Online Gallery: Alex Curley

Frist Sculpture Project Fall 11

2011-10-18T13:31:00.000-07:00

WEDDING PORTRAIT

2011-08-04T18:43:00.000-07:00

NO POST... FOR AWHILE

2011-05-27T19:02:00.001-07:00

End of Freshman year! I am currently working on some new projects and preparing for the work in my double majors. my blogger will go into hibernation starting now. Will be reawaken soon.

Book Making

2011-04-22T11:59:00.001-07:00

I titled this piece "Shape Shifter" because I found that this characteristic or description of water seems very appropriate in relation to the book's content. This book showcases semi abstract representations of different bodies of water and the processes that occur when water meets with its surroundings.

The book's pages (or as I like to call them Flag Pages) are joined together with twine and can be displayed altogether hanging above a doorway or on a wall, like a string of flags.

Each Flag Page is made up of different layers of hand dyed and stained paper. Hidden within the layers are clues that describe what each Flag Page represents.

If you are interested in reading this book or to just view this piece in person I would be more than happy to meet with you.

Ramy Ram

2011-04-22T11:48:00.000-07:00

First acrylic painting for Surface Class! For this assignment I experimented and examined how an animal's fur/texture could be rendered with paint through different types of mark making. Inspired by the painting techniques used by Post-Impressionistic artists like Van Gogh, I decided to use a swirling brushstroke to create the ram's coat of curly fur. Can't wait to hang this in my new house this fall!
GO VCU RAMS! :)

Playing around with Final Cut

2011-04-02T08:32:00.001-07:00

This video is my experimentation in video editing software Final Cut. I had a lot of fun with this program, and after my teacher gave my class a quick tutorial, Final Cut seems to be quite fun and easy to work with. I am very happy with all of the possibilities that you can do to your videos.

Color Study

2011-04-02T08:21:00.001-07:00

For this Surface Project I looked to the work created by optical artist and painted this color study. This painting started off with a quick pen spiral scribble the I enlarged onto a 2x2 ft board. I really enjoy this type of mark-making and I like to incorporate it into my artwork. While working on this piece I explored the depth and flatness that certain combination of colors can create on the surface of a painting. Very satisfied with the final product. :)

Waste

2011-03-27T19:06:00.000-07:00

This video titled "Waste and Consumption: Montage Documentary of Richmond" is a brief documentation of the waste and use of materials that I experience and see on a regular bases. Hopefully this video will increase the viewer's awareness their process of acquiring things and disposing them. This video was inspired by a documentary made by the Russian director Dziga Vertov in the 1920's. In his documentary Man With The Movie Camera, Vertov used a revolutionary editing techniques including montage and other forms of film manipulation to create special effects. He documented the industrial revolution that was taking place in Soviet Russia without the use of narration or explanation. The viewer was held responsible to interpret these images to understand what the directors intention was.

Time

2011-03-10T11:52:00.000-08:00

Animation about time

Hanging Patterns

2011-03-09T09:39:00.000-08:00

This project's process started out with designing and creating a print out of a sheet of linoleum. That print was like a tessellation in that it was able to be printed multiple times to create a pattern. The final part of this process was creating a three dimensional object out of the printed patterned surface. To create a unified combination of surface and sculpture, the structure's shape and form to relate the original pattern. I also decided to incorporate light in the piece in order to activate the negative space within the hanging forms. Overall I am very happy with out this piece turned out. I really like the way the light intereacted with the sculpture, so I will definitely want to explore the possibilities of light in the future.

Stop Motion!

2011-02-21T17:46:00.000-08:00

My first stop motion of a small clay cat figure that I found. :)
For time class

Another Image Abstraction

2011-02-21T17:05:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures of my most recent surface assignment. For the project assignment I was instructed to draw a series of an interesting object over and over on a piece of newsprint paper. I chose a glass candle holder and drew it in a variety of sizes and angles on that paper. Then the next step in this process was to cut up that paper into squares and reassemble it into a totally new composition where whole objects become fragmented and abstracted. The final product was drawn in charcoal on a large piece of rag paper. Interesting process for this assignment and I have to say an interesting final product, something that I had never done before.

