Katherine Chaviers
Ceramics 1
Saphira
Saphira (Ceramic Horse Head)
First off, I chose to sculpt a ceramic horse head for my sculpture project because I want to pursue a career dealing with horses, and they are apart of my passion. I feel that it is better to sculpt and be creative with something that you know a lot about and that you care for, in order to have a better, more meaningful outcome. The biggest problem that I had in making this sculpture was figuring out how to do horse hair. I tried many different techniques that did not seem to work for me, so I ended up just making the hair a simple mohawk which turned out just as good as it would have with different hair. Another problem that I had was sculpting the ears to the same shape. I had one ear perfect and could not get another one to match it, so in the end I just started over with two nearly identical shapes to sculpt ears out of. If I could change something about my project I would make it bigger because it was hard to do such little detail.
The Muggy Bloom
The Muggy Bloom (Ceramic Mug)
My second project choice was a ceramic mug that resembled a flower that has bloomed, "The Muggy Bloom". I chose to make a flower for my slab project because I thought it would be a unique design for a mug, which is usually a simplistic item. A huge problem that I encountered while making this mug was getting the petals to resemble each other. In order to fix this problem, I took a lot of time in matching up the petals and making their designs match, I would use just one petal as a model for the rest. In addition, I also had trouble getting the petals to stay on, so I had to hot glue some on after it was painted and fired. If I had the chance to change something about my mug I would have made sure the surface was smoother and the details were detailed fully and exactly the same.
Critique #1
Ellen Schon
Vortex
2012
Smoke-fired Day
13'' x 20'' x20''
Description
The Vortex by Ellen Schon is an abstract vessel with unique curves and depths. Its apparent funnel structure compliments its wavy texture, appearing to have waves and portals of a "Vortex".The waves of the vortex overlap and blend in with each other. The piece is a dark brown with a mixture of a lighter color. The streaks of the colors are random and scatteredwithout a pattern.
Analysis
The vessel has a 3D form that makes the piece popout. The form of the vessel also helps establish the smooth, wavy texture of the piece. The Vortex has an assymetrical balance, while having emphasis on the structure of the piece. There's a unity between the waves in the vortex and the form of the vessel,that helps bring the piece all together, and make it more interesting to look at. The variety of different waves sizes and shades atracts the observer to the uniqueness of the piece.
Interpretation
This modern piece has a kind of science orientated look to it, being a vortex and all. With that being said, one could conclude that the artist is interested or affiliated with scientific matters. One could say that this sculpture represents the vastness of our waters that are a never ending funnel of whirpools and seas, because of the funnel shape and wavy structure. This piece personally makes me wonder what is really out there in this world and beyond, creating curiosity in my mind. The artist's idea behind making one feel curious was to make the observer want more.
Judgement
I feel that this piece was overall successful. I can confidently say this because I understood exactly what the artist was getting at. I understood why the piece was sort of abstract and why the waves came together, and even why they were there in the first place. If this piece was bad artwork, then I wouldn't have known where to begin with this art criticism. Not only that, but the name of the art gave me a hint of what to look for and how to see it, which was a plus that the artist did a good job of getting across.
Critique #2
Laocoon and his Sons
Agesander, Athenodoros, Polydorus
25 BC
White Marble
1.84m in height
Description
This piece consists of Laocoon and his sons. This can be concluded not only by the title, nut through the unification of the three statues together. There are three men with a snake wrapped around them that are standing at different levels. Out of the three men, all of the are missing their right hand or arm, and the middle one is larger than the others, symbolizing the father. The two brothers are very close in resemblance, almost identical, and they both closely resemble the father as well.
Analysis
The entire piece is unified by a white shade of chalky color,the value of this color being very light. The statues have a 3D form, and have distinct characteristics to each shape. The texture of the piece is exemplified through the different body parts, the hair being curly and wavy, and the abdomens being box-like and bumpy. The emphasis in this piece is on the father because he is the larger more expressionalized being in the work. Unification is apparent in this piece through the resemblance of the statues, and the snake embodying them all together.
Interpretation
This artist is affiliated with art in the before christ era. I can tell this because the statues resemble those made in the roman age where the white marble and naked, curly-haired men were popular forms of art. The meaning of this piece of art is to symbolize the story of the priest turning his back on the people by trying to expose the ruseof the Trojan Horse. By this, one could conclude that the artist was affiliated with plays and Greek literature, or the tails that Laocoon was in. Looking at these statues one could feel suffering and empathy for having to see the men get strangled by the serpants.
Judgement
If I were to deem this artwork a success or failure, I would say a success. I say this because it depicts everything about the suffering in the story of Laocoon. Not only that, but the statues are easy to determine that they are from the before christ era and are Roman, because the piece represents many features that we would have seen in Roman art in this era. For instance, the curly hair, the toned torsos, the nude body, these features were all showcased in this type of art in 25 B.C.. Besides that, just by looking at the piece, no title or anything, an observer can just imagine what the story of the men was, they might not be completely right, but it still gives the audience the chance to wonder.