OliveBranch

My grandma uses to always make sure I was warm when it got cold in the winter, preparing me for the weather that awaited me outside and so I decided to do the same for others. Just like the weather, it’s unpredictable, and sometimes you wish you brought something warmer when it got colder than expected, I see peace in the same way. We go up and down in the day when microaggressions are at our feet and when voices become louder than we can silence out. Sometimes we wish we had support when others discriminate us into vulnerability.

My project for this final is something I have always wanted to do but never knew how to approach. I grew up in a Hispanic home, a twin sister, a shy girl, who often felt attacked because I was “too white to be Hispanic” or “too Hispanic” to be white, even when I am full Hispanic with  Spaniard blood in me. Discrimination was constant and it was trying to win constant approval. I wished, often, to be silent during situations as to never be the outspoken Hispanic, but as the 3.5 years have shown me, being surrounded by lovely people, the crave to speak louder had grown. Silence is at the least of my cravings because now I’m instilled to want peace for my self and others, by fighting to give space for others to speak. I never thought my toughest years were going to be in college, never thought I would need to fight every day just for an equal voice, but in the end, it made me the outspoken, understanding, and loving person I am, so this project is dedicated to those that helped me, who sacrificed time, comfort, and energy just so that I could feel wonderful and proud of who I am regardless of my ethnicity, shade of my skin, gender and so on.

I wanted those that sacrificed so much for me to receive the same care and love my grandma gave me and one thing I was taught at a young age was embroidery. Regardless of having so many absent years in embroidery, my plan was to give gloves to 4 specific lovelies, as my grandmother did for me every year.  I made the gloves so that when they wear them at the coldest days and their souls are feeling empty, that they know that they aren’t alone when dealing with the day to day microaggressions and the blatant attacks. I wanted my friends, mentors, inspirers, etc. to know that I have been moved by them, that they have instilled in me such strength that has built a confident woman and as they have done for me, remind them to continue speaking peace and truth and to make a movement without apologizing.

The images are my process and my small incorporation to combine my graphic design major and my love for people. The made-up company is called OliveBranch, as it correlates to the bibles icon of peace. Those that fight for peace, need peace from the microaggressions and attacks in general they face, and give peace are given these gloves as a thankyou and a letter attacked is specific for what they have done in my life. Just like when December brings darkness and cold weather, God reminds us of his day that he was about to stir change. The Christmas lights and reminders of love fill us and so I hope the gloves give those that are given them, that they are simply a small light to keep you warm and supported in all they do.

These are just Four of the hundreds that have loved, cared, and helped me:

Reid, Monica, Olivia, and Vanessa, thank you for all you’ve done, for all your brave voices, and joyful and loving contributions to my growth.

Faith, art block, & confidence

For the assignments, we were asked to find an artist in our field to ask questions about art and faith. The majority of questions asked were focused on the integration or intertwining of faith and graphic design work/art that designers do. For my Artist of Fait interview, I chose to interview Ashley Lippard, one of our graphic design professor at George Fox University. Ashley graduated from the Art Institution of Chicago, worked for VSA partners for roughly 11 great years, and has her own graphic design company. She is a wonderful professor and a great supporter of her students.

 
One of the questions I had was concerning my own thoughts about entering a school and feeling your faith become lesser as well as leaving a school and entering a world feeling like your faith dims. I was concerned that for me, I wouldn’t work to find and keep my faith after school. Because faith, church, religion has been so easily handed to me at George Fox at times, I worry, often, that I will take no actions in trying to keep it. Ashley, saying she felt both feelings as I felt, but slightly different due to her college, says that it’s bound to happen

-wonderful…-

The new environment was a double whammy, she said, so much focus on so many things inside of school and out, especially leaving school while being in VSA partners for work, spending 100hrs a week creating sometimes. We may say we will keep faith with us 100% of the time, but the thing is, it fluctuates often. Entering the world, we see it be more physical, more place and people, and less faith and religion. Even if we try, it just happens, its life, and it’s okay. It can be a downer that you feel detached, but for Ashley, she said it isn’t something she would ever change. I liked her example of the Prodigal son, the leaving and coming back moments of a son who she felt she was at the time and that I feel I am all the time. The growth from the departure is necessary, its what reminds us of why we need Christ and how forgiving He is. It build us and stays with us stronger sometimes with the walks alone. And with the walk, you never know what we might do differently next time in trying to stay near Christ as we travel around to do our arts. If you were worried about how you could intertwine your work and travel with faith, its good to be reminded, as Ashley said, that at least for her, ist within the people. The people, clients, or communities are something she says her faith build in, is her work with people. Being kind, even when it is difficult, being fair even when it is lesser for you, and being respectful even when it seems they might be unwilling, is all sacrifices, but all for Christ. We cant expect to go into this world and be handed the easy way to Christ all the time, there were times the prodigals son hit rock bottom, but within people, or however you find Christ in your art or work, is like the return home. It isn’t easy, there is a lot of ups and down it, but its suppose to be a process. I enjoyed the comparison of the prodigal’s son when it comes to intertwining your work because sometimes I feel my work isn’t what gives people a reminder of God or reminds me of God, myself, but it is the effort to the people I serve and am with. The children of God I was placed on earth with. I am supposed to hit a wall a few times, it builds character, I think, but it also reminds me that I cannot be handed things all the time, that it comes when I push a little further or reach a little farther. I create for people and that may be little integration in art, but its what motivates me at the end of the day.

