Kaitlyn Shehorn: ARH2000

Childhood Happiness by Kaitlyn Shehorn

Jackson Pollock was an impressive artist of his time. I enjoyed watching the documentary provided in the virtual sketchbook instructions. The short film did a great job of highlighting his life.

Pollock stopped studying with Thomas Hart Benton because of his alcohol addiction. According to the article, The Friendship That Changed Art, “the only thing that he learned from Benton was how to drink a fifth of a whiskey a day”. Pollock wanted freedom from his alcohol addiction, so he left the city to pursue his art. His main goal was to express his feelings. I discovered that Pollock’s pieces look simple, but are quite elaborate. After just a few seconds of analyzing a piece, I could feel his deep and dark emotions. It was as though his coping mechanism was to release his built-up emotions onto canvas. Each piece had its own expressions, such as joy, somberness, and anger. The most notable expression was anger. Thus, the “drip” paintings are much more impactful than imagery paintings because of the depiction of Pollock’s “hidden” emotions.

References

The Friendship That Changed Art https://www.artistsnetwork.com/art-history/thomas-hart-benton-jackson-pollock/

My visit to the Ringling Art Museum on March 10th.

During my time as a Sarasota County public school student, I had the opportunity to visit the Ringling Museum of Art for various field trip experiences. After analyzing art at a young age, I was inspired to draw and paint. Art was no longer “just art”, it became a hobby and inter-calling. My parents recognized my love for art and gifted me with art camps every summer during elementary school. The Venice Art Center and Englewood Art Center became places where I could express my creativity. Fast-forward to March 2022, I am standing in Gallery 15 at The Ringling Museum of Art analyzing art for my collegiate-level Art Appreciation course.

I connected with the piece Portrait of a Lady by Johann Georg Ziesenis. This medium-sized piece (58 ¼ x 45 ½ inches) is a beautiful work of oil on canvas. The subjects include a tall, slender white lady with fair skin standing with a small black dog with white markings tucked under her arm. The work was designed as a portrait with nature background. Colors include shades of blue, green, black, and white. The viewer’s attention is drawn to the dog because it is wearing a scrunchie with a red accent. Aside from the dog, the lady’s wardrobe is emphasized. Her floral silk dress features elaborate floral patterns and hues of blue with a touch of white. Overall, the portrait is balanced with its subjects to background ratio.

I believe this piece portrays women as young, confident, and beautiful. To begin, the lady appears young with her clear fair skin. Additionally, her skin is free of wrinkles and other features found on older-aged women. She exemplifies confidence through her body stance and hand placements. Finally, she radiates beauty through her serene facial expression. All in all, I feel that this piece does an excellent job of portraying the characteristics of women my age.

Johann Georg Ziesenis is the artist of Portrait of a Lady and several other works. Portrait of a Lady has been dated “ca. 1760s-1770s” during the 18th century. Thus, this piece is associated with the Enlightenment movement. According to the article “Ziesenis [Zisenis], Johann Georg”, Johann Georg Ziesenis was a German painter. In the 1750s he studied Flemish art and introduced a new genre, private court portrait. This new genre differed from conventional Baroque court portraits. In 1760, Ziesenis became a court painter to George II. His portraits of aristocracy and the middle classes were natural and allowed for artistic freedom (Bisanz, “Ziesenis [Zisenis], Johann Georg”). I believe Portrait of a Lady conveys that Ziesenis was using his new artistic freedom, granted in 1760, to create portraits of females. Ziesenis tried to express his heterosexual interests through his art. He was successful because Portrait of a Lady depicts an attractive young lady with a gentle side, which is shown through caring for the dog in her arms.

I choose this piece because March is International Women’s Month, and it was my goal to find a piece that highlighted a female in a positive light. Unlike the other pieces I found, Portrait of a Lady had a conservative look and feel. The other feminine pieces featured females with their anatomy (breasts) exposed. I felt uncomfortable and somewhat offended that some artists portrayed women in that manner. While I understand breasts are natural, I believe exposed breasts distract from looking at the entire portrait.

In conclusion, Portrait of a Lady by Johann Georg Ziesenis is an impressive portrait.

References

Bisanz, Rudolf M. “Ziesenis [Zisenis], Johann Georg.” Grove Art Online, 2003, https://www.oxfordartonline.com/groveart/view/10.1093/gao/9781884446054.001.0001/oao-9781884446054-e-7000093513#oao-9781884446054-e-7000093513.

Make a visual outline of all the Principles of Design (Chapter 4) and define each one, interpreting the text’s definition of each one in your own words, so you fully understand it. Identify where you see examples of these principles in your everyday life or identify how an artist uses each element and principle by posting an example of an art form or drawing an example that uses that Principle next to the definition. (6 examples TOTAL)

Unity & Variety

Unity brings different components of a piece together.

