OH EM GEE Mr. Penny!!!

So back in March while doing some artist research I had came across Evan Penny. He is a hyperrealist(meaning that his work in incredibly detailed) sculptor and he was born in South Africa in 1953.

His work is incredibly fascinating to me. I can barely grasp how realistic his pieces are.

The other interesting part if his work is how gigantic his pieces are.

That's the man himself on the bottom-right of the image!

This giant head is pretty scary to me even though I'm not infront of it in person. I think the fact that I know its not real is what's creepy.

Penny also plays around with his talent to creat more abstract pieces. This piece is trippy.



Alternative Media Artists

Allan Kaprow isn't just cool because he shares the same birthday as me (August 23rd). He's cool because of this piece called "Yard". As I look at the piece I'm intrigued by the concept of a room field with tires. Its such a norm for tires to be outdoors on cars so it's pretty out of the norm to have so many of them in one room. His out-of-the-box idea is actually the placement of these tires in a large-scale box. I love that this piece included the interaction of people witth the tires. I couldn't help but be reminded of being a kid back in West Africa and playing with old useless tires. This piece also reminded me of old relay games played at camp or at p.e. when we would have to run through the tires hopping on each foot, one at a time. The moment you touch the inner rim of the tires, while running, the moment you fall. I could imagine walking through the "Yard" wasn't an easy task, but at least fun. I can't imagine the smell of the old rubber in that particular space. Very interesting piece indeed.

Vanessa Beecroft's piece VB61: Still Death Darfur Still Deaf is very disturbing to me. I've heard about the situation in Darfur and it really is a sad situation in human history, so I appreciate that Beecroft is bringing more awareness to the problem. One thing thats really bothering about the artist herself is her portrayal of the "black" person in her pieces. I see her theme of refering to African in her pieces and in a way I feel as if she's exploiting the image of refugees to make a name for herself. When asked about the proccess of creating this piece and if it was difficult to work with 30 black women, Beecroft answered yes. I understand that's not the pollitically correct answer but to me, why answer that question? She should be thanking the models for creating the piece, instead of discrediting them.

This dress is simply called Black Gown and it's designed by the amazing Donatella Versace. I think its emmaculate and very edgy. I find it interesting that she used different fabrics and material, but made them flow together in unison. The transparent part of the dress unifies the model's bare skin with the dark pieaces of the gown. The shiny leather reflects light off in the right areas and in a way makes the gown look a lot more sculpted. I love the unbalance of the dress and how it drapes down into fun chaos at the bottom. This dress is to die for and if I was lucky enough to ever own it, I would find every reason to wear it and I wouldn't care if people noticed me wearing it more than once.


Marina Abramovic's performance piece, "Rhythm 10" is way intense. This woman is really out of her mind and that's why her work is so fascinating. It's out of her mind. The bravery thats showcased in this piece is crazy to me. Getting a shot at the doctor's office is hard enough for me to bare so it wasn't easy to watch this video. As live animals we have a sense of pain and we do everything to prevent physical pain onto ourselves so for her to go against that natural ability and  force pain onto herself leaves me speechless. I get the sense of fearlessness from this artist and in a way she's training her brain to think completely different from normal people. In my past i've gone through some traumatizing things and because of those experiences I'm the person I am today. I've learned to accept those feelings and because of the acceptance of the pain (emotionally and physically), I'm a stronger person today than I ever would have been. In a way I think Abramovic is traumatizing herself, thus resulting in a strong and fearless human being.

The dresses in Hussein Chalayan's retrospective exhibit are so "fetch" (a little "Mean Girls" movie reference). I love the concept of the design of the dresses. Although frozen in time, there's a sense of a wind blowing against the models. The icing on top of the cake is actual wind being blown against the models to give the same effect to their hair. I've never seen anything like this before and it's so cool that a fashion designer created this. It sort of boggles the mind and if I was to see someone walking down the street in something like this I would probably think twice about how fast they are actually walking. They would look like they are flying on their feet!

