Matthew TeBos-Museum Visit

 Today I visited Fredrick Meijer Gardens. I saw all the world's Christmas trees. But one

 to me stuck out in particular. It was our tree. Well, the USA tree to be exact. And it wasn't like the

ones that we have in today's society. It was actually a post-WWII tree. This is what it looked like.

So this is is what your tree would've looked like if you lived back in the time of the second world

war. The sign near the Christmas tree explains what the tree is and what country that particular tree is 

from and explains the story of how the tree came into existence in today's world. They have trees 

from all over the world. I highly recommend if you are bored and have nothing else to do, head 

on over there for an amazing experience, especially if you aren't from this area of Grand Rapids or 

even if you aren't from Michigan at all. You need to go it will be amazing and you will love 

it i guarantee you. Ok, now onto the related picture and everything with that. So, for my related 

picture, I decided to take a picture of our own family Christmas tree and just say a few words about 

that. So, here is our tree. 

Yeah, this is our tree. It is quite short. But as you can probably see, there are a few differences. Like 

all the different ornaments on the tree and the story of the tree is different also. So that is my visit 

and my comparison. thank you.  

                                                  

Rachel Skinner - Museum Visit

             

I visited Calvin College’s Art Gallery and was very impressed with the art that was displayed. My favorite piece was the “Season” exhibit, in which artist, Mathias Alten, created. Mathias Alten spent most of his life in Grand Rapids and often painted outside gathering his inspiration from his surroundings. ­Mathias enjoyed painting rural scenes using a variety of light and settings of different seasons. He painted 36 landscapes all describing the different seasons.

            The specific piece that I enjoyed the most was titled, “Autumn Pond”.  This consisted of a sky that was painted as if the sun was about to be setting; large, thick trees that were just turning red and orange but mostly remand green. A pond that was filled with reflections of the surrounding trees. The pong seemed clear and was placed that the bottom of the pictures. The trees are mainly to the left of the photo but are also scattered throughout, around the pond.  The colors are both warm and cold. The sky is fairly warm but there is cold colors mixed in. We are able to see a few clouds, light blue with a tint of orange and pink. The composition of this photo was simple and the lighting in this photo contained contrast. We see the shadows under the trees and the sun shining in on the trees both giving it a light and dark look. There were leading lines that lead your eye into the pond and up in the sky. The sky creates negative space, without that the photo would have been too busy.

            I think this photo shows an accurate description of what fall looks liked. I appreciate the colors that were used; red, green, orange, all colors that are associated with Fall. I appreciate the simplicity of this photo as well. He didn’t try and skew the photo to be something other than what it actually is. I received a sense of peace and comfort from looking at this photo. My grandparents live on a lake and in the fall the scene looks a lot like this photo. I felt calm and pleasant feeling walking through the exhibit looking at all of the seasons that he painted.

The photo that I took was of fall trees. I appreciate the creation of different seasons and love the season of fall and all the colors that come with it. I took a picture during the fall time. I wanted to keep the depth of the trees similar to the painting. You see a reflection of the clock tower and trees, just like the reflection of the trees in the painting. I was inspired to capture the simplicity of fall. I did that by capturing the colors of the trees. The colors of the trees, the blue sky, simplicity of the tree line all describe a Michigan fall, just as Mathias did. Although my photo contains more light, I hope people feel a sense of peace and calmness when they look at my photo.

McKenna Walter - Art Inspired Picture

Whenever I visit Frederik Meijer Gardens, I am inspired by the atmosphere. The whole place showcases the beauty of God’s creation, and what his creation (people) creates! I feel like I’m in a different world when I walk around Frederik Meijer. As Melody says, it’s magical. I love seeing the unique sculptures, the lush gardens, and this time of year, all the Christmas trees!

But for years, my favorite things to see at Frederik Meijer gardens have been Dale Chihuly’s blown glass sculptures. I remember how excited my grandma was to show me the sculptures when they were first installed in the gardens. I have always been fascinated by the process of making blown glass sculptures. Chihuly uses cold air, torches, and other tools to bend, pull, twist, and shape his glass exactly how he wants. His pieces are so bright, colorful, whimsical, and appealing to the eye. Some of them almost look like they’re alive and flowing.

Chihuly once said, “Glass itself is so much like water. If you let it go on its own, it almost ends up looking like something that came from the sea” (http://www.chihuly.com/learn).  The particular Chihuly piece I took a picture of for this project is some gorgeous flowers. What Chihuly said was true, the flowers shown here look like they came from the ocean. I don’t know if sea flowers exist, but if they did, they would look exactly the way Chihuly’s flowers do. These flowers are actually a small portion of a much larger, rainbow-colored piece. I took a picture of the green, blue, and purple area because it especially reminded me of water. I really liked how vibrant and playful the piece is. It makes me think that Chihuly lets his imagination go when he creates his art.

Being inspired by the water-ish look of Chihuly’s glass, I thought, what better to take a picture of than actual water? I tried to capture the same playfulness of the flowers in my water picture. I think that the lively waterfall in the picture I took actually resembles glass, just as Chihuly’s glass sometimes looks like water. It also made me happy that I managed to get some green in the background of my picture, like the green of the glass flowers.

Dale Chihuly’s sculptures inspire me every time I see them. They definitely contribute to the “magical” atmosphere of Frederik Meijer gardens. I really enjoyed taking pictures inspired by them. 

