Arizabeth Baez Influences In Art Practices

 1. Who are the 5 artists you chose?

The five artists that I chose were Graciela Iturbide, 

2. What were the themes the artists addressed about making work?

Graciela Iturbide- she would show around Frida Kahlo's Museum and talk about the photographs she has taken. She would have been part of the Communist Party years ago, allowing her to hide people in her house. She would always prefer shooting photos of men and women more dignified way. She prefers being part of the community and blending in with them and avoiding objective manners towards them. Her theme was identity, ritual, and culture. 

Richard Mosse- His work captures all that the camera cannot see. He explores places like forests. While inside these places, he documents and photographs what is currently happening. He focuses on places that are not there anymore, for example, a place that has a landscape that is barely visible. A theme he focuses on is "what the camera cannot see," like human crisis and natural chaos. For exmaple as he stated, " you can't see a breath, a sweat". This is more emotion-based instead of visually appealing to the audience.

Richard Misrach- His theme would focus on "never the same". He realizes that the same object or place can never be the same. In this case, he would visit the Golden Bridge, and it was never the same when he visited.

Barry McGee- His theme would focus on urban decay and focusing on the inner-city life. He talked about trains and people signing them their own way. Barry tends to do art his own way and tags trains, walls, and more. But other than that, he created mannequins that are showing "them doing what Barry did". Almost like sculptures in action. He would recreate the situations he was in.

Julie Mehretu- Her theme for her work is based on murals. She would look at her work from all different angles and see that it's different. She tries to have her work in general be bright on its own.

3. What were the challenges the artists faced in making their work? 

Graciela Iturbide-  Some of the challenges she would end up facing were social, personal, and artistic. Meaning, her signature style of being "documentary-poetic" would force her go to emotional, cultural, and political places. Apart from this, her daughter of only 6 years old, died in an accident in 1970, thus having her do photography as a way to grieve.

Mujer Angel 1979

Richard Mosse would face challenges such as technical difficulties and spend hours because of the camera overheating while trying to record certain shots.

Of Lillies and Remains 2012

Richard Misrach- As far as it was known, there were no challenges that he faced.

Desert Fire 1983

Barry McGee- He would face scrutiny by addressing personal addictions, and people would steal his public art. 

Today Pink 2002

Julie Mehretu- She would face challenges like Covid impacts and forced migration.

4. What were the inspirations you drew from the artists? 

After seeing Graciela's work in person, it really inspired me to travel more and to go to more places where I am from (Mexico), and document many places that exist to this day. Her courage to be willing to be more intimate and personal with everyone is truly amazing, and hope to reach that level of confidence one day.

Ricard Mosee makes you want to document more of the places that are in trouble almost every day. It wakes you up and tells you that not everything is fine.

Richard Misrach inspires me to be more attentive to certain places or objects. We can see the place a million times and think it looks the same always, but that's not true. He proved me wrong, and I would like to discover it for myself. 

Barry McGee- He inspired me to be freer and see around how humans think and are creative to do what they do. For some, it can be a crime, and for others, it is a form of expression.

Julie Mehretu- For sculptures or wall installations, it is important to remember that the audience can see it from many angles. You can not just see it one way but in other ways.

5. What were the things you would like to incorporate into your own work after watching these videos?

 After watching all the videos, I would say I have to be more open and freer while taking photographs. As well as remembering that there is more than one way that the audience can see it. Also, focus on katest prchaos if picking a theme.

Post 2 - Influences in Art Practice

1. Who are the 5 artists you chose?


The five artists I chose are Barbara Kruger, Sarah Sze, Jacolby Satterwhite, Julie Mehretu, and Kara Walker.


2. What were the themes the artists addressed about making work?


Barbara Kruger - Barbara Kruger addresses themes of power and values. She also addresses social and political issues in her work and she wants viewers to consider the role these issues play in their daily lives.



Sarah Sze - The theme that Sarah Sze addressed when making her work was how people and objects move through space.


Jacolby Statterwhite - The themes that Jacolby Statterwhite addresses when making his work are identity, the digital world, and technology.


Jordan Casteel - The themes that Jordan Casteel addresses in her work are the community and capturing the moments of people and moments that are often overlooked, primarily in the African American community.


Kara Walker - The themes Kara Walker addresses in her work are race, gender, and sexuality.


