Website

Thanks to my wonderful father, I now have a portion of my works displayed on his website.

de-ap

On this website there is also a short statement about my project.

PLEASE check it out! 

Finished

I am done with my pieces! So relieved! I also was able to buy 12 frames yesterday, and they are all the same. My dad has already helped frame a few, and we have them displayed in our living room. Something about framed pieces makes them look so much more legitimate, this portion of the project is almost finished!
The last thing I need to finish is my artist's statement. I have started drafting ideas. I want to simply explain why this project is so important, not only for me, but for everyone.
I will include statistics that are eye opening.



This picture is one of my framed photos! My Dad has already reserved to buy this one, because it is his favorite.

Happiness Revisited

As a child, joy came naturally to me. I was most happy being in the company of others and I never got tired of playing. I liked to imagine that my friends were part of my family, and after long play dates I would often plead to sleep over, or at least stay for dinner. Although my parents have always been proud of my ability to get along with others, they have tried to encourage me to be more independent and learn to enjoy my time alone. 

When I got a little older and became more aware of social pressures, I began to realize that joy cannot be taken for granted. At school, the way you dressed or acted mattered if you wanted to fit in. Advertisements and images of stylish people suggested that happiness could be bought, or put on. Was joy a new phone with unlimited texting? Was joy another “friend” on Facebook? It seemed as if joy was determined by what our culture offered us. Such ideas seem entirely frivolous to me now as I consider the meaning of true joy.

 Recently I have begun to learn what is truly important to me. I love art. This past summer I began to create work on my own, independent from anyone’s instruction. I would sit for hours, drawing portraits that intrigued me. I was amazed by how the detail of individual features revealed character. The marks of my pencil would gradually develop into an eye that looked back at me or an ear that could listen to my stories. It was beautiful, almost as if I were making new friends. Of course there would be occasional arguments, leaving behind an unintended smudge or a splatter of undesirable color. But in the end the mistakes made these people less perfect and more real, adding uniqueness to their character, and on occasion even enhancing our relationship. 

The article "Happiness Revisited" further explores my ideas regarding lasting joy. Despite our said motives, we ultimately strive to be happy. Reading this piece has helped me reflect upon many experiences. I believe that as individuals we are too often passive; not truly engaging ourselves in the world. Social networking sites give us the false illusion of constant connection, artificially fulfilling our need to be socially active, while in reality, in those times, we are simply alone. For me, sharing experiences with others is truly satisfying, but being content within one's own body is fundamental. Quoting "Happiness Revisited": "In the quest for happiness, partial solutions don't work." This quote is true on so many levels. One must pursue their interests, and in doing so hopefully solidify their identity. 

As an individual when measuring between being anxious or bored, I find myself on the anxious side of the spectrum. I tend to overbook my schedule, and consequently I feel overwhelmed and disappointed in myself when I am not able to complete everything I do. In order for me to achieve a balance (which I hope to accomplish in College!) I must be able to dedicated myself fully to less. This year has been particularly difficult because I had overestimated my ability to handle multiple activities. I now know my limit, and I will cary that lesson with me in the future.

Art effects everyday lives. Whether it is the carefully thought out composition, or merely sloppy graffiti; our visual landscape surounds us, making us feel comfort in a familiar place, or curiosity for something new. Growing up in an artist’s home has certainly given me perspective. I find myself judging work not only in a gallery but in a hotel room or restaurant. More often then not, I find the work displayed dull, perhaps pretty, but ultimately uninteresting. On the rare occasion of finding work I truly admire I try to understand what it is about that given piece that is so special. 

I have been given the special opportunity to have my own work displayed. This experience, though only one week away, is still unreal. I am excited, scared, thrilled and proud of my accomplishments. This mix of emotions leads to more nervousness, I hope so much for this to be a success. I keep flashing back to moments I have experienced in my life where I have been taken by art. Starting at age 4 at the Prado in Madrid, to recently at the Art Institute of Chicago. I love the stories that are told behind each piece, I love the people that I meet, the places I travel to. I hope that through the portraits of these Afghan girls, (which I promise to post as soon as they are all done!) I will lend a similar experience to those who choose to stop and observe. 

Upon reflection I realize that although it feels that I started this project just months ago, in actuality the process has been a lifetime. Despite the chaos of the past week, I am thrilled to have this opportunity. 

HTAC Paragraph

We all believe that education is extremely important, but sadly a part of our lives that is often taken for granted. Becoming involved with Help the Afghan Children has helped shape our view of how valuable education truly is. As a club we hope to raise 3,000 dollars this year. We see this contribution as a way to give back. We are planning a local event of music, poetry and art that will hopefully not only raise money, but also raise awareness of the beauty behind helping others. Though endless statistics show how the world is unjust, the personal relationships we may form with these children will leave an unshakable affect. This experience was initially our simple mission to help change the lives of those less fortunate, but as we progress, we see how this process will change the lives of everyone involved.

The paragraph above explains our clubs mission this year. This paragraph will be posted on the HTAC website, as well as explained/read to our sister school in Kabul Afghanistan.

Snow Day in April

Today is April 23rd, and we have a SNOWDAY!
As much as I would love to be outside building an igloo or pelting trees with ice balls, I will take advantage of this time, and create my website (with much assistance from my Dad).
This is exciting! I will scan the work I have done, and post them along with information about HTAC and my WISE project.
Off to work.

A lot of work.

Yesterday I had the wonderful experience of doing a full-day workshop at the Ink Shop downtown. I was able to really expand on ideas, artistically. I have decided to do my pieces without borders, this choice is in part due to my lack of time, but mainly because I want these portraits to be about the girls.
I have continued to work on my pieces, I have 4 to do in the next week, so the pressure is really on.

This is all coming so fast. I realize that on top of these pieces I also have to do a write up about my project.

I will post that on my blog as soon as I amdone writing about it.
I will also post the finished 12 drawings on my blog when they are complete.
When my work is up I will need to create a sight that can display my work if others are interested.
Lost of work, little time.

Frustration

Unfortunately I can not display my work in June. But I have been slotted in during May. I have less than 3 weeks to finish my drawings, make borders (which I may not do because of the time limit) and mat and frame my work. Although May is a great month to display my work, I am nervous that because of the shortened amount of time I will not be nearly as concise as I would otherwise be.

Tomorrow Mrs. Augustine can not have a meeting, I love our meetings, but I will be able to use this time to do some extra work on my portraits. 

I wish I had known the possibility of doing May earlier, so I wouldn't feel this stress.

Although this is certainly a roadblock, in some ways this change may improve my end project in someways. I will (during my presentation) know exactly how much of a profit I made. Making money to support HTAC is my ultimate goal, I am excited that I will make this money sooner than later.

Our club event is also coming up in May. I can inform people at this event of my exhibit at Gimmie.

I still need to consider making a website so people can view my work outside of this display. But this will happen after I am done with my drawings.

Meeting on Thursday

I met with Jenny last Thursday. I am happy to say that I will be displaying my work in the sitting area, where there are two walls. I will be displaying my work the entire month of June, and I even get to have an opening night on Gallery Night!! This is all so exciting.
I have started to think about getting frames. I hope they are not too expensive, if the total is too much I may keep a fraction of the money to be reimbursed. I just really want to send all the proceeds to HTAC.