exaggerated mental picture of our body, with a big head, hands, mouth, and genitals, and a small trunk...Touch fills our memory with a detailed key as to how we're shaped.  A mirror would mean nothing without touch."

-Diane Ackerman, A Natural History of the Senses, p. 95.

 

With this drawing, I wanted to visually capture Ackerman's description of how we internally perceive our physical bodies.  This sense of constant awareness through touch is represented by the spiritual, glowing figure within the mirror.  The outer glow represents touch--the wider the glow, the greater the perception of that area of the body.  So, the head and hands have a large glow, which gives them greater touch significance.  I placed the "perception" figure in a mirror, to show that--though she looks at an exact duplicate of herself in the glass--the woman is also seeing this 3 dimensional, holistic version of herself there.

The Hidden Life of Hair

Gouache on Watercolor Paper

8.5x5.5in 

 

"Besides being sexy to most people, head hair protects the brain from the sun's heat and ultraviolet rays, helps to insulate the skull, softens impact, and constantly monitors the world only a hair's breadth away from our body, that circle of danger and romance we allow few people to enter."

-Diane Ackerman, A Natural History of the Senses, p. 87.

 

When I first read this quote, I immediately thought of plants.  They are living and active--yet their realm of time is imperceptibly slow.  To fully see their wonderful movements, you must speed up time.  In a similar way, you have to alter time--and a little of reality--to fully visualize all the wonderful things your hair does unbeknownst to you.

Though I took a surrealist approach, hair truly takes each of the exaggerated forms I painted.  The woman's hair floats and swirls into a magnificent sunhat, protecting her from the sun.  It wraps itself around her in a protective embrace.  However, it also wraps around the man--inviting him into its intimate and vulnerable circle.  His own hair coils and transforms into monitoring eyes.  These represent the way hair senses the world around us--the follicles feeling every movement we can't see with our eyes.

A Few of my Favorite Things

 

1. Green Glass Butterfly.  This butterfly was given to me by my great grandmother.  She asked me if there was anything from her house I wanted before she moved, and this was the only thing I chose—but it was a treasure I'd wanted since I was a little girl.  My grandmother is an important figure in my life and one of my greatest role models.

2. Topaz Ring.  This ring was given to me by my grandparents on my 16th birthday.  The blue topaz is my birthstone.  It always makes me think of my grandparents and is one of my greatest treasures.

3. Airpods.  I am always listening to music.  Whether I'm working on a project, driving to class, cleaning my room, or painting, there is always music in my ears.  I pride myself on my ability to find really good indie bands and I love sharing what I find with others.  My Airpod case also has a Flagler sticker on the front.  Flagler College is one of my very favorite places.

4. Guitar Pick.  I play acoustic guitar.  When I'm not listening to music and making new playlists, I'm strumming my guitar and singing.

5. Paint Brushes.  I'm an art student, so art supplies are the bare necessities of my existence.  These particular paint brushes are special to me because I have used them all my life.  Many of the well-loved brushes in my collection were my mom's when she was my age.

6. The Great Gatsby Collectors Edition Book.  This book was given to me on my last birthday by my best friend.  I had my eye on this gorgeous gold-leaf hardback for months.  She heard me mention it once and then surprised me with it.  Though beautiful, the book is actually special because it shows the thoughtfulness and care of my friend.

Elements and Principles of Art and Design

Focal Point 

 "The Hill Seen From Afar" by Roman Ondak

My Photo, taken on Roan Mountain.  The lone man on the mountainside draws the eye.  The mountains frame him and the winding path ends at his feet. 

Art21: Rackstraw Downes

 Rackstraw Downes

https://art21.org/watch/extended-play/rackstraw-downes-some-painters-short/

Downes' panoramic paintings are vast in depth and give a sense of tranquility.

 

Two of my favorite pieces of Downes' are:

 "At the Confluence of Two Ditches Bordering a Field with Four Radio Towers" (1995)

 

 [ https://www.27east.com/arts/rackstraw-downes-exhibition-opens-at-parrish-art-museum-1371942/ ]

 

 

& "Dunham’s Farm Pond" (1972)

[ https://art21.org/gallery/rackstraw-downes-artwork-survey-1970s/ ]

 

 

Throughout Downes' work, there is a light-valued, muted color palate.  He often uses very flat layers of color—along with round, generous brush strokes—to create his signature realism.  His scenes are horizontal, which gives the viewer a feeling of balance and tranquility.  He does not often choose such classical, picturesque landscapes as "Dunham's Farm Pond."  Many of his pieces find beauty in "ugly," industrial aspects of the everyday modern landscape.  Somehow, in the graceful curve of the power lines in "At the Confluence of Two Ditches Bordering a Field with Four Radio Towers," he creates serene elegance.