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Joanna G.

Encounters

Curatorial Rationale

According to Oscar Wilde, “Life imitates Art far more than Art imitates Life.” My belief that art cannot be separated from life drives me to explore the theme of Encounter throughout my artworks. In the past two years of my IB Visual Arts journey, I forged new friendships, rediscovered my culture, drew new inspiration, and experienced isolation because of the pandemic. Those encounters became the concepts for my artworks and the inspiration for my artistic style. Mr. Doodle inspired me to open my imaginary world and freely express myself as a solitary figure. Yao Chen’s incredible paper-cutting skill and the Chinese New Year paintings drove me to share the richness of Chinese culture to the audience. Dalu Yang’s admiration of Vincent van Gogh motivated me to develop my artistic style. I referenced Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s Impressionist style to portray friendship.

Throughout my exhibition, I want my audience to witness my versatility as an artist. Since every encounter is special to me, I used different media to find the best way to depict each encounter. This is the reason why the sizes and media of the artworks varied. My three-dimensional artwork is the smallest; my two-dimensional and digital artworks are closer to each other in size. The media I used were markers and ink, acrylic, paper cutting, digital, air clay, color pencils, white pen, and watercolor. My exhibition will be in an enclosed space consisting of four walls that represent each of the concepts. This space, which is accessible through a gap that serves as the entrance, represents my world where the audience will experience my “encounters: through my artworks”.

On the first wall, the audience will encounter my concept of self in isolation due to the pandemic. I use representation in “Revelry of Solitude” and “Cycle” to depict how a person can be either optimistic or pessimistic even while being confined in solitude. In “Revelry of Solitude,” I used vivid colors and various doodles to portray how one can have a rich imagination and enjoy the freedom of being alone. I used clay and kept the sculpture white to depict a person who is deeply engrossed in digital activity. I used a white figure as the focal point for both of the artworks, providing a space for the audience to imagine themselves in these two states. 

On the second wall, the audience will encounter how I reacquainted with my culture. I choose to place it on the center wall since I want to emphasize how the Chinese culture plays a significant part in my life. To share Chinese traditional practices that I deeply hold on to with the audience, I created three artworks, “Chinese ‘Niu’ Year,” “Red Envelope,” and “Tuan Yuan (Family Reunion)” by using paper-cutting technique and clear-outline technique to best depict Chinese culture. Red is dominant among all three artworks because it is auspicious and symbolizes luck in Chinese culture. In addition, I want the non-Chinese audience to know the meaning behind each Chinese cultural practice and to appreciate its richness. 

On the third wall, the audience will encounter the concept of Inspiration. This is how I met the masters who influenced my style. . “Selfie,” “The Ordinary Path,” and “Among Us”, are influenced by Van Gogh’s short and heavy brushstroke and Dalu’s Chinese freehand brushstrokes. By looking at the artwork, the audience should see the connection that links Van Gogh, Dalu, and me, through self-expression and artistic style.

             

The last wall is an encounter with the concept of Friendships. I choose to end with this concept because I want to show my gratitude for the presence of my friends from the beginning to the end of my IB art journey. “Sparkles” and “Happier Than Ever” both use my self-portrait as the focal point to show the special bond with my friends to the audience. 

This exhibition will include ten of my artworks. They all tell a unique encounter story. This also helps the audience to have a better understanding of me as an artist. My artworks will then serve as the intermediary between my audience and me.

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Happier than Ever

Color pencil and markers on Canson paper
29.7 cm x 42 cm

This portrays myself in a blissful moment after returning to face-to-face classes. I am expressing the my happiness over the memories I was able to make with my friends during the reunion. I used a mix of reality and imagination to show the focal point and my thought process. I used color pencils to draw out the realistic portrait of the figure while using markers to trace out the friend group photo memories.

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Sparkles

Acrylic on canvas

30.48 x 45.72 cm

In portraying a long-lasting friendship, I was influenced by “Jeanne Samary in a Low Necked Dress” by Renoir. I used short-brush stroke technique and Impressionist style to capture the intimacy between two friends. The reverse composition of two human figures and split complementary color scheme portray the ‘yin and yang’ – the two complementary forces that interconnect and harmonize. 

