Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Final Project- Butterfly Shaped Rock

Butterfly Dent in Sidewalk 
For Body- Blue and Black Rocks

Reeds- Used for Antenna



Body with Antenna

Weeds Used To Outline Butterfly
Close Up 
Beginning to Outline  
Almost Done!
Finished Outlining! 
Filling With White Rocks

Half Done!


Close-up of White Rocks
Completed Butterfly! 
Close-up 

Monday, June 10, 2013

Artist Statement


     In my group, we looked for things that were "dull" or not very noticeable in nature (not that many things are, but we managed to find some on the not-so exciting side). We wanted to be able to bring out the hidden details in these mundane structures and incorporate other pieces of nature in order to accentuate the object itself. Take the heart shaped dent in the sidewalk for example. It's something people pass everyday, they walk over it and step on it, but I doubt many people actually stop to investigate it. So, in order to make this interesting feature in the sidewalk much more prominent, my group decided to outline the heart with vibrant yellow dandelions. We chose to put dying, white dandelions in the center; it seemed like a good contrast between yellow and white, living and dying. This way, people would notice something that they may not have ever seen otherwise. Personally, I find it thrilling and intriguing to be able to make something stand out that was hardly anything of intrigue before. That's my motivation; art helps people notice the little things around them. I love that.
    My group used a variety of materials throughout all of our projects; we mainly used flowers, rocks, and other vegetation (weeds, reeds, etc.). However, we also used dirt (the dry riverbed) and even animals (inchworm in the heart shaped sidewalk crack). Using many different materials is what makes the art interesting; if you continue to use the same things over and over, the art can sometimes get repetitive and boring (not always, but sometimes). In addition to our variety of materials, my group also used a variety of different tools. Our hands were definitely the main ones. We hand-picked the flowers and gathered the rocks. But during the dry riverbed project, we also used our feet to draw the curve in the sand. This proved the easiest way to make such a design; a stick would have made too thin a line and our hands would have gotten very dirty. The techniques we used during this unit varied from project to project. With the heart shaped crack project, as I described above, we used contrast to bring the art to life. With the dry riverbed, we used a flowing shape to represent the water that's supposed to be there, but wasn't when we visited. Then with the butterfly rock, we created nature with nature, a representation of something living surrounded by something actually living.
     I love being able to create something out of nothing (or almost nothing). Being resourceful and creative is something I really enjoy. That's why I liked this unit a lot. We created interesting structures in an everyday environment that I'm sure caught people's attention. Even though most of our designs got destroyed, they were still noticed by someone at some point in time. We made a mark on our world with this art, even for just a brief moment.

Second Project- Dry Riverbed

Nice Flowering Tree
Close up of flowering tree- Near riverbed 

This dry riverbed caught our eyes
Hole at the start of the riverbed

Decided to draw curves in the sand

Lyssa beginning to draw

Continuing the Curve

Dragging Her Foot in the Sand

Continuing

Almost Done! 

Final curve

Walking Back 

Another View of Final

Different Angle
Different Angle of Fence in Front of Riverbed

Sunday, June 9, 2013

First Outdoor Art Project- Heart Shaped Rock

Heart Shaped Crack in Sidewalk
Heart From a Different Angle
White Dandelion-Will be put inside the heart
Yellow Dandelion- Will surround the heart
Close-up of white dandelion
Another of Close-up of Dandelion
Beginning To Outline
Continuing to Outline
First Part 
Different Angle
Lyssa!
Beginning to Fill Center
Continuing to Add White Dandelions
Halfway Done!
Lydia's Hand
Almost there! 
Different View

Done!