The Burning Man Festival is something I've always wanted to go check out with my eclectic, arsty group of friends. There's a sense of belonging and coming together at the festival. It gives you a completely different from normal experience and it seems that the people at the Burning man are at peace with themselves and each other. Is it a modern day hippie come together? In my book, yes and I would love to be a part of the occasion. The pieces at the Burning Man truly come alive at night along with the energy of the people and the endless amount of good music! This festival seems to embed a sesne of freedom in my head while I watch the videos.I really hope to go check it out in person soon enough!

Andy Goldsworthy's sculpture at Yorkshire park is very interesting. This is like and abstract paintng brought to life. It's unreal, but very real at the same time. The way it's constructed leaves me wondering how the hell he got a tree in a brick stone box or at least how he came up with the idea. His land art is incredibly an after watching a clip of him at work, you can see how passion this artist really is. It takes a lof of work to create real art out of nature and this man was made to do just that. He's inspired me to start creating my own. I'm sure it's legal in most places.=]

Okay, so I have to say that I am a HUGE fan of Alexander McQueen (may his beautiful soul rest in peace)! I mean his designs are out of this world so I understand why celebrities attach themselves to his one-of-a-kind pieces. The man is a king at thinking out of the box and bending the norm. These now famous shoes that he designed might just be a new pet-peeve of mine. Not only has Lady Gaga played them out, I honestly wish they were never created. They are hidious and if I wanted to look like an alien creature with claw-like feet, then perhaps I would find them attractive. Alone from the fact that they look very uncomfortable, they should just be illegal and put behind a glass box for viewing only. It's dangerous that people can actually buy these for wear. Shoe's that are a feet tall??? hahahaha<3

Fashionista Onboard

 

My performance art piece is basically another expression of a side of me I'd like to describe as the chameleon. I'm always changing up my style and you might not even recognize me years from now because of my quick evolution. The skateboard represents how I'm always on the go. I don't quite remember a long resting period in my life and because of that, I'm always reaping in the accomplishments. Also, how many black skaters girls do you know???? hehe! Let's just say I like to learn new things and get out of my comfort zone.

What is Art to me, NOW?

From the beginning of the semester until now, my perspective of art has been altered for the better. I also had a pretty good understanding of what art is, but that was only justified because it was only my view and opinion of what art is. At the beginning of the year I quickly learned that art is full of different opinions. There is no right or wrong in art and that's one of the most beautiful things about art. Art is about expression, and every piece holds the message or secret the artist is trying to convey. This semester has taught me that art is an actual process. It is a process of creation that expresses the creator's message or point. My eyes are now open to the art of new media and alternative media. I can now see art in everyday things and every where I go now. Art isn't just what's in a museum exhibit. Art is complicated and the beauty is withing the moment the artist is at work. No one but the artist can understand a piece fully and only during the finishing stages of a piece. Thanks to this class, I've put, "Go see a professional artist at work", on my bucket list. This class has also helped me developed the skill to venture out to exhibits and I will continue to do this for the rest of my life. It's very fulfilling to visit museums and each visit is different from the last. This class has also expanded the way I speak about art. Now I really try to analize pieces and I've become better opiniated about what I'm talking about. Another thing I will take away from this class is that it is okay to disagree!

IMPROV EVERYWHERE!

Man was I happy when I got Improv Everywhere as my artist to research! One day I plan on having my degree in theater and I did Improv in high school for the stepping stone phase of my career. Currently I am taking my first college level Improv course and I have to admit, it's been a blast!  In January of this year my friends and I were part of the no pants subway ride in downtown Los Angeles and it was the funniest moment of my life thus far.

Improv Everywhere is a performance art group that was started in August 2001 by Charlie Todd. It started in Manhattan, New York and although has it's principle actors, most times the public can be involved also. It's is now an international celebration of silliness. Their slogan is " We Cause Scenes" and the pranks that they do are called missions. They don't consider themselves a flash mob because they started "causing scenes about two years before flash mobs began and also because sometimes there performances only require a handful of people.

On Sunday, January 9th, 2011 over 5,000 people took off their pants on subways in 48 cities in 22 countries around the world. In New York, the10th Annual No Pants Subway Ride had over 3,500 participants, spread out over six meeting points and ten subway lines. 

