irisartscholarsblog

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I went to Art Attack last week, where Vince Staples and Lil Yachty performed. I’ve listened to a few songs by both artists but have not been an active listener so I didn’t really know what to expect at the concert. To my good fortune, it exceeded my expectations. I found that I enjoyed a lot of the music that they played. It gave me a nice break from the music I usually listen to, and something I could add to my Spotify repertoire. I’m really glad I went.

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I went to a jazz club for pentathlon and it was a really nice experience! I normally wouldn’t go to this kind of thing since jazz is not something I listen to very often. However, after this performance I appreciated the spontaneity the musicians had and it was really relaxing and fun to listen to!

[irisartscholarsblog]

I finally submitted my music to be published so the music part of my project is officially finished! Woohoo! I might still do one more painting this weekend and see where that takes me. However, I’m pretty happy with the paintings that I have now.

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I went to The Void which is a small residential house that hosts musicians and bands like a concert venue out of their garage. It was a super cool experience because the night I went had four dramatically different acts in the same night. I liked it because it introduced me to some music I might have never listened to before. And I got to see a surprisingly theatrical performance from a band I was unfamiliar with (pictured above, known as Antihero) where they gave masks to the audience so in a way they were participating too.

[irisartscholarsblog]

I went to see black panther a couple days ago and I really enjoyed it! It was very well made and the way that African culture was integrated into the film was very compelling and educational. I also liked how women were portrayed in the film because they were treated as equals, and if they had a special skill it was respected and not called out for being exceptional just because they were a woman.

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This past week I finished mixing/making my music and then sent them to be mastered. I finally got them back after a few days, so my music is ready to be published soon! I haven’t gotten any more paintings done but that’s the next thing on my list!

[irisartscholarsblog]

So far I’ve made three paintings that go in tandem with songs that I wrote. 

The first one I painted with the song Sorry in mind. Sorry is a high energy song about apologetic resignation and acceptance. I felt that the color orange was vibrant enough to express the energy and anxiety of the song. I coupled that with calm smooth brush strokes, which expresses being at peace and understanding some things can’t change. 

The next painting was based off the song Blue. The blue swirls represent a flowing sadness bubbling beneath the surface, it’s calm but it is powerful and strong.

The third painting is based off of Intro and Calm and represent this idea that you have to experience the rain before you see the rainbow. Coming out from the dark into the light is quite literally expressed in the painting, and while there is some chaos with the circles it ends with smooth brush strokes at the top.

[irisartscholarsblog]

This Saturday I went to the Hirshorn museum to see The Utopian Projects exhibit. The exhibit consisted of architectural models of projects that represent some kind of utopia. Some of these models were fully realized and others weren’t. I liked this exhibit because most of the designs/models were quirky in nature and it was an interesting concept to see how an idea of utopia could be realized and envisioned in different ways. For example one design was called “Toilet on a mountain” and it consisted of an outhouse on the top of a mountain in France. My first idea of what utopia is did not involve any kind of toilet but it’s fun to see how people interpret the same thing differently. 

[irisartscholarsblog]

I went to the language house film festival and it was really cool to see my peers in movies they made themselves! Not only were the stories creative it was all the more impressive that the movies were in foreign languages!

[irisartscholarsblog]

I went to a hand lettering workshop and it was really nice to try something new and super relaxing as well!

[irisartscholarsblog]

I went to the language house open mic night and it was really fun to see my peers express themselves artistically!

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I went to a concert for Grizfolk and I ended up liking the opening act Armors a lot! That’s my favorite thing about going to concerts: being able to find new music to love.

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I went to a Halsey concert and it was really cool to see how her identity shapes the concert experience and how unique and engaging she was.

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This past weekend I went to the Rockville arts festival. I always love going to these kinds of festivals because I get to see some really new creative art made by contemporary artists. It inspires me to keep making my own art seeing the things these people are capable of.

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I watched Beauty and the Beast as a part of my Pentathlon credit. I really enjoyed the movie because it was so beautifully made and added a great spin to a childhood movie I already loved

[irisartscholarsblog]

went to the Sakura Matsuri festival in DC a couple weeks ago. I had a great time experiencing and learning about the art and music of the Japanese culture. My favorite part was getting to try my hand at Japanese calligraphy, which is something I’ve never done before.

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I saw Barbara Kruger's exhibit at the National Gallery of Art. I really liked the simple color scheme paired with bold but simple graphics. My favorite thing about her pieces is the thought-provoking captions that contrast with the photos.