In art class, we’ve been talking about how much plastic we use that isn’t recycled and how much plastic animals and humans eat. This made me think about how much paper fish must eat, seeing as paper is used more if not equally as much as plastic. Just simply walking on the street, I have seen newspapers, candy wrappers and other things on the ground and near the sewers.

            I decided to do a seascape. I decided to use a seascape because our oceans are affected severely.  I cut patterns from magazines into fish shapes, all different shapes and sizes. I decided to use magazine cut-outs to symbolize the paper that makes its way to the ocean, I cut the cut-outs into fish shapes to show that the fish consume what makes its way into the ocean. I cut them into all shapes and sizes to show that just as we are different so are fish; they have an identity just as we do.

            I usually don’t paint because I do not believe I am very good at it, but in this particular project I decided to paint to add a texture and opaque color to the newspaper. In health class, we were cutting images out of magazines to make a collage about ourselves. I decided to use an old Vogue magazine for my fish seeing as there is a lot of unique and creative patterns designers use in their clothing lines. I figured this could show so individuality in the fish I cut out. I also used newspaper print in a few of the fish to show that paper makes its way into the ocean.

            Crocheting has been a hobby of mine since I was six years old. My great-great aunt Stella taught me how to do simple stitches. After I mastered the basics, I moved on to patterns and she showed me how to follow them and how to make my stitches tighter. After I got more and more practice, I became better at making my rows even and my stitches neat and tight. My goal was to make beautiful doilies and table clothes like my great-great aunt Stella made using thin, fine thread.  I’m not quit there yet but I will someday learn.

            I am in the middle of constructing a patch quilt afghan. I had to decide if I wanted to make this afghan a solid color or multicolored. I chose multicolored because I saw that I could make different patterns throughout the afghan by using different stitches that could only be noticed if I used different colored yarn. I am switching up the pattern every time I switch a color. I am either crocheting stitches that go, single, treble, single, or single, double, single. Both patterns I am using follow a A B A B pattern which means after making a row that consists of treble, single, treble or double, single, double, the next row I crochet will only consist of the single crochet stitch. I chose to make these patterns because when I am done the afghan, these different stitches are going to be very noticeable and it will look very neat. Using these stitches will also make the afghan thicker, therefore warmer.

            When I crochet, I feel like I am spending my time wisely because I am getting a task accomplished, even if I am sitting on the bus going to school. It is achieving a goal and keeping me occupied anytime I just have time to sit down and relax.

            Crocheting has been a hobby of mine since I was six years old. My great-great aunt Stella taught me how to do simple stitches. After I mastered the basics, I moved on to patterns and she showed me how to follow them and how to make my stitches tighter. After I got more and more practice, I became better at making my rows even and my stitches neat and tight. My goal was to make beautiful doilies and table clothes like my great-great aunt Stella made using thin, fine thread.  I’m not quit there yet but I will someday learn.

            I am in the middle of constructing a patch quilt afghan. I had to decide if I wanted to make this afghan a solid color or multicolored. I chose multicolored because I saw that I could make different patterns throughout the afghan by using different stitches that could only be noticed if I used different colored yarn. I am switching up the pattern every time I switch a color. I am either crocheting stitches that go, single, treble, single, or single, double, single. Both patterns I am using follow a A B A B pattern which means after making a row that consists of treble, single, treble or double, single, double, the next row I crochet will only consist of the single crochet stitch. I chose to make these patterns because when I am done the afghan, these different stitches are going to be very noticeable and it will look very neat. Using these stitches will also make the afghan thicker, therefore warmer.

            When I crochet, I feel like I am spending my time wisely because I am getting a task accomplished, even if I am sitting on the bus going to school. It is achieving a goal and keeping me occupied anytime I just have time to sit down and relax.

For my art project I decided to create two separate pieces. The first piece I created was a cell phone holder. I did this so that I could have a designated place to put my cellphone. The second piece I am still working on is a 3 dimensional cardboard replica of the supergirl icon using recycled candy wrappers. I decided to create such a piece so that I could add something special to my room.

For this specific project I had to make a few decisions. One major decision was what type of recycled material I was going to use and how I was going to use it. I eventually decided that I was going to use candy wrappers to create something that I could keep for a long time. I decided to make something that I like into a decoration for my room. I choose to recreate the supergirl icon because she is one of my favorite superheros. She is strong physically and I strive to be strong mentally and emotionally. For me cellphone holder I had to choose a paint color and I chose green because that is my favorite color.

