Nicolette Tsamos - Historical Context

        After reviewing the art history timeline and considering what I already know from these movements, I can identify with multiple periods including the Barbizon School, Earth Art movement, etc. Specifically, my work relates to that of the Barbizon School due to the presence of landscapes and natural spaces. Our landscapes around us can be an indicator of our social and political standings, making the documentation and analysis of them important. Théodore Rousseau's The Charcoal Burner's Hut is an observational painting done en plein air that captures the image of a tree and a small hut in the distance. Documenting landscapes through painting is different from a photographic perspective where the photo is taken as a still with everything exactly depicted as real life. Through painting, the essence of a space can be conveyed without the need for exactness. This can create a sublime quality in landscapes that I find captivating. In my practice, I plan to develop my ability to capture them and use them to convey messages about the condition of our environment as well, rather than just for visual pleasure and documentation purposes.

  

Pollination Garden, Richard A. Rutkowski Park, 2024            The Charcoal Burner's Hut

Nicolette Tsamos - Art Talk with Filmmaker Sky Hopinka

        Through reading Art Talk with Filmmaker Sky Hopinka By Rebecca Sutton, I learned about Hopinkas medium of choice and his overall ideas about his artmaking process. Hopinka equips video, audio, and archival materials to create films and uses language to emphasize his message. Within his video, he seeks to develop a path of reasoning or logic for the audience to be guided by. After this is created, he questions how he can further make sense of the information he knows about his culture by using experimental elements of film and text to convey personal information without being overt. He reflects on the grammatical and phonetic patterns of Chinuk Wawa, imitating the structure of language to establish a set of boundaries that enhances his concepts of language itself, landscape, identity, mythology, and traditions of the Ho-Chunk Nation. With video, the medium allows him to remain subjective and respect the purpose of these stories and languages by interacting with the matter poetically.
        I mainly use oil paint, charcoal, and other two-dimensional mediums in my work. My process starts with an idea or message that I want to send to an audience. Then I begin to consider how this should be conveyed and who exactly my audience is. Since I mainly use images, the work will change somewhat based on my audience's understanding. I try to think of symbols and contexts that will be useful in covertly displaying my ideas and begin to sketch these concepts. Working this way helps me consider the efficacy of my work and helps me organize my thoughts to understand myself better and what I want from a certain project. I look forward to expanding what mediums I use to further emphasize my messages and reach wider audiences differently. Particularly, with three-dimensional works.

Post 9

Artist Statement:

Ever since I was a kid, I loved watching “Tom and Jerry” with someone close to me. After they passed away, that memory stuck with me and made me want to make art that gives people the same warm, comforting feeling. I was alone a lot during my childhood, and when no one was around to talk to, I would draw in my room to let out how I felt. Art became my way of talking when I didn’t know how to say things.

I’ve tried different materials like Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, charcoal, oil pastels, gouache, and oil paints. Lately, I’ve been into oil painting, trying things like layering paint, using bright colors underneath, and painting with thick strokes.

A lot of my ideas come from things that happen in my life—now or in the past. Instead of starting with a sketch, I usually think about the colors I want to use first, and then I figure out what the painting will be about.

REVISED:

From a young age, I found comfort in watching “Tom and Jerry” with a loved one, a memory that became deeply meaningful after their passing. This connection inspired me to use art as a way to evoke the same sense of comfort and nostalgia for others. With being isolated for a good amount of my childhood I drew my feelings in my room when no one was there to listen. Over time, art became a language through which I could process emotions and express what words could not.

I have explored through multiple mediums, such as Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, charcoal, oil pastels, gouache, and oil paints. I’ve been focusing my attention into oil painting, exploring multiple layers of glazes, vibrant underpaintings, and thick paint strokes.

My inspiration comes from current events that happens throughout my life, either present or past. Instead of focusing on thumbnails first, I think about what type of color story I want my painting/illustration to portray, then I think about the subject of it.

Artist Bio:

Taina Luna is an illustrator based in Bayonne, New Jersey, currently pursuing a BFA in Illustration at New Jersey City University . His early exposure to art came through his mother, who studied art in college before focusing on education. This connection provided Taina with access to various art supplies, sparking his enthusiasm for creative expression. During his time at Bayonne High School, he actively participated in stage decoration and contributed to an art exhibition in the 2019–2020 academic year, further deepening his interest in the art world. These experiences shaped into the type of artworks he does today. 

