Choice Piece
Success
Mixed Media on Canvas
91 cm x 91 cm
April 2019
Exhibition Text:
Success is a continuation of a rebuke of the information that has been discovered from the March 2019 College Admission Scandal, education is really based on one's wealth and in order to truly be educated, one has to have money on their side. Influenced by my frustration from the scandal along with my fears of college applications next year. The purpose of this piece is to display my fear that money would impede in my education. This piece is primarily inspired by Andy Warhol and Roy Lichtenstein. Media use for this piece was Casemate's Permanent Markers and acrylic paint on canvas.
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Inspiration
Hundred Dollar Bill Series 1996
Warhol, Andy, "200 One Dollar Bills," 1962, silkscreen.
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The art movement I was primarily inspired by was Pop Art. I love how repetition and the use of contrasting colors, and it inspired me to use them in my piece. The Museum of Modern Art describes the movement as, "...[a] climate of turbulence, experimentation, and increased consumerism that a new generation of artists emerged in Britain and America in the mid- to late-1950s. " The poster-like composition I got from the movement is an element I incorporated into my piece.
My main inspiration for this piece was the Hundred Dollar bill. I love how the bill represents wealth and greed. It was this bill that inspired my to want in my piece. The fact that Franklin looks on into to the audience and bill's use of crispiness are so evident this bill, I wanted it into my piece. Repetition was a major element I wanted to incorporate in my piece. Andy Warhol, another pop artist, used repetition of seemingly irrelevant objects. In his silkscreen piece, 200 One Dollar, Warhol incorpartes repeating money background, something I consideered for my own piece. According to Cotter (2009, "The year [1962] ... Warhol made this work was a big one for him: he decided to stop being a commercial artist and start being an art-artist." He made pieces based on fascination, a message I wanted to turn ironic. |
Planning Sketches
When I was making this sketch, I was not completely sure of what I was doing. I knew that I wanted to project Benjamin on the canvas, but I was not sure on how I wanted it to be portrayed on the canvas. I felt like I smacked him on a canvas in the sketch and thus decided to not go through with it.
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After making the previous sketch, I began to create an idea of what I wanted to create for this project. I knew that I wanted Benjamin Franklin in the middle of the canvas, but I have yet to decide where or not I wanted to use spider-legs, to represent the intimidation I feel from the world around me.
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At this sketch, I considered to keep the graduation cap from my self-portrait, an aspect I enjoyed from my previous pieces. I thought that I wanted Benjamin Franklin in the middle of the canvas, along with the legs and caps, but I later decided to consider to ditch the legs.
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I ditched the legs in order to add a sense of minimalism and I later realized that it made the sketch better. I knew that I wanted this piece to be
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Process/Techniques and Experimentation
Experimentation with mapping
Before painting on the canvas, I waned to map out in my sketchbook, in what I thought my piece would look like. I knew that I wanted a black diamond graduation cap in the middle with equal sides and I made a proportional diamond in my sketch, and plan on multiply everything by four so it can fit on my canvas. My goal was for the diamond (with four equal sides) to fit my canvas. I believe that this experimentation in a sketchbook aided me in mapping out what I wanted on a canvas. This took some guessing and checking.
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Experimentation with Paint
Once I decided to paint my piece, I had to experiment with the paint. I noticed that the green was very dark, so thus I added white. I also added some yellow to make the green a yellow-green color the standard Hundred Dollar Bill has, and I eventually went with that. I was satisfied when a swatch matched the Hundred Dollar Bill.
Process
After making my canvas, I began to use my outline and incorporated the dimensions onto the canvas. I made sure that each side of the diamond graduation cap was roughly 24 inches and gave two inches of room above and below the diamond, while making left and right corners of the diamond were at the corner of the canvas. I also managed the largest horizontal rectangle in the diamond.
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After making the diamond, I began to outline the bill. Although I did not have the hundred dollar bill that was debuted in 1996, I noticed that besides the small details and the color, the two bills were the same and I thus used it as a reference.
After I sketched out the bill, I began to outline the bill with black Sharpie, and other markers in order to truly mimic the bill. I then use my 3/4 inch Royal Soft-Grip SG 700 brush and painted the diamond with black paint.
While I was painting, I made sure that I painted diagonally, in line with the diamond. I then began to fill use Case Mate markers and colored the Federal Reserve and U.S. Treasury symbols onto the bill.
