Some Recent Drawings

Some of my recent Drawings for my Comic, Drifter. Just was curious what anyone thought about these works, thanks for the input!
Anyone interested in checking out my comic can click the link on the sidebar under Student/Faculty Art Corner titled "Andy Checkmark".

Art World Prankster Banksy's latest..Would you like flies with that?

Banksy (the subversive, cheeky, street artist known for stencil art, adding art to museums, pink elephants and more) branched out into animatronics with a temporary site-specific installation at The Village Pet Store and Charcoal Grill in NYC.  

Banksy mixes the theme of domesticated animals as the pets we buy to love, and domesticated animals that we buy to eat. The line is blurred with humor and bite...pun intended? Bon apetit!

NOTCOT: Banksy's Village Petstore & Charcoal Grill from Jean Aw on Vimeo.

Tapestry Collection on display at Art Inst of Chicago

After decades in storage, the Art Institute of Chicago will be displaying all 70 of their tapestries  from their collection, fresh after a massive go into storage for who knows how long.  Now is your shot to see them!

In the Press Release, the Art Institute explains the process of weaving tapestries, their function their use: 

"Because tapestries are made of pliable fiber, they can be rolled up and are thus far more easily transportable than framed paintings... 

Larger tapestries were hung in castles, abbeys, and mansions for decoration and to line drafty halls and rooms in an era before central heating. For major state and religious ceremonies, tapestries were also hung on the outside of buildings, suspended from balconies or attached directly to exterior walls, lining the streets... 

Painters who made the designs were often renowned artists in their own right, and the skilled weavers who translated the painted creations into woven threads went through long apprenticeships with master weavers."

Learn more about the show at Art Institute of Chicago website. The Divine Art: Four Centuries of Tapestries is up November 1, 2008–January 4, 2009.

Kish's Kaleidoscope Wants You to Join!

Hey Artists and Art Appreciators!

I think the Art Department should get more input in the school paper. What better way to bring your suggestions and make a difference than to join the team?

Ideas like:

• Kish Artist of the month profile (music, theater, fine arts)
  
• A team of Kish Cartoonists comic page every week!
• Better Publicity for student and Kish Art shows, receptions, lectures, and events, and performances
• And more....good place to learn, meet people, and get experience!

Make your voice HEARD.

Message from Kaleidoscope Staff Below:

HELP WANTED

The Kishwaukee College Kaleidoscope Newspaper is looking for students who are interested in being part of the campus newspaper.

Take it as a class and get credit for it, or just join the staff and be part of the team. Learn how to put a newspaper together and write articles seen by the entire campus.

Get first hand experience in the world of journalism, right here at Kishwaukee College.

The Kaleidoscope Newspaper wants you!

• Students with a knowledge of Mac Computers and In-Design
• Sports writers
• Graphic artists/designers
• Photographers
• Journalism majors
• Writers

Have an idea? A suggestion? Stop by the Student Activities Office (B-100), email us at kscope@kishwaukeecollege, drop a note in our mailbox or talk with Melissa Blake, Kaleidoscope Advisor, or Matt Rainwater, Editor-in-Chief.

Dale Chihuly's new Black Glass Vessels

Thomas Hoving of Artnet.com met with Dale Chihuly and reviews his glass works.   And when he saw Chihuly's pieces, he "went bananas."  

Dale Chihuly is probably the most influential and famous contemporary glass artist. The video is short but sweet. It shows some of Chihuly's new works as well as how he shapes and decorates them. I really enjoyed seeing some of what goes into making these fantastic glass sculptures. Thomas Hoving's enthusiasm is also fun to listen to during his interviews. Enjoy.

P.S. Did you notice that Chihuly wears an eye-patch?

Intro to Visual Art Claymation: Road Rage

A collaborative scene-oriented semi-improvisational multi-woven narrative of epic proportions. Forms manipulated in clay by a team of 20 plus dedicated Intro to Visual Art professionals. Team these guys together and this is what happens!



uploading....

Kish Art Instructor Carol-Lynn Swol work included in SOFA Chicago

In case you didn't hear, Kish Art Instructor Carol-Lynn Swol's work was included this year in the prestigious SOFA exposition. The show may be over, but congratulate her on participating in this great exhibition.

The SOFA exposition is billed as an international event designed to represent masterworks bridging design and fine art.  Over 100 galleries and art dealers representing 18 countries will have works from international artists on display for sale. There are only two SOFA expositions in the United States; a summer show in New York City and a fall show in Chicago. Swol's work was also included in the summer NYC SOFA exposition. She is represented by the David Collection in New York.