3. What were the challenges the artists faced in making their work?


Barbara Kruger - Some of the challenges that she might have faced when making her work was figuring out what it means to be an artist, making sure her work was available to the public and making sure her work can be understood,


Sarah Sze - Some of the challenges that she might have faced when making her work was keeping track of the number of tiles and how and where they were placed and managing how the piece would be seen by viewers.


Jacolby Statterwhite - Some of the challenges that he may face when creating his work are figuring out how to bring his online characters into the real world and how to get people engaged in his work and be part of it.


Jordan Casteel - Some of the challenges that she may face when creating her work are making sure the subjects of her paintings are seen and capturing the emotional side of her photographs in her paintings.


Kara Walker - Some of the challenges that she may face when creating her work are understanding the materials she is working with, understanding the space she was working in, and making sure her work defies expectations.


4. What were the inspirations you drew from the artists?


Some inspirations that I drew from the artists are how to incorporate different mediums into my work and also to be open to experimenting with different mediums that are outside what I’m used to.


5. What were the things you would like to incorporate into your own work after watching these videos?


After watching the videos, I would like to experiment more with my work and put more of my identity into it. I would also like to incorporate more mediums into my work and experiment outside of my comfort zone.

Artworks:

Diana Saintilme - Amanda Gorman Poem

Barbara Kruger's FOREVER

 

Sarah Sze's Everlasting

Jacolby Satterwhite's You're At Home

Jordan Casteel's There Is A Season

Kara Walker's Slavery! Slavery!

 Week 2

Javier Morales

1. Who are the 5 artists you chose?

The artists that I picked are Cao Fei, Theaster Gates, Barry McGee, Joan Jonas, and Gabriel Orozco.

2. What were the themes the artists addressed about making work?

Most of this artists shows how they are part of a community and sharing identity and talking about experiences that they had in the past and try to share to the world with their work and give to the people a different perspective in some aspects of life.

Cao Fei. She liked to play with the fantasy and the reality with her work like using fictional characters and how the people with this characters on them with cosplays react in real life by being in a real background instead on a fantasy one like their characters.

Theaster Gates. He used everyday objects to create his own artwork trying to share history of this objects that he kept in time and re use their story to tell in a new different way to the public.

Barry McGee. He is part of the graffiti community and he uses his art to share how this community is on the streets and try to give a different point of view to his public.

Joan Jonas. She liked to communicate with her performance and she callas it as her new language by being her body language and using it with sound, music, and a 3 dimensional space.

Gabriel Orozco. He gives free Spanish lessons to the people and he would like to make in a future change that Spanish being the 2nd language to the 1st one and use it in the everyday with everyone outside.

3. What were the challenges the artists faced in making their work? 

Cao Fei. Her main challenge was to make the combination between real life with fantasy be a reality even since that was her main idea organizing everything to be good and try to fight the censorship in China and also making a good choreography with the actors and be synchronized.

Theaster Gates. His biggest challenge was try to find old magazines and old objects to try to share their story and create a new artwork with something that already existed.

Barry McGee. His challenge was that of being outside in a rush trying to give a memory to the artwork and try to replicate in a closed space like an exhibition.

Joan Jonas. Her Biggest challenge was that on her very first performance that was trying to do the weather wasn't suitable since it was really cold and there was a lot of wind that could break the choreography.

Gabriel Orozco. The problem that he had was knowing the fact that most of the people that learn they don't really usually use it all the time and it's only used for little moments like ordering food instead of being something actually necessary like their first language.

4. What were the inspirations you drew from the artists? 

The way on how this artists even having a lot of trouble and setbacks that were not even within their control they still working hard to succeed for their work and give their message to the world.

5. What were the things you would like to incorporate into your own work after watching these videos?

I would like to have the same patience that they had so they could make their artwork the way of how they never gave up even if there is the feeling of failing they still risking everything to complete it so I would say I would like to focus on myself and not to get worried about what is going to happen in the future and don't give up if there's something that could sop me from doing my art. 

 

  

 

 

WEEK 2

1) The five artist I chose are Cao Fei, Michael Rakowitz, Sarah Sze, Berry McGee, and Julie Mehretu. Each of these artists explores different themes and approaches that influence how I think about my own artwork.

