Wk 11 – Activity – Plaster Molding

This activity was a little different for me because I was not able to go to the beach like the other students. But i was still able to make the plaster molding with sand and plaster in the home environment. Honestly I was really wondering on how I was going to be able to do this project and was even thinking about not doing it. But I got my butt up and went to buy sand at home depot and got plaster from an art store. I kind of wanted to do the foot but went for the easier route with the hand.

I imagined that it would come out nicely shaped and clean. I was way off on that thought and was wrong… I guess it was the sand and the way I took my hand out of it but it still looked decent. I felt as if it crumbled inside a little bit as I took my hand out but it was fine. I never made plaster before and before I watched the video I did not think it would be a liquid form and more of a clay and oatmeal consistency. I made the plaster and poured it in carefully and had to play the waiting game. I honestly keep thinking of the shape that it would come out and how amazing my hand would look during the waiting time but… expectations just ruin everything. It came out looking blobby but still okay as you can see in the picture. I wanted to take all the sand off but that didn’t seem possible at the moment.

Overall this project was a new experience for me and I am glad I got to try something new.

Wk 11 – Artist Interview – Susanna Ali

I chose this artwork because it was so small and looked as if it had no big significance. It did not catch my eye right away and took some time to go around the gallery for me to see it and actually be interested in it. But because it was so small and insignificant to the eye in the large gallery it took me to interest. After looking around a while I went outside to talk to the artist.

She wants to get a job or teach soon after she graduates. She ultimately told me that she had a lot of goals but she really just wants to get a studio so she can keep on working on her projects and do art. Someone asked her what will happen to her stuff after the show and she said that they will document it and tear it down. She sounded very happy about it and she told us that its really fun to tear it down. She told us that its a big stress reliever just smashing her work into bits and pieces.

For her work she usually tries to find places that are easy to dig and shovel the sediment out of. Before she actually does go out and gets sediment she plans it out before of how many bags and how much she will be getting. She usually has partners that helps her out, usually her dad. The stuff she does with her dirt is what I did not know. I thought she will just take the dirt and work with it. But she told us that she sifts through it and compacts it. The dirt that she used for this project was from the cemetery which seemed a little creepy to me but I guess it is some good quality sediment!

Wk 11 – Classmate Interview – Kat Pismenny

I met Kat through my friend that was already interviewing someone else. She was sitting next to the interviewee because they were friends. So while my friend did their interview I asked Kat if she can get interviewed by me. She politely agreed and we went on.

I honestly thought that I knew or seen Kat somewhere before when I first saw her. I couldn’t figure it out so I just went on with the socializing. She started off by telling me that she got her appendix removed over spring break. This was the first time I ever heard of this and I was really shocked to see her fine and walking around on Thursday. While I was still shocked she got me even more by telling me everyone in her family did except for her dad. I did not know wart to say to that except “oh wow”. She is a first year and is living in the dorms currently. Her major is journalism but wants to switch out to nursing. I have met now a couple people that want to go into that major in art class.

Kat had been to many places over the U.S. like growing up in Maine. Then she eventually moved to Sacramento and then to Missouri for High School. I think that is very cool because I have only lived in big populated areas such as New York, New Jersey, and California. I grew up in these areas by myself but she has two brother, one older and one younger. One is 29 and the other is seven. I am very jealous of people with siblings because I will never know the feeling.

Nice meeting you!

Wk 10 – Activity – Student Choice

What is better to do for a free choice than to go to an art show? It was not exactly paintings and sculptures like we see every week in class but the art as in musical artists. It was a junior high show of their students performing different instruments and even story like songs. It was for my very close family friend’s little sister which I see almost as my own. She was part of the advanced guitar group and had vocal parts as well.

I was too anticipated for her part that I did not take pictures for the other performances but I’m glad I at least for her parts. These kids that performed really surprised me with skills that I did not expect at all from them. I don’t think I could have done some stuff that they did even if I practiced for a while… Some of these kids had very amazing voices and acting talent that made me seem like a theater novice.

