Week 4 Reflection

Writing: 2 hours
Drawing: 4 hours

So, this week was not extremely productive because I was sick, but I think it was good to take a break from printing. It gave me some time to draw and write, which I had been neglecting. I have to remember to make time for the little things. I'm still looking forward to printing again next week, though.


Dear House,

Sometimes you crowded me.
You woke me from my sleep
and pushed me through your doors-
forceful love,
but I was overcome.

I needed distance.
But still, I love you-
your crooked angles and warped floorboards,
your sunny light and dancing shadows.
I still need your heart.

Love,
Your third daughter


Dear House,

My chalkboard is gone,
and I don't stand behind
the backdoor to draw
anymore. Did you notice
that it was replaced with a mirror?

Love,
Your third daughter


Dear House,

Your nightlights glow
in the darkness, lighting my path
to bed. Thank you for remembering
that I was coming home late. It's nice
to know that you care.

Love,
Your third daughter

Week 3 Reflection

Printing: 7 hours
Coloring print: 8 hours
Attaching print: 3 hours
Experimenting with text: 2 hours

I colored the print that I made last week, and I really like how it turned out. I also put together the next print that I'm going to be working on. I played around with different ways to present the text, and I've concluded that I'm still not happy with anything. I got a lot of mixed feedback from the critique yesterday about how I could present the text (large on the wall, small on the wall, in a book, multiple poems, a single poem). I'm feeling pretty indecisive about how I want it. I want the viewer to pay attention to it and read it, but I don't want it to be visually distracting or disruptive. So I still have a lot to think about. I also need to figure out how I'm going to hang these prints in the show. Last week Amanda mentioned mounting them on foam core and/or artist's board, but I'm not sure yet. So I'm going to keep working on my prints while I ponder these questions.

Week 2 Reflection

worked on thesis: 6 hours
printed monotypes: 7 hours
joined monotypes: 4 hours
large scale poem: 5 hours

It feels good to get back to work this week. I started another large monotype print, but have not gone into it with oil pastel yet. I'm so excited for this direction of my project, and I want to make as many as possible.

I also wrote a letter to my house at the same scale as the large prints (3'x6') to see how they work with each other. I like having the text at a larger scale, but I'm not really happy with this format (oil pastel on Rives BFK). I got a lot of great feedback during small critiques, though. One possibility we talked about was writing the text directly on the wall. Amanda also suggested using vellum and possibly floating them. I think both options are great possibilities that I need to explore. So I'm planning to continue with the large prints and experiment more with the text.

2nd Semester Week 1 Reflection

Took photos of house interior: 1 hour
Drawing: 2 hours
Writing: 1 hour
(3'x6')
This is a large monotype that I drew on top of with oil pastel. I made this at the end of last semester, and I'm really happy with how it turned out. My plan for this semester is to continue with this process. This print took about 15 hours to complete, so I'm hoping to work on one each week. I also want to incorporate writing into my final work. I'm going to try writing the text at the same scale as the large monotypes to see how they relate to each other.

I'm also going to continue with the grayscale pastel drawings of the photos I took while I was home over break.

Dear House,

You used to hum me to sleep
with the heater's
reverberations
bouncing up
from the basement.

I remember the murmur
of a lone car
driving down the street
through the blinking yellow light
at the corner.

And the springs on my bed
wretching beneath
my turning body
as I curled up tightly
to sleep.

I miss the light
cast on your walls-
moonlight behind branches
in an envelope
of darkness.

But mostly, I miss
the freighters' foghorn
resonating from the river
and the rumble of trucks
crossing the bridge at night-
your lullaby.