I made my mask basic, but that ties into my identity, as I am a very simple and straightforward person. I thought about my identity, and the first thing that came to mind was my ethnicity. I am Filipino, and throughout my entire life, I’ve been surrounded by Filipino food, culture, and native language. On the other cheek, I found a photo of Snoopy with books. I am, at heart, a bookworm, and the image could symbolize my love of reading and my passion for learning. I wrote in marker subjects that I love, specifically the sciences. Additionally, I printed a photo of a camera because I love photography and own 4 cameras that I love switching between. Then, I have my dog on top because I really do identify as a dog lover/a dog owner. My dog has become my entire personality, and it came to a point a few years ago when I would only post my dog on social media, and it became a problem. On the left side, I love to travel, and I wrote some of the different countries I have visited. Then, in the middle, I have a little recipe image, as I’ve loved trying new foods since I was younger, whether that’s making them myself or going somewhere new. Even though I am not the best at baking and cooking, I still really enjoy the fun of it all. Then, I just added cute flowers and purple ribbons for decoration.
Last Sunday, we went to Lincoln Center to see the opera, La Bohème. The stage looked incredibly cool; it looked like a TV screen, and the background made it feel like you were actually there. Additionally, I liked how there were subtitles for each seat; privacy screens that covered them and it made the room extremely dark.
The scenes themselves were more interesting than I thought they would be, but I don’t think I would go to another one. I wish it were in English because it was a bit hard to watch what they were doing and read the subtitles at the same time.
Comparing La Bohème and Rent, I noticed many differences. To begin, a big one was the time period and location: La Boheme was set in Paris in the 1890s, while Rent took place in New York City, maybe in the 1980s. The main characters remained as poor artists who refused to pay rent; however, in La Bohème, they quickly pushed the issue away by distracting the landlord while in Rent, this event continued throughout the whole movie.
Both versions focused on the love and the strain of illnesses. However, in La Bohème, Mimi was suffering from Tuberculosis while in Rent, Mimi was suffering from AIDS. Mimi ended up passing away in La Bohème, while in Rent, she ended up surviving.
Another difference I noticed was Joanne. In both versions, Musetta/Maureen were known to be a flirt. However, in La Bohème, Marcello got back together with her, while in Rent, Mark didn’t get back together with her because Maureen was with Joanne. Also, Roger tried to avoid Mimi because he missed his last lover, who died from AIDS. While in La Bohème, Rodolpho was very quick to get with Mimi as he yearned for love.
In conclusion, there were many similarities and differences between La Bohème and Rent. I truly enjoyed experiencing both; it was my first time going to an opera, and I loved watching the movie Rent.
The Zoom call with Rich Stremme was very interesting. We were able to hear about the history of tattooing, its origins, and its role in American society. What I loved about this call was being able to hear about Rich’s journey through the industry and hearing him talk about something he is passionate about. I think people who get tattoos is a way for them to fully express themselves. I liked to hear about his experiences as well as his advice for people who plan to get tattoos. I appreciate the time and effort he dedicated to teach us about something new. I’m not gonna lie, this call influenced me to get a tattoo in the future!
Going to the museum, I was a bit tired from the earlier part of the day. The bus ride was about an hour, and we were taken to an auditorium. We were given a speech for about 30 minutes and I recognized the speakers from orientation in August.
I expected to have the entire museum to roam around. When we were only given the floor, it went by super fast, and we went through the floor relatively quickly. However, Kiera and I took multiple once-overs to check for any pieces we might have missed.
At the beginning, every floor was filled with people and I became hot very easily. I really like the art that I saw as they ranged from different techniques and forms. For example, one piece struck out to me because of the bright colors and the actual material of the paint used. Also, a few other paintings, involving realism, were extremely breath-taking. They looked just like an image and inspired a lot of emotion from my group.
As soon as I knew it, it was already 8:00 pm. The Night at the Museum went very quickly, and the people on the floor dispersed relatively quickly as well. At the end, I felt extremely tired and was not looking forward for the next day since I had an 8:00 am class and two exams back to back.
As soon as I arrived home, I showered and fell right to bed.
To conclude my experience, I did like the Night at the Museum; however, I wish we had more of the museum to explore than just one floor, because there were a lot of people in a small space, which kind of ruined the experience. Also, I wish the Night at the Museum was on a Thursday or Friday instead because it kind of threw my schedule off balance.
On my way to the Joyce Theater, I took the SIM33c to avoid the weather. It was about an hour bus ride and I arrived a bit earlier than expected, so I went to a coffee shop to get something warm to drink.
Afterwards, I walked to the theater and met up with the rest of the class. I was surprised our seats were right in the front. I honestly feel like it added to the experience though because we could hear the stomps of the dancers up close. The dance recital began around 2:05 p.m., and the first act was called ‘Confetti,’ I believe. I really liked this act; it was very cute, and it reminded me of the seasons.
For the second act, I did not like it at all. I am more into more lyrical dances, and this one, to me, was weird. I didn’t really understand what was being portrayed either. I only understood that they were in a boxing rink, but that’s really it.
