In my previous essay, I answered the question–“Can you succeed in life working in the field of art?”– and provided evidence to back up my claim and hyperlinks to the articles I got my information from. The approach of this essay was to show people that you can have a successful career in the arts and hopefully it helped to change opposing views. Art has influenced almost everything you see, hear, and touch.  Art, to some people, is their whole life and it can be therapeutic; Art helps with things such as depression and anxiety, although it’s not a definite cure. This series of photographs explores ways that you can express yourself creatively and yes, through art.

Starry Night

(Starry Night: Vincent van Gogh)

The Starry Night painting by Vincent van Gogh was based off of Van Gogh’s imagination, emotions, and memories. His inspiration for the painting was when he took a glance at the countryside one morning, with nothing but the morning star itself out from his window. The window he’s referencing was in the Saint-Paul asylum in Saint-Rémy, in southern France, in which he sought out despite his emotional suffering and continued to make art. His purpose was to make people look past the misunderstood fellow that cut his own ear off and instead become acquainted with the hardworking, stubborn and religious man. This particular oil canvas was dominated by a moon and star-filled sky taking up 75% of the picture. Along with that comes swirly like patterns that roll across the surfaces like waves.  The steeple of the church represents his native homeland and not France, where the asylum he was in was located.

Headless Chicken

(Headless Chicken: Celeste Prize)

There are several other paintings like this; This is just one of them. The idea of this painting was based off a documentary, “Mike the Headless Chicken”, which entails the long survival of a chicken that was beheaded in 1947. Colorado farmer Lloyd Olsen was instructed by his wife to bring back a chicken to prepare for dinner. The axe he used chopped off the chicken’s head, but missed the jugular vein, leaving one ear and most of the brain intact. Because the farmer failed to kill him, the chicken was still able to walk but clumsily and lived for 18 months. Although there are some documents reporting the incident, it is still considered a hoax by many people. The purpose of this painting in particular was to reveal the difference between the reality of the photo and the dimension of the painting.

Shakin’ off The Blues

(Shakin’ off The Blues: Iris Scott)

A Painter from Brooklyn, New York named Iris Scott created this oil painting of a dog shaking off water with not paint brushes, but her fingers. This painting was inspired by the dog, Jake, sitting in her art studio. She used hundreds of colors to make this painting come to life, including her favorite hue of green, Ice Green. This painting in particular became her biggest success. She has made several other oil based paintings using her fingers.

Bill Murray as Wes Anderson characters

(Bill Murray as Wes Anderson characters: Casey Weldon)

Bill Murray must’ve been a good subject for painters, as Casey Weldon made this particular painting of Bill Murray as characters from Wes Anderson films. Weldon figured since Bill Murray was the go to actor for Wes Anderson films, so he wondered “What if it could be all Bill Murray, all the time?” So he decided to paint Bill Murray as the characters in his films, despite the fact that Bill Murray didn’t play any of the characters.

The Scream

(The Scream: Bernard Pras)

French painter Bernard Pras is well known for his unbelievable object installations. He has anamorphosis, which is a distorted projection or observation requiring the viewer to view things in a “unconventional way”. He hides his images, like the one above,  in piles of what seems to be junk and turns them into art. They can be seen through a particular device or just from the right angle. In order to get this effect, Pras plans out the whole installation and places random objects, selecting them by color and size so they would resemble a famous artwork or an image from just a single perspective. The objects vary from plastic waste to household objects to pills, boxes, bags, dolls, toys, and musical instruments. This piece in particular is a take on both the movie trilogy Scream and the Scream painting, originally made by Edvard Munch.