I realized art can be shown through people’s voices and musical instruments when organized in a certain way. It was my first musical show and I’m glad this was the first. The effort they put into this was really shown and just seeing younger kids perform on the stage was fun to watch. It really made me want to learn more instruments and have certain talents that I will never be a blue to get… They were just born for the stage!

Wk 10 – Artist Interview – Isiah (Group Exhibition)

To start off, this art work was something that caught my eye because of the color and texture. I mean, I am always into shoes so maybe that played a part in my attention. Anyways, it was a rack of shoes that had a pink and weird texture material all over it. After some observation I decided to approach the artist.

This is where I met Isiah. He is a 5th year on campus, a super senior! The reason for this was because of the fact that he took a while to choose art as a major. Before he was interested in film so he decided to explore that area and realized that he just did not have the knack for directing. He told us that he loves horror and fantasy type movies, even the movies that are rated D. He just loves those movies that others won’t, and can spend a lot of time watching them. I found this to be really interesting because I just can’t handle poorly rated movies.

He loves the idea of  a fantasy world, which kind of directed him into designing for movies. I do not have a picture but he had another art piece that was supposed to be a mask which turned out differently than he expected. Finally we got to the point about the pink stuff on the shoes. He revealed the secret to be peptobismol… Did not know why I could not guess that earlier. He took five hours to shop for the shoes, the right ones of course.

Thanks for the interesting artwork and good luck on your movies!

Wk 10 – Classmate Interview – Abby Luna

This week I met someone I met before. We had interviewed each other before but due to some curcumstances we had to hold our interviews off. Anyways we already knew some information so it was like a catch up session. We found ourselves to be the last two without a partner as well.

She is a first year at school and undeclared as of now. She told me that she is interested in the  medical field. She used to play basketball in highschool which I find very cool. I had many other friends that played girls basketball and found it to be familiar. She commutes from Downey which I have heard of but never actually visited. She has a very Americanized family which is unlike me because I am a first generation child. I kind of wish I had an americanized family. I noticed her hair was different and I was right. She told me it was her first time dying her hair. How good of a friend to notice huh? Haha, any who she is enjoying her time here at CSULB and enjoys this class as well.

During the interview we ask each other questions concerning each other about things we thought we remembered from the last interview but some information was mixed up from others and there was a little funny confusion going on. Well I hope that I’ll remember correctly next time!

Glad I got to talk to you again!

Wk 9 – Activity – Architecture & urban Planning

Cognitive Map 

Recreation Center 

I chose the recreation center because I enjoy going to this place and see it every day I go to school.

Well about the current use of this building, it is used as in the title, for recreation. Whether it would be different kinds of sports or taking a jog/run indoors. You can lift weights and do various conditioning exercises. There are even cycling groups as there is yoga and other programs available. You can even do whatever you would like in the three rooms that are upstairs. It has a back component to its structure that gives students access to a swimming pool and jacuzzi, while on the side there is a outdoor beach volleyball court.You can even try rock climbing if you would like.

There is also something that people would not guess about the use of the recreation center that I figured out by talking to one of my friends. He and his friends use this place for choreography and break dancing practice. They use one of the rooms upstairs and have a daily practice with friends or themselves. That is something I did not think the recreation center would come to use to.

I got to see the history of this building from the website that was given to me by a worker. The recreation center was opened on September 20th, 2010. On February 27-28, 2007 students voted for a fee referendum to build this building and passed. And in June 2011 our recreation center received  the Athletic Business Architectural Showcase Award, and the next month the Recreation Management Architectural & Innovative Design Award. On April 2012 it passed a million people entering the building and the next month received the NIRSA Outstanding Sports Facility Award. The familiar Robeks in the REC was added February 2013. And finally the best worth mentioning, our school was in the Top 20 Most Impressive College Gyms and Student Recreation Centers.

