Final Project

Epilogue

2006-10-14T19:10:05+02:00

True, during the last few months I got to know certain artists, but before anything else – I was privileged to get to know certain people – human beings!
Indeed it was my privilege to hear their fascinating stories, discuss a variety of ideas and thoughts and encounter new environments.
For all of that, and more, I am most grateful!

This project leads to many interpretations and different conclusions. However, I do not intend to discuss here but my own personal view and interpretation, which are based on my familiarity with both artists and materials. I do recognize, of course, that from this point forth, everybody can draw their own conclusions.

I have chosen artists who are in different stages of life and career. Some are already very established – achieved international fame and appreciation and won many prizes and awards, while others are young starting artists – still struggling, searching for the right way, experimenting in various fields, seeking exposure to all genres of the Visual Arts, aspiring to leave their own unique impression.
Most of them are free agents and are not tied down to any fixed place or location – they actually live and create, simultaneously, in several places in the world, or they live in one place but work in several. One way or another, the imprint of the "open global world" is noticeable about them.
They've all emphasized and even defined the importance of the environment to their creativity and creation!

But what exactly is considered – environment of creation and creativity? What is it made of – what goes into its making? Is it definite, fixed, with (physical) boundaries, or is it changing or even mobile?

The results of my research show that artists would go to any length in order to establish for themselves the right environment that would enable them to create. Even if the conditions are far from ideal, or the circumstances are forced, artists would always manage to find their own niche for creating, because this need (to create) burns in their bones and the urge is imbued in their being. Accordingly, we can see (in this project) some artists who work from a small room in their homes, or turned their parking into a studio… We can also see other artists who own spacious and established studios, yet, they continue their creation process after work-hours at home, or while they travel. "The creative process is an addictive and endless journey!" (Priddle)
The inner will and need to create everyday something new – to make nothing into something – is what drives many of the artists. Others are driven by an urgent wish to communicate, tell a story, transmit a massage, and realize their abilities and themselves.

The urge of some artists to constantly invent and create – to self surprise – comes from within the creation and stirs them towards colorful journeys and far searches in unknown, distant and mysterious locations. Other artists, again, prefer to look and search in their immediate surroundings and mostly within themselves – to make something into something-else – because everything is there: one only needs "to look around the world" (La Spada); " to walk through the world with open eyes" (Luckhaus); to sort and process the offerings of the environment, because " Art and Creation are everywhere, they can be found on every corner, in life itself, in its most day-to day activities...It's just about looking with intensity and understanding its deepest meaning.."(Canudas). It is possible to create anywhere and everywhere. However, the stages of observing, sorting, processing and communicating – are the things which imprint the artist's unique qualities upon his/her creation.

Artists also aspire to be involved in the shaping of their surroundings and try to mold them to fit their own needs or concepts. For example, Canudas, who is highly involved through intensive activity and writing in the social and urban designing of his environment in Barcelona; or Ivanoff, who regards Designing a means of social protest.

Since artists aspire to design their living environment, their interaction with it becomes an integral part of their creation. Most artists indicated the landscape where they live – whether urban or countryside – as an ever flowing source of inspiration. Even the artists that chose to live in big cities because they needed both the urban pulse and landscape for creating, also turn to Nature – the City's green lungs, a park or a river – seeking inspiration or recreation activities (Luckhaus, Aqua, Palmer); Other artists chose to live away from the city, in a farm or a secluded area in the countryside – to create within the evergreen thickness of a forest, or by the blue sea and its white beaches (Priddle, Cazes, Suneson).

The artists who work as free agents, usually chose to have their studio inside or in the vicinity of their homes – in order to integrate successfully self realization and an artistic career with meaningful contribution to and active participation in the family life (Priddle, Suneson). Certain artists chose to have their studio not directly at home but very close by (Aqua). All these elements clearly indicate the significance of home and family to the creative artist (the family narrative appears time and again in the notes of Morales, Aqua and Suneson).