With this, Ashley also talked about confidence and motivation, saying that we need to feel we belong or it might hinder good work, self-motivation, and/or excitement. Ashley’s view of her mesh in art and faith is motivating for me. I wonder, often, if being where shes been, if she ever felt art block and how she might have grown in that? From listening to her, she knew she wanted to grow with people. The work she does is done around good people and at the end of the day, some places don’t offer just quite that. What made VSA  so wonderful, is that they reached her via school, showing her work, and letting the students at the time visit the studio. The people were wonderful, with great energy, a big team-oriented group, and high profile clients, it fit Ashley’s wants and encouraged her to working habits. As for a great comment on art block, is that there is a difference between art block and flow. She has been reading a book that the easiest way to get in or out of flow is based on belonging. I took a moment and sat and was thinking how at all does that correlate? But she explained further reminding that clients are a big example. Some clients, you simply don’t mesh with, some groups of people are not a great fit, a rough project that is complicated and stressful can create tension and hesitating factors in your work. If you don’t feel safe or feel like you are going to get attacked verbally by the people there, the work shows. Art block is feeling uninspired while flow kind of is like not feeling motivated due to the situations. This is just as important, at least for what I thought, because how do you prevent those negative feelings then? Ashley answered in talking about her experience. For her, devotions have been a great help lately as they have before. It has been a week into the POwer of Belonging devotions that has reminded her of her skills and abilities. Pretty much, she repeats what holds her back only to remind her that she belongs. We belong and we need to let go of our insecurities and if you are anything like me, that was hard to hear. The unhealthy comparing, the negative thoughts of my work, it’s so easy to get sucked into, but we need to be reminded that we do good work and even if we don’t feel we do, we can always learn to do better. You can do everything right, but the minute you question your abilities, it starts to pull you under. Ashley called the term imposter syndrome, from the book she’s reading right now. In it, it talks about how women, often feel like their ability to get a job it only out of luck, that they do not belong or do not have what it takes to stay there. It is untrue, your work matters, you didn’t get there on just luck, your work proves your great and you alone are great! I am unsure why, even after people tell me I have good work, it quickly questions if it’s genuine, but I truly need to quit that. I need to be reminded that I need to be healthy for you, read devotions, work out, get some mimis(how my Hispanic family says sleep). Being confidence is not easy, but it is possible and it is a great step to better work, better you, and better experiences.

Thank you, Ashley or the reminder and the great conversation!

http://www.ashleylipparddesign.com/

It Was Good…

Corgi Night, Aja Trier  2018

From reading, pages 3-32 of It was Good, there was a recurring statement in redemption and reasoning. The more detailed questions referred to this: who we are and the redemption we crave, what true truth and beauty are and how we hope to get to be on “God’s refrigerator door”(pg6). What does it mean to be perfect, within our arts, our paintings, and drawings? On page 11, it says that a good piece of artwork is “…what makes a good story”, which is what we read similarly in the previous book, Grace and necessity, where they mention that good art is defined by its ability to make you question yourself and the purpose of the art created in front of you. The questions should be reflecting what your morals are, what first comes to mind and what is last to be a reminder. Good art is more than just ink, lead, paint on a board of any sort, it is to pull you in and make you wonder about the emotions the creator of it had as well as the emotion of the piece in general and what it brings you. They repeat this through these pages, going over that as long as it creates an outside emotion that was not there before, has a movement that can be crafted into a story, and is made with good intentions that it is good art. Though I do not feel I strongly believe in that, I also can see that because of its very vague rules or expectations of how to create good work, then in some ways the ideas of completing any of those listed above, is easy and is based on the person viewing or creating it. Meaning I could look at an image, simply of desolate lands and one flower in the center and what might I think? Well, to me it would be that there can be good in harsh environments that we are raised in, but to some other, it could be something different. In the end, I did feel a certain way about it and therefore it is good art, I can appreciate it, and I can take a bit of it home to talk about later. Maybe I loved the texture of the piece or the craftsmen ship, but overall it might not what causes the initial question unless I find a technique I’ve never seen before, but then that means the craftsmanship is almost unimportant, but that is not the point. In addition to that, good art is also to be diverse, or how they write its “koinonia”(pg 11) because it portrays and pulls perceptive of other people, those with different viewpoints and actions and feel different emotions. Because God created all his children, having all their voices involved and participating not general reason, but individual and inclusive reason. But as much as I see this as true, I wonder why on earth why we crave to create “good work” or “perfect” pieces to be the star on God’s refrigerator door like we did as children, especially in small frames and objects? Like I mentioned before, redemption, but what for? It started when there was a fall, a perception of the good was pulled away and the idea of finding that location of perfection is instilled in us. What might this location look like or feel like? Page 7 mentions this, that we want to capsulate the paradise we want to see and what better is to create it and give others you envision of the perfect? We yearn to explore it but all we can do is try our best to portray it, create it, and show others as if to reassure what “perfect” is and remind others that it’s still there, waiting for us. I am unsure why recreating the same things becomes our coping mechanism and why we copy over and over a location or object to its perfect form, but I appreciate the art that has come to it, because even when I do not agree what perfection is, it still makes me question my idea of perfection and what I can create to capsulize it for others to see as well. I guess there is a true beauty in wanting to show people what God has provided and crafted, but silly that we create all the time to remind others and ourselves.