2) Cao Fei explores themes related to hip hop culture, cosplay, avatars, and fantasy worlds. Her work focuses on how digital spaces and virtual identities come together to create imagines realities. One of the challenges she face was working in the 21st century, where critique and expectations are more advanced, as well as building her digital environment to match her vision within the limitations of game design. What inspires me most about her work is the way she created avatars that look 3D while still having an old school digital style. From her work, I want to incorporate digital art into my photography by combining edited digital elements with photographs to tell a stronger story.

3) Michael Rakowitz addresses history, loss, and cultural memory in his work, especially in his project The Invisible enemy Should Not Exist, which focuses on artifacts from Iraq. He recreated that were destroy or stolen to bring attention to histories that many people do not had access to.  One challenge he faced was continuing collaborative work during COVID due to distance and safety concerns. Another difficulty was finding an Iraqi museum willing to display his work. What inspired me most was Enemy Kitchen, where he shares his family Iraqi recipes. I admire how he connects food, culture, and history. From his work, I want my artwork to carry more historical meaning and reflect where I come from and what I represent. 

4) Sarah Sze's work focuses on space, movement, and how people understand three dimensional environments. She often uses everyday materials and installation  to guide viewers through space, similar to navigating a subway or architectural structure.  One of the challenges she faced was choosing the right materials and tiles to support her concept. What inspires me about her work is how she uses flow of an environment to tell a story about movement and travel. I want to incorporate this idea into my own work by creating images that feel smooth, connected, and in motion.

5) Berry McGee theme focus on graffiti and street culture. His work mostly focuses on tagging as a way to make his name and presences be known,especially while surviving in urban environments. One of the main challenges he face was avoiding getting caught while finding the right places to put his work. What inspires me about him is how difficult it is to make art visible in public spaces. From his work, I want my own images to stand out, catch attention, and speak directly to viewers.

6) Julie Mehretu work focuses on abstraction and painting, combining shapes, lines, and different media to create layered compositions. One challenge she face was avoiding a single specific narrative, allowing viewers to interpret the work in their own way. What inspires me about her work is how powerful her work feels without words just by looking at it. from her work, I want to create meaning, similar to how a story unfolds when reading a book. 

Week 2- Influences in art practice

 1- Who are the 5 artists you chose?

The artists I chose are Trey Abdella, Cao Fey, Michael Rakowitz, Jordan Casteel, and Theaster Gates

2- What were the themes the artists addressed about making work?

A lot of the themes that reoccur is identity, and being part of a community, expressing the value of just being, and cultural history. Using this theme around each of these artists' work gives us a sense of what they see and their perspective on life and how they express themselves in mediums of all types. 

Trey Abdella- Abdella explores duality by combining attraction and disgust in his work. He uses a wide range of different mediums and pushes the boundaries of medium. He uses and paints on the surface of found objects, uses interactive elements and creates his images and turns them into a three-dimensional space. Using imagery drawn from everyday American culture, he does this to idealized visions of what the American Dream looks like, which reveals the discomfort and contradictions that lie beneath its glossy surface. It’s like this push and pull tension, it looks inviting but the longer you look at it, the more unsettling it gets.

Cao Fey- She combines themes of reality vs fantasy, showing how people navigate their everyday life and their fantasies. Fey uses roleplay and avatars to illustrate how identity and desire are shaped by real environments and digital spaces. Her project, RMB City, is an artificial island in the world of second life, that resembles a collage of landmarks and chinese landscape paintings.

Jordan Casteel- Casteel uses community as the main theme in her work, using everyday people from the streets of Harlem by capturing them in a moment that often gets overlooked in society. In the video, Casteel talks about how she photographs her subjects on the street to quickly capture a fleeting moment, then spends hours painting in the studio reconnecting that moment. This reflects her commitment to the deeper process of honoring these individuals and their presence.

Michael Rakowitz- Rakowitz explores the themes of decolonization and reclaiming cultural history by recreating artifacts that were stolen from Iraq. In the video, Rakowitz describes how museums in America hold objects and artifacts that were taken from their original cultures and treat them as treasures, not knowing how they got there in the first place. He responds by making paper-mache “ghosts” of those missing objects, using food packaging from the Middle East and everyday materials from there, to haunt these institutions with their absence  and question who gets to own their cultural history.

