Virgil Morrison - "Just the Two of Us" Rough Ideas

 My work is focused on using lesser known insects as a vehicle to talk about a variety of different topics. These can range from talking about the insect itself to discussing emotion or different food alternatives. With how bountiful and unique these creatures are, I have a whole pleather plethora of bugs to choose from. Over the past year though, I have been throwing myself into baking and cooking and it has become a huge part of my life. So my thought is that I would like to explore some aspects of food. More the form and texture of them and how I could translate piecrust into something fuzzy or the meat of a Tomahawk Steak in steel. I want there to be this feeling in my work where you just want to touch and explore the piece. My viewers should be drawn in and have feelings of joy when viewing the work or have fun when they interacte/ view it. 

Conceptionally  Conceptually I have had 2 ideas.

1. I really like the idea of  a slice of pie that is broken down to its most basic geometric form. I think that some sort of cream pie or lemon meringue pie would be fascinating because it feels the most organic because of the pudding or curd that is used in making said pies.

2.Dragonflies are fascinating to me because they are some of the most efficient hunters in the world. A study done at Harvard concluded that dragonflies  have a 90% to 95% success rate when catching pray and they can eat most anything from mosquitos to tadpoles to small minnows! Along with all this they are some of the most versatile flyers in nature. They can move forward, back, side to side, and even hover. I think that highlighting these beautiful predators would be interesting and almost having them in some sort of dynamic pose, or showing a fly or even a small fish in its claws flying away would make for an intriguing piece.

As far as artist that I have been looking at I really enjoy the way Alberto Giacometti uses texture in his work. All I want to do is feel and touch it because I am a very tactile person. I also really appreciate the recognizable forms that make up his work, but they are still so distorted by the texture. 

Either forms work though how do you speak about metal food beyond a fun thing to make?  What will the viewer see/get from the piece when they look at it? They will see artificial food.  Something immortalized that they cannot ingest. This does not mean you should not make it, but I am merely getting you to think about the why so you can speak about it.

The dragonfly exert has a link I added to a google page that shows you how many dragonflies have been made and put into our world.  Again, this does not mean you should not make this piece, I think you should make the dragonfly knowing you have other  insects in your portfolio, it is simply a way of asking how you can add to the conversation and put a new form out there. What does a dragonfly look like when it eats?

With all of the thinking I have done, I have come up with a third idea that revolves around the diversity of tree hoppers. These little creatures part of the same species but very unique in their appearances. These insects have an abnormally large thorax that comes up over their head and abdomen that is a evolutionary tool that is used for camouflages. Some evolve to look like different insects, while others look more like the nature that surrounds them. I think that this species of insect could potentially become a body of work on its own. With the introduction of common items and materials I think that these tree hoppers might become more personal, therefore easier to connect with then just a bug to look at. These tree hoppers could be used in a number of ways to talk about how we sometimes try to blend in with those around us or how we all have unique qualities that make us who we are, yet we are all still human. Doing further research, there are primarily photographs of these insects and the occasional drawing. 

As a starting point I decided to choose Kaikaia Gaga, which was named after Lady Gaga. Its color and and the thorny tree that protrudes off the thorax are all elements that drew me in. I really enjoyed its since of elegance and its overall form. As far as materials go, I was focusing on steel rod, paper and/or plaster and acrylic paint. I want to be able to take the top of the thorax off and the wings for shipping purposes.  I think that introducing article. I think that by incorporating  news articles revolving around diversity into the piece it would help highlight how we are all unique in our own ways. 

As far a deminsions go for this peice, I'm looking to make it 3 ft×3ft at the bair minimum. And I was thinking that I could potentially us plexi for the body, and introduce those thin steel sheet wings that we talked about on Tuesday. As far as the Maquettes go im very unsure if I did it correctly, but I like more plated geometric look that the card stock gives the peice.