Author: Sofia Nielsen

This is my identity mask! I chose to make it multiple colors because when I paint red, yellow, and blue is the color combination I use the most. Each color represents a different part of my life. The blue portion represents my love for music, art, and learning. Since they are all passions of mine they got grouped together.The yellow portion has smiley faces because I like making people laugh, and a cross because I am a Eucharistic Minister at my Church. The light pink section represents how I present myself to the rest of the world. It has the blue and yellow flowing through it because I have become some what of an open book. Over time I have learned to embrace who I am, and I think my ability to be myself is something younger Sofia would be proud of.

La Boheme is an opera that follows a group of artists struggling to get by in 19th-century Paris. The main plot was the love story of Rodolfo and Mimi. This opera was then used as a reference for a movie called Rent. The movie is set in 20th-century New York. In the opera, Mimi is struggling to survive as she is battling tuberculosis. However, in the movie Mimi Marquez has been diagnosed with HIV and is addicted to drugs. Tuberculosis and HIV were both stigmatized diseases for their respective time periods. The creators of the movie Rent, very cleverly chose La Boheme to emulate, as it is an account of life. Even though the opera ends in Mimi’s death, the movie ends in Mimi’s survival. This change in the plot provides a more hopeful message that I appreciated. That even in the face of disease, addiction, and poverty the human spirit can find means to continue.

The play itself stands the test of time. So much so that we went to see it be preformed at the Lincoln Center. I really enjoyed seeing the opera. All the actors were so talented, and the fact that they don’t use microphones blows my mind. The sets were absolutely insane, I’m still curious how they fit horses and donkeys backstage. Even though I like the ending of the movie better, I think I preferred the opera as it was a new experience that I really enjoyed!

The zoom call with Rich Stremme was really interesting. I enjoyed learning about the history of tattooing and his experience in the Underground. Before the call I didn’t know tattooing was first used by sailors, so I found that pretty interesting. I’m really glad I got to find out about his favorite piece he tattooed about the molecules spelling out “I am starstuff.” Overall, he’s a really cool guy with an awesome beard.

On October 21st, the Brooklyn Museum was opened for Macaulay students. CSI students took a shuttle bus. The seats were very comfortable, and I sat next to my friend Vicky, who attends Brooklyn College. We played Scribbl.io on the way there and Uno on the way back on our phones.

We all sat in the big theater room and listened to the Dean speak; the seats were strangely fuzzy. I had a really good time walking around with my friends. There were so many rooms and they all had different themes which I thought was cool. However, the staff did yell at me twice for being too close to the paintings and using my flash on my camera :(. Thats okay though because we found Robert Mapplethroppe’s art work! Which was so cool since I read about his whole life story.

I had a lot of fun with my digital camera and took a bunch of close-up pictures of everyone’s faces.

On Sunday, we went as a class to the Arpino Dance Festival at the Joyce Theater in New York City. Since I was so close to the stage, the curtain didn’t look real. From the angle I was at it looked like a cartoon. Once the funky curtains rose, I was not expecting to see ballerinas. I was pleasantly surprised, as I’ve only seen a ballet once before (the Nutcracker). The third dance was my favorite, it was about a merman and a mermaid falling in love. It made me realize how versatile ballet as an art form can be, it is an excellent medium for storytelling. We actually got a picture with the lady ballerina from the third performance. She was so sweet by the way!

I also snuck a couple of photos of the dancers during the performance. I’m not sure if I was supposed to do that, but it’s too late now lol. A lot of the pictures came out blurry, but I managed to get one good one.

Overall, it was a great experience! Thank you to Mrs. French for accompanying us!

Some of us went out to eat afterwards, which was the cherry on top. Thank you, Mother Khadijah, for introducing me to Dave’s Hot Chicken.