28 Weeks Later Remake

2011-02-12T22:54:00.000-08:00

Remake of the opening scene of 28 Weeks Later for Time Studio class!

Home

2011-02-12T21:58:00.000-08:00

Assignment: Tell A Personal Story

1st Surface Project

2011-02-12T21:25:00.000-08:00

50+ Characters

2011-02-10T08:19:00.000-08:00

Here are some pictures of my final installation of my second surface project. For this assignment I was to examine figure and ground relationships using 50 or more 6x6 squares. Influenced by the Zodiac, Taoism, and maps of star constellations, I decided to paint a multitude of abstract ink characters, figures, and symbols and arrange them in a circle with two stabilizing columns on each side. Each character was inspired by either natural or artificial aspects of my environment. Inspiration ranges from animals, people, and even architecture.
I have to say this was one of the most relaxing projects I have ever created. The whole process was enjoyably organic and each character seemed to effortlessly flow from one to the next.

Inspiration: Trigrams, the Myan Calendar, and of course the Zodiac.

First AFO Time Class Assignment

2011-02-03T15:44:00.000-08:00

For time class my assignment was to film a one minute continuous shot without any edits. I decided to use this opportunity to experiment in the medium that I have been looking forward to for a while now. I checked out an HD flip camera from the office to film these videos. Unfortunately the settings on the HD flip cameras are all automatic, but the quality is pretty decent compared to my other point and shoot camera. Though I would rather prefer to work with a DLSR with manual focus and a nice shallow depth of field, high end semi professional cameras cost a fortune. Although I am not working in the quality that I would prefer, I want to use what I have available and try to create successful videos and sound without expensive equipment and editing software. My Time teacher emphasizes expression, composition, and other formal elements over technical quality.
These two videos are the first films that I made for my Time Class this semester. The first one was filmed in a strange addition of rooms that I found in one of the academic buildings of VCU and the second was filmed on a cardboard surface in my dorm room. I was inspired by the passageway that led to the odd hallway with a cluster of empty rooms. My first long shot is a continuation of the similar theme of awakening and awareness that was expressed in my first film Ortus (film still below) and my second long shot is hopefully self explanatory. :)

Graphic

2011-01-30T14:59:00.000-08:00

These are some pictures of my second Surface Assignment, (the first assignment will be posted soon) Using elements of design that we discussed in class, I had to create a balanced composition that examines figure/ground relationships using multiple letterforms. I cropped and layered the letters in to create an abstract composition.

Semester 2

2011-01-14T14:37:00.000-08:00

It is the end of winter break and I would like to return to school now. A lot has changed since I was last in the city. I have some cool ideas and some interesting classes this semester, and excited to make some new art in some new mediums. This semester I also will be applying to my desired major: Art Education. I am looking forward to seeing my friends that went away over break. This semester is hopefully going to be a new chapter for me.

Ortus: Film Stills

2011-01-04T21:05:00.000-08:00

Here are some stills from my first film titled Ortus. This is the final product for my last project in my Space class. For our last project I created cloth armor out of wire and white t shirts. For our critique, I decided to present it though a video rather than display it in a gallery setting to further illustrate my concept

The Latin word Ortus means birth, to rise, become visible, or to appear. Basically, my video is about awareness and an awakening from of an artificial existence.

Thank you Grace H. for helping me film this video! :D
Check out Grace's blog at http://thearchipelago-go.blogspot.com/

Portrait of Jonna Lee

2011-01-03T18:22:00.000-08:00

Over winter break I decided that I needed to create some art. This is a portrait of the musician and artist Jonna Lee. From the forest of Sweden, Jonna Lee and her team (also known as Iamamiwhoami) have created beautiful electronic music videos and uploaded them one at a time over a series of months onto youtube. To read more visit Iam's Wiki and see the videos click here. This viral marketing campaign has been a huge source of inspiration for me in the past year and I would encourage checking it out!

Ink Magazine

2010-12-13T12:50:00.000-08:00

Featured Artist in Ink Magazine! Check it out! :)

Here is the typed interview. I have to give credit to interviewer Jaime Barnett for making me seem like I knew what I was talking about haha.

