Module 10 2 videos

I chose the two films Islamic art: India and the Middle East and African Art.  I chose them because both cultures are so distant and unexplored to me.  Both cultures seem restricted to me because when I got out of high school, anything middle eastern seemed unwanted or shameful to be interested in because of the state of the union at the time.  I've gotten over it, in fact I was never really effected by it however, America is still stand offish to anything Middle eastern because of its relationship with those countries.  I picked African Art as well because I've never had good exposure to rich black culture, and it has always intrigued me.  I feel like there is still a stigma or tension between black people and white people, it's undeniable, it's why we have the black lives matter movement; which I am in full support of.  So, I chose these videos so I could get some background, or exposure to these cultures that I feel I have been denied by society.

The key concept I learned from the Islamic Art film based on the work I have seen is that the culture of the middle east, and the religion of Islam is delicate and detailed.  I feel like it symbolized a long history that is barely ever talked about.  The key concept I learned in the film African Art is that some of the art is functional which was interesting to me.  I like how the African religious beliefs are explored through performance art that taps into the spiritual realm. 

I really liked both films, they added a lot of insight to both cultured for me and a new value for those types of art.  They add depth to the reading in that the videos are always like a live up close demonstration of what the text is trying to say, and that's what I like about watching these videos.

The Drawings of Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci: The Mind of the Renaissance

I chose to watch these two videos because I was curious to find out more about Leonardo Da Vinci beyond the Mona Lisa.  I also chose the drawings of Michelangelo because I wanted to know more about him beyond the statue of David. 
For the Leonardo Da Vinci film, the key concept I gathered was that Leonardo was respected by those who knew the quality of his work, and disregarded by many as well because of his lack of formal education.  It was inspiring to see that he put together a 10 bullet letter that built up his credentials, and he did it himself it was amazing.  It reminded me of Leonardo DiCaprio in catch me if you can creating his credentials to get ahead in his life.  Obviously two different scenarios completely, but to have to create yourself because people don't believe in your skill is similar.  It also shocked me that all of the work Leonardo Da Vinci was commissioned to do, was never actually turned in to the people that commissioned him to do it and so we re left with this mysterious collection of artwork.

The Michelangelo movie showed me that the drawings he did were readily available for any serious student to handle and look at in the Museum of England.  It was shocking to see his growth from what he learned from his master to ultimately surpassing the master, so much so that the master becomes envious of the student's skill.  They say that a pupil that does not come close to a masters skill level reflects a poor teacher so that in itself should show the instructor just ho good of a teacher he was.  Michelangelo's study and concept of human form was impeccable on paper, and he able to take the drawings to stone sculpture almost, easily.

The videos relate to the text in that drawing and sketching can be a work of art in themselves or a smaller but impressive building block or even a blueprint for a greater piece of artwork or idea.
The films were excellent in adding depth to the concepts of who these men were and what they had to offer as far as their abilities to re create and put thought of visual concept on to paper.

Dominant hand vs. Non Dominant Hand

Using my hand for subject matter was nice because it was very quick reference, and right there when I needed it!  Although doing something and coming back to the initial pose based on what I had drawn threw me off a bit, I did the best I could to repose in a close position. 
I chose to do the drawings in charcoal, because that was the media I had initially bought for my value scale project.
Creating the subject with my non dominant hand felt strange in that I had control of the charcoal pencil, but I felt like I was really letting the pencil do the work, it was somewhat difficult to get as good of a drawing as my dominant hand as you can see by the wonky looking thumb drawn with my left hand.
I feel it was a successful study in that I found I can still somewhat sketch something with my non dominant hand.  I mean, it's not the best, but it's still a recognizable hand.
I would consider doing artwork in the future with my non dominant hand for fun on a piece of work that would be more of a test but also serious if it came out decent.  But if I was commissioned to do a piece for someone, I would certainly use my dominant hand.

assignment M7 video review

I chose to watch the two videos Architecture: The Science of Design and Last Call for Planet Earth: Sustainable Development and Architecture.  In the movie Architecture: The Science of Design some key concepts I learned were how structural integrity is important to how architecture stands up to our ever changing climate.  I also learned that miniature models of cities are used in wind tunnels with vapor to study how wind flows and how it effects certain areas.  The actual model of the building can then be changed or modified to achieve desired effects when it comes to wind.  Different changes can take place like adjusting the base of the building, or adding trees to absorb the elements.

