Travis recently mentioned that it might be worthwhile to occasionally upload pics of artwork we've been inspired by or interested in, and I agreed.
I'm posting a couple images of digital collages, created by MSU BFA student Erica Birkhold, that are currently showing at scene. These are large prints, roughly 36x52, displayed like unframed posters. I first saw Erica's work in the fall. I was attracted to the color, the embracing of fashion and media culture. In short, I thought they were bright and hip. They're "me" collages in a sense that the subject matter reflects things that interest or reflect Erica: she's a young woman, she likes fashion, she likes nature, and she likes color. There are four posters in the gallery in all, and they've garnered a lot of attention. They've been featured in two different feature articles in two local publications...I've overheard one artist reflect that they'd be cooler if they were paintings, that they lack surface quality, but I think this misses the point and is completely off the mark.
I've received permission from the artist to post these, and I've supplied her with the link and explained our format. Thus, comments are welcomed.
4 comments:
cooool new stuff!
yeah tim i agree that it is good these are not paintings. as large prints that is something unique but as paintings...they would just be a more pink version of jeff koons collage paintings or something...the one on the top i like the imagery a lot more...it has more mystery to it...the one on the bottom i like...especially the bees but that face is a little distracting...it's hard to look at anything else...i do love the color and think that's the strongest aspect...i like the imagery but i think it could be a little more....unique maybe.
the web is a nearly endless hole of imagery. if you look at blogs like nothing-is-new.com...that is a page dedicated to finding strange imagery online and collecting and displaying images is very interesting so i'll be excited to see what else she comes up with. just looking around for fashion/nature images i'm sure there are literally millions of images to sift through and put together...awesome stuff thanks for sharing it!
While I don't respond to these images as "wholes" (probably because my basic interests lie in other areas) I do respond to some of the more textural parts of the second collage. I think of British collage artist/graphic designer Russell Mills as an artist with some harmonious/complementary ideas.
I also like "nature" and "color," but I think my internalization of these concepts must be fundamentally different than the artist's. I'm not sure what it is MORE that I want from these, but I do know I feel a certain conventionality: attractive faces, recognizable flower and nature images, chromatically "easy" color schemes... These pregnant elements are doing a lot of the "work" for the artist. I am really trying not to be the wet blanket here, considering deleting this comment before I publish it. The reason I'm not going to is, 9 years after art school I remember the comments of the fellow students who pushed me. I remember very few of the comments of the classmates who said they liked my work or thought it was interesting.
and by "easy" I mean "easy on the eyes."
I should mention that when I refer to the collages as "Me" collages, I'm not presenting my own interpretation. Basically, I'm paraphrasing the artist's words from an interview that appeared in City Pulse, I think. Just wanted to clarify.
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