I enjoyed watching this video, because I think it will help me with the collage project a lot. I’ve been trying to figure out how I want to approach the project and what items/scans will be best to print and work with. The video gave me some ideas on how the hone in on specifics and find a jumping off point. In my head, I’ve been thinking about how much the include and how the completely change all the image I use into one new image. In the video, Richards talked about how, when playing a guitar, each hand needs to be telling the same story. He emphasizes the harmony between how each hand works. I think that idea applies to the images I choose, in that I have to choose things that can say similar/complimentary things.

In the video, Richards also talks about the value of simplicity. He uses an painting analogy and says how young artist want to unnecessarily paint everything. This part was important for me to hear, because when I am not sure about a project, I think too big and want to do too much. It is a good reminding that simple work is not exactly simple – it is just minimal and can still be good. Just as much thought and effort can go into a minimal work as a complex one. This is an idea I will be keeping in mind while figuring out how to approach the collage project.

I found the Medium is the Message interesting. I had to read one of Marshall McLuhan’s academic articles about the idea of Medium is the Message for a Communication Theories class; therefore, I approached the reading and audio posts with a communication mindset. I definitely wish I hadn’t already had exposure to the theory before this assignment, because it would have been nice to experience these unorthodox ways of presentation for the first time with no background. I definitely worry that because I have previously seen this work in a Communication context, that I am missing the point for a design context.

I liked the use of audio for this topic. Honestly, the best way to explain how media changes messages/meaning is to present something in different ways to force the audience to see that. The audio allowed for symbolic meaning to come across through repetition and various voice types.

Like the audio, the reading was a great example of the topic in action. Although McLuhan often talks about invention, human progress, and light when discussing this topic, the subtleties of presentation in the reading still exemplify his ideas. The best example is the 60th page of the pdf where he uses different fonts and type faces to express emphasis in the paragraph. It really disrupted by flow while reading because I had to read each word in a different tone.

I really love McLuhan’s work on media because I think it is relevant to our lives as people and as artists. His research best explains how we view the world and how the way things are displayed or what is used to pass on information to a person influences how those things and information are received. Ideas like these are very important in art and design. If one understands the medium is the message, one can use that knowledge while making work.

Part 1:

1. What are the main points of each article? Both articles address the overlap between business and art. They argue that the skill needed to be successful in business today are the same skills found in artists.
2. What can artists learn from their “entrepreneurial cousins”? Essentially, artists can learn the importance of networking and utilizing opportunities and resources to the best of their ability. In today’s world, an artist needs to have a strong network of people to communicate with and be able to best use available resources if they want to be successful.
3. Do you agree that artists are entrepreneurs? why? Yes, because no matter what job or position you take as an artist and aspect of what they do will always be “selling” their work. This can be in the form of a small business or seen in a more abstract way. Either way, an artist has to use business skills in order to be successful.
4. Which of the 12 characteristics of artists do you agree with? I agree with the majority of the characteristics, specifically the ones about how artists think/view the world such as being comfortable with ambiguity.
5. What others would you add to the list? Honestly, I can not think of any other traits. I feel like the ones listed were vague enough in their descriptions to encompass all possible traits. In the end, some of the listed one seem a stretch to apply to all artists, but I can see how they do apply to most. Therefore, I did not question the inclusion of those traits. Overall, the only trait that can fit artists is the capacity for creativity and ability to view issues and ideas from multiple, new, or different angles.
6. Additional thoughts: As much as I enjoy articles that talk about the importance of artists, they tend to stress me out. Many of my friends are from the honors program or do STEM, none are fellow artists. Therefore, I feel like I am not doing what the articles say I should be doing by networking and building up resources.

Part 2:

1. Do you have grit, or is this something you need to work on? My result of the test said I scored 3.38 out of 5. Honestly, I recognize that I am unmotivated very often, and did not expect to be very “gritty,” particularly when it comes to personal projects. The TED talk only made this more clear. I think I have way more grit when it comes to things that matter and school-related things.
2. List a couple of things you could do to increase your level of grit: I could treat personal projects like school projects and add them to calendars/to do lists. I would do a lot better if I could find ways to remind myself that personal projects are just as important. One think I could do to help is to make smaller goals. I look at the big picture to much and need to break it down so it is easier to schedule and stay on top of work.

I really enjoyed the audio/videos for this reflection. One concept I think carried over all three media was the idea of not representing in a one-on-one way. Amy Tan first bought up the idea when talking about her poodle drawing claiming that it was good but not creative. Spoon actively did this when using other artists to influence their demo and song. To me, Dan Brackage did it in the video by the way he chose to visually represent his ideas. This an idea I find very important in my own art. I spent most of my life drawing everything one-to-one. When I was younger, I would pull up images online and try to copy them myself. This is good for learning skills, but not for building creativity. Overtime, I have changed to find qualities of other things or art that I like and remember them for uses later. This is similar to what Spoon did when remaking their demo in different styles.

Something Amy Tan talked about in her TED talk was the nature of accidents and their importance in the creative process. Spoon also had this happen when including things like bongos or when they talked about just throwing ideas out there. Currently when working, I like the idea of using accidents. Starting making things is very hard. It is much easier to just go for it, and then work to create something out of what you have. This is something I am doing right now in sculpture and that I do while working with ink. You don’t always get to have complete control over the materials, so you have to use the unintentional and the accidents to form something intriguing and interesting. This process is adding meaning to something and not making something of an existing meaning in your head.

This article made me think a lot about how we perceive color. I have often read that black and white images are less true than colored images. This is because the images often become more smooth or perfect when a black and white filter is applied to them. A lot of beauty bloggers spread the idea that black and white images hide flaws. Because of this background knowledge, I found it very interesting when Villem claimed that black and white images were less abstract. Although that isn’t how I initial thought about the relationship between an image and color, I do understand where the author is coming from.

I often think a lot about the appearance of color through screens. The way Villem explains color as more abstract makes sense when considering how screens run on RGB and printers on CMYK. The discontinuity between the colors used do raise the question as to what is the true color. Then, there are instances of brightness and screen type. This idea was pushed to its limit a few years ago with the dress phenomena where there was an image of a dress that would appear white and gold or black and blue. The brightness and location of the screen played a role in how it appeared, but the actual make up of the eye was what determined it more. As an artist, these ideas are interesting and concerning. There are the philosophical issues about what is the real or most perfect depiction of the thing. More importantly, there is the artistic issue about how an image appears to an audience. The article may focus on the relationship between the artist, tool, and product, but it makes me think more about the relationship between the artist, audience, and product.