Month: June 2016

Visual Arts this year was a completely new and amazing experience. I had tried VA once before, but it had not intrigued me as much. Although much of it was out of my skillset, I discovered some very interesting areas of art which I further explored throughout the year – for example: woodcut printing, usage of clay, painting etc. Woodcut printing was the hardest of all, because we had no prior experience. Carving the wood took humongous patience and effort – but by the end of the unit, we were able to do it reasonably well. This way, I developed an amazing skill which I think I can really grow in over the years.

We also worked on installation art. All the VA students together collaborated to work on a project of our own. We initiated the experience and planned together. We didn’t really have to be creative in accumulating blocks, and painting them in different colors – but it was time consuming and hard. Painting was the interesting part. We divided the blocks into groups to paint the blocks in primary colors so that we could finish it faster. We then planned how we would settle the blocks into one installation piece. It was an amazing experience. I really learned to work well with team as we had real fun working together.

During our journey with art, we learned not only art, but also about lot of other issues of global significance. For example, we learned the mineral value of the clay. We learned how the art of expression is diminishing as we rely more and more on “lol”, “haha”, “rn” and “gtg” these days. Amidst all this modernization, we recognized the true need to be able to express ourselves and communicate our true feelings through multiple mediums. Our installation art also possessed a strong message about how harmony in life is generated through primary colors and contrasting through the color wheel. The colors can have multiple meanings – about how the few important things in life lead to all other things. My interpretation of it was how perseverance, love and energy can be used to achieve every other color in life. The most basic colors help us identify the most deepest feelings. We also learnt how unity of these colors is so significant to the world we live in. Every other color around us is made of these three colors: red, blue and yellow. However, these colors alone may cause little wonder and would keep us from experiencing the world with all its beauty!

Throughout the year, we also had to maintain a VA journal where we had to spend time daily to doodle and scribble what we felt. This required commitment as it was hard sometimes to find time for VA. We also had to persevere while making the woodcut as some parts of it required patience and hard work. We grew tired but the excitement of the end product kept us going.

 

However, what was perhaps the most important part of our activities was to take inspiration from great artists without stealing their artwork ideas. It was something we needed to consciously maintain to abide by the ethical standards of art.

Overall, it was a really challenging and fun journey learning the art of expression through visual means. I would like to take up more such opportunities. It was filled with learning and I loved VA!