Blog: REAL WORLD EXPERIENCE

So, the final semester of senior year got a little overwhelming...durr. I am soo sorry to all of you loyal readers out there who I have abandoned (if any).  I have been meaning to write for a while now-but I wanted to wait until I FINALLY uploaded the video I kept promising.  I have attached it below and it is of the Inuit exhibit "Of the People," which, if you read my other posts is an art exhibit I was apart of putting together.  If you have a free minute...or 4, check it out!! Now don't be alarmed at the sound that goes with it-it is tradition throat singing songs from Northern Canada, and more specifically-Inuit regions.  Some is traditional and some is contemporary.  ENJOY!

Also, since I am so goood at making promises, I will have more footage up soon of my senior photography workshop--which, by the way opens tonight--Thursday, May 1, 2008.  So, if you happen to be in the Ithaca area...COME!! it is located in the downtown Commons area...in Center Ithaca...follow the signs, people, and smell of food!  

So--last semester I decided I wanted to involve myself in a course that allow myself and seven other students to completely organize an entire exhibition at our gallery space here on campus.  It sounded like a fun and beneficial experience to me--as someone interested in the arts.  Inuit art was our topic.  I wasn't initially pumped about the subject matter until I read up on the stuff and we begane the creative process. Now what does that mean?  And why might puting a show on in a gallery space seem difficult and appropriate enough to create a whole three credite course out of it?  Well my friends, I will tell you what--our gallery director, Cheryl Kramer, has a pretty challenging job.  There are soooo many things involved in the process, that it could be a two semester course...which, actually it is turning out to be!

 

Beginning in the fall semester we did our research and became mini experts on Inuit life and the history of their art-especially their sculpture.  We were beginning the process of puting together a cohesive catalog for the exhibit.  We learned techniques behind writing an academic catalog as well as labeling art, and writing about individual pieces.  We also learned different techniques involved in speaking about art in a gallery setting and how to give tours and involve viewers in the gallery experience.  We had several workshops, met experts in the field of Inuit art, and we got to see the work we were going to be exhibiting.

 

There is a couple that lives very close to Ithaca College who collects Inuit Sculpture.  They have a pretty extensive collection which they keep in their home here, and they donated to Ithaca College to display them in this exhibition.  The collection consists of upwards of 40 pieces of works ranging in sizes and materials...from stones to antlers and whale bones...from sizes of objects smaller than a tennis ball to figures as big as an adult male's torso. We were each assigned a number of pieces that we would be writing about for the catalog, and we put on our gallery gloves, brought our measuring tapes and went to see the work for the first time. exciting stuff! (I have pictures of this event...I still need to load them..stay tuned)

 

So a whole semester FLEW BY!  The opening date was not set until February 28, 2008 (TODAY) so the entire semester we spent on puting the catalog together, editing, editing, and some more editing.  I still haven't seen it yet, but I am sure it is great!  Actually..it is soo great that a teacher actually asked if we would allow her to add it as a course material for her class. Pretty cool stuff.  It has been one heck of a process....and it is FINALLY here!  

 

Now-you must be wondering, "JJ, if you say the course was for LAST semester, and the show isn't until right now...aka: the FOLOWING semester...what kind of grade did you get if the class is technically not over yet?"  Well I say to you, "GREAT question!"  haha...ok, so this is how it works. We all knew that we couldn't have a 'real' grade that shows what we did in full because the project wouldn't be complete until the end of March... so we took incompletes...which just shows up as an "I" on your transcript until the teacher gives you a grade. This is perfectly fine...until I realized that I am graduating in May...which means I applied for my diploma, and they looked over my records and they  (the Registrar's office) keeps bugging me and telling me I don't have enough credits to graduate.  Ohh silliness...but once this show is over with I will have a grade, whatever it is--I am not concerned, passing would be fine by me! So, as far as I know, I am on track!  My four years of this winter wonderland is slowly...creepingly slow...soooooo glacierly slowly...coming to and end. And most you..my dear readers..are just beginning! (lucky)

 

If you happen to be in the Ithaca Area tonight--come for the opening 5-7pm in the Handwerker..if not...here are some dates of some events that you are more than welcome to attend:

Wed, March 5 at 1:00 pm--we are giving a tour to Jack Rossen's North American Prehistory Class

Wed, March 19 at 1:30 pm--we are giving a tour to the folks over at Longview

Thurs, March 20 at 6:30 pm--there will be a screening of "Nanook Revisited" and a talkback with student RB Schlather about western influences on outside societies

Thurs, March 27 at 4:00 pm--General student curator's talk---classmates and I will talk about our experience

 

I hope to see you guys there! 

PS-I have videos and pics to show you ...later...I promise!

