Visual Art therapy is the therapeutic use of art making while establishing a relationship between a professional and a person who faces certain challenges in carrying out daily tasks. Art therapy focuses on increasing awareness of self and others, coping with symptoms, stress, and traumatic experiences. This type of therapy has been shown to enhance cognitive abilities and increase enjoyment of life in such individuals.

Art therapists are trained in human development, psychology, clinical practice, spiritual, multicultural traditions, and visual arts. They use the creation and or criticism of art as a means for healing. Art therapists work with people of all ages: individuals, couples, families, groups and communities. They are a part of mental health clinics, rehabilitation centers, medical or forensic institutions, community outreach programs, wellness centers, schools, nursing homes, corporate structures, open studios and independent practices. Their reach is widespread and their work makes a difference in battling many medical conditions.
The American Art Therapy Association, Inc. (AATA) sets educational, professional, and ethical standards for its members. Some states regulate the practice of art therapy and in many states art therapists can become licensed as counselors or mental health therapists.

Comparative Neglect in Art Today

Lost Novel II: After Long Silence, 2005


In the reading, Absolute Truth by Peter Plagen, he introduces the idea of comparative neglect in art today. He affirms that contemporary art is not meant for the masses and nor does it appeal to the masses. He suggests that contemporary artists do not want mass appeal but rather a single person to purchase their art for a huge remuneration. Buyers of these pieces also want a slightly weird and indecipherable piece so that they feel “ahead of the times” and intelligent. I feel that artists working to create art that will sell for a huge sum are not being true to their work. To me, art is reflection of the artist’s thoughts and a means to reach society. An artist who does not aim to touch the hearts of the masses or appeal to mainstream public is merely a technician who makes millions but not truly an artist.

The ideas presented by Plagen are supported by his work. I found that he not only explore with shape, range, dimensions and colors, his works also offers objects that are from the verifiable world. However, I was a bit disappointed by his work. For a man that harshly criticizes contemporary art, his works are not in par with his words.

Beauty of Art & Impact

In the chapter entitled, Enter the Dragon: On the Vernacular of Beauty, Dave Hickey focuses on the idea that in contemporary art, Beauty is a means and not an end. What he means by this is that beauty sells and makes the content of art powerful to the beholder. I would definitely agree with this as for me, I tend to pay more attention to a piece that strikes me as beautiful than one I do not find aesthetically pleasing. Works that are not “pretty”, do not strike me as appealing and I thus do not search for meaning in such works. While every viewer may not have this perspective, I do feel this way and thus agree with Hickey’s claims.

For example, the works I posted are both about domestic abuse. The photo art, ‘Domestic Abuse Awareness’ by Juan Carlos Silva (below) is definitely more impactful for me than the less “beautiful” computer art, ‘Abuse’ depicting the same subject matter by Sunil India (above).

20x200

If I could choose one piece of artwork to purchase off of the website 20x200 I would buy Piglet No. 2. by Sharon Montrose. This piece of artwork is inspired by the charm that animals have. I love animals, and I especially love pigs, and I find this artwork to be awesome. This photo would bring a lot of joy to most people who look at it and that is why I think it is a great piece of artwork.

Contemporary Art at Tang Museum

When I visited the Tang Museum in Saratoga I was amazed by the art there. The exhibits were not only interesting, but they were fun as well. I was shocked by how creative the artists were. My favorite exhibit was Los Carpinteros' La Mantana Rusa. This piece of artwork was a bed in the shape of a roller coaster. It combined architecture and furniture in a very interesting way. When I first saw this exhibit I was shocked that someone came up with such a creative idea. I think this appeals to many people around my age because of how humorous and exciting it is. The artists work has evolved since the 1990's, when he originally focused on
Cuban history. Now most of his work is globally and peripatetic-influenced.

