The Graceful Art

What is dance?
   Dance is a form of art where the body moves rhythmically to music.

Why is it a form of art?
   Dance is self-expression and so is art. When a person dances, they are dancing out of fulfillment and satisfaction. It is their own way of expressing their mood and letting the body become free to express one's emotion. The human movement becomes the medium for understanding, sensing, and communicating ideas, feelings, and experiences.

   Dance is broken down into different elements in this worksheet found in the Dance Education Curriculum Guide. These elements, also known as BASTE, can help a person look deeper into the art and get a full understanding of the passion of dancing. These elements include:

• Body
• Space
• Time
• Action
• Energy

   Walter Terry commented, "No paints nor brushes, marbles nor chisels, pianos or violins are needed to make this art, for we are the stuff that dance is made of. It is born in our body, exists in our body and dies in our body. Dance, then, is the most personal of all the arts . . . it springs from the very breath of life."

Jo Murphy also describes in his article The Elements of Dance from MPS Arts Rich Community the concepts of BASTE and the art of dance.

   The movement of the body in dance is the mobile figure or shape that is seen by others, and felt by the dancer. First time dancers may be a little stiff in the body and not look right while they dance around, but professionals knows how to move, when to move, and create a move, which causes them to dance so gracefully. When I used to take ballet classes, my teacher taught us that the dancer shifts from the inner realm (ideas, intentions,emotions, identity) to the outer realm (expression and communication) of the body continuously.

Fabian Perez "Tango II"

   The space and surroundings of the dancer is an important thing to observe. Have you seen a choreography and it just didnt' look right? Maybe the spacing between the dancers were too wide or tight, or the setting didn't even match the concept of the performance. This element is important because the amount of space the dancer uses catches their audience's attention. Although axial movement can be very unique and eye-catching, I personally would not want to watch a dancer stand in one spot during the whole performance; it kind of gets boring. Objects and scenery complements the dancers and give their performance a beautiful effect. It helps others to visualize and feel what the dancer is feeling.

When hearing the word time, often you think of the word "when". Time plays an important role in dancing. Time is the speed and duration of the movement. There are the metered, free rhythm, clock time, and riming relationships. The dancer could dance slow then pick up to a faster rhythm, or their performance could be long of short. Time is used differently when it comes to dancing. Dancers may take cues from each other to start the next step or use a shared sense of sensed time to end a dance all at once.

Action and energy of dancer brings liveliness within their performances. Actions can include a dance step, a gymnastic flip/toss/turn, or even a facial expression. Action for dance does not always require moevment; it can be shown through a pause in the routine and the stillness of the face.

In dance, there are two types of movement that can be combined.

• Locomotor (travelling through space)
• Non-locomotor (axial movement)

Dancers also use energy to keep things moving and alive, and also for lifting weights of other dancers. Energy enhances the actions of the dnacers, providing a remarking performance.

This form of art also has many different styles and genres. Some include ballet, ballroom, tango, break-dancing,stree-dancing, tap dancing, etc. The long list of different types of dancing continues, but they all share on common thing, which is sharing the expression and passion of the dancer.

Works Cited



Terry, Walter (1942) . Invitation to Dance. New York: Barnes, 16.

Murphy, Jo. "Developing an Understanding of the Principles and Elements within the Creative Arts." Suite101.com. Suite 101, 16 Dec. 2012. Web. 27 Feb. 2013.

Mirus, Judith. "The Elements Of Dance." Selections from the Dance Education Initiative Curriculum Guide. Golden Valley, MN: Minnesota Center for Arts Education, 1994. N. pag. Print

Illegal Art? I think not!

   Many people believe that graffiti isn't art, and more of vandalizing a building or street wall. Well, technically graffiti is a form of art the captures the different shades of colors and angles.

   Society see's graffiti as a form of defiance towards them, even though it is a form of contemporary art. "The first modern graffiti writer is widely considered to be Cornbread, a high school student from Philadelphia, who in 1967 started tagging city walls to get the attention of a girl. But it was only in the 1980s that galleries began to showcase graffiti as artwork." (Melker, Saskia) The places you can see heavy graffiti culture is New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Detroit. There are many other sites but the area where graffiti is accepted, as a form of art is Europe. The Europeans do not see graffiti as a form of vandalism; they see it as a form of art. Back in the 70s you would see graffiti on the Subway trains a lot. The reasoning the trains were targeted was so the artist work can see all day wherever the train would travel.

   Overseas owners really don't mind seeing graffiti up on their building walls. They see it as dead space, why not put up abstract or beautiful artwork up to help the building stand out. In Toronto, there is a case about whether or not the graffiti should be taken down or not. They see this as vandalism; the funny thing is that the owner of the building doesn't mind it being there. It is just so said that the world casts out graffiti. The only reason it is cast out is because many misunderstand it. Throughout history society tends to judge things they can’t nor are willing to understand.

