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[jonnywalkerblog]

Part 1:

Conceptual goals: I began by wondering what I could draw that would symbolize this point in my life. I decided to draw a train because “Train” is the name of the house I live in with my roommates. I can’t think of my time at Bona’s without thinking of the people I’ve shared it with, and in that way the train symbolizes the ride we’ve gone on together over the past 3.5 years.

Aesthetic Goals: To fill the space beneath the train, I wrote our address in sharpie. I plan to hang this piece up somewhere in our apartment until we move out in May. Then to fill in the space above the train, I painted a sunset. Symbolically, this represents how the sun is setting on our train ride as graduation approaches. Yet even though the sun’s setting marks the day’s end, it’s still a beautiful thing.

Course Inspiration: The book mentions that "gold is traditionally twinned with the sun" (55). I thought that helps explain why the yellow-gold sections of the train look so good to me against the backdrop of the sky at sunset.

Part 2:

Conceptual goals: I made this piece for my girlfriend, Faith. It’s a painting of us driving off on an adventure together.

Aesthetic goals: Where that adventure is taking us, I’m not sure — but I find that to be symbolic of the point we are at in our lives. Blue is both of our favorite colors, so I used a lot of it.

Course Inspiration: But also as the book discussed, blue is often seen as a calm, peaceful color. I find that idea to be representative of the effect we have on each other just by being in each other’s presence.

[jonnywalkerblog]

I wasn't entirely sure what message to put, so I googled "inspirational phrases" and looked through a list. I thought this one fit the medium (a small notecard) very well and would be a good reminder to anyone who stumbled upon this on the Library wall while studying for a final. Sometimes it feels like you'll never finish studying or complete that paper, but nothin' is impossible!

Attendance prompt:

"The kind of kohl used depended on wealth and social status. The poor might use mixtures of soot and animal fats, but, as ever, the wealthy demanded something rather more special. Theirs would predominantly be made of galena, the dark metallic mineral form of lead sulfide. This would be crushed and mixed with powdered pearls, gold, coral, or emeralds to give sheen and subtle color. Frankincense, fennel, or saffron might then be added for their scent." (263)

I found it interesting that even thousands of years ago people felt the need to use forms of "fashion" to divide the wealthy from the poor. Examples of clothing, accessories, etc. indicative of wealthy people vs those indicative of lower-class people prevail in our society -- even if those indications are not accurate and just surface-level stereotypes.

[jonnywalkerblog]

I started by just drawing a basic table. I wasn't sure where I was going to go from there, but I figured that would be a good place to start. Then I flipped through a technology magazine I had to find a couple of images. Then I decided to draw some things that I'll explain in further detail below.

I tried to create an emphasis on technology and indulgence, and I think that is the overall takeaway from the images I selected/collage I made.

I decided to draw a cornucopia because it was the first thing I thought of when I thought about indulgence/over abundance. I decided to depict the traditional cornucopia fruits and veggies transforming into money signs. I drew this all with a combination of a number 2 pencil and marker. I then used the two images I cut out of the magazine for the face portion. The underneath image is of a man walking through a crowd while staring at his phone with ear buds in, completely unaware of his surroundings. The face is of Ukrainian President Zelensky -- but it is from a deep fake video. It is a fake image that was used to deceive people, which I intended as a warning of the dangers of technology. And I think it's a message that connects with the image of the man walking with his face buried in his phone. Lastly, I filled some of the remaining space with images of video game consoles and a huge, flat screen TV. I drew them with pencil and colored pencil.

Attendance Prompt:

"It is this green patina that forms on old copper pipes and roofs, and which gives the Statue of Liberty the blue-green color of the misty sea she often faces. It took the elements 30 years to turn Gustave Eiffel’s second most famous structure from rosy copper to full green, far too long a time for an artist to wait for his pigment." (215)

I had already known that the Statue of Liberty was originally a copper/bronze color. However, I hadn't considered until now whether Eiffel intended for Lady Liberty to be her original color or the color she would eventually turn -- or both! I tried a quick Google search, but couldn't find a definitive answer to that question.

[jonnywalkerblog]

I included visual repetition in my portrait. The South Park-style in which I drew the subject is repeated in the background of how I depicted Josh Allen and Stefon Diggs. I guess I also included a "dramatic background" in my portrait as drama-queen Diggs enjoys throwing sideline tantrums, and Allen likes creating late-game tension by throwing bone-headed interceptions that turn blowouts into needlessly close losses.

Attendance Prompt:

"The second was to associate the color with power and royalty. In republican Rome it was a tightly constrained badge of status. Triumphant generals could wear a purple-and-gold robe; those in the field, plain purple. Senators, consuls, and praetors (a kind of magistrate) wore a broad Tyrian band on their togas; knights, a narrow band. This visual hierarchy changed upon Caesar’s return to Rome, when the rules became even more draconian. By the fourth century A.D. only the emperor was allowed to wear Tyrian purple; anyone else caught wearing it could face death." (165)

For pretty much as long as I can remember, I've associated the color purple with royalty. So did many of the people around me. But I never really knew where that association originated from. Thus, I found the anecdotes about the significance of purple in Ancient Rome to be very interesting.

