Team Assignment: We Know What Art Is (Group Final)

Directions: Project should incorporate the group's understanding of what art is and represent what you have learned in the course of the semester. Be creative, original and fun!

"For our Final, we have done a couple of things. One: we have recreated the art gallery scene from "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" complete with original soundtracking! We have each added a blurb to what art is to us individually. We hope you enjoy!"

Amanda: "Art is life. Art is squiggles on a piece of paper from your god-daughter and lions made from cardboard and popsicle sticks. Art is live theater and quiet movies. Art is bold sculptures and soft stained glass windows."

Ashley: "Art is such a large part of our everyday lives, we hardly even stop to think about it. Look at the desk or table where you are, right this minute. Someone designed that. It is art. Your shoes are art. Your coffee cup is art. All functional design, well done, is art. So, you could say art is something that is both functional and aesthetically pleasing to our eyes."

Jenny: "Art can be defined in many ways. To me, art is determined by individuality. It is a form of expression that one uses to convey a message. Art is not just paintings hanging in a museum, it is a variety of final products that an artist, painter or sculptor has designed. There are so many different types of art but when one narrows it down it all begins with creativity from within and ends as a piece of art. Folk Art is my favorite art for several reasons. It is a “self-taught” art, it is the most common among the working class and it is very creative. This past weekend I enjoyed myself at a Bluegrass Festival. There were several folk artists there. I have attached a few for you to view."

Jeremy: “Art is a sophisticated outwardly expression that uses the brain power opposite of that of the natural thinking and reasoning side. Art is a captured piece of thought from this side of the brain and is made visible to others.”

Shannon: "This is all art because it brings nature to life in a big way, and Is a great way to express yourself. Yay!"

Beth: "Art is anything and everything that expresses anyone’s thoughts, feelings, emotions, or positions on a certain topic. Art can be anything the imagination can come up with. Art is not just a drawing or a painting; it’s someone’s creativity put on any kind of canvas."

Team Assignment: Controversial Art and Art Records of History

Directions: As a team, find two pieces of controversial art and two works of art that somehow recorded a bit of history; blog it and be ready to show and discuss with class the history and controversy your team found.

Daniel Edwards' "Monument to Pro-Life: The Birth of Sean Preston" is a depiction of Britney Spears giving birth to one of her sons. Fun, right? Mr. Edwards said he created the piece as a call to attention to the Anti-Abortion Movement in America; he has the support of The Manhattan Right To Life Committee. It is controversial because it has "sexified" the natural aspect of giving birth; opponents were concerned that this statue would lead young girls to experiment with sex far earlier than normal. The piece was premiered at Brooklyn's Capla Kesting Fine Art.

What do you get when you take elephant dung, up close snapshots of female genitalia and the Virgin Mary? You get a lawsuit if you're the creator of the piece of work entitled: The Holy Virgin Mary. Chris Ofili, the artist, is a talented guy from Manchester, England. He happens to enjoy going back to his African roots by implementing the usage of elephant dung in his paintings. He also like to counter how the Black population has been seen as a whole in blaxplotation films ("Foxy Brown", "Shaft" and the like). He built his pieces up in layers, a collage of effects. Rudy Giuliani, the former mayor of New York City, fought tooth and nail to have Ofili's The Holy Virgin Mary from being presented at the Brooklyn Museum of Art. He, along with members of the Catholic Diocese of New York, brought suit against Ofili and the museum. The basis for their lawsuit had to do with not just pornographic material, but slander as well. The pornographic card came into play due to Ofili creating cherubs and seraphrims (angels) out of female gentatiles. It was thought that the painting incited such hatred, that you had to sign in to view the piece in 1999.

Joseph Leibovic is the founder of L.A Pop Art, a company that creates a new way to see life and art by not just showing a photo, but also by creating said photo with words. In our group's case, we chose the tribute to September 11, 2001: World Trade Center, to use as one of our pieces of art that has recorded history. Upon seeing the piece up close (or enlarging in our case), you are able to make at all 2,819 lives lost in the Towers that fateful day.


For our last piece of art that is a record of history, we have chosen Nickelback's "If Everyone Cared". The song resonates the fact that if we all decide to make a difference, we can, even if we're just one person... one person can easily turn into two and two can easily transition into 35, 000. As you listen to the words, also pay attention to the footage they implemented into their video; for some, this is the first time they have witnessed snippets of history.

Team Assignment: Public Art and Architecture

Directions: As a team find three works of Public Art (not graffiti) and three pieces architecture in Georgia that are interesting (not from the internet). What is the location of each? Do these pieces fit into the neighborhood/society? Why is the art there? Present the Team thoughts.

Beth’s Architecture Blurb:
"The Powell House: A True Southern Mansion"

"The Powell House was built in 1928. It was the home of Dr. B.C. Powell and his wife. Dr. Powell was a local business man and Villa Rica’s first doctor. Dr. Powell owned the local pharmacy and an ice company. The Powell House is located at 318 Westview Drive Villa Rica, Georgia. It’s surrounded by 3 wooded acres. This house fits perfectly into the old historic part of Villa Rica. This house is now used as a special event facility for weddings and private parties."


