On-Campus Professional Art Show

       

Children's Room I, Mixed Media on Canvas (2008), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries

        Walking into Wonsook Kim's exhibit, Lines of Enchantment, I was astonished at the fairy tale sculptures and paintings. It felt as if I was in a story book, making up the stories for each figure and painting as I walked by. Since her work was listed in a book, as opposed to having a label nearby, I went through without looking at the titles. This allowed me to believe what I wanted with each piece. After walking through the whole show, I finally went back to see the titles and information about the artist. While reading her brief biography I had learned that she was in fact an Alumni from the Illinois State School of Art. I was astonished by this because of how successful she has become. Moving from Korea to Illinois, just to do what she loved, creating artwork, shows that you can accomplish anything if you put forth the effort and mindset. 

Golden Pairs, Oil on Wood (2013), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries

        There is not much to say about her work that I did not like.  While she may be coming up with scenes or narratives from her life, it shows that she paid careful attention to the detail and story behind her work. Alone the pieces might not have been as successful as they are as a whole, which is what is really great about this exhibit. I believe to get the full understanding of her work, you have to see the play between her paintings and sculptures. Each have their own uniqueness to them and each brings a different life to the atmosphere in the room. 

Seated Woman with Hair Up, Acrylic on Canvas (2012), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries

        The artwork has such a comforting and calming aspect to it that draws the viewers in. Each figure that had been sculpted out of bronze, reminded me of a motherly figure in one way or another. Whether it was because of the actions they were performing, or the positions of their bodies, I felt as if I had experienced them in my life. There was also a mystery to each figure, probably because of the lack of information in the faces. This allows the audience to image them as whoever they want to imagine, with whatever expression fits their needs. 

A Girl with a Hairdo, Bronze (2011), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries

        The use of lighting when displaying some of these sculptures really added to the pieces whether she meant for it to happen or not. They look as if they were directly painted on the wall with natural shadows behind them. I believe this helped her sculpture pieces in many ways, and it helped pull these pieces together with some of her paintings and the shadows that were present in them as well. 

Black Mirror I, Ink and Charcoal on Paper (1974), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries

Unseen Miracle, Bronze (2014), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries

        One of my favorite pieces out of the whole show was a bronze sculpture titled, Ascending/Descending. It was a sculpture of a woman descending a staircase, while also ascending it simultaneously. This figure actually had two faces unlike any of her other work. It made me wonder why she made this piece, and only this piece, with two faces. Was she being pulled between a decision in life, or did she have two personalities or traits she was trying to convey. I studied this piece the longest out of the whole show trying to come up with an idea on why she did what she did, and I enjoyed it a lot. This piece really draws in the audience and makes them wonder, especially since the title doesn't really give any information besides the obvious scene. It was also one of those pieces where you glance at it without noticing anything at first, then further come to see every detail. 

Ascending/Descending, Bronze (2011), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries

Ascending/Descending, Bronze (2011), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries 

Ascending/Descending, Bronze (2011), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries

        Wonsook Kim's pieces from the time she was in art school until now all come together for this exhibit. It said she used many new techniques, and visited some old ones, to comprise the work for this show. While there is a similarity in all the pieces, you can see the growth and aging with her work which I really love. This exhibit was honestly one of my favorites because there was not a single piece that I did not enjoy looking at. I highly recommend seeing this show at University Galleries because it could be a once in a lifetime chance to view this amazing work by an amazing artist who started her career in Normal, Illinois. 

Feather Feather, Ink and Charcoal on Paper (1975), Wonsook Kim, University Galleries

On-Campus Student Art Show

Transpace recently hosted a student art show with work by Lyzz Lundberg, Marisa Boyd, and Jason Engel. While this show was fairly small, consisting of only about 15 works, it definitely displayed a high level of talent coming from both Illinois State University as well as the individual students. After walking around the displays, just glancing at the works, one could tell whose work was whose. While some may find this to be an issue, this is not necessarily a problem because these artists are just beginning their art major tenures and are finding their specific styles and creative processes. 