The Starry Night, Painting by Vincent van Gogh June 1889 oil painting

When you see the traditional image what do you feel? what do you know?

vincent van Gogh’s starry night in France

If you were surrounded by it would it make you feel different?
View the videos :

https://news.cgtn.com/news/3d3d774e7a67444f32457a6333566d54/index.html

http://theprovencepost.blogspot.com/2019/05/van-gogh-show-now-open-in-les-baux.html

and think about your emotions and how they have become different. Did anything change? what was the purpose of its format and is good art(based on their rules above)?

O’Conner & my thoughts

Flannery O’Conner sitting beneath a self-portrait. Photo by Joe McTyre

From reading Grace and Necessity, only reveling small snippets of O’Conner’s short stories,  I see this repetition of mercy and reality. Though talking about it in class and getting more content of what it means for mercy to be at play, I still could not let go of the harsh reality. I think, often, how real death becomes, how grounding and humbling it is. It frightens me and yet the fear she produces in her books is beautiful because they match mine at times. There is no fear of too honest in her writing and this, for me remind me of a renaissance painter.

The ambassadors – Hans Holbein the Younger 1533 oil on oak (81 in x 82.5 in)

Continuing on about the concepts of mercy and its harsh reality as well as reality in itself, the painting The Ambassadors, created in 1533 by Hans Holbein the Younger shows a similar connection to her specific type of writing style. I will explain later but feel the need to show you where and what I think about her thoughts in the chapters we read. As I tear this painting apart I see that I begin to associate the dark textures in the wonderful way she describes her scenes. How in-depth they become with the emotions of the characters, the way that nature gets involved in the moment and the plain truth of what stays the same despite the movement and scenes that occur before it. It may be a stretch saying that its details correlate to her short stories, but when reading her input in the Grace and Necessity chapter, she says this: “…the narrator must not ‘speak’; the action and the character must” in page 97 and this is what I see it be: that the nature, the image of God, at least for me who grew up finding God in the dirt, sun, and crumbled leaves, is also the character in the story. It plays with the characters that suffer in her books, they are what creates fear and yet never have to explain how. This is what makes the characters so believable, that they themselves find God in nature when they cannot reach answers, they hide, they die, they fear the darkness of nature, the truth, the real beauty, the full consequence, and truly unconcerned land. This means to me that because nature becomes this endpoint in some of her stories, it is often forgotten how sacred and profane it can be, as it fosters the living and the decomposed with not much care because what is to come is, is to come. Fear engulfs the mind of the characters as well as us as we must question where does mercy lie? What is just and fair, but thought normally on our side. Do we see mercy when death of our kind comes to play? Do we see mercy at the carcass we see on the road? Going on, we see these characters living our truths, they suffer in the reality that we avoid to see and it causes us to question. The answers to death and mercy are not finite, but they are apparent enough to make you uneasy and it is seen in the book A good man is hard to find when we see trama flood quick in this family that gets stuck. We see where they end up, in preparation to become one with the dirt; and this is where we see the grandmother, the one who led them to these gates of true reality, is held to be killed. As a reader, I put myself in these places, as though I could change what occurs next and I feel like words of favor might lean the thoughts of the killer or find that I have been rescued by the civilian armed and ready in one miracle, but we see this is not the case. Reading further we follow her begging with realization, understanding her space and who stands in front of her and saying: “why you’re one of my babies. You’re one of my own children” pg 132.

Check out her book at listen to her speak!