The Birth of Venus

(The Birth of Venus: Sandro Botticelli)

The Birth of Venus is a painting made by Italian artist Sandro Botticelli in the 1840s. The painting depicts the goddess Venus arriving at the shore after her birth where she had emerged from the sea fully grown. Venus is met by a young woman, who identifies as one of the Graces and presents her with a cloak of flowers. The roses that are blown by the wind are a reminder of spring. The subject of the painting was meant to celebrate Venus as a symbol of love and beauty. Botticelli takes his inspiration from the way Venus poses in statues; Her long, blonde hair covering her nude body and has a reflection from light that it’s been gilded and was also based on a work by Lorenzo the Magnificent from the Hellenistic period and is considered a gem.

Works Cited and Links:

Lee Bontecou. Untitled. 1959 | MoMA. MoMA Learning.  https://www.moma.org/learn/moma_learning/vincent-van-gogh-the-starry-night-1889/ Thurs.Dec.22.2018.

Mike the headless chicken – Luca De Angelis – Celeste Prize 2014. www.celesteprize.com. https://www.celesteprize.com/artwork/ido:295869/ Thurs.Dec.22.2018.

IRIS SCOTT. IRIS SCOTT. http://www.irisscottfineart.com/video/  Wed.Nov.22.2014. Thurs. Dec.20.2018.

Bill Murray as other Wes Anderson characters. Lost At E Minor: For creative people.  https://www.lostateminor.com/2013/02/12/bill-murray-as-other-wes-anderson-characters/  Fri.Feb.08.2013. Thurs.Dec.20.2018.

Stunning Portraits By Bernard Pras Can Only Be Seen From The Right Angle. Bored Panda. https://www.boredpanda.com/anamorphosis-perspective-optical-illusion-art-bernard-pras/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic  Thurs.Dec.20.2018.

Birth of Venus. Pagina principale.  https://www.uffizi.it/en/artworks/birth-of-venus  Thurs.Dec.20.2018.

Viktoria Kordas

English 101

Holly Pappas

Edited on December 10, 2018

In Museums Can Change–Will They? by Michael O’ Hare, it discusses how museums have cheated people out of seeing and connecting with actual art by using duplicates or minor pieces for financial gain, and that if they wanted to, they could stop, but they chose not to.

Michael O’Hare is an art teacher who tells his students one day that,

“arts policy is the most important policy arena. Seriously? Well, most people think health policy is right up there—but why live longer if life isn’t worth living? And if you don’t think government has a lot to do with whether and how you can engage with art, you just don’t understand the situation.” (O’Hare,1)

He then goes on to discuss, in his point of view, a world where art, such as paintings and sculptures, are being locked in basements and warehouses instead of being on full display where they should be. A world in which you would have to travel far away to dozens of cities to see such art, and didn’t rush through a museum because you paid tons of money to get in, and a world in which you weren’t afraid of making a personal connection with the art. That world is in reach, but we don’t make the effort to go there because we’ve placed so much trust in the hands of museums that they practically “nailed our feet to the floor so we couldn’t move towards it,” and the government approves of it all.

Museums, for a long period of time, have refused to believe that the duplicates and minor pieces they have on full display are a way of deceiving people of not only their money, but a chance for people to make a connection with the actual art they keep hidden. It’s basically a ritual that requires conscious effort to realize things could be different.

O’Hare then discusses how he and his students take trips to museums once a week, to be more specific, during business hours or on weekends. They start the trip by walking past a wall of names that doesn’t give credit to the artists themselves but donors, for again, financial gain. But how exactly does that all work, you might be wondering?  The art is usually sold, ranging from a third to ninety percent of millions of US dollars. The money is taxed money, and not private funds. Museums are expensive to get into as different prices are listed for different people.

They then take a tour of the museum, in which the art  displayed is sorted by place, medium, and date of origin. They decode symbols found in the artwork that they’re either anxious or relieved to have uncovered, and with that, then, they start to see things that don’t seem quite right. They have a chat among themselves about the art they see; the things being discussed are about how certain pieces of art wouldn’t be art if they weren’t placed in a museum.

