Thanks for the great song lists. The TTU radio station does interviews with administrators and Deans asking for their top ten. As each song plays the guest talks about their life and why they picked the song. It really is interesting to suddenly see someone I had thought of as a stuffy business suite guy talk about rock/roll or heavy metal! I have also used this list making with my undergrad class. Once we all got past the laughter at my list (none of which their parents even listen to) we would pick one song from each persons list and play it. A wonderful way to learn a little more about each other and to hear some new music. In Visual Studies we have also use the concept of comfort food as a sharing event. Sometimes with the real food, other times with just the stories behind the food. From fried chicken on Sundays to some strange jello concoction each food creation was clearly more about the memory and the community than the taste or nutritional value. It really does not matter what the subject is, it is the story about the subject that holds the insight, because stories are the foundation of learning.
For this week read and respond to "How Much House' by Upe Flueckiger . Tell me what you think of the book. Include your emotional response to the concept of small living. Add any experience you may have had with retreats and solitude. How would you have liked or not liked being in Upe's class for the sustainable cabin? Finally, give me two historical references and one contemporary reference (not a site or a quote but a person/process) that relates to your art making or your research. And explain why it matters to you and how it plays into your creative work.
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Melissa Hidalgo - My Love, Our Public Lands
This first semester of the MAE program has been inspiring due to the readings we have had. These readings have felt personal and heartfelt....
Hi all,
ReplyDeleteI'm Niloofar. I'm in my Third years of the Ph.D. program in Fine Arts. I am originally from Iran. I have lived in the United States for 6 years. I'm a painter and here I am also doing research. My research focus is the clash of old and new in my country Iran.
I love classical music. I also listen to Rock and Roll. My favorite musician is Schubert.
Here is my Website. You can see some of my paintings here.
http://niloofargholamreza.wixsite.com/visualarts
Niloofar. Can you list some songs...not just general styles. And take the time to look at other lists and listen to at least one song you have not heard before.
DeleteSure!
DeleteMy List of favorite music:
1- Schubert: "Der Wanderer," D. 493 Fischer-Dieskau, Moore
2- Fritz Wunderlich "Dichterliebe" Robert Schumann
3- Schubert - Der Wanderer an den Mond
4 J.S. Bach - The six cello suites - Pau Casals
and some Rock and Roll:
5- pink Floyd; the gunner's dream
6- Roger Hodgson (Supertramp) A Soapbox Opera
7- Roger Hodgson (Supertramp) hide in your shell
I was a big fan of the play list that Roxana Popan suggested. There were several songs that I hadn't heard before but I liked them very much, say the works by Divine Comedy. And I loved that she include the Final Cut by Pink Floyd. The final cut, specially the song the gunner's dream is one of my favorite piece of music ever...
DeleteHi Niloofar, it's so nice to see you here. I am glad you liked the songs!
DeleteNoooo! That's the only book that hasn't came in the mail yet...
ReplyDeleteIt is a small book and if it comes in this week you will be fine.
DeleteBehold my long lost reply. Invitation didn't come through my tech email for some reason, had to send it to my personal account. Ah well. My name is Sarah and I'm a third year MFA in jewelry design and metalsmithing. I'm taking this course because of a continued interest in teaching high school after receiving my degree (my home state accepts an MFA for teaching at that level). I am currently teaching the beginning metals course here at Tech. My favorite songs.
ReplyDeleteEvanescence "Imaginary," "Lies," and "Eternal" (Origin album) and "Even in Death" (2016, Lost Whispers album)
Chainsmokers "Something Just Like This"
Gotye "Somebody That I Used to Know"
Nightwish "Ever Dream," (Century Child) "Ghost Love Score," (Once), "Deep Silent Complete" (Wishmaster)
Stones "You Can't Always Get What You Want"
Thanks y'all
Stones "You Can't Always Get What You Want", was a great song! I really enjoyed it! thanks...
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ReplyDelete• I have lived in smaller homes by modern standards my whole life—3-4-bedroom houses form the 1960’s-‘70’s as a child and apartments between 400-500 feet for the past eight years. I admired and longed to live in large houses as a child, but as an adult find them too intimidating for just myself. I like to know what’s going on around me at all times.
