Arabesque Dreaming

I am a student of the world, focusing on art history. This is where I will share my favorite news articles from the art world, works of art, and images/quotes I consider to be beautiful.

Things I love:

Rococo art and architecture
Cuban coffee
Winter nights
My 3DS
Golden oldies
Netflix
Naps


Things I loathe:

Alarm clocks
8am classes
ART2003C - Artist’s Blog - #10 -> Found Materials This piece was fun to create, at first. I found everything in my boyfriend’s backyard. Yes, even the My Little Pony toy. Thankfully, it was not covered in our neighbor’s dog’s poop. While collecting all of the foliage, I was not sure what I was going to create. But as soon as I saw the discarded toy, I knew exactly what I was going to do. I decided to create a “funeral pyre” for the toy with the twigs, leaves and paper towel. I felt kind of bad that someone had just thrown the toy outside, and it made me think about the things in our lives that we just discard without a single goodbye. I know that is kind of a dramatic statement for a tiny child’s toy, but I am trying to allude to greater things: friendships left behind, possessions left unclaimed when people die, lost luggage from a plane crash, etc. The toy also made me think of my childhood and how I was pretty lucky, but a lot of people are not. Some people have their childhood torn away from them (without having a proper “goodbye” to their child-self before transitioning to adulthood.) So when I say this piece was fun to create at first, I meant it. Once I started to assemble it and realize that there were deeper meanings than I first realized, I became emotional for those who lost their childhood, but grateful because my childhood was not stolen. 

ART2003C - Artist’s Blog - #10 -> Found Materials

This piece was fun to create, at first. I found everything in my boyfriend’s backyard. Yes, even the My Little Pony toy. Thankfully, it was not covered in our neighbor’s dog’s poop. While collecting all of the foliage, I was not sure what I was going to create. But as soon as I saw the discarded toy, I knew exactly what I was going to do. I decided to create a “funeral pyre” for the toy with the twigs, leaves and paper towel. I felt kind of bad that someone had just thrown the toy outside, and it made me think about the things in our lives that we just discard without a single goodbye. I know that is kind of a dramatic statement for a tiny child’s toy, but I am trying to allude to greater things: friendships left behind, possessions left unclaimed when people die, lost luggage from a plane crash, etc. The toy also made me think of my childhood and how I was pretty lucky, but a lot of people are not. Some people have their childhood torn away from them (without having a proper “goodbye” to their child-self before transitioning to adulthood.) So when I say this piece was fun to create at first, I meant it. Once I started to assemble it and realize that there were deeper meanings than I first realized, I became emotional for those who lost their childhood, but grateful because my childhood was not stolen. 

ART2003C - Artist’s Blog - #9 -> Two handed drawing  This was, by far, the most difficult assignment. For the other assignments, I’ve been able to create art without actually showing how terrible I am at drawing. Now you will all see why I decided to express myself through collages. First and foremost, my dominant hand is my left (in purple) and my right is in pink. I first started out by trying to make some sort of masterpiece, but I was thoroughly embarrassed by everything…mostly because my faces looked like they had just been punched. SO, I decided to try and draw something “abstract,” but after several attempts I was feeling further away from my goal. So…I started doodling stuff I would normally draw in a boring class. And Voila! I know this is nothing fancy, but I felt like it was the best way I could really experiment with two-handed drawing and see if I was able to draw things better with my right hand if the shapes were different. I drew some basics, like squares, circles and triangles. And then moved on to the most complex things I could draw. For the most part, my right hand was much much worse, but I think the frazzled quality of my right hand was a nice touch for the manic woman in the middle. 

ART2003C - Artist’s Blog - #9 -> Two handed drawing 

This was, by far, the most difficult assignment. For the other assignments, I’ve been able to create art without actually showing how terrible I am at drawing. Now you will all see why I decided to express myself through collages. First and foremost, my dominant hand is my left (in purple) and my right is in pink. I first started out by trying to make some sort of masterpiece, but I was thoroughly embarrassed by everything…mostly because my faces looked like they had just been punched. SO, I decided to try and draw something “abstract,” but after several attempts I was feeling further away from my goal. So…I started doodling stuff I would normally draw in a boring class. And Voila! I know this is nothing fancy, but I felt like it was the best way I could really experiment with two-handed drawing and see if I was able to draw things better with my right hand if the shapes were different. I drew some basics, like squares, circles and triangles. And then moved on to the most complex things I could draw. For the most part, my right hand was much much worse, but I think the frazzled quality of my right hand was a nice touch for the manic woman in the middle. 

