The Last Action Project of Summer

As the final Action Project in the summer courses at GCE, this assignment was simple. Think of the perfect utopia. Now really it's more of a, find something you'd create a revolution for or against, yet this utopia can still easily beb found. In the format of a poem, the assignment was to describe the utopia and also have a visual for it. I'd say the poem was probably what I feel most proud of especially considering the speed of which I completed it. Down below you can find the poem, descriptions and other details.

Your Name: Vítor Garcia
Title: Year of Peace
Medium: Linoleum and plaster, w/ carving tools
Size: 6x6
Date: 7/23

Revolution Poem:

This is the year when war is abolished,
for war itself, is an act of slavery.

Slaves to violence and meaningless struggles,
merciless killings, millions of deaths, all for just a few people, supposed “leaders”.

As a wise man once said, war never changes
It is just an instance of when the old and bitter trick the young and brave to do their dirty work
The poor, the innocent, the gullible, all are suffering
when land is more than life
resources greater than respect
animals never made a war, so who’s the real animal?
If only those so called leaders could see what they are truly doing;
The bystanders, the citizens… the real victims

Just as the citizens of Chicago were oppressed,
The Black Panthers, the Chicago 8,
all were denied their rights and oppressed.
The year was 1968,
The court was filled,
The judge was biased and fixed the trial,
The people were infuriated.
But that’s not the year I speak of.

The dogs of war do their job in fear of losing their country
Yet they cause someone else to lose their country
If only there was a way to limit the damage
But no,
All wars are held in a land of which many others will die,
It’s not just a fight of x and y, because we’re in the third dimension,
there’s always a z,

Oppressed in their land, their homes, their lives,
but there is still a chance.

This is the year when grenades are filled with love,
Bullets of companionship,
Missiles of understanding.

This is the year when no one is going to die
from someone wearing a uniform.
This is the year when global peace is found, discovered,
discovered by the snakes who have tasted their venom,
found by the hidden citizens who don’t fear anymore.
Most people convert to a different religion,
this is a conversion to a different government.

But this is the year,
when elephants and donkeys, red and blue
“Free” and “Protected”
will unite together,
Stand as one and fight the fighting.

This is the year,
When war is abolished.


As you may already know, this project required a visual to go with, a sort of protest poster, or even propaganda. Well the propaganda/protest poster I’ve made includes a missile on the left and text that reads “Why Destroy the Land You Are Fighting FOR?" I’m going to illustrate the piece and transfer it to a carving linoleum cut slab. Once I carve the piece it’s going to then go in a plaster to be pasted. I hope you've enjoyed reading this and have a great rest of summer.

Fight for Land, VG

Second Summer Project

Vítor Garcia

True Chicago

Medium: Soft Linoleum cuts, Carving tools, Concrete, Non-stick oil

Size: 6x6 inches

“How may a city demonstrate resilience?” That is the main question, and using the olympics to answer this is because many people see this “loss” as a true defeat for Chicago. Chicago didn’t win the chance to host the olympics for 2016. This is because of the media influence and emphases on crime. Global diversity is another cause considering how 3 out of the 8 last olympic events were held in North America and 2/6 of the last olympic events in the U.S. We can also consider the lack of funding that the country did which had an influence on the choice, Brazil was willing to fund Rio, but the U.S not directly funding Chicago, for such a large event for only one city to attempt to suffice is a challenge on it’s own. Yet even with that point considered, Chicago still was able to create this 2016 olympic project, but Rio was chosen. As stated earlier, media revolving around Chicago only seems to state the crime, unless it is a local news station which will tell a bit more about the city itself. I believe that if national news stations had given out information regarding the other events rather than simply broadcasting the homicides (and theft), the chance of host the 2016 olympics would have been much greater (instead of being the first declined bid). But no matter the media coverage, many people still visit or stay in Chicago, knowing that’s it’s a wondrous city, and yes it may have crime, but that’s everywhere. At this point it’s impossible to say anywhere is crime free.

