Studio Journal

The first one is finally done!

This one is almost there too!

There will be two more pairs like these in varying sizes. They are about half done right now. Should be finished by Monday. Then I can compare them all.

Visiting Artist: Beth Campbell

Hearing Beth Campbell's  story of how she came to be an artist was really great. She explored many mediums throughout her career. Being able to hear a successful artist's perspective of the creative process was enlightening. She has explored such interesting concepts, such as mirroring.  Her work has been on such a grand scale. I found it interesting that she was a painting major, and it wasn't until very late in her schooling that she began to explore other options. At this point, she is an installation artist. It was great to hear the stories behind the work. There were parts of her installations that were planned, and other parts just sort of happened in the process. I think its very important to accept these happy accidents, and then chose to use or ignore them.

Welcome Back show

When I first entered the gallery my attention was immediately grabbed by Syn 2010 by Patrick Strzelec. I was blown away by this piece. It was so intense and exciting both in the coloration and form. The placement of this object on its pedestal was also really wonderfully minimized. There was no room for distraction. The piece spoke for itself, and nothing, not even the surface it was on, distracted me from it. This piece was done in cast aluminum, limestone, and stainless steel. Its dimensions were about 4 x 3 x 3, but its presence felt much larger. I am currently in Patrick Strzelec's class and I cannot wait to talk to him about the piece next week.

I found myself very interested in two of Lyda Craig's works. The first was Tales from the Holoscene 1997. This piece grabbed my attention as soon as I entered the room. This dark and mysterious image made me want answers. Who are these shadowy figures? Where are they? Why? The work is incredibly well done. I couldn't help but admire the details of the objects within. There is an imense depth to this work that could cause the viewer to lose themselves in it. These pastels on paper were used to their potential.

The second Lyda Craig work that caught my attention as I moved around the room was Untitled 2000. These relatively small images are mixed media on panel. The combination of various materials, such as string, are beautifully combined to create densly interesting objects. The color combinations are dark and warm. The two objects are paired well together and create a uniform work. It is clear that this was a many stepped process of materials that created the end result.

The next work I noticed was Crystal 2010, by Eric Schoonebeek. He created this image with acrylic, oil, and fabric paint on paper. it was then mounted on a board. These materials were used to create an interesting pattern of black on black. There is a feel of depth between the two different shades of black, and yet there is still a two dimentionality to it. It seems flat, and yet shows space. I found this combination and use of mediums Very interesting.

Overall, I was impressed with the Welcome Back show and look forward to seeing more of these artists' work in the future. The installations were well done and appropriate for each individual piece. It was also a nicely diverse group of work.

Interview: part 2

Me: I myself have actually struggled with getting others approval. I keep getting that my work is too literal. That I’m just remaking something that already exists. But to me it’s always been about the skill level of my craftsmanship than creating an abstract object. You know, there’s no right or wrong with an abstract object. If I try to recreate something that already exists I feel that that shows skill. I think at this point I want to develop my actual skills with materials. So, that’s my big problem now. Like this one here, there quite obviously leaves. The only reason why these were alright with my teachers was because they’re abstracted slightly. There’s no plant that actually looks like this. It’s not from an exact plant.

Catherine Trestini: Oh, ok because you, this is your studio, and I have to admit this is the first studio I’ve been in. And like the atmosphere in here, and I came in and I didn’t even think that you made that. I like that a lot, I mean I was looking at that when you went outside. It looks fairly representational to me. But there is something different about it, you can tell its hand crafted and such. By you know that’s really interesting because you know I looked at that for awhile. I like the detail. So, it’s interesting to see what your teachers are going to say about it, and what I’m going to say about it. Because we have all these classes where we are hearing what other people are thinking about our work. I feel like one person with say I like it, and another person’s going to say I don’t like it, and it could be for the exact opposite reason. Like you said, it’s less about pleasing others right, that’s not what art is about.

Me: Well I do struggle with that idea because we are in school and we do need approval to finish. So I’ve actually gotten to the point now where my art is actually about that struggle. My more recent pieces are a combination of what I want to do, and what I think others with like. So it’s actually become an expression of an inner conflict I have. Do I do what they want me to do, or do I do what I want to do? And it’s actually led me to a really interesting idea. So that’s what I’ve been trying to express recently.  

Catherine Trestini: Well what have you been trying to do?  Do you have a project right now where you’re trying to express that? It’s really interesting.

Me: I have some drawings for things I want to do. I have some ideas and concepts. The objects that I’ve been working on right now are basically the beginning stages of that. They’re pieces on their own, and I am actually really happy with the way they’re looking right now, but they’re basically early stages of what I want to create later on. I was kind of excited when I realized oh, this is what I’ve been thinking about the most. This is what I should be trying to convey.

Catherine Trestini; I think it’s really important for an artist to have that idea, to work on something tangible. You know it’s going to take you to where you know you want to be.

My interview with Catherine Trestini

Me: So, tell me a little about yourself.

Catherine Trestini: Well, I’m a senior. I’m in Thesis. And, I study Comparative Literature and I really like photography, so that’s my concentration. 

Me: I am a B.F.A., a senior here, and Sculpture is my major. I tend to do mostly welding, wood working, and plaster, because that’s what I enjoy most.