Finally, O’Hare talks about how an art museum is quote, “A business, often a big one, but a special kind. In the United States, almost all of them are tax-exempt, educational nonprofits, with unique privileges given in return for certain kinds of social value.” (O’Hare,3.) and how one of the main points of this article was to address how museums could be better, as he lists a bunch of ways they could be better, but instead we force ourselves to pay attention to knockoff pieces of art.  Another point was to address how museums are “deep and ingrained,” and realizing this might finally answer the question of whether they’re really using the priceless resources given to them or not.

I never knew that until I read this article, although, some things seem bias; a few examples being he suggests that all museums use fake art,  they don’t give credit to the original artists, and buy fake/minor art using government tax money. I do agree with the ways he points out on how museums could be better. On the contrary, I learned stuff about museums that I haven’t learned before and was very interested throughout.

Whenever I go to museums– a specific time I could remember was when I was in elementary school for a field trip– I usually look at the artwork displayed and never gave the thought of whether the artwork was fake or not a chance to run through my mind. I see other people taking pictures of the artwork displayed and that same thought probably didn’t come to them, either.

Michael’s article wasn’t the only one that talked about fake artwork being displayed in museums. In fact, according to an article by the New York Times, A French Museum discovered that more than half of the artwork displayed was fake. In the article, the authors describe how one canvas in particular revealed another artist’s name with a touch of a glove and how a museum called the Terrus museum have plagiarised one local artist’s work by putting another artist’s signature on his work which can be revealed by the touch of a glove; this artist was whom the museum was named after, Étienne Terrus. Terrus was born in 1857 and died in 1922. He was best known for his paintings of landscapes of the Roussillon region in the South of France. The museum was set to reopen after renovation when local art historian, Eric Forcada, discovered the forgeries. The art was obtained in 2013 and were no longer on exhibit because “town officials were awaiting the creation of a second floor in the museum to display its full collection,” said Forcada. Plagiarism in artwork specifically has gone on for thousands of years, even by the most successful artists.

Work cited:

O’Hare, Michael. “Museums Can Change–Will They?”. The Democracy Journal. The Democracy Journal. Spring 2015. https://democracyjournal.org/magazine/36/museums-can-changewill-they/ .

Peltier, Elian, and Codrea-Rado, Anna. French Museum Discovers More Than Half Its Collection Is Fake. April 2018. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/30/arts/design/french-museum-fakes.html

The question I’m going to be discussing is one that some may not agree with or find an issue with: Can you succeed in life working in the field of art? My answer to that question? Yes. Yes, you absolutely can have a successful career in the field of art.

The definition of art is according to google, is “an expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power.” Art, in all forms, helps to express who you are and influence others. Art influences our lives in more ways than one and we all take part in it. Art can be used as a form of therapy; it’s used as a way to relieve anxiety, depression, etcetera.

According to Top Universities, while art may not be a “vocational subject”, art can be used as a way to kickstart your career and is a “good preparation for the world of work.” Examples of careers in the arts are fine artist, illustrator,  graphic designer, and photographer. Fine artists are one of the more obvious art careers. If you have the talent, dedication, stamina, and self belief, this career is for you. Fine artists promote themselves through their artwork, as it is a highly competitive field.  An illustrator on the other hand uses their creative skills to communicate stories, messages, or ideas to an intended audience. Illustrators are most likely to specialize in drawing, photography, or digital illusion. Graphic designers are responsible for creating design solutions that have a high visual impact. They develop creative ideas and concepts, choosing the appropriate setting and style to meet the clients’ objectives. Photographers use a range of things to capture a permanent image in the style set by a client. There is a wide range of specializations in photography from weddings to advertising to photojournalism. When it comes to fashion photography, that field is way more competitive and it will be beneficial to have a degree specializing in photography. As well as working on your portfolio, make some time to get contacts, get work published, and in general gain new skills and experiences like volunteering.

