Idea No. 34 Allegory

Allegory is essentially the personification of an abstract idea in a piece of art. These ideas can include for example beauty, greed, space, or a more specific example would be the Statue of Liberty (an allegory for freedom or liberty). This art originated long ago in ancient Greece and the word allegory is derived from the Greek allegoria which means speaking otherwise. Basically a work of art that employs allegory is a metaphor for an abstract idea and creates didacticism between that idea and a visible or tangible means of representing it. Allegory is an excellent technique to use because it creates within the art a deeper meaning for audiences to draw and infer. Some would consider this to be a high form of art.

A big idea, loss of innocence, came to mind when thinking about allegory. It could be depicted as a series of artworks depicting teenagers; like a first cigarette, an underaged drink, and even losing one's virginity--acts that are often secretive. This could be shown through a variety of mediums.

Idea No. 93 Body as Medium

Body as medium is quite possibly one of the oldest and most universal forms of art, starting as far back as handprints on cave walls. It is not as primitive as one might think because the human qualities transcend all cultures and do not place the art in a political or historical context. This allows the art to appeal to a wide audience. Using the body as medium can mean painting with ones body or even using bodily fluids such as blood and urine; hair and skin may also be used.

I used to dance ballet. I've always been drawn to ballerinas and classic ballet as subject for artwork. Ballerinas dancing are an example of performance art and display the use of body as medium. I'm inspired by this and would like to take photographs of cast shadows against a wall, of a ballerina wearing a tutu on pointe.

Idea No. 40 Anatomy

With the growing knowledge of anatomy from the ancient times until the middle ages for doctors, art slowly began to incorporate that knowledge as well. The idea of the muscular and bone structure being a shaping and defining aspect of the human body, it would make sense that artists would try to have some basic knowledge of them since they often work with human subjects. Artists such as Leonardo da Vinci even dissected bodies to gain an understanding of anatomy. Besides lending itself to recreating the human form, anatomical knowledge was also used to make anatomical illustrations that would depict the inner workings of the body.

I understand the importance of knowing anatomy to be successful at figure drawing. Although it is not my favorite concept to practice--it may be something I will teach in my future. I recently had an idea for the use of metaphor that touches on anatomy. It is 'the world is in our hands' where I envisioned creating two hands together and on them is a globe.

Idea No. 9 Body as Surface

Tattoo art, or body art, has been used for centuries. At first it was used to permanently mark slaves. Since then it has been an art for distinguished persons and anyone else who wants their body to be a canvas for a tattoo artist, a canvas that bird would call highly politicized. Body art now also encompasses piercings, particularly dermal piercings.

I have always been interested in henna and its history. Like other cultures and people who use henna--I want to create complex and elaborate patterns on the body. I see it as visually interesting and can serve a purpose or have significance. Although it is temporary, a photograph can last much longer. Perhaps a series of photographs of people of different ethnicity could be something tangible I can explore.

Idea No. 81 Chance

Chance in art is a suspension of conscious control and literally letting chance rather than artistic choice dictate a work. This was a popular theory with the Dadaists, who worked similarly to postmodern poets and authors in their unconventional styles and anti-foundational principles of art. In their opinion, the random chaos of painters like Jackson Pollock and Niki da Saint-Phalle was just as aesthetically pleasing as what the art school elites considered "art". For some time art that employed chance was not held in high esteem by the high society of artists and audiences that were the increasingly exclusive population that were involved in creating and selling art. Art such as this questioned the preconceived notions held by these people and attempted to reach a wider audience.

Chance describes most of my past artworks. I use this idea often--working by intuition as I create an artwork. I don't sketch, however sometimes I probably should. I enjoy not being conscious of what I am doing and letting my unconscious produce something creative. I apply this idea mainly to abstract artworks.

Idea No. 50 Whiteness

Whiteness in art has come to stand for many things over time, but it is always more than just a color or absence of color. It can represent purity, classical influence, the abstract, etc. It represented an aesthetic philosophy as well. It was associated with Ancient Greek art, then for a while eroticism (bordering on pornographic), and made a philosophical comeback in the 1920s and 30s.

"Art should clear the clutter from our lives so that we can see what's really important; it should change our relationship to the spaces we inhibit, so that we live in a more harmonious, purposeful way." I really enjoyed reading this quote--and like Ben Nicholson emphasize the organization of forms as a totality with the use of white. In a piece I am working on it is primarily white, with very faint pale blue and yellow to highlight. In this piece it represents beginning and purity. I often associate white with being pure.