Standing in her place, being that character I hoped for mercy, I hoped to live longer as to do better like if I am saved I will live kinder, but this idea is scrapped within seconds when a bullet is released out of its tunnel. Sitting, taking this whole moment in, knowing how irreversible it is, it becomes more shocking and deafening that mercy, in this case, was not life, but death. It makes little sense, because many of us have hopes to have God reach and save us, but yet he never reaches down or send rescue. What is mercy then? Is mercy the last realization before our stories end or the thought of the one that takes it? Though the Ambassador does not spell out this thought, when I first viewed it I was uneasy in what it held. The objects are symbolistic and similar to the characters O’conner describes and are just as clear. The objects symbolize the ambassador’s life as hers is described with their actions, their thoughts, and overwhelming mental strains. The ambassadors though, it throws it all on the table and is more positive, until you look closer. The two figures, one of the skull and one of the crusifiction pulls you back into the morbid reminders regardless of the acheoven=ments they, man, has done. This inevitability o death reminds me of her story I spoke of before, that death was always there, to begin with, it just so happened to be there and that time where it was born. It was the grandmother who created this scene and it was her to have until death. The hopes for life and continually remind me of what the speakers said about the Ambassador, how one’s perception of reality is, in my thoughts, is not at all the same of death reality. This distortion of perception on death mimics the distortion of the skull in the painting. It is not understood until you take out the wordy things the things ee tend to hold close. But once you focus on the truth of death, you realize that like the people the distortions are now if the earth and their expectations, because truthfully death doesn’t fit in our mindsets as it does to itself, it is not” rendered in that perfect illusion” we want it to be, as if it should fit our demands(khan academy).   This encapsulates a lot of O’conners’ works in that even when life is happening, so much chaos and emotions, the objects and those fighting against no longer fought but accepted their loss. And as the skull sen at an angle, death is to be remembered. It’s morbid. Morbid in a sense that it. Mercy is not what it seems, I suppose. 

The ambassadors – Hans Holbein the Younger 1533 oil on oak (81 in x 82.5 in)

Check out her book at listen to her speak!

Sources
https://da.khanacademy.org/humanities/renaissance-reformation/northern/holbein/v/hans-holbein-the-younger-the-ambassadors-1533

https://www.hmhbooks.com/shop/books/assets/product/9780358139560_lres.gif

Williams, Rowan. Grace and Necessity. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data, 2006.

Northern Renaissance painter: Rogier van der Weyden

Apse of Sant Climent de Taüll

Unlike the paintings in the walls of caves, in the archways of cathedrals, or in the manuscripts we viewed before around the Romanesque Era (1000-1050AD), Van der Weyden played with depth, incredible drapery with the heavy shadows and folds, and intense emotions.

Our Guy, Rogier van der Weyden

Rogier van der Weyden, originally born with the name Rogier de la Pasture, changing his french name to a dutch format, was born roughly around 1399-1400 in Tournai (Belgium). Living in a merchant class home, his childhood is not much known, but his career and movement in art began at the ripe age of 27 when he enrolled to be Robert Campin’s* apprentice. This apprenticeship kick-started the amazing work Van der Weyden is known for which is the incredible smooth line-work, rhythmic composition, and heavy and intense emotions.

*Robert Campin (b. 1378 Tournai France) one of the earliest Flemish painters

Portrait of  a Lady c.1460

Flemish

Van der Weyden was the very influential northern artist of his time, more specifically in Flemish painting. The Flemish technique has a few points that make it unique compared to other styles and techniques. The choice of the well-crafted canvas, well-stretched is a must or it will not turn out as planned, after this, gesso is added to the top to create a smooth surface.

Once the gesso is down and solid, the realistic drawing is then transferred on to the canvas using the golden rectangle and then the canvas is toned with Imprimatur. After, brown undertone is layed down, added to create contrast in the painting, and lastly, it ends with the gray toning, which is crucial to the Flemish technique.  Once all the set up is complete, you can finally, one section at a time, paint till you finish.

The Flemish technique was around the 15th century until the 17th century, was mainly used for florals, fruits, and still life portraits and was mastered by Robert Campin, which was passed down to Van der Weyden.

Flemish Technique
Fleming video

His Work

Through his lifetime after apprenticing for our friend Robert Campin, majority of Van der Weyden’s known work was religious triptychs, altarpieces, and commissioned single and diptych portraits.

Disposition 1435

The disposition is one of Van der Weyden’s most known piece. Created in 1435, this oil painting panel shows the Virgin Mary suffering at the death of her son at the moment he is being held and carried off the cross. The intensity in this scene, unlike the un-phased, strong, and in-power Jesus we have seen before,  this shows the emotions of pain and soul-less features. If we look closely, the folds and creases are as clear as day, with heavy shadowing and the multitude there are, the drapery on their clothes were made to be just as important as the detail in their facial expressions, elongated faces, and hands. The intense detail is what stood out to me when viewing the painting, covered from head to toe from the smallest intricate patterns to the frays of the cloth’s texture. The fingertips, knees, and faces are hit with heavy shadowing and realistic movements, though elongated. Looking closer, the tears that fall become more apparent, solidifying the pain present as the wrinkles, creases, and frowns begin to look more exaggerated.

