For this project I used a familiar setting and Disney’s familiar characters to create works of art that hopefully most of my peers can connect with and understand.
My idea behind this project was to make art that my peers could relate to and also find amusing. I thought that making something relatable and humorous was one of the best ways to attract someone to a piece of art enough to cause them to want to buy it. My goal was to make something that someone would want to hang on their wall because they could connect to it.
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Context
Like Andy Warhol, I used content that I hoped was familiar to almost all of my viewers. However, while Warhol used household objects and celebrities, I used Disney characters that I assumed everyone would immediately recognize. I rely on this recognition to create the humorous aspect of my work. Each character’s identity and story is a crucial part of my pictures. Just like Warhol’s message would have been different if instead of celebrities he used everyday people, my pictures would convey a very different meaning if unfamiliar characters were used.
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Process
My first idea for this assignment was to create a mash-up of songs because that would be something made from another’s work that I personally would want to buy. However, I soon discovered that I had no clue how to make a mash-up, so I began to think of other ideas.
However, thinking of something someone else would buy was difficult
because something that had personal significance might mean nothing to someone
else. I finally thought of the idea to combine Carnegie Mellon with Disney
characters because it was something I think almost all, if not all, of my peers
here would recognize and connect with. We are here on campus everyday, so I was
hoping that artwork that incorporates such a familiar setting would be
attractive to a good majority of us here. I tried to use aspects of Carnegie
Mellon that are important and unique to the school including painting the fence
and Walking to the Sky. I chose Disney characters because they are so
recognizable and their stories are so well known.
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Product
I created 5 pictures of Disney characters at Carnegie Mellon: Belle reading a book outside of Hunt Library, the Queen of Heart’s playing cards painting the fence (instead of the roses they usually paint), Cruella de Vil eyeing the scotty dog mascot, Peter Pan flying around Walking to the Sky, and Wall-E rolling around Gates.
I first went around campus and took pictures of the locations I wanted to use. Except for the picture of the scotty dog mascot, the background images of my works are my own photos. Then I downloaded the Disney characters from the Internet and used Photoshop to put them into my pictures.
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Belle Reading Outside Hunt
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Painting the Fence
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Cruella's Next Project
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Walking to The Sky And Straight On 'Till Morning
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Wall-E in Gates
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Critique
I am pleased with the outcome. I think my works are amusing because they are so relatable and because I was able to combine each character’s specific story with a very familiar and unique part of our university. I believe that my intent and my outcome match well.
Belle: I like how Belle is the focus but that the background is clearly Hunt Library with a CMU banner on the far right of the image.
Playing cards: This one incorporates something very unique to CMU. Both the characters and the Fence are main focuses of the piece.
Cruella de Vil: The scotty dog mascot is in the foreground of the image with Cruella in the background. I like the placement because having Cruella in the background adds to her character’s intentions- she is sneaking up on the mascot.
Peter Pan: I like the action conveyed in this image. It looks like Peter Pan is flying over to the Walking to the Sky sculpture. Peter is in the foreground with the unique aspect of CMU just slightly behind him but still centered.
Wall-E: Wall-E is the focus, but the Gates sign is very prominent as well.
With Wall-E slightly to the left of center and the sign on the right, I think
there is a nice balance.
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Reflection
When I first began this assignment I had a hard time thinking of something other than a mash-up of songs that would be attractive to an audience. Then I realized that making something recognizable and relatable could be just as attractive. Thus, I think I learned something about making a piece someone would hypothetically want to buy- it needs to be something they can connect to and understand. I don’t think I would have done anything differently for this assignment- I am pleased with my outcome.
For this project I used a familiar setting and Disney’s familiar characters to create works of art that hopefully most of my peers can connect with and understand.