Fifty Ideas

1. Alienation—portraits of alienated characters (example: J. Alfred Prufrock from T.S. Eliot’s poem) paint

2. Ambiguity—a set of broad terms displayed that can each be defined by multiple causes (example: a bookshelf with book titles such as eager, fearful, relieved) photography or mixed media

3. Authenticity—psychedelic forms visually appealing that cannot be re-created through use of colored pencil, oil paint, marker, or watercolor

4. Awakening—moment that changed or transformed a preconceived view (example: my week spent in Amsterdam where the lifestyle is different than the states) photo collage

5. Beginning—pod or seed (example: creation) different versions of forms of pod or seed through graphite, paint, photography, sculpture
6. Body Image—silhouettes of different body types (example: overweight) silhouette shadows of individuals cast against wall and photographed or gray scale drawings/paintings

7. Bricolage—use of leftover fiber materials to create something visually interesting through process of appliqué and stitching

8. Censorship—re-create famous artwork and censor an important part (example: statue of David) paint

9. Code—create quick response (QR) codes in three dimensional forms

10. Companionship—relationship between dogs a humans (example: children and dog interaction “I won’t promise to be your friend forever ever, because I won’t live that long, but let me be your friend as long as I live.”) take photos of children and dog interaction (example: dog giving child a high five) photos of adult and dog interaction (example: homeless person holding dog) and use photos to draw/paint from
11. Connection—create a puzzle (example: the pieces that make a person such as each piece is labeled by a part of significance is ones’ life) three dimensional mixed media

12. Cyborg—a three dimensional piece that combines elements of organic human form fused with technology and robotic parts

13. Diaspora—a futuristic piece that tells a narrative series of the diaspora of the human race to another galaxy through drawing or mixed media

14. Energy—chakra, openings for life energy to flow in and out, development of our self-consciousness through use of colored pencil or watercolor

15. Environment—global warming (example: rising tides on a city) photography/photoshop

16. Environment—mass extinctions (example: Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction) or future extinction through use of graphite and colored pencil

17. Evolution—life cycles and transformations through use of graphite and colored pencil or paint

18. Feminine—female in environment (example: lioness in savannah, mother as a homemaker) draw or paint
19. Fetish—smoke and seduction through photography

20. Future—cities, landscape, towns after apocalypse (example: discovery of something hidden) most present ideas of apocalypse are the end of the world perhaps focus revelation of a meaningful future through drawing, painting, or mixed media

21. Gender-bending—re-create famous artwork and change the person’s gender (example: Mona Lisa with a mustache) draw or paint

22. Globalization—create an artwork combining two or more styles from different cultures (example: a Mandala with Navajo style imagery) textile processes/mark making: monoprinting, removing color

23. Heroes—draw real life heroes as if they were comic book heroes (example: Abraham Lincoln as a superhero with tights and a cape)

24. Humor—ironic, sometimes controversial scenes (example: Osama Bin Laden eating a Big Mac and drinking a Coke) draw, paint, or photography/photoshop

25. Identity—what inspires oneself (example: female with collage of images that inspire flowing from hair, abstract/surreal) paint

26. Intertextuality—portray characters from various similar texts in the same piece (example: Johnny Depp as Edward Scissorhands cutting up cocaine for Johnny Depp as George Jung while Johnny Depp as Hunter S. Thompson waits impatiently)

27. Irony—ironic images (example: photo of a tattoo on a body reading “nothing is permanent”) photography/photoshop

28. Juxtaposition—unlikely juxtapositions (example: manufactured goods grow on the farm) graphite, paint, or photography/photoshop

29. Kitsch—screen-print of several single use items as a commentary on consumer culture

30. Looking glass self—one imagines how they appear to others (example: kitten looking into a mirror and seeing a lion or person looking into mirror but reflection is not the same version of that person) photography/photoshop

31. Love—forms of relationships (example: two skeletons/past lovers, unearthed and remains holding each other) graphite, printmaking, or sculpture
32. Mass Media—recreation of different mass media figures (example: a realistic looking version of Captain Crunch) draw or paint

33. Memory—based on a decade (example: 1960’s) collage

34. Metaphor—the world is in our hands (example: two hands together and painted on them is a globe) draw, paint, or photography/photoshop

35. Mortality—genocide through documentary art

36. Native Americans—animal spirits/symbolism, dreams (example: use of totem pole design, layering of animals) draw, paint, multi-media, sculpture

37. Parody—Madonna painting, with the pop star Madonna’s face in place of the Virgin Mary’s with mixed media

38. Propaganda—a fake advertisement that reflects the post 9/11 American view towards Arabs with mixed media

39. Recycled materials—books (example: open book with image constructed of other recycled materials above depicting message) create a still life and draw what is seen or make sculpture (by use of miniature scraps of material)
40. Reflection—reflections seen through puddles by process of drawing, painting, or photography

41. Religious icons—study of religious icons/symbols in western region of the world (example: Buddhism)

42. Ritual—creating a spiritual pattern (example: Mandala by sand painting as Tibetan monk would) use of marker or textile processes/mark making: monoprinting, removing color