With all these emotions, one might overlook the depth in this image. Looking at the background, these figures stand close to each other, having them practically overlapping each other, showing the small space or depth they stand-in. Though it is not a Romanesque style painting, this squishing remind me of the manuscript paintings, as the depth is not quite apparent in the image and the common use of primary colors. With all the detail, the painted borders, and fine layout, the longer you look, the clearer the stance of the figures becomes. The figure that catches my eye the most is the figure and moment of Mary, as she is being carried as she faints as Jesus is being carried. The arm bends and the side by side moment of them both being carried shows the similarity of the mother and her son both dying on that cross, one from torture and the other from the heartbreaking moment at the loss of her son. As if these expressions on their faces did not speak enough to remind you of the sorrow one might have felt in that day, the movement of Mary surely solidifies it and shows a mother grieve for her son and our Jesus.

Overall the detail is intense and we see it through practically all his amazing oil paintings. The gruesome detail does not lack the blood dripping or the tears falling, or even the thorns pressing against Jesus’s head, all of this brings emotions that can create an unforgettable feeling within the viewer which helps the viewer be reminded of the scene, to be really and truly moved.

Viewing his other painting, remembering the majority of it is religious pieces, that in this next painting of the Crucifixion is lighter in tone, regardless of the still heavy amounts of drapery, the shading is not as dark or as pressed. This goes for the detail as well, though the drapery, the walls, and the clothing and cloth on their bodies are accurate, the intense detail in the Deposition is not similar to this. Regardless, his style is still implemented, with the long faces, lots of folds, and strong emotions and actions. More specifically, in this scene, Mary, again fainting, is now in a position of prayer and plead. As I mimic the folds in her hand, I can somehow better see and feel the pain of not even being able to control the physical body movements based on the overwhelming scene.

Crucifixion Diptych

1443-1445 Triptych: The Crucifixion

“The Beaune Altarpiece, often called The Last Judgement, is a large polyptych altarpiece by the Early Netherlandish artist Rogier van der Weyden. It was painted in oil on oak panels, with parts later transferred to canvas. It consists of fifteen paintings on nine panels; six are painted on both sides”

Going over his amazing work, I can see why these painting, his style, in particular, was wanted because looking at these scenes, regardless if repeated, each made me feel and exist in that moment. From the folded hands in prayer to the deep overwhelming emotions on these figures we recognize. Unfortunately, like I may have mentioned in my presentation, there is still a lot we do not know about our Flemish painter, Van der Weyden due to the Nine-year war. Lots of painting, even from other artist were lost or stolen and never recover or returned after the war. Thankfully enough, what we have, though it is not everything, is beautifully crafted work, filled with emotions, reminders, and for others to understand and be filled with knowledge.

Resources-

https://www.afpradomuseum.org/descent-from-the-cross-van-der-weyden?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIm7XN5vbW5AIVkSCtBh0IJAWpEAAYASAAEgLVCvD_BwE
Deposition Khan academy
https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/renaissance-reformation/northern-renaissance1/weyden/v/rogier-van-der-weyden-deposition-c-1435
Bio
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Rogier-van-der-Weyden
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rogier_van_der_Weyden
Images
Bio &images

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beaune_Altarpiece

The Lindau Gospel

The Lindau Gospels is an extrodinarly elegant and well-detailed piece of art. It is a statement to the art at the time of Charlegmagne’s rule and the Frankish Empire from c. 768-814. The book itself was created sometime in the 9th century, in the early years of the Carolingian era style of art.

The Carolingian period was between c.780 and 900, and often took from the classical period style of visual art under Constantine including a heavy emphasis on drapery over figures, and Germanic tribes such as Romans and Barbarians in metalwork, using jewels, pearls, and emeralds throughout their pieces of art (Khan Academy). “Carolingian examples of these forms display the Germanic love of costly brilliance in metalwork, but also a new reliance on antique models and a new emphasis on the human figure” (Sorabella, 2008).

“Plaque with the Virgin Mary as a Personification of the Church”  c. 800-825, made form Ivory. 

Carolingian artists sought to restore the third dimension. They used classical drawings as their models and tried to create more convincing illusions of space. “These artists worked exclusively for the emperor, members of his court, and the bishops and abbots associated with the court” (Ross, 2018). Frankish Empire was trying to get back the cultured society from the Roman Empires fall, and Charlemagne brought scholars form all over Europe to help renew politics, church, art and literature, which is why there is such a mix of culture in the art form.

“Saint Matthew, folio 15 recto of the Coronation Gospels (Gospel Book of Charlemagne), from Aachen, Germany, ca. 800-810.”  c. 800-825, (left)   “Saint Matthew, folio 18 verso of the Ebbo Gospels” (Gospel Book of Archbishop Ebbo of Reims), from Hautvillers, France, ca. 816-835. (Right)

The Lindau Gospels contains the gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and, John. The book is roughly 13 ⅜ inches x 10 ⅜ inches, taking over 7 scribes to copy the text into the manuscript (Morgan, 1). It is thought to be made for Charlemagne’s grandson, Charles the Bald (Khan Academy).  it is covered in Gold metalwork, and an assortment of jewels; emeralds, pearls, marble, etc. It depicts Christ on the cross with mourners surrounding him. in the top half are angels, and below His feet is Mary and St. John (Khan Academy).

