The Little White Rose The rose of all the world is not for me. I want for my part Only the little white rose of Scotland That smells sharp and sweet—and breaks the heart. Hugh MacDiarmid In Hugh MacDiarmid's poem he describes something special and alive to him, to which everything else pales in comparison. I was inspired by this notion and underlying emotion. This piece is meant to represent the delicateness and light of the rose or whichever object of one's dearest affections and delight. It is without blemish and protected from taint - a piece that is treasured. A piece that has an undistinguishable connection between its physical existence and one's heart.
Then, I put the hippo in the microwave for 30 seconds
(Subtractive) This is a soap carving of a hippo. The intention and goal behind this carving was to be a proportionally accurate as possible. The hippo was carved out of a block of soap using Kemper carving tools.
My fictitious dishes piece is meant to portray the short story "On the Gull's Road" by Willa Cather. It was a poetic story of a sick woman falling in love at sea. The big blue plate represents the strong man who fell in love with her on the ship. He took care of her. She is represented by the smaller, more delicate yellow plate. I put it resting on the blue because of her reliance and dependence on the man. Her plate is yellow because the story spoke of the sun of the sunset shining upon her face. Upon the plate rests strands of her red hair, which is the man's only remaining memory of her. The cup is inspired by the seaweed of the sea and textured as though by seaweed. Finally, the picture frame is symbolic of the story being told as a memory. Inside is the sunset they watched so many night. The frame I painted white to represent her purity and the white lights on which the sun hits most brightly.
For the "Memento" project, students were to recreate a memory with a small object using only three materials. I chose to create a memento of my experience in Iceland. The materials I used were coal, foam board, and hot glue. I visited Iceland during the winter. It was icy cold and very windy. I wanted to build a piece that represented these feelings. The coal, represents both the darkness and the country with highly volcanic activity. While I was there the darkness really rubbed off on me and affected me. When I worked with the coal it broke off all over my hands, leaving its mark of darkness. This sensation was representative of my experience. The foam board I left white and rigid to represent the biting wind and cold. Finally, the glue dripped down as droplets of water off of the melting snow.
"Inventory/The Tokens" written by Christopher Turner was shocking and provoking. Never before would I imagine so many people would willingly give up their children. I was appalled to discover babies were treated with such disregard and little care, as if an item taking up space in the garage being dropped off at a local thrift store. I am disappointed in human kind to hear of this event. Given, I do not know the circumstances, economy, or culture of the time. However, from a psychological perspective, the universality of family seem non-negotiable.
Babies dropped off, if they survived, would probably suffer much mental and emotional turmoil in their development. Lifelong problems concerning trust and belonging would be likely. Just reading this my heart aches for any children dropped off at this hospital. The number of 16,282 is daunting and incomprehensible to me. However, the notion of tokens left upon children is very interesting. It almost seemed there was more sentimentality associated with these small objects rather than the children themselves. Emblems of hope or memorabilia of a family once had, these tokens were high in value of their owners. Each was presumably very unique, if intended to reunite one with their true kin. I wonder as the babies grew into adults, whether these gifts brought life or sorrow to them, or if those without, suffered deeper feelings of abandonment. This relief architecture piece has been inspired by both Pre-Columbian (200 BC - 1600 AD) and Islamic (1600 AD - 1700 AD) architecture. I wished to include the organic lines and shape found in the Columbian infrastructure. I wanted to the keep earthy tones found in their work as well. The outer framework and balsa wood design was transferred from the ornate decor and shapes found in Islamic structures. This project means to evoke a sense of peace and welcoming and simplicity I felt as I explored those architectural eras.
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