Response to an Artist: Jean Arp

Jean Arp was a sculptor/painter/poet that was born in the late 1800's. She studied at the Strasbourg School of Arts and Crafts at Weimar, and the Academie Julian in Paris. Her artwork is done in the style of surrealism. She uses mostly organic, yet simple shapes. Most of her pieces are non objective, and have no real subject matter. She utilizes positive and negative space to create her shapes.

Contemporary Artwork: Crown Fountain

This piece of art was created by Jaume Plensa, a spanish artist, as a tribute for the people of Chicago. It is made up of two 50 glass towers that are also fountains. The sculpture flashes video of 1,000 faces of residents of random residents. The face will smile for a few minutes, then its lips will pucker and water will shoot out the embedded spout. It is a very unique way to dedicate a part of Millennium Park to the people of Chicago.

Contemporary Artwork: Frank Stella

This print, called "Gran Cairo" is one of Frank Stella's most famous pieces. Like most of his artwork, it involves simple, geometric shapes. It uses bright, vivid colors to catch your attention. It is almost an optical illusion and distorts your perspective. If you look at the red square in the middle, it at first looks like it is far away, and in the background, but if you look at it again, it looks like it is close to you, in the foreground, almost as if it is 3 dimensional. The pattern and the colors of the piece is what creates this illusion.

College Report: Berea

Berea is a private college in which you work on campus. They way Berea is set up is so students work to pay for their tuition, which is called endowments. To get into this college, you must score between a 20 and 30 on the ACT. You also have to meet several financial requirements. By working on campus, you get work experience and looks good on a resume when you go out to pursue your career. The art program offers students degree opportunities in the areas of studio art, art history, general art and art education. Berea is a privately funded school and only excepts a few students each year. It also offers students to study abroad in different colleges around the world. This is a great school because no matter your financial situation, they will find a way to help you get an education.

Response to an artist: Salvador Dali

Salvador Dali was a famous spanish surrealists artist born in 1904. His bizarre images along with his renaissance inspired painting skills are what made made him become well-known. Most of his paintings make the audience feel an emotion. One One of his most famous paintings is titled "The Persistence of Memory" Most people refer to it as "the melting clocks" In St. Petersburg, Florida, there is a museum dedicated to exhibit Dali's works.

Historical Artwork #3

The Last Supper
Leonardo Da Vinci

This painting was painted in the 15th century by Leonardo Da Vinci. It portrays the last supper Jesus had with his 12 apostles. The colors of the peoples clothing suggest a happy mood, but it contrasts with the gray, sad colors of the room. The focal point of the painting is Jesus, because he is sitting in the center of the painting, therefore all the emphasis is on him.
This painting was done withi acrylic and tempra paint.

Historical Artwork #2

Starry Night By: Vincent Van Gogh

This piece was created by Vincet Van Gogh in the post-impressionistic period. The painting is said to depict Van Gogh's view out of his window at night. He uses small, quick strokes to create lines and shapes. The color scheme is mostly cool colors, aside from the focal point, the moon.

College Report: UK

The University of Kentucky is one of the colleges I am considering attending. Although I am not sure that I want to purse a career in art, UK has a good art program.

Things offered there include:

Ceramics

Drawing

Fiber

New Media

Painting

Photography

Printmaking

Sculpture

There is more information about this school here:

http://www.uky.edu/FineArts/Art/programs.php

Response to an artist: Andy Warhol

Andy Warhol, born in Pittsburgh in 1928, is one of the most well-known Pop Artists. He takes ideas from pop culture and makes them in to art work. He uses bright colors and thick lines to catch people's attention.

HIstorical Artwork

Claude Monet (1840-1926) was a very important part of the Impressionist movement. He, in a way, transformed French painting in the second have of the ninteenth centruy. I was lucky enough to get to see some of his artwork when I visited the Musee d'Orsay in France.

This image is from a series of 250 oil paintings he completed that were titled "Water Lilies". The paintings are depictions of Monet's flower garden in Giverny, France This painting is done in an impressionistic style. Impressionism is when an artist uses small, thin brush strokes to create the picture. Monet uses cool colors to make the viewers have a calm, happy feeling.

Career that DOES NOT interest me: Tattoo Artist

To become a tattoo artist, you have to get a tattoo license. You do this by applying at the local health department. You will have to pay certain fees and take an exam. There are specific requirements depending on which state you live in. In most cases, a portfolio of your best drawings is required before you can be hired. Also, an apprenticeship and a high school diploma is required to become a professional tattoo artist. The average salary is 32,00 per year.

While cinematogrophy is a job in the art field that interests me, becoming a tattoo artist does not. This thought came to mind when i passed a Tattoo parlor on the way downtown yesterday. It would probably be one of the worst jobs I could imagine. I could not stand using or even being around needles all day. I believe it would be a very stressful job, because if you screw up once, you have left someone with a crappy tattoo for the rest of their life.

Cinematography

One of the jobs I am interested in that is in the art category is cinematography.

Cinematographers, sometimes referred to as directors of photography, are skilled in operation of the camera and lighting equipment used to produce movies, television shows and other film projects. Some cinematographers complete formal education programs on the bachelor's or master's levels, but experience in the field might be more valuable in today's job market.

Average salary: $41,670

Contemporary Artist: Magritte

This painting, The Son of Man was done by the Belgian surrealist, Rene Magritte, in 1964. Surrealism, in my opinion is the most interesting style of art. Magritte is one of my favorite artists that falls into the surrealism category. One of the reasons Magritte interests me is because of his story. After the publishing of the book he helped right fails, he does not give up. He makes a living off of working in a wallpaper factory. Rene, however, keeps pursuing his art career. After coming in touch with other surrealist artists, he moves to Paris where he has his first exhibition. This piece is one of his most famous.