Artists

For my three artists, I chose Joseph Cornell, Lisa Fedon, and Robert Rauschenberg.

Rauschenberg's work, of which I got to see a piece at the MOMA and the Met, is mainly mixed media. I find it really interesting because his art is so decisive. You either like it or you don't. One of his pieces that I saw, called Bed, is literally a cot that he used to sleep on with paint on it. In another one of his pieces he used a real dead bird that's jumping out at the viewer.

Lisa Fedon works mainly with wire and usually makes figures. She is basically a sculptor with a metalworking background. Her art intrigued me because I find it very perspective-based. From a certain angle one of her sculpture might look like a random array of wires while from a different angle there is clearly a person.

Here is a link to her work: http://www.lisafedon.com/WireSculpture.html

Here is a piece of mine that she influenced:

Most of Joseph Cornell's work involves boxes and crates. He is also a mixed media artist. He has work on display at the MOMA and SFMOMA. I find his work very interesting and inspiring because he uses the boundaries created by his box to enclose his own world or space. The viewer is sucked into the mirrors or images within the box. His work is also very playful, often involving birds, while at the same time very serious and dark.

Here is a link to his work: http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/cornell/

Here is a piece of mine in his style:

The Wonderful World of Museums

This summer I visited several museums. I went to the SFMOMA, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Guggenheim, Chelsea galleries, the MOMA (in NY), and the Frick. All of the museums were really interesting and really different, from interior setup to collections.

I think that one of my favorites was the Met, to which I went twice. Both times I spent most of my time in the Modern/Contemporary Section because that's the art I love the most. The first time I went with my grandfather, who was also visiting New York. We had fun debating what constitutes art and which pieces we liked. We saw some pieces by Andy Warhol, Jasper Johns, Jackson Pollock, Robert Rauschenberg, Chuck Close, Clyfford Still, Joseph Cornell, Roy Lichtenstein, and Cy Twobly among others. My favorites were Rauschenberg, Close, Still, Cornell, and Twombly, all of which I was familiar with beforehand because I think they all have work in the SFMOMA. The second time I went as a field trip through the Pratt Pre-College program I was doing. Our teacher gave us some background on a couple of different pieces and artists which was interesting in some cases, and not in others. What interested me the most about Modern Art is the vast subject matter, ideas, materials, and approaches within this one category of art. From Joseph Cornell's 3D boxes to Robert Rauschenberg's mixed media collages, the diversity is amazing.

One exhibit that I have to highlight is the Alexander McQueen show, entitled Savage Beauty. It was one of the most spectacular things I have ever seen. I saw it with my grandfather and he, a man with no particular interest in fashion and in his 70s, was just as enthralled with it as me. From the armadillo shoes to the real horse hair on dresses, McQueen's designs showed me only a small part of McQueen's twisted and tortured mind. The creativity involved in every dress, mask, and accessory was unbelievable as each year's line reached impossibly far in opposite directions of the world of fashion. It's very sad that McQueen committed suicide last year but he is no doubt already a permanent fashion icon. Overall my visits to the Met were both educational and inspiring and I would love to go again whenever I have the chance.

Here is the link to the Met's main website:

http://www.metmuseum.org/

And the Alexander McQueen show Savage Beauty:

http://blog.metmuseum.org/alexandermcqueen/