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The Ordinary Path

Acrylic on canvas
50 cm x 70 cm

This depicts Dalu Yang’s seven kinds of emotions. Inspired by his “Elegy of Joy,'' I included the composition of eight human figures with me looking at Dalu from behind. My position shows empathy for Dalu and the expression of emotion through the images. I want to show how I observe and learn from Dalu’s expressive artistic style and freehand brushstrokes. At the same time, I also use the painting style of Van Gogh for the background just like what Dalu did.

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Selfie

Acrylic on canvas
50.8 cm X 60.96 cm

This artwork portrays my imaginary first encounter with Van Gogh. Inspired by Dalu’s “Wardmate” and his intention of showing his connection with Van Gogh through the composition of two human figures, I painted myself taking a selfie with him inside his art gallery, in front of two of his iconic artworks. By applying Van Gogh’s thick and heavy brush strokes, I appropriated Van Gogh’s portrait and his two artworks “Sunflowers” and “Wheat Field with Cypresses” in a very contemporary setting. 

Among Us

Digital Painting

30 cm x 50 cm

This is a group portrait of myself with Dalu and Van Gogh. I switched the artists’ techniques in painting them to show their interconnection. I painted Dalu using Van Gogh’s style, while I painted Van Gogh by using Dalu’s style, and I painted myself with the mix of both artists’ styles. I adopted the same rhythm with “Portrait of Pere Tanguy” by using the color squares in the background. Overall, this artwork depicts Van Gogh’s heritage to succeeding generations of artists.

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Tuan Yuan (Family Reunion)

Color pencil on Canson Paper

29.7 cm x 42 cm

The series of Chinese culture ends with this artwork. It presents the partaking of traditional dishes such as Peking duck, meatball, fish, chicken, pork, and stir-fried pork with green peppers during family dinner on New Year’s Eve. Each dish has a special meaning to welcome the New Year. The human figures in this parenting are placed in close proximity with one another to depict a warm and auspicious atmosphere.

Red Envelope

Markers on Canson Paper

29.7cm x 38cm

This shows the Chinese traditional practice of the elderly handing out red envelopes to their grandchildren - a gesture rich in conveying good luck. To show the auspiciousness of the cultural practice, red is used dominantly in the artwork and in the clothing of the figures. Lucky symbols of carp, clouds, and narcissus are drawn on the clothing. This artwork uses the “clear outline techniques” traditionally used in Chinese New Year paintings. 

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Chinese ‘Niu’ Year

Paper cutting

18cm x 16cm x12cm

I want to pay homage to my Chinese heritage. “My Mom and I Are Feeding Roosters" by Yao Chen inspired me to use symbolic patterns of zodiac animal signs to convey the jubilant wishes on Chinese New Year, which is represented on the 6 sides of the lantern. Lanterns symbolize the act of parting with the past year and welcoming the new one. Red color symbolizes good luck and happiness in Chinese, therefore it can be seen everywhere on Chinese New Year. 

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Cycle

Air-dry clay

14 cm x 6.9 cm x 7cm

“Cycle” reveals the issue of Internet addiction, especially during the COVID pandemic when online entertainment becomes the main pastime. To express the feeling of getting into the addiction loop, I put a human figure emerging from the phone, representing how we are living inside the digital world and the danger of being caught in a vicious cycle that may eventually lead to addiction.

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Revelry of Solitude

Markers on vellum

40.64 x 50.8cm

Mr. Doodle’s “Doodle of Adam” and the uniqueness of each figure inspired me. I used distorted body movements to show the freedom of self-expression. The characters are drawn tightly to create a carnival-like feel. Negative space allows the use of color blocks that blend to represent the richness of a person’s inner world. The focal point symbolizes solitude - a prerequisite to self-actualization. It emphasizes the effect of solitude during quarantine: the opportunity to become a better person.

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