Semester 1

Arts TRYathlon #1: NextNOW

An Evening With Elizabeth Gillies By the SEE Organization September 6, 2024

Dekelboum Concert Hall 

#Q&A #theater #well-being #advice

For this NextNow Fest, I decided to go to the Q&A “An Evening With Elizabeth Gillies” by the SEE Organization taking place at the Dekelboum Concert Hall at the Clarice. This Q&A contained information about her life, the films that she was in, and other aspects about her well-being. She provided a lot of information and advice that I have gained and will apply to my personal life. The first piece of advice that I took note of was to advocate for yourself. She expressed how while she was in production, she did not do things that she didn’t like or wasn’t comfortable with so she voiced her thoughts. Relating to this, she also explained how she took breaks. If she felt like something was too much, she didn’t continue or she took a breather. Another piece of advice that she gave was to create boundaries. This can be done in the work field or amongst your friends. It is always great to establish boundaries as it is important to respect one another and their space. The last take away that I received from this Q&A was that with any job that you take, you will develop new and different skills and use them for future projects. This was the strongest piece of advice that stuck with me as it is important to know and understand that all jobs come with a learning process that will be used in the future constantly. Overall, the Q&A experience was great. It really was a learning experience that will be used in my workspace. For instance, while learning and understanding new forms of art, I will be able to use my skills that I have developed from the experience and use it for my future tasks and assignments. The Q&A did challenge my definition of art as I didn’t expect a conversation to be considered art, However, she spoke about the art that she indulges in which is theater allowing myself to contribute this to the way I view art.

Arts TRYathlon #2: Choose Your Own Adventure

Pottery Painting  at All Fired Up, Washington D.C. September 15, 2024

#art #pottery #painting #ceramic

For my own adventure, I decided to go pottery painting with a few friends. It was at All Fired Up located in Washington, D.C. This experience included picking out different forms of ceramic objects and painting them to your liking. My friends and I decided to paint on a tile. I wanted to create something that matches my aesthetic so I decided to paint flowers with an olive green border around it. The process of creating these flowers was slightly hard as I am not used to painting on a small canvas. I ended up messing up a lot as I had to paint over my mistakes. I however was able to learn some more techniques from my friends allowing me to successfully complete my tile. Overall, my experience with pottery painting was amazing. I was able to connect with my friends and also learn new painting skills and techniques. A concept that I learned during this activity was patience. I tend to rush, especially when I am excited or passionate about something. However, completing something in a timely manner is always worth the great outcome. This experience has not altered my definition of art as I have already distinguished this to be art with my broad yet precise definition of art and what’s considered to be art, I can see that.

Arts TRYathlon #3: Friendship Bracelet Making

Bel Air Lounge October 9, 2024

#art #craft #artsandcraft #bracelet #yarn

For my final tryathlon for this semester, I decided to create bracelets with a friend. It was located in the Bel Air Lounge with one of our TA's Melody. This was a great experience. I enjoy creating and indulging in arts and crafts so this was something that quickly caught my eye. To start off, we received a cardboard wheel that had 8 slits in it. We then picked out the colors that we wanted, so I decided to go with all green. After that, we had to place each piece of yarn (7 total) through the slits and leave one of the slits empty. As they are in place, we tied a knot at the end so they don't move. The actual creating the bracelet part was challenging at first as I had to move one piece of yarn to the empty slit, rotate it counterclockwise, and repeat the process. However, I got the hang of it. I wasn’t able to complete making the bracelet there, however I was able to take it back with me so I can finish it in my free time. Overall, I really enjoyed this experience as I enjoy the making of craft. One concept that I learned would be to take your time. I was moving quickly which allowed mistakes to occur during the process. Nonetheless, I really enjoyed this form of art, allowing me to get a deeper and greater understanding of the arts itself.