Arts Explorer #3: Interpreting a work of Art

Painting: Mary Hiester Reid, 1898, oil on canvas, Gift of Mary Wrinch Reid, Toronto, 1954

 Artist: George A. Reid

Born: Wingham, Canada West (now Ontario), 1860

Died: Toronto, Ontario 1947

Art word of the week:Texture
"Refers to the surface quality of a work of art" (Fox & Schirrmacher, 2009, p.144). Texture can be how the painting feels when you touch it and it can also mean how the painting looks. Everyone has their own definition on how a painting aesthetically looks. When I first noticed the painting, I initially saw the texture instead of the colour. Some may think its weird and unnatural to see the painting's texture before the colour, even when you can't touch but to me, it how the analysis and the thought begin.


What is your initial reaction?

When I first saw this painting, I immediately thought it resembled a woman who is experiencing a death in the family; maybe a husband, a mother or a child. She could be organizing the flowers in memory of that person. She also could be thinking of that person by placing the flowers into the vase. 

I really enjoy this painting because there could be many interpretations for what the woman is doing. Some may think that she is sad, others may think that she is happy and just loves the colour black. No matter what your interpretation of this painting is, it can neither be right nor wrong. 

What do you see that makes you say that?

This painting grabs my attention simply because this woman looks mysterious. She is sitting at the table organizing flowers and you do not know what she is thinking. She could be thinking of something wonderful or something traumatic. Only the artist knows. The colours which are present in this painting are very deep; many dark blues, blacks, and browns. And the slight bit of light are the flowers and the splash back of the wall. To me, I think that the flowers are suppose to symbolize light, happiness and beauty. In my opinion, if the flowers were more of a deep red, my initial reaction would be "oh, her husband died." Pink flowers could symbolize friendship so maybe a friend gave her flowers as a token of their friendship and she is organizing them into a blue vase.

I think that the artist took weeks to paint this picture simply because it could have been a moment in time that he saw this lady experiencing that certain emotion and he felt strongly about capturing that emotion into a piece of artwork.

What more can we find?

The other artworks in the room are all Canadian. Many of them existed during the 1800s in various parts of Canada (mainly Canada West, which is now Ontario). The artists in the room all have different styles of painting. But one thing that I found to be a reoccurring element is the use of oil on canvas. As an observer you can tell that each artist used oil on canvas but made their painting different from everyone else. 

This painting overall was one that made me think. Not only do you not know what the artist is thinking or even the lady, but many ideas can play a part in the way you feel about the painting. Like I said, she could be happy or she could be sad. Each person has their own interpretation of that artwork but its the artist that knows the real interpretation.


When it comes to children and the concept of "art", it is important to recognize that it is a form of expression. It is the artist who distinguishes what he/she wants the painting to "mean" but its the viewer who sees it as a perspective. Each individual casts their meaning on a piece of art. A child may draw a picture of a cow and says its a bunny. To the child, it symbolizes something in their life but to the educator, it could just mean, a cow. Accepting the child's art work is important and allowing expression goes even further. Not knowing is believing and seeing is interpreting.


Reference

Schirrmacher, R., & Fox, J.E. (2009). Art and creative development for young children 

        (6th Ed.). Belmont, CA: Delmar

Arts Explorer #2: Instant Sculpture

 Art word of the week: Shape

"Shape is an appropriate criterion for critiquing two-dimensional art that has length and width" (Fox & Schirracher, 2009, p. 140).

Some say that creativity comes when you are experiencing something that you have no words to describe;  a divorce, a break-up, a death, a marriage...the list goes on and on.

In my case, my sculpture came when I was going through something I have no words to describe. The person to whom I share my most valuable memories, thoughts and feelings decided it was time to move on. Yes, it is hard and sometimes it happens but because of my uncertainty and confusion, I portrayed a sculpture that simply explains what I'm going through.

 The Beginning of the End

Materials:

1) Ryerson Adgenda

2) 5 crayons

3) 2 facial creams

4) make-up foundation

and

5) 1 purple nailpolish

This sculpture shows how my relationship primarily was, unbalanced. The foundation symbolizes myself (standing strong, head on, in love etc) and the nail polish resembles the boy (uncertainty, confused, lost, etc). I decided to place the nail polish upside down because it was suppose to show the confusion and the abnormality that he had for our relationship. The crayons were the barrier that surrounded us; society, family, and friends. As to the reason behind the only yellow crayon, that I do not know. It was something that I realized toward the end and came up with numerous reasons why my subconscious mind placed the yellow crayon. Maybe it was the beginning of the end? Maybe I was the only one wasting away? Who really knows...not even myself.

This creative process as helped me in many ways recover from this terrible milestone. I never saw this coming and for once in my life, I've finally understand what was the problem. The problem was, that we both were not on the same page. I wanted a life with him and he wasn't sure. Because of the unbalanced effect in our relationship, something had to be done. And now, in order for the partnership to be balanced and successful, there needs to be two people who land on the same page.

When I was creating my sculpture, I immediately thought of what shapes will I use. Sometimes shapes are simple or complex, they are circular or angular, they can be quiet or active and they can be tall or short (Fox & Schirracher, 2009). I wanted to make my sculpture seem to have various shapes with a variety of meanings. The more shapes an object has, the more interesting the sculpture becomes. 