• As an obsessive-compulsive who needs a lot of personal space, I understand the more contemporary need for single rooms for each family member; however, I share a studio and question the necessity of separate offices, living/playrooms, etc. I even wonder if having one’s own room creates to an obsessive need for personal space rather than treating it. I was an only child until I was ten and wonder if I would have grown up to be so neurotic had I had to share a bunk bed with my younger sister growing up. I have a best friend whose parents built a massive house when we were in fifth grade for the sole purpose of putting walls between each other. This kind of setup is the norm now, but isn’t it sad? My mother often talks about living in a small home with her family of six in the fifties and sixties. They may not have had much personal space or quiet, and there may have been a lot of fighting and stepping on toes, but doesn’t that teach tolerance, build character, and keep families close? Is it really better to have your own office if you never see the family that share a domicile with you? This wasn’t the case with my best friend, whose family desperately needed to get away from each other. However, in other families, I wonder if the disconnection is the source of later issues.
• A builder’s company moved into the empty lot next to the ice cream store I help run in the summers, and a lot of my customers were fascinated by it, giving credence to Professor Fleuckeger’s assertion that people long for the simpler life. I myself am most fascinated by how much of ourselves we are able to squeeze into a small space given a little efficiency. I used to love living out of my father’s truck-bed camper in the summers, due largely to the novelty of this downsizing.
• I think this was a really cool undertaking for Professor Flueckeger et. al. It’s especially timely given the tiny house boom that has been a response to the recession (mentioned in the text) and the housing crash. I would probably have enjoyed being in this class, particularly the building part, as I enjoyed my high school volunteering with Habitat; I know my sister would have, as she majored in interior design with a focus in sustainable options.
• The final question in the prompt is one I have been answering for my committee for my thesis work. I am evoking the following artists and processes for my thesis:
o Vincent van Gogh and the impressionist style, for his experience with art as a form of therapy which is eerily similar to my own; and the hypnotic repetition of the impressionist brush stroke, which can induce a state of calm flow that allows one a sort of meditation in which the stress flows from the hands into the work. This repetition manifests in my work in the form of hundreds of wire coils, small wire “sprouts,” lines in intaglio, and cuts in metal. I don’t believe I have a piece for this program that doesn’t employ repetition in some way.
o Yayoi Kusama, for similar reasons: her use of art and repetition as a means of communicating the realities of mental health issues to the outside world.
o Finally, my own friend and mentor, Andrea Jackson, a 2002 Texas Tech MFA who works as a contemporary jeweler in downtown Indianapolis. Her work, particularly her enamels, frequently employs a more abstract, “accidental” quality that gives a lot of trust to the process. I have fallen into this technique as a means of combating the way obsessive perfectionism holds progress back in my own work. As Nancy said to me once when I produced something a little too pristine, “I like your dirty enamels.” They represent a fight against the need for perfection and the messy, imperfect minds that create it.
Sarah, with the way you write of Van Gogh, I would recommend that you take a listen to the composer Henryk Gorecki. I experience a very similar state of being while listening to his music. Some of my most moving art encounter have been while standing with his artworks.
DeleteWe think the same way. To see a Yayoi Kusama installation is on my bucket list. I had a student come back this summer with photographs of her Infinity mirrors exhibit.
DeleteSarah I liked what you said: "..They may not have had much personal space or quiet, and there may have been a lot of fighting and stepping on toes, but doesn’t that teach tolerance, build character, and keep families close?"
DeleteI think this is a very interesting question that can be asked from our individualist lives. I think having a more personal space gives one some benefit, but being more engaged with community through sharing a place also is beneficial. as you said teach us tolerance and more understanding toward each other.
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DeleteSometimes I wonder if we can have both, or make a balance between these two ways of living. To keep a personal space, and to be more connected to communities such as family.
DeleteWelcome to our class and thanks for the quick response to Upe's book.
ReplyDeleteA couple of quick questions before I offer my thoughts. Is Vincent VonGogh considered an Impressionist or a Post Impressionist? I am always confused but I know your committee will be picky (its there job) and have you seen the Kusama show in Houston?
Reading your post I was struck by how mental differences play into the work and compulsion for your two historical artists. How art saved a life or in the case of Von Gogh might have either prolonged or shorten a life. I like Nancy's quote...a nice reminder that life like art is messy.
I liked your questioning of space and its use. I have often repeated that the most wasted space is a university faculty office. Not are they mostly forgotten space but with few exceptions (Rob's especially) they have nothing to do with work. Small houses are usually under 1000 sq feet and tend to be more like 800 -600 sq feet. I love the concept but can never figure out how to store a life time of art both my own and what I have traded for.
