I have a big idea...

Learning to pick out the BIG idea from the mass of other concepts is the goal of Walker in this article.

I deduced from the latter part of this article that rule breaking is another central idea, similar to that which Hickey wrote about. It's almost as if numerous artists and writers believe the time battered phrase "rules are meant to be broken." Who knows? Maybe they are right. In the case of art I agree with the statement. If rules weren't constantly broken in the art world be stuck going to galleries filled with glorified cave drawings. If the artists of past centuries had not set forth to break the mold of their generation, we would not know of the forms to come: cubism, surrealism, impressionism and countless others. I found this idea to be slightly inspiring, even outside of art. There will always be someone ahead of the times, aiming to break that mold and move culture forward.

One thing I would've hoped for from Walker in this article is a paragraph detailing how one chooses a big idea. On the first page we see a generally randomized list of examples but no real thought process into why they are considered to be big ideas as opposed to subjects or themes. It was simple for myself to understand the difference between subject and big idea but I struggled a little more separating themes from big ideas, mainly because there is the opportunity for them to be the same.

Basketball is art...

I thought I knew plenty about basketball, then I read this article. Nevertheless, Dave Hickey was a very entertaining read.

I had no trouble grasping his connection between the fluidity of basketball and it's similarity to art. "It's okay to drip paint." I had no trouble grasping the rules that began to govern both art and basketball. Hickey also focused on how rules affect every citizen from birth to death. Bringing in his own defiance of adolescence and later relating rules to the loss of freedom in basketball. The line that stood out most to me was "...when a rule ceases to liberate and begins to govern." I think a lot of times in society we perceive that all rules are meant to govern and control us. And while that is true in many instances, there are just as many that liberate us. Hickey even makes that point about basketball where rules were established that prohibited zone defense and made the game more of a "match-up."

I did have some trouble following along with his mannerisms. He was particular to basketball terminology and did talk about some plays that an amateur basketball watcher doesn't isn't always familiar with. It didn't inhibit Hickey from getting his point across to my reader base but I did struggle to keep up with his vocabulary. I felt no other detrimental effects of his writing and did enjoy the connection between the art and basketball worlds.

If I ever have to hear about Flatland again...

So, after reading The Cheese Monkeys excerpt by Chip Kidd, a little piece of me laughed while the rest of me wanted to beat my head against a wall as my head swelled with memories of suffering through Abbott's Flatland.

I read through the first two or three pages trying to get a grasp on Kidd's sarcastic style of writing and was later pleasantly entertained by his teaching of basic concepts. Visualizing the advertisement of a tomato for a farmer was by far the easiest to interpret. In conceptualizing big and small and it's usefulness in such an advertisement, Kidd made clear the proper time and place to use either approach. Going from a photo focusing a red background detailing tomatoes, however not accurately depicting them, to a picture slightly showing the stem, while still characterizing the tomato as large so that it invokes a certain imagery and is appealing to those in search of a perfect and mouthwatering fruit. It was a courageous approach to teaching a lesson in big and small that defined the proper approach to using either and catered to even the simplest minds.

I struggled a little bit more when Kidd introduced in front of and in back of. While he redefined the helpfulness and relevancy of big and small, he further introduced overlapping and perspective of clarity. I have had the privilege of reading Flatland, and by privilege I really mean it was forced upon me. I had more trouble, in response to this article, fitting dimensions and there infinite span into the rest of his claims. I don't quite understand how he is trying to connect the concepts of in front of and in back of to that of a sense of realization that comes with the dimensions around us.

I also chuckled at his statement comparing the seduction of the enemy into accepting what is and isn't real with the Pope and Catholic Church's enticement of millions of followers. It is a very broad and distant span of topics to try and connect but still quite humorous linking the two.

Making an Impression...

You wouldn't believe the time I spent simply coming up with a title for this blog. I fiddled around with so many options that my head started to spin. Then it dawned on me that only I would be this crazy about picking the perfect title...nutty in fact.

Nutty. The word that exemplifies my adventures and conquests.

I live a nutty life, literally. It doesn't help that my university's mascot is, coincidentally, a nut.

I've been requested to use this blog to complete projects for my art education class, but who knows, I probably will continue to ramble here long after the class comes to it's inevitable end.

A little more about myself.

My name is Laura, and as I previously stated, I'm a Buckeye who is trying to make it through her Political Science major and German minor. I devote my time to Delta Zeta and Buckeyethon, two wonderful organizations and where I have met most of my treasured friends. I discover bruises on a daily basis as I have no grace whatsoever...and that's ironic, because my middle name is indeed Grace. I also thoroughly love Maroon 5, The Barenaked Ladies, Paolo Nutini, Tonic and John Mayer. These are the most important facts of my life that can be condensed to 150 words.

And if any M!ch*g@n fans have stumbled onto this, see that little red X in the top right corner, CLICK IT.