Why some of those artists you know and love are successful is mainly because of one word: passion. According to Art Bistro, art can described as the core of their lives, their reason for getting up in the morning. These artists, specifically fine artists, go to sleep thinking about art and make time in their day to make or market their work. Successful artists also have a strong work ethic; They manage themselves, their creative energy, and their resources. They manage their time to produce their work and market it. They choose their own work ethic to follow through and stick with it. Whether artists enjoy the business aspect of it or not, they do whatever needs to be done without any complaints. Resilience also comes into play in terms of why they’re successful. They know success doesn’t happen right away and it requires long, hard work. When they make mistakes, they focus on solutions, not regret. They learn from their mistakes, like most of the general population and experiment to improve on past failures.

There are even skills from the arts that can benefit you in the near future. The blog, American for the Arts, has a list of the top ten skills people learn from a very young age from the arts (I’ll only go over some). The first one being creativity; Being able to think on your feet, approach tasks with certain approaches, and think ‘outside the box’, so to speak, will distinguish you from the others. For example, if you’re in an improv class and the teacher asks you to improvise a scene, it will require you to think on your feet of what scene you’ll act out, the tone, the script, etcetera. Being creative can benefit you in many careers besides the Arts. If you start practicing this, it will come naturally to you and in the future. The next skill is confidence; this skill is developed in the theatre aspect of the arts. It will not only train you on how to be able to deliver a successful, yet convincing message, it’ll help to build your confidence. That way you’ll be able to go over mistakes and learn from them. The next skill is problem solving; “Artistic creations are born through the solving of problems.” How do I turn this clay into a sculpture? How will be I persuade people through my essay? How do I portray a certain emotion through my writing? Without even realizing it people in the Arts are always challenged to solve problems. The practice of problem solving will develop your skills in reasoning and understanding from a young age and will benefit you in any career you choose. Then we have focus; The ability to focus is a key skill developed through hard work. There’s this balance between listening and contributing that involves a good amount of concentration and of course, focus. They not only have to think about the message they’ll send through the piece, but also how it’ll benefit society. The last skill that I’ll be discussing is dedication. When people in the arts dedicate their time to their craft with long hours of practice and hard work, they learn to associate that feeling with accomplishment. They practice healthy working habits, respecting the contributions of others, and putting effort into the success of the final piece. The reward for dedication is the warm feeling of success that makes you’re doing worthwhile.

Being successful in the Arts though is not easy. It requires you to take time away from yourself and dedicate it to your craft, be open and take in brutally general criticism and to be honest with yourself. Eric Armusik explains in one post on his blog that once you have a heartfelt dialogue with yourself, things will come into perspective for you. What’s your disadvantage? What are you currently struggling in? What is keeping you from succeeding? are a few questions you should ask yourself in order to fully learn to be honest with yourself.  Armusik also states that sometimes we create our own obstacles, and that we become fixated on an idea that in the end is detrimental to our future, in which I agree with and have been in that position before. It takes me back to times where I’ve been stubborn and narrow minded when it came to criticism on my own essays, and where I had the mindset that nothing was wrong with the essays I wrote, but that was because I either couldn’t find the mistakes or I looked past them. I asked myself how I was responsible for my failures or shortcomings and what role I’ve played in them.  I felt like crap for a while, but I was glad that I was honest and hard on myself.  Embracing your hardships and using them to your advantage will help you in any career you choose.

Therefore, this is why I feel that you can be successful in a career in the Arts.

Works cited:

https://www.ericarmusik.com/representational-artists-blog/2016/5/6/becoming-a-successful-artist-hard-work

http://artkbistro.monster.com/benefits/articles/12069-5-reasons-why-some-artists-are-successful

https://blog.americansforthearts.org/2012/11/26/the-top-10-skills-children-learn-from-the-arts

https://www.topuniversities.com/student-info/careers-advice/what-can-you-do-art-degree

Citations:

Armusik, E.(2016) Never Underestimate the Value of Hard Work. Figurative Art | Dramatic Realist Artist Eric Armusik.