Van Gogh is classified as post impressionist, but it's the style that is represented in both that to me is most fascinating. The post impressionists worked off the impressionists' style but with a lot fewer constraints, allowing for more expressive brushwork and even surreal effects. The Impressionist idea of capturing value rather than every detail is a liberating task for the perfectionist (my middle school art teacher once assigned a painting in the impressionist style, and when I got stuck on one area set a timer and told me to be done in ten minutes), and the post impressionists' opening up to expressive colors and shapes allows for more emotion in the depiction of the subject matter.
DeleteI like my small home here in Lubbock (~450 ft) and have discovered many ways to maximize space. My apartment has a lot of storage built in including a large closet and shelving behind the shower. One thing to never forget is the annual purge. Keeping things that you don't even know are of no use to you can really have a negative impact on psyche, even if you don't realize it.
I like jewelry because it is small and easily stored. :)
Thanks for the added information. I once lived in a Silver Stream Trailer and quickly learned how little I really needed.
DeleteOh, how I wish I could scale down to small living. It is a romantic thought for me: to not have to worry about all of my stuff. Did Upe see my garage before he wrote this book. OMG. It is horrible. We try, we clean out bags of stuff, and it seems that more stuff takes it place. I think it is multiplying. We have stuff that belongs to our kids, and they don't even live with us anymore!! Oh, and some artwork of mine,,, well, lots, and of other artists as well.
ReplyDeleteIt would have been fun to be in Upe's class. I enjoy building things and using power tools! I have also been looking into LeCorbusier and his work.
As for artists that relate to my work, I have always had a girl crush on Beatrice Wood. I love how her work is not "perfect" , and at the young age of 50 learned to throw and make ceramics her art. She was always true to herself. I so admire her attitude and confidence.
My other two artists are alive, so, I hope it is okay to do this backwards. Chris Gustin's work really moves me. I love how he pushes the clay and alters his work. The large scale is amazing. The other one is Christina Cordova. She is a figurative sculptor that creates a story by adding something with the figure. Her figures are amazing, and large, and may have surface treatments. Wonderful!
Chris, we would be fighting over the power tools.
DeleteChris, I like that you said that it is a "romantic thought" to live in places like such minimal sustainable cabins in raw nature...When I was reading the book, I immediately thought of the 19th century Romanticism movement that happens after the industrial revolution of the 18th century. I find similarity between romantic philosophy and the world view of these artists and architects in the sense that they escape from the industrialized urban life to nature and live with more solitude.
DeleteThe other amazing thing about Upe is the house he built in Lubbock for his family. He has the plans online for free because he designed and built it while working for TTU and believes as such he has been payed.
ReplyDeleteLove Beatrice Wood. Do you have her birthday book?
No, I want to get it tho!!!
ReplyDeleteThe first concept that caught my attention was on p.13 where it mentions, in essence, hoarding: “More often than not the garage does not accommodate cars...(but) items we no longer need, but cannot bring ourselves to permanently part with...” I think this also says a lot about the nature of a common working person's life. We want to do so many things, fish, work on cars, work wood, garden, decorate... etc... but are so busy making money for other people that our true passions are put in cold storage. Of course we don't want to part with them... that's like abandoning a dream and admitting defeat.
ReplyDeleteI like the Leed program. The idea that there is an incentive for builders to reuse resources just makes sense. Reusing is generally even better than recycling. Convenience is certainly one aspect of the American life that holds the country back from being a leader in global stewardship. I like to work with my hands and have been interested in living a more self sustainable life for some time. I think Upe's class would have been very enlightening for me.
It was interesting to see the melding of an analogue, primitive existence with the high-tech design and reality of modern day resources. I do think that with today's advances it would be very easy to afford people with respectful, sustainable living spaces. However, I also think this would require land mongers to relinquish their hold on our natural environment... which is very unlikely to happen. When I was younger, I dreamt of owing my own land in Texas. I grew up here and have always loved the landscape of our state, especially central Texas and the Hill country. As I grew older, I realized the intricacies of land ownership. I have seen the massive Ranches and large urban development areas and how they hoard our natural resources. I don't really dream of owing land anymore, which makes me a bit sad.
I have lived in large and small home. I have a lot of hobbies, so prefer to have a bit of storage space. I would not like to live in a mansion size house. Instead of a larger dwelling, I would much rather have more space between my home and that of my neighbors; not too much, but enough to enjoy the outdoors without worrying about bothering others.
