Items

• 2020-03

  Old dog/new tricks! a new way to teach.....

  I finally became a video star.....that was never my intention when I started teaching fifty years ago! I am an adjunct art professor. When lockdown came and I couldn't teach in person, I had to find a new way to teach my class.....Zoom felt too complicated to me so I communicated with my students via email and videos that my husband and I made in the basement! A 15 minute video took over 3 hours or more between the filming and the editing! In addition, I really had to work hard to find the best way to communicate-the most effective way to present the lesson, as no questions could be asked as I presented the material. It really got me to think and be very clear about the subject and the best way to teach it. Once in front of the camera, I made believe I was talking to my class and just ran with it! I felt comfortable once I started. It was funny though, as we had to carefully think about camera angles and outfits that worked well as I moved! After all, this was permanently on tape...And, I had to be brave! My Brooklyn/StatenIsland accent was forever heard, as well as facial features, expressions and body parts that have always plagued me be forever seen! Overall, though, a great experience!!!! Who would have thought that such an awful, disturbing period could bring about new, positive experiences! Ah, but that is life after all, isn't it?
• 
  2020-03-31

  HIST30060 Lockdown #1: Activities and Alcohol

  On 31 March 2022, the first lockdown was initiated in both Melbourne and Sydney. I was in Sydney at the time, having arrived a few days prior from Melbourne as border restrictions were starting to be introduced. I am slightly ashamed to say, now, that I really enjoyed this first lockdown. I hadn't lived at home since 2018, and it was a unique experience to enjoy time together that wouldn't have normally happened. We've always been pretty close, but the lockdown forced an intimacy that we'd never had before (it helped that my teenage brother was required to be at home and boredom had driven him to start having conversations with us again). I think mum and dad were consciously trying to keep lockdown interesting, and soon a weekly cocktail night (with a required lounge formal dress code), bi-weekly painting lessons via zoom and daily yoga with mum, nightly music sessions with dad, lego competitions with the old dusty lego sets, and weekend family walks were introduced. I had never done so much exercise in my life, and yet I had never consumed as much alcohol, either. Even when I lived in a flatshare as an eighteen-year-old. Alcohol quickly became a problem for me, one that I have yet to fully address although I have started to cut down. The taste of wine became associated with fun times with the people I loved, so of course, I loved it. And when the lockdown eventually lifted, I returned to Melbourne nearly friendless (having left before I got the chance to settle in and with little opportunity to meet new people), a cheap bottle of pinot grigio and I became good - if slightly toxic - friends.
• 
  2021-04-20

  Hands-on art classes adapt to COVID-19 restrictions

  Art professors at Saint Joseph's University talk about changes they've made to their courses due to COVID-19.
• 
  2020

  Dragon76, George Floyd Mural

  Dragon76, originally from Japan is a world renowned street artist who's art touches on coexistence and justice. This public mural of George Floyd asks those who view it to coexist.
• 
  2021-03-20

  Van Gogh Exibit

  It's not an exaggeration to say the new Van Gogh exhibit is an immersive experience.⁣ ⁣ The projectors cover the walls and floor in vibrant psychedelic brush strokes that are constantly in movement, cycling through paintings like The Starry Night, Bedroom in Arles and his self-portraits.⁣ ⁣ Learn more at the link in our bio. 📷: Mariah Tiffany @tangerine__scream
• 
  2021-02-17

  Pandemic Hobbies

  With all of the free time suddenly on my hands due to the pandemic, I was forced to find new hobbies that would occupy the time. Some of the hobbies that I developed over the course of the pandemic and specifically during the quarantine are following along to Bob Ross videos, fiber arts including latch hook and cross-stitch, and I have rediscovered my love for reading mysteries. These hobbies have helped keep my mind off of and cope with COVID and everything else that is going on in the world these days. Despite the negative effects that COVID has had on the world and individuals, it has allowed me and many others to delve deeper into new and old passions due to the amount of time that we have on our hands that we never had before.
• 
  2020-05-09

  Self-portrait with mask, May 2020

  During the pandemic, I often walk in Brooklyn's historic Green-Wood Cemetery with its rolling hills, lovely views, and fantastic old monuments; it's also where my grandparents are buried. I've always loved the beautiful, timeless melancholy of the place, but during the pandemic, it was also a strange comfort to read the headstones and think of the people buried all around me. Life, sickness, crisis, death are all just part of being human. These dead humans also lived, suffered, died, and now it's just another version of the same thing. The self-portrait included here is based on a photo I took of myself in Green-Wood as I wandered there one day in April 2020, looking to get away from lockdown and to find company among the graves.
• 
  2021-01-26