ART2003C - Artist’s Blog -#3 -> Notion of Home My family travels a lot, and my dad’s side of the family moves every 3 years (military), so my notion of home has always been family and has never been linked to a particular place. This collage is a representation of family, love and those friendships which have developed into a sisterly bond, and some of the adventures we’ve had over the years. Starting at the left (continuing down in a column): 1. My twin sister and I doing the original “fist bump” 1990. 2. Me, snorkeling in the Grand Caymans 2008. 3. My twin sister, younger sister and me in Cabo, San Lucas 2009. 4. My boyfriend, Jeff, and me in Cabo, San Lucas 2011. 5. My stepdad and mom in Vegas 2011. 6. My best friend Lindsay and me 2010. (at top of 2nd column)  7. My best friend Devin, me and my younger sister about to swim with dolphins in Cabo, San Lucas 2009. 8. Jeff and me in Cabo, San Lucas 2011. 9. My two younger brothers, stepmom, dad and twin sister in Macon, Georgia 2010. 10. Jeff and me in Jacksonville, FL 2012. (top of 3rd column) 11. Me, going surfing in Cabo, San Lucas 2009. 12. A mere fraction of my family (mom&stepdad’s side) in Cabo, San Lucas 2011. 13. Me, swimming with a dolphin 2009. 14. Devin and me in Mexico 2009. 15. Me, “tight-roping” across a canyon in 2009…the water looks much closer than it actually was.

ART2003C - Artist’s Blog -#3 -> Notion of Home

My family travels a lot, and my dad’s side of the family moves every 3 years (military), so my notion of home has always been family and has never been linked to a particular place. This collage is a representation of family, love and those friendships which have developed into a sisterly bond, and some of the adventures we’ve had over the years. Starting at the left (continuing down in a column): 1. My twin sister and I doing the original “fist bump” 1990. 2. Me, snorkeling in the Grand Caymans 2008. 3. My twin sister, younger sister and me in Cabo, San Lucas 2009. 4. My boyfriend, Jeff, and me in Cabo, San Lucas 2011. 5. My stepdad and mom in Vegas 2011. 6. My best friend Lindsay and me 2010. (at top of 2nd column)  7. My best friend Devin, me and my younger sister about to swim with dolphins in Cabo, San Lucas 2009. 8. Jeff and me in Cabo, San Lucas 2011. 9. My two younger brothers, stepmom, dad and twin sister in Macon, Georgia 2010. 10. Jeff and me in Jacksonville, FL 2012. (top of 3rd column) 11. Me, going surfing in Cabo, San Lucas 2009. 12. A mere fraction of my family (mom&stepdad’s side) in Cabo, San Lucas 2011. 13. Me, swimming with a dolphin 2009. 14. Devin and me in Mexico 2009. 15. Me, “tight-roping” across a canyon in 2009…the water looks much closer than it actually was.

ART2003C - Artist’s Blog - #1 -> Parameters

For this piece, we were asked to use uncommon art materials to create something. Living with my boyfriend, we share a shower, and sharing a shower means he gets annoyed when my hair clogs the drain (I shed…A LOT.) So, towards the middle of the year, he asked me to try and put my hair on the shower wall (ew, gross…I know) so I could scoop it up after my shower and avoid the clogged drains….and this is what happened. I started to strategically place my hair and create some sort of image, and then see what happened after a shower or 2. Some of the pieces moved and created a sort of “Impressionistic” image, while others were completely destroyed. I decided to include 3 of the “pieces” I created. The first reminds me of the Virgin Mary. I included two pictures so you could see the piece close up, and then kind of understand the scale. The second piece reminds me of a Chinese dragon, it was immediately destroyed during my next shower. And the last piece, my favorite, is supposed to be a little girl with a trail of balloons. During my next shower, the piece drastically changed towards the abstract. Either way, I felt like I had my own little gallery showing, emphasis on the little.