As for inspirations for my work, the first would be Georgia O’Keeffe. She was the first artist that I really liked who was not a classical master. Her gorgeous, moving abstractions caught me off guard and have haunted my creations since high school. It was only recently that I have been able to embrace the motives behind my love of her work and abstraction, but I am knee deep now. Via O’Keeffe, the writing of Arthur Wesley Dow has been a focusing force for my design sense. Staying in the same vein of thought, the second artist would be Vincent Van Gogh. Before finding his work, I tended to avoid color and worked mostly in graphite and focusing of gradient form. Seeing his breathtaking color work and learning of his own struggles to break into color was a major motivator for me. The last instigator I'll mention of my passions for abstraction and vibrant composition, is the work of the 20th C. Polish composer Henryk Gorecki, especially his Symphony #3. For me, his work is filled with a beauty and geometry, which is both controlled and ephemeral. When I hear his music, I envision sensations very much like I strive to create in my own artwork.
James, How interesting that you selected a musician, I love that! I do not normally think of music as an influence, but it is.
Deletegreat reflections...exactly what a good book allows
DeleteI agree with Chris the addition of a musician is a very nice touch
James, I am going to have to go back and listen to more from your music list especially while working. Do you play any instruments?
DeletePaige, I am a drummer. I have a drum set and I also enjoy hand drums and percussion. I jump around constantly between musical genres. My daughter even has me listing to the radio when we drive together. I was surprised to find I actually like so newer pop artist. How about you, do you play an instrument?
DeleteChris, I would also include Edgar Allen Poe as a major influence, especially on my earlier, more figurative work. His art has a severeness, humor and dark ambiance that I love. He was the perfect compliment to my obsession with Surrealism.
DeleteJames, no I don't play an instrument beyond my young 2 years of piano lessons. At the school where I teach, I am very close to our pianist and strings teacher. Her dad was Abe Weiner, an American Surrealist and her mother a piano teacher. We often talked about art and the relationship to music. Once she helped me develop an art lesson drawing in the style of Wassily Kandinsky while listening to music Arnold Schoenberg. With your influence of music, your students must benefit greatly.
DeleteHow much house? Too much, would be my simple answer. I can also relate to too much digital data on page 14 and the desire for a getaway from it all. I find it ironic, the stuff, the house, the yard, the smartphone are things we/I want, yet we find a need to get away from it all. My in-laws have an isolated, rustic, small cabin in southern Colorado. Alone time only happens outside. There is no phone service, no television, radio, or electronic devices available. We play games, hike, bake, create art, and enjoy each other’s company. We all somewhat complain about the isolation, but we realize the necessity and value of the experience.
ReplyDeleteI couldn’t choose the sole isolation of Henry David Thoreau's cabin because I am too much of a people person, but I could imagine spending time at le Cabanon. Overlooking the Mediterranean Sea with access to the interior of a restaurant would be great. I was drawn to the colors of the landscape and “bright yellow floor and various colored panels of green, red, white, and black”, (page 51-52).
What an awesome experience for the students participating with Flueckiger’s building of the Sustainable Cabin. The hands on experience of designing and building gave them more of an actual experience. I enjoy learning how to build, problem solve, and fix things. I especially like the idea of reusing and making the cabin self sustainable.
I have always been drawn to artist who create energy and movement in their art. Because, I, like many am drawn to the typical Post-Impressionists, especially van Gogh. I started researching others and came across Florence Cane, an art educator and artist in the early 1900s. She had a theory on scribbling with eyes opened or closed to take the mind away, feeling the movement. My years of teaching and art making have been more about the process and therapy than the outcome. Especially in my own making, I enjoy the process, the physical activity, the emotional escape, and the repetition of mark making. Next on my list is to read her book, “The Artist in Each of Us”. I am in awe of so many contemporary artists. I couldn’t walk away from Ghi Fremaux’s studio last First Friday in Lubbock, but one who holds a special place in my heart is Jean Cappadonna Nichols. She was from Midland and like me, went back to school after her children were grown and started creating more art. Her art tells playful stories with a edge of darkness and sophistication. I always enjoyed hearing her talk about her work and miss her. She passed away in 2011. Here is an article on her work:
https://theartjunkie.wordpress.com/2013/04/15/jean-cappadonna-nichols-unorthodox-ceramics/
Florence Cane sound very interesting. I will look her up and see if Amazon has her book. Your words remind me of a concern I have for many of my students. It seems difficult for many students to unplug from the hyper social media and techno heavy stimulation of their world. I struggle to find methods to get them into "the zone" of art making. I have used methods from Betty Edward's "Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain", but am always looking for new approaches.