Post 7: Sky Hopinka, Art Talk

Sky Hopinka uses his medium of choice, video, as a deep personal and experimental medium to explore language, identity, landscape, and Indigenous history. he was first inspired when learning the language Chinuk Wawa, while living in Portland, Oregon. While studying this language, it made him think about structure and communication, becoming the building stones for his filmmaking. 

I use oil paint for my main illustrations on canvas recently. I usually brainstorm ideas, however, the ideas that I use the most are the ones that come to me when I am listening to music or just taking in my surroundings, like in the park or on the bus. I've always been fascinated with how oil painters have this thick texture and vivid colors with their paintings, but I wasn't sure how to achieve that and I wasn't even sure that it was my "style". I went to an art museum in New York and our professor had us choose an oil painting that we wanted to do a case study of and follow the techniques to copy it. I ended up getting inspired by one that had the same characteristics that I was very awed by from the oil painters I followed and it ended up pushing me to achieve what I want with my paintings.  

Art on My Mind, Bell Hooks - Isabelle Legaspi

QUOTE 1: BH: So much photography doesn't lead people to think deeply about the work, to interrogate it. And the value of most prominent white photographers is not determined by audience response to their work. Yet folks will tell me, "Well, I'm troubled by Carrie Mae Weems's work, because it doesn't work with the audience." The assumption is that there is one correct response, rather than multiple responses.

Carrie Mae Weems is saying that art doesn’t just come out of nowhere. It’s influenced by the artist’s personal beliefs and life experiences. She doesn’t try to create simple answers or one clear message. Instead, she’s always asking questions like: What should this look like? Who is it meant for? Who might it challenge? For her, photography is a powerful way to show complicated stories, especially about things like race, gender, and identity. Her art isn’t always easy to understand on the surface, it makes both the artist and the viewer think more deeply.

QUOTE 2:

CMW: Right, it's linked to a whole belief system. You know, we have to make art work for us within the context of our own individual belief systems. I've often thought about this. How do you do this with photography? How do you describe complex experiences in a photograph? What are the sights of it? What should it have to look like? What does it have to challenge? To whom is it challenging? You know, who's it for? All those kinds of questions are constantly shifting for me.

Carrie Mae Weems understands that art isn’t made in isolation and that it’s shaped by what the artist believes, goes through, and wonders about. Instead of trying to make simple, one-size-fits-all messages, she accepts that creating art can be messy and full of questions. She uses photography to show complicated experiences, especially those connected to race, gender, and identity. Her work is supposed to make both the artist and the viewer think more deeply and look closer.

 

Post 12: Trips to Art Museum's: Society of Illustrators

Society Of Illustrators

Often, we see vintage works of art in museums- that range from oil to pastels. Although those kinds of traditional works are deeply important to know and study- it would be nice to see works that I could really draw from. That's where the Society of Illustrators is different. Opened in 1901, this society was created to highlight the history and progression of Illustration and to host art exhibitions from time to time.

As a young illustrator, I find this museum priceless ($10 student fees), as I get to see myself in these works, using softwares like Procreate, Photoshop, and Clip studio paint. As well as using styles and techniques that I would like to acquire- Digital and traditional mediums to build beautifully executed pieces. In this case, the exhibition was illustrations for childhood books.

Here are some of the works that sparked some inspiration:

[Marie-Alice Harel, “Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones (2019)”, WatercolorPainting]

[Lela Harris, “The Color Purple by Alice Walker (2021)”, Charcoal on paper]

[Elliot Lang, “A Canticle for Leibowitz”, Gouache, Acrylic, Vector Borders, Digital]

[Elle Liu, “Mr. Fox Celebration”, Gouache Watercolor, Colored Pencil, Wax Pastel, Procreate]

Bio & Artist Statement - Isabelle Legaspi

Biography:

Isabelle Legaspi is a Filipino-American graphic designer born in Jersey City, New Jersey. She was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes at age 5. Her love for art bloomed at the hospital’s arts and crafts events. Before her switch to graphic design from accounting, her high school art teacher asked her why she wasn’t in art school. That was the catalyst of change for Isabelle in 2021. She now attends New Jersey City University as a student pursuing a BFA degree with a concentration in graphic design, and aiming to become a multidisciplinary designer in the future.

Artist Statement: 

My work consists of many things, but mainly graphic design. I focus on the physical aspect like the shape of packaging, the texture of surfaces or paper, and the nuances of print. The physicality and usability of my work are central to my process. I want people to interact with my designs not just visually but also through touch. My aim is to create pieces that invite engagement, offering a tactile and visual experience that can leave a meaningful impression, even if just for a moment.