Brandon's Class Portfolio

http://imagingworkshopfinal.carbonmade.com/

Matthew Barney

This article was very informative on the work of Matthew Barney. Above all, I was intrigued by his past. He was an avid athlete and attended Yale for school, his past seems traditional however, his creations are from that. From his past, he adds his athletic ability to his work. Barney has accomplished so much in the art world as a 36 year old, it is quite impressive that most of his work is in video form ( ex: the cremaster series) His work is very sexual and he often uses himself as a model. I find his work to be a bit strange and even uncomfortable. I believe that his work pushes the boundaries, but I really do enjoy his use of costumes and dress, this reminded me a lot of Cindy Sherman. It is evident that Barney and his team plans every thing out to the minute. He has a whole team behind him who care about the art he is making and are passionate about his many projects. As a viewer, I am not quite sure what he is saying but it is fun to explore works of artists who don't follow the normal beat and path.

Response to Matthew Barney

From reading this article I am most impressed by Matthew Barney's conceptual exploration, inventiveness, and discovery of himself. At first glance Barney seems like a very strange artist,unrelatable,someone who is completely out there and searching for his artistic focus, but I think because he is so out there and so willing to incorporate his interests in medicine, American football, freemasonry, prosthetic body parts, body orifices, and Harry Houdini, as well as himself he creates work that defines his understanding and approach to art. Barney's work is encoded with multiple layers of meaning, and I enjoy that because he has presented his audience with an image and allowed the view to make their own interpretations.

Response to Barney Reading

In the reading one of the quotes that stood out the most to me was "Barney views the entire universe of forms within the constellation of the cycle as one multidimensional artwork." In practice this means that the artist Matthew Barney really tries to establish a meaning or message and then create art works that push the boundaries of the original idea. One of the main topics that the reading explored was how Barney looked into gender with his Cremaster series, and although they are numbered 1 through 5 they were produced out of sequence and with little spoken language. Having refrained from actually watching the videos, since we are going to do that in class, it seems that they will either tell an actual story – or be so bizarre that they are more shocking than anything else.
Another aspect that I found interesting is that after he spends years developing the Cremaster series, at the end its resolution is what the reading describes as “ambiguous.” While they seem to downplay the political implications of such work, it seems that simply exploring these topics could cause some controversy especially since it seems to allude to the fact that the final gender is not final. Perhaps Barney’s thought that the gender differentiation is trying to mimic the process of creating art downplays that message.

Response to Matthew Barney

This article about Matthew Barney was very refreshing in that it discusses a very inventive stylistic approach to art. Because of his varied academic and athletic backgrounds, Barney is able to execute a vision of artwork unlike any other. Although many people may have dabbled in academics, medicine, and athletic competition like Barney, not many people would take the risk to combine all of those interests and viewpoints into one. I especially like Barney's idea of comparing muscle and artistic forms and seeing how each is different but evolves and develops in the same way. From a viewer's perspective, this is something that could be relateable to many. Athletes could view his instillation in a gallery and see how creating art is a multi-step and careful process--much like progressing as an athlete or building muscle strength. Artists or art appreciators could view his work and make connections to other disciplines (like athletics or something similar) and be intrigued by Barney's less-conventional artistic approach.

Barney's incorporation of conflict into his works is also very intriguing. He draws inspiration from unlikely sources such as Harry Houdini, a famous magician and escape artist and also Jim Otto a player for the Oakland Raiders. Each of these people inspired Barney by the way he overcame challenge with grace and skill, and that is what Barney aims to do through his art. For many artists, the challenge may be coming up with a new idea for a piece or the laboring process it takes before the final product is produced. For Barney, challenge and conflict are actively incorporated into his performance pieces as if to show the viewer that development and process are never complete.

In Progress Assignment to Myself

Like described in my proposal I want to continue the last project by using a similar strategy to location. For this in progress, I chose to photograph locations with unique or quirky architectural elements, as well as play with the idea of balance. Continuing with the inspiration of Jeff Wall, I would like to fill the space with inanimate objects and have a model in the mist of it.

Assignment to Myself

For my assignment to myself I would like to continue some of the same concepts and themes of the last project. I would like to make some of the settings more elaborate with inanimate objects and find locations that have unique architectural elements. As well as focus on the techniques of portraiture, I want to capture these subjects in a way that will create a varying narrative. I would like to continue to research the work of Jeff Wall and artists who do similar installations.
Although I am adopting many of the same techniques from the last series, I have to raise some questions about the concept and subject matter. As far as subject matter I am trying to figure out if I should stick to women as my subjects, to continue the isolated, mysterious themes of their characters, or do I incorporate men into the narratives. I am unsure because I know with using a male subject, the narrative becomes somethings else, there are undertones of masculinity and for this project I am not speaking to male masculinity, however I do think it would be interesting to use men and create a similar sense of vulnerability and uncertainty. I think it would be interesting to play around with both ideas and decide when the images are placed into a collection.

I do not want to limit myself to a specific number because I feel like this subject matter and approach can be stretched to a limitless amount of images. The series will feel complete when the collection speaks for what I am trying to address.

I want to continue this project because I had so much fun with it in the last series and I feel like the project can be pushed forward. Of course I am worried about the series becoming repetitive in nature but with location and subject changes I do not think the viewer will become bored.