Outside Readings

This semester I was not able to go to any outside reading because I am very busy at night time.  Needless to say I was very happy when I saw on the blog that there was an alternative to going to the outside readings in the form of the online journal Qarrtsiluni.  I have no idea how to pronounce that word but it is my savior for fulfilling my outside reading requirement.  It is a pretty easy cite to navigate and it is full of interesting artistic pieces and poetry.

The first work that caught my eye was a picture called Cathedral Forest by Steve Wing.  It caught my eye because I did not really know what it was it is kind of confusing.  At first glance it just looks like some trees but when you look closer you can see that there is a Cathedral in the background.  There is no sort of caption on the picture it is just the picture so it is unclear what the picture is or means.  You can not tell if it is a real picture of a cathedral in the forest or if he photoshopped it or if it is a painting.  I like it because it provokes thought and does not come right out and say what it is.  It creates a sort of surreal feelings when you look at it because it looks like something that does not exist.

The next piece on the blog that catches my attention is a poem called Every Green Growing, http://qarrtsiluni.com/2011/11/30/every-green-growing/.  It is an odd title.  What could a poem called Every Green Growing be about?  It sounds like ever green.  Before I even read it I assumed it to be about life and growth.  The poem is very hard to read at first you do not really know exactly what to think.  The last line "life calling life to begin" is very thought provoking because in nature new life continues to create new life.  There is a constant cycle of life.  The poem does its best to describe nature and the life cycle.

The next work that caught my eye on the blog caught my eye because I think its stupid.  This lady Carol Beth Icard made this painting but I have no idea what it is.  Apparently it is not supposed to be anything in particular she kind of just did whatever she felt with the colors and then called it art.  The good thing about art is it can be whatever you want it to be but then at the same time people will just put like color on the paper and then call it art even though it is the stupidest looking thing and does not look like anything.  She calls it Affirmation, whatever floats your boat Carol Beth Icard, whatever floats your boat.
To me it looks like a piece of cheese cake, but hey what do I know...


http://qarrtsiluni.com/2011/10/13/while-sitting-in-church/

I really like one of the posts on the blog that is a video called While Sitting in Church.  The first line in it says I was sitting in church but I did not hear what the preacher was saying.  This reminds me of when I go to church I find myself sitting there dozing off and becoming distracted by everything around me.  He does a good job of relating to how people actually think which is what I am interested in.  Maybe it is because he works at a juvenile correction facility he needs to be able to understand how the kids think and write tailoring towards them.  I also like the illustrations in the video they are very interesting.  I think this is one of the better posts in the online journal.

The final post that I really liked is called Hamburger Jesus because I think it is hilarious.  It is like any other picture of Jesus but he is holding a hamburger.  What would make anyone think of putting a hamburger in Jesus' hand is beyond me but I think it is so funny.  It puts a modern comedic spin on something as serious as an old picture of Jesus.  John Sherman Lathram III does a good job of catching the audiences eyes with this picture because if Jesus was not holding a hamburger it would look like every other picture of Jesus and get briefly skipped over without much of a second thought.

The online journal does a great job of bringing art together in a common place for everyone to see.  It is a brilliant collaboration of poems, readings, audio, and videos.  It is a good way to explore art and find new pieces that you have never read or heard before.