Project I : Anything But A Box / Meaning of Creativity

Notes on Artist Videos

Richard Serra- American Artist. Makes use of places and space with his sculptures however has no correlation with buildings, landscapes or architecture. He is inspired by ships that he watched being launched when he was younger. Began drawing to catch his parents attention. Serra believes the more you draw the stronger the muscles in your eyes become which, in turn, with strengthen hand-eye coordination. The video shows Serra sketching the installation of is pieces, he says they give him ideas for future projects. His work is made out of metal slabs, very masculine with little or no meaning to audience.

Doris Salcedo- Columbian Artist. Her pieces carry a lot of meaning. She is trying to portray feelings with things that no longer exist "something subtle." She uses domestic objects in ways that are not at all rational but make sense. Salcedo and workers say the pieces work from inside out, very strong cement and iron bar supportive cores used efficiently. An example could be how the cement core balances out the empty bed to create unity. She is very passionate about her work and the pieces are feminine and meaningful. Carries much more significance than the work by Richard Serra.

Anything But A Box

Step by Step Photographs

This is how it all began...

creating structure...

and piece by piece...

there became a masterpiece...

Reaction Paper

“You can’t wait for inspiration, you have to go after it with a club.” — Jack London

I think this quote is an appropriate portrayal of my creativity research because it is sometimes necessary for an artist to find inspiration to solve a problem for a deadline rather than wait around for an idea. Creativity must have guidelines, including setting goals, in order to have a successful outcome. Time management should also be taken into consideration which the quote plays off of when it says to “go after [creativity] with a club,” rather than waiting for it.

Personally, being “creative” means to establish original ideas through unique approaches. Paying attention to small details, discovering inspiration from seemingly unimportant events and applying focus to often overlooked subtleties. When being creative, an artist must realize that the desired concept being depicted is just as important as the visual aspects of the composition.

I decided to pursue a creative career because I am interested in exploring new ideas and using new mediums to create desired outcomes. Creativity is a key aspect of visual problem solving and when used with proven techniques and principals an aesthetically pleasing result will occur.

I would define the assignment’s problem by saying the most difficult part was attempting to vision the finished product without significantly changing the box. It was hard to plan and sketch before un-assembling the box and seeing what you physically had to work with.

I approached the assignment’s problem by observing the characteristics of the box and choosing to use them accordingly. For example, I used the colors and shapes printed on the boxes exterior to create a green hill with an orange and yellow sun. Also, the interior of the box included a small corrugated piece of cardboard which I used as the sturdy base.

As for my project’s concept, I basically looked at the box and saw that the yellow circles could be used as the sun then worked around the extra materials in order to create the landscape. I made use of the color and thickness of the materials.

From this project, I got the basic idea of how to make use of only what is given to me in its most basic form. I used the colors of the box as the key element because the material was thin and unable to create textures that may have been possible with a thicker corrugated cardboard form.