No. 72: Satire

Satire in art is a visual way for an artist to comedically criticize something. This sarcastic imagery usually involves distorted figures or animals. Satirical art is meant for viewers to contemplate political or social issues, while seeing the artist's opinion through the piece. Bird mentions the necessity of having the meaning be clear to the audience when creating satirical work. With satire also comes bravery and bluntness because the artist makes his or herself vulnerable to attacks regarding their controversial work.

Admittedly, making satirical work is something that I find challenging. I consider myself non-confrontational, so creating something controversial is a bit out of my comfort zone. On the flip side, art gives us a way to express perhaps what we would not verbalize otherwise. Maybe I could create a comical series criticizing stereotypes. Stereotyping is something that I feel strongly about because I feel that often people's initial judgements about others are often incorrect.

No. 77 Expressing Inner States

In Bird's passage on expressing inner states, he talks about how artists strove to make the invisible visible. What could not be expressed physically or verbally could somehow be expressed visually through art. Expressing one's inner state through art was about pulling feelings from the soul, and turning them to images for others to interpret.

I see incorporating this idea into my own work through extreme abstraction and nonobjective pieces. I think it would be interesting to express singular emotions such as fear, sorrow, and joy (emotions all humans can identify with) and depict what they look like for me personally. Through color, I could enhance upon ideas like linking red to anger or love, but pushing it through my own interpretations. Expressing the inner state is something that I feel is a unique and liberating feel that is obtainable by making art.

No. 66: The Unconscious

As Bird mentions in this passage, Sigmund Freud's ideas about the unconscious sparked interests for artists to explore dreams, desires, and fantasies in their work. The unconscious mind is said to reveal truth about desires that we repress, and bring them to life. Surrealist art in particular, focused on the unconscious with its "fantastical distortions and dream imagery."

The unconscious is something that fascinates me. I feel that I can use this idea and make it playful and bold. I've considered exploring meanings behind dreams that I've had, and visually express them in my work. I like the idea of creating a fantasy world, or depicting what different people's "heaven" looks like in their mind. I also think that the unconscious also goes along with intoxication and how our bodies respond when we are under the influence of a foreign substance. It would be to interesting to see what this can look like artistically.

No. 68: Multiple Viewpoints

The idea of multiple viewpoints in art was about taking a picture out of its "frame." According to Bird, the conventional single-viewpoint linear perspective was a poor representation of what our eyes really take in. The Cubists were the first to paint scenes from multiple angles in the same picture plane. Artists then challenged the way we view art all together by evoking atmosphere and feelings through different executions of brushwork and colors. I like the quote Bird used from Picasso explaining that it is "like a perfume--in front of you, behind you, to the side. The scent's all around but you can't quite tell where it comes from."

Multiple viewpoints is something I think would be interesting to explore in my work in different ways. I  like the idea of creating a portrait of someone and combining different angles of their face into the composition. I could also depict the different "sides" of an individual's personality metaphorically in a mosaic inspired way. It would also be interesting to take a "Monet approach" to a series of paintings and show the same location at different times of a day or year. Juxtaposition is a word that comes to my mind when I think about multiple viewpoints. When two images are placed next to each other, the viewer interprets the meanings differently. Experimenting with collage and juxtaposition would be a good way to incorporate multiple viewpoints. 

No. 53: Authenticity

Authenticity plays an interesting role in how art is valued. According to Bird, authenticity is about "distinguishing between what is genuine and what is not." If viewers believe the artist personally experienced or witnessed what their art is about, the work is genuine in their eyes. Also, once an artist has earned credibility and fame, their work, regardless of how it looks, is deemed valuable.

How can I make my own work authentic? If I make art surrounding events in my own life, does that make it authentic? Does originality exist?  How can authenticity exist without originality? In my opinion, if I am passionate about what I produce, it is authentic art in my eyes.

Ideas Continued

26. Modernize a story in Greek mythology*

27. Children and their imaginary friends

28. Sculpture critiquing pollution*

29. America's contribution to obesity/ fast food

30. Create a kitch piece on saturation and celebrities*

31. Recreate an awkward family photo--the 'perfect' family

32. Show how flowers can take on different meanings in different atmospheres. (weddings, funerals, etc.)

33. Hoarding: what is precious vs. junk?

34. Addiction spiraling out of control

35. Cityscape of the future*

36. Cyber communication and false identity

37. Isolation (internally and externally)

38. REM cycles through abstraction

39. Ink blot tests/ psychology

40. Linking religions

41. Spirits and ghosts

42. Survival of the fittest

43. Daredevils

44. Approaching death: moving towards the light

45. Can money buy happiness?

46. The mysteries of the sea/ mermaids

47. Prostitution and self-worth

48. Handwriting and identity

49. Keys: unlocking

50. Stopping time and skipping time

No. 7: Narrative

In Bird's passage about narrative, he talks about how art can tell a story in a different way. An artist chooses how they wish to present a message visually by making artistic decisions. Art can shine light on a particular story, or communicate through a new perspective. A narrative can be told through a series of chronological images, or through a single composition.

I want my work to intrigue viewers and invite them to look for the narrative behind the art. I am interested of the idea of storytelling without words. How can I twist a well-known story to create a new narrative? How can I develop a narrative in a series by creating a beginning, middle, and end?