One of my favorite Improv Everywhere missions since I used to be a best buy employee is Operation Best Buy. Basically a bunch of IE members flooded a Best Buy Dress like the employees! Talk about funny!

In the Frozen Grand Central prank, over 200 people when to a terminal in New York's Grand Central Park and on cue, they all froze in place.

Like I mentioned not all of the pranks have to involved a large amount of people. For example the Worst Ice Skater prank is about a man who get stranded on an ice rink and gradually becomes an expert.

Today Improv Everywhere has completed over 100 missions and they are getting bigger every time and funnier.

Module 3 Artists

Gracie Kendal is a Second Life Artist. I understand her style of creativity with the word bubbles and portraying her art to us for us to look in and see two characters speaking to each other. On the left we see her avatar wishing to be human and on the right we see the real Gracie sort of letting her avatar know that the real world isn't that pleasant. Most people might find it weird and say that Gracie is living vicariously through her avatar, but the point of the art is how we get to view it and i think its cool  how she talks to her alter-ego.

Eadweard Muybridge is a master of the art of photography. His works are composed of frame by frame images of movement. I think his art is part of the basic framework for today's photography. On the right is his piece called Ascending Stairs (1884-85). I think it's cool how he captured a type of everyday movement we all take for granted like climbing stairs. Each frame is a completely different picture but the composition of all of the frames gives off the sense of motion and it cool that he captured it with a still camera. Especially back in 1884, when camera technology was far behind what it is today.

On the left is a piece by Nam June Paik. It's my favorite by him. The man is a genius with video art and I see him being a legend forever. He's bent the norms of visuals in television by playing around with the technology's glitches. I love the piece on the left because it boldly states that we are a media consumed nation. The piece it beautiful to look at but I get his message. We are a nation made out of television! It controls our society.

Mariko Mori is also a video artist, but her work differs from Paik's style. In this clip from her piece called The Shaman-Girl's Prayer (1996), Mori herself is playing the role of a being that is of this Earth and also from some sort of supernatural world! I love the subtlety of the piece and most of all it left me thinking and wondering.  It sort of tingles my science fiction senses. There is also a spiritual essence to the character and her eyes are hypnotizing.

Robert Rauschenberg's piece, Monogram(1955-1959) Freestanding Combine. Is so cool to me. First of all I love how is style is almost like organized chaos. This piece in particular reminds me of those certain books from my childhood that actually popped out at me when I opened them up. I love when art jumps out at you rather than always on a flat surface. It brings it closer to life rather than just something for us to observe. Its more intriguing and when a figure is popping out, its almost like they stood out of the picture or piece in order to say, "hey I have a story to tell."

This piece by the artist Four Yip left my mind boggled. I find it creepy, but in the weirdest way, cute. The humanoid in the image sort of looks like a child who is also part rabbit. On his shoulder is some type of mini dog that is part pig. I appreciate the angle both creatures are leaning toward because it makes the image even more interesting. It sort of gives off the vibe that the child like creature and it's pet are tired from something or sad. To me this is art at it's finest. The reason being because, it gave me an emotional response, I have to answers for what it is, but rather, a bunch of questions rise up.






Toni Dove's Spectropia is super crazy to me and when I say crazy I mean awesome! When mentioned in class, I was so fascinated with it and I've been on the search to find some time of hard copy of this piece. To me it defines the revolution of art and it's one creation(among others of course) that is leading us into the future of technology. I never imagined that anyone could create movements out of already filmed motion and also alter them around and make images speak as if  they have a mind of their own.  Of course we've all witnessed animation before, but this is beyond amazing because it's actually manipulating what's already created. Its so fascinating that in some ways its scary.

 Stelarc might seem crazy today, but he is definitely thinking beyond the human body and it's limits. I've heard about people that do suspension before, but this guy is intense for sure. On the right we see the artist as composed as if he's sitting on the ground, but to comprehend that he is hanging not by a thread, but by his skin is super crazy. He's definitely opening minds about the limits and capabilities of the human body. His use of technology to push the possibilities of  where the body can be taken is genius and I think a lot of people should be taking notes right about now.