McNee, L. (2018) 5 Reasons Why Some Artists are Successful. ArtBistro.

Phillips, L. (2017) The Top 10 Skills Children Learn From the Arts. ARTS Blog.

What Can You Do With an Art Degree? (March 12, 2018) Retrieved from https://www.topuniversities.com/student-info/careers-advice/what-can-you-do-art-degree

Viktoria Kordas

English 101

Holly Pappas

November 27, 2018

Art and emotion flow by the river.

Early morning drivers pull up to South Coast landing located near Bicentennial Park and the Taunton Riverside. The staff drivers begin to pull up some in vans and some in larger vehicles, some of them as large as box trucks. Painted on the side of every vehicle is the logo for Community Connections. It’s the kind of place for people that fall through the cracks  of  traditional, institutional style education and work skill development. Community Connections is a day habilitation program for adults with intellectual and/or physical challenges. There are numerous Community Connections in several locations surrounding Fall River.  Community Connections in Swansea, for example, is strictly for people of age sixty and over, while the Hartwell street location in Fall River is best for younger people who are active and willing to participate in the community. Our particular location is geared toward medically complicated adults and young adults who are not well suited to travel around the community. Due to physical, emotional or debilitating problems accommodations are necessary for continued progress and self improvement.

The drivers wear reflective jackets but underneath they wear casual clothing that often has interesting or amusing decals that are noticed and appreciated by the clients. The drivers expertly handle the devices on the transport vehicles. These vehicles allow safe and careful transition for clients. Drivers while organizing plans for getting clients in and out of the building safely employ the use of airlifts. Use of adaptive equipment to transport clients in wheelchairs or on stretchers is expertly employed as staff are very familiar and communicative with clients.  I have noticed the reassuring hand on the shoulder and thoughtful positive affirmations; “Well done!” “Good job!” or “Did you see the game last night?” I have observed that every staff member seems to go out of their way to greet and make eye contact with every client. Some clients respond verbally with their own greeting, while others make it clear that they are happy to be acknowledged and welcomed through verbal utterances and gestures such as waves or hugs. The easy rapport is unmistakable. Observing the general manner of the staff who work inside the building, puts one at ease when I see the clients’ reactions with friendly smiles and high fives.

When you enter the building, big, glass, double doors automatically open. There’s wall to wall art crafted by the clients, and vaulted ceilings as you walk down the hall. My favorite client project was easily the alphabet. Arranged at the top molding of the drop ceiling were wooden planks about the size of  a magazine in various colors. The letter “A” was done in pink with a myriad of tiny pink objects such as flowers, shells, animals, colored glass, fruits and feathers. They were positively pink and expertly arranged so the eye could see each individual miniature treasure. The blue letter “B” similarly endowed with artful minutia. From the distance they look like solid letters, closer inspection reveals incredible complexity not unlike the clients themselves. And so the alphabet continues each as letter is as entertaining as the last.  The art represents togetherness and friendship shared by the clients and the employees. We met Tina, who is nonverbal and young. She likes to wear clothes that have Minnie Mouse on them, so she has decided to use Bingo daubers to create a polka dot universe. “She loves the dots on Minnie’s bow!”  Carol a staff member, mentions to us as we pass by that Tina makes  her wants and needs known by using sign language.

On either side of the hallway there are a series of rooms. The top half of the walls are painted teal and there are shiny, wood floors. Large exposed beams cross from one side of the hallway to the other, making the highest peak of the ceiling easy to see. Depending where you are the flooring changes.  The kitchen has raised rubbery skid proof flooring, and the music and game room have almost foamy floor covering to reduce injury from possible falls. In every room you walk in there’s corresponding visual themes. Such as the man on the moon in the space room offsetting the planets and the treadmill that walks you towards Mars. In the music room there are instruments hanging from the beams mobile style; I saw maracas, tambourines, electronic drums, and eggs that make noise when you shake them. Brick walls surround the room and shelves keep the laptops and tablets secure but accessible. A desktop computer is surrounding by shelves holding several music CD’s, hand held electronic toys and hand held instruments. The game room has a bright orange floor, bean bag chairs and low tables so everyone can sit around and play board games.

