Isabelle - Making up for lost blog posts

11/12

This past weekend, I was able to go to the Gallery R show, and see my piece in its first juried show (!!). I found a lot of the other pieces in the show very fascinating, and was really impressed by how the show was very cohesive, while still showcasing lots of different mediums and artistic styles. Seeing the pieces in the show, and mine in comparison, I started to think a lot about scale, and how the size of a piece has a huge impact on its success. A lot of my favorite pieces in the show were the very large scale works, and I admired the artists’ dedication to creating such large works. One important thing that I think a lot of successful artists know how to do is strike the perfect balance for sizing their piece, so that it has the correct intended effect. I have always been one to work small (it’s even built into my senior show proposal). My handwriting, my doodles, and most of my artwork is generally pretty tiny in comparison to a lot of other artists. In my process, I tend to focus on perfecting small and intricate parts of a piece of work, and less on creating the whole, then going in and fixing mistakes on a smaller scale. This is something that I try to challenge myself on, but I find that I’m not typically that successful (the “big” pieces I create are usually pretty small in comparison). When I saw my piece in comparison to others in the gallery, it tended to fade into the background, not because of construction or color or placement, but simply because it’s so small. While I still believe that there is a lot of value placed into small scale works, I don’t think that my own work strikes the balance necessary to really match it’s scale.  Right now, I’m working to tackle this issue in my work, and create large scale pieces, which is a slightly terrifying prospect, but I hope that it will take my work to a newer level where it’s size does not dominate its other characteristics.

11/5

One thing that really stood out to me about Rebecca Rafferty’ talk on the importance of following up, and really advocating for yourself. I really don’t think anyone is really that comfortable with putting themselves out there to people who have a really important influence or impact on what they’re doing, but it’s so interesting how so many people let some amazing opportunities or chances slip through their fingers because they are not willing to send that second email, or really fight for what they believe in. We all try to strike the perfect balance between being a pushover vs. being an asshole, but I think something we all fail to realize is that our perceptions of being annoying are very different from other’s perceptions of our annoyance levels. While I still have some trepidation in sending that follow-up email, I find myself only really taking requests via email seriously if someone tries to follow up, with another email or a call. Everyone is so busy, and our inboxes fill up so quickly that it is incredibly easy for people to forget about a request, so your second email is less of an annoyance and more of a friendly reminder. The question is less of whether it’s helpful, and more on how we can get over that stumbling block, just grit our teeth, get over the fear of rejection, and just do it to move on. The mantra that you “miss 100% of the shots you don’t take” is so true, you can’t just go along thinking that everything will work itself out and life will be fine and dandy. The more you put yourself out there, be that asshole, and really stand up for yourself, the more likely you will face rejection and failure, but also more likely that your efforts will be rewarded.

10/29

Recently I’ve been thinking a lot about the concept of the “well rounded person,” and others’ expectations for us. I feel like I’ve been hearing this term since I was in high school, and have always sort of identified myself with it, but now I find myself thinking - is this really what people expect of me. I remember in my sophomore year of highschool, I tried to take the hardest classes I could, yet faced pushback from my school’s administration because  they didn’t want students to be overly ambitious, or to focus solely on academics. This was the first time I had to fight to show that I was a well rounded individual, that my interests and activities fell across the board, and that there was no gaping void in my needs in life. Later, during the college application process, I found the term coming up again - schools didn’t want just a straight A student, they wanted students who were diverse in their activities, who were more interesting. Once in college, I found people who were the exact definition of well rounded, physics and anthropology double majors, engineering students who were the stars of their athletic teams, students who were simultaneously part of the squash club, the knitting club, and a sorority. So surrounded by these people, I pursued the same goals - to enrich my main academic interests with others, pursue my passions, and be well rounded (aka. the typical rochester student). Now, working in the admissions office, I reiterate these expectations to prospective students. But recently, I feel somewhat betrayed by this concept. Once we leave college and enter the “real world,” is this really valuable? Companies aren’t looking for well rounded people, they’re looking for specialists, those who have devoted all of their time to the field. Emerging artists should have immersed themselves in the art world, and spent all of their time creating and looking at art. Those extracurriculars we put so much emphasis on before have no benefit to us now, if anything, I’ve found they take away from others’ perceptions of us. I used to think that doing computer science AND art AND theatre AND being a student leader would give me an edge in the real world, but now I’m realizing the opposite. So what’s the purpose of pursuing your passions and interests, when none of your efforts will be rewarded?

10/22

This past week, I was at a conference, so I was not able to go to RoCo to hear blue talk. After reading other people’s blog posts, I think that something I realized for myself this week was pretty relevant to what most people got out of the visit to RoCo. A lot of times in college, we’re following a very specific and laid out path (aka major) with a general goal (graduate and get a job). Typically in each area of study, there’s a more specific goal for what your future plans will entail, and so your education is customized to prepare you for that one path. It gets to the point where this one life goal gets pounded endlessly into your head, that your success in life is judged on how close to this ideal goal that you get. It seems courageous to break from these goals, to follow a completely different  career path than what was laid out before you, and I think that this discourages a lot of people from pursuing something that they would really love in favor of something that they’re good at. For some, being an artist sounds miserable, but working in some other aspect of the art world, one that is less pursued, less notable, or less recognized, seems like a much more preferable and plausible option. Before this semester, I always thought I would follow the typical comp-sci student path, of becoming a software engineer, and working at a big tech company, but more recently, that prospect doesn’t seem like it would be fulfilling or even that fun, despite trying to convince myself that It’s what I should do. At this point, I would much prefer to take a risk and do something unexpected in my career path than to pursue what is expected of me.

10/15

Scott’s talk about his work and path since graduation was a really interesting insight into the life of a young burgeoning artist. I think one of the most valuable pieces of advice that I was able to take from the talk is the importance of going out of your comfort zone in your art. Since a lot of my concept for this semester really focuses on pushing (shoving?) myself out of my comfort zone, I think his advice was pretty spot on. He mentioned how he was very incredulous of performance art while in school, even when he took Heather’s class, but recently has found a lot more value in the area, creating several pieces that he noted were extremely influential in his process. I feel like we all have that one medium that we never want to work in again, that we think has no value to us, but it’s pretty important to give those a second chance. In critiques, a lot of times, I find that people tend to stick to close to what they know, and often get creatively stuck in that medium or concept, so venturing out might not be comfortable, but can definitely help you get out of a rut.

10/8

Only three people posted for this week, so I’ll just leave you with a comic that illustrates my philosophy on life: http://theoatmeal.com/comics/baby_vs_cat