-Exhibition-
This piece was constructed to look like a rat. This piece is deeply important to me because the rat is a metaphor for my personal experience. It was important to me that I capture what a rat looks like to me. The rat is seen wildly differently by different people, some look at a rat and think "that is disgusting, it should die." and some look at a rat and think "oh cool, a rat!" and I feel this is a good metaphor for my queer experience. title- (b)rat size- 4 ft medium- cardboard and hot glue date of completion-2/17/2022 |
Inspiration
Francisco Palomares created this pinata piece that inspired my cardboard piece. Usually an oil painter, this piece was something different, something out there and new. My piece was also something I'd never worked with before. He has said in interviews that he finds inspiration in everyday life and so to did I when using cardboard as a creative medium. The texture of a pinata was particularly appealing to me, the fur is very stylized and interesting to look at without looking patchy or not thick enough. It's an effective way to balance having a nice visual result with not having to painstakingly create a more fine and realistic fur like texture. I also like the color, the dull brown reminded me of cardboard. |
Planning
An intense amount of planing went into the completion of this piece. I started with a strong armature for the head piece, since the head is the main part that draws your attention. I reinforce the cardboard by folding it over itself many times as well as using a large amount of hot glue for good measure. The strong foundation made the rest of the piece possible. after the bone I put on the skin, a layer of cardboard to build upon. I also put on the ears, putting a lot of support into the base with straight rectangles of cardboard hot glued to the ears and the inner part of the head. at this point when I tried it on I realized the part I put on my head no longer fit properly so I cut it and extended it with more folded cardboard. Then came possibly the most time consuming part of this project, cutting and pealing cardboard for the fur. I cut strips of cardboard, then cut along the side and pealed each of the individual rectangles into two pieces, to give the fur a fuller look. I was concerned about the fullness of the fur so when I brought this to critique it was recommended this method I tried it and it worked perfectly. The piece resembles a pinata.
The tail was a far more straightforward endeavor. I started from the tip of the tail working up, folding the cardboard in a way that gradually increases the size as it nears the base of the tail. The segmented look of the pieces of cardboard really look like the segmented rat tail, so this works out. constructing the belt was also a challenge, the tail is relatively heavy and I wanted it to be very secure, so I used soda box strips folded over themselves once. I cut 2 slits in the place where the cardboard connects and put a rectangle of cardboard into it and glued it. I did this 3 times and it makes the belt very strong. connecting the tail to the belt piece was fairly challenging. I created a piece that loops around the back of the belt and another piece that inserts into the base of the tail making it very solid and secure. It is obviously important that this wearable piece be durable enough to wear. |
Critique
Similarities
- The texture of my piece was most heavily inspired by my inspiration, and is thus a feature of both. The fur texture is made up of cut strips of material that curl up at the ends to create a visually pleasing feature.
-the colors are similarly dull and brown.
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Differences
-tone
-on my piece there is a single color throughout most of the piece, with the exception of beady eyes, while on the pinata there is clear use of color in the more saturated brown as well as the yellow accent color of the harness.
-the flow of my piece differs because the movement is directed upward from the snout to the top of the head due to the direction of the fur, the upward motion and alert eyes make the piece appear energetic, the pinata however has a downward flow because of the direction of the fur, which implies a calmness, almost like melting, as well as droopy eyes which give off a tired expression.
- The texture of my piece was most heavily inspired by my inspiration, and is thus a feature of both. The fur texture is made up of cut strips of material that curl up at the ends to create a visually pleasing feature.
-the colors are similarly dull and brown.
-
Differences
-tone
-on my piece there is a single color throughout most of the piece, with the exception of beady eyes, while on the pinata there is clear use of color in the more saturated brown as well as the yellow accent color of the harness.
-the flow of my piece differs because the movement is directed upward from the snout to the top of the head due to the direction of the fur, the upward motion and alert eyes make the piece appear energetic, the pinata however has a downward flow because of the direction of the fur, which implies a calmness, almost like melting, as well as droopy eyes which give off a tired expression.
Reflection
ACT Connection
1.) Clearly explain how you are able to identify the cause-effect relationships between your inspiration and its effect upon your artwork:
2.) What is the overall approach ( point of view ) the author ( from your research ) has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
3.) What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, cultures, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
4.) What was the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
5.) What kind of inferences ( conclusions reached on the basis of evidence and reasoning ) did you make while reading your research?
2.) What is the overall approach ( point of view ) the author ( from your research ) has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
3.) What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, cultures, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
4.) What was the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
5.) What kind of inferences ( conclusions reached on the basis of evidence and reasoning ) did you make while reading your research?