Friendship Formed Over Art

Friendship Formed Over ArtOver the past couple of months my PAL, Gil Green, and I have been forming a lasting and true friendship. I become more eager and excited to see and spend the day with him each class period. Today was no different. We bonded over telling stories and catching up on our lives. He told me about work and up coming trips he plans to take and I filled him on school and spring break. And then while we worked on our vases, I learned that he plays the violin and enjoys trying and eating different ethnic foods. And I shared with him my love of the ocean while he helped me put together my vase. The art gives us an outlet to express ourselves while enjoying each other’s company and getting to know one another. We are able to share our lives and have found we have a lot in common. With things that we do not share, I have come to value his insight and knowledge and enjoy learning from him. Our friendship and time spent together is natural and sincere. Gil has become a good friend and I enjoy our Sunday’s together. We have bonded over art and overcome any generational difference to become an unlikely but sincere pair of friends which I hope will last beyond the course.

Taylor Lansing, graduate student in Pharmacy

Totem of Memories

Totem of MemoriesToday’s PALETTE class was very different than any we have experienced so far. Today we expanded our perspective in art by molding clay totem poles. The designs we created on them signified the feelings and memories that define us. Since this was a harder project, we had many opportunities to work closely with our PAL and help each other. From this project, we were able to bond in so many ways. Since I always had a love for interior design, I decided to express my interest by making a totem pole decorated with a floral pattern and a border framing my vase. This design represented my hobby in interior design and my love of decorating my room with lots of floral colors, picture frames, and symmetrical designs. My PAL, Martha loved the idea of a floral engraving that she too decided to use another floral pattern that was available. When talking more about our art, I learned that she picked this pattern because she has a passion for gardening, and has her own garden in her yard. This sparked a conversation about hobbies, and interestingly, I learned that my PAL and I both share a hobby for dancing! This was such a refreshing experience, because in our busy day we never have time to just relax, take out a moment for ourselves, and talk to another person about our own interests and experiences. It was incredible to see how a project like this leads us to help each other and learn so many new things about ourselves. We may be of different ages, generations, and backgrounds, but its great to see how alike we really are when it comes to experiences and hobbies.

Shabnam Dakwala, graduate student in Pharmacy.

Cemented Memories

Cemented MemoriesIt was a refreshing surprise to delve into a different type of art form today. Up to this point, we have only expressed ourselves through paper but today we got our hands dirty with clay. We were instructed to make vases with designs that had significant meaning or memories. This allowed many opportunities to bond with our PALs as we constructed our individual vases. As a Filipino, I’ve always been surrounded by all sorts of music. In turn, I grew up with great appreciation for it and decorated vase with musical notes. My partner, Marty, had a much more dynamic piece. Prior to this program, Marty was a bus driver for the JCC and a manager for Saxon shoes. These were his 2 favorite jobs so he incorporated them into his vase by cutting out a rather detailed JCC bus and 3 types of shoes. We had a great time with this class especially since this was our first experience with clay. Our backgrounds definitely came out in our projects. When we were asked to decorate the vase with significant memories, it forced us think about it. With both of us having much else to worry about in the present, it’s hard to find time to reminisce about the past. These memories are the factors that made us who we are so it was revitalizing to bring out and discuss with someone else.

Alvin Maraya, graduate student in Pharmacy.

VMFA Outing

VMFA OutingToday, we had a cultural outing at the VMFA. We were split up into two groups, those who have been there before and those who have not been. My PAL, Shirley and I have both been to VMFA, so we went with the group that would get a more in-depth view of artistic style over the centuries. It was fascinating because the concept of art is organic, it continues to change over time; however, the concept of ageism is still present in art. Even the tour guide said that those who are older do not appreciate modern day or 20th century art because it isn’t “real.” It is interesting how ageist stereotypes even exist in art.

The tour guide gave excellent insight on how art has evolved ofrom the 1500’s up until today. Techniques such as bright colors, size of the main object, and darkness remained the same between all of the photos in order to draw your eyes to certain points in the painting. Artistic style changed over the centuries in regards to depth of paintings, the focus, and the type of painting. My PAL and I noticed many of these aspects, but we both agreed that we needed more time than a one hour tour to truly notice and appreciate art. Both of us agreed that there was something about “older art” that is astounding and there is nothing like it. In regards to modern art, we both don’t understand it as much as we do with “older art,” but we agree that it all depends on the person and what their perception of “art” is. We both loved being at the VMFA and hope that there can be more time to appreciate all the pieces, both old and new.

 

Allyson Batoy, graduate student in Pharmacy

How Artworks Have Evolved Over Time

How Artworks Have Evolved Over TimeToday, we went to the VMFA to learn more about different types of artwork ranging from back in the renaissance to modern times.  Douglas, who was our tour guide was extremely knowledgeable about the artworks around the museum.  My PAL and I got to learn about how artworks have evolved from being very abstract and vibrant to a light and dark contrast. People were very interested in religious symbols back then and they painted a picture of Mother Mary wearing mostly blue, which back in the day the blue hue used was the most expensive out of all the hues, symbolizing that she was very important and rich.  As we move along to different eras, the type of paintings moved away from being religious to being about nature and having a darker contrast. The frames containing the portraits also changed to being very simple instead of elegant and detailed. The last spot of our tour show paintings that are not even on a canvas anymore but artists have moved to painting on walls with very simple color such as red, yellow, blue, and green.

 

Linh Tu, graduate student in Pharmacy