new works in progress

These are the beginning of forms with little or no shading. At this point I have not determined the content or underlying message.

Rewind

There is an amount of uncertainty when going through a huge change. I experienced that when I jumped from last semester's work into this semester's. I realized there were too many variables that I was not ready to account for and that I was so used to my previous work that it would be better to, simply, create a fork in the road rather than a whole new road.

This time I will attempt to focus more on the content and color choices of my work. My last two pieces from last semester began to exhibit these qualities.

Here is the order in which I created my pieces last semester.

What we know...

What do animals live for? What is their primary purpose?
To breed, multiply, and procreate in order to pass their genetic code onto their offspring.

What else?
Animals are sexual by nature... Humans are sexual by nature... Humans are animals, but not all animals are humans. Thus, it is important for humans to distinguish themselves from the animal kingdom through their treatment of women.

I have no statistics to back up what I am saying, however I do have general observations from what I see in the media and on the magazine stand. Skin, skin, skin, and sex. Whose skin are we seeing? That of females... It is important ( at least to me ) that they not be viewed as objects of lust and general advancement of the species.

I have posted images of early to lay 1900's pin up girls. Many of these women were dressed very conservatively. Without having to show too much of their bodies, I believe their images were more truthful then those of modern/21st century media.

My ultimate goal is to initiate a revival in my work of this kind of idea. While it is a fact that sex sells, so does respect and mystery.

Where my interest comes from...

A Girl Can Always Dream said...

Could you talk about where your interest in this subject matter stems from? Not just the pin-ups but the idea of feminist art in general.

To the best of my ability, I believe this idea spawns from the influence of the media. From misrepresented woman who clearly maybe or are something more then how they are being portrayed. I guess I would say I was raised with a certain respect for woman and felt that not only would this be a great way to speak my mind but also to understand how to represent woman properly as it pertains to art and commercial work. Additionally, as I have been further researching the feminism movement I have realized that equal rights does not mean equal attitudes, which is something I would like to influence and that isn't just the attitude of men but also of women. The reason I also say women is because there members of both genders who may feel societal pressure to fit into a specific gender role/stereotype.

Hopefully this answers your question.

Pin Ups

I have decided that I would like to stay away from anything super risque, being associated with the Church of the Bretheren. So with a little discussion from a peer, perhaps, a 1930's, 40's, or 50's pinup poster type idea. Of course it would still be photography based, but many of these women were still conservatively dress but still had a lot of appeal and beauty without diminishing their image.

Perhaps I could use this style to comment on various women's social issues/stereotypes that could empower woman without being too blunt. I am going to really be relying on the input from the ladies in the class because it is you this art mostly affects most.

some that I like:

Some of the famous pinup artists that I like in particular that would be a good starting point for my approach would be Pearl Frush and Al Buell

I like that in these pinups these women still seem confident and mysterious without looking like total sluts, but today's standards. When I look at the expressions they have I really get a since of some kind of power that they have, whether that is their confidence or not. Am I making sense here or am I talking in the wind?