Alex Curley
Interviewed by Jaime Barnett

Year: Freshman
Hometown: Richmond

How did you choose VCU?:
It was in my own backyard, practically.

Favorite Medium:
Really, everything. I used to be very interested in charcoal but sculpture is really refreshing right now. I'm working with cardboard in Johnson Foster's class which is all new too. Currently I'm working on a project called Floating Cities, which encompasses two of my current influences; oriental aesthetics and architecture.

How would you describe your art making process?:
I think the combination of both AFO and an intrinsic drive gives me the ability to interpret structured assignments with few limitations. It's got me constantly thinking: "What's the next step?" For instance with floating cities, the process just keeps evolving. I got to a point where it was like, "What do I do with this? Oh, hang them!" The program helps guide things in a way, but in the end I have complete freedom and control to create my art.

If you could narrow it down to three majors in the arts program, what would you choose?
Art Education
Sculpture
Film

What influences you?
Photography, not so much as a medium to pursue, just beautiful photographs. Buildings, the architecture of the city, how everything kind of stacks and fits together. Egon Schiele, street art.

Anything you want to say to fellow AFO students or those thinking of pursuing the AFO program?
I encourage everyone to use this time to get really experimental. Don't half ass it.
(lol didn't say this but oh well.)

Exploring Space: Finished

2010-10-19T14:47:00.000-07:00

This is the final step and a finished completed project for my latest space assignment. To get the this finale, my class went through a series of steps including, a panorama, scale changes, simplified lines, and then adding what my professor called a final "skin." Originally a photo panorama of belle isle's abandoned warehouse, my projected ended up to be a wooden fame that supported drapes of white fabric. This project was about exploring a process and how we would get to an end result. During my critique I had my project out outside (like in these pictures) so that if the wind would blow, which it did, the fabric would fly around. My professor mentioned that the "decorative" aspect of fabric seemed off, as if the fabric was just added to original structure but didn't relate to the structure. I can see what he means, it's like I took a tree and then adorned it with ornaments until I reached a Christmas tree, which isn't really considered "fine art." I enjoyed working with wood for the first time, but I just don't know where I am going to store this! Running out of room!

Drawing Class

2010-10-15T14:26:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures of some of the work I have been doing in my drawing class. My drawing class is very intense and hard. Six hours on my Fridays are spent in a drawing room attempting to draw EXACTLY how my professor tells me. These pieces of art do not showcase my style at all, but my professor is trying to get us to disregard our styles and draw exactly what we see. The finished product shouldn't have contour lines. (because lines don't exit, it's just planes of tone intersecting) It also can't be too dark or too light because no shadow is truly black and highlights are never pure white. Overall the class grade averages out to a C right now. On the still life with the cup, plate, and five apples, my professor gave me a B+ and said "It's not bad... Not bad at all" He has yet to give anyone over a B+ to anyone yet haha!

Floating Cities

2010-09-28T13:04:00.000-07:00

The past week I have really been inspired by the change in scenery since I moved to VCU. The campus and the districts surrounding it are architecturally and aesthetically different than quiet suburbia that I grew up in. At first it was overwhelming getting used to my new "home," the crowds of people, and the sensory stimulation of a busy urban campus, but now I am finding more and more inspiration from the layers, textures, and structures of Richmond.
For my Intro to the University I was instructed to create a journal and write about what I find Inspiring.
So now I will be updating my blog about things that I see, read, and even comments and feedback from professors and peers. I would also like to include pictures of a finished piece of art that was shaped by a certain inspiration.

The pictures above are from my final sculpture for my sculpture project class, and the pictures below are are some of the original inspirations for that project. Some of the pictures are of telephone wires and alleyways that I took around campus when walking to class. Some are pictures I found online from Japan and the walled city of Kowloon. I am interested in the complexity of a city, in its layering of cram-packed apartments, towering skyscrapers, spider web like telephone wires, and coble stone alleyways. So I decided to create my own floating city out of cardboard and tape. I really like working with cardboard because it is free and you can manipulate it any way you want. Also recycling is pretty awesome! I've had this idea in my head for a while now, and I am glad I was finally able to create it! :D

Exploring Space: Panorama

2010-09-22T11:17:00.001-07:00

My second assignment for space class was the most frustrating project I have worked on in a really long time. We had to find an interior space and photograph every inch of it to create a panorama. Then we had to compile all of the photos together to create one whole perspective of the entire interior.
This is a panorama of the abandoned iron warehouse at belle isle. This place is really beautiful and I thought of it immediately when my professor gave us the assignment. It is an awesome bike ride to the river from the doors too!
But..
It took over 3 hours to finally print all of the images because the library printers would not function properly and then another 3 hours to finally create the scene.
I hated the process, but I am really happy with the final result.

