While reading the New York Times today I came across this article about the Ghanaian artist El Anatsui.
-->http://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/10/arts/design/a-million-pieces-of-home-el-anatsui-at-brooklyn-museum.html?pagewanted=allI saw this exhibit when it was at the Blanton and was impressed - and as an artist it is not easy to impress me. What I love about his work is that he held his home and community close to his heart in creating works of art and was not seduced to the riches and abandon his culture or identity. For me art has the ability to articulate the complex realities we experience as we navigate our way in the world. It is my language and in many ways my rapture. But art is not limited to the self proclaimed artists of the world, it is for everyone - to enjoy, participate in, to rejoice in, and be moved by. When we create we are all artists, and by create I mean any endeavor, including creating community. You are all artists in community building and I hope you will experience the magic of possibility as you practice your art in Dove Springs and beyond. Hence, another worthy article sent to me today by a friend:
http://dailyserving.com/2013/01/social-practice-skills/
I will conclude with a few pieces of my own art inspired by my engagement with community. See you tomorrow!
I remember walking through the Blanton during my freshman year. They were just assembling this piece. There were definitely several pieces pertaining to social injustices of the time when they were created. I saw a few paintings from the 1930s showing people living under an overpass while a few others were coming out of stores with extravagant clothing. Art definitely tells history in its own respect.
ReplyDelete"When we create we are all artists, and by create I mean any endeavor, including creating community." I think this is a great point, and agree with it 100%. When reading this, I thought about the pond that I helped build a couple of years ago at project 2011. It was my first project, and I was extremely proud of it. I was working with a group to complete the pond at an elementary school. We did the digging (which was exhausting), and built the small pond into that. It took us extra hours, but we finally finished in the afternoon. It was one of the coolest things that I feel I was a part of. I definitely felt like an artist at that point.
ReplyDeleteJust so you know, I'm waiting for your next blog post!
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I had not actually went through all your blog posts which is dumb on my part because you are my teacher! I too consider myself an artist, whether people think I am good or not it is a reflection of what I see, feel, and think. Originally I wanted to study art at UT but i decided it was not for me. I love art but in high school I was always the one student who wanted to do my own thing and I did. Though my grades were not as good as if I was to do the assignments I went on to state and got recognition in other scholastic programs. My art teacher inspired me to always keep art in my life and she is a huge reason I want to be an art therapist. The awesome thing about art is that it comes in many forms. BTW, I appreciate your pictures it is always nice to see what other artist do and try and make sense of it all.
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