Progress Report :-)

Hello!  I have not written for a while because I had nothing to say I suppose.  I am still working on my final project.  I believe they are due on Tuesday , I still have to look it up on the sheet.  I made the fox I planned on making and so far I really like it.  In addition to the fox, I made a dead goose.  My favorite part of the song is when the fox sneaks into the farmer's pen and grabs the goose by neck.  The only bad thing so far:  I made a goose like I saw it in my mind.  I did make it gray, but only because it's a gray goose in the song.  But other than that, I did not create the goose with the intention of making it super realistic.  Today, I looked up a picture of a real gray goose.  They have orange beaks and legs.  I made my goose with a black beak and legs.  Probably because that's how canadian geese look and those are the kind of geese I'm used to seeing.  So I thought it was a bit unfortunate that my gray goose is not really a proper gray goose.  I'm kind of glad I waited till now to look up a picture of what it really looks like.  I feel like what I created is really what my vision was.  Had I looked up a picture of a gray goose before I started, I would have been conflicted as to whether or not I should follow my vision exactly or make it look realistic.  So I have a gray goose with a black beak and black legs.  I suppose it doesn't really matter because the fox and his family are going to eat the goose regardless of what color his beak and legs are.

I have enjoyed this project so much! This is my first time (other than 103) working with fabric.  I find it to be most frustrating and stress-inducing at times, though I like everything about the process.  I love picking out fabrics, sketching the creatures, making up the patterns as I go, having things line up nearly straight on, yet off enough that one can tell it's handmade.  And it's imperfections only add to my love for it because I then see the fox as I see myself: imperfect, yet trying to do its best to help those it loves.

One last note:  I named the fox Aloysha.  This is the name of a character in a book I'm reading called The Brothers Karamosov.  Aloysha is the youngest of three with two older brothers, just like me.  He is quiet, observant, and seems to be the wisest of the three siblings, just like me :-)     I feel I can relate to this character a lot so the name seemed fitting.  I think it's best to not name the goose.  Becoming attached only makes it more difficult emotionally when the time comes to eat it.

Crazy like a Fox...

My mum used to sing me a folk song about a fox when she tucked me in at night.  I really love this song because it brings back a lot of memories and it's funny!

The Fox

The fox went out for a chase one night
prayed to the moon to give him light
for he had many a mile to go that night
before he reached the town-o, town-o, town-o
he had many a mile to go that night
before he reached the town-o


He ran right up to the farmers pen
ducks and the geese were kept therein
he said "A couple of you gonna grease my chin
before I leave this town-o, town-o, town-o
A couple of you gonna grease my chin
before I leave this town-o."

He grabbed the grey goose by the neck
slung the little one over his back
he didn't mind the quack quack quack
and the legs all dangling down-o, down-o, down-o
he didn't mind the quack quack quack
and the legs all dangling down-o.

Old Mother Pitter Patter jumped out of bed
out of the window she popped her head yelling
"John, John the grey goose is gone!
and the fox is on the town-o, town-o, town-o
John, John the grey goose is gone!
and the fox is on the town-o."

John he ran to the top of the hill
blew his horn both loud and shrill
the fox said "I'd better flee with my kill
for he'll soon be on my trail-o, trail-o, trail-o"
the fox said "I'd better flee with my kill
for he'll soon be on my trail-o."

He ran right up to his cozy den
there were his little ones eight nine ten
they said "Daddy won't you please go back again
for it must be a mighty fine town-o, town-o, town-o
Daddy wont you please go back again
for it must be a mighty fine town-o."

The fox and his wife without any strife
cut up the goose with a fork and knife
they'd never had such a supper in their life
and the little ones chewed on the bones-o, bones-o, bones-o
They never had such a supper in their life
and the little ones chewed on the bones-o



I'm gonna go look at fabric tomorrow after classes.  Hopefully I'll find something that is homologous with my vision.

finally....

STUFFED ANIMAL!!!!

humor;
the nature of children;
family;
narrative, epic stories;
happy endings.

I am getting a degree in Fine Arts because I want to learn as much about art, about techniques, styles, and media as possible.  Besides the most obvious reason for this desire (I love art!), I want to study art so someday I can translate it into a book.  It is my ultimate dream to write and illustrate children's books someday.  I will constuct a stuffed animal, or a series of stuffed animals for my final project. 

