When I think of an artists community I envision a cluster of living studio spaces with large areas for clay, glassblowing, metals (jewelry and large scale), wood working painting and printmaking areas. I always like a large dinning area (with cooks on hand for good meals) and lots of space to walk/dream/think. I love the idea of shared works areas like kilns, glory holes, casting equipment with a manager on hand to ensure safety and offer advise. I love the opportunity to have conversations throughout the day and into the night. And space for visitors and critters.
Pay attention to the timeline at the beginning of the chapter..image a time with both Norman Rockwell and the Armory Show! Look at how clay matured and the slow addition of women. Enjoy.
So for this week's extra question describe your favorite chair. What does it look like, is there a story behind the chair, how does it feel?
1. I was surprised at the fact that George Maher started as a 13 year old in architecture. He also created unified designs in all different scales which is very interesting and difficult in my opinion. In every situation he had a theme like for one house he used the thistle as his motif.
ReplyDelete2. I was impressed that the youngest ceramic expert was Frederick Rhead. This was cool because no one ever thinks of age when approaching creations. He was around 20 or 30 when he and his father wrote a series of pottery classes covering different techniques. He was truly a student of the craft for his to grasp all the concepts so early in life.
3. The take home from this chapter is that art and crafts were introduced in new forms by so many different individuals that not one person can take all the credit. Also the war caused the art boom to decline but somehow it was kept alive through the army learning needle work and some weaving to survive. Art can not be stopped.
4. My favorite chair is an off white recliner at my parents house. Everyone knows that it's my chair and saves it for me to sit in when I come home. I fell in love with that chair about 14 years ago and every time I sit in it it literally rocks me to sleep. It's super soft and kind of has the texture of velvet. That chair has been with me in Arkansas and Texas.
It IS interesting how much younger people were when they started out. I think I, too, would get a lot more done if I weren't so distracted by social media, tv, etc. I think young people were more motivated back then.
DeleteChapter 2 answers: Sorry guys, last weekend was long with competition for my school and only having Sunday to rest while also feeling sick.
ReplyDeleteI was impressed by Henry Chapmen Mercer’s thoughts about folk art and fine arts. Mainly impressed because of his way of thinking about it. He said they were “inseparable” and that got me thinking in what ways is that true? They both can be achieved with the passing down of knowledge and skills (you learn how to draw with a pencil just like someone learns how to use a needle) but fine arts start to differ in the way where it’s solely for aesthetic purpose.
One thing that surprised me from chapter two was Frank Lloyd Wright’s opinion on machines and how industrialism can coexist with the arts. I loved how he understood that not everyone could afford hand crafted work but that they should still be able to get the same type of athletics in their purchase if they wanted to. I think there are always going to be artists (and not just artists) that will want to stick to the old way and those that are willing to adjust and adapt to change.
What I take away from this chapter, and so far each artists I’ve read about during this time, is their determination and work ethic to adapt to a new way of making things to work with how the world functions at the moment. I think Wright would agree with Binn’s idea that “education was to share information with anyone interested enough to ask.” The chapter stating that, “Manufacturers kept secrets, but he answered questions, even for industry.” The two world can work together and should in my opinion.
It’s funny that Candie mentioned the Eye of the Dog because that’s exactly what crossed my mind when I read question 4. It’s near San Marcus and we have taken students there before when we’ve had state competitions. I would say my ideal crafts community would be something like that but bigger in size. Eye of the Dog provides studio space, studio classes, and even gallery space. Everyone there specializes in sculpture, mainly clay, but my ideal crafts community would have a variety. Everyone is so supportive and open to collaborate with one another. A crafty family.
So cool that you've been there before! I stayed a week and it was like art boot-camp...with ukulele... lol
DeleteNice take away. The division between art/crafts is arbitrary and differs wildly between decades and cultures.
DeleteChapter 3:
ReplyDeleteI was super impressed with O.L. Bachelder’s section in this chapter. Just how hard working yet free he was in his later years. It’s truly inspiring. His quote from the interview he had with a writer from a magazine about how he’s managed to do so much at his age and still have a good healthy life made me smile and laugh for sure.
I was surprised to read that porcelain was first associated as a material for men. I guess growing up in a world where you hear, “her skin is like porcelain” or getting porcelain dolls as gifts, made me think that it was most used by women. One of my professors in college worked in porcelain to create her pottery, then I first tried throwing with it my first year. It’s so soft, like cream cheese!
The thing that I will take away from this chapter (that I just realized about the entire book) is the uniqueness that every artist tries to incorporate in their piece. The piece of artwork I was most impressed with was the lock that Frank Koralewsky made of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The detail on it is beautiful (I’m a sucker for detail) and the amount of time it took him to make it is mind blowing, just like the piece itself.