Catherine Trestini: For photography I started out when I was about fifteen just taking snapshots with a little point and shoot camera. Then when I came to Mason Gross I didn’t even know, because I was so young, that photography was actually an Art, that people took it seriously and studied it. So when I came to college I learned photography as an art, I learned the dark room and film, so I started getting interested in that. I’ve taken a lot of film in black and white and color. I can show you some here. But primarily right now I’m just using digital because it saves you so much money. Ok, so let me show you some of my film stuff, and some of my digital. That’s actually digital that you‘re looking at.  So these were two different theories, so these were together in one. This is called October in New Brunswick. I really like to take pictures of things that are sentimental to me. I think a lot of people would look at these kind of as candids, I mean tell me if you have any opinion. To me they’re memories. Fall’s my favorite season.

Me: You can definitely tell by the color choices.

Catherine Trestini: Yeah, right? I actually got a lot of criticism from my class. Which is great, you know, I like constructive criticism. About how they didn’t really speak to them and they didn’t seem very concise, but I think what was so important about this series is that I was happy with it.

Me: I think that’s what it all ends up coming down to, is if you’re happy with it.

Catherine Trestini: yeah, like being confident in your own work.

Me: these are great actually. It’s about that capturing that moment, just your everyday life.  You know, these are things you see, and do, everyday. I like that.

Catherine Trestini: Thanks. It’s been something that it’s hard for me to do in my work. What’s the difference between candids and fine art photography? In my mind I’m trying to make a series or any type of body of work I want to take it seriously, I want to be taken seriously, you know. But I feel like some people are like “Oh, that’s your friend” or “Oh, that’s a pumpkin”. The biggest criticism that I got about this is that it’s so cliché. “These are cliché pictures of Fall”. But, I don’t know. There’s just something about the way I approach photography is that I see something that I find beautiful and then I photograph it.

Me: I think there’s more coming out of these, that have meaning to you, than to wonder off to some place you have never been before and try to capture an amazing picture that has really no meaning to you. These are way more meaningful, and you can see that there.

Catherine Trestini: You’re right, actually I tried doing some street photography and I find myself just not really connecting with that. Taking pictures of strangers and stuff like this, I mean it’s really great for technique and such, putting yourself out there and challenging yourself. But what really matters to me I guess, I don’t know, I’m a little nostalgic. These are all from digital, and you can tell that this series I made them warm as well. People were saying that it gives them like a dreamlike feeling.

Me: yeah, it’s like when you’re driving down the road for a long time, and everything’s just kind of so blurry, and calm, and pleasant.

Catherine Trestini: That is exactly how I felt. It’s interesting because I was going through a hard time and my friend Matt took us for a ride in his pick up truck, and we drove out to this country land and we just drove, and drove in farmland. It was so peaceful because you know you can get wrapped up in that Rutgers bubble kind of, and he just took us away and we took pictures and we laughed. I was just so glad, because these pictures, that’s what it represents to me and you can see that.

Me: Yeah, It’s just one of those things. I mean you can almost see the morning dew. It’s that general malaise you get when you’re just so content and at peace.

Catherine Trestini: So yeah, this was like my other series. This represented a good time for me, a good memory. I just wanted to represent that in my own way

Studio Journal

It's two seperate pieces

Studio Journal

This is the new project! Almost done sanding

Having a hard time with my blog

My apologies for having so many different posts. I had uploaded these five images along with my initial "Water" review, but for some reason it did not post. I didn't notice until today.

Pictures of my current project will be up soon!

Here is an example of how close these works are sometimes installed. It is hard to focus on one image when another is only inches away.

These are the first six framed works the viewer sees when entering the exhibition. Ando Hiroshige's Mannen Bridge, Fukagawa is farthest to the right.

Maya Lin Dew Point 18, 2007

Exhibition entrance Ross Cisneros Ice and Ark, 2009 plastic bottles, water and fishing nets

Maya Lin Pin River-Hudson 2009 steel pins

Water

     On Friday September 10th I visited The Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum in New Brunswick, NJ. From September 1st through January 2nd this museum will be hosting “Water”. Upon entering the gallery the first thing the viewer sees is a piece titled Ice and Ark, 2009. This work, by Ross Cisneros, is a wonderful contrast to the neighboring works. This large readymade is made up of water bottles in a net hanging from the ceiling. On the other side of the first area are five framed works by various artists such as Ando Hiroshige. These works are from various times and locations, and yet, they all have similar imagery related to water. This first area lets the viewer know that there are no limitations to the work chosen for this gallery, as long as they are related to the theme of water. The theme of water is such a simple concept, that what could be included is quite a broad range. This exhibit has taken advantage of this idea. There are works from all over the world done in many different mediums. From film, to sculpture, to actual water, this gallery certainly encompasses many variations on the theme of water. Some, such as Lynn Davis‘s Iceberg II, are quite literally about the stages of water. Others, like Bather by Hans Christiansen, are about human interactions with water and their shore lifestyles.
     At times the installations seem cluttered. Many works demand more space than they were given. Both of Maya Lin’s pieces should have had more space for observation. Dew Point 18 should have been in an area where the viewer could move all the way around it.
     Water is essential to all life. Water becomes a uniting idea between people, places, mediums, and time. This exhibit does a wonderful job of capturing this concept.

Getting started

I am all moved into my studio and have been working every night. So far I am happy with the piece I have been working on. Pictures will be taken soon!

My Blog is up and running

I am looking forward to my last year at Rutgers. It will be challenging, but I expect to grow as an artist. Good luck to all of us!