DeleteI too am interested in the Florence Cane book, there may be a run at Amazon!! Paige, sometimes the artist's stories my mean more to us than their actual art. I think relating to a similar story connects us. (See you this weekend, Paige!)
DeleteI have just looked at some of Jean Cappadonna Nochols's works following the link you gave us; I also found a beautiful online portfolio. They are fascinating! Humorous, sarcastic, unsettling, so imaginative... Thank you for mentioning this artist.
DeleteAs Upe's class was working on the cabin I would see these wonderful kids and Upe come back to school dirty and tired and the happiest ever. There is something magical about taking a theory, a dream and making it come true.
ReplyDeleteThe book was interesting for me mostly because it was a multi-dimensional book. At first glance, it was an educative book for architecture students to teach building a minimal and sustainable house. However, it was more than that. It introduced a philosophy of living through three examples: “Thoreau's house at Walden Pond, Le Corbusier's Le Cabanon in Roquebrune Cap-Martin, and Texas Tech's Sustainable Cabin on the High Plains of West Texas.”
ReplyDeleteI liked Tolstoy’s quotes in the book and their connection to this question: How much space do we really need? The book, like Tolstoy’s story, confronts us with our misunderstanding of happiness that is defined by wealth and owning big houses. It also introduces a more moral way of living. The Moral lesson from Tolstoy’s story was also very well applicable to a core idea behind the book. Making a sustainable place that is in harmony with nature and not try to dominate the nature.
I always have been a fan of having a small living or living with simplicity for many reasons. My environmental concern is one of them. Moreover, having a small house, with few necessary objects I think brings about happiness and feeling of freedom. One is not dependent on the material object but can find happiness within the self, in her mind.
In our modern life, I think we are mostly alone. Thus, we should have a close connection with ourselves. And solitude is a time of contemplating who we are. However, solitude should not become isolation.
I as an artist try to spend hours alone because it helps me discover myself and my position within the life. Solitude helps me to develop my art projects in a more genuine way. I have been living alone in small places for several years. I really need such solitude, though I try to don’t make myself too isolated.
I think Upe’s class would be a great place for me. Indeed, I like his idea of a more analog and thus less abstract process of designing and building a sustainable cabin. I think he is right that over using technology and digital process makes the process of learning less pragmatic and real. Therefore, I think this project will be beneficial for students to make a simple plan, but do it manually and more practical way.
I have been looking at Rembrandt’s work since the early years of my education in visual arts until the present time. I like the strong individualism in his works, particularly his self-portraits. I think it is amazing that a painter looked in the mirror many times in his life and captured such psychological expression in his face.
ReplyDeleteFor me, painting is also very subjective. My paintings are strongly attached to my individual inner world. I am also a fan of expression and psychological qualities in arts. In my work, like Rembrandt’s paintings expression through dramatic light and shadows play a crucial role.
Another painter that I have found myself very connected is Picasso. Picasso in the pick of Modernist movements integrates figurative elements while his works are very Modern. I especially like the Picasso’s blue period and blue and rose bodies of works. I feel connected to the mood of these paintings through limiting the colors on his pallet. I also like the playful approach to art in his works.
Among the contemporary painters, I feel related to Diebenkorn Berkeley’s works. He is an artist who uses his observation to look at his environments while bringing his expression, and style into the play. I feel connected to such approach.
I am not sure if I would use the word moral, maybe authentic or as you used about your own work genuine. What I love most about the sustainable cabin is just that it is sustainable.
ReplyDeleteNifoofar, I want to challenge you to mention one living artist and one female artist that has had an impact on your work.
Sure. I like Agnes Martin's works. I like that she creates a connection between her inner word and the forms she create on the canvas. Her work also evoke a feeling of sublime in me. As I said I am fan of expression or embodying feelings and mood in paintings.
DeleteJames Turrell is another contemporary artist that I feel connected to. I like the use of light in his work and the psychological qualities he creates in his installations. His works also creates feeling of sublime in me.
Thank you. The reason I requested the addition is because I believe it is too easy to reach into art history and pull out a master artist.It is much harder to trust our instincts when it comes to art that has not been judged famous/expensive or worthy of an art history book.
