ADV 1321 Sophie Heidenreich

  Every Parents Worst Nightmare  Tattoos Maybe I'm over exaggerating a little but most parents I have met are not too fond of tattoos. This includes my own. Regardless of the bad reputation they have, I believe that tattoos can be so much more powerful and meaningful than they are commonly perceived to be. Most people see tattoos as that butterfly motive stamp tramp that one got during spring break. Even though this can be the case, tattoos can also be extremely emotional and powerful symbols. Tattoos have the potential to represent a feeling or a thought that you deeply connect with. They can heal, empower and motivate individuals as people often link positive feelings, memories, or experiences with them.  I too share this belief and thus I started to design my own tattoo ideas. At first, I just did it for myself by drawing down visions I had or motives that inspire me. Soon after posting a few of my designs on social media, I had a bunch of friends asking me if I could draw one f

 Nothing beats the beauty of laying on your back on a seemingly endless field of bright green grass and watching the clouds as they float by.  A nightmare for every person with a pollen allergy, a dream come true for me.  I recall quite vividly how I would often spend hours with my friends just watching the sky and argue over what each cloud looks like. Cloud watching is truly something mystical. It is such an innocent and pure form of creativity. It almost seems natural for every child to watch clouds and interpret some shape or form into them. It is mesmerizing how at such a young age we already form connections and relationships to shapes and forms and use them to create a bigger meaning. I feel that with age we lose this ability or evolve it in order to fit a more pressing need. After all, guessing what a cloud looks like is not a key skill in order to assure survival. Regardless I believe that everyone should do more cloud watching. We need to stop taking ourselves so seriously an

The biggest inspiration for my art pieces is Marius Sperlich.   Marius Sperlich produces unapologetic art, which is meant to stand against the "current social system which often objectifies women" ( his own words). His pieces often incorporate microphotography, where he places tiny toy figures onto a women's body parts that are often labeled as inappropriate and creates a whole new context and visual that is nonsexual. This creates satire which is one common theme seen throughout his pieces. The reason why he is my favorite artist is that in such a unique and original way his art addresses contemporary problems. He ridicules the ideology that women's bodies are solely seen as sexual and thus, through his art empowers women. He normalizes body imperfection and almost glorifies them through his art.   

 This was an image I tried to recreate in a fauvism style (attached below). I  was always fascinated by the use of color and how they create the mood within a painting. When working on the preparation for this painting  I looked at different color that I might  include in order to create the mood. At first I thought warm colors would create an dynamic effect these would be reds oranges and yellows.  I later chose to  have a calmer mood by sticking to colder colors such as blue and greens. I still included orange for value contrast.

Fauvism comes from the French word `les Fauves meaning wild beast, the name was giving to the simplified yet abstract art style. It is composed of radical colors and forms and is considered a contemporary art movement. Fauvism evolves around the theory of color which was a large discussion among artists in the 19 th century. Especially the complementary colors were intriguing to the artist and how they work collectively to create a mood. The art style is meant to focus less on the subject matter rather than the collaboration of colors. It is meant to give the piece a whole new dimension and create meaning through the colors. What might at first seem strange and abstract is in truth actually very complex to recreate. Here are some art pieces that I found particularly inspiring in the fauvism style: What I like about those two pieces is their unique tonal composition. Beyond following the stylistic guidelines of the fauvism style it strongly conveys emotions through exaggerated visuals

  The series consists of edited photographs that look like the front page of a well-known newspaper. Divisible on each piece are different fruits that are being sensually touched between women's legs. The series is meant to normalize non-phallic sexuality and challenge society's aversion to female genitalia and health. The fruit also works as a non-gender metaphor allowing the viewer to process sexuality in a more abstract way. The piece has the potential to equally aggravate as arouse.

If you have ever taken the time to read or inform yourself about healthy mental health coping mechanisms you probably have come across the concept of "journaling".  According to google:  " Journaling  helps control your symptoms and improve your mood by: Helping you prioritize problems, fears, and concerns. Tracking any symptoms day-to-day so that you  can  recognize triggers and learn ways to better control them" Personally, I'm not a huge fan of writing and often find myself struggling to express my feelings and thoughts through writing. Nevertheless, I recognize that mental health is an extremely important part of my life and thus  I decided to start journaling too but in my own way...  Since expressing myself visually comes a lot more naturally to me than verbally I decided to journal my emotions throughout the day by drawing them.  Here is what my day looks like: 

 On this wonderful warm, sunny, and blue sky Saturday afternoon my boyfriend and I decided to go to target and buy a box of chalk to draw outside. We decided to go to the rooftop of my apartment complex as there are usually no cars around and there is a lot of free space which we could use to draw on. Evidently, all of this combined provides the optimal conditions to really let our creative minds run free.  What I loved about this activity is that there were no guidelines or rules on where, how, and what we were drawing. Instead, we just drew down everything that came to our mind in whatever manner we felt appropriate. Once we were both done we ran the other person through our creative process. It was truly beautiful to see how someone else's mind works and is inspired. Here are some of the results... 