First project of AFO COMPLETED!

2010-09-22T11:06:00.000-07:00

My Book light is finished! First completed space project! It is now installed on the 5th floor entrance wall at Bowe St. Deck. It will be up for two weeks. As of now it is displayed closed, but in a week I plan to display it open. Yes, it does open and light up! :)

The Beginning Of Art Foundation

2010-09-12T14:55:00.000-07:00

Art Foundation at VCU is going great so far. My work load has picked up tremendously. Just yesterday I spent over 12 hours working on my cardboard sculpture project for my Space Research class! Weekends aren't about hanging out anymore. Instead, they are for working on homework and projects. It has been really intense and the grading system is so harsh. Everyone in my drawing class has an average of a C or D. Nobody has a B, and I don't think it is possible to get an A. I am going to try for that A though! It has been hard to update my blog with the projects that I am working on because I am so busy, but I will definitely post my finished projects when I complete them.

Above is the beginning of my sculpture project for space. I am making a giant book light!

......

So the other day I was asked to be interviewed by Marlee. Marlee is a really awesome girl that lives in Johnson's Artist colony, and she is making a blog of VCU student artist on her blog series called "Art Freak of the Week." Check out the interview and her blog!

Here is the video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=07vWN4dFQRI
and here is Marlee's Blog.
http://apsalmofmylife.blogspot.com/2010/09/art-freak-of-week-1-alex.html

Linocut!

2010-08-09T15:44:00.000-07:00

At the beginning of this summer I felt like I needed to try to create something other than a charcoal portrait. Screen printing has always interested me, but I am very unfamiliar with that medium. I could teach myself, but the supplies are so expensive and the process seems complicated. I did not want to start anything that I would get frustrated over so I decided to try another form of printmaking: linocut printing!

Carving into linoleum is rather simple and all you need is printing ink, a rubber brayer, a speed ball cutter, and a sheet of linoleum, which was actually hard for me to find.

Everywhere your tool touches and carves become light, and everywhere you leave uncarved becomes shadow. This this negative-positive-flip-flop process is opposite from drawing, and it took a few trials for me to figure out what I needed to leave and carve away.

So far I've printed on scrap wood. paper, and fabric and all seem to work very well. I like this medium and creating multiples of a piece of artwork is really exciting! Useful!

A Quick Book Review!

2010-08-06T19:08:00.001-07:00

As my summer ends before my first semester of college, I am just finishing up The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot for VCU's summer reading. It's a non fiction book about a lot of things, mostly Henrietta Lacks's cells and the struggles faced by the Lack's family around these cells. Very insightful and reads like a novel. So far so good!

The beginning of this spring I was FINALLY able to finish up The Tao of Inner Peace by Diane Dreher, which I had been reading on and off for weeks. Suggested by Adam, I found this book helpful for managing stress and anxiety. I really enjoyed reading part five: The Way of Peace, which offers beneficial practices for resolving conflict, building cooperation, and creating Taoist politics and communities using the teachings written by Lao Tzu and Dreher's wisdom through her own personal experiences. I just never had the chance to read it straight through without weeks in between sittings. But it's not Dreher's fault, I was just busy. I will re-read again someday. Thanks Adam! I recommend this book!

I read both The Man in the High Castle by Philip k. Dick and The Lord of the Flies by William Golding simultaneously during July. Both books were intense and really interesting to read. Philip K. Dick wrote Man in the High Castle in the 60's. His book takes place in an Axis occupied America after Germany, Italy, and Japan win WWII. It's one of those books that jumps from one character to the next every other chapter or so. Each perspective provides the reader with more and more insight to this alternate word. There was an interesting twist at the end, but it didn't have a real ending, which I like. I recommend this book!

