MKE: MIAD & MORE

Last Tursday, my AP art class and I went to Milwaukee to spend time in the Third Ward and at the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design. For the first half of the day, we toured MIAD and went to a few galleries. Many of the pieces I saw at MIAD were very inspiring and interesting to look at. I was actually amazed at all the work people had done. I apologize for the quality of my pictures. My camera is getting old. 

This piece is by a Student Artist at MIAD. It is a mixed media piece that was the subject of their photographs. It is a piece that was photographed at multiple angles, as you can see in the photo. I really loved the colors that they used and how the colors interact with each other. So quite evidently, color is a major element within the piece. But the pot and leaves create a lot of movement. Your eyes are able to move around. I think the woman that peeks out of the plant is also prominent since it is in white. Since these are photographs, I think the way the light hits the piece makes the photos very strong. The piece is strong since the lighting is so amazing. Both of the pictures that are presented, however are very similar. They aren't very different in their angles or lighting. 

The second piece I found interesting was a Graphic Design poster. This student at MIAD had them hung up in their work space; it is most likely a digital piece that was printed. What caught my attention was the style and font of the words. They phrases were strong in their meaning and in how they were laid out on the poster. One of my favorite posters was the one that said "I am not throwing away my shot". I thought the way the words surrounded the fist made for it to be a call to action or political poster. The color scheme makes for the poster to have unity. The shapes that are used, not only in the topography, but the images makes it strong. However, the composition is quite basic since it is all the middle and together. However, it works even if it is simple. 

The final piece I really liked was by another MIAD student. I loved many of the works at the galleries, but my pictures didn't turn out so well. Anyways, this piece is a sketch using pen. It's a figure study, focused in on the mouth and bottom of the face. What I found unique about this piece is that the artist used scribbles instead of regular shading or flat lines. The boldly colored in hair contrasts the scribbled face. This allows for the piece to have movement and use of line and shape. The composition is quite cool since the face is zoomed in so far. Since it is a simple figure study, the lack of color is okay, but I think it could have been super cool if the hair was one color, the lips were another, and the skin was contrast to them both. 

The second half of the day we got to roam around the Third Ward. Allison, Macy, and I decided to go to West Elm which is an amazing home store full of furniture and decor. One of the many things I loved was the marble, wood, and copper aesthetic they had going on. A lot of the items they sold fell into these categories, which made for a very modern look. The lights they sold were one of my favorite part. I love everything that is marble, or copper, or wood. And since this store was full of things like that I couldn't leave. West Elm is honestly so cool. The set up of the items or the color schemes were very interesting. It reminded me a lot of my aunt's home. Her family just bought this giant house in Las Vegas and her decor is so amazing. I could see her buying everything in that store. It also reminded me of the Zoella's home goods line. She just released a bunch of new products with the same marble and peach theme. 

Along with this we spent our day at Colectivo Coffee. I had a Chai Latte which was amazing. Although I didn't capture the inside of the coffee shop, it was very rustic. A lot of the decor reminded me of the Farm House that was used in Glee for Kurt and Blain's & Santana and Brittany's weddings. The rustic theme made it feel very homely, casual, and chill. The outside of the coffee shop had this amazing mural as well. The style was very cool and futuristic (as you can see to the left, Macy and I stand in front it). I really hope to make something in a large scale, but not as large as a building though. 

Speaking of murals, the art gallery owner told us about this one on the side of the building. I thought that it was just a nice positive thing to look at as you are walking down the street. Many people who live in the city always have places to be and things to do, and to just take a second and look at this makes you feel a little less heavy. It was just very calming and nice to look at it. It just made me feel very warm inside.

Overall, this day was very relaxing and needed in the midst of all that has been happening in my life. I really needed a day off, and this day was perfect.Especially since we had Chinese food for lunch. This may or may not have been the highlight of my day. :)


<<< Also, I documented a few of these things in my sketchbook.