Variety describes the variation of shapes and sizes.

Surrogate Paintings by Allan McCollum

Balance

Balance means keeping a piece's elements equal and calm.

Where the Heart Ventures by GC Myers

Emphasis & Subordination

Emphasis attracts a viewer to a specific part of the piece.

Subordination serves as a background or area that does not attract the viewer immediately.

Still Life with Compotier, Pitcher, and Fruit by Paul Cezanne

Directional Forces

Directional forces provide the viewer with a visual map for the piece.

Dance of the Lupine by John Burton

Repetition & Rhythm

Repetition is when elements are repeated or used multiple times.

Rhythm is movement within a piece.

Three Flags by Jasper Jhones

Scale & Proportion

Scale is how size compares to other objects within the piece.

Proportion is how sizes relate to the overall piece.

A Sunday on La Grand Jatte by Georges Seurat

Choose any artwork from your textbook and make a recipe of the composition.

Ogata Korin. Cranes. c.1700. Japanese, Edo period (1615-1868). Ink, color, gold, and silver on paper. 65 3/8'' x 146 1/6". Prebles' Artforms Textbook Page 79

I am passionate about teaching young adults about the difference between healthy and unhealthy relationships. During 2019-2020, I completed my Gold award, #whatislove. This project focused on educating teens about sexual assault statistics, consent, bystander support and what do to in the event of abuse.

On a flat canvas, I painted a purple heart with a teal background. These colors are significant to #whatislove because purple ribbons represent domestic violence month (October) and teal ribbons represent sexual assault awareness month (April).

Learn More About My Project:

Share a personal experience of how color has affected you. Make sure to use some of your new vocabulary (hue, value, intensity, saturation).

Since I was a little girl, I have always admired watching sunsets at the Venice Jetty. The color scheme includes blue, orange, and yellow. The sun is an example of value. The sun is a radiant, dark orange with light orange and yellow surrounding it. Meanwhile, the sky is tinted with white clouds to create a light blue color. Finally, the water and waves have the same saturation of a dark hue.

If you had to pick a “color scheme” for your life, what would it be?

A color scheme for my life would be a mix of sage and dark tones. The colors khaki web (C7B799) and morning blue (80A68C) represent my energetic and active lifestyle. While English Violet (614269) and Space Cadet (1D2642) represent my relaxed and tranquil side.

I created my color scheme with Coolors (https://coolors.co/c7b799-80a68c-614269-1d2642).

Portrait

This photograph includes two portraits side-by-side of a nurse. I believe this picture is trying to compare the status of healthcare workers before and after the COVID pandemic. In the first portrait, she is smiling and looks well-rested. While in the second portrait, the bags under her eyes are a sign of extreme exhaustion. In addition, the markings/bruisings on her face are a result of wearing medical-grade masks for extended periods of time. This photograph is a prime example that healthcare workers are being over-worked during the COVID pandemic.

November 2020: Kathryn, an ICU nurse in Nashville, Tennessee, shared before-and-after photos of herself on Twitter during the pandemic. (@Kathryniveyy/Twitter)

Source: https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/coronavirus/it-s-exhausting-icu-nurse-shares-before-and-after-photos-of-herself-to-show-pandemic-toll-1.5202591

Landscape

I took this picture during our family vacation to Frankenmuth, Michigan (January 2022).

Here is an article about the history of the bridge: https://www.frankenmuth.org/blog/cross-michigans-largest-covered-wooden-bridge-experience-precious-piece-frankenmuth-history/

Still Life

This is a vibrant pink flamingo with a luscious green plant. The dark plant is include as the background to draw attention to the bright pink flamingo. I am in fascinated with flamingos and believe their message is to stand tall and stand out. Additionally, the flamingo looks at the viewer intensely which tells us to stay focused and to keep your eyes on the present and future.

Artwork Piece #1 (Top)

The media used to create this piece was a marquee board, also known as a letter board. The message can change because the letters are removable. This marquee board serves to display quotes or messages. I think it is beautiful because it helps me start off my day on a positive note. It is the first think when I wake up each morning. The particular message displayed above has sentimental meaning. After my surgery in October, my family and boyfriend (Ryan) left me this message. 

Artwork Piece #2 (Bottom)  

5 Facts about Pablo Picasso 1937 Guernica. Oil on canvas; 11’ 5 ½” x 25” 5 ¼”

Picasso was commissioned to paint Guernica. This was significant to him because Guernica was a bombing that occurred in the country Picasso originated from.

Guernica has been noted as “Picasso’s most important political painting”.

Picasso used dark tones and a matte finish as expression towards the dark event.

Picasso included newspaper into this work to represent where he found out about the event.

Throughout this work there are hidden images to include: a skull, a bull, 3 daggers, and screaming woman.

Citation: https://www.pablopicasso.org/guernica.jsp

Impressions