THE POWER OF ONE

I know I have primarily used this blog to showcase my art work but I realized that a lot of people were viewing this so i decided to ask for YOUR HELP! My friend Nikki Kelly, is competing in the Miss America Pageant this year! Her platform is overcoming disabilities but she is also encouraging any one who has ever felt different or has been treated differently to share their story. So many artist are misunderstood and I could only imagine artist like Keith Haring or Vincent Van Gogh making Power of One videos...how awesome would that be! Anyway...Please help Nikki further her platform. She is an amazing person and I love her to death, I cannot wait to go to Miss America in September and watch her take home that crown! I will be making my video some time this week..when I take a break from bugging other people about it, in walmart and at the bank and at cvs and walking down the street and at the mall and pretty much anywhere you can think of! Watch her video, share your story and help others! There is power in ONE!

Reflections

Its crazy to think that my time in high school is almost over. Art has been a huge part of my high school career, it is what I spent most of my free time doing. I have grown and changed so much throughout the years and I love how one can see the obvious progression and maturity in my work. I was honored to be apart of empty bowls and participate in the middle school "tapped" and "aero" exhibits. I have gotten to watch these projects come to life from beginning to end. Art class with Ms. Kiick was truly a never ending learning experience. Whether I was learning how to shade sophomore year or put something together with..you guessed it...OIL PASTELS, I was always learning and pushing myself to be better. Although I will not be in the high school next year, I can't wait to come back to empty bowls and the extravaganza to see, i'm sure, yet another incredible art experience/exhibit!

I'll spread my wings and I'll learn how to fly

Make a video - it's fun, easy and free!
www.onetruemedia.com

A picture's worth a thousand words

       The bright lights shone in the night and they could feel the energy in their bones as the two high school seniors waltzed into Tomorrowland. Through the voices of a thousand people Nikki and Chrissy recognized a familiar tune.
"Where is that music coming from?," Chrissy shouted. The girls turned around to see a large crowd gathered by a stage and large screens reading "Club 626". With a sudden burst of energy, they ran towards the crowd. Dance. No matter where on the planet these people were from, they could ALL understand dance.
      Little did the guests of Club 626 know but, they were being watched by Goofy's space mission committee. The two best dancers of the night would be chosen to go on a special trip for Goofy and his team. Goofy decided that he needed to judge the candidates for himself. He threw on his sparkly space suit and moon walked his way to the middle of the floor, ending up right next to Nikki and Chrissy. As "beauty and a beat" pulsed through the club, Goofy stopped to watch the two girls, he looked them up and down to assess their talent. He then held up his hand, the girls were confused and stopped dancing. Goofy wanted to dance battle. The girls caught on quickly and were excited to have this experience. Goofy was impressed...he wanted them for the space mission but he knew they would have to be back by midnight. Quickly he congratulated them and pulled them aside to explain the mission. Nikki and Chrissy were ecstatic as Goofy introduced them to his team but... they thought they had been chosen to go on a special ride. A mission to a foreign planet to dance for the inhabitants and offer them a peace treaty from earth...this was clearly just another Disney show that they would sit through and get their picture taken...right?
   The two girls were buckled into the space shuttle. Seat belt check. System check. Preparing for take off. Ready, 1, 2, 3...BLAST OFF! Nikki looked out her window to see she was soaring away from the Magic Kingdom. Chrissy looked out her window and saw Hollywood studios, then epcot, then the Allstar Resort. Could they really be going on a space mission? Time passed and finally they heard the captains voice, "Brace for landing girls."
   Exiting the space shuttle, they noticed that they were not the only ones from earth. There was a average height man with long curly hair, with him there was a group of what looked like aliens.
   "Wait," Nikki said, "I recognize this from somewhere".
Then it came to her, Nikki and Chrissy were in the middle of a real life Captain EO. She knew what would happen next. The group was captured and sent to the supreme leader. They were sentenced to death for invading the planet but Captain EO saved the day. He explained to the supreme leader why they were there and the group broke out into an enormous dance number straight out of a broadway musical. If anything could heal a wounded relationship it would be a broadway dance number. The girls were in shock,  they could not believe this was actually happening to them. The two planets eventually came to a peace agreement...mission accomplished. Nikki and Chrissy boarded the space shuttle back to earth. No one was going to believe them when they got back. Would the teachers send them home if they said they had left the park? They decided to keep their space mission a secret. The space shuttle soared back into the atmosphere and with just minutes to spare Goofy returned the girls to their hotel. 11:59, they ran to their designated rooms. 12:00. Room Check. Lights out. Nikki picked up the phone, #74142. Chrissy answered in the next room over, "Hey, I guess Disney really is the most magical place on earth, huh?"
"Night space ranger!".