   Who are we to say graffiti isn’t art? Art is like water. I say it is like water because water is a versatile element it can take the form of anything. Art has many different forms.

   Graffiti itself has different styles there is not one style, so you can say it's very versatile. To me I really can't say putting art on a wall that is just abandoned and taking up space is vandalism. I feel like if its not being used put graffiti up let the world no only see your artwork but bring life to the area.

    If society can't accept graffiti as a form of art then that means their view on art is one-dimensional. I would understand how the community would feel if kids just tag places without asking but if they want to stop it then open up a spot for them. I feel if they have a place where they can exhibit their graffiti or art they would stay out of trouble and be more respectful towards the community.

   If society accepts graffiti there will be no conflict with the community and the artist. Open doors to artist to exhibit their skills and it will have a positive reaction towards the community. I feel and will always feel Graffiti is art and I just wish the world wouldn't label it as vandalism.

Works Cited

Melker, Saskia. "History Of American Graffiti: From Subway Car to Gallery." PBS. PBS, 31 Mar. 2011. Web. 20 Feb. 2013.

Humber, Larry. "The Art Newspaper." The Art Newspaper. N.p., 07 Nov. 2012. Web. 20 Feb. 2013.

   This is just a quick entry that I want to share with my circle. Last Halloween (October 2012) I decided to get a little creative and go all out my way with my artsy side. I YouTubed a tutorial on how to do a sipper effect for Halloween. Being motivated to become something scary led me to my success of getting many compliments that night. "Your costume is scary as hell." said a customer at Walmart.
"Thank you, that's what I was aiming for."

   Materials needed to make this costume were:

• Red face paint
• A skin complexion zipper
• Spirit gum
• Black eyeshadow
• Petroleum Jelly
• Fake blood
• Foundation Make-up

"Zipper Face"

   The looks on many people's faces were priceless, especially since I walked around with a straight face half the time. Many people were appalled and I enjoyed every bit of terrified look. I scared a lot of people that day.

(Two entries: February 13, 2013)

Dusty Art

   Have you ever seen a chalk drawing done on the streets or the sidewalks that we walk on? If so, did they appear three-dimensional to you? Chalk drawings are a beautiful form of visual art that anyone can use. Chalk is a great drawing medium for anyone because it can be used on sidewalks, walls, paper, and other media.

Larimer Arts Association (2012)
 
  "The creation of a chalk painting takes many hours and is often not as simple as it seems. First, the artist must draw an outline of the original painting in proper proportion using pencil or a charcoal pastel. Then they begin to lay the base of colors. Using a number of colored pastels, the artist layers the chalk, blending the colors to create shadow, contrast, and depth. So one might ask, ‘why street paint when the artists’ efforts disappear immediately?’ As avid street painters will tell you, this is performance art, where the process of creating the work is more important than the finished piece. For many, the dialogue with spectators can be as rewarding as creating their masterpieces. People can view the work in all stages of progress, from layout and design, to applying colors, to the finished creation."


   Street chalk has to be the most interesting form of chalk drawing. They can be used for advertisements on university campuses, for elementary schools to play games, or even for creating new fun art for people to enjoy. Artist like Tracy Lee Stum make these paintings on the pavement and create an optical illusion to the audience's eyes.

3-D Street Chalk Art done by Tracy Lee Stum

   What I like about Tracy's work is that when she draws, Its freehanded. Stum stated,"I tend to work intuitively, often creating or developing each painting in the moment- I may not know exactly how it will look before I begin but I listen to my impulses and find they always led me to wonderful discoveries and results." I've always had a problem of drawing things from my imagination, so her being able to do that full-effect of 3-D drawings from her mind is phenomenal. Tracy was also a featured artist in the Artizen Magazine in their "Chalk It Up" article.

Tracy Lee Stun, and other artists, is in fact an actual street painter; it's her job. In this video, she speaks about her life as a street painter and also mentions that the beautiful form of art only has a life span of a few days! Why would an individual consume so much time in something that won't even last forever? Well after watching her video, Tracy does what she does simply for the enjoyment and satisfaction of other. Street art became apart of her and it allows her, and other artists to come out the isolated room and share the creativity with the public eye.

 

    Chalk art festivals occur in places like Denver where people can enjoy the beauty of chalk. The Denver Chalk Art Festival is a free two-day street-painting festival where more than 200 artists spend hours that weekend turning the streets of Larimer Square into a museum of chalk art.

   "Resting Place" by Khadija Azzam (me)

Crayola Chalk

"In Love And Death" by Khadija Azzam (me)

Made for my sister Julie

Crayola Chalk

"Sunset" by Khadija Azzam (me)

15 mins worth of time, Crayola Chalk.