My favorite chair is not my favorite chair because of it’s aesthetics but because of it’s function and the comfort it gives me OUTDOORS! That’s right, a folding camping chair. It’s pink polyester fabric with a steel frame. I don’t use it often, only when I go camping but I’ve never been more glad to have a chair with me then when I come back to camp after hiking for 20 miles and wanting to sit somewhere that’s not a hard surface.
love your chair
DeleteAnd yes the entire book presents a wide view of an area within art that is overlooked or misrepresented throughout art history
From the previous week, you're correct. The furniture of Wright did seem uncomfortable. I didn't like the look of the rigid kitchen space from the photo. The chairs were huge, bulky, and looked harsh.
ReplyDeleteWeek 3:
ReplyDelete1. What impressed you?
I enjoyed reading about Marguerite Zorach, who painted and many pioneering rugs, and tapestries. I was impressed with her passion and dedication to create.After the birth of their daughter, Marguerite found that working with textiles would allow her to give more attention to her children by making clothes for her. While both William and Marguerite experimented with textile art, she created mainly embroideries or batiks that stylistically resembled her Fauvist paintings.
2. What surprised you?
I was surprised to see how Maragery Wheelock's career ended so quickly. What was most surprising in my opinions was the fact that she was accepted into a college, then worked for the school, winning completions but then threw her career and life out the window for a man she married. Though feminism was active during her time, is it evident that she was a victim of not treated equality as a woman artist.
3. What are you caring away for you?
During this time, World War One had negatively affected many businesses and artists pertaining their ability to create art freely. These artists were able to mold their there techniques and style to how the world was changing. As an artist nowadays, it's essential to explore and experiment, whether it be with other material, genres, or artist to help develop and grow.
4. Describe my favorite chair?
A Hammock. would you consider a hammock a chair? growing up in Puerto Rico it was my favorite place to sit and enjoy the sea air breeze and just listen to sounds of the birds in the morning with my grandmother and sisters. Hammock makes you feel like you are being cradled like a baby, and who doesn't like rocking back and forth to sleep?
hammocks count..and the fact that it is part of your memory of Puerto Rico gives you extra points. I have only been there twice with friends for art shows (ours) yet it is one of the places were art/craft/education seemed to blend well and offer lots of reasons for discussions
DeleteOh Yes! i just love puerto rico's cutural art works/artist! and i also love how every corner in PR has crafts selling everywhere there!
DeleteMan...don't you hate it when everything that you've typed gets wiped away because your computer glitched out on you or you hit the wrong button?? Okay- lets see if I can word it like I had before I lost everything...
ReplyDeleteWhat impressed me was the simplicity and beauty of the vase by Rhead. I love the muted greens, the contrast with the black background, and the use of nature. I think I was instantly drawn to his work because I am fascinated with, and wanting to use more of, sgraffito and slip trailing in my own works.
I was also impressed with the work by Zorach. That name seems so familiar to me, though I haven't really seen much of her work. I love textiles and admire them from a distance. The most I have ever done with it has been embroidery. It is very elementary and I wish I knew more about fibers. I teach my high school students the basics that I know about it and some of them really seem to take off- well beyond my abilities. Quilting, embroidery, knitting, etc. are really things I could see myself getting into more later. I suppose not having a teacher for it is no excuse these days...esp when I can learn from watching a whole slew of videos they must have online.
What surprised me was that the war had such a heavy influence on the arts- esp in jewelry making. It makes sense, of course, but one never really thinks about that connection. The lack of labor in the workforce, limited materials, consumers not wanting to purchase luxury goods- art reflects the times.
What I am taking away from this is that art was used as therapy for mental health patients and the military alike. It was awesome to read that mental AND physical states were elevated as a result of the art therapy.
My favorite chair is a red velvet chair with a long skinny back that sits in my bedroom by the door. More often than not it is used as something to throw my backpack or my car keys and purse on when I come home from work. It has a small stain in the front right that must have come from it's previous owner, my aunt. This chair is my favorite chair for 3 reasons. The first is that it reminds me of the aunt that took me in when I was young and uneducated. She was a teacher that allowed me in to her home and helped me to get my G.E.D. after I'd dropped out of school. When she retired from teaching and moved to Fredericksburg, she let me take some furniture from her place before selling it. I also like it because it is an unusual shape and has a striking, bold red. It is soft and because I'm a sucker for textures, I love it. Lastly, I like that is rocks. Most of the chairs that I like are rocking chairs. It is comforting to me.
This chair was what my fiance and I used as a prop just last month for when we took our engagement photos out in the desert. I will post a picture of it in the main blog area so you can see how it turned out. I am really pleased with how the photographer captured everything.
Your chair sounds great and the photo is beautiful.
DeleteThink about embroidery for your final project. The world of textiles is wide open.
I will consider it...though I am not very skilled. It does relax me. It could be very fun.
DeleteFuture- your ideal art community sounds close to what Junction has been described to me as. I am sad that I wasn't able to experience classes there for at least one semester. I do like how close the ceramics facility is to the glass blowers and jewelers in Lubbock. I wish the rest of the arts were together there, too. I like going to see what everyone else is up to. We bounce ideas off of each other and I like that.
ReplyDeleteIt was Junction.The conversations and sharing are what make the community come alive. There will be no glass this summer I am sorry to say.
DeleteWhat?! AND no Von?? :(
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