Contemporary Art Project

My senior year of college I enrolled in a history of contemporary art course. My final project for the class was to create a museum exhibit that drew together central themes from my coursework and mirrored the work of curators in the field. My exhibit was to be designed with a specific space in mind and a central theme. This project required me to create a visual representation of my exhibit in a digital environment and draw together the concepts I had studied in class throughout the semester in a final paper.

This project had a strong impact on me as a student. Throughout the semester I had been visiting and documenting exhibits from around the Boston area through class journals and online discussion boards. My final project utilized my new knowledge base and allowed me to create something that was uniquely mine. I brought together an exhibit of artists that shared concepts of whimsy and social satire in their creation of new realities, which I then associated with themes from Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures  in Wonderland (1865) and Through the Looking Glass (1871). 

My final project is an example of the ways in which arts and technology can be implemented through project-based learning. 

Takashi Murakami, Japan
black and white, 2006
Set of 300
Lithograph, offset
19.8x19.7 in (50 x 50 cm)

Takashi Murakami’s “jellyfish eyes” are a trademark of his work. Their presence in the Kaka Kiki Co.’s collaborative work with Louis Vuitton has led to a closer connection between the high-fashion industry and the art world.

         

Takashi Murakami, Japan
If only I could do this, if only I could do that, 2006
Lithograph, offset
20 x 20 in


If only I could do this.. is a glimpse into the fantasy world that Takashi Murakami has created. His characters, Kaikai and KiKi are flying over their fantasy world. In many of Murakami’s work he works with sequences of flight and travels into another reality.

Takashi Murakami, Japan
And Then (Hello), 2006
Set of 300
Lithograph on paper
19.6 x 19.6 in (49.8 x 49.8 cm)


And Then (Hello) features Takashi Murakami’s character, Mr. DOB, which in Japanese means “why?”, showing Murakami’s interest in existentialism. Mr. DOB’s mass production is attributed to his appeal to the general public. In Japan, Mr. DOB is categorized by the Japanese term kawaii, meaning “being cute”. Takashi Murakami’s Mr. DOB is a signature image, sometimes referred to as Murakami’s self-portrait. 

(Hopkins, 2001, p.1)






Takashi Murakami, Japan
Flower the Creatures from Planet 66, 2004
Set of 50

Lithograph
11.1 x 31.5 in (28.1 x 80 cm)

According to Takashi Murakami, “The subject matter of my art, it is like Cezanne painting Mont Ste. Victoire – I am surrounded by cute images and figures from cartoons and comic books, and so that is what I paint (Hopkins, 2001, p. 1).” Present in Murakami’s work is his emphasis on his character’s looking out at the viewer and issuing them a welcome into his new reality.

Damien Hirst, England
Lycergic Acid Diethylamide, LSD, 2000
Set of 300
Lambda Print on Glossy Fuji Archive Paper
41.9 x 50 in (106.5 x 127 cm)


LSD is one of a wide collection of Hirst’s Spot paintings. Each painting has pharmaceutical chemical titles whose compounds and ingredients are translated into Damien Hirst’s dot coding. Over 500 pharmaceutical chemicals have been coded using Hirst’s method placing the substances that society uses in their everyday life within a new dimension. 


(Thomton, 2005, p. 1)

Damien Hirst, England
Beautiful, Galactic, Exploding Screenprint, 2001
Set of 500
Screenprint on paper
40 x 40 in (101.6 x 101.6 cm)

Damien Hirst’s Spin paintings are done using a machine that disperses paint steadily on a spinning canvas. Each canvas is unique in its design and color, allowing for the creation of new realities.


(Thomton, 2005, p. 1)

Damien Hirst, England
All You Need is Love, 2006
Butterflies and household gloss paint on canvas
84 ¼ x 84 ¼ in (214 x 214 cm)


All You Need is Love was created for Project (Red) an organization dedicated to providing funding for HIV/AIDS research and humanitarian efforts in Africa. Founded by Bono, from the band U2, and Bobby Shriver, Chairman of DATA, Project (Red) auctioned off Hirst and other gathered artists’ works in order to help this worthy cause.

Liza Lou, American
Tiara, 2006
Cast resin and quartz crystals
Set of 8
2 ½ x 7 x 6 in (6.4 x 17.8 x 15.2 cm)

Liza Lou’s Tiara is from her most recent work discussing the vulnerability of individuals to symbols of confinement. In Tiara, Lou tackles the concept of power and social structure within our society through an idolized symbol of assumed power and superiority. 


(http://www.deitch.com/artists/sub.php?artistId=14)

Liza Lou, American
Windex, 1996
Colored beads on plaster
11.2 x 5 x 2.8 in (28.5 x 12.7 x 7 cm)


When I discovered beads, it was like walking into an incredible paint store. It was one of those moments. To this day, I don’t consider myself any good at working with beads; it’s just that I have a vision for them. – Liza Lou 


(Castro, 2003, p. 1)

Liza Lou, American
Backyard, 1995-1999
Mixed media with beads
525 square feet

Liza Lou’s biggest beaded sculpture to date, Backyard employed the efforts of community members and volunteers in the creation of this large-scale sculpture. The large amount of time that is put into each of Lou’s sculptures, works to ask the questions, What is labor? What is thankless labor? What is acknowledged labor? 


(Dominus, 1999, p. 1)



References:

Castro, J. (2003). American history is not what it appears to be: a conversation with liza lou. Sculpture (Washington D.C.), v. 22 no. 4 May 2003, Retrieved May 3, 2008, from Wilson Web.

  

Dominus, S. (1999). The way we live now: 7-11-99: questions for liza lou; the venerable bead. The New York Times, July 11.1999. Retrieved May 4, 2008, from http://query. nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9403E6DC1E3DF932A25754C0A96F958260&sec=&spon=&pagewanted=1.

Hopkins, R. (2001). Shiny, happy mushrooms: takashi murakami brings Tokyo cool to the mfa. The Boston Phoenix, May 17-24, 2001, Retrieved May 3, 2008, from http://thebostonphoenix.com/boston/arts/art/documents/01629574.htm.

Thomton, S. (2005). Damien hirst. Art Review (London, England) 3 no 11 November/December 2005, Retrieved May 3, 2008, from Wilson Web.