...and time goes on

Today was the first official Monday of the school year, but my LAST first Monday of the school year. It's funny being a senior, everyone likes to remind you that every "first" of the year is actually your last. I guess that's just how time works.

So the theme of today is time.

Today I received my creative journal back from my art teacher after she had taken it home to grade over the weekend. When she gave it back to me, she had nothing but positive things to say, which is always a wonderful thing to hear when you've poured your heart and spent all your time on a project.
Before I show the pictures and explain my individual thought processes, I would like to explain a little bit about this project.

My summer assignment was simple: get a sketchbook and fill 20 pages however you want. My teacher always assigned a 9x12 or 11x14 sketchbooks, but I much prefer to work small. I bought a 6x8 and started my project about mid-summer. I find that best and most inspiring ideas come when I am working within one common theme because it gives me a place to branch out from.
My whole summer, I couldn't stop thinking about time. The mysterious thing about time is that it only exists in the past and future, the present is so fleeting that it can barely receive any significance. Everything in our life is divided into these 2 categories, the past and the future. So concrete is the past, so ambiguous is the future. Sometimes I find myself obsessing over time and what it actually means. Soon enough, this concept of time evolved into a study of the process of life, for time is only measured when there is life to compare it to.

Time and Life and Death are huge impacts lately on my artwork only because I find this endless cycle fascinating. These were the themes of my creative journal this summer.
But one poem in particular really inspired a lot of the work in this journal, and that is the poem "Death" by Percy Bysshe Shelley. It's a beautiful poem highlighting the themes I just discussed. You will find it several times within my work. (Also, I hope nobody finds this morbid! I really am not a morbid person, it's just a theme for my artwork).
(*NOTE: All quotes within the book are not mine and are taken from sources I believed to be excellent examples with a theme of time.
**Also, I made everything in this journal myself, excluding images taken from other sources, assortement of media materials and paper.)

And without further ado, here are the pictures I took today on my iPhone (sorry about any bad quality):

 Front Cover. Quote: "Lost time is never found again." -Benjamin Frankilin

 Front pages (all numbers are hand cut and ribbon is in the back)

 Quote: "first... our hopes, and then our fears" -"Death," Percy Shelley

 Quote from John Keats. Skeleton inspired by the "Bodies" exhibit I saw recently in Chicago.

 Hand embroidered stop watch.

 Quote (slightly modified) from "On Death" by Percy Shelley.

 The paper inside the envelope quotes " Maybe none of us really understand what we've lived through, or feel we've had enough time." -from Never Let Me Go (movie)

 Inside the treasure chest is part of the dictionary definition of time.

 Quote on first page from poem "Death," by Percy Shelley. Quote on second page from the Curious Case of Benjamine Button (movie).

 Writing on tree from the song "Good Riddance," by Green Day

 (Sorry! Missing a page in here!)

(Missing another page in here!) But that is actually a real mirror with a base I made of paper. The quote on the 2nd page is from The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (movie).

Yes, those are real pressed roses! I feel that the quote fit perfectly: "I was just thinking how nothing lasts, and what a shame that is" because just a few days before, those rose betals were brilliantly red.
The poem on the last page is "Death," by Percy Shelley.

Thanks and I hope you liked my work!

Favorite Artists

I thought I'd start today by offering some work by my favorite artists. Within the next few weeks I can begin posting photographs of my own artwork, but right now all of it is in school.
I used to have a really big list of artists that inspire me, but that is stuck on my old computer and trying to dig through the files to locate it would seriously take hours. So even though I have a very large repitoire of inspirational artists, here are my top 5 favorites. (note: almost all are very famous artists, but I am also very inspired by lesser known artists and artist's working today. student work is also a huge inpsiration to me as well).

1. Wayne Thiebaud
I first discovered Wayne at the De Young museum in San Fransisco during a vacation summer 2010. I saw the piece "Three Machines" and was absolutely struck by the vibrant, eye-catching colors, along with the simplicity of his work and unique painterly quality. I wrote down his name, and when I came home I did a quick internet search of his artwork and absolutely fell in love. Most of his still-lifes are of simple nature and simple subjects (mostly food and pastries!), which makes them all the more beautiful to me. He has an extraordinary use of color in everything he paints, which is something I really admire and would like to use in my own work. Wayne Thiebaud is one of the lesser known contributors to the pop art generation, but to me he is the greatest.

 "Three Machines"

 "Three Strawberry Shakes"

 "Four Sandwiches"

"Eight Lipsticks"


2. Janet Hill
Janet Hill has been my most recent discovery yet has already climbed to the number two spot on my favorite artist list. I actually discovered her artwork on a website called craftgawker.com (highly recommended for crafting advice) and once I checked the portfolion on her website, I realized that her work embodied my own creativity. Unfortunately I don't believe I can show any pieces of her artwork here, but I highly recommend you to check out her website and blog and take a look through the hundreds of amazing pieces she has to offer.
http://www.janethillstudio.com/

3. Roy Lichtenstein
A leading man in the pop art revolution, Lichtenstein's iconic cartoon-style paintings are some of my favorites. His work is often funny, satirical, striking, and easily recognizable, making Lichtenstein a leader in the artistic world.

 "Cheese Head"

 "Drowning Girl"

"Girl with Hair Ribbons"

4. Warhol
Do I really have to say anything more? Obviously pop art is a huge inspiration to me.

 "Diamond Dust Shoes"

 Self-Portrait in Drag

 "Life Savers"

"Eight Elvis's"

5. Renoir
Yes, I know, nearly everyone has a soft spot in their heart for Renoir, and I am no exception. I am a huge fan of impressionism and obviously Renoir one of the top leaders (if not THE top) of impressionism. But when you look at his artwork, it's easy to see why. Renoir's work has physically moved me to tears. The beauty he captures with his colors and portraits is so stunning that it is hard to tear your eyes off. Last summer I went to a Renoir exhibit at the Philadelphia Museum of Artwork and was absolutely blown away by the talent that this one man possessed. So even though its borderline cliche to list people such as Renoir and Warhol as my favorite artists, I must admit that they truly make a spot on my list.

 "Portrait of the Actress Jeanne Samary"

 "Jeanne Durand Ruel"

 "Roses in a Vase" (saw this at the Baltimore Museum of Art)

"Two Sisters on a Terrace" (saw this piece at the Art Insitute of Chicago)

first post

So here I go again...
I've made a blog before, but I never knew what to do with it, and soon enough it became a hassle to deal with and I gave up on it. But recently, as I've been searching the web for new artistic inspiration, I've found that blogs are some of the best places to look to find ideas and get involved the artistic community.
So here's a little about me:
I'm currently 17, a senior in high school and beginning the college application process! My whole life I've been interested in art, but I never realized that art was my future until about 10th grade when I started taking higher level art courses and worked with my current art teacher, who has helped me through everything and has been a huge inspiration. I will soon begin the application to schools such as MICA, RISD, SAIC, NYU, Parsons, and Cornell. I have an interest in fashion design, fiber arts, graphic design, and illustration, however I haven't the slightest idea what I will major in once I go to college.

I decided to make this blog to post about the artwork I'm creating and the artists who are inspiring me. I'm not sure anyone will even look at this, but I hope that if you do, you feel inspired by what I'm doing. Feel free to offer advice, support, or just a friendly hello!

Thanks and welcome!