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Melody Jacobs - Art Inspired Photo

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Melody Jacobs

PHO 236

Art Inspired Photography

The Fredrick Meijer Arch

            I took a trip to Fredrick Meijer Gardens, and was inspired by the red-stone arch that sits outside.  I think it’s a really impressive work of art, and shows amazing ability in architecture.  I have always found it extremely impressive. 

            When Fredrick Meijer first put in the arch, I was a little kid, and my mom thought it would be fun to take me and my sisters to go see it.  We wandered around the gardens for a bit, then checked out the arch on the way back towards the main welcome center.  We thought it was absolutely fantastic.  It didn’t look like it should hold itself up, so we were all fascinated trying to figure out how it didn’t topple in on itself. 

            After being inspired by the arch, I took the picture above of the roots of a tree.  The dirt eroded away from the base of the tree, leaving an arch in the roots that looks very similar to the arch in the gardens.  Again, it’s really cool how it looks like it shouldn’t be able to stand, but it holds itself up with firm integrity.  

            I really like the earthy tones that were captured in each picture, and that was also inspiring to me.  I love earthy tones like that because they are very calming to me.  There's a nice simplicity that comes from colors like that.  

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Hannah VanKampen- Studio Lighting

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Elizabeth Okma - Gallery Visit

Elizabeth Okma
PHO 236
Museum Visit
Dec. 7, 2016

             About a week or so ago, I ventured to the Frederick Mejier Garden with plans on shooting pictures for me final project. As I was about to leave, I noticed an art gallery off to the side and thought I'd take a look. As I neared the door, I noticed a group of photos off to the side. The artist name was Darlene Kaczmarczyk, and the pictures showed images of faces missing and objects with age. The set of pictures were used to convey a visual represtation of Alzheimer's and how the disease slowly takes away the memories and faces of those with it. The one that mainly caught my eyes was a picture of a man standing staring at what I believed to be his home. A circle of a black and white, and upside down image of the same picture surrounded him. Above were what looked like diary entries written in an ink pen. The picture used color and texture, such as the man's hair. It also had what could be said to be leading lines through the black and white roof, drawing our eyes to the man. While the images themselves looked as if they were taken with a simple camera, the way they were edited and their message captured my attention. The thought of losing your memories and what makes you you is terrifying to me. I am my memories and my stories. To me, every face and every moment I've experience is special, and without, I'd be a shell.
             This idea was what held me attention, as I looked at each picture. Yes, the pictures were simple and edited to give them a different look that you would normally get from simply taking a picture, but I think it worked for the series. This one personally I wish had a little more depth of field to it, but I love how it didn't try to go bright with its colors. The message would have been a little diffcult to understand if one hadn't read the sign next to it, but that's the way art is suppose to be. It's suppose to make us think and solve like a puzzle with a thousand different answers. 
             Once I realized what I looking at, it was my turn to do my own. The original plan was to do similar editing as the picture, but honestly, that way of doing art is more hers than mine. So, I tried something else. I choose to focus more on the message and the colors. I stayed with the simple green and browns from the original picture, as well as the natural feel. Most importantly, I tried to keep the message the same but in my terms. The picture below was taken from the top of the hill on which my home sits on. This is where I grew up, the place where I'd watch the sun rise and fall. I'd stand at the top and wait for friends to walk up the drive or run into the woods to enter into a world all my own. This place is more important to me than another place in the world. To forget it would be to forget a place of myself. The sun is also a symbol of how memories themselves fade. One day, they are bright and beautiful, but over time, they fade away and blur before dying all together. The only difference is that the sun will always rise in the morning; memories don't. 

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Lexi Bates

PHO 236

Museum Visit

Dec. 6. 2016

            Last week I had the opportunity to go to Calvin College to their art gallery. There were any amazing pictures display that were very unique. There were painting, picture, and even some sculptures. All the pieces were very different giving them there own unique personality. One piece that I was particularly drawn to was a painting called, “Autumn Pond” by Mathias Alten. What drew me to it at first was that it featured my favorite season autumn.

            Autumn is full of warm colors and this sense of peacefulness. The painting did a great job of capturing both of those aspects. When I first looked at the painting my eyes went directly to the sky then led me all around the painting. The sky is a nice white with hints of pastel blue that gives the picture a warm kind of a warm feeling to the rest of the picture. Then my eyes went to the beautiful green trees with hints of orange from the dim sunlight hitting them. The pond in the middle of the painting was a leading line to the eye. The pond is what made painting come to life.  The trees being in the third of the picture allowed my eyes to travel around the picture instead of directly at the trees. The reflection of the trees in the pond made it feel like I was actually there.

            The way that I interpreted this painting was being in a nice autumn afternoon. I imagine myself sitting at the edge of the pond enjoying the scenery thinking about the future. I got this interpretation from the way the artist painted the pond. The pond reminds of endless possibilities. The future is full of different possibilities. Overall I really like this painting because there is so much to pull from it. The artist did a great job of making the painting feel warm and inviting. It makes me wish that autumn could happen all the time.

            For my photo I decided to take a picture of trees and a river. The river in my photograph acts as leading lines. The river is almost taking you on journey, but you don’t know where it’s taking you because it’s life and we don’t know where life is always going to take us. The trees are in the third of the picture, which gives it a cool feel and accents the river in the middle. The sunshine beaming down on the river and trees gives it a warmer feeling. What makes my picture different is the fact that the trees don’t have leaves. Mine is also a picture and not a painting. Although they are different in many ways they are similar as well. They both capture the essence of fall and warmth.

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