After interviewing my partner, Francesca, and creating the bust, I wanted to transform my piece of wood into a profile-like image of a face. I accentuated the most prominent and geometric facial features, such as the chin, nose, and forehead to have the viewer instinctively know what the pedestal was modeled after. I decided to keep with the geometric theme, but chose a more abstract path when creating the “hair” of the pedestal to give the piece more interesting negative and positive shapes. I wanted the pedestal to help the viewer read the bust in greater detail, tracing it’s shapes with their eyes as they would do for the structured lines of the pedestal.

The qualities of the materials I found were the main component of the piece’s relation to my childhood. I luckily found materials that were all sensuous, with many moving parts and unique feelings, that reminded me of the toys I had as a kid. The feeling I received from the objects that reminded me of my childhood toys is what drove me to make a toy myself. The actual making of the toy also reminded me of my childhood, as the feeling of small human figures reminded me of my many Barbies, G.I. Joes, Bratz, and more, because as a child I enjoyed creating things myself. The simplicity of the materials and the lack of dedication to visual aesthetics was another connection to my childish ways. I was happy that both the final, physical piece and the process of making it reminded me of my childhood memories and also connected to my classmates and their memories.

Reflection:

At first I had trouble finding the path I wanted to take when representing this dense quote from Li Young Lee’s “One Human Hand.” I originally wanted to create a more universally applicable representation of the quote, but then I realized it would be easier to show the concept through personal experience. I interpreted the quote as a statement on how our childhood affects our present lives either consciously or unconsciously. I decided to focus on how I have consciously decided to live my childhood through my art and how I unconsciously maintain a childish mentality. I represented this through a variety of symbols. The improper spelling of the word ‘believe’ is based off of a childhood memory I have of my teacher making me stay after class in the second grade in order to make me correctly learn how to spell the tricky word. In the piece I have chosen to make myself spray painting the incorrect spelling to show how self-deprecation and self-acceptance are vital components to my art. The unconscious aspect of the quote is represented in me sketchily standing on the ladder and spray painting on a public wall to show how I still maintain a childish stupor and a sense of immaturity in some regards.