My Model 

This is my idea of the recreation center that I dreamed of. As you can see it’s not perfect but it contains a component that it does not have as of now. The indoor soccer field. We have to share the space with volleyball/badminton and even basketball at times. Our recreation center already has three courts for basketball so I find this not right. I think we should have more options for every sport because not everybody plays basketball only. I also incorporated an indoor pool instead of an outdoor since it seems more popular, but I would also like to have an outdoor as well for the sunshine and pool parties. And I excluded the Robeks and study area because I did not know where to put them, but if there was more space I would include them in.

Wk 9 – Artist Interview – Lesley Nishigawara

I have no idea why, but this crazy connection of string that was heading in every direction seemed to catch my attention. It just was something that made me want to stop and try to figure out if it had a pattern or a certain sigh of direction it was heading with the different colors. Any who, I stared at it for a while and headed out to see that people were already interviewing the artist.

Since the interview already started, I was in the back listening to the others ask questions. She stated that this piece took her 10 hours to install, which is a very large amount of time. I personally would have been very frustrated and impatient doing this project. The material she used was vellum card stock and string from what I heard behind the crowd of other students. I heard that this was a master show for her thesis that she had to get approval from. (couldn’t really hear her voice but I hope that is correct). She also stated that she chose to go to Long Beach because of the Fiber program that we offered and she even told us that many other colleges don’t have this program available to students which I did not know and assumed it would be in every other college too.

Her artwork is supposed to represent “how information is revealed through systems and the resulting patterns they create.”. I had a hard time grasping this concept and even went back to read the statement a couple more times while I was in the gallery and after the interview session. But after I saw a couple more pieces of artwork and the remaining sentences I slowly started to get the concept.

Thank you for your time and work!

Wk 9 – Classmate Interview – J Perez

For the first time this week at art class someone asked me first to do an interview ! Just thought I should congratulate J Perez for that. Any who, he is the first person that I met in this class that is older than me and a grade above. While we were talking to each other I noticed that he was not writing anything down. He later assured me that he usually does not write and remembers most of the information.

He is a third year at CSULB and a Computer Engineering major. We talked about how I was always interested in doing his major as well and about how many math classes it came with to do so. As we talked on I asked where he was from because he was surprised that I was born in New York. He told me he was born and raised from Long Beach and since he asked if I liked New York I asked the same about Long Beach and he told me that he loves it. He actually went to school right across the street from our campus to Wilson High School.

The BIGGEST surprise I had while conversing with J is that he is married. He is married at the age of 20. He married last December to his high school sweet heart. The BIGGER surprise is that his wife is in our class too. This was just unbelievable to me and a big shock. You don’t see this kind of married couple everyday. It was sweet though, that they liked each other so much and the marriage was approved by the parents.

He asked me about any hobbies that I am into and I told him that I played soccer, and he shared his love for soccer as well. Told me that his brother works for Guess and he is abroad sending him pictures about soccer related things to him every now and then. He did mention that he grew up skateboarding though and soccer was just a side hobby.

Nice to meet you !

Wk8 – Activity – Remix Culture

The internet is by far the most amazing and valuable tool to human beings. It is available to almost anyone in the world and contains the knowledge of every subject and matter that you can access at the touch of your fingertips. It allows us to see people’s works and study things we couldn’t have without the internet.

Through the internet many people can see your work and take it as they wish, but sometimes there is something called a copyright which stops people from doing so. Many famous or valuable “items” are put down with copyright so that others are not able to benefit from the same. I think it is very easily avoidable and people have done so around the world. At the same time I think there should be some sort of lenience towards it but harsh rules in specific conditions.

I chose to make a remix of the famous painting of Mona Lisa. This is a drawing that is known by almost everyone and has one original copy. I guess it would have a very big copyright issue. I got an app on my phone to do this project and it allowed me to put stickers or emojis you call it to put around the original picture. There were different attempts to this and I finally came up with a silly and childish picture that was in my mind.