Architecture today

          I read an article on arcpaper.com today. It talked about remodeling an old artifacts museum. To be honest it needs a new look and what they plan on doing is amazing. This area could use a revamping. Newport beach is a happening place and this plan would really help the area.

And who doesn't love a ferris wheel.

Architecture: New website

           Lately I've been looking at colleges. Most of them that I've been looking at have architecture programs. Dalhousie University has a website where you can go and look at there students portfolios. Obviously there are many talented students at this school and is definitely in the running come the end of my senior year. One of my favorite portfolios I stumbled upon is on a whole other level of architecture. Architecture has come a long way in the past 100 years. It's more artistic. Buildings today have more meaning then function in some cases. This is why I want to get into this field.

Dalhousie University's website: (http://architectureandplanning.dal.ca/architecture/visitors/student_portfolios.shtml)

What makes art art

       Obviously people have changed since we learned about putting pin on paper or blush on canvas. People's view on things in the world today have changed since da Vinci and Dali. It shows. Art today is crazy. Some may say things people do today may not even be considered art. But who are they to say what art is and what it isn't.

What's the difference in these painting. Both done by famous artists of their time. So what makes one more meaning. What makes one painting art, and the other not. To me, they're both beautiful pieces. They both have meaning to someone, maybe not myself but they do represent a purpose. Both artist were expressing their selves in different ways, and to me, that's what makes it art.

Response: Historical artwork

Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci

       This is a portrait of a woman named Mona Lisa done in the 1400s. It's an oil painting on wood. For some reason this simple portrait of a woman, that, without da Vinci's portrait, would mean nothing to the world today, has made such a big impact on the world. Why? Why does this simple yet breathtaking portrait mean so much to the art community today?

        Lets start with her clothes. Nothing special about them. Plain, nothing eccentric. Her hair. It's down. Obviously hasn't tried to impress anyone. Her innocence is perfectly preserved in da Vinci's brushstrokes. Exactly how he wants her to be seen. Her olive colored skin isn't alarming, nothing out of the ordinary. The mountains and trees in the background servers no purpose but to only make you focus on the girl even more. Her face as bright as the moon. Da Vinci does a wonderful job capturing her true beauty. So how did this painting get to be one of the most well known paintings in the world? To some people it's just another portrait of a woman. But to some, this painting is a symbol of peace, a symbol of hope.

Career fields

         There are many ideas I have about my future career. All the way from writing, to computer video game designer. But the one that has stood out, and had my eye for the longest, is architecture. This field has always amazed me. From the engineering aspect of it, to the drawn out plans and construction sight manager.
         Buildings always have caught my interest. The structuring of them, the planning and thought put in them, all the way to the actual building of the building itself. I've always been drawn to floor plans. From normal modern day homes, to sky scrapers 150 stories tall. The whole idea of being behind the creating of something so massive, or even a home for a family to live in, as always been a dream of mine.
         Sketching buildings and floor plans is what I do in my free time. I love the modern sleek look of the new age sky scrapers today, to the engineering and functions of mid-evil castles in the 13th century. It's something that I love studying, and love doing.

History in the making

          I know a historical piece should be a piece of art that is revolutionary, ground breaking, and of course, in history. Well I'm taking this opportunity to get inspiration from a very serious, touching event in history. September 11th, 2001. This day had it's 10th anniversary in the past week, and everyone is mourning. My concept idea for my portfolio this year is chaos, and as you can imagine, it was complete and utter chaos that day, and many days following. 2,977 people lost their lives that day. Two commercial planes smashed and shredded through the two 110 story buildings. The art work I'm drawing inspiration from is a photograph. This photograph shows the two buildings as they are collapsing, 110 stories, falling, one after another, killing thousands of innocent people. This is true chaos.
Source: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/

Respond to an artist

      

       My overall concept for my portfolio this year is all the mad in the world, and the chaos that come with it. I have many inspirations of course, but my biggest would be Tim Burton. His style, concepts, and emotion he packs into every piece never fails me and is wonderful to view. One of his pieces (to the left) is probably one of my favorite works of art of all time. The emotion, feelings you get, and the way it is put together, all go towards that chaos filled concept I'm looking for. Now that's not all he's done to give me, and many other inspiring artist inspiration. Every piece of work, sketch, movie, and sculpture he's ever created have always amazed me. Take this piece for example (below the one of the left). Look at the colors he uses. Nothing scary right, but yet you get this eery, sort of creepy feeling. And look at the patterns he uses. All different sorts of lines, patters, and shapes come about, and that's just his style that I love and stride to be able to produce one day. Tim Burton isn't my only source of inspiration, but he never seises to amaze me.

Sources: First picture: (http://www.examiner.com/comic-books-in-sacramento/)

Second picture: (http://www.csmonitor.com/The-Culture/)