I majored in Kriemelman

Sheila Kriemelman was my professor for my last art class of Iona college, Watercolor. Not only has she been a professor, but a great mentor and friend. I got the opportunity to take a one week intensive class with her where I learned so much about art history, about art, about her, even about myself. This past week has made me realize how passionate I am about the arts and I have her to thank for that.

Honolulu born, SoHo artist, Sheila Kriemelman is an artist and art professor. Kriemelman teaches drawing, painting and art history at Iona College and Mercy College. Her paintings are in prestigious private, corporate and public collections in the United States, London, and Australia. She is listed in Who's Who in American Art and Outstanding People of the 20th Century in honor of her outstanding contribution to human rights through art and education. (Taken from her artist's Bio)

Her main statement is, "My work has always been an expression of my core self." I admire her for this, especially because I was honored to get to know her on a personal level. She truly inspires me as she came to New York following her dream. Her path was not easy at all in many senses, but if it weren't for her hardships, her work wouldn't have as much meaning.

Having her as a guide for the past three days has been truly a blessing. It it her passion and in depth knowledge that really opened my eyes to world of the arts. The two go hand in hand; if you are truly passionate about something, you're knowledge is eventually acquired. I say this because art history and everything we've been learning is everything I've been talking about to my friends for the past three days!

Above is a picture of her studio, her happy place, her getaway. It's filled with everything that brings her the feeling of happiness ranging from pictures, letters, cards, works, etc. It truly moved me to be able to witness this space, along with the works that have been created here.

I'm grateful for the opportunity to be welcomed into her home and into her life. Words can't express how inspirational she is and the amazing person I've come to know. This particular post is dedicated to her, to express how thankful I am for this opportunity. I can now say that I've "majored in Kriemelman."

SoHo Sculpture

Located in SoHo's Petrosino Square, "Survival of Serena" can't be missed! This hyper-realistic work is really intriguing. From far away is one thing, but up close.. it looks so real. To be honest, when I was standing up close to it, I even thought it was raining!

And here's us with our professor! ^

Thursday in the Lower East Side

So Thursday we went to explore the Lower East Side. After learning it was traditionally an immigrant working class neighborhood, I get a better feel for the area. It wasn't as lively as SoHo or Chelsea, but there's still history. My favorite trip in the LES was to the New Museum:

The building is just beautiful, the way it's designed to be off. Also, I LOVE the sculpture of the rose as you can see in the photo. This museum is constantly changing. I think it adds excitement to the Lower East Side, which it needs. When we visited, most of the art was based on artists expressing themselves through videos, and was dedicated to female artists. However, the last exhibit titled "The Parade" by Nathalie Djurberg and Hans Berg was my absolute favorite.

Using clay, wire, and canvas, these installations of over 80 birds are so fascinating. I personally got a dark feeling from this entire exhibit. Even the faces of the birds have a dark side.

Aside from the fascinating sculptures, the videos highlight dark recesses of the mind. They portray a disturbing connection between human psychology and animal behavior. One particular video had human bodies with bird heads stepping all over what looked to be a human. It began cutting off the limbs of the human. It's almost as if the roles were switched. However, that isn't the only disturbing video, but I'll leave you to experience them for yourselves!

A new meaning of OCD

Yayoi Kusama is a Japanese artist. In 1977, she voluntarily admitted herself to a hospital where she would spend the rest of her life. Her OCD may have been considered a psychiatric problem, but I think it adds character to her work. Learning her history helps unfold her mystery.

Based in conceptual art, her work titled "Gold Shoes" from 2000 also shows attributes of feminism: i'll let you figure out how..

Interactive Art

The most fun art is the interactive art.

A Wednesday in Chelsea

Chelsea, NYC has more leading contemporary art galleries located in less than one square mile than anywhere else. After visiting this area, I felt like there was a new gallery everywhere we walked. One of the most amazing aspects about Chelsea is that within a decade, it went from nothing to gaining 170+ galleries. 

The Dia Center for the Arts; 1987

The Earth Room

Matthew Marks Gallery; 1994

Gagosian Gallery

Pop Shop; U R NEW YORK

Pop Art can be defined as art based on modern popular culture and the mass media. The Pop Shop in SoHo features this kind of art which I found to be extremely intriguing. It led me to U R New York, a two man collaboration who's street art really inspires me. Their collage works are especially exciting as they use materials found all over, like street signs and such. The team involves two street artists, Mike Baca (2esae) and Fernando Romero (ski).