  Pandemic Kindness

  The pandemic has caused so much death, destruction, and sadness. I wanted to share something positive that has happened to me during this difficult event. While this begins in tragedy, I promise it turns around... My service dog passed away suddenly from cancer one month after his first birthday. It was April and the virus was spreading rapidly so there were new restrictions being imposed everywhere. I had to go through the process of my dog passing away all on my own and my dog had to spend a lot of the time alone in a cage in the vet's office while I was forced to wait in my car. My mind was plagued with thoughts of my dog long after he had passed. I could no longer ride in my car that I had spent so much of my dog's last hours in. Everything was closed because of the pandemic so I was forced to stay at home and everything in my house reminded me of my dog. I became very depressed and barely came out of my room. I forced myself to get up and get a blanket from the living room and I saw a rock on the table near my daughter's crafts. I don't know what it was, but I just decided to paint one. One had a triangular shape and I turned it into a shark head because it reminded me of a shark tooth. I had never drawn or painted prior to this but I was proud of my work and, at the end of it all, I realized that I had spent hours in my living room! I decided to get up the next day and paint another rock. I did this for a week and once I gathered a small pile, I put a few in my pocket and went for a walk, dropping painted rocks in random places along the way. The rocks had made me so happy at one of the darkest moments of my life and I wanted to spread that feeling to others. The whole thing really taught me how something really small can make a big difference. Painting rocks has helped keep me connected with others during the pandemic. I've found communities of rock artists and we share ideas with one another. I've also discovered I have a talent for drawing and painting and have recently begun taking commissioned art requests. I still make sure to paint plenty of "freebies" and I leave them everywhere from gas pumps to hidden in trees. I am so grateful to be able to spread even a little bit of kindness during this difficult time.
• 
  2020-04

  Covid Portraits: Allston

  I decided to do a series of portraits of family members in masks to document the pandemic.
• 
  2020-04

  Covid Portraits: Los Angeles

  I decided to do a series of portraits of family members in masks to document the pandemic.
• 
  2021-01-21

  A Shed of Inspiration

  The object that I have presented is my Akaashi plushie from one of my favorite anime shows called Haikyu. During quarantine, I have retaken an interest back into anime. I used to watch anime when I was in middle school, but my obsession ended because I was prioritizing school more. Until my friend convinced me to watch a show called Haikyu, which was about high school volleyball and made me get hooked back into watching anime again. Although my Akasshi plushie is just a stuffed animal, it has helped me through my journey as a junior in high school because it reminds me to continue working hard. In the show, Haikyu, the team Karasuno's goal is to get to nationals and become the top school in Japan. Although they struggle to achieve their goal to reaching nationals in their first attempt, that does not stop them from continuing. They all persevere through their downfalls and eventually, they finally achieve their dream. This show has given me a shed of inspiration, reminding me to continue working hard because eventually, I too, can achieve my ambitions with the efforts I put in. It also represents the difficulties that our country is currently struggling in right now because the number of COVID cases continues to rise and the vaccine for COVID is still in preparation. However, we continue to persevere trying to find a vaccine to cure this sickness and for our country to finally be at peace once again. To sum up my 2020 experience, I would have to say it was quite a crazy, adventurous, yet boring time. It was crazy because I have never expected I would experience a pandemic in my life time. To think I have read about all sorts of plagues in history class, only to discover I would actually experience it myself and one day, be able to retell my journey through this difficult time to future generations. Despite it being crazy, I thought it was also quite an adventure going through this pandemic. I have taken interests in hobbies that I never thought I would such as baking, painting, and embroidering. I even began taking an interest back into anime, which I never thought I would because I always believed it was silly, only to find out I was completely wrong. These animated shows have helped me become the person I am today and I am really grateful for that. Sure, discovering new hobbies was an adventure, there were some moments during quarantine that were boring. I could not go outside and interact with my friends as much, which made my quarantine experience even more boring. Holidays such as 4th of July, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years, was quite tragic. Normally I would go on vacation with my family, but because flights were cancelled and going around increased the risk of catching COVID, my family and I stayed home trying to make the most of the holidays. We followed all of the stay at home regulations for the holidays by wearing masks and standing 6 feet apart from our family members just in case they ever caught it. The holidays did not feel as special anymore since we could not interact with people as close, making it seem like it was a normal weekday. My quarantine workspace is my white wooden desk with light blue draws and a light blue chair to match the draws. On my desk, there is a white lamp, an essential oil diffuser, a candle, and a tiny Buddha statue. Around my desk, there are a couple of photos of my family, anime characters as well as BTS members too. Three things that I would include in my quarantine survival kit would be my phone, food, and water. I would bring my phone because it would be my only source of entertainment since I have the ability to communicate with my friends, watch shows, online shop, and listen to music. I would also definitely bring food and water because I need it for survival and I love to binge watch shows while eating some food. I wanted to upload a photo of the anime paintings I have painted during quarantine, but unfortunately I can only upload one photo :(. Instead I will describe it :). My first painting that I have painted was a picture of one of my favorite characters named Killua and he is from the show Hunter x Hunter. I painted a close up photo of him smiling and made my background a little blue color. As for my second painting, I painted Hinata and Kageyama from Haikyu because they are known as the best duos when it comes to their play tactics. I painted Hinata and Kageyama who are both smiling from joy because they were able to get a good shot from one of their plays and I painted the background yellow to symbolize the happiness in the painting.
• 
  2020-10-29