The next exhibit we looked at was called Amazement Park, by Stan, Sara, and Johannes Vanderbeek. This exhibit used projection screens and other mediums. I did not like this exhibit nearly as much as the others. It was not visually appealing at all and was actually very irritating. I cannot describe what exactly made me feel uncomfortable about this exhibit but I did not look at it for very long.

The last exhibit at the Tang was by Fred Tomaselli. His exhibit was based on a series of pieces comprised of mostly pills and leaves that were covered in different layers of resign. He made all sorts of different shapes including birds and people and it was very interesting how the images looked very different close up than far away. From a distance you were not able to tell what the images were made of, but once you came closer and saw all of the details made out of mostly pills and plants, the art pieces were even more interesting. I thought the artists motivation for the artwork was especially cool. Fred Tomaselli grew up in California and was very involved in drugs. He also made surf-boards for a living. These aspects of his life greatly affected his artwork. The pieces that he makes are all made from layers of resign, which is also how surfboards are made. Overall I really liked this exhibit and thought the pieces at the Tang museum were very interesting. I would definitely recommend going to this museum to any of my friends.

Fred Tomaselli: The Pill Guy

Fred Tomaselli uses a variety of different things to create his art. He uses real pills, plants, paint, and even illustrations cut from books or magazines. What makes his art so interesting is that it is all layered with clear epoxy resin, meaning that there may be a layer of pills covered in epoxy, and then that layer of epoxy is painted and then covered with more epoxy so eventually layers of epoxy build up creating this art work. I think what was most appealing about Tomasell's work was how involved his work was with all of the layers and planning, it was incredible. In addition, I really enjoyed the focus of his compositions. He had birds, people, plants and crazy patterns and designs and it was really cool to see. All in all I thought this was definitely creative and almost entrancing.

ROLLER COASTER BED!!!!!!!!!!

Cuban based collective artists (Los Carpinteros) make sculptures, drawing and large-scale installations dealing a lot with furniture. The way that they perceive furniture is different than anyone may have in the past. When I first walked into the Tang at Skidmore and saw this exhibit I was completely at a loss for words. I had seen some interesting beds before as different shapes, which also ranged in size, being huge or absolutely tiny, but regardless in the end they were all just beds. I think this piece of work is so appealing to me because it combines basically my two favorite things in the world ... bed and roller coasters. I honestly think that if I had that this piece of art as an actual bed, I would never be bored in life, or quite possibly never leave the bedroom (because of the awesomeness of the bed). When looking at this piece of art, I actually took it a step further and said what if there were two different bed tracks intertwined with one another? That would be even better, and entertain even more friends. On a more serious note, I really enjoyed this piece of art because I had never thought of beds or furniture in any other light, but after seeing this artwork, it has me thinking about couches or any other furniture for that matter and how these could be altered and perceived differently in a create manner.

Custodians of Culture- Schoolyard Art: Playing Fair Without the Referee

Dave Hickey made several important points in his speech on Friday October 12, 2007. Unfortunately, for most people art has become all about making a profit. It is sad that art, which used to be all about creativity and beauty, and buying pieces that you really loved, has become more about making money. Now you can but art for millions and millions of dollars, and people are simply buying the items so that some day you can turn around and sell the art for more money. Dave Hickey has called artists greedy and collectors stupid for their acts, and it is hard to disagree with this. People who are interested in art simply for making money have turned the art world into something that it should not be, and some day when "art bubbles" have collapsed, these people are the ones who are going to be hurt. The whole format of the art world has changed. Before, when artist sold enough of their work through brokers to the community it was assumed that their work would make it into museums and the artists would be recognized for their work and become public figures. This depended on the likes and dislikes of the community and it depended upon honest work. This is no longer true. There are now art dealers whose job it is to be right and make a profession out of it. They give price points and this is how artwork now becomes popular. This is sadly creating dishonesty in the art world. Hopefully sometime in the future this system will change and people will buy art because they love it and artists will receive credit because they deserve it.