Chakaia Booker

A little while back I went to the Storm King Art Center and got to view one of Chakaia Booker's sculptures titled "A Moment in Time" (2004).

Booker is a great example of an artist who uses identity in her work. She once said, "When I get up each day, I begin with myself, as far as sculpting myself."

She recycles discarded tires in her pieces in reaction to her urban hometown of northern New Jersey. In this sense, she is relating herself back to where she grew up.

Her pieces also portray aspects of black culturde-the textures, organization, and color contained in the piece are reminiscent of African-American skin. The patterns within the tire paired with the geometric loops and shapes she creates resemble traditional African scarification. Booker uses her sculpture to reference culture and tradition, both of which provokes ideas about identity.

Some of her other work:

"The Fatality of Hope"

"Phobic Digression" 2006

"Anonymity" 2007

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Some questions about identity:

How does tradition make me who I am?

Does the color of my skin shape or affect my identity?

Does my race make me proud of who I am?

Does the place I reside have an effect on my actions?

What textural art materials can I use to represent the person I see myself as? (soft, rough, hard, sharp,  brittle, etc.)

This American Life

I really enjoyed listening to the middle school segment on "This American Life." I saw connections to my own experiences at that age as well as to our readings in class.

The middle school dance segment discussed the stress, uncertainty, and fear of humiliation that is brought on by this social "experiment in mini-adulthood." At this age, boys and girls are experiencing the realm of dating. According to Kerlavage, at the age of 11-13,  pre-teens and adolescents are attempting to reconcile difference in children and adult roles, which may cause great confusion and a lack of emotional control (pg. 56). As they  go through puberty, middle schoolers are starting to go on dates and see the opposite sex in a romantic way, but are unsure how to act in these new roles. This results in the fleeting relationships that so commonly occur in those years.

Kerlavage also states at this age, young people have the desire to establish their own identities (pg. 57). This was evident in the Mimi segment, where two Mexican sisters attempt to survive middle school by pretending they were from a completely different family. They dressed as if they were rich and dyed their hair blonde. They had an amazing spirit and sense of humor, and by them creating their own image (even if it was misleading) built their confidence and helped them cope with their feelings of identity.

Portfolio for my Art Education Application

Sweater Sequence (Photo Narrative)

7 x 19

Digital

Your Eyelashes are the Spines of Tiny Fragile Animals

(Inspired by Leonard Cohen's "Beneath my Hands")

7 x 10

Film

Pools for Your Looking and Laughing

(Inspired by Leonard Cohen's "Beneath my Hands")

7 x 10

Film

Two-Headed Vase (with Tulipiere-Inspired Hot Sauce Bottle Necks)

Slip-cast Ceramics

Reflection

7 x 10

Digital

Wire

7 x 10

Film

Warp

7 x 10

Film

Nude Study

19 x 25

Charcoal and Pencil on Steel Gray Paper

Beauty and Brains (Zombie Girl)

12 x 16

Woodcut Reduction Print

Lips

7 x 10

Digital

Studio Explorations: Phase 1 Continued

Since my last post I've been brainstorming with what exactly I am going to create with the bottles and cans in my house. I thought about creating a sculpture, but I was unsure whether to create an abstract or representational piece, so my ideas stopped there. I considered cutting up the bottles and cans into little portions and arrange them deliberately on a canvas, but I still thought something was missing.

I finally decided that my studio exploration should be more focused on my reaction to place, and less about the general state of the environment. Starting small and considering these bottles and cans in the context of my own home has led me in a new artistic direction.

A common object related to the home is a welcome mat. Along with serving the practical purpose of wiping your feet, it is an inviting gesture from the people who live within.

By piecing together these bottles and cans, my welcome mat will become a portrait of the people living inside my house based on what they consume.

I'll post some pictures of my progress soon!

Trimis and Savva and Chorotopos

Chorotopos, according to this article, is related to the space inside and outside of the school. This includes landscape and the village/town surrounding the school. This reading describes three different areas in Greece where children were allowed to explore areas near their school and create art based on those places. By exploring their chorotopos, children gained ideas for representing images as well as enhance their thinking in many different subject areas.

I thought back to my experiences as a child in art class. All I can remember is being inside the classroom and using fairly traditional art supplies. I think it is such a great thing for a child who is full of questions to experience a place and discover its qualities and be inspired by it.

This past summer I worked as a woodworking specialist with 1st to 6th graders at a day camp. We used both wood sets and collected branches to make projects, and I see many connections to the articles we read that discuss the importance of exploring natural materials. 

While working there, the main issue I came across was time. Having only thirty to forty minutes to create art is very limiting, especially when you include setting up, cleaning up, and giving directions. Trimis and Savva discuss time as a factor as well. They state that children should be given sufficient time for "exploration, creation, and reflection." When considering this issue with chorotopos, it seems unrealistic to me that an art class would have ample time to venture out and investigate a nearby place that would be as inspiring as the forests and beaches of Greece. How can the application of chorotopos be made possible in an urban or suburban area while still being safe, educational, and inspiring?

Studio Explorations: Phase 1

For this assignment, I first thought about the places in my life and how they impact me. I thought about my house in New Paltz. This is the first year I've lived off campus, and it greatly differs from the way I've lived on campus in a dorm. The amount of trash that accumulates in a house of 6 girls is astonishing, and recycling has become more challenging because of the way our landlord has set up our garbage pickup. I constantly find glass jars, plastic bottles, and cans dispersed throughout our trash bags. My housemates and I usually collect as much as we can and transport them to a recycling facility in town, but it seems that can only accomplish so much.

I want to challenge myself artistically by accumulating these discarded bottles and cans and perhaps create a sculpture that has a proactive message about the importance of recycling. I rarely work in 3-d, so this can be an exciting chance to experiment with new materials.

Artists Tim Noble and Sue Webster use trash to create indiscernible sculptures that cast surprising shadows.

These pieces are inspiring and fascinating and I'd love to explore the idea of perception and recycled materials.

Artwork

My medium of choice is digital photography, but since college I've had the chance to challenge myself with new media which has allowed me to grow as an artist. I love photographing people in both beautiful and eccentric ways. My style ranges from the familiar to the surreal, often incorporating conceptual ideas into my work.

Sweater Sequence

Digital

Your Eyes 

Part of photo narrative inspired by Leonard Cohen's "Beneath My Hands"

Film

Pools

Part of photo narrative inspired by Leonard Cohen's "Beneath My Hands"

Film

Ice Cube

Design: Form project involving the process of time

Digital

2-Headed Vase

Ceramic Slipcast

Wire

Film

Warp

Film

View more of my work here

Class Discussion

I really enjoyed hearing about and discussing the different articles in my group. It made me realize how multifaceted education is, and how outside factors can affect a student's learning in the classroom. One idea that stood out to me was the naturalization of certain images in pop culture how it can greatly affect a child's perception of race and gender. That's why, as an educator, it's important to address these issues instead of ignoring them. Art can be a good way for students to express personal opinions on these important matters, and in turn can help them assess how their thoughts and opinions relate to the rest of the world.
Another important idea to note is taking art outside of the classroom. Some children learn better and can be more inspired by a less rigid environment. The more a student can see and experience, the more he or she can grow as a person and artist. Going along with that idea, incorporating other subjects along with art can make learning fun and relevant, especially for creative students who might have trouble in science, reading, or math. Creating an art lesson that involves both the left and right brain can help students embrace all subjects.