Semester 3
Art can reshape our understanding of our learned history, bias, and beliefs by advocating for change. From the Black Lives Matter movements, we have learned that change can only happen from expression and activism, and in doing so many people sought to art to create the change and awareness that needed to be heard. Through art, in this case street art/murals/paintings, people have become more aware of the biases of our society and demand equality. In thinking creatively, strategies and steps that help me to create include looking for inspiration (from social media, current issues, or my interests), brainstorming, narrowing ideas, further developing these ideas, and seeking guidance and peer review. We can utilize this feedback and guidance to make our ideas the most effective and clear as possible. Receiving feedback gives a outside perspective on a person’s idea that the creator might not have thought of before. It is hard to see a project when a creator is always standing right in front of it. So, we need people who are standing far away to tell us how they see our work.
Also, during the BLM movements, no art stood out to me more than the Black Lives Matter painted as street murals. They filled the entire streets and would not allow any car in passing to not see it or not be reminded of the movement. During Arts Scholars, we have dived into the root of racism and learned how to do our part in advocating against it, which is of the same purpose of this mural; informing and educating people.
As an architecture major, I was required to take ARCH 170 my freshman first semester, which also happens to be an Arts supporting course. I will never forget this class because it introduced me into my field and changed my way in creatively thinking. Primarily the class is grooming students to begin to think creatively so we completed out of the box assignments such as taking 100 photos of architecture, learning to diagram buildings, and creating 10 random, artistic variations of a miniscule section of a painting. In this class, we had to think against the grain of what our mind might normally do and allowed me to think without confines which Arts Scholars makes me do. In Arts Scholars, we are taught to freely express ourselves and are not given specifics to projects to allow us to think creatively on our own, which I greatly did in ARCH 171 as well.
My learning has improved by interacting with fellow Arts Scholars through this program. From living with my fellow scholars in Bel Air, to seeing the same people every week for three semesters, to completing Pentathlon events with these peers I have made some of my closest friends. Being around like minding people in such a large school is hard to come by, but with this program I found them very easily. In seeing my fellow scholars so often, I have been able to connect with them in other classes, primarily in my major. Due to Covid-19, it was hard for the program to give me the same energy and environment as it did my freshman year.
This semester was not an easy one in trying to participate in activities outside of class due to Covid-19 for me. It was hard this semester to bring myself to be active in the community when being stuck inside. I have been active in participating in colloquium discussions and activities as well as my TA time. I use my camera to be as present as I can possibly be in the Scholars community. I wish that I could have participated in Arts Scholars events more that were planned over zoom to feel that sense of community I have been missing at home.
As mentioned earlier I believe that Art Scholars brought me to people of similar beliefs that I would not compromise over. However, I do think that the people I have met through Arts Scholars all look at life differently. I think that everyone in this program whether it be professors, TAs, or students think so creatively that they all have a different perspective on everything. For example, when interpreting art in the class no two people interpret it the exact same way. I appreciate being surrounded by peers who hold the same beliefs as me, but think different then me because it introduces me to perspectives that I may have otherwise not seen.
Semester 4
May 17, 2021
I have noticed over the course of the Arts Scholars program how much I have grown as a person as well as through my academic work. Upon entering college, I have realized how much Pentathlon events have grounded me in allotting time for the arts and giving me a time to decompress and enjoy life rather than consistently stress about school. By having a focus of the program requiring us to enjoy and spend time in the arts I have learned to appreciate it in keeping my mental health better than it would if I did not and get me out of my room and active in my community. Through my reflections written after these Pentathlon events I have learned to communicate my emotions in a clearer manner to allow people to understand my perspective and the things I learn from an Arts Scholars event. By learning to communicate my ideas and feelings more concisely I can get my ideas across.
As a result of this program, I have been challenged to expand my way on thinking about topics and understanding that all subjects are felt and communicated uniquely by everyone. My perception of the arts has also been broadened in respect to what art is. Through this class in class discussions and just simply becoming friends with people in the program and living with them I have learned how everyone comes from different backgrounds and is affected by everything you say. Many people in this program are diverse and I have learned from these class discussions when presented with a piece of art everyone interprets the meaning differently in some way. No two people see something as the same which I find so beautiful because in this community everyone is so unique and one in their own. From the constant question of “What is art?” brought in class discussions almost every semester all semester has made me really think about what art is to me throughout the two years in this program. I have l discovered though this constant self-reflection that art is not simply music, a painting, or a play, but is the combination of anything beautiful or created with intention. This intention being deeply thought out or surface level does not take away from the fact that the piece is art.
Throughout colloquium especially in CPSA200 we have dived into touching issues affecting the world today for the better and worse. We have also learned the importance of creative expression through our artwork throughout the entirety of the program. Through my project “Women Vs. The World”, I wanted to combine these principles we have learned of expression through art as well as addressing hard hitting issues. So, I decided that I wanted to bring awareness to these issues and spark conversation about feminism a topic we did not really touch on in colloquium too much to bring some more light to it. Although we have addressed women’s issues in CPSA 100-101 we did not back up the issues with statistics and concrete research behind it which I wanted to do through my project.
Prior to Arts Scholars I was focused on the visual arts and had not had much participation through the other arts but through Pentathlon events requiring us to spend time with the other arts and Spring workshops exploring different forms of all the arts I have expanded my artistic talents in musical arts as well. Both last Spring 2020 and Spring 2021 I have taken a workshop focusing on music and focused on finding your voice in music and what you are drawn toward, and it has really made me dive into music headfirst. Surrounding myself with another art like music inspires me and makes me believe I can try any other subject I want to as long as I learn about it and put in the effort. These workshops and doing Pentathlons about other arts has made me realize that I am not only drawn toward visual arts, but musical as well.
I have been able to collaborate with those effectively with other artistic backgrounds because I have learned that other people have strengths in areas that are my weaknesses and I have strength where others may be lacking. In working with my partner for my Capstone project, Madison Mazer, we both come from different artistic backgrounds, hers being music and photography, mine being visual arts like painting and collaging. Together for our project she used her skills in design, curation, and marketing, and I used my skills in creation, design as well, brainstorming, and organizing, together to create art that appeals to all those in the arts. We collaborated over the course of a whole semester consistently compromising and creating a work that was cohesive with each other’s.
The Scholars experience has already affected my present and I continue to expand the ideas I learned in the program to seep into my future. Scholars gave me a community that made me question ideas and asked me questions that I would not have thought of my own to progress my own self-reflection. I do not want to lose a community that challenges me in those ways and forces me to do events like Pentathlons which makes me make the time to explore topics and art forms that I may enjoy. In the future I am going to seek this sort of community wherever I am led to because this is where I feel the quality of life, with this I want a career that does the same. I want a career where the people around me care about the same things I do and want to make a change in the world. I want a career that influences how people think and feel in order to promote the better good and people’s well-beings.