Pokemon and Potential

above photo taken in Smithsonian Museum of Art - Washington D.C.

I did not always like museums. Most likely because my early exposure to them was usually to historical exhibits that I was dragged to on a school field trip. Just the fact that I HAD to go was a turn-off. Typically monotonous tour guides did not help with that either. But I got older and my interests matured. I learned that I liked art. The abstract thinking and the stories behind creative works sparked my interest. All of the sudden, I found myself cluing in intently when my aunt with an art-history major would talk about different artists and periods. I started jumping at the opportunity to go visit art museums when I could. I saw some incredible ones while being a congressional page in DC including the Modern Art Museum and the Smithsonian. Over the last Christmas break I found a few to enjoy in the Houston area not far from where my family lives. I truly feel that art has the potential to help us see things in a new way- with more depth and beauty.

The New York Times recently included an article on the numerous art museums in New York City, and I must say I am pretty envious of the quality and variety of different ones that are there. Sure New York has the numbers and the diversity that I know College Station lacks. The culture just simply isn’t there. However, the culture is all about A&M and the most well known artist in College Station, Benjamin Knox, got his fame from doing paintings of nostalgic Aggie scenes like Bonfire memorial, baseball games, or Kyle Field. He has a local gallery that displays his work perhaps qualifying as the closest thing C-stat has to an art museum of some sort.

Though I seem to complain about the scarcity of good art in the area, it could be a good thing in some ways. It’s kind of like my obsession with trading and collecting Pokémon cards as a 3rd grader. The more rare of a card I found, the more I appreciated and admired it. I would go back to stare at the card with all of its holographic greatness over and over. Perhaps, people tend to treat art in the same way. The fewer copies available or the more historical the artist, the more buyers will shell out thousands to obtain such a coveted piece. Admitting this could make me a hypocrite though as I have preached with a “more art for everyone” attitude through out every entry of this blog, and I still hold to that but looking at art from a more formal perspective does cause me to question that. Either way, I would still be more than happy to see a museum open in the Brazos County area that displayed Texas art or even prints of more famous works. But as I have discovered, more opportunities have been coming up in recent years with events like Fashion week and Rock the Republic. So do not fret art lovers, College Station and Bryan community has potential for a greater artistic environment as it continues to grow in interest, diversity and numbers!

Unlikely Filmmakers

As I was reading in the Battalion today in between classes, filmmaking, another form of art that is lacking in the culture of A&M, was brought to my attention. The article titled “Filmmaking Aggies “ is a bit of an oxymoron as the first paragraph of the entry suggests, “Aggie" and "filmmaker" are two words that are rarely seen combined within the same breath. At a college where engineering and business reign supreme, it's no surprise that A&M's contributions to the film canon have been minimal at best…”

I would expand on this statement to include many other artistic professions that are uncommon for Aggie grads. The author is touching on the main issue that I keep going back to. The popular fields of study at Texas A&M are centered on business and veterinary, engineering and biomedical sciences. These programs attract less creative individuals who in turn effects not only the amount of artistic expression being relevant on campus but also the degree to which students welcome creative endeavors. Many people are at A&M strictly to get that business degree or have that 4.0 and do not see value in producing, enjoying, or attending events related to art. Those things are probably viewed more as distractions from their ultimate goal as opposed to beneficial additions enhancing their college experience. Often the organizations and time commitments that are deemed more worthy are social organizations such as fraternities and sororities, academic groups for fields of study, and leadership clubs. The popularity of these groups as opposed to artsy ones also reflect the main things that society prioritizes as being the most helpful in pursuit of our education and career.

However, there seems to always be those exceptions. The ones who manage to break a trend and jump over the hurdle of going to school in an environment that is not particularly geared towards your passion. The battalion article talks about two graduates from the class of ’98 who are entering into the film industry by making movies falling under the same category as titles like the Blindside and Fireproof.

Freedom to create, but to exhibit?

Howdy art seekers J Hope ya’ll are enjoying the cool weather we have had these last couple of days in Aggieland. And if you are reading from somewhere else in the world, hope that great days are being had in your neck of the woods as well! All of the natural beauty inspired me to take a bike ride with my pal Wendy to Rudder tower to see some man-made beauty at an exhibit that the MSC Visual Arts Committee (VAC) is currently hosting in Rudder Tower. The theme of the display is 2-dimensional work that portrays its artist/artists’ view of what it means to have the freedom to create giving the exhibit its title.