Theaser Gates- Gates theme revolves around memory and cultural archives, he focuses on the idea that collection of objects carry a bit of personal history to them. He gathers together things like entire archives, hardware store inventories, records and everyday materials from Chicago's South Side as a way to track community history that are usually overlooked. His practice shows how transforming found materials reframes what history means and who gets to shape it.  

3- What were the challenges the artists faced in making their work?

Trey Abdella- I think his challenge was trying to capture “sweet and disgusting” without one element overpowering the other. He carefully combines playful Americana with unsettling elements like experimenting with crafts and materials and using figures to create tension.\

Cao Fey- Cao’s challenges were bringing virtual worlds and translating them into the physical world. Many of her works involve large groups of performers, dancers, workers, which requires a lot of trust and coordination. There's also the political aspect of the art, working in china sometimes means trying to navigate around  censorship. 

Jordan Casteel- Trying to capture and photograph subjects on the street then recreate the emotional immediacy in the painting isn't easy to do. The challenge was not only trying to capture the moment but also ensuring that the subjects feel seen and valued, not objectified in the creative process. 

Michael Rakowitz- Rakowitz’s challenges were making sure that he did research and was ethically responsible for the artifacts he was recreating that were destroyed and stolen. Using materials like paper and packaging to stand in for highly valued artifacts is risky and physically challenging.

Theaser Gates- Gates greatest challenge was preserving the fragile archives, collecting old magazines, hardware store materials and records requires careful hands so they don't fall apart. Making everyday objects look meaningful can be conceptually challenging, a lot of the items he uses carry historical and cultural significance. 

4- What were the inspirations you drew from the artists? 

Some of the inspirations that I got from the artists were to just experiment with your materials and what you have. I usually get comfortable with the material I'm used to but I feel if I venture to other mediums, I might find something I truly love working with and maybe incorporate it into my work. Involving my community into my work is something I always wanted to do as well. Having others help me create my vision would not only make me ecstatic but the individuals who helped me put it together will feel proud of being part of the art piece. 

5- What were the things you would like to incorporate into your own work after watching these videos?

Some of the things I'd like to incorporate into my own work are virtual worlds and found objects. I already love world-building, like in games such as The Sims and Animal Crossing, so why not turn it into art that reflects my creative voice? I can use these platforms to create an interactive exhibit, like using The Sims to create unique buildings or spaces or using Animal Crossing to create and build insane islands that people can visit. I also love collecting books, artwork, figures and toys. Eventually,  I won't use these items and rather than letting them collect dust, I could include them in an exhibit so it can be enjoyed by the public. 

POST 2 INFLUENCES IN ART PRACTICE

 Shayna Pullo - Post 2

1. Who are the 5 artists you chose?

I chose Firelei Báez, Wangechi Mutu, Julie Mehretu, Sarah Sze, and Jordan Casteel.

2. What were the themes the artists addressed about making work?

Many of the artists talked about identity, memory, and process. They showed that making art is not always about having a clear plan, but about allowing the work to grow over time. Several of them use layering and repetition as part of how they think and work.

• Firelei Báez talks about identity and history, and how layering helps her explore memory in her work.

• Wangechi Mutu focuses on the body and transformation, using art to express power, emotion, and personal experience.

• Julie Mehretu shows how drawing and layering can represent movement, time, and complex ideas.

• Sarah Sze talks about process and how her work changes as she builds and responds to materials.

• Jordan Casteel focuses on presence and care, painting everyday people with attention and respect.

3. What were the challenges the artists faced in making their work?

Firelei Báez and Julie Mehretu talked about not always knowing how the work will develop and trusting the process as they add layers. Sarah Sze shared that her work changes while she is making it, which can feel uncertain. Wangechi Mutu spoke about working through difficult emotions and ideas, and Jordan Casteel mentioned the challenge of staying present and true to the people she paints.

4. What were the inspirations you drew from the artists?

I was inspired by how patient the artists are with their work. I liked how they allow themselves to experiment and change direction. It made me feel more comfortable with not having everything figured out from the beginning.

5. What would you like to incorporate into your own work after watching these videos?

After watching these videos, I would like to trust my intuition more and slow down my process. I want to focus more on layering, experimentation, and letting the work develop naturally instead of rushing to finish.

Week 2 Post - Sara Kolenovic

 1-Who are the 5 artists you chose?

The five artists I choose are Cao Fei, Sarah Sze, Jordan Casteel, Zanele Muholi, and Tanya Aguinilga. 