[jonnywalkerblog]

Activity 1:

I chose to draw a portrait of my roommate Connor. Connor is a great friend -- someone who comes running whenever you call for help. He can also be very loud and energetic. However, when I drew Connor, he was invested in watching his beloved Buffalo Sabres try to win a tight game. Needless to say, he was dialed in.

Activity 2:

I piled together some rocks and other natural stuff I found along various parts of the trail. I didn't know what the final product was going to look like until I found that stick. Then I got the idea to put it in the middle of the rock pile. I thought the leaves made it look cooler.

Activity 3:

I went with option #2 and hosted a painting night with @headphonebone and two of our friends. It was a good time!

[jonnywalkerblog]

Bear Facts:

Bears began to evolve from small mammals roughly 40 million years ago. (wildlifesos.org)

Identifiable bears emerged roughly 20 million years ago. (wildlifesos.org)

Modern grizzly bears can reach speeds up to 35 miles an hour. (National Wildlife Federation)

Most black bears can climb 100 feet up a tree in 30 seconds. (The Denver Gazzette)

Black and brown bears can swim about a mile and a half in fresh water. (North American Bear Center)

Images:

Facial Recognition: "Most exchange services, from stocks to cryptos, now rely on facial recognition to protect customers and their assets." (Amazon Web Services)

Artificial Intelligence: In 2020, large tech companies, such as Amazon, Google, Facebook, Apple and Microsoft, acquired 13 Artificial Intelligence company startups. (Medium.com)

Social Media Platforms: As of July 2023, Facebook is the most popular social media worldwide with nearly 3 billion active monthly users. (Statista)

Coding/computer programming: Computer Programmers made a median salary of $93,000 in 2021. (US News and World Report)

Technology: As of July 2023, there are over 5 billion internet users in the world. (Statista)

Attendance Prompt:

"The reason for all this subterfuge lies in alchemists’ obsession with creating gold [here], which to them was red, rather than yellow, and which they therefore linked with this new red pigment. Even more significant was the fact that making vermilion required the combination and transformation of two key alchemical ingredients: mercury and sulfur. The alchemists forging vermilion were convinced the secret to producing unlimited supplies of gold could not be far away." (148)

I've always been fascinated by discoveries/inventions accidentally made in pursuit of something else. For example, the scientist who discovered the first antibiotic, penicillin, did so by mistake. According to Business Insider, he had been searching for a cure-all wonder drug and given up, only to find a petri dish he had discarded contained a mold, which turned out to be penicillin.

[jonnywalkerblog]

After reading the prompt I immediately pictured a fractured skull. So, I knew I had to start there. But the jaggedness of a fractured skull almost reminded me of something popping, so I settled on a balloon as the object coming out of the skull/the object the skull morphs into. The jaggedness of the skull is reflected in the “jaggedness” of the popped edge of the balloon. More symbolically, I associated the skull with death. The way a balloon pops in an instant is how I imagine the experience of death might be: here one moment, gone the next.

The experience I chose to depict is getting a massage at the spa in the Salamanca casino after winning big on the slots. While it’s not at the very top of my bucket list, winning enough money to immediately take the escalator up to the spa and throw down $200 on a deep-tissue massage is something I think about every time I go to the casino with my friends. Even before going to the casino for the first time, I’ve always wanted to get a professional massage – I’ve just never been able to justify the price tag. At most places it’s like 100 bucks for an hour. Absolutely ridiculous!

[jonnywalkerblog]

When I Googled what animal is associated with Aquarius, the first result was an Owl. It says that in Greek mythology the Aquarius sign is said to be a kind and humanitarian sign, while also being unpredictable and independent -- like an owl.

According to Google, the ruling planet of Aquarius is Uranus. Uranus is supposedly the planet that governs innovation, technology, and surprising events. Uranus perfectly mirrors Aquarius' distinctive attitude, complementing the nontraditional nature of these visionary air signs.

Because Aquarius is an air sign, I included the clouds blowing air/wind. The symbol for Aquarius is also those two squiggly lines on top of one another that can be seen filling the pond I drew in the foreground. I chose a pond despite Aquarius not being a water sign because it's blue, the color associated with Aquarius.

ATTENDANCE PROMPT:

"The terms for this particular pale shade—“nude” and “flesh,” and even the less common “suntan” and “bare”—presuppose a Caucasian skin tone and are therefore problematic. Despite being painfully out of step with a global fashion market, they are curiously obdurate." (114)

While the book mostly talks about these terms in reference to clothing, it reminded me of a few other places where this misnaming has been rightfully called out and corrected, sometimes within my lifetime. The generic beige-looking Band-Aid color used to be called "flesh color." The beige-looking crayon used to be called "skin color," or something similar.

[jonnywalkerblog]

I like your depiction of the polar bear (especially with the Yankees hat), because it matches what I imagine your stuffed polar bear at home looked like. It's cute, cuddly and welcoming.

