For this week’s artist experience, I was able to decide among which previous activities to repeat. Over the course of the semester, I have enjoyed the opportunity to try a variety of different art forms. My two favorite assignments have been graffiti art at Venice Beach and sketching in the Japanese Garden.
While I originally wanted to go back to Venice to improve upon my initial art skills, I do not have a car to drive the hour to get there. In addition, I was unable to make ride arrangements for the weekend to make it out there too. While I recognize that the assignment could be performed upon cardboard, or even paper, one of the things that made my first attempt memorable was the calm setting of the beach. Not only that, but it was my first time visiting the city, so I was eager to walk around. I found that it resembled my hometown in Mexico in various small ways, therefore the whole place felt like home. The nostalgia definitely contributed to why the experience remains one of my favorites. Thus, I decided on pursuing another round of sketching in the garden.
Few weeks ago, when the class was first instructed to repeat a previous assignment, I decided to choose sketching in the garden. While it may seem like a lazy choice to go for the same thing again, I made the choice with a different goal in mind. Throughout completing the assignment the first time, I was surprised to find the process to be so peaceful. While my drawings were not at all ones that I was particularly proud of, I sought after the feeling of tranquility that came from completing it. Then, when the assignment was given to select a previous activity, it was during the time when midterms were happening. In addition to that, I had been juggling working over twenty hours per week while I was taking 16 units. For this reason, I chose to do it the second time around in hopes that I would be able to relive that small moment of peace. Now that I have a little more time on my hands, I want to give the project another try so that, this time, I can focus on the art itself.
The hardest part for me, is always deciding what to depict. Contrary to my initial attempt, I decided to paint with this piece rather than draw. One evening, my friends and I were discussing current political scandals and many protests that have been arising. My friend then showed me pictures she had taken from a recent protest that she had attended. The environment was so powerful surrounding such controversy, that I decided that it was something I wanted to capture through my painting. I do not consider myself to be a good artist, so fortunately my friend offered to help me in this project. I feel that this painting has been one of my favorite accomplishments of the semester. This is because there was a lot of time invested into this piece which I feel gave me the opportunity to effectively plan out each detail. While there are some aspects of the piece I feel that I could’ve captured better, I recognize that no painting is ever made perfect. Mechanically, I feel that it is my best artwork to date. Overall, I am proud of how this piece turned out.
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