43. Self Portrait—life sized self portrait through mixed media

44. Shyness—play with shadows (example: human interacting with shadow) photography

45. Sound—what does art sound like, what does music look like (example: using sound to create color palette and mark making) draw or paint

46. Storybook—open book with an excerpt from the story viewed three-dimensionally above through drawing

47. Street art—functional, multiple viewpoints through sculpture

48. Surfaces—land (planets), maps, trails (example: use different surfaces to create abstract art on or create maps/trails of vast areas that are less traveled surface) fibers
49. Transformation—evolution and its journey from water to land through process of drawing or painting

50. Wood—the study of trees (example: use of fallen branches, planks of leftover wood, etc. to create carvings/sculpture or paintings)

Idea No. 80 Documentary

The idea of art serving a documentary function is one that is admittedly biased, like most documentation of history. It is argued that art, as opposed to photography, is not accurate because the artist will express inner emotions about the subject rather than giving an actual account of what happened. A painting of warfare in Vietnam would look much different when painted by a Vietnamese artist than it would if it were painted by an American. Imagery brings up a lot of emotions that simple written documentation can not.

I've always been interested in exploring photography as documentary art. I am not a photographer but am easily inspired by others' photography skills and subjects chosen, especially within National Geographic. I had the opportunity to go to Holland for a week and I attempted to take artistic documentary photographs. If only I could be a world traveler to experience and document other cultures from an artist's viewpoint.

Idea No. 72 Satire

Satire is a tool commonly used in all forms of media. From television to literature to art, satire provides an outlet for criticism on individuals or society. Good satire takes something that most people are familiar with and distorts it in a way that says something about a greater issue. Generally satire is comical, but it can also be serious. Most cultures use satire as a way to criticize authority or government that usually do not welcome criticism.

Environment comes to mind. When I think of environment I think of my friends. Many of them are strongly opinionated about consumption of resources, environmental management, sustainability, etc. However I could create a collection of satirical artworks or photographs about them; depicting them littering cigarettes, driving to class instead of walking or riding their bikes, leaving the light on for the dog when they go out at night, pouring glasses of water and not drinking it and the list goes on.

Idea No. 77 Expressing Inner States

Expressing inner states is a fundamental concept of art in my opinion. It is making visible that which we cannot see, which in a sense is an element in most art, unless the artist is replicating something or recreating something right before them. Expressing an inner state could be anything from painting a God or something that cannot be seen, or splashing paint on a canvas in a manner that expresses an inner emotion. Art is always, in some way, an expression of the emotions of the artist; the two are inextricably linked.

The question Kandinsky said we should ask of any given work was "Which of his inner desires has the artist expressed here?" I feel answering such a question would be to define the artists identity. Inner states can be used as a big idea for an identity piece. I'd like to do this with ink and watercolor. At this time in my life I've been going through a lot of changes or transitions within the past year and think it could be inspiring to see them through art.

Idea No. 66 The Unconscious

The significance of the unconscious according to Freud is that “dreams are truthful manifestations of unconscious desires”. It is believed that the unconscious is a dark region of the mind and this is where creativity may manifest itself. Dreams can influence art and some artists create dreamlike works of art that only make sense in our unconscious minds, or at least that is where we believe them to be true.

I would enjoy using my dreams or subconscious to create personal artwork. Creating abstract artworks with juxtaposition are most interesting to me. I see myself creating paintings inspired by Salvador Dali’s style but without the use of human forms. I’d be drawn to create compositions of the natural world or my surroundings that are frequent within my dreams.

Idea No. 68 Multiple Viewpoints

Multiple viewpoints are a way to portray different perspectives in a single piece. Picasso and Braque were innovators of this and their work was described as Cubism. With multiple viewpoints a work of art is no longer just a snapshot of what the author wants to portray, but the a larger glimpse of it. This technique can be used in photography with double exposures and other forms of trick photography. Even a geothermal picture would be an example of multiple viewpoints because it shows a perspective other than what we normally see.

I own a lot of concert or festival posters that I believe would serve as a style of multiple viewpoints not mentioned within our reading. I'd like to use multiple viewpoints within an intricate artwork inspired by these. I immediately think of ink and watercolor. As well as the use of psychedelic art with its characteristics of collage and distortion. Subject matter may consist of a female figure and nature; living in the present/in the moment. Everything would not be visible at once and it would take the viewer a few extra glances to capture the essence of my artwork as a whole.

Idea No. 53 Authenticity

Authenticity has to do with how genuine a piece is. Whether or not something can be truly authentic is debatable, because it is hard to create a piece that is not influenced by any other artist. It can also relate to how genuinely it represents what it is portraying.

As an artist I am always browsing books or the Internet to spark inspiration. I have a hard time being “authentic” in the sense that I am not influenced by past artists or current ideas. I have a created a couple artworks in the past that truly where my own. In future artworks I want to use my own inspirations instead of searching for one.