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Exhibition Text
What do you see? is a mixed media sculpture which was built to showcase a political statement on the Yemen Humanitarian Crisis; more specifically the photo of a 7-year old taken by photographer Hicks was my main source of inspiration for the piece. The sculpture was made using store bought products such as floral wire, faux flower petals, decorative sand and plastic pearls. The color red is also heavily used in the piece as a sign to stop the political issue as soon as possible.
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Artistic Inspiration:
YEMEN - ' A HUMANITARIAN CRISIS '
Girl Starving in Yemen by Tyler Hicks (2018). Retrieved from http://time.com/5482864/time-top-10-photos-2018-yemen-amal-war-starvation/
The image above is a seven year old child. Her photo inspired me to make a statement regarding Humanitarian Crises in which war and violence is the norm for many in Yemen. Her skin tightly hugs her fragile bones as she holds on to herself for some self comfort. Her eyes are lost, looking to her side avoiding the camera. Her small frame and body will soon give up on her as on the first day of the month of November she passed away in a refugee camp.
When I first saw this image I turned away. I wasn't able to see it as the shock that traveled through my body was so sudden and overwhelming. That young girl could have easily been my sister...
The political issues that are ongoing in Yemen don’t seem to come to an end and more people are being punished by having to live through these war zones. Children are not supposed to live in such circumstances but unfortunately the children in Yemen are.
Children are starving.
Children are dying off because of diseases.
Children are losing their families, they’re losing their childhood to the horrors of famine and the stench of death...
When I first saw this image I turned away. I wasn't able to see it as the shock that traveled through my body was so sudden and overwhelming. That young girl could have easily been my sister...
The political issues that are ongoing in Yemen don’t seem to come to an end and more people are being punished by having to live through these war zones. Children are not supposed to live in such circumstances but unfortunately the children in Yemen are.
Children are starving.
Children are dying off because of diseases.
Children are losing their families, they’re losing their childhood to the horrors of famine and the stench of death...
"Capturing Yemen's Humanitarian Crisis" by CBC News (2018). Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eJSXLDuRsmw
Planning:
Prior to choosing a plan of creativity and building of the structure I had multiple ideas....
Once the idea was settled down I decided that this piece was to be a nude woman when I first began it.
I would censor the breasts but leave wounds open for the viewer to see. I needed much more than a sketch for the planning. I began to "sketch" out forms with wire and cotton fluff.
Once the idea was settled down I decided that this piece was to be a nude woman when I first began it.
I would censor the breasts but leave wounds open for the viewer to see. I needed much more than a sketch for the planning. I began to "sketch" out forms with wire and cotton fluff.
Process:
First Attempt of Mixed Media Sculpture: “A Nude”
I began by molding the figure of a human being for the woman. I added a wire to the back after cutting the cotton with scissors in a vertical direction starting from the center of the head all the way down to the lower back.
Once that was done, I inserted the wire to the back and closed up the cotton by fusing it with the tip of the scissors and my finger.
Once the given the support to the sculpture I bent its back and adjusted the form.
Once that was done, I inserted the wire to the back and closed up the cotton by fusing it with the tip of the scissors and my finger.
Once the given the support to the sculpture I bent its back and adjusted the form.
At this point I was trying to shave off pieces of the cotton figure that seemed odd or out of place.
I also fused pieces of the cotton together using scissors and my fingers. Also because I was experimenting with the cotton itself, I was inquiring details about the state of the cotton. The way it moved around and how it laid. Cotton I found was rather difficult to work around with because it easily influenced by your movements. |
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The images above showcase the "blood" spurring out of the cotton figure. I found faux flowers laying around thus I took one and undid it. Then took a petal and stapled it into a smaller "rose of blood"
(Experimentation) As my inspiring piece uses of little cubes of some sort of mixed media, I attempted to also play around and experiment with the "censoring" material" by dipping cotton swab heads in scrapbook paint. |
During Work Revision:
After some dilemmas with how I wanted to finish my sculpture I decided on using what I had instead of going out and buying materials.
For the final products I can say that the bottoms part of it, the rag with sewed on pearls was a very solid idea and visualization that didn't change while I was brainstorming the revision |
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I experimented with the shape of the ribcage and tried out different sizes and forms, I mixed wired and added volume to it's mass to best portray a human form within it.
Other things that I kept on mind were the different meanings for the materials. Pearls for example, they are similar to the texture and coloration of bones thus I spread them through out the piece. Their meaning? Physical pain as a pearl is only born after an painful irritation to the clam. The color red as well...
Red can be seen as stop signal or it can be seen as massive bloodshed as well as pain and war. It's left to the viewer to interpret.
Other things that I kept on mind were the different meanings for the materials. Pearls for example, they are similar to the texture and coloration of bones thus I spread them through out the piece. Their meaning? Physical pain as a pearl is only born after an painful irritation to the clam. The color red as well...