This was pretty much the first type of art project that I came up with on my own. I realized while working on this project that i can be creative and that i actually enjoy being able to do that. I also enjoy challenging myself and taking on new things.


Sketch of Supergirl Sign On Cardboard



Candy Wrappers Weaved Together

Candy Wrappers Collected So Far


CellPhone Holder Process





Finished Product


Bottle Cap Poster

During the first marking period, the main idea is all about recycling. During quarter 1, we made posters to hang around the school, asking the students to save their bottle caps, and bring them to the art room so that we could use them in our art. Those bottle caps collected also went to Aurora Robinson, and she used them to create her art that is being displayed at an art gallery here in Philadelphia. 




Artist Statement:

For quarter 2, the assignment was to create any piece of art, using recycled materials. My decision was to make art using something that I could use and help eliminate from landfills, and make something that people would be able to relate to. 

The decisions I make about my work, are usually made by examining how I feel about what I am doing. If I feel good about a sketch, then I feel that I am making progress. I decided that using bottles would be a good material to use, because it's another way for recycling plastic. That was the only recycled material I used. I felt that because that was a pretty large bottle, that it would go and sit in a landfill somewhere just like the other plastics. 

After making a list about things that I could do, I decided to go with making butterflies using 2 liter bottles. I felt that butterflies are animals that people like to see when the spring comes around, and something that you might not wonder about how they're affected by pollution. You get to see butterflies of all different shapes, sizes and colors. I think by doing this project, I've realized how so many things can be affected by pollution, and how those things may be some things that you just won't realize how much it meant until it's gone. 

Sketches




Cut Out of Sketches




Plastic Cut Outs

Artist Statement

This art project was part of the course I am taking in art. Me and my classmates each had to create something out of recycled material, material that could be recycled, or trash. My goal in this project was to create something beautiful out of things that are usually regarded as ugly. 

I decided to make jewelry because I am very interested in fashion and design. I think that much of what you wear resembles your personality and/or the mood that you are feeling that day. In my personal style I like to fuse girly and preppy with things that are more edgier and hard. This jewelry represents both aspects of my style. My grandfather was an engineer and still likes to build things around the house. He has a garage full of old bolts and other odds and ends. I aimed to use his old building materials to create something creative and wearable. The only item that I bought was gorilla glue. 

The first piece I created used nails and metal circles. I used the glue to connect the nails to the metal part, and used old fishing wire as a chain. The second piece I created used an old fish hook that I connected to my dogs old vaccination tag. 

Poster
I created a bottle cap poster in order to get peoples attention so that they would bring in bottle caps for my classes project. Each student had to do a poster, and they were hung up around the school. 

 

I do this work because I feel like the world is becoming more and more trashy.  I believe we can work together to make the world a clearer place for the animals and ourselves. Every day I see people Littering and not knowing they are killing the animals and affecting the air we are breathing.  There are trash in the north pacific gyre that about the size of the state Texas. my question is why  so many trash  in the middle of the ocean? that show how we as a whole are not civilize. My goals are to get this message through everyone and make sure they understand that they are affecting the world and all living things in it including us. It wouldn’t hurt to put trashes in the trashcan.

 

My project is on a green bored because I want people to be greener to the world and shows how greener our world can get by not littering. I draw my world map instead of buying the map because I feel like is better to draw it because I’m showing that i cared about the world and to also show how art have a part in this project. I draw the map with a black crayons because I want people to see the outline of all seven continents.

 

  

My current work I do them because I had to do them and I do them with out trying to send a message through it but this one I’m trying to get people attention and understand the message behind my art. Art wasn’t always my thing because I thought art had no purpose and you can’t express yourself with art like how you can with words. I was wrong because I’m expressing how I feel about the world and how seeing the world like this affects me.

 

This is my bottle cap poster that I took a picture of today. It has been hanging up in the halls of SLA for a few weeks now. Someone decided to add $5,000 at the left hand corner, I did not put that there. I hope that the students of SLA saw my poster and then remembered to bring in bottle caps to school because that is the purpose of this poster. Bottle caps were being collected from everyone in school so we could recycle them. I wanted my poster to be unique and clever so I figured that the plastic bottle caps were really wanted in the art room that I would make sort of like a warrent for Mr. Bottle Cap. I knew people would understand why we needed the bottle caps if wrote that the bottle caps were needed for art use.