The Best Art Supply Store Doesn't Sell Art Supplies

The great thing about not using traditional art supplies is it leaves a lot of doors open. Potentially anything could be considered an art supply, and it's up to the artist to decide what to use. I personally don't like creating sculptures however, and most of the projects shown in the article were sculptures. I prefer using my creativity to paint and create 2D artwork and I don't feel that I should be considered less creative because of this. 

Here are some art pieces made from non traditional art supplies like candy and wood: 

This piece of art is really cool because it uses creepy doll parts to make a head. This project wouldn't be nearly as interesting if it was made with traditional art supplies.

This Marilyn Monroe was made with candy although r it may not look like it. It's so well pieced together that it sets it apart from all of the other mundane artwork done of her. 

This non traditional piece of artwork is really cool because it incooperates nature. Using rings from trees is a unique idea and are not available in traditional art stores. 

Here is another piece made from candy because making art from candy seems to be a standard for non traditional art. I like how the sweet candy contrasts with the deathly theme in this piece. 

It's sort of hard to tell in this picture but this is a sculpture created out of nails. I like this use of non traditional art materials because it's not clear what medium was used, and it seems that there is a reflection off of the piece that makes it look like feathers. 

Art without meaning is decoration?

To me, art is any expression of creativity. If art isn't meant to be looked at, what is it meant for? Art is meant to be seen, and appreciated, which makes most art decoration by definition. However, in cases where artists are poked and prodded into doing a very specific theme, the creativity in the work melts away, and it no longer is art; it becomes decoration. 

Essential questions

Is it good or bad to be lost? I chose the word lost because I think it's a vague word that all humans can relate to. Is being lost mentally or physically a peaceful or sinister thing? In my painting, the path disappears, becoming the trees. Whoever is walking on the path has nowhere to go, though it may look like there is an end destination at first glance. 

Olivia Gude

Olivia Gude does not want art to be confined to a few elemenets of art, but she does want people to recognize new postmodern principles that are emerging and changing the way we look at art. My favorite is Juxapostion and Recontextualization because they both create a new idea using old ideas or creations. I like the symbolic meaning that can be put behind these two elements and I think it contributes to the beauty of art.

Color Project

For my first Art 3 project, I chose to use color as my theme. Color is such a vast element that the door was wide open to to create whatever I wanted, and I could make something lively and vibrant. I chose to use acrylic paint because I've always enjoyed painting more than any other medium and I feel that I am most skilled when using it. Paint is a great medium to create any color one can think of, so it went with my theme. I had intended on painting a beautiful scenery picture that reminded me of fall, my favorite season. However, the painting ended up looking a bit apocalyptic, and I went with it. 

Melt Illustration Friday

Final Project

• Has your definition of art clanged since from the beginning of this class?

My definition of art has evolved throughout this class in a variety of ways. The most significant difference in myself and the way I view art is in realizing that art does not have to be perfect. I prefer to paint and draw rather than to sculpt, and I like precise, "perfect" looking art. Sculpture is not my best area, and this resulted in many projects turning out to be less exact because I had much less control over my piece. My dwelling project is the best example of this change, because it is an abstract piece that is not nearly perfect, but is unique art. 

              Dwelling Porject 

Do over: If given the opportunity, which project would you do over? Describe why and how you would redo this project. Reasons might include choosing a different theme, using a different medium or creating a different idea completely. Include photo.

                 Human and Nature

For this project, I came up with what I think is a unique idea that wasn't carried out well. I made a vase containing a human heart/rose to match the theme. The rose/heart looks a little messy, but overall I think it looked okay. The sculpture ended up exploding in the kiln because I didn't hollow out the case and it must have contained air bubbles. Now that I have more knowledge on how to work with clay, I'd redo this project and use my new knowledge to successfully create this sculpture. 

 

                      

                      

Choose 1 piece of art that you used skills and techniques learned from previous projects.  Discuss your growth as an artist and how you incorporated these skills and techniques to create the piece.

           

                     Animal Head

I have already explained that I don't particularly enjoy working with clay, so I dreaded having to use this median again. However, I found that making my fox head was much easier than I anticipated. The skills I used in the Human and Nature Project (picture above this one) really helped me out and taught me how to work with clay more delicately. I learned how to correctly hollow out my piece so it wouldn't explode in the kiln. Although this piece isn't perfect, I believe that I improved so much in my use of clay. 

•  Which project was your most successful? Describe the theme and or topic and the process you went through to complete the project. 

                        Free Project

This project was the most enjoyable and the most successful for me throughout this class because I was allowed to choose anything I wanted. I love dream catchers and have always wanted to learn how to make one. I used a recycled hoop, beads I already had, string from the classroom, and only had to purchase feathers; all of this was roughly 3 dollars. I spend an hour on YouTube learning how to create the inside of the dream catcher, which was tedious at first, but when I finally caught on, it was easy and fun. I'm so glad I had the opportunity to do this project because I now know how to make something new that I truly love. 

•  What is a technique you used in your artwork that worked well? Explain what technique it was and why it was successful.

                     Pit Firing Piece

I loved learning the foil sagging technique throughout this project. My ability to create out of cray had already improved so much, and learning to pit fire helped me create new and unique pieces that were so vastly different than the artwork I had created before. The pit firing technique to bake the clay create strange and unique colors on my price, making it interesting and distinct as art. Learning this technique helped me to improve as an artist, giving me more options in the future to use while working with clay.