Red can be seen as stop signal or it can be seen as massive bloodshed as well as pain and war. It's left to the viewer to interpret.
Reflection:
The final solidification on my first attempt to the piece for my vision for the piece was not as I had expected. Due to the odd materials that I choose to utilize and the amount of time that I spent brainstorming held me back a lot. I needed to get creating faster than I thought. As I was making progress with the piece I made discoveries about cotton and how it was that it worked. The texture and form of cotton was not like I was expecting it to react. It was rather difficult as I was experimenting with new materials and playing around with ideas. I feel as if I couldn't effectively showcase my inspiration. Perhaps I should have added more the the form of the cotton, expand the censoring and experiment with much more solid objects and/or materials. I could've spent less time thinking and actually creating the physical structure sooner.
However that’s when the second piece came about. The image of the little girl had brought me back to the reason as to why I was doing this sculpture.
I wanted the piece to speak for it self and I’m satisfied to an extend with my final piece. There’s a lot of the color red to bring an emphasis of the gravity of the situation in Yemen. It was the first time I attempted a political piece that helped me cultivate a deeper symbolism into what I create. The form of the piece was time consuming but I was happy with the end product and I wish to bring attention to the crisis through this piece of work.
However that’s when the second piece came about. The image of the little girl had brought me back to the reason as to why I was doing this sculpture.
I wanted the piece to speak for it self and I’m satisfied to an extend with my final piece. There’s a lot of the color red to bring an emphasis of the gravity of the situation in Yemen. It was the first time I attempted a political piece that helped me cultivate a deeper symbolism into what I create. The form of the piece was time consuming but I was happy with the end product and I wish to bring attention to the crisis through this piece of work.
Critique:
CONTRASTING
- The photograph taken by Hicks showcases of a much more fleshy and solid form of the human being while I didn't really focus in the realistic aspect of it but rather a "ghost" of a human being. My piece less defined characteristics when it come to the detail of the structure or body in general.
- My pieces has been constructed with different found and bought objects assembled in a way in which a human skeleton is formed. Hicks on the other hand has photographed a human being within their raw nature during a moment of crisis.
- The contrast of colors between the two pieces is also very noticeable, The photograph contains of very warm hues due to the skin tone and solid colored background. I on the other hand have an explosion of values between white and red. There’s a diversification when it comes to the color palette with my piece.
COMPARING
- The repetition of the bones found in the human rigcage is shown in both sculptures as to portray a texture to the piece as well as a creating rhythm. The rhythm is rather astonishing as the skin is so thight around the body of the girl and my sculpture
- A sense of movement is created by both pieces as the expansion and defined limbs and shape of the bodies in the artwork edges bring about a graphic and disturbing unity of content.
- Contrast of the materials works in both pieces as a disruption of unity. The forms are thrown off balance with the individual contrast between smooth to sudden caos of texture and color. The impact that images cause are both intented to cause a shock to the public about an ongoing situation of political tension.
ACT Responses:
Clearly explain how you are able to identify the cause effect relationship between your inspiration and its effect on your artwork?
The relationship of cause and effect that exists between my inspiration and my work was the impact and evoking feelings given off by Hick’s piece when you first see it. The look and the physical state of the girl when I saw her for the first time helped me take root in an idea and bring it to life.
What is the overall approach the author has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
Uncensored and horror of war for the disturbance of a viewer,
What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, culture, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
That Hick’s was really aiming to get attention on the human crisis. Including the very graphic and detailed image of the girl which was only of the thousands of people out there that have been affected just as badly or worse by the situation.
What is the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
The human crisis in which war and human exits, overall the views in which society has grown to adapt as what is right or wrong in their eyes. The theme once again has been the human in its raw forms and how children are stolen of their innocence through events like war and famine.
What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
That Hick’s was also making strong statements about governing heads without exactly aiming it towards a political stage to display his art. He was simply putting his work out there to be seen for a reason to in a way intimidate with the power of media to have people act once they see his photos from Yemen.
The relationship of cause and effect that exists between my inspiration and my work was the impact and evoking feelings given off by Hick’s piece when you first see it. The look and the physical state of the girl when I saw her for the first time helped me take root in an idea and bring it to life.
What is the overall approach the author has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
Uncensored and horror of war for the disturbance of a viewer,
What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, culture, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
That Hick’s was really aiming to get attention on the human crisis. Including the very graphic and detailed image of the girl which was only of the thousands of people out there that have been affected just as badly or worse by the situation.
What is the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
The human crisis in which war and human exits, overall the views in which society has grown to adapt as what is right or wrong in their eyes. The theme once again has been the human in its raw forms and how children are stolen of their innocence through events like war and famine.
What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
That Hick’s was also making strong statements about governing heads without exactly aiming it towards a political stage to display his art. He was simply putting his work out there to be seen for a reason to in a way intimidate with the power of media to have people act once they see his photos from Yemen.