Here again we see the incorporation of Germanic and Classical style of art. The metalwork and jewels for the Germanic style and the drapery around the figures and Jesus on the cross. Christ’s position on the cross is also notable because it shows him looking up without suffering. The only suffering that we can see is the small drips of blood from the hands (Khan Academy). If you look closely at the cross, their are actual arches that support the design of the metalwork. This represent the Temple of heaven and similar designs would be used in later architecture churches (Khan Academy). The jewels around the page takes inspiration from “Heavenly Jerusalem” found in Revelation chapter 21 and 22 (Morgan, 1). Also, notice the the latin text above Christ, this was Charlemagne’s doing to revivify the Latin text from Constantine rule.

Front side of lindau Gospels, ca. 9th century. Credit: The Morgan Art Museum, New York.

Lindau Gospels, New York. The pier point Morgan library, front cover, detail (photo: The Pierpoint Museum).

Back side of lindau Gospels, ca. 9th century. Credit: The Morgan Art Museum, New York.

What further separates this piece as one of being one of unequalled importance is the fact that it did not belong to a wealthy aristocrat or courtesan, it was created for the procession, for the church going masses to look at with awe (Ross, 2018). This work was meant to sit at the altar.

The Lindau Gospels is one of the greatest pieces of art recovered from the Carolingian period, and was a testament of the times during the Frankish Empire under Charlemagne. The Carolingian Renaissance marked the last great effort to revive classical culture before the Late Middle Ages. Charlemagne’s empire was led by his successors until the late ninth century. In early tenth century, the Ottonians rose to power and espoused different artistic ideals. today, the book sits in the Morgan Library and Museum in New York.

References:

Lindau Gospels, Retrieved from https://www.themorgan.org/collection/lindau-gospels,(2018, December 3).

Matthew in the Coronation Gospels and Ebbo Gospels. Retrieved from https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/medieval-world/carolingian1/a/matthew-coronation-and-ebbo-gospels (2017).

Musto, J. (2001). John Scottus Eriugena and the Upper Cover of the Lindau Gospels. Gesta, 40(1), 1-18. doi:10.2307/767192

William W. KiblerMedieval France: An Encyclopedia (Garland Encyclopedias of the Middle Ages), date accessed, september 7^th, 2019, Library Binding, January 2001.

Dr. Nancy Ross, “Carolingian art, an introduction,” in Smarthistory, July 6, 2018, accessed September 7, 2019, https://smarthistory.org/carolingian-art-an-introduction/.

 

The Human Experience: A Lesson

What should art be used for, and what defines it? Are there rules that art has to follow to-a-tee? Can art be non-conformist and absurdist instead of its’ classical, realistic history? Can art be a tool used to tell a story that makes people think deeply about their lives and that of others and spark conversation? These questions are among the challenges that Cayla Skillin-Brauchle (Not Broccoli, even though that’s how you pronounce her last name) aims to conquer through her creative practice. Cayla has a BA from Beloit College in 2006, a MFA from Ohio University, and has shown her artwork on a global scale. Her work is multimedia fasteted, and she likes to focus of social injustices and the use of conversations . Her goal is to provide audiences with space to consider complex social ideas, engaging communities in conversations about things that cannot be easily measured, but define us, such as consumerism, the relationships between humans and our possessions, and the meaning of truth. She dives into topics of feminism, gender narratives, and successes and failures. Cayla stands to celebrate everyone’s shared human experience. On April 16, 2018, I was very lucky to be among the witnesses of those who came and listened to Cayla speak at George Fox’s weekly “Art Talk.” Cayla brought with her several of her works to talk about, among those were “Give Me Enough and I Will Ask for More” and “Certifying the Truth,” which were two of her larger pieces.

http://www.caylaskillin-brauchle.com/index.php/about/

“Give Me Enough and I Will Ask for More” focused on the topic of met and unmet expectations. She hung balloons in a room with a sign saying “take a balloon” and used this as the starting point of her artistic “experiment;” watching whether or not the viewers would actually take the balloons. She wanted to make the scene look “palpably gooey,” and achieved this look through the reflections of the pink balloons on the people in the exhibit. She found that the giving of her balloons was either a “burden or gift.” This was because people thought they were expected to take the balloons, and some (like children) loved to have this opportunity while for others (adults, mostly) it got in the way of their day.

Link: http://www.caylaskillin-brauchle.com/index.php/give-me-enough-and-ill-ask-for-more/give-me-enough-and-ill-ask-for-more/

“Certifying the Truth” was another of her big projects in which she gave people the chance to write down any version of their truth and she would certify it for them. Cayla views time as a non-linear, dependent theory that differs from person to person. She found three main struggles with this as 1. She was performing this in a country where the native language was not english, 2. She was dependent on others’ versions of truth, and 3. Remembering that truth is subjective. This created many conversations and discussions, and people were able to become closer together and work out their problems in a non-violent matter in the space Cayla created.

