DESCRIBING AND CONNECTING ARTWORK
My two collage works ‘Processing’ and ‘The Past Is Fading Away’ are connected through both theme and art style. Both artworks are hand cut collages made with recycled books and magazines as well as found objects. ‘Processing’ is made with hand cut collage pieces which made me think of life and death, such as microscopic organisms and skeletons, with blood running through the piece. The piece also has dried flowers from my father’s funeral adhered over top of it. ‘Processing’ was my way of representing and processing the fragility of life after my Dad’s passing. ‘The Past Is Fading Away’ is made with hand cut collage pieces from books and magazines I collected. The pieces are of soothing water and an ornate chandelier and mirror in the middle. This is reflective of the healing of past traumas in my life and how I could self-reflect (look in the mirror) and feel calm wash over me. I also included two glass prisms in the piece, which I collected while on a weekend trip to one of my favorite places and one of my favorite knick knack shops. I was fascinated by the way the glass prisms reflect light, and I was finding light again in my life, so I took these physical pieces with me and adhered them on top of the recycled magazine cut outs. Both ‘Processing’ and ‘The Past Is Fading Away’, along with all of my works, are my own way of reflecting upon themes I have experienced in my life, such as grief and transformation.
MAPPING AND GROUPING RESEARCH INTERESTS
As I revisited my teaching and art portfolios, I found topics that are of most interest and importance to me in my teaching. The topic I chose that is closest to my heart is the Visual Arts and Healing. I have certainly found great healing in the arts throughout my life, and I would like to pass that along to my students. Arts as therapy and arts for self expression are particularly important within healing through the arts. Art provides a language without words to communicate thoughts and emotions, as well as a way to work through and process emotions. Art is a wonderful outlet for self-expression that can be used to process and transform.
I also find Social Justice Art to be of utmost importance. This includes students finding a voice through art and fighting for justice through art. In a world that often feels unstable, students have the ability to find their voice and power through the arts. They can fight for what they believe in by creating art that is powerful and pushes for change. In the past I have had students make social justice posters that were displayed around school so that students could see the issues they chose being displayed for their school community to see.
Additionally, Skill Building in various areas is of critical importance in the art classroom. Some of these skills include but are not limited to creativity, building empathy, and building critical thinking skills, which are all aspects the arts help to build. The arts connect students (and people) and allow us to hear each other’s stories and see each other’s important creations, thus building empathy. Of course, the arts also build creative skills that students can take with them throughout life. The arts assist in building critical thinking skills, as well. There is not one way to answer a problem in the arts, and students must think outside the box to solve problems. This is a very important life skill to have, and these are just a few of the skills the arts teaches.
The two artistic mediums I am most interested in are Through the Lens (Photography) and Repurposed Art. I am interested in teaching both film and digital photography as well as post-processing. Taking art in to the digital art and involving technology is important and innovative in the 21st Century. For repurposed art, I am most interested in collage, assemblage, and crafting. In a world that is full of waste, I show students how to repurpose old magazines, books, and found objects in to beautiful creations.