For the third act, this was my favorite. It was very mystical, and I loved both of the dancers; they’re both incredibly talented! Especially when the guy held her with one arm, it was insane. In general, I just really liked the combination of the music and the dance. I felt like there was much more meaning behind it; it reminded me of a love story in some way.
For the fourth act, this was my favorite as well. It reminded me of the event theme ‘Arabian Nights’, like the music. Also, I liked how it was a group; it added a lot of dimension to the act. I thought it was so cool how everyone was in sync with each other as well. I think the lighting for this act, as well as the third, really added to the dance as well.
In all, I really enjoyed this trip! This was the first dance recital that I’ve been to, and I loved it! I would definitely like to attend another recital if one is scheduled.
This poster was created in response to the Vietnam War. The way that the words are written and the sunflower was drawn, was done to resemble a child-like creation. This style was intentional to gain a stronger grasp on the audience as children are seen to be vulnerable and worthy to protect.
This poster was made by Lorraine Schneider, who was a part of an organization called ‘Another Mother for Peace.’ This organization sought out to educate women about taking an active role in eliminating war. This piece is a product of Schneider’s participation in the association.
I think this poster is highly relevant today because of the amount of war and conflict around the world. Similar to the reaction to the Vietnam War, there is an immense amount of opposition to the violence and division that’s occurring. I think this poster can still have a major effect on society because it calls to action issues happening in current events.
To begin, I took two buses to reach the Staten Island Museum. I could drive, but I wasn’t sure what the parking situation would be like, so I opted to pay the $5.80. Once I got there, I met one of my classmates and we went to Building H, the art lab, and was quickly kicked out due to many of the teachers still setting up. We went back outside and just walked around for a bit until it turned 11:00am. Soon after, we met with other people from class who would join us in our experience.
Once it was 11, we signed in and the first class we took was the ceramics class. It was fun however, it wasn’t what I was expecting. I guess I got ceramics and pottery mixed up because I thought we were going to use the spinning wheel or just paint pre-made pieces. However, we all have our own spot at the table and was taught how to create a thumb pot (I think it was called that). The teacher taught us techniques in using clay and manipulating it to our desired shape.
Afterwards, we all dispersed to different rooms. I got a free sandwich! I was super happy because I love free food, and I was worried about what I would eat for lunch. Then, I watched some of them sketch and paint. I went to another room which was the darkroom photography. I am not gonna lie, this was probably my least favorite room because it wasn’t very interactive. Rather, it was like a lecture and I already have enough of those from classes. He was talking about how they develop images, I got confused only a minute in. I was lowkey happy to leave that room.
Lastly, I went to the collage room where I made my own card! I am actually considering whether to take the class they offer. I really enjoyed making it. I always enjoy those types of things, as I create collages for my computer and other electronics. Also, the teacher for that class is such a sweet guy! He was very soft spoken and I could tell he was very passionate about it. However, it’s $200 and its from 7:00pm until 9:00pm I think. Maybe I will do it some day.
After the collage making, I went home! I have never taken a real art class before, and it has always been on my bucket list. This experience has made me consider expanding on an interest of mine and possibly taking an art class. I’m really happy with what I experienced today.
Today, I visited the Whitney Museum of American Art with a group of classmates. What was great was that the tickets were free for people 25 years and younger! When I first arrived, I dropped off my bag at a locker because I brought my computer and iPad to study beforehand.
We began on the top floor, which included art from ‘Christine Sun Kim: All Day All Night’ and ‘Dyani White Kawk: Nourish Nancy Baker Cahill: Cento’. Personally, the eighth floor was my least favorite because it included art that I didn’t really understand or resonate with. However, we went out on the terrace and looked out at a lovely view.
As for the seventh floor, it featured art on ‘“Untitled” (America)‘ and “Claes Oldenburg: Drawn from Life“. This floor was nice because the art was based on life in America from different time periods. For example, I really liked this piece because it looks lifelike. The dark, navy filter that resembled the early evening, the illumination from the street lamp, the shadows, and even the liveliness of the crowd.
This piece is based on Chicago in the 1930s, specifically, neighborhoods that were culturally thriving due to the influx of African Americans. Additionally, we met a guy named James who explained a piece of art on the floor. At first, I thought these string lights were just decoration; however, James kindly clarified that the artist intended it to resemble the American dream. He really made my experience because he was kind, funny, and he kept insisting to spread his Instagram profile…
Lastly, the sixth floor was the last open floor called ‘Shifting Landscapes‘. This floor featured art that focused on various scenes. When we first walked in, we saw this beautiful structure that reminded me of Moana:
This floor featured numerous projector screens that displayed short films and videos with accompanying background sound and music. One of my favorite rooms included a short film shot in 1950s Los Angeles, California of this woman who kept talking about rain. She kept repeating how she will face the rain; in my opinion, I thought it symbolized life in a way, how she will face obstacles with a smile.
After the museum, there weren’t any more floors that featured art pieces. So, we went to the gift shop and we saw this vending machine type thing that is viral on TikTok. This was probably my favorite part of the museum as well because we were all very excited and happy to see what we received. Basically, you insert four quarters and a small piece of art is dispensed.
After that, the rest of the group went out to eat; however, I had to go home due to a meeting that evening.
In conclusion, the Whitney Museum was a great experience, and the people that I met/went with made it amazing!