Link: http://www.caylaskillin-brauchle.com/index.php/work/certifying-the-truth/

“Everything is the Truth… Both versions are… Every truth is true to the person who believes it, and is valued the same [as the next truth… because] for truth to work, there needs to be shared honesty.”

Cayla’s work is so incredible. I was enthralled at her out-of-the-box way of thinking. She is really good at opening up spaces for people to come and tell their stories. After all, “that’s what humans love to do,” says Brauchle. Her ideas are very inclusive and the social research she does is so interesting. My issue with her is that these findings are nto necessarily posted or made clear at the beginning, and so people who look at her work can become very confused easily. That being said though, I think she is doing a great job of sparking new conversations about current and important topics that many people like to say they would talk about, but then don’t. In that way, I strive to emulate her work.

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Her work is important in the fact that it is indeed discussing topics such as feminism, consumerism, and relationships, which are all ideas imbedded deep into the minds of today. This creation of conversation is something I search for and have seen a lot at George Fox. Not only do the faculty want to see you succeed, but they want to see you succeed doing something you love, and that is exactly what Cayla has been doing. She’s pursuing the art forms that are most important to her.

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For me, I believe art is made for a reason: to bring people together through our shared stories. It is so wonderful to hear from an artist who is able to use all types of media and have this idea in mind AND be able to pursue it AND see her hard work pay off. While she isn’t making grande pieces of work, necessarily, the world that she does make is changing the world, one baby step at a time, and I think that is what is really important. After all, it doesn’t matter if the whole world knows your name, but rather knows the change and impact you were able to make in the world.

Cayla Skillin-Brauchle

On April 16th, an assistant professor from Art at Willamette University know as Cayla Skillin-Brauchle came and spoke at last week’s Art Talk. Besides being a professor, Calya is also associated with TedxSalem artist-in-residence program, encouraging the community to connect through art and conversations. A way that Cayla helps them connect is by creating art through an aburbist perspective. The ideas that come from her process, helps integrate art and social issues together safe enough for people to interact with.

   

This was the first for me to listen and hear what absurd art is all about and how it interacts with viewers. The way I see it, that in some projects I perceived her viewers as the real art and not the construction of her physical pieces itself. What I mean by this is that in her “Certifying the Truth” project, the physical interaction of sharing truths is the art. One quote that I took away from that project she shared was this, “truth is subjective”. It got me thinking that truths can come from being influenced by  feel, taste and or opinions. What I took away from Cayla’s presentation is that abursbist bring about perspectives that people tend to overlook.

I think the way Cayla presents her ideas to connect with the audience are unique and creative in the forms of expression. Her process of becoming the interactive installation itself for viewers to interact with is possibly the most intimate way of connecting to other truths. A good example is her Soft Data project. I am not sure if I myself would ever be so bold to present an idea in that form but the ability to spark up an uncomfortable conversation in a safe environment is something I’d like to learn more about in the future. 

http://www.caylaskillin-brauchle.com/index.php/work/certifying-the-truth/

http://www.caylaskillin-brauchle.com/index.php/about/

 

Cayla Skillin-Brauchle

Cayla Skillin-Brauchle, her last name pronounced like Broccoli, is a is a Visual artist from rural Vermont.  Besides wearing cute custom-made outfits to fit her projects, Cayla views herself as is an absurdist, activist, researcher reporter, feminist, artist, and lots more. She has traveled to many locations, creating her big projects like Everything is the Truth, some of these places include Australia, Thailand, India, and even Tallahassee, Florida

Her main work surrounds the physicality of art and bringing others to join the piece, this being called relational aesthetics. Because of its involvement with others, bringing cultures, race, genders into each art, it has expressed the voices of many. Many of her arts, like The Declaration & preservation of Love, was one that pulled people in to bring their random objects and stories to create conversation. Even when she is sugar-coating objects, she gets to see, as well as allow us to see, the thoughts, stories, and emotions that each person has towards hard topics. Questions like: “What is Truth?”, like in her project Everything is the Truth, it shows the popularity of a thought, the thoughts that are of minorities in this world, and the perspective of countries, cities, and specific people. She digs deeper and thinks creatively and that is what makes her stand out and influence others. 

