The Powers Of Description

For the first time on Tuesday, I went to the Pollock dining hall for lunch.   Out of all of the other dining facilities, this one was the best.  At Pollock, they had lots of fresh foods, clean cooking spaces and a modernized eating areas. As I walked through the lines to get my food, the workers were constantly replacing containers with fresh fruits and cooked meals. Everything seemed very clean, including the pots, ledges and the workers even wore nice looking uniforms!  Everything was very presentable and customer friendly.  As soon as I walked into the dinning hall I was  surrounded by lots of bright colors and modern pieces of art.  The walls were all painted, and the plates were pretty unique as well, they were in the shape of triangles! Unlike the other facilities, the atmosphere in Pollock seemed happier, and more inviting.  Pollock also offered a lot of different places to get food. I did not have to stay in one single line, rather there are several with the same option. Pollock also has places for coffee and crepe lovers, that Im sure can be very nice, especially during the winter months. As a Penn State dining hall, I would rate Pollock  as number one for its great atmosphere and freshness. It’s a place worth checking out. 

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Palmer Museum Trip!

     

Self Portrait as Woman Recovering from Effects of Male Gaze (What’s Underneath) 

                                    Julie Heffernan ~1992 ~ Oil on Canvas                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        

In this painting there is a mound of grapes, pears, and a lot of apples. The colors consist of warm reds, oranges, greens, browns and yellows.  When you look at the center of this piece, there are two white washed out targets, one overlapping the other. Looking closer you will notice small scenes embedded, next to, or on individual pieces of fruit. Some of these pictures depict women while others are of scenes with a more symbolic meaning. Just to name a few, there is a picture of a girl eating, a child and her mother, a Chinese woman, a winding road, a targeted deer, and an arguing couple.

Although this painting was made in 1992, it looks like it belongs in the 1700's. If I had not looked at the description paragraph for the painting, I would have assumed that it was at least three hundred years old! It’s interesting how the artist portrays such a distant period, not only with her theme but also in the technique and style she used. Most of her pieces are impressions of 17th century art. In my opinion, she does this to make a social statement about women from that time period till now.  Despite the change in time, women still feel the same frustration.                                   

I believe that the pictures on the fruit depict the negative feelings women build up from the degrading effects of men. In one of the pictures, there is a deer with a target pointed at it. One could say that women feel targeted, or that  men treat them as something to go after. Another picture has a woman sticking her tongue out at a man, probably placed to represent anger or annoyance.

After I looked at the painting and read the title of the piece, I started to make emotional connections to what the artist was trying to say. I felt that the hidden   images represented sadness, loneliness, isolation, anger and depression. I was able to understand these emotions Julie Heffernan was trying to evoke.  I believe that her use of emotion (pathos) was the most powerful aspect of this piece. In reality, I see guys treating girls as targets or like objects. Not all guys are like that, but sometimes they can make a girl very frustrated and upset.

Julie Heffernan is a former professor for Penn State. She studied at the University of California, in Santa Cruz where she received a Bacheolor of Fine Arts. She also studied at the Yale School of Art and Architecture, in Conneticut where she received a Master in Fine Arts. Her work is exhibited all over the world, from places like London to New York City.  Something that I found really neat was that she was published in numerous newspapers like the New York Times! These were only a few of the great achievements she has made. From what I have read about her, she is a very hardworking and successful artist. Most of her work also comes from the style of the 1700's and is very surrealistic. After looking at some of her paintings, I noticed that most were of women.  I believe that this is a part of her style that makes her a well-known artist.

I believe that this painting makes single a claim of truth toward women’s emotions.  The little pictures throughout the painting  depict these emotions in a way that is pretty clear. The artist is trying to say that women build up feelings of frustration, sadness and anger from the negative effects of men.

I really enjoyed my experience at the Palmer Museum of Art. I never would have thought that Penn State even had their own museum!  I do not visit museums often, but I enjoy visiting them whenever I have the chance. I could imagine myself going back, probably with a friend or something.  On my second trip, I would probably spend more time reading a little more about the artist and their work. I really enjoyed this field trip and I hope we have more of them!

Sources for Julie Heffernan: http://www.luxartinstitute.org/Artist-Residency/Julie-Heffernan, http://www.google.com/imgres?q=Self+Portrait+as+Women+Recovering+from+Effects+of+Male+Gaze, http://www.dailyartfixx.com/2010/05/19/julie-heffernan-painting/.