Lauren Simonutti

I find Simonutti's work to be extremely interesting due to the strange nature of her images. They are truly thought up in moments of insanity. They take place in mundane places yet the images are not taken of realistic life. She successfully makes the mundane interesting and even scary. I want my work to have this same effect. This idea of taking everyday places like the kitchen and my bedroom, and turning it into part of a fantasy novel.


Biography: 
"Imagine being diagnosed with “rapidly cycling mixed state bipolar with schizoaffective disorder” (hearing alien voices in your head ), being a photographer, being on meds that allow you some clarity, isolating yourself in your digs, and recording your responses to your condition in straight toned scenario shots; and you will grasp Lauren Simonutti’s amazing project of projecting subjective images of mental disease into small-format silver gelatin contact prints," (Newcityart.com).

Quotes:
"The problem with madness is that you can feel it coming but when you tell people you think you are going crazy they do not believe you." - Lauren Simonutti


"I am aware enough to know the things I see and hear are not real, but that does not mean I do not still see and hear them. " - Lauren Simonutti

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Review

Ryan Mcginness Response

Ryan's lecture was very different from most artist lectures I have gone to. Most artists talk about their work for a majority of the lecture and then do a short question and answer session. This lecture seemed extremely question based and dealt less with concept. His work could be described as complicated, laid back, and design oriented because it seems heavily influenced by his early years immersed in the skater culture of VA Beach.

I found his work at the VMFA was the most interesting because it became a graphic design type piece that was directly influenced from art history. I found it extremely interesting that he successfully mixed work that had more commercial nature with a concept rooted in the fine arts. His quote "Art History is not linear" was extremely compelling because I felt it applied so well to this work.

My questions were not answered but I feel that the second one about if he was influenced by graffiti was somewhat answered. He seems very interested in icons, and logos rather than graffiti. The idea of identifiable icons is much more obvious in his work rather than graffiti.

Environment

Environment has become extremely important in my work because it is supposed to be this unrealistic event taking place in a mundane space. The spacing of objects and furniture in a room has become very interesting to me because the environment has become so important to my images. Feng Shui is all about how to arrange your room in order to have perfect harmony. I am interested in doing the opposite of this in my images. I do not want harmony, I want imbalance. 

Quotes:

"Feng shui manages five main elements which we should always have in mind when harmonizing our environment: water, wood, fire, earth and metal"


"Feng shui is an ancient and wise approach to the way our environment affects us. "


Feng Shui Tips & Tricks. Web. 31 Mar. 2011. <http://www.fengshuicrazy.com/>.
This article explained what Feng Shui is and how it can affect our day to day lives. It was very easy to read and understand. It also the map of Feng Shui which is a way for us to figure out where we need to place the furniture in our rooms. The article explained that this is based on the natural elements of water, wood, fire, earth, and metal.

Ryan Mcguiness Questions

1. Would you say that working as an intern right after college at the Andy Warhol museum influenced your work?

2. Does your work have a heavy influence from graffiti?

Jack Spencer

I find Spencer's work finds a way to set his ordinary subjects within nature and create fantastical images out of them. His use of soft focus is what makes his images so compelling. The way that he captures movement and pieces of a scene makes his images a mystery. My images are quite the opposite of these. They are in color and in sharp focus but i wonder if this style would work within my series.

Biography:
"Somewhere along the back roads of small towns dotting the Louisiana and Mississippi landscape is Jack Spencer, a self-taught photographer, searching for beauty. Driving through forgotten towns, lush bayous, overgrown cotton fields and visiting weathered porches filled with the sound of authentic country blues, Spencer watches and listens, always looking for that one moment, interaction or ray of light that inspires him to take a picture. His photographs illuminate a singular mood, person or place, exposing us to the raw beauty etched into the faces and landscapes in the South, as he returns time and again to his subjects, peeling away layers, offering us a glimpse at another facet of their character."- Catherine Edelman Gallery


Quotes:
" Throughout his travels, Spencer looks for the unexpected, waiting patiently for images to emerge." - Catherine Edelman Gallery


" It is here, among the ceremonies, festivals and sun drenched streets that Spencer has created his newest works, photographing everyday heroics prevalent in ordinary life" - Catherine Edelman Gallery


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Interview

Lauren Nakadate Reponse

I found the lecture to be extremely inspiring because her work deals so much with connected in with those outside of the art world by making them a part of her work. I would feel uncomfortable doing the kind of work she does because I do not like approaching strangers or going over to strange men's houses. Nevertheless I am impressed that she cares about her work so much that she was willing to do this.

I would describe her work as documentation, connecting, and gutsy. Her work is a constant documentation of connections that strangers share with her. Even her early series in college is a documentation of this by photographing these women she doesn't know as they party and live lives that are opposite of what the stereotype is. Many times she uses men that the average women would not want to go into an apartment with, let alone get in their underwear with. She says that being a stranger and going up to someone and asking them to have this experience with her was "heartbreaking and funny". She said that many these men in her early work did not have a female presence in their life so her connections with them was important.

Her most compelling work to me was the OPPS! video in which she danced with strangers that she approached in parking lots. The reaction that they men had were funny but also compelling because it was obvious they were enjoying the company. Watching the connection they shared through dancing to a pop song was extremely intriguing.

My question about if she tries to have a narrative in her still work since she also working in video was answered. Her work does not really have a narrative in her photographs, instead they are a documentation of reality or like with her pin up pictures, they are a statement and also about connections due to the finger prints. My other question had dealt with if her work had any feminists undertones since she was in her underwear for most of the pictures. For the most part she is in her underwear for reasons other than a feminist attitude. She seems to see nakedness as another connection between two people.

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