Questions, Comments, Insults

I have not yet started my final project, though I have come very very close to deciding exactly what I want to do, which makes me feel relieved.  I know I want to do a narrative.  A narrative in its most definitive and literal definition (side note: I realize that to tell a story to my viewer I do not have to literally "tell a story")  I want to produce a series of forms, perhaps 4 or 5 depending on time and my concept.  Each of these forms will represent the same being, just in different phases of an event.  I do want to include an anthropomorphic element to it so next I will need to decide on a figure to be my muse.  If I wanted an animal, it is likely that I would choose a mountain goat (I am very fond of mountain goats).  If I chose a mountain goat, it is also likely that the story told would mirror a story of my own life.  Because I associate myself closely with mountain goats, it would be nearly impossible for me to use them as the avatar for a story about someone or anything else.  So shall I do a story about myself using a mountain goat as my main character?  This is a leading possibility.  I am waiting for something amazing to strike me like it always does when I am stuck as to what to do for a project.  I wait until everything feels right and I know this is what I should do.  I have not felt that yet but I really do like where I am going with this. 

As for the material, I think that it will strongly depend on the story.  However, I already have an idea in my mind that the final goat will be cast in metal.  This is because if the story is about me, it seems fitting that the end result will be something hard, static, and unyielding, yet shiny and welcoming.  For that goat I believe I will first do one in clay, then figure out the process with some help.  What story should I do? 

It was very helpful talking to turk (sp?) last thursday.  She had me write down all my favorite things in life.  What caught her eye was how everything I liked seemed to be threaded together with common themes:  humor, family, narratives, happy endings, epic stories.  This amazed me because I had honestly never consciously acknowledged that before.  But after I thought about it, the more true it became.  Pretty much everything I love in this world has some connection to a member of my family.  Even my possessions, for example, only mean something to me if they were gifts from a given family member.  I guess I am pretty into family, though I had never thought of myself like that.  Coming from a "broken" family with a pretty messed up childhood, I always thought that happy families are just something on tv, but do not exist in reality, not for me at least.  But I guess I have come to terms with my situation after years of hell I now feel like I have a better relationship with either of my parents, and either of my brothers, than many of my friends who come from those tv "happy families" do.  I would like to incorporate this into my project.  A story about my family?  I like that idea. 

The Proposal (sorry no Ryan Reynolds in this version)

I think I want to work more with traditional sculpture.  I really enjoyed working with food and I think it would be fun to work with more types of food.  I don't have any specific conceptual ideas yet, though.  Lately I have been thinking a lot about decisions, paths, the stepping stones of life basically.  One decision leads to another decision, which leads to another, which leads to another.  One of the fundamental beliefs I hold is that good short term decisions will lead you down a path that will ultimately bring you happiness and success.  For example, I don't do drugs, but have had the opportunity to many times.  Each time, I think, "this will not affect the rest of my life.  This one act now will probably have nothing to do with what happens to me or where I'll end up in ten years so I should just do it."  But that is just a thought that crosses my mind momentarily.  I remind myself of the fundamental value I believe in and easily say no.  I have never said, "I will never do drugs," because never doing drugs is not the point.  I don't know who I'm gonna be in five years, I don't even know who I'm gonna be tomorrow.  Nobody does.  All I know is that at that particular moment, doing the drug was not gonna be beneficial to me.  But who knows, maybe someday it will be.  Again, I don't know and nobody else can either.  Getting back to the project, I guess what all of this is about is that I would like to do something exploring the choices people make, life paths, directions, regrets because of action, regrets because of a lack of action, and the idea of an finish line.  Not everything that I believe in, but what I in addition to other people believe in.  For example, I don't believe that happiness is a finish line, I believe it is a lifestyle.  Others might disagree and I would like to explore all perspectives if possible.

I have no idea at the moment what kind of sculpture would embody all of this the best.

Technically speaking, I really enjoyed the wood carving.  I could do a series of small wooden sculptures of a person at different stages of life.  Maybe just shown in different positions representing different stages in life.  Or I could do an animal instead a human and give anthropomorphic element to it. I like that.  It is done a lot, however.  But that's okay. It's not like the peeps at Disney said, "No we can't make a movie about talking lions, we already used the talking animal idea." 

Okay after getting all of these thoughts out I feel better.  I think I will further explore the wooden sculpture idea.  A series of figures would best represent my concept I think.  I'll think about other materials I could use as well.  I could make the figures in clay and then cast them in aluminum or something.  I don't know.  I don't want anything about the sculptures to be arbitrary.

I am excited for class tomorrow.  I would really like to learn how to make casts of the body, hands in particular.