2-What were the themes the artists addressed about making work?

The common themes these artists addressed about making work was representation, being apart of a community, what will you leave the world when you are gone, and what are you passing the world to? And representation of the LGBTI, people of the border in Mexico, and people who are not visible in a day to day basis. It was also discussed about democratic spaces such as the subways, online games, and your surroundings on a daily basis.

Cao Fei- Discussed about how her work is Democratic in her perspective and spoke about the places she was working in. Regardless of a need to say but she discussed how surroundings and background are so important in an art piece. As people care about the polished product and the value it holds. And prior to that discussed about cosplay and how people enters a whole different world once they do. 

Sarah Sze- She worked on a Subway project for ten years and as she is discussing about her progress and process she gets into detail about how a Subway is a Democratic space and the perspectives she was trying to obtain within her work based on the people. And this was influenced by the Russian Constructivists and the Italian Futrists and showed an image of it as she was obtaining a one point perspective inspired by the work. One of her work was displayed closely and it is titled: "Sarah Sze, Blueprint for a landscape 2017, Porcelain tile", which was amazing to look at and gain her perspective. 

Jordan Casteel- Casteel would do art pieces on people who would not be typically noticed on a daily basis (basically unseen and unheard off). She would stop them and ask them for either a photo or would paint them (Mostly both). Regardless we got to see her perspectives and how she has come to placing these people into her piece which comes with a lot of re-living the moment, feeling the first time meeting people, and re-engaging with the surrounding world overall. And you can see that displayed onto her work. 

Zanele Muholi- Muholi projects consist of representation of young African transgender woman into her art work and pieces. As she would have photos taken of them and have them represented in exhibitions so then we can have more representation of woman, as for histories we been having representation of cis gendered woman. Muholi would have the participants go to the galleries with her so then they can speak up for themselves and speak their truth and story. And that way the participants can also see what happens to the photographs. As her goal is to give voices to transgender woman and that they are humans like everybody else. 

Tanya Aguinilga- Aguinilga has dedicated her work to the people of the border in Mexico, as it is about visibly representing people and the experiences she personally has with the border (as she perceives it as death that separates families). She speaks about how they get smacked with the reality of the border and grinds pieces of the wall so she can create projects of horrible things that people feel physically and emotionally in the borders to represent the pain they carry. And the pieces she created is meant to be broken, as it represents the weight of the border, emotionally and physically. Then she takes photos and represent the items she wore that broke and the pictures in gallery, in hope of people can sympathize and have empathy. As she always worries ever since she gave birth to her son about the world she will leave behind for him. So she looks at the world now with more empathy and care for her community. As she looks as the fence as something to reclaim and she thought this way after meeting Micheal Schnorr who is her mentor. She ends up creating a project that 10,000 people got involved in titled Border Quipu. This project is meant to represent the people inside the border and inside the project. She carries the weight of having an impact and creating a difference to leave behind the world. 

3-What were the challenges the artists faced in making their work?

Tanya Aguinilga- The emotional aspect of the project and the emotional toll it may take on her as she relives not only her experiences but others. 

Zanele Muholi- Having transgender woman voices be heard and have them communicate for themselves in the exhibitions. 

Jordan Casteel- As a young African American woman to demonstrate her art work in a space that is primarily run by White men. And along with that convey the history of our country and the complicity of it,  as she says "With access comes responsibility", as the weight is on her shoulders. 

Sarah Sze- Creating a perspective where people see it even going down the escalator and having them enter a whole new world. 

Cao Fei- Designing a new world for those to live on and have her work perceived as democratic (as she likes it to be perceived). 

4-What were the inspirations you drew from the artists?

The inspirations I drew from the artists is to be apart of something bigger, speak about things that matter into my pieces and convey something so that when I am left behind that I made an impact to the world I walk on. 

5-What were the things you would like to incorporate into your own work after watching these videos?

Some of the things I would like to incorporate into my own work after watching these videos is about what is happening to Palestine using Graphic Design so then people can understand and have awareness (as I know people are aware but don't know the real weight of what's happening as I am in contact with families from GAZA). 

Being apart of my community and speaking about what is currently is happening revolving America at this current moment (with immigration services ripping families apart). And convey the emotional toll on it with art. 

And maybe creating new perspectives for people using design so then I can be apart of something bigger even if that takes awhile.