My least favorite this summer was The Lord of the Flies because I don't like feeling aggravated while reading a book. I can see why it's considered a classic though..

I turn 19 tomorrow
Hooray! :)

The Age of Gold & Ben the Bike Rider

2010-08-01T12:33:00.000-07:00

The Age of Gold and Ben the Bike Rider were the last two pieces I created for the senior show. By this time I started to get very tired of only drawing portraits on paper. so I decided to experiment more with the mixed media and three dimensional elements. The Age of Gold is created out of a mixture of joint compound, house paint, oil paint, graphite and pen on board. Ben the Bike Rider was drawn on a wooden board that Adam found in an alleyway. I decided to create abstract pieces around the wooden board out of cardboard, balsa wood, and wire to incorporate elements of a bike. I am planning to continue to work with in the style in the future.

I would like to continue to find and utilize abandoned and trashed materials (found objects like wood boards, recycled paper, and cardboard) for the surfaces of my portraits and drawings. These surfaces have already been made beautifully by its previous users, weather, and time. I see a real importance in recycling the materials around me in my own way.

Portrait of Mom & Dad

2010-07-31T13:20:00.000-07:00

I actually was working on this piece while I was finishing the portrait of Mrs. D. It took forever to finish! (well, a few months) I started this piece at the beginning of winter and planned on giving the finished piece to my parents for Christmas. But with college and scholarship applications, I had little time to work to finish this piece for my portfolio. So, after Christmas and after I received my acceptance letter from Virginia commonwealth university (yay!) I finally was able to finish my portrait of my parents. Merry belated Christmas!

Portrait of Mrs. D

2010-07-20T19:37:00.000-07:00

My second portrait on stained rag paper was of my art teacher Mrs. D. Mrs. D was my high school art teacher my freshman and junior years of CFA. During my senior year I took her AP Art History class, and it was amazing. Mrs. D had an eloquent way with words.

Aunt Gloria

2010-07-20T08:39:00.001-07:00

When I returned to school my teacher, Ms. Scurlock, suggested that I should try drawing on paper instead of mixed media, paint, and wood. I just needed another subject to draw. So, Meredith invited me over to her Great Aunt's house for an authentic Italian dinner that Sunday night to introduce me to my next subject, Aunt Gloria. I had a wonderful dinner with Aunt Gloria and her family, and while I was there she allowed me to take a few pictures of her for my new project. I drew Aunt Gloria with charcoal pencil on a sheet of tea stained rag paper, and I have to say this is probably my favorite piece. Working on paper was much faster and easier than working with the mixed media on board, so, I was excited to continue to work more with the tea stained paper in my future projects.

Adam in water and Meredith in the Wind

2010-07-19T19:49:00.001-07:00

After creating my portrait of Kendall at the end of my junior year, my new assignment was to create two more pieces of art over my summer break. The new artwork would be included in my senior portfolio when I returned to school that fall. Both Adam in Water (top) and Meredith in the Wind (below) were created for this assignment because Meredith and Adam play significant roles in my life, and it was important for me to create portraits of them.

During this time, the pose that I drew Meredith and Adam in really resonated with me because I felt like it embodied the nameless euphoric sensation that I was trying to communicate. (wow!)

It was somewhat stressful creating these portraits. I had never drawn portraits of other people this big before, and I was still beginning to experiment with the application of mixed media, color, and composition. During this time I used a lot of joint compound underneath the paint to create texture, which I regret now because it is not archival and very toxic to breathe. After finishing these portraits, I learned a lot about process, media, and myself. I now had 3 finished pieces for my senior portfolio!

Portrait of Kendall

2010-07-17T19:52:00.000-07:00

The Portrait of Kendall was my first charcoal drawing on board. I created it for my final home project at the end Junior year in Mrs. Dowdy's class (2009). Kendall is one of my good friends from high school and she was such fun to draw!
I think this piece shows the mark makings that I was beginning to experiment with at the time. This was the first finished portrait for my portfolio.