Lyzz Lundberg's work caught my eye the most out of all the pieces. I enjoyed her use of color, shape, perspective, and cubism. A lot of her pieces were very realistic when it came to the figures and areas they were in, but they were warped and overlapped in different ways which made them unique to look at. As you can see, her work is very effective when thinking about modern art. 

Acrylic & Gold Leaf on Canvas (2016), Lyzz Lundberg, Transpace
Hallway No. 4, Acrylic & Gold Leaf on Canvas (2016), Lyzz Lundberg, Transpace

She follows the same type of pattern in all her work, showing that they belong together before even looking at the titles. I enjoyed the little areas of her artwork that sort of looked like they could be mistakes, but were actually probably very intentional. One example is in the piece below, Hallway No. 1, where some of the red and yellow stripes are going over the woman figure or the area that looks like the ground.  

Hallway No. 1, Acrylic on Canvas (2016), Lyzz Lundberg, Transpace

Hallway No. 2, Acrylic on Canvas (2016),  Lyzz Lundberg, Transpace

My favorite aspect of all of her paintings is warped perspective like in older paintings. It's almost as if the artists were so close to getting the perspective drawn correctly, but then they forgot one little angle, which in return messes with the whole idea of how perspective works. I really loved this about her paintings because it gave your eyes so much to jump around to and think about, as opposed to being so straight forward. 

Rooms Overlooking Estate Garden, Acrylic & Gold Leaf on Canvas (2016), Marisa Boyd, Transpace

        Marisa Boyd's work was quite different in the sense that she didn't experiment as much with color and figures as she did organic shapes and value. I can appreciate what she has done because it is very abstract, but she accomplishes 3-Dimensional shapes just by using a range of values. A lot of her pieces look as if the forms are going to pop off of the page, causing you to get closer to examine the anatomy of the composition. As you can see, most of her work is using charcoal or ink, where some are so black that it is hard to tell what is being represented. 

Preface, Charcoal, Paper, & Ink on MDF (2016), Marisa Boyd, Transpace

Chapter: Places of Interest No. 1, Acrylic, Ink, & Collage on Canvas with Found Objects (2016), Marisa Boyd, Transpace

   
        I loved her two pieces that featured multiple drawings the most. It is amazing how different they all are, but simultaneously alike. I found myself comparing each individual piece over and over trying to find common shapes or patterns. I appreciate how they were presented together. If they were apart from each other, I probably wouldn't have experienced them the same way. 

Chapter: Imprint No. 1 - 7, Ink on Paper (2016), Marisa Boyd, Transpace

Chapter: State of Being No. 1 - 10, Charcoal on Paper (2016), Marisa Boyd, Transpace

        After reviewing the two artists above, we finally come to Jason Engel's work. The very first piece I was drawn to in this show was that of his. Whether it was the use of the bright yellow, or the intriguing child like figure, I immediately saw it and walked over without even thinking. I loved that he drew and painted this on a found piece of wood. It gives it so much texture and life that it almost shows you what the person in the jacket has been through. While this piece is not titled, along with all his others, I believe this person has been suffering. Their facial expression, along with the downward tilt of the head, makes me think they are experiencing negative feelings. If he would have titled this work, I am afraid that I would have experienced this piece differently.

Tempera & Pencil on Found Object (2016), Jason Engel, Transpace

        Out of all of the artists, his work varied the most within his own style. There was a range in the materials and subjects for each piece. As you can see the first work is on the complete opposite end of the scale as the one below. I enjoyed his lighter sketch pieces compared to this one, but I appreciate the fact that he experimented more with the work he was creating. 

Oil on Canvas (2016), Jason Engel, Transpace

Something that I noticed about his style was that it seemed so simple and effortless. It also felt as if his work wasn't fully completed. While I know this isn't the case, I enjoyed that because it left myself, the viewer, to fill in empty space. This made his work very interactive since my mind was constantly trying to come up with ideas on how to "complete" it. 