This piece “Ignorance=Fear, Silence=Death,” was made by Keith Haring in 1989, during the AIDS crisis. HIV was a deadly disease that emerged in the early 1980s, primarily affecting gay men. The disease caused rapid immune system failure, and over 700,000 individuals died from AIDS. HIV was transmitted through the sharing of needles, sexual contact, and from mother to child transmission. There was widespread misinformation about the disease leading people to avoid even touching someone with the diagnosis. It led to the isolation and discrimination of people with AIDS, often paired with intense homophobia. Keith Haring was an openly gay man who contracted HIV during this epidemic, two years after his diagnosis he died of the disease. This piece was a deeply personal way of illustrating how misinformation and biased hatred impacts the human soul more than any disease.The big red X’s one the characters illustrates that when someone is diagnosed with the disease they are turned into a target for dehumanization. Act Up was an AIDS activist group during the time period. The piece was to encourage the public to stay informed because ignorance kills.

On Saturday, some of us went to the 11 am-12:30 pm Art Lab demo. It was so cool, they had a bunch of different rooms, each with its own artistic activity. I had enough time to do both a ceramic class and a painting class. It was really fun! I learned that I am not that good at ceramics, but that’s okay. In the painting demo the teacher had the loveliest set up of statues, flowers, and fruits. I started an oil painting, which I haven’t done in years. I think it was her oil paintings that were hung up around the room that inspired me to paint one as well.

After the demos were done, I walked around the fence show, and it was huge. There were so many artists and cool art! I ended up buying a clown magnet for $5; it was totally a steal. After walking around, we made the best decision and got Eggers.

I’m certain that their brownie sundae could bring me back from the dead. It is so bomb. Pro tip: If you pay with cash, it’s less expensive because the credit card tax is high at Eggers. It was also perfect ice cream weather!

Overall, I had a great experience. I was able to try new things, reignite old passions, and spend time with friends!

For the trip, a group of us decided to go to the Whitney together. Thank goodness for Khadijah; without her, we would not have made it there. It was raining a little, but my rain jacket could have doubled as a trench coat, so I was fine. Once we got there, I bought an overpriced cinnamon bun. So not worth it. On the other hand, the art was amazing.

I was able to see some of Edward Hooper’s paintings in person! It was so cool, since his work is an inspiration for my own. They also featured pieces by other famous artists, such as Keith Haring and Basquiat. Those paintings were alright, nothing too crazy.

My favorite paintings displayed were actually from artists whose names I can’t remember. I have them attached below. I loved how visually overstimulating these artworks are. They also transported me into the world of the painter. In my opinion, fame doesn’t make an art piece great. Rather, it is the authenticity of a painter and connection to their work, that makes a painting unforgettable.

We all got tiny art prints from a vending machine on the first floor when we were done looking around. After that, we got Korean food, which was absolutely worth it. I got the teriyaki chicken bowl, and it was bomb.

In 1P Jenna, Lukasz, Nicholas, and Sofia found a display of sticks and stones that were made to look like a melted snowman. Here are our thoughts:

Jenna:

This work definitely speaks to me. It makes me think of the end of winter. This end, to many, represents hope and warmer weather to come, but to this little guy it meant his time has come to end and that makes me realize that an event that is great to one could be detrimental to another.

Lukasz:

The snowman is a hidden treasure found in the wide lobby of 1P. Giving into the style of a melted snowman, it lies in the display case that presents the talents of CSI Students. You have to go out of your way to find it — not like a painting or wire sculptures. It is just one of the hidden treasures of CSI, and that is what constitutes the beauty of the CSI campus, which is secretly decorated with a variety of hidden treasures. The melted snowman is a true representation of CSI.

Nicholas:

The person who put this here was someone who was feeling very sentimental and wanted to immortalize the feeling of despair that they were experiencing. This is represented in the snowman stuck in its sad state, as it has melted and it has lost its form/shape. This relates to the person who put it here, someone who also feels lost and stuck in their ways.

Sofia:

When I was a kid, I would always wait for there to be enough snow on the ground to make a snowman. There was something so magical about creating something so fleeting. When the sun rose and the snow melted only the memory of the creation remained. To me this symbolizes the bittersweetness of growing up and undergoing changes. Change means the end of something familiar, but it also marks the start of something new. I think the melted snowman was made to immortalize a transition of season. To show how your past can guide your future.