The purpose of this weeks activity was to make aware of the topic, how we use expensive, toxic, and non-biodegradable materials for our artwork. The problem with this is that most of these materials end up in landfills, so to solve this problem our assignment was to make an artwork that potentially can last forever.
My idea was to make a mosaic like piece using the excess paint chips we had stored when we painted my little sister’s room a few years ago. And when I think of mosaics I thinks of peacefulness or tranquility which is why I used a koi fish as my center.
The materials I used for this piece were a variety of blue and tan paint chips, acrylic paint, watercolor, pen, glue and sharpie.
I do believe my piece was able to express my idea because I think the piece as a whole looks great and its very calming with the pastel colors compared to the gradient mosaic of the background.
Being honest, my choice of materials has made me not want to work with small pieces of paper and glue ever again (>_<). It was a very tedious and annoying process because I have little patience how it is and I was limited on the paint chips I had so every piece counted. But there was a huge payoff because I think the piece turned out looking beautifully, so there’s a chance I might make another mosaic in the future.
I believe a kiss should last 5-10 seconds, a great meal should last an hour, a work off art should last forever, a marriage should last “til death due us part”, and a human life should last as long as one is content with their experiences in life.
I believe ephemeral art and human lives do make a difference in the way we experience them. I believe this because we cherish our time with them more due to the thought of us not being able to experience them again. For instance one looks back on all the good times they spent with a relative that passed away.
I also believe most things should be sustainable like clean water, air and land because everyone has a right to experience them. No matter if one is 80 or 8 months.
And yes I do believe one person can make a difference in a global problem like climate change. That one person can bring awareness to the issue and influence solutions to help our planet before every beautiful thing is taken away from us.
Not only that but making sustainable art has been inspiring to me for some time now. For instance, here is another artwork I created two years ago using cardboard, an exact knife, acrylic paint and colored pencils. This is a self portrait of my cousin who passed away almost 5 years ago. She was my age at the time and I thought to make a sustainable art piece to dedicate towards her remembrance.
All in all sustainable artwork needs to be more used in the long run. Ultimately they save the planet and the pieces last longer for generations and generations to enjoy.
Art 110 Blog 