Wendy and I were excited to check out what other students’ view of creative freedom in their artwork. Personally, I was also hoping to find more insight into how art is playing a role in the overall culture at A&M and abroad. And I figure if I am going to be blogging about this stuff, I need to see it for myself! I had high expectations for the grandeur of the exhibition… finally a devoted space for artists to show off their stuff on campus! We went inside Rudder and quickly spotted our friend, Ziggy, as I often find familiar faces when going through the lobby there. We asked him to come along to see this special art exhibit and took the elevator up to the 11^th floor where the art was supposed to be. This was my first time to go to the top floor of the building so I was not sure what the set up would be like but I was sure it would be an open space with large canvases on tripods and walls strategically placed for optimal viewing around the room. But unfortunately we got up there to find a formal dining area with people enjoying their lunch on the right and two doors closed shut on the left. No art in sight. My friend Ziggy decided to open the doors on the left despite our hesitancies of getting in trouble for something. Thankfully, we didn’t come up to the 11^th floor for nothing. We did find some gorgeous artwork and a small indicator that this was in fact VAC’s “Freedom to Create” Exhibit. And guess what? They had the doors closed and the artwork seemed almost hidden because the room it was in was under construction! Tools and equipment were scattered around the room. Plants and other nick knacks blocked paintings from being fully visible.

I don’t mention all of this to bash on the Visual Arts crew but to suggest that they had to resort to a dining room to display there works because there is such a lack of good areas for a long-term exhibit available. I am more critiquing the culture for its treatment of art related things. Maybe we happened to visit on the worst day but I must admit I was slightly disappointed in the location. Despite the obstructed views, I very much enjoyed the incredible, unique pieces. I took a few snapshots to show ya’ll. The display is there until December 2^nd. The Visual Arts Committee needs to keep up the good work and hopefully space for these events will become more accessible and more prominent in the way of life around here.

Just for fun here's a cool video that Ziggy showed me of another form of art.. music using the everyday gadgets of a vehicle: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFybwg4wadI

One Leads to Another..

I hope you caught last week’s post that includes an interview with my fellow Aggie, Wendy Weatherly, about the local art culture at A&M. During our time together chatting in the architecture studio, I had the privilege of meeting another creative Texas A&M student, Hugo Ochoa. As the Graphic Designer Executive for the MSC Visual Arts Committee, Hugo was able to give me his in tuned insight into the underlying artistic environment on campus. He agreed with the Wendy’s take on the condition of the Aggie art culture that it is in fact existent but struggling and not well known. However, he believes that there potential for the seed of art to blossom into a beautiful addition to the traditions dominating in Aggieland. I must say that I am beginning to see this potential as well.

This is Hugo’s second year being involved in MSC Visual Arts Committee (VAC), which is one of the few but awesome student organizations geared toward the art scene. VAC provides opportunities for student to connect visual arts into their personal, professional and academic lives through multiple outlets including travel, artist residencies, gallery programs, and art exhibitions. By doing so they are helping to fulfill one of the biggest gaps in for art being more evident in the local culture by giving artists the opportunity to put their work on display for an extended period of time. They do this through exhibits open to anyone and by having displays dedicated to specific artists. Currently, there is an exhibit of paintings by Joshua Chambers entitled “The Internal Sublime” in the Wright Gallery inside the Langford Architecture Building (Building A) being displayed until Friday! The "Halloweenesque" painting at the top left corner is an example of one of Chamber's pieces. I was also excited to see that VAC is hosting a “Freedom to Create” exhibit that kicked off back in September and will continue until December 2. In gathering artwork for this exhibit, VAC advertised for people to donate 2-dimensional work exploring the concept of creative freedom and what it looks like for an artist to express freedom of thought through the visual arts. I regret not having heard about this until I met Hugo! I am anxious to check out the artwork for myself sometime this week. And for those of you anxious to see the art culture take off on campus… stop by and give your support as well! :)

On a nationwide level, the increase in support for art is not quite as optimistic according to report in last month's Arts & Business issue. The gap of supporters between philanthropists and artists is growing and there are few signs of increased giving to occur. Check out the full article on this national issue: Arts Philanthropy: the facts, trends, and potential

From the Thoughts of an Artist..

I think I have exhausted my own knowledge and opinion on art in our local culture, so I decided to look at the perspective of a real-life local artist and friend of mine, Wendy Weatherly. She is a sophomore architecture major at Texas A&M from Amarillo, TX and has some great thoughts on the topic. When asked about local opportunities for artists to put their work on display, Wendy opened my eyes to some new things that I had not yet discovered.

"Bryan and College Station have many Theatres, I recently saw a play at 'Stage Center' which was very enjoyable. A&M has many organizations which promote the arts, including 'One Love' which had a place set up on campus where students could paint canvases. I loved getting to take a moment out of the day to just paint and reflect. Downtown Bryan also has "first friday" where there are many artistic venues... Jewelry, music, paintings, architecture, furniture, theatre are all forms of art and you can see all these things in downtown Bryan."

Wendy also had a great response when I asked her about her views on the way art can impact the culture of a community suggesting that art has more influence on an individual than a community as a whole.