Here, while using my favorite medium, Fun Bucks Play Money, I then began to line up the money onto the canvas and used Elmer's Glue Stick to glue it onto the canvas. While I was arranging the money, I made sure to line up money of the same depicted value in the same row as well as making the highest valued bills on the very top and the lowest valued bills on the bottom to symbolize that college is generally available to those with money. With money that bordered the diamond or tassel, I outlined what part of the bill would be on the piece from what I would no use and made sure the extra off and glue the former onto the piece. I did this because I believed that it would maintain the shape of the diamond and tassel. Lastly, I used red marker and added a red line at the left side of the canvas to add texture onto the canvas.
Final Product
Reflection & Critique
Compare
Hundred Dollar Bill, Series 1996 and Success
200 One Dollar Bills and Success
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Contrast
Hundred Dollar Bill, Series 1996 and Success
200 One Dollar Bills and Success
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Reflection
My piece was mainly inspired by paper money. I found myself starting at a hundred dollar bill after using Warhol's piece in my self-portrait. I am glad that I experiment with my use of green paint BEFORE using it, which made the money look a lot like the actual Hundred Dollar Bill. I believe job with mimicking the bill, but I know that I should fix the face later. . In general, I am very pleased with the way my piece turned out, I can sense the message after analyzing it. My use of the Fun Bucks Play Money helped me fill my pieces from the awkward white space, without making things seem to full, something I appreciation my piece. I liked how I improve on my use of the Fun Bucks Play Money, lining the money out and pasting it made it look even. Also, I appreciated I outlining what part of the bill would be on the piece from what I would no use and made sure the extra off and glue the former onto the piece and this maintaining was a challenge as it required me to scrap it off with a knife without messing up the gesso. Another success I had with this project was that the work that after evaluating it, I could sense the unity all the elements the portrait has and the space is not overbearing. Overall, I believe this piece was a success in conveying my message.
ACT Response Questions
Clearly explain how you are able to identify the cause effect relationship between your inspiration and its effect on your artwork?
The Hundred Dollar Bill inspired me to use its composition into my piece, which emphasize the overall shape of my portrait. Also, Warhol's piece inspired me to use Fun Bucks Play Money, which gave it better space.
What is the overall approach the author has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
Cotter presented Warhol in a form of fascination, while explaining his style and purpose.
What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, culture, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
I discovered that when people observe work from Warhol their eyes follow the repetition and color in their respective pieces, while looking for a deeper satirical meaning.
What is the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
The central theme around my research was to find artworks that were ironic and "popped."
What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
Throughout my research I inferred that Warhol's piece was a rebuke of the over exaggeration of pop culture, an idea that influence me to go deeper.
The Hundred Dollar Bill inspired me to use its composition into my piece, which emphasize the overall shape of my portrait. Also, Warhol's piece inspired me to use Fun Bucks Play Money, which gave it better space.
What is the overall approach the author has regarding the topic of your inspiration?
Cotter presented Warhol in a form of fascination, while explaining his style and purpose.
What kind of generalizations and conclusions have you discovered about people, ideas, culture, etc. while you researched your inspiration?
I discovered that when people observe work from Warhol their eyes follow the repetition and color in their respective pieces, while looking for a deeper satirical meaning.
What is the central idea or theme around your inspirational research?
The central theme around my research was to find artworks that were ironic and "popped."
What kind of inferences did you make while reading your research?
Throughout my research I inferred that Warhol's piece was a rebuke of the over exaggeration of pop culture, an idea that influence me to go deeper.
Bibliography
Cotter, Holland. “Long-Term Return: Andy Warhol's Money Factory.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 12 Nov. 2009, www.nytimes.com/2009/11/13/arts/design/13warhol.html.
"Hundred Dollar Bill Series 1996." United States Treasury. https://www.uscurrency.gov/sites/default/files/downloadable-materials/files/100_1996-2013_features_0.pdf
“MoMA Learning.” MoMA, Museum of Modern Art, www.moma.org/learn/moma_learning/themes/pop-art/.
"Hundred Dollar Bill Series 1996." United States Treasury. https://www.uscurrency.gov/sites/default/files/downloadable-materials/files/100_1996-2013_features_0.pdf
“MoMA Learning.” MoMA, Museum of Modern Art, www.moma.org/learn/moma_learning/themes/pop-art/.