Lucero Torres - 5 Artists

Who were the 5 +artists you chose videos about?

Marela Zacarías

Sarah Sze

Jordan Casteel

Adam Milner

Eli Sudbrack

What were 5+ of the themes the artists addressed about making work?

Marela Zacarías

Zacarias’ work involved intricate patterns of 67 colors that were inspired by Mayan patterns. She mentions how “these symbols survived colonization and modern times."

Even though Zacarias has lived more than half of her life in the US she returns to her roots by taking inspiration from her Mexican background.

Sarah Sze

Sze used her piece as “an opportunity to examine and amplify how we move through space.” Sze discusses how she took inspiration from the Italian Futurists and Russian Constructivists movements and she states, “they were obsessed with this idea of the acceleration of the experience of time.

Jordan Casteel

Jordan Casteel documents everyday subjects with her focus being on Black men. She wants these men to be shown “not as characters but as people.” Casteel uses her camera to capture her subjects before she begins her paintings to document all the details and feelings that she saw and felt in her subject. "It's my way of trying to reconnect with the immediacy that happens if you're sitting in front of somebody," says Casteel.

Adam Milner

Milner’s artwork mixes and matches various objects and explores the relationship with physical items that we tend to overlook but still fill our lives.

Eli Sudbrack

Eli Sudbrack uses reference and imagery from other projects and transforms it to make it his own from one project to the next. He incorporates many themes and ideas into his work.

What were 5+ challenges the artists faced in making their work?

Marela Zacarías

In the video Zacarías states how once she chooses colors for the parts of her piece she has to record what she’s doing. She numbers all 67 colors that she uses. However this is a challenge for her since she normally doesn’t do this for her work and it's not her type of personality to be this meticulous and organized. She says in the video, “It's something that I’ve had to learn.”

Her art assistant also mentions how since space is limited in the studio they won’t be able to see the completed piece put all together so they’ll rely on Zacarías vision to guide them.

Sarah Sze

There was pressure on Sze because she’s worked many years on this design and this subway station is something she and everyone will have to see everyday for probably the rest of their lives.

She also mentioned how one of the things that was difficult for her to understand until her piece was actually made, was how a person would view the stations from certain levels. A person coming from one way needs to be able to differentiate where they are in the subway station.

Jordan Casteel

As she states in the video Casteel has found a way to enter the art market which has been dominated by older white males. She feels that the access she has gained comes with responsibility to improve the field for others.

Adam Milner

Milner discusses how at a thrift shop things are sold side by side with no real separation or distinction between items. However in a museum there’s this “white box display,” which carefully highlights valuable objects. For Milner, the difference between home to thrift shops to museums is an on-going lesson in what could be viewed as valuable versus just trash.

Eli Sudbrack

Sudbrack says in the video has issues with leaving areas white in his pieces but he is indecisive if he should fill it up with color or go crazy with a pattern.

He also mentions that paint he is using doesn’t do well with overlaying more colors so once he colors something in he is stuck with it meaning he has to make sure he is happy with it or else he just has to deal with the results.

What were 5+ inspirations you drew from the artists?

Marela Zacarías

As a fellow Mexican American, I realized I really don’t appreciate my own culture ‘s art. There’s many beautiful uses of color and pattern in Ancient Mayan culture that can inspire me as well.

Sarah Sze

For her installation that focused on a piece of paper and how it moves through space it made me think about how I can focus more on the mundane. Sometimes I may feel like my work needs to be flashier and more bold but I think understanding that beauty can come from the mundane is an important thing to remember. There is value in figuring out how to add significance to the simple things without it being overwhelming, especially in graphic design.

Jordan Casteel

It’s great to see that someone who has been able to break into the art market is trying to improve it for others. It’s inspiring to see Casteel’s work. Her paintings of these black men really captured intimacy and emotion. For me, the art that tends to attract my attention is human centered art. I know that when I’ve done self portraits of myself for class projects I struggled greatly to make my portrait feel human. Her artwork makes me want to improve my skills.

Adam Milner

Objects have life to them and they speak to all of us. There’s a reason why we choose to keep certain objects and discard others. Hearing how he talks about how when we're done with something, it still exists in the world makes me think about all the things I thought I was getting rid of.

Eli Sudbrack

In graphic design, a common belief is that white space is good space. However, Eli fills up white space in what feels like a chaotic way but seeing the planning of each layer shows that he knows what composition works for his piece. I used to have such a hard time accepting that white space is active and not empty and I wanted to fill it up so badly. Over time I am learning when I need white space in a design piece and when I should fill it up but Eli inspires me to take more chances with filling up white space.

What were 5+ things you would like to incorporate into your own work after watching these videos?

Marela Zacarías

I want to better use color. As a graphic designer, I noticed I easily get swept up by trends and tend to start following instead of doing my own thing. I want to become more unpredictable and exciting with my color use in my design work.

Sarah Sze

I want to have a stronger understanding of space. Typically my graphic design work is projected on screens and printed out. However, I think I need to not limit myself to only thinking about being confined to a piece of paper or a screen.

Jordan Casteel

Seeing Casteel’s pieces felt impactful to me even through a video screen. As a graphic designer I feel like the best type of design is the one that focuses on humans. Graphic design is more commercial art and the work that I’ve made decent money on was advertising for businesses, but the work that’s made me the happiest was aimed at helping people find resources that will help them in life. I want more work to be for the people and not just design for the sake of design.

Adam Milner

There’s a part in the video where Milner explains how he loves coming across garbage on the street and takes photos of the garbage and the accidental composition of it because it can inspire new compositions in his work. I think I’ll be doing this as well. I feel like coming up with interesting compositions is hard for me to do. I always play it safe and need to switch things up.

Eli Sudbrack

The way Sudbrack uses other ideas and references in an innovative way in his paintings is something I want to get better at in my work. Although I use reference in my work, sometimes it’s difficult to make it my own. It looks too similar at times and I worry if it borders on copying the original reference too much. Gaining better confidence in using reference and making it innovative is something I want to improve in myself.

Marela Zacarías

Sarah Sze

Jordan Casteel

Adam Milner

Eli Sudbrack