Kendall Lewis 2

Art-Its More Than Just Paint

Art exhibits often display many different styles and types of art. The art exhibit in the student art gallery did just that. There was a variety of artwork that allowed each artist to represent their strengths. Art allows someone to express their feelings and emotions. It can speak to an individual without using words, but rather pictures and patterns. Artists often create art without a purpose and end up with something that has a significant meaning to them. Every piece of art has its ups and downs. Each individual has a different perspective as to what they believe should be included in a piece of artwork.

Artist Lauren Strain’s artwork that is untitled is different from any of the other pieces in the exhibit. Her piece of artwork was very unique. With a red and pink background, the girl in the picture seemed to be disappearing into the background. Her facial features were distinct. Her large, black, bold eyes stood out from the rest of the picture. Her eyes had a sense of confusion in them. It was one of the first things that caught my eye when I looked at this piece of artwork. Her lips were plump, black, and each lip sealed to the other. Her nose blended into the pink and red color, but was still obvious to what it was. Falling from her eyes were yellow tears that appeared to be dripping down her face. Her face was shaped like an oval and her hair appeared to be red in a bowl like form. The texture of the artwork was fairly smooth. It was painted on a rectangle piece of canvas. The left side of the picture appeared to be a deeper brighter red, but the farther right you went the color faded out into a lighter shade of pink. The girl was placed on the right side of the canvas as she faded into the background of the artwork. I never could figure out what the artist was going for in her piece of artwork. The expression on the girls face in the artwork shows a sense of confusion. As I viewed this piece of artwork I was confused. I never could come to a conclusion as to what this painting was about. The details in the artwork that are emphasized show expression and allow the viewer to pay closer attention to those ideas of significance. In every piece of good artwork it is necessary to allow the viewer to come to a conclusion as to what the artist was going for when they created their art. I feel this is necessary so the viewer can be connected with each piece of artwork.

Jenny Fine decided to take a different approach to her artwork. In Jenny Fine’s art called The Sisters, Jenny uses black and white rather than color. Her artwork is done on a piece of tin using tintypes and wet plate collodion. Her artwork is a picture of two young girls dressed very similar. Their hands are crossed almost as if they are in trouble or have just heard some unpleasant news. The two girls are wearing flat shoes and ruffle dresses that appear to be pretty dressy as if they are dressed for a certain occasion. Jenny Fine made the appearance of the two girls very similar in which they are standing the same way and their hands are both crossed. The tin feels smooth and the lighting is very dim. The picture on the tin appears to be old. The background is very dull and the floors and walls seem to be very plain. To me, the artist was concerned or scared about something as a child. It is almost as if she experienced a period of mourning as a young girl due to a death and this was her and her sister mourning together over the loss. Jenny Strains artwork it an example of a good piece of art. It allows the viewers to connect with the actual piece and relate it to something they have experienced themselves.

Artist Lauren Strain and Jenny Fine both took a different approach to their artwork. Both artists used humans in their work. While Lauren Strain used an older females head, Jenny Fine used two young girls’ lower halves of their body. The texture and color were both completely opposite in the two pieces of artwork. Lauren Strain decided to use fairly smooth canvas and make her painting full of color. Jenny Fine used smooth tin and kept her photo only in black and white. In both pieces of artwork the people appear to look confused and upset. The two pictures seem as though they are trying to express emotion. In Lauren Strain’s artwork the woman appears to be confused, but in Jenny Fine’s the two girls seem frightened, scared, or upset.

Art has a different effect on every individual who views it. I chose the two pieces by Lauren Strain and Jenny Fine because I felt as though I was able to react to each of them in a different way. After viewing each piece I reacted differently. Lauren Strains piece made me feel confused and made me wonder what she was going for in her artwork. I was not exactly sure what she was trying to get across to the viewer. Jenny Fine’s piece of art made me upset. It reminded me of the time I lost my grandmother and my sister and I just sat there with a look of confusion on our face because we did not know what to do. Often time’s art is able to speak to a certain person and make them feel a certain way. In the Student art gallery in Woods hall I felt moved by several of the pieces of artwork. I felt as though the artist were able to communicate to the viewers without using words, but rather pictures, colors, and textures. Every different line and color on their artwork represented something else. Often time we just look at the large view of a picture and do not take time to actually understand what it is trying to say. People feel like if there are no words then it does not say anything, but in reality a picture is worth a thousand words. I would strongly suggest going to art gallery’s to view other individuals artwork. I feel as though it allows people to look at art in different ways and for them to really understand what the artist wants to communicate to their viewers. I feel as though it allowed me to determine what was necessary to include in a good piece of artwork and how to determine if I felt it was a good piece. It also allows the artist to express their feelings in other ways rather than writing it down in words. Every person is able to interpret art. Art is something that speaks to every individual differently and allows people to make their own interpretations of what they see.