DeleteAfter you mentioned her, I watched a video of Agnes Martin on the Guggenheim Museum website. Looking at her work, I didn’t know it was based on positive emotions. I now see her work in a different way and would like to research her more. Thank you.
DeleteThis book really got my attention because I have been fascinated about the idea of simplicity and minimalism for the last two years now. I started listening to the Minimalists podcasts this past summer, not because I want to start living a minimalistic life, but because I find it very interesting. When Flueckiger talked about how garages are practically used as storage units, it reminded me of one of the episodes of the Minimalists podcasts when they talk about getting rid of things you may not need or use. Like I said, I wouldn't consider myself a minimalist by all means but I have found that I feel better after decluttering some of the things I don't need or use. I ask myself the question, "Will I ever use this again?" and if I can't get a specific answer, I'll get rid of it. Someone else may have a better use for it. Living simple and small is easier said than done I think. As an art teacher, I try to keep as much "trash" as I can for my students to use in case they ever get inspired to use it in their artwork but if it were for me...I wouldn't keep half the stuff I keep for my students. Although I've never stayed in a tiny house before, I don't think I would mind it at all. I wouldn't be able to live in it for a long time like Thoreau but maybe for a week max. I like being able to escape the busy/cluttered life and go to the outdoors. I think I mentioned in my introduction how much I love to hike and be outside; it relaxes me.
ReplyDeleteI would have loved to have been part of that class who helped build the small cabin. I obviously enjoy working with my hands just like all of you but I especially like making things that will get used.
As for artists that inspire me and my work: I'd have to give credit to the oh so wonderful Ansel Adams. When I go hiking I of course take my camera with me. Like Adams, I hope to stimulate a feeling for people to want to go outside and see nature's beauty. Not only to get people to go outside but to also give National Parks and State Parks a voice to protect them.
Thomas Moran for his same love and passion of painting landscapes, particularly his National Park paintings. He captures the natural light so well in his paintings of Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon.
Since I picked two historical artists with two different mediums I kind of want to mention two contempory artists that I follow and inspire me and my work. Jeremy Collins is an illustrator that does a lot of nature artworks. One of his biggest pieces was a national parks map of the US all done in pen. I love detailed work and his is mesmerizing. The second person I follow is a van dweller who makes a living taking pictures of people in national parks. Also someone who decided to live small but do what she loves, her name is Abbi Hearne.
I love the idea of spending time and money on making memories rather than buying things you may only use a couple of times.
I had never heard of Abbi Hearne, what a great way to live simply and make art while living with nature.
DeleteMelissa, I agree with the liberation you feel when you get rid of stuff!! All that went into accumulating it, and you feel better after you throw it away or pass it on.
DeleteI agree with you Melissa, as an elementary art teacher I have examples and art projects from when I taught at the high school level. I sometimes think to myself could I ever use this with my elementary kids? Today, I walked in to class and it made me realized i should probably make time to declutter my room.
DeleteAt the very beginning of “How Much House”, I was very captivated by what Flueckiger had to say when he stated, “Over time, whether by accident or not we transform our garages into storage facilities, a modern-day limbo. When we burst at the seams, we hold a garage sale…Instead, we sell that stuff we finally we decided to let go for garage sale prices after an appropriate interval. Then we start the whole cycle again.” After reading this book, it made me realized that I have accumulated many possessions over the years. I have taken over ¾ of the garage at home and a whole other bedroom that I never step foot in. The mural of this book was each house shares the idea of minimal space and its relationship with the surrounding nature. As much as I would love to down size to small living, and live out in the country somewhere, I personally don’t think that I would survive. Personally, I am a people person and a city girl. Between each house, I could see myself living in Le Cabanon. I think I would have loved takes Upe’s class. Working together with other students, and building an ecologically and economically workable cabin is an experience that doesn’t happen quite often.