On the left is a piece called "Off-Sense" by the amazing Masaki Fujihata. The man is a leading innovator in the digital world and in this piece its easy to see why. I've never seen a image capturing all those different dimensions all in one. He should be called the perception bender because he differently knows how to do that!








The Thomson and Craighead piece called London Wall is simple yet speaks out a lot about ourselves today and how use social networking sites basically to talk to ourselves. Its a composition of status updates from popular sites like facebook and twitter and mocks us even though its the bs we put online ourselves. Thomson and Craighead describe it as something that reveals the "idle mutterings of ourselves to ourselves as a form of concrete poetry." I would love to face this wall personally. I'm sure it would be hilarious to read. What would be better is coming across a status update  posted by me!

Vaneeesa Blaylock's  second life piece Twenty Five Women, is fricking bold! I understand women making a statement in a virtual world by getting naked but anyone of those women could be a guy behind his computer screen so in a way I would say it's sort of cowardly. I would like to see her get those same friends involved in a real life demonstration. I understand there are laws prohibiting nudity in our society, but there are ways to make a statement about the objectification of women. For example, they could walk around scantily clad or in bikinis and high heels.

 Okay, its very rare for me to judge other artist's craft because I don't think art should be judged, but I'll be blunt about this one. Jennifer Ringley to me is not an artist and her Jennicam series is not art. It's just lame. I think she's just a female pervert who enjoys the world of voyeurism and instead of her being the watcher, she'd rather be watched.

Miso Susanowa

"I am a graphic , 3d and sound artist working in virtual worlds. I love working with others and cheerleading the growth of this remarkable communications medium. Depending on the lighting, I might look like a pixie, Audrey Hepburn or something completely different. But since physics assures me that everything is a virtual reality anyway, I don't worry about it over much, and neither should you. :D" - Miso Susanowa

To me, Miso Susanowa's art work is very spunky and out of the box. Most of her work is done in Second Life and Worlds. She's a risk taker and because of that she's also very innovative. When it comes to graphic design I'll give her a 15 on a scale from 1 to 10. Her skills in the virtual world are pretty damn good. She has a great sense of humor and doesn't take herself that seriously with I find attractive about her personality.

The image above is a virtual creation of her "solar-cell-powered" computer. It might look simple but that takes a lot of skills to even think up the idea, then creat a virtual computer, using an actual computer.

This is an outside-looking-in view of her room in Worlds. This is a good example of her humor. On the outside of the walls are giant solar panels and all of those are for her computer only.

The above image is a piece Susanowa created using images of DNA and RNA Helices. The complexity and how intricate the piece is shows how skilled Susanowa is. She's definitely someone who knows her way around virtual reality. I can't even begin to comprehend how long it probably took to create this piece.

You can find the picture of the man's face in Miso's virtual fire exhibit. She actually used the text for the gallery from the Lascaux Caves in France. This stuck out to me since we learned about the caves at the beginning of this semester.

This is her Grid flower and this piece show's how clever and creative Miso is. The concept of making a flower, something found in nature, out of technology which is found in a virtual world is amazing to me. It's as if she took the imagination out of her head and actually gave it a life of its own. It's something that we can also witness, not just an image in her mind alone.

Her iron orchid dress shows her skills with using textures in virtual worlds. Something that seems like she's mastered in my eyes. I can actually see metal material of the dress even though it's colored. I can even imagine the sound it would make against the ground where the model is standing.

Below is a real life piece by Len Zuks.

Here's Miso's virtual version or "copy" of Megabyte. She came pretty close. Maybe even the closest anyone would be able to with the technology available. Her talent is truly unmeasurable.

The piece below shows her humor in another way with her combination of cartoon images and real life images. She's always doing something completely different from her last piece.

I love her Lady with a Fan piece because it has a theme but its also contradictory. It's obviously a giant fan, but it also looks like a woman holding fans in her hand. Miso is also great at picking good colors for her work. The yellow and red are part of the image and any other set of colors would have given off a different vibe.