Holy Moly!! This has been one stressssful week, boy...let me tell you!  Things just kept piling on! So, I don’t want to overwhelm anyone with anything, so I will try to explain my life right now as clearly as possible!

 

So, I knew I would get a bit behind because I missed thirteen days of classes.  I was lucky I got one exam moved back a week-thank goodness.  But, I am taking a two credit independent study course with (my favorite art professor) Harry McCue—I planned ahead and made a slew of handmade paper  (about 11x14) before I left.  I was planning on photographing nudes (also for my senior photo workshop course) and do a figure study on the paper using India ink and color washes. I had a quick photo shoot before I left for Florida, and as soon as I got back I did another awesome shoot with my friends and some of myself.

Hahaha-then I got an email from Mr McCue—“where are you? I need to see some things so I can give you a grade”  Thank goodness I brought some of my paper with me down to Florida and had some time to sketch.  I also did some more when I got back over the weekend...and I met with gold old McCue and we talked paper making.  Got some good hints and tips, and I am going to begin to apply some watercolor action to my sketches. He gave me a B for midterm—perfect by me!

 

Soo…photo workshop.  I did an informal shoot at my friends house.  I had a pretty good idea of what I wanted to accomplish..bought some creepy masks, mustaches, heals, knee socks, set up my strobes, my medium format camera, did some nude figure studies in my friends fabulous retro-seedy home. It was so much fun!  Just imagine—floor to ceiling, wall to wall, wood paneling, with this amazing barf-ish tinted green, shag carpeting.  Could I seriously ask for anything more perfect?  I had bought the cheapest materials I could find at good old B&H…some Fomapan 200 speed film, and some fantastic semi-matte Fortezo 11x14 in fiber-based paper.  I had two hours to print… because I had a critique the next day.  I basically processed my four rolls of 120 film, and banged out about 12 prints.  They were perfectly seedy, and haphazardly thrown together.  I was pleased.  I think I was most nervous about how the critique would go.

 

--let me catch you up on the lingo…for those of you interested in pursuing photography..or film…or any type of art here at Ithaca College.  We are given projects and at certain times during the semester we have group critiques…that is where we take the work we have done and show it to the class…and we basically discuss it.  High points, low points, composition, technical aspects, if its successful…etc.

 

So—I was nervous about having the critique…just because I knew my work was working on a different playing field-subject matter wise-than anyone else.  I was going for the 1970’s biker chick—pin-up girl mixed with a notion of fashion and surrealism.  Real weird stuff…very revealing.  Also—I knew my professor (Ron Jude) does not dig the nude ordeal.  I went with it anyways—He loved them!  Well..I don’t want to give away too much—but I will say this—my work (and my classmates’ works) will be exhibited at the end of the semester—sometime in late April/ early May—I will keep you guys updated) But basically, we all put together a cohesive body of work-that we work on all semester.  We are in charge of conceptualizing it, mounting, framing, etc…and finding an exhibition space outside of Ithaca College to put on a week-long show..with an opening (food, wine/beer, music—goood time!) It is like the most important thing for us as photo students…and the senior show on campus.  I mean, for some of us…it’s just a great opportunity to exhibit work to a general public as well as faculty, staff and peers.

 

Wow—that was a lot…and that is only a portion of the things I am doing this week.  Today is actually the opening of a show here on campus, at the Handwerker Gallery—that myself and seven other students have completely organized….curated, put together the programming, and we all wrote the catalog.  I won’t go into too much detail—if you want to read more about this check out my next entry!! 

so...I told you guys I had some more videos...I hope you like them!

 

I had a nice long day of traveling yesterday..starting at 11..flying up to JFK in New York and then over to Syracuse.  I got in around 6 and my papa bear (aka: Zacc) came and picked me up and we went to eat at Olive Garden! I don't know what it is...but that all you can eat salad is just so amazing to me! I was soo tired and I could not even imagine having to go back to classes, the cold weather was enough for me already... ughh.

When I got to my house...my plants had wilted a bit..but same old same old...it was nice to be back. But, I must say-two and a half weeks FLEW by!

Soo.. it is now Thursday the 21st of February, and it is my first day back to class.  First thing in the morning for my stagecraft class-POP QUIZ! lucky me... just to be honest, I did not do so well.  I will have to make that flop up with a good grade on the first exam...

I did pretty well keeping up with my studies.  That quiz that my prof allowed me to take while I was away I got a 52/60--a nice high B...which I am definately ok with!

I got an extension on my Cultural Anthropology field study project..which I will crank out this weekend, hopefully. And I have to write a proposal for my art history class. ohhhh and not to mention photograph my whole project saturday night and paint a lot a lot a lot of paintings for my independent study. FUN.

I have another video that I have been editing, which will be along shortly...will be a bit longer than the last, but just as entertaining!