The reason I go to Community Connections is because my sister goes there, her name is Roni. They have pet therapy! The pet that day was a cute, little brown bunny named Missy.  She held the bunny close to her face, kept giving her little kisses and saying “I love you sooo much!” This seems like a physical manifestation of the same kind of wonder and joy that Roni experiences when we look at Van Gogh and I experience the same joy. I believe color can affect your mood and physical sense of yourself.

Another client named Lois had a different reaction to the bunny. She wouldn’t stop crying and kept screaming “Get it away from me!” The staff suggested she leave the room a couple of times but she didn’t want to leave. She kept crying and complaining about the rabbit. The reactions of others were mixed, most of the clients ignored her completely. The others either laughed or told her to “shut up!” Another client named Jeffrey suggested that  “Rabbits are good eating!” Which lead to more screaming, Lois crying even more and people freaking out. Mostly it didn’t seem to matter that she was screaming, after all Lois tends to cry if someone smiles at her. Everyone went on to say how cute Roni and the rabbit were together. Most clients were engaged and amused but not everyone chose to hold the rabbit. They’d rather watch Roni interact with the rabbit than interact with it themselves.There is a huge diversity in that group in terms of age, ethnicity and medical conditions. I have noticed that my sister and I both enjoy looking at art by Van Gogh. When I look at Starry Night it evokes melancholy yet hope because the stars are so bright. The blue is deep and mesmerizing and magical. Van Gogh’s sunflowers make me sad even though it has the brightest, beautiful yellow because the flowers seem to be dying. Roni enjoys looking at these paintings as well and has Starry Night hanging in her room. It is clear to me that art has an emotional effect on her in a good way.

What if this were reality TV? Would people see hand flapping, screaming, seemingly inappropriate crying and physical impairments as common forms of expression? Detailed murals and art projects created by the clients symbolize togetherness aesthetically as every different hand adds a piece of that vision and produces a perfect piece? The murals are an homage in every color of a perfect peace.

topic question: can you succeed in life working in the field of art?

sources:

https://www.ericarmusik.com/representational-artists-blog/2016/5/6/becoming-a-successful-artist-hard-work

http://artbistro.monster.com/benefits/articles/12069-5-reasons-why-some-artists-are-successful

https://www.topuniversities.com/student-info/careers-advice/what-can-you-do-art-degree

https://blog.americansforthearts.org/2012/11/26/the-top-10-skills-children-learn-from-the-arts

https://www.theatlantic.com/education/archive/2014/11/what-can-you-really-do-with-a-degree-in-the-arts/382300/

https://www.nytimes.com/1999/06/27/magazine/how-to-succeed-in-art.html

https://www.forbes.com/sites/katiasavchuk/2015/08/19/why-art-school-can-be-a-smart-career-move/#1a114893372f

The main focus of Caroline’s essay is how music brings people closer together, despite the difficulties that go along with it. For most of the essay, Caroline talks about observing a band practice at her former high school; she goes into detail about the roles each member of band had and their relationships, what’s required in band, the sound, and much more. Regardless of whether you were band or not, there are readers that can relate to having a passion that brings people together and sticking to a routine. There are even readers that have a similar type of mindset about band and have had similar experiences.

In terms of detail, Caroline does a great job of explaining how band practice would usually function, however when it comes to how music brings people together, the response is very short. The topic she chose is an interesting one, however, it could be expanded. In terms of structure, this rough draft is strong. It provides lots of detail about band practice in general, the location, etc., and has a good amount of articulation. For example, as she’s describing the uniform, I can envision what it would look like.

As I said before, her topic is very interesting, she just needs to expand on the togetherness more.