  A Collection of Quarantine Paintings

  I am posting this photo because it showcases how I have spent a lot of my time during the pandemic. This photo displays every painting I have created since the beginning of the quarantine. Some of the works shown in the picture are still works in progress and others are completed. Before Covid prevailed and we were sent home in the spring, I had lost interest in painting and had not painted in months. The lockdown that Covid brought on allowed me to slow down and rekindle the love and creativity I had for painting. In this photo, there are 14 paintings, however, I have made more and gave them to friends as gifts. I mainly work with acrylic paint on canvas because I like vibrant colors and solid lines, although, I would like to start experimenting with oil paints soon. Covid-19 brought on many obstacles to a lot of people, but I am grateful that I could reconnect with painting. This object demonstrates the significant rise of creative liberty within my generation under Covid-19.
• 
  2020-04-15

  Painting In Quarantine

  During quarantine, we were all very bored and going a little stir crazy. I really wanted to get into painting because it is relaxing for me, and it takes up a lot of time. This is important to me because it was something during lockdown that made me feel relaxed and calm. It was a stressful time for everyone, and we all had to find hobbies that would keep us busy, which is important to understanding 2020 and the lockdown. I think that is what this says about the pandemic, we had to find these little things to keep us going throughout the long days stuck inside, and painting really helped me do that.
• 
  2020-11-30

  Quarantine Paintings

  I decided to upload a picture of some of the paintings that I’ve made over the quarantine. When COVID-19 first started and we all went into quarantine I wondered what I was going to do during all my free time. I love to paint and I almost never had time to dedicate and do it. But now with all of this free time I had no excuse put to getting crafty and painting. As you can tell from this photograph there are a variety of paintings that I made. Some are pretty backgrounds with song lyrics/songs. My favorite one that I painted was the sunset sky with clouds. I also have a couple Disney paintings as well. It was also a huge help to get distracted and get my mind off of everything that was going on in the world. It was also very relaxing. These paintings are just some of the many things that I made during the quarantine. I also started to do embroidery as well as make Mickey ears and many many other crafts. It’s very important to me because it’s one of the ways that I was able to express myself during this weird tough time. I’m very thankful that I was able to find a creative outlet. I was also able to take some time for myself. Painting was my quiet relaxing time. From getting to choose colors, mixing, choosing what to paint. Just the whole process in itself made me feel a little bit better. I remember when quarantine first started that the stores were all running out of paint and canvases so I’m guessing I’m not the only one who came up with the idea of painting during this time. I’m glad people were also able to find outlets and time to relax and just paint.
• 
  2020-11-16

  Isolation Art

  Isolation Art, 2020 Acrylic on canvas, 36x24 Between March 24th and June I was working remotely, and terrified to leave the house. I tried to get into new hobbies and thought that FaceTime would be sufficient for human connection, but it was not. Several personal milestones were accomplished during those months and not being able to physically be with my family was tough. The anniversary of my father’s death was the most difficult even to grapple with alone, but I could not help but wonder who else had lost their father that day because of COVID. So, I painted. It’s difficult to tell, but the words on the canvas read, “I’m so fucking sad. I see and I don’t care.” The headspace I was in was not a good one but I am grateful that I was able to get out what I needed to when I needed to. I listened to the news daily and every time that number rose my heart sank further and my anxiety deeper. I have since repurposed the canvas and painted over it, but this photo remains.
• 
  2020-10-29

  A Collection of Quarantine Paintings

  I am posting this photo because it showcases how I have spent a lot of my time during the pandemic. This photo displays every painting I have created since the beginning of quarantine. Some of the works shown in the picture are still works in progress and others are completed. Before Covid prevailed and we were sent home in the spring, I had lost interest in painting and had not painted in months. The lockdown that Covid brought on allowed me to slow down and rekindle the love and creativity I had for painting. In this photo, there are 14 paintings, however, I have made more and gave them to friends as gifts. I mainly work with acrylic paint on canvas because I like vibrant color and solid lines, although, I would like to start experimenting with oil paints soon. Covid-19 brought on many obstacles to a lot of people but I am grateful that I was allowed to reconnect with painting
• 
  2020-04-15

  Painting in Quarantine

  During quarantine, we were all very bored and going a little stir crazy. One day, I really wanted to get into painting because it is relaxing for me, and it takes up a lot of time. This is important to me because it was something during lockdown that made me feel relaxed and calm. It was a stressful time for everyone, and we all had to find hobbies that would keep us busy. I think that is what this says about the pandemic, we had to find these little things to keep us going throughout the long days stuck inside, and painting really helped me do that.
• 
  2020-09-27