"Eye of the Beholder"

Their main message is "be who you are." As an artist, that's the most important advice someone can give. After hearing their story, from living broken lives on the streets, in and out of jail, or spending time on probation, I have respect for their artwork. They've now turned their faults into something special and are trying to give back to the community. Their mission statement says, "We want to inspire creativity amongst people specifically the youth so they can pick up where we left off."

The Wall

One major landmark in SoHo is "The Wall" created by Forrest Myers in 1973. This wall structure is hard to miss. However, it's history is more inspiring than the work itself. After a ten year battle, two federal court cases, public hearings and endless rallies, the Landmarks Commission and the SoHo alliance gave Myers' work a permanent home. The new owners of the building settled on four small advertisements underneath the work, rather than keep fighting for a huge one to cover it up. They might think they won, but the work outshines the pointless advertisements anyway!

A Rooftop in SoHo

The view from my professor's studio

SoHo Landmark

Located on 101 Greene Street, "Subway Map Floating on a New York Sidewalk" was created by a Belgian artist, Francoise Schein in 1986. The concrete rods and lights used to make this piece go on for 87 feet. I can't wait to go back and see it at night time!

Jerilyn Jurinek: Minimal Living

Artists choose to live minimally.. why? Because they dedicate their lives to their passion. Jerilyn Jurinek is one of those artists who doesn't need much. I got the opportunity to see how she lives, get a feel for her artwork. The one television she has in her home is on the floor and it only plays DVDs. Majority of her space is occupied by books and studio space.

 

One inspiring thing about this particular artist, is that she works with her imagination from reading. It really is amazing  how people express themselves differently. She also dislikes working from photographs. After she explained her reasoning, it made me consider the difference between working from a photo rather than real life.

After speaking with her and asking questions, she told me I was too young to be patient. It meant something to me as a young artist. She explained to me that it just comes to you; being young requires practice and then  everything will fall into place, as it did for her. "Never be afraid to start"

SoHo: exposing the history

Being in SoHo for the first time was quite the experience. Seeing while learning was the best technique for me; walking through the streets while hearing stories of how artists illegally moved into abandon warehouses solely for the space for a studio. It's amazing to witness how SoHo has evolved, to see its history. With that being said, I've come to learn how history unfolds a mystery.

Loren Munk is a SoHo artist who had his debut in 1981

"Village of the Damned" 04-05 Loren Munk

"It's my theory that art is less mysterious than believed.  That the force we call art is creative energy passing through individuals, networks and associations.  Artists' communities and neighborhoods are the frameworks of this circuitry.  By understanding the placement of these creative components and their geographical relationships to each other, one can begin to recognize how the energy flows through these channels.  By exposing this history, one helps understand the mystery."

Artist's Statement

Biography

Born in the small town of Washingtonville, NY, Larissa Laba is an alumnus of Iona College. She has spent the last four years creating a life for herself. After maintaining a job and completing four years of school, she will be receiving her BA in Mass Communication with a concentration in Public Relations. It was not until her last two semesters that she was able to enroll in FPA courses; Drawing and Painting 1 and Watercolor. After fulfilling those two courses, she has earned the title of an artist.

Statement

My definition of the word artist is someone who can successfully express him or herself through any medium. Through the two FPA courses, I have established myself as exactly that. To me, art is an outlet in which I can easily express myself. I now define talent as satisfaction. I believe talent is the ability to be very good at something, but also something that satisfies oneself.

My passion for art began at the age of 10, when I began drawing Pokemon cards on a large scale on computer paper. I have taken art classes from first grade throughout my senior year of high school. I learned basic techniques regarding pencil, charcoal, pastel, acrylic paint and sculpture. My talents were suppressed when I came to college, but they were rejuvenated after completing my senior year.

The techniques I have acquired brought me to where I am today. I have looked back and am now aware of the progress I have made. I’ve learned to let my fear of a blank piece of paper go and in turn produce something I am proud of. For me, art has become a getaway, one that I will always run to.