The Chicago fire burned down many portions of the city and went on for a couple of days, truly becoming a catastrophe. Because of this, many citizens were left homeless, the fact that there was strong wind propelled the fire, and even many houses being made of flammable objects (such as wood) only strengthened the mighty blaze. Even the river assisted this inferno because of it’s oily contents. Yet somehow, the reserved logs and timber did not get singed to a crisp, resulting in a quick recovery when comparing the damage. Chicago go straight up back on their feet after this disaster and continued to grow.

In my image/carving there’s a news reporter who is gesturing towards a crime in a narrow alley and on the complete other side of the picture is containing preferable conditions, including sunlight, architecturally unique buildings, and parks. The buildings will have repetitive patterns and the shining sun will have it’s proper sunburst effect. After sketching the piece, I shaded (several times and very darkly) the areas that I would want to stand out. Then using the linocut, the graphite rub off, creating an outline. Then I could carve the same spots I wanted to pop out which in the final product, will be lifted from the concrete canvas.

The Summer Posts

It’s summer here I hearing about the class available during the summer at GCE (Art History), I thought why not. Just like every other term this year, there are the Action Projects which overall answer the guiding question and sums up the unit we were working on. As of this unit, we were to create a poem about who claims our Chicago experience, create a visual that represents this poem, and then write an artist statement explaining about what it is. The Action Project does involve art and had me working with a new medium, carving. I do always enjoy all types of art and using something different than a pencil, pen, piece of charcoal, and other handheld basic drawing tool was also a challenge. I had never used a carving tool before but I  learned that the way the linoleum cutout was going to be flipped through a filling, that meant everything carved in was going to be popping out, so basically I just had to draw while keeping depth in mind. Below this the artist statement as well as the poem and picture, I hope you enjoy.

Beauty is Everywhere

VG

Soft cut linoleum, Carving tools

6x6 inches

7/1-2/14

I answered the guiding question for this unit, "Who claims my Chicago experience?", using a visual that relates to my poem which was also written to answer it.By referring to art and beauty using this poem I answered the guiding question (free verse poem):

Who Claims the City

Do you want to know who rules this city?

The true one who controls common life,

Is not a person

One can say that it’s the government and judicial system

I can say it’s the art

The Art Institute, Marwen, even the streets

They all have art, and are famous for it

Not only visual arts either

Nothing restricted, multiple mediums

Not always hand made, or meant for the eyes

But what it is? it is beauty,

True wonderful beauty for all to behold

This is what controls my Chicago experiences, the amazing art for all

Photography, statues, models,

Figures, tags, graffiti,

Murals, paintings, animation,

music too…

Everywhere, everything, everyone,

you can find beauty inside it.

VG, Carving of Poem (mirrored for convenience)

My poem also connects to historical events because Chicago was a vast, empty land that may not be all so nice to the natives, but the Anglo-Americans (the settlers who came in afterwards/not native to the land) saw true beauty and possibilities with it and it’s rivers for water trade. They saw beauty where no one else did. Since I spoke of street art and the beauty you can find anywhere, I made a carving of street art that contained various styles and a graffiti tag of the word beauty with a hand below it pointing at the viewer (representing how beauty can be found anywhere).

Now Neoclassical art is a simple idea/subject art piece that contains symmetry and rather emotionless features (no strong influence or any specific feeling associated with it) with clean lines, the figure depicted may be of a heroic figure as well. My art piece is pretty simple with the word beauty and a hand pointing towards the viewer, I also added symmetrical elements with two human figures on the side. After sketching the piece, I shaded (several times  and very darkly) the areas that I would want to stand out.

Then using the linocut, the graphite rub off, creating an outline. Then I could carve the same spots I wanted to pop out which in the final product, will be lifted from the concrete canvas. As of the carving alone, it will be fine adjusted with the tools and then be the base a a concrete like mold, flipping it over and receiving the final product.