Still Life and Double Portrait (part1)... and Overall thought of Class

Because of time constraint, I could not complete these assignments.  As a beginner, it takes me two to three hours to complete a painting because 1) I am unsure of the basic skills required to complete the task and 2) am still learning how to interpret my ideas onto the canvas.  Everything takes me twice as long as I believe it should because of my simple lack of now-how.  

Sketchbook entries have definitely suffered because of all this as well.  100 full page sketches (due by December 6th) that must be allotted 30 minutes each will cause a strain on time.  100 sketches over 12 weeks, is a little over eight sketches per week.  That means that in one week, a minimum of four hours must be committed to just sketching for this class.  These four hours is on top of the paintings and museum visits I am required to do/attend.  

I did not realize that quantity would be more important in this class that quality.  I have never received so many tasks in a beginners or intermediate art class in my entire academic career.  I find it unfortunate that I do not have the opportunity to practice more.  Instead I must move on to the next assignment without understanding the last and also find time to visit museums/galleries and post blog entries on every single task I am required to do.  After this experience, I will not be taking the intermediate painting class.  This class has put a very bitter taste in my mouth.

Impressionist/ Pointillist Painting

I can definitely say without any doubt at all, that the pointillist style is not for me.  I am too impatient to use this absolutely tedious technique.  Not only did this assignment require that only primary and secondary colors be used, each brush stroke was not a stroke at all but a dot.  I am not sure if I have executed the technique correctly because we were not taught how in class.

By the end of the painting, I felt like I had carpal tunnel and had to rest my wrist for an hour.

Art-in-NY Exquisite Corpse

Art-in-New York in FA11 - Image #1

My understanding of what I was required to do for this piece is still cloudy but I tried to follow the instructions given to me as best I could.  I chose not to use all of the elements from the image assigned to me.  Though it is clear that the piece I was given was a form of surrealism, my beginners "status" lead me to believe that simplicity was best in order to show what I thought the piece represented.

One of the images drawn in the middle (top-right) of the picture plain reminded me of a discarded washing machine.  I thought, “where would I find the other random elements… in one place?”  An ally way with dumpsters jumped into my mind and I chose to paint exactly that.  My final result was a night scene in an ally. 

Guggenheim: Lee Ufan - Marking Infinity

Photo from Artnet.com

Reading and understanding Lee Ufan’s background aided in my understanding of the spirituality of his works.  I agree that his work does represent spirituality… in its simplicity and material use.  But it took quite some time for me to acknowledge that.  I realized long ago that my mind is not use to abstract art and I have a hard time accepting what I see.  Brush strokes and strategically placed pillows, stones, cotton and sheet metal do not excite my senses.  I am not entirely against abstract pieces but without the reading material posted by each piece in the Lee Ufan exhibit, it took me quite some time to digest what I saw, acknowledge and accept it.