ART2003C - Artist’s Blog - #14 - Graffiti For this piece, I was not comfortable with creating graffiti so I photographed one instead. Over spring break, I went to visit my twin sister who lives in New York. One night we were going out to a bar and we saw this graffiti on a construction site. It immediately caught my attention and I thought it held significant meaning since it was at a construction site. For me, this graffiti screams to our generation and the responsibility we have in “creating or culture,” in creating the world we would like to live in. Also, the ellipsis at the end of the statement encourages me to think and “finish” the sentence…make it what I would like it to be…further encouraging the idea of creation. It’s pretty simple, only one color, does not include any drawings, except for the star. I think this lack of decoration also reinforces the idea that we must “create” for ourselves.

ART2003C - Artist’s Blog - #14 - Graffiti

For this piece, I was not comfortable with creating graffiti so I photographed one instead. Over spring break, I went to visit my twin sister who lives in New York. One night we were going out to a bar and we saw this graffiti on a construction site. It immediately caught my attention and I thought it held significant meaning since it was at a construction site. For me, this graffiti screams to our generation and the responsibility we have in “creating or culture,” in creating the world we would like to live in. Also, the ellipsis at the end of the statement encourages me to think and “finish” the sentence…make it what I would like it to be…further encouraging the idea of creation. It’s pretty simple, only one color, does not include any drawings, except for the star. I think this lack of decoration also reinforces the idea that we must “create” for ourselves.

ART2003C - Artist’s Blog - #15-> Identity •The death of my maternal grandfather which coincided with my maternal grandmother’s cancer diagnosis helped shape my identity. My maternal grandfather was killed during a robbery while I was 7 years old – he was picking up pastelitos and cuban bread for my grandmother when someone came in and tried to rob the store and proceeded to shoot several people. My grandfather died en route to the hospital. My family and I were living in Orangeburg, South Carolina at the time. We moved from this tiny town to the big city of Miami to support my grandmother through a breast cancer diagnosis and the death of her husband. It was a pretty tough time for my family, but we pulled through and it definitely made me the strong person I am today. I also feel like I might be different today if I had continued living in Orangeburg, things are much different there. We went to visit our old house a couple of years ago and nothing had changed, no advancements had been made…and the local hangout place was still the house rides in front of Wal-mart…even after 12 years. 

ART2003C - Artist’s Blog - #15-> Identity

•The death of my maternal grandfather which coincided with my maternal grandmother’s cancer diagnosis helped shape my identity. My maternal grandfather was killed during a robbery while I was 7 years old – he was picking up pastelitos and cuban bread for my grandmother when someone came in and tried to rob the store and proceeded to shoot several people. My grandfather died en route to the hospital. My family and I were living in Orangeburg, South Carolina at the time. We moved from this tiny town to the big city of Miami to support my grandmother through a breast cancer diagnosis and the death of her husband. It was a pretty tough time for my family, but we pulled through and it definitely made me the strong person I am today. I also feel like I might be different today if I had continued living in Orangeburg, things are much different there. We went to visit our old house a couple of years ago and nothing had changed, no advancements had been made…and the local hangout place was still the house rides in front of Wal-mart…even after 12 years. 
ART2003C - Artist’s Blog - #13 -> Self-Portrait •This collage is unfinished at the moment,  I have yet to find the remaining elements that will make it feel complete. So far, it is a representation of everything I love. The pink background is a simple representation of the typical female baby color. To the left there is a rococo style ribbon – Rococo art is my specialty. The pink elephant on the bottom left corner is a combination of my favorite color and animal. The antique oval pieces are example of my favorite necklace given to me by my boyfriend.  The large dress in the middle is a representation of my love for fashion, and the tiny skull is my quirky sense of humor.  The leopard print heart is literally my love for anything leopard print. 

