Hello! My name is Elle, a Fine Arts major and Women & Gender Studies minor at New England School of Art and Design at Suffolk University. I’ll be blogging about my experiences, work, and daily life here in Boston. To start off, I’d like to give you an insight to the title and thought process behind my blog. My title, “Joy: Rendered” stems from a favorite quote of mine that relates closely to both my major and minor. The quote is:
“Feminist art is not some tiny creek running off the great river of real art. It is not some crack in an otherwise flawless stone. It is art which is not based on the subjugation of one half of the species. It is art which will take the great human themes-love, death, heroism, suffering, history itself- and render them fully human.It may also, though perhaps our imaginations are so mutilated now that we are incapable even of the ambition, introduce a new theme, one as great as rich as those others-should we call it “joy”?” -Andrea Dworkin
Andrea Dworkin was a feminist and author who was active during the 1960’s and 70’s. She wrote on the sexuality of women as well as how women are objectified in different media outlets.
Feminist art, whether it be fine art, photography, installation or performance, has always been an area of work that has enticed and inspired me. Now, as I begin my journey to becoming a fine artist and feminist, it becomes not only an inspiration but an aspiration. I hope to bring the concepts and feelings from my Women & Gender Studies minor to the creation of meaningful art in my Fine Arts major.
These first couple weeks back at school have been crazy! I’m taking five classes. Three studio classes: Drawing: Structure and Expression, Painting, and Printmaking Studio, and two academic classes: Ideas of Western Art I and Ethics. I have classes Monday through Friday and my work study job at the NESAD Front Desk Sunday through Thursday. All of that combined with moving into my first apartment this year made for a crazy couple of weeks! I’m starting to feel much more settled in now as I’m getting into a rhythm with my classes and work and starting to feel more at home at my new place in Mission Hill.