To live a pure unselfish life, one must count nothing as one's own in the midst of abundance.

Empty Bowls 2013 is Saturday, February 9th! This year we are having a pasta pot luck and all of the proceeds go to the food bank of south jersey. More people than you realize do not know when they will eat their next meal, not only in other states or countries but right here in south jersey. Most people go day to day and don't realize how lucky they are to have food when ever they need or want it. Some kids don't have the luxury of having a snack when they get home from school and some adults would rather feed their children than eat dinner themselves. If you were faced with loosing your home or eating breakfast that day...you would probably choose your home. The food bank of south jersey supplies all south jersey shelters with food and does their best to make sure that everybody has enough to eat. Not only will you get an awesome meal and a specially made bowl but you will help feed other too! Empty Bowls is a great cause, for more info on the event and how to donate CLICK HERE !

It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles.

When I did my blind contours I didn't really like any of them. I thought I looked silly or weird but that wasn't really what it was about, and that's not really what matters in life at all. It doesn't matter what I look like, it's whats on the inside (cliche but true). The statements are what made this piece meaningful. I'm going to continue working into this piece and making it more interesting artistically but in the end I think it will just be a cool page to add to my book. 

Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened

The last two years of art we have wanted to make lanterns but never got around to it. This year we finally did and I absolutely love mine! I didn't want it to be a typical cut out design, I wanted it to be dimensional. I started by using a drawing of a rose. At first it seemed really cool until I realized the rose wasn't connected to the paper anymore. I had to find a way to achieve the look I wanted and keep the paper together at the same time. After making 5+ paper flowers I started to work on the intricate design that added more effect when it was lit up. I made one flower for each side of the lantern and also made a flower cut design on sturdier paper as the backing/form. The cut design on the form of the lantern added even more details when the light was shone through both layers. I wasn't sure if I was going to like doing cut paper designs; especially because I was terrified of cutting my self. This experience was pleasantly surprising and I'm extremely excited to see all of the different lanterns lit up at the art show! 

Keith Haring - the energy in art never dies

   


     Keith Haring was born on May 4,1958 in Reading, PA. His father was a cartoon artist and he developed a love for drawing at a young age. After high school Haring attended the Ivy school of Professional Art in Pittsburgh. Although he participated in the local art community often he decided that  Pittsburgh was not for him. In 1978 he moved to New York City and attended the School of Visual Arts. Here Keith discovered underground art, New York City became his canvas. One day while walking in the subway Haring noticed the unused advertising panels. These panels were perfect for chalk drawings, sometimes he would do up to 40 drawing a day. Keith Haring's subway drawings became known to all the locals who often to stopped to talk to him about his art; what did it mean and why was he doing it in the subway instead of gallery? Keith liked the fact that he didn't need to show in galleries to be famous. He went directly to the people, bypassing the critics that could make or break his career.
     In 1981, Haring had his first solo show at Westbeth Painters Space but his big break came in 1982 when he made his Soho debut at Shafrazi Gallery. Haring's well known characters engulfed the entire studio and was a critical success. After this he had shows in countries all over the world including Japan and Brazil. Haring not only produced drawings but created animation for Times Square, set designs and watch designs for Swatch. Keith Haring was a founder of pop art ideals. He wanted his art to be accessible to everyone. In 1986, he opened the Pop Shop where he sold merchandise with his art on it and held workshops for children. Some of his most famous works include the "Crack is Wack" mural, and the radiant baby. In 1988 Keith Haring was diagnosed with aids and created the Keith Haring Foundation in 1989. Many of his later works create aids awareness and promote activism. On February 16, 1990 Keith Haring died of aids complications at the age of 31.

One of Haring's most recognizable characters is the "Radiant Baby" which shows up in many of his drawings. Haring went through a so called "Jesus phase" as a teenager which was later reflected in this radiant "jesus child". Some also saw this figure as the "radioactive" child created to address the idea of nuclear energy. 

I love Keith Haring's work because it has so much power to it. It's all about energy and power and movement. As humans we all possess energy but it is up to us what we decide to do with it. Haring also realized that art had much more power than he did. He saw his art as an extension of himself. He had accepted the fact that death is inevitable, that our energy will eventually die but, when we create art its energy is completely separate and can continue to impact the world after the creator is gone. 

Keith Haring knew that he had the audience to impact many social causes the he believed in. This was mostly shown in his aids related works but also in many anti-drug campaigns. 

Haring is incredibly complex artist. He had a reason behind everything that he did and he had so many thoughts to portray through his work. I could go on forever about his work but nothing gets better than reading it from him. His journal entries and explanations of his work are so beyond inspiring that you can't help but love him. Check out all of his work and journals below and see for yourself!

www.haring.com