In the movie Last Call for Planet Earth: Sustainable Development and Architecture, some key concepts I learned were how architecture can coexist and must exists hand in hand with nature.  They talked about how different elements can be used to insulate homes and buildings, and how natural light can be used based on how a structure is positioned to get the most use out of the light.  I key concept here was to reduce the use of energy because we are basically in a terminal relationship with the earth because we don't care how many resources we are blowing through daily.

The videos relate to the reading in the book because in the text we learned how different styles of architecture developed in the last 2,000 years or so, much of which has stood up to the elements,  The videos talked more about the way architecture is moving to be the same way in our future.

I liked the films, they added depth to my understanding of architecture in that there is more scientific study involved in how new buildings are erected.  The goal being environmentally friendly, and energy efficient.

I chose the two films I did because the titles caught my attention.  I wanted to see what goes into the process of building a structure, and how our future could be effected by how we build a building.

Peer Reviews

Peer review #1:

http://abstractmuse.blogspot.com/

Project #1

Project #1 looked pretty good to me, aside from it not being in the blog and just linked on the blog as a photobucket page. I have a feeling when I was looking for people that actually completed these projects that those that did couldn't get it directly on their blog page. The pictures represented each element and principle just fine.

Project #2

http://abstractmuse.blogspot.com/2016/02/project-2-art-gallery-visit-1_28.html

Project #2 had the answers to the questions and descriptions of each painting but was poorly done in that she never uploaded the actual images to the blog. It was really hard to connect anything she was saying about the pieces because i couldn't see them.



Peer review #2

Project #1

http://sidorwi01.blogspot.com/2016/02/project-1-14-elements.html?showComment=1457237955395#c6470475957051762129

Project #1 looked really good to me, I thought all elements and principles were captured even though He felt limited in what he had available for subject matter.

Project # 2

http://sidorwi01.blogspot.com/2016/02/project-2.html?showComment=1457238290784#c4467387599816203659

This project #2 was incredible.  He did what I did and posted the images directly to the blog which was easy to find, and clearly labeled.  He chose one picture to learn more about which I used in my project # 2, so I provided my insight.  He did and excellent job on this project.


The process of going through these blogs was frustrating in that so many people either chose not to do the assignments or they were done poorly with no pictures embedded directly to the blog.  I went through about 10 people before i found one blog that kind of worked and another blog that was done amazing.  I think that getting a peer review is really nice, I was surprised when I read mine, before I knew it was an assignment to do so.  I thought someone actually took time to look at my blog on their own, haha!  But like I said it's not to get critique.

Video Review

Through the eyes of the sculptor was a really engaging video in how it presented sculpting.  It was really cool to see because I've always wondered how sculpting say a statue for a building or a bridge was actually done.  I really liked that they visited a sculptor that was working on a 17th century restoration project where he was copying original heads that were sculpted under King Henry.  I like how they said that when you recreate or restore a sculpture, the sculptor's feelings have to go into every strike on the stone.  In the text they talk about different types of sculpting such as casting and assembling and mention that each is an indirect method of sculpting.  The way they were helping restore the bridge was a hands on direct method that I really enjoyed watching.

The glass and ceramics video was interesting to me as I have created ceramic pieces before.  However I didn't know that quality of clay used as well as temp. and time the pieces are fired result in different outcomes such as fine china as opposed to floor tiles.  The film related to the text in that it discussed different forms or use of glass and ceramics such as pottery and tiles where the text shows us more aesthetic uses for ceramic such as installation pieces where people can be immersed in the beauty of ceramic and glass work.

I thought the videos were really cool.  I always wondered how a sculptor approached a stone and just went to work to create such a beautiful end piece of art.  Its still amazing to me, and somewhat mysterious even having learned about it, which is what I enjoy the most about appreciating stone work whether it's architectural or simply for visual art.

Creating a Logo

      

I thought creating a logo was cool.  I don't think I would enjoy creating logos as a job or anything like that, but getting creative and coming up with a logo that is pure me was interesting and fun.
My process was simple in creating a logo.  I thought about what I am at the center of my being and that is a free thinker.  I believe that ideas should be shared between anyone and everyone, whether they are good or bad, the process of free thinking generates new ideas, and edited or revised ideas.  I used the elements of Line, color, value, and implied shape to create what I thought a good logo for free thinkers would look like.
The most important thing I discovered while making my logo was the fact that when I was began to overlap the question marks coming out of the free thought box, I realized that it was good to keep going and even overlap more because in life, ideas overlap and blend together to make bigger and better ideas; so that's why they are touching.
The videos were very helpful in deciding what could be used as a legitimate logo and what the process of creation is like.  I thought the most important thing they mentioned was the fact that logo ideas can come from many places like a picture you've come across at an earlier time or something you've seen before and got influenced by.