Throughout human history there has been constant self-reflection of our species by the art world. Almost every major period of art has entered the world swinging from the dead branches of a previous variation of art or as commentary on the world those artist exist in at the time. The Renaissance, french for “rebirth”, is the perfect example as it was a whole new generation of artists, far separated from the original Greek and Roman masterpieces that inspired them. This delayed communication between artists has continued through history and created quite a tree of life, but probably closer to a web.

Modern artist have seriously stretched the thought and concept of what art is, for example Marcel Duchamp. He famously created ready-made art by entering a urinal laying on its side into an art exhibit. I think it is safe to say Michelangelo wouldn’t call a urinal art. However, he also never would have never expected to be turned into a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle who fights evil doers. The point being that art can have a broad definition. Art is based on the culture you are observing it in. Whether that culture is a single classroom or an entire country,  the idea of art changes and can really be anything.

That being said I try to find myself on the tree and where I might belong. Yet I don’t really view myself as an artist mostly because my work hasn’t made any deep connections or context to the world around me. I often draw things and sketch ideas in my notebook for future creations. I also enjoy repainting and customizing shoes, and creating ideas for customizing cars in the future. And I have always enjoyed creating things and expressing myself through these creations. So I know that I have the skill and the ability to learn new skills, and that I have a sense of how to be representational in my work. However I’m not sure there would be anything for me to meaningfully contribute to the world of art yet. I am kind of like a new very thin branch that has yet to decide its connection to the rest of said tree, however is full of potential.

In my drawing I wanted to represent the idea of the existing art tree and how it was kinda rough for artist for a very long time. I didn’t even bother trying to fit in the scale of how much exists as part of the art world so I used a math trick to shorten the tree and include my domain. One that has inspirations and plenty of sunshine. The sunshine representing the enormous luck I have to be in modern times aided by a million chances to create and express myself unhindered by something as simple as nighttime.

At the base of my branch is two old school computers, to show the luxury of technology that has been afforded to my generation. Above those computers is an iPhone, a technology far better even than the computers it rests on. These technologies are also at the base because they will most definitely be a foundation in how much of my work is created in the future.

As I think about where my art could lead I kind of want to stop because I don’t want to put expectations on anything or close any doors to what my art could become. While I fully intend to draw inspiration and connect myself through the tree of art, I want to be a separate branch or at least a twig and not just a leaf that grows off that branch and crumbles and dies at the first sight of winter. How might you do that you ask? I have no idea. However, my eager brain believes the answer is not to fit in. As I have mentioned, art is complex and very often self reflective. This means you don’t have to fit into a specific type or category. The purpose is to narrate our experience in this life through an unlimited number of ways whether skillful painting or parody websites. So I think we must build ourselves to a point where we have a self identity and while flexible, we still know who we are. Once we do that we can then be vulnerable enough to give something back to the world that it will be accepted as a branch of the tree and not just a leaf you tried to staple on.

Reference:

https://www.invaluable.com/blog/art-history-timeline/

The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living, 1991

 

The first time I saw this sculpture, ‘The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living’ by Damien Hirst, I thought it was aesthetically interesting and belonged in a museum…for the sciences. I think a lot of people would agree based on an honorific definition of art it falls short. It has no art historical context and while it took precise technique(I assume) for the processes required for such a piece it doesn’t feel like well done art and even feels like kitsch early on.

However as the title suggests it does have meaning and more so a purpose to fulfill in service of the viewer or participant. ‘The Physical Impossibility of Death in the Mind of Someone Living’, gives a big hint to the purpose, ill explain. If you could imagine being in the open ocean and you see the image on the right, a 13 foot tiger shark with its mouth wide open gliding toward you, what would you do? Very simple, die. This is where I believe the piece enters the realm of ART, because it can create a similar feeling of terror or fear among most viewers. This sculpture definitely does its job which was specifically curated by the artist. Done so in a way that allows the viewer to encapsulate themselves in a day dream of what they think being eaten by a shark might be like, therefore being a pathway to the doors of death, a very common theme throughout human history and art history. So maybe it does fit the honorific version.

 

Work Cited

Images: Photographed by Prudence Cuming Associates © Damien Hirst and Science Ltd. All rights reserved, DACS 2012.

General information on the artwork: http://www.damienhirst.com/the-physical-impossibility-of

Flickr: https://www.flickr.com/photos/186668154@N06/

Box: https://psu.box.com/s/ibw9zxa7ag4j6xodnb1i8tv8nhpyjys1

The use of this assignment is to set up a link from our work, presentation, and storage locations on the web to the professor.

Setting up the site was the most difficult portion to navigate, the rest was a lot of log-ins and file naming.

The outside resources are useful, especially the wiki. It’s nice to have instructions and help all in one place since portions of the work are in different locations on the web.