My Brain Is Turning to Mush!

Okay so when I tell people my schedule this semester they look at me and say, "that's pathetic, that's so easy." When I tell them I haven't bought a single book the exclaim, "NO FAIR!" So this is my turn to publicly state that no my schedule is in fact not easy and I would almost rather buy books!

My classes this semester are my pre-visual arts classes. Which include 2-D design and a drawing class. Let's get something straight here that many seem to not understand. I am a photographer, not a drawing abstract thinking artist. I work with a camera, just because my major says visual arts does NOT mean I can draw. So these classes for me is like taking mandarin or something. My teachers are awesome and VERY entertaining but the work load and the amount of thought that has to go into my work is crazy overwhelming. The first week of classes I had a huge (I'm talking as in points and in size) project do. It took some thinking that I had never done before. That same weekend I got assigned in my drawing class 120 gesture drawings that had to be done in 3 days. In my 2-D class I got assigned an assignment to do 8 more smaller projects similar to my big first project.  Can you say WOAH?!

The worst is that the teachers are interesting and give almost no instruction on how anything should be done. They tell you the project and that's it. We are just supposed to be creative with no rules. Well, I'm an artist that likes rules. Photography has rules; abstract art apparently does not! So I have really been struggling. I am trying to think and be creative and after 2 weeks of this I have come to the conclusion that my brain has turned into mush due to excessive thinking. When I am working on art and someone is talking to me, my English becomes almost incomprehensible. My words become all jumbled and I'm left sounding like a fool. Example: A boy came over to my apt. and wanted to chat but I had to do 120 drawings and while he was talking to me I literally could not get out one sentence that was coherent. He got so confused and frustrated by my lack of English that he left and said we would talk some other time.

So what should you get out of this you may ask? I LOVE MY CLASSES!!!! I am definitely not excelling in them but for the first time in my college career I am really enjoying what I'm doing. My brain is being pushed; I'm being pushed. It's so exciting, hopefully I can officially get into the major and really get into the classes specified for my taste of art but for right now I'm enjoying it so much. Do I feel like throwing things when I'm working? Yes. Do I get a little moody when I'm creatively blocked? Yes. Have loved every minute of this? Yes! Can I understand my teachers half the time? No. Do they never fail to make me laugh? Yes.

So If my writing here is bad, I sincerely apologize. At least you don't have to listen to it. Oh and to address the whole no buying books issue for some of you out there. Look at what I did have to spend my hard-earned money on instead:
3 pieces of masonite board      1 tube of oil paint     3 paint brushes    1 GIANT pad of newsprint paper
1 pieces of plexi glass  1 set of gouache paint   10-15 sticks of Nupastels    20 sticks of charcoal
4 different sizes of pencils (I didn't know there were different sizes)  $80 pad of colored paper
Glue  Several sheets of really nice paper  24" ruler  1 Sharpie  1 exacto knife  Mineral Spirits
There is a lot more but I can't think of them right now... my brain is tired!

So instead of my regular pictures with a post I'm going to show you some of my projects I have been working on.

 They are both A LOT bigger but I couldn't accurately show that here. But they are gigantic. But I don't think they look that bad... Maybe there is hope for me in the VA program! haha