1. A polar bear is an animal that I feel pretty connected to other than cats. It is probably because I have a stuffed animal of a polar bear but I enjoy being in the cold a lot and polar bears are usually in colder climates than we are so lucky them. Something I just learned about Polar bears is that beneath their fur their skin is actually black and the fur is translucent which only appears white due to light. 

2. I don’t really have a song that I listen to for fall I usually just listen to Hip-Hop all year round but if I had to choose it would probably be “This is Halloween” by Marilyn Manson since my favorite holiday is Halloween. My favorite Halloween movie that I usually come back to is the Halloweentown series since it has creepy characters and an excellent plot but is not scary like movies such as “The Nun”, “Halloween”, or even “The Boogeyman” etc. 

3. I was born in the year 2002 the beginning era of the best Spider-man trilogy starring Tobey Maguire. Once I came to my senses I remembered everyone wanted to be Spider-man just because of how that one movie impacted Spider-man popularity dramatically. As much has changed from then to now there are so many people who still talk about that first-ever trilogy even people who weren’t even born at that time period It shows how much of an impact it has. 

4. I chose “99 Problems” by Jay-Z for my song from my childhood as the lyrics “I got ninety-nine problems” as we all deal with problems every day. 

Attendance Prompt:

"While the avant-garde artists of the day had access to wonderfully saturated reds and blues, they were lacking an equivalent for the third primary: yellow." Pg. 82

I chose this sentence because I thought it was really interesting how art has changed so much from that time period. It's fascinating how they still manage to create wonderful pieces of art with such limited colors available.

[jonnywalkerblog]

I picked an eagle because I like the idea of animal that gets to roam freely, like an eagle gets to explore an open sky. I also (attempted) to draw a bald eagle because in the U.S. it's commonly recognized as a symbol of freedom. Something I learned about bald eagles is that they only gain their white head and tail feathers after 4 or 5 years of life.

I don't have a specific fall-favorite song to listen to. I mostly just listen to my typical playlist of rap. If I had to pick, maybe Monster Mash? I also don't really have a favorite fall-themed movie. I kinda remember watching a Halloween-themed Winnie the Pooh special when I was little, so let's go with that.

In 2002 (the year I was born), the Olympics were held in Salt Lake City, Utah. Growing up, sports were a huge part of my life. Now, I am a sports media major pursuing a career in sports broadcasting.

The lyrics I chose are from the song "Free Bird" by Lynyrd Skinner. While this wasn't one of my absolute favorite songs growing up, I thought its lyrics fit well with my theme of an eagle soaring freely across the sky.

Attendance Prompt:

"The only thing slowing him down, it seemed, was nature itself. He found he could only work in the early morning, '[b]ecause the flowers wilt quickly and it’s a matter of doing the whole thing in one go.'" (82)

I picked this passage because I had never thought of artists needing to consider the time of day when doing their work. It reminded me of the need to consider the time of day when shooting a story for TV, something I've done for my internships on and off campus numerous times. I never considered it in terms of doing an art project/drawing.

[jonnywalkerblog]

Plants:

Goldenrods -- A perennial species native to North America. They typically grow in open areas like meadows.

Common Sneezeweed -- A flowering plant in the sunflower family native to North America. Common names include sneezeweed and large-flowered sneeze weed.

Crookedstem Aster -- Native to eastern North America, this flowering plant in the aster family can be found almost exclusively in the eastern U.S. and Canada.

Attendance Prompt #2:

"Most children will, at some stage, try mixing all their favorite paints together expecting to make an extra-special color. They will gather fire-engine red, sunny-sky blue, and perhaps some Care Bear pastels and begin stirring. That such a mixture results not in something beautiful but in an irretrievably murky dark gray is one of life’s first hard truths." (43-44)

This passage reminded me of the saying "quality over quantity." Sometimes we try to stuff too many things onto our palettes, or into our lives. Although often born out of good intentions, taking on too many things at once leads to a sub-optimal result.

[jonnywalkerblog]

Attendance Prompt 1

"Some intuited that the dress was being washed out by strong light and therefore their minds tuned the colors to darken them; others believed the dress to be in shadow, so their minds adjusted what they were seeing to brighten it and remove the shadowy blue cast. That is how an Internet full of people looking at the same image saw very different things." (19)

While this made me think back to those fun arguments I've had over the color of "the dress," it also reminded me of some sage advice: There's two sides to every coin. Two people can look at the same issue and come away with two completely different impressions -- and both be right.

[jonnywalkerblog]

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[jonnywalkerblog]

My name is Jonny Walker. I am a senior sports media major and an aspiring sports journalist. During my time at St. Bonaventure, I've been heavily involved in campus media, reporting for Tapinto Greater Olean, reporting and anchoring for SBU-TV, serving as Editor-in-Chief of The Bona Venture Newspaper and serving as sports director for our campus radio station, The Buzz. Over the summer I interned with News10NBC in Rochester (my hometown). I hope to continue working there after graduating next spring.