In her data garden, there are many different pieces, but I love the respect she shows for the technology she uses to create her work.

This picture is funny to me and is one of the reasons I made the assumption that Miso is a spunky person because the picture is her writing over the image of a rival's avatar. I love the humor and the vibe that she's fearless, but then again who would be in a virtual world.



My two favorite pieces by Miso Susanowa are the Commodity Piece(on the right) and the Theater of War piece(below). I can't choose a favorite because they're both brilliant.

Like in her, data garden, Susanowa uses sounds to bring the Theater of War alive. Some people may find it creepy but I love her interpretation of patriotism in this piece. The audience members are the ghosts of fallen soildiers.

This Commodity piece pretty much speaks for itself, but I love how she uses her sarcastic humor to bring social awareness to both the Commodity piece and the Theater of War piece. To me in a way this piece pokes fun at art that is sold for profit. Does art lose it's essence once a price is put on it? What about the artists that produce art to make a profit? Can they still hold the title of artist?

My Trip to the Beall Center

My trip to UC Irvine’s Beall Center was on Saturday, April 2^nd in the evening time. Before planning my trip I made sure I knew the hours of operation. Perhaps they weren’t expecting visitors around the time I arrived or they just need to update the hours of operation. I arrived just before an hour before the actual closing time posted on the website, but with my luck, everything but the inflatable bodies exhibition was open.

 

 I wasn’t impressed by the piece itself until I took a photo. It looked more interesting in the picture I took than actually being there and seeing the piece slowly inflate and deflate. I thought it took away from the essence that the picture captured. I’m not sure if it’s the angle and lighting in the picture but the piece seemed more alive, almost like giant insects frozen in time. In person, I guess you could say the sound of the machine doing the inflation took away from the art itself and all I could really pay attention to was the materials the pieces were made of.

I managed to walk through the exhibit for the minute that I did and captured a short video of the piece. To my surprise, nothing else was open after I walked out of the exhibit. I was very upset, that I had driven all that way, by myself and paid seven dollars for parking.

I attempted walking around the center and tried my best to follow signs to the different parts of the gallery, but had no luck.

 

I made my way upstairs in hopes of getting a glimpse of the photo labs and apparently some students were lounging around waiting for a small play called “The Job”, that would be showing in about two hours. They thought I was there for the show and I was a bit embarrassed to say that I was just trying to explore the galleries.

Here’s a picture of one of the many closed entrances I came across.

Next to some staircases, on my way back from my disappointment, I came across some pieces of art and I was impressed by the precision and quality of both images. I especially like the creativity in the piece on the left. It’s cool how the artist has brick walls coming out of a wooden door.

 

On my way back to my car I enjoyed the view of the on campus apartments and looked into my future and hoped that maybe soon I’ll be in one of the dorms.

2nd Life

Meet “Pinky”. She’s a curious globe trotter who is constantly on a journey. She loves absorbing herself in as many cultures as possible as long as she remain’s cute doing it. She’s a free spirit and obviously can’t stay in one place for too long or she changes skin color or simply explodes.

Meet “Lady”. She’s a bitch. Can we say epitome of a non-conformist? This chick is feisty and is constantly on the edge and looking out for “normal” people. She hates them.

She surrounds herself with an eclectic group of friends and her closest friends are usually from different realms, plains, or dimensions.

She loves teleporting to different planets and her motto in life is “ I don’t give a f*ck”.

Meet Elektra, also known as Princess of the damned. Oh yea, she’s half dead and half alive.

Although she doesn't look as tough as the other females in her underworld, she's by far the baddest. One smile from her could be the last smile anyone sees.

Meet Brody. Also known as the Brodster, he is the lord of douchebags. Most of his time is invested into his appearance and also judging the appearance of others, especially the other sex.
Unfortunately there was a glitch in the system and that is why most of the images are grey, but this guy loves his manly duds.

I'm sure he's upset you couldn't witness his brand new acid was jeans he just bought at Metro Park at the local mall. He flexes so much that he is gaining new muscles just from flexing all the time.