  The Hobbies We Have Used to Get Through Covid-19

  I chose this painting, because it is symbolic of one of the many hobbies I developed in order to get through this pandemic and social distancing through the past few months. Many people have picked up new hobbies in order to distract themselves or learn something that they have always wanted to do. I chose paint-by-numbers, because I have always loved painting, but I have never been very good at it. So, I chose the next best thing: paint-by-numbers. Everyone has different tastes and coping mechanisms. I thought it would be interesting to catalog the different hobbies that people have picked up in order to cope or distract themselves with from the pandemic
• 
  2020-03-01

  Mental Health Effects of COVID-19

  COVID-19 was an experience that presented the ideal conditions that would challenge our mental health. The fear of the unknown, fear of losing loved ones, fear of missing out on our precious years of life as well as not knowing when we'll see our close family and friends. We are separated from society unable to see our loved ones, schools are closed, many people lost their jobs or were unable to work to prevent the spread of this horrifying disease. As we're locked into our homes, we confine ourselves in our own minds which can often be our worst enemies at times for people like me. We need to be occupied and be around loved ones in order to stray away from negativity. During these times being surrounded by close family and friends was a luxury we couldn't afford because of the virus and ultimately many people like myself picked up hobbies to distract ourselves from the dreadful events occurring all over the world. During my summer break, I began learning to paint and would spend about a couple hours a day painting with my friends over Zoom which would either sometimes turn out to be a competition between us of who would do the best or we would just freely paint while listening to some calming music and keeping each other company. Although I am not very artistic or good at acrylic painting there was something very therapeutic about it. My entire focus and attention was solely on doing my best to recreate the painting from the tutorial I was watching on YouTube or trying to win the friendly competition with my friends and this helped me steer away from pondering about what's been going on in the world and was very stress-relieving. In a way my COVID-19 experience taught me a lot about my mental health and helped me find ways to make the best of the situation and not take anything for granted. Now a couple months into quarantine I still paint from time to time although not as much because the semester started and being bombarded with assignments and tests but I do make time for it if I find that I need to release my stress.
• 
  2020-07

  Fighting Boredom

  Going into that Ross store, I wasn’t thinking about leaving there with a jean jacket, I was just thinking about how my clothes were no longer starting to fit because I gained a little weight since quarantine started. I spent a couple of minutes in the Ross store and then my older sister came up to me and asked me if I’d want to do something she saw on tik tok. I asked her what it was and she said she wanted to paint the backs of some jean jackets and personalize it. I liked the idea so we then went to go ask my little sister if she wanted to participate and she said yes. Then all of us went up to my parents to ask if they could buy the jackets for us. They agreed. That night we started looking at pictures of the Powerpuff Girls to see what picture we’d want to paint on the jacket. My oldest sister got Bubbles, I got Blossom, and my little sister got Buttercup. Within the next day we had all the things needed to paint the jackets and finished them within a week of getting the jackets. The jackets are important to me because it makes me feel closer to my sisters when I look at it or have it on. It reminds me of a time during quarantine when we all bonded.
• 
  2020-03-19

  Fighting Creative Blocks During Quarentine

  Of course the pandemic hit everyone's motivation and zest for daily life pretty hard, but as an artist whose social circles are mainly comprised of other artists, I noticed an especially hard hit to the creative output of my peers. I've heard before that suffering and despair is supposed to bring out the best artists have to offer, but in reality the inverse is often true- Van Gogh painted the Starry Night while he was getting specialized care in a mental health facility, after all. It's hard to find your spark when it feels like the world is caving in on all sides, but I was determined to find a way to keep myself from falling into a months long creative drought I knew I'd find myself in if I didn't do something about it. I didn't have the energy or desire to touch full sized pieces, but I reasoned with myself that I could stand to go smaller scale to save on both energy and time without sacrificing the feeling of accomplishment that comes with a finished piece, and so the day before every non-essential business in town shut down, I ran to my local Michael's and picked up the cheapest acrylic paints I could find and 3 packs of six 2 inch square canvases. I tried to think of a subject that could easily be captured on such a small surface, but was also sure to spark joy in myself and perhaps others if i chose to share them, and landed on the topic of pets, since they were easily one of the biggest comforts for myself and everyone else I knew during our prolonged stints sitting at home. It was a good move, I think- looking at an an image of an animal for long periods of time never hurts your mood, and sharing photos of the finished paintings with my friends who own the animals pictured brought a boost of serotonin to both parties involved. More than one person suggested I start an etsy page and sell them, but I think I'm content to just let them be a quarantine hobby and act of kindness during a deeply depressing time.