 Every good story has to end. So did our journey with Brenda. (ironically on the 13th post of this series) We realized that summer was coming to an end and that soon we would all be scattered out all over the world again to go to school. We decided to give Brenda the goodbye she never had but truly deserved. We buried her at her favorite spot on the beach.  Before we did we let her view the beautiful sunset one more time.  We all said our goodbyes and then let her be carried away by the ocean waves so she would soon find a new home where she could make someone else as happy as she made us.  Brenda will forever be remembered and will always have a special place in our hearts. 

 Brenda was a fan of the ladies and the ladies were a fan of her. It was at this moment that I started to reconsider if it was wrong of us to assume Brenda's Gender.  Maybe Brenda preferred Brendan. Or maybe it was a female doll but possessed by a male spirit or vice versa. Or maybe gender is a topic that Brenda didn't want to concern herself with and simply just wanted to be labeled as a doll. After all, she had spirit and doll activities she had to fulfill and simply did not have the time to worry about labels.   She was a doll of little or realistically no words. But no one could ever say she wasn't highly spontaneous and willing to experiment.   (after this photo was released Maxs and Brendas relationship was dissolved due to high jealousy from Max's side) 

 One of our favorite moments with Brenda was during one of our bike rides to the beach. Since none of us had a proper basket on our bikes for her to sit in, she would often have to be clamped in the back. (which she did not mind and it was almost like a seatbelt for her).  As we rode to the beach we spontaneously rode past one of my old friends who were also on the way to the beach. I couldn't help but notice that his bike had a beautiful spacious wooden basket at the front. Without hesitation, I quickly freed Brenda from her bike clamp and placed her into my friend's basket. ( my favorite part about this is that he didn't even ask any questions )  Brenda truly was a beloved friend to anyone who has met her. 

 During long road trips, Brenda often struggled to reach the window to look outside. After all, she was a very short doll, and not having proper hands or feet made it very hard for her to reach the window. Taking this into consideration we decided to allow Brenda to poke her head out of the window every now and then. It must have been very freeing and refreshing for her. ( and no, the wind did not almost rip of one of her arms) She did like living on the edge though. 

 Even when we went on vacation we did not hesitate to take Brenda with us. After all, she loved nature and being outside and we really did not want to deprive her of that. She especially loved our long walks to the beach where she would often stop to sit on a bench and just stare into the seemingly endless dunes. 

 Sometimes during more formal occasions where we weren't able to take Brenda with us, we decided to give her the chance to catch some fresh air too. Thus we decided to place her out the window. Not only was she able to observe and take in all the beautiful scenery and tea that happens in Tom's front yard, but she was also able to see us when we returned home. 

 Also at night, Brenda would not have to sleep alone. Evidently, we didn't want to give her the ability to walk through the house by herself or to secretly visit us in our dreams.  Instead, we left her safe and sound in Max's arm. Were she was cuddled every night. Max is a real ladies' man and obviously knew how to keep our doll happy. 

 What initially seemed like my worst nightmare soon turned into a sweet daydream. Even though I was convinced the doll was haunted I decided that we should give her the best life she has ever had. Obviously, a haunted doll will only do evil haunting activities if you don't treat her as part of the family. So that exactly what we did. We took Brenda with us everywhere.  Here is a photo of Brenda's honorary spot in Toms's kitchen. When we would cook she would always be able to watch us. When Tom was making awful tasting hummus we would not hesitate to let her have the first bite. 

 It was a beautiful German summer evening. I was sitting under a large, great oak tree in my Best friend's garden and soaking in the warmth of the sun. There was a mellow warm wind that would rustle the leaves of the tree from time to time. There were birds chirping and crickets cricketing and nature seemed in perfect harmony with our vibe.  Tom and Max (my two best friends) were sitting next to me and we were talking about this and that and life overall was just good.  This beautiful scenery was soon disturbed by the unexpected appearance of two of Max's old school friends. As they approached us I noticed that one of them was holding an old cloth doll in their hand. Not thinking much of it I returned to my conversation with Tom and just let them do their thing.  Soon after one of the boys approached me and handed me the doll. I hesitated for a moment before I took it and placed it on my lap. With great confusion, I started to observe the doll. It had bright orange hair that ha