Play History

Thinking back on my childhood, I fondly remember the days where my activities were often dictated by my imagination. I was in love with playing, and doing so made the day for me. Though much of my play time was by myself, it never really made a difference in the amount of fun I would have. As I stated earlier, my imagination would often lead on adventures. In this stage of innocence, I would try to replicate what I see my favorite heroes do on television or become curious as to where and how they do the things they do. So needless to say, I would don a cape and try to fly or create swords out of legos to battle monsters. Often times my curiosity would end in a messy or potentially unpleasant outcome, such as putting an egg or a bag of chips in the microwave. Looking back on the things I did as a child, it was all pretty silly. I would not dare do half the things I did when I was younger. But I see this as mirroring my art in a sense that the best of times came from when I had no obligations or standards to guide me, only the love of what I am doing.

Going to art school I completely respect and cherish all that I learned. On the other hand, I felt a loss of passion and creativity simply because none of my creation was born out of personal interest but out of the need to get a grade. Art is indeed subjective. But instead of viewing the artwork on the technical aspect of it, the work has to conform to the tastes and sensibilities of the teacher. As an artist, one's work should not be stifled by anyone else's approval or lack thereof. The lot of artists, including myself, have fallen victim to this. I think that is why I am so passionate about my BFA show this year. I am doing a project because I think it is fun. I am not creating an artwork to touch a person's soul or to provide commentary on our crumbling society, but because I just find the subject matter very interesting.