ReplyDeleteFor Inspiration, my first artist would be Frida Kahlo. With her accident causing serious health repercussions throughout her life, she never let this stop her from doing what she loved, which was to paint. She channeled her suffering into a muse for her work that conveys the raw emotion of her life and the issues her body faced. My second artist I am influence by is Picasso. Picasso did not make images the way he did because he couldn't do realism. He was more than capable of realism. He would break down a subject into its core elements, remove what wasn't necessary, and emphasize what was. As for Contemporary artist, I follow Jason deCaires Taylor. His works attracts marine life by creating artificial reefs, offering people the privilege to encounter whatever gravitates towards his art. From time to time his art changes naturally from the sand of the ocean floor. The sculptures propose is to represents natural transformation, chance and growth; it shows how time and environment has such an effect on the shape the physical body. Their work focuses on the effects of how taking care of the environment will affect our future. His work reminds us that the environment under the heavy waters is constantly changing and reflects poignantly the vicissitudes changing landscapes, and our own lives. Here is His Artist Website:
http://www.underwatersculpture.com
I love Kahlo's work not because it comes from pain but because she used her self image as her main source of subject. She moved from the role of model for others (male) to artist in charge.
DeleteI was so excited to see some of her work at the "México 1900–1950: Diego Rivera, Frida Kahlo, José Clemente Orozco, and the Avant-Garde" here at the Dallas Museum of Art! I defienlty made muitlple trips.
DeleteI enjoyed the book, the content and its simple and efficient structure, as well as the manner in which the role that these houses had in their owners / builders’ lives was suggested. One idea that I found of particular interest, is that modern minimalism is being used today more as a mask or as an appearance (17) often hiding a complex technology.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I am very attached to the concept of small living. However, I believe that simplicity it’s an art in itself and a person must really seek and find freedom in it in order to be happy while living in minimal conditions. I associate almost my entire childhood with living in a small, economical place. A “cell” in a communist block of flats. After Ceausescu decided to heavily industrialize the country and took drastic measures meant to spare all the resources in order to build his utopic variant of socialism, the Romanian cities turned gray as these blocks of flats were rapidly built and people (many of them forcibly brought from the rural communities) were crammed in. The apartments were very small, the walls were thin, hot water was running on a schedule for 2 hours per week, and the heat system was a very bad joke in the cold winters. Most of the apartments were wagon style (you had to go through one room in order to get to the other) or semi-wagon style, and the tiny rooms (usually two, at most four, but this was very rare) were responding to multiple needs at once (living room, bedroom, office, kids’ room, sometimes studio). The storage spaces were extremely small (if any) and people often had to make all kind of improvisations in order to make their lives bearable. One of my neighbors for example, had an improvised pantry that he was using to store pickles in a small space under the building’s main staircase; we were all envying him and his family (conserved food was very precious, since the groceries stores were showcasing only a few cans).
Although they were advertised as a big socialist accomplishment, these blocks with tiny apartments were making people unhappy, because there was no privacy and no power of decision in relation to space. It wasn’t the small space that was necessarily creating the problems, but a sort of psychological discomfort due to imposed conditions. Those been said, I think that the concept of small living functions well only in association with freedom and nature. As a way of reminding us that we are children of the nature first, and only secondly members of a society. Some of my most rewarding experiences were the hikes in the nature… just travelling for days with a tent attached to the backpack, stopping for the night in a place that seemed friendly, lighting the fire and preparing the food… then waking up and searching for the right path toward the next stop. Another memory I cherish deeply is having the tent placed in the proximity of the sea… spending the day in the sun, playing in the sand or in the water, and then later falling asleep with the waves’ sound in the background... Those were moments when I was able to enjoy calmness and make peace with myself.
Thank you for sharing your powerful life story. A moving reminder of the privilege these three houses represent. The first two were escape place not homes while the cabin was a lesson, not even used as an escape place. It is one thing to "give up extra stuff" it is an entirely different ordeal to have nothing to give up. Again thank you for sharing.
DeleteI would have loved to be part of Upe Upe Flueckiger’s class, because I think that there is great reward in creating something beautiful and useful for your own or other people’s use. I am convinced that they were all part of a unique and powerful experience. I also liked the pedagogical intent behind it, because I think that everything that is a firsthand experience is the best of all experiences. You may read all the theory and all the stories about creating something, it all fades into insignificance in front of having the opportunity to be part of the real act of creation.
ReplyDeleteAs for historical and contemporary references that relates to my present work… I highly respect and feel inspired by people who had the courage to propose innovative ideas and managed to keep their moral verticality, remaining faithful to their artistic beliefs in the most hostile environments. Some examples would be Vaclav Havel, Andrzej Wajda, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, Andrei Tarkovsky, Plastic People of the Universe, or Sergei Parajanov. A contemporary artist that goes on the same line is Ai Weiwei.
great list... I will have to look up all but two. Love when I am introduced to new work.
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