“Imagination is the beginning of creation. You imagine what you desire, you will what you imagine and at last you create what you will.” -George Bernard Shaw

Reference

Schirrmacher, R., & Fox, J.E. (2009). Art and creative development for young children 

        (6th Ed.). Belmont, CA: Delmar

Arts Explorer #1: Creative Inspiration

 Art word of the Week: Design or Composition

"Design or composition is the overall mark of success, the standard of achievement, and the fostering on the cake" (Fox & Schirracher, 2009, p.142) 

When I think of design or composition, I instantly think of the architecture of my travels. Each artist that captures the beauty and the essence of their buildings or paintings, shows me that not only are they trying to accomplished originality or whether they used other forms of art into their creation but they have meaning behind their creation.

The Rise of the Carthaginian Empire 1817

Joseph Mallord William Turner (April 23rd 1775-December 19th 1851)

This painting shows design particularly in how the artist used lines, shapes, colour, texture, and a form of blending. These techniques work very well together to visually show an audience how an artist can capture the beauty of a problem while at the same time creating a very meaningful painting.

 One of the very few creative inspirations that I have are my travels. I was lucky enough to go to Greece and England all in the same year!

The reason why I love traveling is because there are so many unique and historical monuments that make you wonder 'what was the creative idea behind making that?' You also get a chance to get up close and personal with the culture. Eating the foods you would NEVER imagine touching, swimming in waters that look a little strange because all we ever see is Lake Ontario and we all know THAT cannot be swam in, and the people you meet along the way.

Each person has their own definition of what inspires them. Some may think that my inspiration in traveling is COMPLETELY ridiculous but I beg to differ.

In Greece, I was welcomed with the opportunity of going to the beautiful island of Crete. For those who have never been, it is ABSOLUTELY breathtaking! The image above is a beach that is located North of Crete called Matala. The holes in the mountain were created by the people of Matala in the 70's. The purpose of the holes were so the people of Matala could hide from the Romans when they invaded Crete. When we stayed in Matala for the day, I couldn't tell you how many "hippies" there were. Many of the free spirited people have a passion for the water. Who wouldn't if you could swim in crystal clear water!

This place in Crete was filled with history that I never knew existed! To know that there are people who find peace and relaxation in the noises of the ocean and to know that there were paintings all throughout the beach to symbolize creativity and individualism, sprouts an envious feeling inside me. Each person living in Matala was unique and appreciated the history that they lived in.

Next on the map was England. England is another country which is surrounded with interesting historical facts. My friend and I were lucky enough to visit Stonehenge, Shakespeare's home in Stratford, Oxford University, Windsor Castle and the London Eye.  

In highschool you learn about places such as England and about the Queen of England but actually going to the country and seeing these famous places is a sight in itself.I must say that the people of England are very creative. Whether you walk down the fashion district of Oxford Street or walking near Piccaddilly Circus to see the replica of Times Square, there are loads and loads of creativity. For example, the women in London dress with their own sense of style. Even though the stores are ALL the same, each man, woman and child dressed differently. They all showed their individualism in their society. And that is what I LOVE about London!

No matter where you are in the world, creativity is there. I find my creative inspiration from my travels. I take the experience, the luxury and the culture when I return home.

Reference

Schirrmacher, R., & Fox, J.E. (2009). Art and creative development for young children 

        (6th Ed.). Belmont, CA: Delmar

My Creative Expression

Art Word of the Week: Creativity

The world painting combines both creativity and imagination. Different textures and images expand the definition to which we see the world as being. This beauty  not only inspires artists to capture mountains, trees, flowers and historical landmarks but allows others to interpret their own definition of what is beautiful. 

Can someone REALLY be creative? I mean are there words that describe people's creative styles? I know for myself I have different creative styles and find different things "creative" but how creative are we?

Is there a measurement that seeks how "creative" we can be? Some people say YES...others say NO. But that's just each person's interpretation.

Even though each one of us SAY "oh I'm not creative! I'm just...boring!" No one is truly boring! I think we all have creativity either expressively or secretively. 

As long as I can remember, I've always been a "creative" person. I always use to dress up as my mother or my favourite teacher and pretend to be them! As a child I use to enjoy being on stage. I use to take part in the choir, the french play, speech competitions and it wasn't until grade 6 that I landed my first lead role in our class production. Carrying on to middle school and then to high school, I use to enjoy creatively putting together class presentations and a really funny example of a presentation was one that I did in high school for my travel and tourism class. My friend and I were given the country Antarctica. Now, think about it...what LIVES in Antarctica..NOTHING! What grows in Antarctica...NOTHING! What is exciting about Antarctica....in my opinion....NOTHING! So my friend and I created a dance routine and a song to make the presentation seem enjoyable. We decorated the classroom with "pretend" icicles and showed the class a clip from the movie Happy Feet! I must pat myself on the shoulder. That was one of the most AMAZING and successful class presentations that I have ever thought of!

In order for someone to take in the beauty of creativity, one must live up to it. Do not be afraid of letting your emotions go! Do what you feel is right! don't let anyone tell you "That's ugly" or "What made you think this way?!" Those are all opinions that normally bring the person down. I've heard comments like that during Drama class but the more I thought about it, the less and less I realized that it shouldn't bother me. I know how to block out bad thoughts and continuously remind myself that this is me and if people don't like it...too bad!

My name is Katherine and I'm taking a Creative Arts class at Ryerson University. This class allows us to explore the benefits of childhood creativity and how significant it is to allow children to explore their creative abilities. It is a way for children to express emotions, desires and what it is that is on their mind. It also allows children to explore things that have a different meaning to them. For example, taking a cardboard box and calling it a castle or taking a camera and calling it a little home for Bobby. Whatever it may be, children need and should engage in creativity. And so should adults. Its fun, exciting and most importantly educating. Step outside the box and do something that you've never done before!

The only way a person can confess to being creative, is if they seek creative styles within themselves.