Exhibition Visit (Student's choice #2)

MOMA, NYC, October 23, 2009

New Photography 2009

September 30, 2009–January 11, 2010

The photos exhibited in this show were of much interest to me, mostly because I take interest in working with composite/manipulated photos such as these. Three artists I found most intriguing were Daniel Gordon, Sterling Ruby, Sara VanDer Beek and their individual chromogenic color print series. The photos by Gordon were by far my favorite and inspired ideas for my own thesis project. His prints looked like the result of a deranged serial killer, bazar yet beautiful with a unique marriage of media such as photo cutouts, crude sculptures and other items arranged together to be flattened and married by the use of photography. The works by the other two artists were very much similar in terms of composite photography but consisted of completely different media and subject matter. Ruby's photos appeared to be very dark graphic design style images. I did not care much for the colorful rainbow-like photos by Walead Beshty or the photo series by Leslie Hewitt.

photos: Daniel Gordon, Sterling Ruby, and Sara VanDer Beek

Exhibition Visit (Student's choice #1)

MOMA, NYC, October 23, 2009

Polish Posters 1945–89

May 6, 2009–November 30, 2009

Upon walking up to this exhibit I was immediately drawn to the brutal imagery that filled these posters. Each poster has an individual identity and message, a message that screams at you. The poster with an illustration of a brick wall wrapped around a man's head reminded me of Pink Floyd's "The Wall." It clearly represents government oppression or containment of some kind. Overall I enjoyed the use of collage work and clever photo and illustration manipulations. Their use is most likely telling political ideals and opinions.

chapter 2: the crit

-People remember what they say much more than what they hear.

-Group critiques offer a unique-some say "utopian"-situation in which everyone focuses on the student's work with a mandate to understand it as deeply as possible.

-"No technique before need." It used to be said that some art colleges instructed their students only "up to the wrist," while CalArts educated its artists only "Down to the wrist."

-The prevailing belief is that any artist whose work fails to display some conceptual rigor is little more than a pretender, illustrator, or designer.

-Politics is central to the conversation that go on in Post-Studio.

-Crits may be opportunities to hash out communal meanings, but that doesn't mean that students finish the semester with uniform values.

-Group crits are such an established part of the curriculum in the United States, and to a lesser extent in Europe and elsewhere, that only a few teachers reject them.

-Many believe that artists shouldn't be obliged to explain their work.

-Artists often don't fully understand what they've made, so other people's readings can help them "see at a conscious level" what they have done.

-Perhaps creativity is not on the agenda at art school because being creative is tacitly considered the unteachable core of being an artist?