"Art is abstract and can be interpreted in many ways. This simple thought pertains to our culture because people are all very different: from what we look like to what we believe. Art is prevalent in everyday of life, however, the way you see it will determine how it impacts your life. For example: The Albritton Clock Tower on campus means something to me, because it impacted my route everyday when I walked underneath it, I enjoyed listening to the chime. Most people do not have the same appreciation of the clock tower because they probably didn't have the same experiences as me to make any kind of impact. In many cases; the impact of art is a personal choice. You can choose to make something of it or not."

While Wendy thinks the impact of art depends on the individual, she does believe that its prevalence is significant enough as a of our everyday life. We just have to choose to notice it or not and the way in which we allow it to affect us.

Wendy is a well-rounded artist to say the least. Her skills center more around music and theater. She has been singing and dancing since she was 3 years old and acting since she was 12 years old. Her parents often took her to musicals and exposed her to other creative outlets. Their influence played a role in her interest to use her studies in architecture to possibly design opera houses and performing arts centers. The artwork at the top of the page is actually one of Wendy's originals. She used different mediums such as charcoal, paint, pastels, marker computer renderings and colored pencil to depict the way a knee-joint works. The knee is moving according to a dance move called the "torjette" which was on a staff of sheet music, so the knee also played a song. Through the different "moments" of the diagram you could understand the interior of the knee. Wendy thought it would be cool for me to include this piece because people can often interpret it differently than her primary intention and is an example how art influences an individual how they chose for it to.

Artworks

"Art is not a mirror held up to reality but a hammer with which to shape it."
-- Berthold Brecht

There you have it folks. I must say I agree with the above quote. Art truly does have the potential to impact culture as it works on and forms the thoughts and characteristics of a time. You study an art piece and you can automatically tell a number of things about the time in which it was made. With art's significance in mind, I feel that I have established that the art culture is hurting somewhat in College Station. This seems to be the case nationwide as a result of an economy that is not stellar for any industry much less art. The less people can afford on inessential purchases like art, the more demand it puts on artists to find work outside of their craft. Less money equals less art and less art equals less culture!

I was reading on a blog from Badatsports.com that reminded me of this aspect of the issue and directed me to read a newly established paper called Art Works. Being written by artists, the paper has a unique approach on economics and labor as each topic relates to art and its role in the nation's culture. I recommend reading at least one or two of the articles on the Art Works site. One of the best ones I found is entitled, "Why Artists Need More than Creativity To Survive." It touches on how society can devalue artists and in turn not invest in their creativity. The image at the top of this post that I found on Art Works visually presents the effects of consumerism in the art world and the cycle of cause and effects.

In a more local scope, the Battallion published an article a few days ago about Rock the Republic coming to Brian on the 21st-23rd. Excitingly there will be art on display in addition to all the bands coming for the event.

local ARTISTS

Local artists keep streaming in as my knowledge of the creative community in our area increases. I am feeling more and more ignorant for not having known about some of these student organizations that exist before my search began here with The Right Brain Outlet. Another credible organization for creativity, rightly titled “TAMU ARTISTS,” has been making their imprint on A&M for two years now. They are a Christian group that brings together those who paint, write, play music, make film, sculpt, draw, or whatever your forte of creative expression might be, to collaborate using each others abilities to make a beautifully complex project for others to enjoy. You should take a look at just a few of some of the things that ARTISTS has created in their short existence. The variety and quality of their work is impressive to me and leaves me wondering why there are so few student orgs similar to The American Institute of Graphic Arts (check out last week’s blog) and ARTISTS.

The community-oriented culture of A&M seems conducive to collaborative efforts like these, and with a student population of over 48,000, you would think there would be more art groups and crafty displays forming. The numbers and desire to work together are present, what more could it take right? It’s just not that simple and other factors are keeping the artistic culture from being more prevalent on campus. I have found two student organizations so far that are artistically based at A&M. Compare that to the 30+ student organizations for artsy fartsy fun I found that are thriving at liberal arts based Williams College. They have 46,000 less students than we do but about 20 more artistic organizations. Go figure! One of the first things that came to mind for me is the fact that the most well noted undergraduate programs include majors like engineering, animal sciences, and business. We are not necessarily known for our liberal arts programs, making our school less attractive to people looking to be experts in more creative fields than a place like Williams College would be. I don’t mean to stereotype engineers and veterinarians but often times their interest or skill set for more “right brain” related outlets is limited. A&M’s culture simply reflects the students in it- the engineering career fair is one of the biggest days of the year while art displays are rare and far between- With the exception of the occassional livestock art exhibit. Yep you read that right, we cannot seem to get more run-of-the-mill art exhibits but who cares when you have got a livestock art exhibit?! I really don't have much sass most of the time, but for some reason this just pushed my sarcasm button and made me chuckle. But maybe livestock art is your thing.. if it is, the Batallion has got your back. Read the article they published about the four-legged themed exhibit. It just may tickle your utters, uh I mean fancy.