Swol stated that her exploration with Tyvek has allowed her to open up her passion for material. "I was enamored by the texture, color, feel, and durability of this material and excited to place what looked like paper, but was stronger than paper, on the body," she said. "It is through the body that we first interact with the world. Our body and its senses gather information for our mind to process, generating emotions and concepts through experience."  You can learn more about SOFA by clicking here. Read more about this in this "press release" from Kishwaukee as well.

Below is the piece exhibited at this year's SOFA exposition.

Carol-lynn Swol
Hoodoo Circle brooch, 2006
4.5 x 2 x 1.5"
Tyvek, sterling silver, stainless steel wire

Rebellion and Art...What should come next?

The one thing that remains the same is that Art always finds a way change. Being Avant-garde is a part of keeping things fresh to preventing stagnation by finding ways of rebelling against establishments, and tradition. Dadaism was the most obvious rebellious movement within the arts, but each generation finds its own way of pushing society's buttons. Being avant-garde means pushing the boundaries of what is accepted as the norm or the status quo, primarily in the cultural realm.

Have things gotten too corportate and cozy lately? If so, is that good or bad for art as we know it? What do you see as the role of art and rebellion today? Will it be hi-tech, low-tech, and what impact will it have on society and within the arts? What do you think will be the next new idea, bold experiment? Let's discuss in the comment section.

President-Elect Barack Obama's favorite Painting...

In case you were curious about the taste in art of our President-Elect Barack Obama, I learned from the "Two Coats of Paint" blog that Barack Obama's favorite paintings is called Hope, by George Frederic Watts.  

[At first glance, it is hardly the most comforting of images, with its pea-soup greens and murky greys; indeed, GK Chesterton quipped that Watts might more accurately have called his painting "Despair". But the painting's message of faith in the face of adversity fascinated Wright. "The harpist is sitting there in rags," he preached. "Her clothes are tattered as though she had been a victim of Hiroshima… [yet] the woman had the audacity to hope."  The phrase stuck irrevocably in Obama's mind. He adapted it as the title of his rousing address to the Democratic Convention in 2004. In 2006, he used it again, as the title of his second book.]

The Tate Museum of Art that owns Hope, has an interesting explaination about this mysterious piece: 

The figure of Hope is traditionally identified by an anchor. In this picture she is blindfolded, seated on a globe and playing a lyre of which all the strings are broken except one. Watts wanted to find a more original approach to symbolism and allegory. But Hope’s attempts to make music here appear futile and several critics argued that the work might have been more appropriately titled Despair. Watts explained that ‘Hope need not mean expectancy. It suggests here rather the music which can come from the remaining chord’.

Interesting to think about the effect and power of "Hope" in the face of the unknown during these complicated times ahead.  Discuss.

Street Artist Swoon, reveals all in ArtNet interview!

Street Art is an artform that in recent years has been gaining more and more attention. Nicole Davis, of Artnet did a video interview with street artist "Swoon," where she talks about her reasons for taking art into the streets. 

Swoon speaks of needing to push away from listening to people who told her, "I can't do that."Swoon explains, " I wanted to do something that was kind of bad...once I started working outside I just had this intense energy, that I could just make things, put them out and they'd be gone, ravished and destroyed... It was a way of clearing out every idea, so you are forced to keep making new things... this constant renewal allows you to move through a lot, because you are not going to keep anything. She later goes on to explain how this path led to other public art and collaborative projects with other artists.

It is really important as an artist to allow yourself a path to experiment, work in different medias and formats, and explore the lows and highs of your thought process in order to mature and know oneself. I enjoyed seeing Swoons work and hearing her explain how street art was an act of rebellion as well as a testing ground for her creative process. She creates her works using the wheat-pasting method popular in urban areas such as NYC. Let me know your thoughts. 

Our current Kish Art Gallery Artist, Kurt Webb

Artist Lecture and Gallery Reception at Kish Today!

The artist Kurt Webb who is showing at the Kishwaukee Art Gallery will be doing a powerpoint lecture on his art today in room A-225 from 11am-12pm.  

Staff Sergeant Depending on Prosthetic Limb: Amputation rate for U.S. troops twice that of past wars - 

Kurt Brian Webb. Two-color woodblock print. 10” x 8”. 2006

Following the artist lecture, there will be a reception open to the public from 12-2pm at the Kishwaukee Art Gallery with food, refreshments, art, and good company.   See you there!

Artist Comissions

Hey every peoples, I just wanted to make a post about some art commissions I had done of my characters recently. I commissioned both of these artists to do drawings of my characters, Phibi and Suni.

The first is by Stephen "Teben" Hetirc and the second is by Afu, who only did Phibi. They're both very different takes on my characters, as well as styles. I think it was a great way to get out into the art ommunity and talk to some artists! They were both really nice guys, and very cooperative as well. As for cost, both of them combined only cost me 25$, which is pretty darn cheap, and I think they both did an awesome job! Hope you think so too. Thanks!