Amanda's Public Art Blurb:
"Horizontal Pendulum Form with Tail"

"It will be 20 years next Monday that Bruce Bobwick's stainless steel Kinetic sculpture has been a fixture in Carrollton. It was erected on the front lawn of the Old Junior High, now known as the Dr. Tracy P. Stallings Community Center at 118 South White Street. When it was first installed, it did receive a lot of strange looks; I can remember the older population muttering to themselves about 'hippie art'... twenty years later and Carrollton has broaden its mind.. There are now free standing sculptures located all over with even Graffiti taking a center stage. Now, it definitely fits into the vibe of the neighborhood, but back then, it was basically shunned. As to why it is there in the first place, it's because it was donated by the artist himself. He wanted to give back to the community."


Jenny's Architecture Blurb:
"Old Carrollton City Fire Department"

"I chose a building located on City Hall Avenue in Carrollton. This building currently belongs to Southwire. It was the Carrollton City Fire Department when I grew up in Carrollton as a child. The exterior architecture of this building still holds beauty accepted in even today's modern times. The interior has been renovated into several offices and small cubicles. Originally, the Fire Dept had a slide pole from the upstairs to the bottom floor for easy access into the fire trucks parked in the garage. I have not entered this building as an adult so it would be interesting to know if the pole remains. As a child I can remember several field trips here with my school so it is nice to see they kept a piece of history on the exterior wall of the front of the building. I have included a photo from the front view and also a photo of the CFD emblem. If you ever get the opportunity to ride by this building please take a look at the side of the building facing Rome Street, it is also interesting. This side is located directly across from Little Hawaiian."


Ashley’s Public Art Blurb:
"Metal Dog and Flower Sculptures"

"For 6 years now, every time I drive by the Cultural Arts Center in Douglasville, I can’t help but look at the metal sculptures on the front lawn. One is of a dog, and made entirely out of scrap metal from appliances and cars. The artist, Doug Makemson who lives just outside of Athens, has had many exhibits at the Center and as such donated a piece that he showed there. The other is a beautiful steel flower arrangement. It was created by Joel Yawn and purchased in 1988 by Elizabeth Bolding, in memory of her husband; she then donated it to the Center. I think they fit into the neighborhood nicely as they are interesting to the eye, and the perfect place for them is at the Cultural Arts Center. "


Jeremy’s Architecture Blurb:
"The Golf Ball House"

"I have called this the 'GOLF BALL' as far back as I can remember. The igloo style house was built in the 1980’s. I felt like the architecture was different and that it might serve a purpose other than the look. The location of this masterpiece is in Douglas County, off of Yeager Road."

Shannon's Public Art Blurb:
"Primary Colors"

"The example of Public Art I chose is located at the Douglas County Courthouse through the month of April. It is an exhibit titled 'Primary Colors' and it contains all kinds of artwork, mixed media pieces, self portraits, pottery, oil pastels... The artwork was done by children in Kindergarten through 5th grade at various schools throughout Douglas County."

Team Assignment: Picture This: Edible

Directions: As a team, select a theme from photofriday.com. Each teammate, using a digital camera will take a photo through his/her own eyes that reflects the teams chosen theme. Incorporate elements and principles. Group team photos together on blog to prepare for presentation to class.



“Even though I’m no longer dating Wes, his height made him edible to me. At 6'8", he was intimidating in a sexy kind of way and I really loved his blue eyes. Too bad he was a jackass!”





“Our theme was edible. You can't get much more edible than this. My daughter's first run in with birthday cake... Obviously, the cake lost. After demolishing it, she decided to blow everyone kisses. :)”





“This is a picture of my chicken ceasar salad pita sandwich. It’s pita bread filled with chicken, romaine lettuce, bell peppers, ceasar dressing and cheese. It’s my favorite lunch at my office, especially when we are busy and I don’t have time to leave the office to go get lunch.”






"My mother cooked chicken livers and mashed potatoes with biscuits for dinner Sunday night. She made her delicious gravy with onions to smother all of that in. My Dad had slow cooked his famous green beans (the only green beans my 9 year old nephew will eat - they're that good) all day Sunday so we added those to the menu. My Mom, my daughter and I all love this meal. It looked so good that I had to take a photo first so I could not only remember it after it was gone but to also show the ladies I work with who love chicken livers too.”






“This is the octopus hotdog. It is edible and makes the kids go crazy when they are ready to eat lunch. I saw this last year from a coworker and thought it would be a great one to reflect, what “EDIBLE” is!! And my two year confirm that it looks like one too.”





“This a picture of one of the pears from the pear tree in my parents’ front yard. This is edible to me because, well, it’s a pear, but because I remember making pear preserves from this tree with my mom. This tree brings back lots of edible memories.”