Wk13: Sustainable Art

S U S T A I N A B L E S C U L P T U R E

Ephemeral Art

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What was your idea?

I decided to make a sculpture based off Minecraft characters because I have made one before made entirely out of cardboard. Since I enjoyed the result of the first one I made, this time I wanted to make a bigger figure and incorporate more “reused materials” instead of just using cardboard.

What materials did you choose?

I went through the recycling bin at my house and I found a lot of cardboard that I was able to use. I also decided to use a metal food can and a glass container I found that my sister threw out. Since I could not use any paint or colored paper in the piece, I used a bunch of blue gum wrappers to add some color to one of the legs. I also used leaves from my backyard and some orange peels to add color inside the head. However, I had to use some glue, tape, and string to be able to hold the sculpture together. I did try to minimize my use of those martials by not attaching the body together, instead they are just stacked on top on one another (separated into 4 pieces). 

Full list of materials:

Cardboard	Tin can	Glass container	leaves
Plastic	Orange peels	Gum wrappers	string
Plastic sheets	Used tin foil	Thrown out fabric	Used hair net

Do you think your piece was able to express your idea?

Yes, I do think that my piece was able to express my idea and I really liked the result of my work.

How did your choice of materials influence the experience of your artwork?

I had a general idea of what I wanted to create, so first, I had focused on finding some cardboard from old boxes or packages and from food items. Then, as I found more materials, I slowly designed the sculpture based on the materials I was able to find. overall, this project forced me to work with what I could find, rather than going out to buy things that I needed. These materials also affected my experience because I was limited with what colors I could use because I could not use paint to create the textures I wanted. However, I still enjoyed the project of making a sculpture from “found materials”

How long should a kiss last?

I guess it would depend on individual preference. 

How long should a great meal last?

This is another thing that would depend on individual preference. For example, in make case, the more I like the food, the faster I eat it because that I how I like to enjoy food. Typically, if I don’t actually like some food, I would eat it a lot slower.

How long should a work of art last?

Some works do not take much time to create but that does not make it less valuable than a work of art that took really long to create and I think the same goes for how long an art piece lasts. I believe that as long as you enjoy the result of a piece, it does not matter how long it lasts.

How long should a marriage last?

Ideally a marriage should last for the rest of the couples lives since it is a life-time commitment. However, in our society, it is much more common now to get a divorce than to forcefully stay married to someone. So, now it is best to end a marriage if it clearly isn’t functioning.

How long should a human life last?

I believe that the current life expectancy we have now is a good lifetime. I feel that if humans were immortal, a lot of people would not value their life as much. They may feel that they have an infinite amount of time to do things, therefore they would lose motivation to get things done and accomplish things throughout their life.

Does the fact that some things, like ephemeral artworks and human lives, have a finite time and then are gone make a difference in the way we experience them?

Yes, I do believe that because we know that something is finite, we tend to cherish it more. Our experience is different because we know that if we do not take the time to fully experience something, we can miss our only chance. On the other hand, if something is infinite, we tend to claim we “have all the time in the world” to experience it, and that leads us to not appreciate it fully. Even now, when we lose something people often use the expression “you don’t appreciate something until it’s gone” so I can imagine that humans may not appreciate something if it were infinite.

Should other things, like clean water, air, and land be sustainable and long lasting?

Ideally, yes, these things should be sustainable and long lasting, but humans often think that these things are infinite and do not treat these resources carefully. We overuse them without realizing that they are finite resources that will eventually run out if we do not use them wisely.

Can one person, like you, make a difference in a global problem like Climate Change?

I believe one person can make a difference because they can set an example for others to follow. Often this is the way trends spread around the internet, it can work the same way if even just a single person uses their platform to spread important issues.