Exhibition Text:
This piece focuses on the importance and value of woman in the military. I have noticed that women are frequently discredited in the military or they are deemed not "strong enough" or "cant possibly fight" because they are women. Women are deemed "weak" and "small" in society. I wanted to put emphasis on women in the military and put forth a strong statement such as "Women can fight too!" because I wanted to portray women as they really are: strong, independent and able to fight.
Artist Inspiration:
One of the artists I emulated was J. Howard Miller. Howard Miller was an American graphic artist. He was most popular in the 1940's, as he painted American propaganda posters during World War 2. He made these posters in support of the war effort. Howard Miller studied at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh, graduating in 1939. He was not very well known until his hired by Westinghouse company to create posters. He created the "We Can Do It" poster featuring "Rosie the Riveter". "We Can Do It" was created in 1943 in order to boost worker morale in companies. This poster is commonly associated with feminism, which is why I chose to use it as artist inspiration. My message with my piece is the strength of women, which ties in with feminism. Another artist I chose was Barbara Kruger. Barbara Kruger is an American conceptual artist, commonly working with collage. Her work is commonly a black and white photograph with big, block letters. I chose her piece Untitled(Your body is a battleground) because it compares to the look of my piece. I wanted my piece black and white with block letters displaying my message. I thought that Kruger was brilliant to use because the work compared to mine greatly.
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Journaling, Planning, and Process:
Process: |
The process was quite simply and easy. I used the transfer method. I first drew out my piece on a piece of sketchbook paper. I didn't want to mess up on the piece of rubber. I then colored on the back of the paper with lead as shown. I then placed the paper on the rubber and traced over the previously drawn drawing. This transferred the drawing onto the rubber due to transfer method. I then cut the rubber with a cutting tool. I then placed ink all over the rubber. I placed a piece of paper over the ink covered rubber and rubbed over it. I made sure that the enough ink was onto the new paper. Thus, my project is finished.
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Experimentation Pictures:
Compare and Contrast:
My piece and Kruger's and Howard Miller's pieces are similar in many ways. I think that I took a lot of influence from Howard Miller with both the format and meaning behind my piece. I took high influence of the black and white format from Kruger as my piece is black and white. I also took influence from the position of my subject in my piece, with the whole arm showing. I took Kruger's block font as well. I thought that this would make my piece more unique and stand out from Howard Miller's piece. My piece differed from the two pieces because I didn't put the wording in the same way as in Howard Miller's. My writing had "Women" on top and "Can Fight" on the bottom. I did this because it didn't fit the other way. I basically changed the format due to necessity.
Reflection:
My piece overall I believe was very good. I think that I completed it to the best of my ability. I genuinely enjoyed creating this piece as women's rights are something I am passionate about. I think that my piece was similar enough to my two artist inspiration because the pieces are easily identified as the source of inspiration. I had some struggles while creating this piece. One struggle was printing. I had to print multiple times because their was a white line that continuously got printed onto my piece. I also struggled greatly with carving the lines. The lines were small and close to each other, so it was hard to carve, One success was the deepness of the lines. While printing, the black ink did not bleed. I also think my piece overall conveyed the desired message.
ACT Questions:
1) I placed my main character in the same position as Rosie the Riveter. I also chose big, block letters and a black/white format.
2) Both of the pieces are about women and feminism, much like my piece.
3) I discovered that women and feminism have long been a subject discussed in art.
4) The central theme around my work was feminism and the strength of women.
5) I think that women need to be more understood and associated with strength, not only in the military, but everywhere.
2) Both of the pieces are about women and feminism, much like my piece.
3) I discovered that women and feminism have long been a subject discussed in art.
4) The central theme around my work was feminism and the strength of women.
5) I think that women need to be more understood and associated with strength, not only in the military, but everywhere.
Work Cited:
“Barbara Kruger.” 45 Artworks, Bio & Shows on Artsy, www.artsy.net/artist/barbara-kruger.
History.com Staff. “Rosie the Riveter.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 2010, www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/rosie-the-riveter.
History.com Staff. “Rosie the Riveter.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 2010, www.history.com/topics/world-war-ii/rosie-the-riveter.