"Dragon" by Khadija Azzam (me)

Crayola Chalk

11 hours; First Chalking Drawing of 2013

   Experiencing with chalk was very annoying at first and a challenge, until I finally mastered it. I first did a chalk drawing in my art class in high school, sophomore year. I hated it a lot because it was so hard to stay in the lines when the edges eventually becomes dull. My trick to staying in the lines is to continuously break the chalk so that the edges remain sharp. Blending the chalk on the paper would have to be the easiest part because chalk is dust and it smears smoothly. After three years of practice and dedication to art, chalk art has become my strongest point in drawing.

Works Cited

Becker, Kirsten. "History of Chalk Art." Denver Chalk Art Festival -. Larimer Arts Association, n.d. Web. 13 Feb. 2013.

   To start this off, I would like to say that colored pencils are difficult to use, as I once said before. Doing a little bit of research on using colored pencils in art and creating a realistic figure, I did a little experiment myself. Today I used a little bit of colored pencil in a drawing.

"Blow Your Smoke"

    Creating this drawing was extremely fun. I took me about 6 hours to draw. The beauty of it is extraordinary and filled with fun colors and patterns, like the triangles in her headband or the shapes in her earrings. Testing out the colored pencils was interesting, but getting it to not come out so hard is complicated. The shading in her glasses is a little too hard and can see the lines in the lens. That was the hardest part because making the lens purple and trying to bring out her green eyes is a complicated task. I think I did a pretty good job on her lips. Because the pink was such a light color, it was easier to use to make the different values in her lips and bring out the shine on them.

    Looking on the web and looking at more of Bec Winnel's portraits, I decided to Google "How to use colored pencils in art." The Virtual Instructor helped give me a few tips on how to use and not use colored pencils. Some of the few tips are:

• Color Heavy
• Layer your colors
• Mix your colors
• Outline Last
• Take your time
• Burnish

    Burnish is a new term to me, which means to polish something by rubbing. In art, this term means to take a white colored pencil or a colorless blender, smooth the colors and values out to make a consistent texture and solid finish. Burnishing helps make the drawing look more realistic by showing the lighting in the picture. You can see an example of burnish in her lips, noticed that I did not fully color her lips pink, but left a little white to show that it's glossy.

    What I learned most from these tips was to mix your colors, and to always mix your colors when using colored media. It said on the website that if your using colors, you don't want to just go for one solid color simply because is supposed to be the color. For example, if a person is drawing the sky, or the ocean, they would not just want to use only the blue colored pencil. This, to me, makes the art work look like an elementary art class drew it. It's too simple and broad. If drawing the sky, or ocean, you may want to use different shades of blue and probably a little bit of gray or green depending on its scenery. Learning about this made me think of using chalk, since that's one of my strongest point in drawing portraits. When I use chalk to make landscapes, I always make the sky different colors..only because chalk is way easier to blend. I also learned a lot from the burnishing method, where you take a white or light color to smooth out any lines to make a texture. I guess the white colored pencil/crayon isn't useless after all.

   One of my favorite artist is Bec Winnel. She truly inspires me to get deeper into my own artwork. Bec Winnel's use of colored pencils to create something so realistic is absolutely stunning. She was a graphic designer and a part time drawer for seven years. Today she is a full time art maker. On her website, www.becwinnil.com, she tells the world that she is a self taught artist and explains the meaning of her drawings.

This drawing called "Farewell" was created by Ms. Bec Winnel, using only colored pencils complimented by other mixed medias. I personally love this one because it shows so much emotion and an intense feeling. The details in the woman's eyes shows hurt and many words that rest upon them. 

   

   Bec has done two solo shows, many group shows, and has won five awards. Bec quoted on her website, "Art is my therapy." That statement fulfill me with a rage of excitement because I walk around telling everyone those exact same words. Art is my own personal therapist, and the same reason why Bec Winnel draws is same reason I draw. Our drawings always has meaning behind it, whether if it's just an emotion or something from the past.

   Not to be an envious person, but her work makes me want to cry and do even better than her. Bec is a role model, every inch and angle of the paper is so precise and eye catching. Colored pencils are hard to use when drawing a person because it's so hard to blend on paper and soften. Trying to make a drawing look like a taken photograph requires an excessive amount of talent, especially if one is using utensils that cannot be erased or fixed. Believe me, I've tried and that's why I appreciate her work so much. Another thing I enjoy, which is kind of her art signature, is her drawings of all females. Majority of her work are all women; some may be the same lady in the pictures, but each expression on each paper shows the true beauty of the face. "I choose to draw females because I experience life as one and can therefore connect intimately to my work. Their physical beauty symbolises the beauty and depth of emotions the human soul is capable of." (Winnel) 

   I will challenge myself, and I will experiment with colored pencils, which are very difficult to use when drawing, especially if it's a person. I want to experiment with all media's and use different techniques in drawing. If Bec can be a self taught artist, then so can I.