“The journey of Love, Loss, and Hope”

I believe that the perfect place to have an art exhibition would be in the E building of LaGuardia Community College because it’s the most spacious building and has huge windows that display a serene courtyard. Even when it’s very crowded in the E building, there is still enough room to walk around so you won’t bump into people. Being as I have walked passed many functions being held in the E Building on the main floor near the library that would seem to be the ideal spot to hold and art showcase. By keeping it on the main floor, I would attract people who are on their way to class, or who are going to the library, or those who are just hanging out and taking a break from their studies. The audience of the artwork I would display would primarily be the people who are in the building looking at it as they pass by, but I would hope that the six pieces of art I chose would be diverse enough to make them come take a peek and not just a glance. If I had to choose a specific audience to target, I would choose individuals who aren’t afraid to dwell on the past, as some of the art reflects moments reflected by a significant meaning. I would also hope that the art not only serves as something pretty to look at, but also hits home to some of them. I want the on-lookers to feel a familiar sense of comfort knowing that they may know someone that looks like the women an artist has drawn, or have drove past a beautiful landscape much like one another artist has outlined. All in all, I hope that this exhibition is as familiar to their daily life as if it to mine.

"Portraits from Home" by Erin Case

     “The Common Concerns” by Anup Gomay

“Ying Yeung” sculpture by Tsang Cheung Shing

What I wanted to do with this art show was to give people an opportunity to be able to experience some important aspects of my life. I know that most people like being reminded of the happy times they shared amongst family, friends, or whoever there are in a relationship with, and that’s why these particular artists work stood out to me. When I researched the artists I was thinking about, I realized that their artwork reflected aspects I could relate to not only by terms of people and places, but more so on an emotional level. All of the artwork I picked evoked emotions for me, some are happy memories and some reflect bittersweet ones. This exhibition is important to me because I feel that my everyday routine of going to school can become boring and sometimes may leave me feeling as if I am just going through the motions, a feeling that is very relatable amongst my college peers. Amongst stumbling across this collection of art, I was looking for inspiration, which I was able to find. When I looked at Erin Case’s painting, I was reminded of times when I would drive past beautiful scenery on spur of the moment road trips and how no matter where I’m at, remembering who I was with on those roadtrips made me smile. When I looked at the brilliantly executed Buddha sculpture that Gonkar Gyatso created, I was reminded of how important it is to have faith, it showed me that it doesn’t matter what religion you follow, you could still find a moment of clarity by getting in touch with your beliefs. Anup Gomay’s portrait made me really happy to see the depictions of Indian women casually conversing being as my mother’s family is of Indian descent, and I was more so happy to look at the portrait which truly embraced what Indian women from a different country look like as opposed to the Bollywood perception of what Indian women look like. The fourth portrait by Juan Gatti was bittersweet for me because something about being able to see the veins in the hand trying to grasp the flowers in the garden reminded me of the loss of my parents. But the fifth and sixth piece of artwork on display, a sculpture of the kissing couple by Tsang Cheung Shing and Michael Creese’s portrait of a girl took away that previous feeling completely, re-assuring me that there is love all around if you just look for it. The familiar people, places, and things are all aspects of life that can either stress us out or calm us down, but more importantly evoke emotions, which whether good or bad can trigger memories that we can’t forget, memories that make us the person we are.

“Ciencias- Naturales” by Juan Gatti

Gonkar Gyatso's Buddha sculpture

“Alice in Wonderland” by Michael Creese

The artwork put on display reflects back on the title of the exhibition, “The journey of Love, Loss, and Hope”. I named the art exhibition that because on a personal note I can relate to all of the artwork on display. Though I picked various artists ranging from ethnic backgrounds, their artwork captivated me and took me to a familiar place. I decided to break the pieces up and put them into a category where I think they would fit best. For instance, I put the first painting, “Postcards from Home” by Erin Case under the journey category. This picture stood out to be because of its black and white background with its focal point being another picture in color. When I looked at Anup Gomay’s “The Common Concerns” painting, I was reminded of my mother’s Hindu culture as well as the familiarity of seeing a painting that reflects the imagery of what my immediate family members look like, so that went under the love category, which had two main points, the love for your family and the love for another person. Another demonstration of love was seen in Tsang Cheung Shing’s sculpture entitled “Ying Yeung”, showcasing a couple’s love for one another. The following category was loss, it was important for me to not only show art from a happy standpoint. Juan Gatti’s painting “Ciencias Naturales”, showed a hand trying to grasp flowers. I thought this painting was appealing because it gave off a sense of struggle between life and death, by the flowers being so lively and the hand coming up from the ground being so dull. The last category I created was hope, and Gonkar Gyatso’s Buddha sculpture as well as Michael Creese’s “Alice in Wonderland” painting gave me the feeling of peace, both pieces of work had a calmness effect to them. I found this collection of art to correspond with initial theme, which was to evoke emotion. I’m sure that anyone who checks out my art exhibit will find it relatable to their own life, being as we all hold our family and significant others near and dear, we all have lost important people in our lives, at times we often take trips to get away and get lost in the beautiful scenery, and last but not least, we find comfort and stability in believing that there’s always someone up above looking out for each and every one of us.