 Pencil on Paper (2016), Jason Engel, Transpace

(Close up), Pencil on Paper (2016), Jason Engel, Transpace

        While viewing this show, I found myself walking in circles because of how interested I was in the way all of the artists made their work. Overall, this show was really exciting to walk through. When viewing a student art show, I tend to think that I could be them one day, and it always makes me appreciate the artwork for what it is, who they are, and how far they have come. I am excited to see what these artist's futures hold and hope to see their work again some day.

Formal Analysis

Brianna Blair

Formal Analysis

9/15/16

Jason Judd

Crumpled Series

Claire Ashley

2014-2016

Spray paint, acrylic, and sharpie on paper

Viewed at University Galleries’ Claire Ashley exhibit: Cawt, Taut, Hot…Not (September 6, 2016)

A Formal Analysis of Claire Ashley’s Crumpled Series

Claire Ashely’s Crumpled Series includes 6 pieces of crumpled paper that are all quite larger than an average piece of printing paper. They are arranged in a horizontal line, evenly spaced, a little above eye level. They are also held up by two pins on each top corner which lets them hang freely off the wall on the bottom. This piece does not seem like it is supposed to represent anything specific besides what it actually is-painted, crumpled paper.

The work is on a wall by itself, so your attention is really drawn to the piece for many reasons. The colors she used in this piece represent those of the rainbow. They are mainly pastel, but two of the pieces include cooler, darker tones. They all have a certain glow to them which makes them really pop on the white wall. Since she mainly uses spray paint, the colors almost overlap each other, causing there to be a blending of each color. Each piece of paper has different crimps or folds that add to the depth, color, and lighting of the pieces.

The depth in each piece of paper is created by the way she either folded or crimped them. The pieces with folds show geometric, trapezoidal shapes from the shadows that are cast from the light source that is above the piece. This causes those pieces to have a range of perspectives since they look lighter and darker in different areas based on the folds, and not only on the paint. If you look at part of the paper that is above the fold, it is lit very well, and then the part under the fold is darker. The straight and diagonal fold lines make certain pieces look very crisp and purposeful. The pieces that have been crumpled up have a different texture and depth to them. They resemble waves, or rocky figures, without any certain implied pattern. They seem more unintentional than the folded lines, but they still cast nice shadows causing the piece to a range in value. None of the pieces look flat, which is a direct outcome of the the light source above the piece, the fold lines that cast shadows, and the mix of misty colors. The combination of all these techniques causes the pieces to move individually. Some look as if they are rippling, while others look as if they are flickering back and forth almost like a flashing laser light show. Although these are pieces of paper, I would consider them to be a 3-Dimensional piece. There is such a range in texture, shape, and shadows, which causes them to stand off the wall as if they are wanting to be included into the rest of her 3-Dimensional exhibit.  

 All of these pieces work really well together because there is a sense of unity from the colors, and folding. While each piece looks similar to one another, they are all quite different. None of the pieces are symmetrical, causing them to be unique. The colors are all similar, but no two pieces of paper have exactly the same layout and position of the color. The same goes with the folds and crimps, because no two pieces are exact. This makes me believe that all of these pieces were somewhat a happy accident. I can see her having leftover paint, or more materials to use, then thinking “What should I do with this?” and creating this piece. Like most of her work, they have a liveliness to them. Although they are not the big, inflatable, soft rounded pieces, they still feel as if they are a key element to the exhibit. This piece is presented in the exhibit to give a refreshing alternative to her other works and to make you think and analyze differently than you would with the other pieces.

Claire Ashley's Crumpled Series (2016) at University Galleries

Crumpled Series not only caught my attention in the exhibit because it was different, but because it was a smaller work to view after being surrounded by the large inflatable sculptures. I was immediately drawn to this piece because it didn’t make sense to me in the beginning how this had to do with the human figure and motherhood like most of the other pieces. After analyzing the work and really focusing on the elements she used, I have come to realize that they do resemble elements of motherhood and the human body. While they are different and unique like every person, they show a sense of comfort and movement. The colors draw you in, and then the constant lines help your eyes move through the piece making you feel as if it is alive like you. Overall, I really enjoyed this piece, along with every other piece in the exhibit. Claire Ashley does a great job of creating something new and unique with simple pieces of paper and paint.