In my own opinion, when it comes to Cayla’s work, she does well in doing her best to include others based on random sampling. She does not try to get specific people to respond or specific ages, but she accepts all that want to participate, which makes her findings become more of importance when it comes to tough topics. Leaving no voice behind, she does well in incorporating it into her work. I may question the relevance at times, concerning her projects, but even when they seem as simple as dipping objects in sugar, her unexpected discoveries make it relevant in the end. If there was ever a thought to say that something needs to be changed, I would be at a loss to what it might be because most her work is not fully based on what she does, but solely based on what she provides. It’s on the persons that include themselves in the project/process and therefore it would find it hard to criticize her for something she has little control over. One thing that could be something she tries is if she did do an embroidery project or painting project where people bring their favorite color string, color, fabric and place it on a canvas or blanket. It would be similar to her The Declaration & preservation of Love project, but instead, it would focus on the emotions based on the simple question “what’s your favorite color”. Searching for simple questions begins the pull into even deeper thoughts, so saying  ” what is the truth?”, like in per project, Everything is Truth. Though easy to think, these questions can bring up lots of differences. Seeing that makes me think of other things would involve other to join that allows me to be inspired. It encourages me to want to step out and actually ask the question like she does. To hear a voice, in something more than a quote, but in studies and in art, drives me to want to ask more questions and look for ways to incorporate those voices that are always skimmed over. Overall, Cayla’s projects are well inclusive, bringing light to others that may be left in the dark, and not fearing the hard questions, but asking them in ways that bring people in. Knowing that her goal is to bring up thoughts of others, based on the questions she has, makes me trust her work, not only in creativity and aesthetically, but factually.

Having the opportunity to have Cayla present to us her works and her story, was a very impactful experience. It truly encouraged me to consider voices through art and how I can bring people in order to help me create art. I have not had classes that based their thoughts on outside sampling and encouraging people to physically play a part in it some way, but I feel like it should be introduced. Though, when I do see what she has done, I automatically think of kindergarten. It was the only time that I recall others, from different classes, draw animals of their choosing to a big white sheet of paper. Next, to it, they wrote their name and age, showing more than just their thought then, but their ability to draw what they loved. I think this child-like love for art needs to be expressed more: to create even if we are not all artists.

Lastly, I must say that I would love to be a part of her projects. I want to know the stories, the emotions, and the people. Though it may come to the thought that maybe her projects cannot be re-done or cannot be copied is what makes them special. The reason that her projects can always be recreated is that everyone has a different story than the last, everyone has a different reason for a thought, and everyone that participates has a mindset that may be different even in the smallest ways. It could be the day, the time, the weather that changed the minds of people, but still, it is great to see what others can do with that they believe in. Regardless, seeing the voices of others, bringing light to their thinking and how their culture might influence it, was just a gift in itself. She goes out of her way to make the human brain and the experience an art.  I do not think others should limit themselves in wanting to ask a hard question, but to see how Cayla does and translate it and form it in a different way.

 

http://www.caylaskillin-brauchle.com/index.php/work/everything-is-the-truth/

http://www.caylaskillin-brauchle.com/index.php/give-me-enough-and-ill-ask-for-more/the-declaration-and-preservation-of-love/

Cayla Skillin-Brauchle

Cayla Skillin-Brauchle was an interesting artist to hear from. I had never heard someone refer to themselves as an absurdist before. When she visited our class on Monday, I was curious to hear her share her story and explain what it is she does and why. As was mentioned in her talk, she is an Assistant Professor of Art at Willamette University. She has traveled all around the world to work on her art and performances and has received recognition in doing so within the art world. However, she definitely has a unique style that can most assuredly encourage inquisitive people to question her work in order to better understand what motivates her as an artist. 

In my opinion, Cayla Skillin-Brauchle was an intriguing artist to hear from. Her artistic approach was very unique and interesting to learn more about. As she went further into her talk and explained more about having an absurdist take on her art and performances, I was still having a hard time following. The absurdist approach is still quite foreign to me. It intrigued me how she took full ownership of how absurd her work really is, however. She willingly creates different scenarios to learn more about the people that surround her on a daily basis. She wants to learn about their truths and watch their interactions based on certain environments that she creates for them. She experiments with these complete strangers, but not as if they are lab rats. She made sure to say that she truly wants to create a space that is safe and fun, yet inquisitive and an activity to learn from. 

Another point that she made about her work that I found compelling was that she really wants to learn about people’s views on certain topics, but she doesn’t wish to cause controversy or make people feel uncomfortable or offended. Instead of blatantly asking them about a controversial issue, she will instead create a question to go along with it to sort of ease the potentially tense situation. She will relate the controversial subject with a simple topic such as ice cream. I haven’t ever seen an artist go in with this type of approach so I found her longing to do these sort of interactive performances to be interesting, yet confusing. 

When I first learned that she did performances, my thought process went directly to theater. I thought that maybe she incorporates theater with her art. When she did explain what her performances are, I was surprised as it was not what I was expecting. I will say that her performances are fascinating in regards to the interactions that she has had and the responses so many people have shared. However, I was not quite sure how this was considered art. I guess the interactions of people and the truths in which they reveal is the art in her eyes.

Overall, her talk was definitely enlightening and I am now aware of what an absurdist is and what they do. I must say that I still am a bit confused and not sure about what I think of her work. Her approach to art is one I’ve personally never seen before, but the stories that go along with her art making process and journey were engaging.