ART2003C - Artist’s Blog - #13 -> Self-Portrait

•This collage is unfinished at the moment,  I have yet to find the remaining elements that will make it feel complete. So far, it is a representation of everything I love. The pink background is a simple representation of the typical female baby color. To the left there is a rococo style ribbon – Rococo art is my specialty. The pink elephant on the bottom left corner is a combination of my favorite color and animal. The antique oval pieces are example of my favorite necklace given to me by my boyfriend.  The large dress in the middle is a representation of my love for fashion, and the tiny skull is my quirky sense of humor.  The leopard print heart is literally my love for anything leopard print. 
ART2003C - Artist’s Blog - #12 Collections •I do not collect anything…at all. The idea of a collection is not something which appeals to me in the slightest. Some of my friends who collect movie tickets, airline ticket stubs or photographs tell me they collect said objects in order to preserve memories. For me, I feel like if the event was that memorable, I would remember it fondly without the aid of a collection.  I think part of my aversion to collecting was my upbringing. No one in my family collects anything nor do we have a collection of family photos placed around the house. I also had a strange nanny who had the creepiest porcelain doll collection. I know most people do not feel this way, but I feel that collections are clutter and how the show Hoarders started. I found this picture online and added the part which says “we started with small collections” because I feel that is how most hoarding cases start (with the exception of severe psychological trauma). 

ART2003C - Artist’s Blog - #12 Collections

•I do not collect anything…at all. The idea of a collection is not something which appeals to me in the slightest. Some of my friends who collect movie tickets, airline ticket stubs or photographs tell me they collect said objects in order to preserve memories. For me, I feel like if the event was that memorable, I would remember it fondly without the aid of a collection.  I think part of my aversion to collecting was my upbringing. No one in my family collects anything nor do we have a collection of family photos placed around the house. I also had a strange nanny who had the creepiest porcelain doll collection. I know most people do not feel this way, but I feel that collections are clutter and how the show Hoarders started. I found this picture online and added the part which says “we started with small collections” because I feel that is how most hoarding cases start (with the exception of severe psychological trauma). 
ART2003C - Artist’s Blog - #11 -> Perceptual Cramp •Whenever I have a “mental fart” I need to step away from the project in order to avoid going crazy. Sometimes, I overthink the problem and just run circles in my mind which does not accomplish anything. I have found that the best solution for me is to take a break or come back to it later. I find that walking away and thinking it through, away from the problem, often helps me come to the best conclusion or overcome the perceptual cramp. Sometimes I will check out Pinterest for motivational quotes. (:  •This is the reason why I do not always finish artworks in one go. I do not want to do anything which I feel is less than my best and sometimes I just do not have the piece/motivation I am looking for.  I also do not write papers in “order,” I just kind of spit out everything I am thinking about and then organize the paper into: intro, body, conclusion. I saw this on Pinterest while trying to find some motivation to study for a French literature test and thought it was perfect since I often feel my artwork is an example of the talent of a 5 year old.  I added the part which says “especially if they cannot draw well,” because I think my artwork would be much better if I could draw.   

ART2003C - Artist’s Blog - #11 -> Perceptual Cramp

•Whenever I have a “mental fart” I need to step away from the project in order to avoid going crazy. Sometimes, I overthink the problem and just run circles in my mind which does not accomplish anything. I have found that the best solution for me is to take a break or come back to it later. I find that walking away and thinking it through, away from the problem, often helps me come to the best conclusion or overcome the perceptual cramp. Sometimes I will check out Pinterest for motivational quotes. (: 
•This is the reason why I do not always finish artworks in one go. I do not want to do anything which I feel is less than my best and sometimes I just do not have the piece/motivation I am looking for.  I also do not write papers in “order,” I just kind of spit out everything I am thinking about and then organize the paper into: intro, body, conclusion. I saw this on Pinterest while trying to find some motivation to study for a French literature test and thought it was perfect since I often feel my artwork is an example of the talent of a 5 year old.  I added the part which says “especially if they cannot draw well,” because I think my artwork would be much better if I could draw.
  
ART2003C - Artist’s Blog - #8 -> 3x3 Collage This collage is a contrast of color and black and white. The middle strip is dark green, white and black. I then glued glitter on the color side, and pasted black & white flowers on the other side. I do not really know why I was drawn to this subject but from the beginning of the class I knew one of my tiny collages was going to be black and white VS. color.  This one is incomplete, I am not sure what I should put on the background of the black and white part. 

ART2003C - Artist’s Blog - #8 -> 3x3 Collage

This collage is a contrast of color and black and white. The middle strip is dark green, white and black. I then glued glitter on the color side, and pasted black & white flowers on the other side. I do not really know why I was drawn to this subject but from the beginning of the class I knew one of my tiny collages was going to be black and white VS. color.  This one is incomplete, I am not sure what I should put on the background of the black and white part.