The daily-routine components – proved very significant:
Most of the artists get up fairly early in the morning, and as soon as they have their first coffee (interestingly enough, they all prefer coffee in the morning! Nobody has mentioned any other preference, like tea, for instance!), or a light breakfast, sometimes while they have it, they right away reconnect with the global world – they turn on the computer to check their emails. This means that strait from the very intimate moment of waking and getting up in the morning – they already feel the need to tie in with the big world.
Most of them invest at least 12 hours a day in their work. Also, many of them are very partial to all the genres of Art and therefore, the creative process practically accompanies them through the day: "Most things I do are connected in one way or another to my work, on different levels of consciousness, or – if they involve creativity of any sort – they turn into work projects which I then continue with for clients... This can be both a blessing and a curse at the same time" (Luckhaus).
Most of the artists self prepare their breakfast and light lunch, but dinner belongs to the time of leisure or to the time with the family. Partiality to American food (Coca Cola and Hamburgers) is global and crosses all borders. However, aside of it, most of the artists do prefer particular unique local dishes (Fu, Canudas, Ouso).
Most of them dedicate their leisure time to family or friends. Interestingly enough, in many cases the best friends are also artists or designers and sometimes even studio partners.
For recreation – they mostly hang in coffee shops and restaurants or visit the theatre, and some also engage in sports, sometimes even competitively (Canudas, Priddle, Suneson).
Most of the artists pointed at music and book-reading as sources of inspiration. It is important to note therefore, that they read diverse world literature along with books about Art and Designing (La Spada, Aqua, Canudas).
The music many of them listen to as background or source of inspiration is mostly classical music or world music. For some, music is actually an integral element of the lifestyle and creation (Aqua, Ivanoff).
The sum of these elements – of intimacy, family, social relations and intellectual tendencies – form a kind of an environmental mosaic in which each of these artists lives and creates, i.e. their "creative environment".

Global vs. Local
The local element is easily recognized in all the artists, in their expressed love for their homes as well as the surrounding view or nature seen from the window. The global element is emphasized by the mobility and frequent traveling around the world, the ability to work (create) in a borderless universe, the use of Internet for data and information as well as the flooding of markets by international commodities. Notwithstanding, some of the artists clearly noted their reservation as well, of the Globalization processes because of the negative impact upon the uniqueness of individuality and locality (Priddle).
Although the world is global and "open", the artists still retain each, an individual "sub-environment" that contains only what they choose to bring in from the "global", in order to maintain a common platform with colleagues and peers. This leaves them free to develop each an individualistic and unique creation out of their personal synthesis between "global" and "local".
A world without borders provides high levels of mobility and exposure, but these essentially are obstacles on the way of creation, i.e. the artist's need to create something of nothing and self surprise. For these things artists usually look (besides in the "global" and "general") within themselves – inside the individual environment that they've each created by molding anything into something of their own: i.e. – their steady and established environment – consisted of elements that they themselves have selected to include in, like books, music, friends, recreation activities, TV programs and the use of computer (they all have computers and email). The degree to which each of them would allow physical or virtual self exposure vis-à-vis the global world, or even the extent of self mobility – are in effect imbued in each individual "environment".
This is what I call "sub-environment" or "creative environment" – i.e. the personal, individual, unique environment inherent to each artist, because it contains his or her selection of contents, whether drawn from the global sphere – public, national or international culture, or from the private, intimate and unique one. These selected contents play a major role in the artist's self created synthesis between "personal" and "general", "global" and "local".

Prior to launching this project, I used to think that since the world was shrinking gradually into a mere "global village", there would be no significant differences between environments of different artists. This was my view until I've encountered two important aspects that also became focal points of my project:
The first point is – that although various countries around the world commonly share the Visual Culture, in some of the countries the local culture still exists and even becoming more enhanced. Often, it actually carries the banner of substantive protest against Globalization.
The second point is – the existence of "sub-environments" which are self created by people, particularly artists, wherever they are. Every artist manages to fit him/her self with conditions suited to his/her specific needs of self expression and creativity. Suitable environment is not necessarily the ideal environment. Often, it is the outcome of forced circumstances (money, family, health, etc.): an artist can create on the computer at home, in an improvised workshop inside the home parking, or in an ever changing hotel-room, (if he/she happen to spend much time on travels - for shooting campaigns, giving lectures or demonstrations, etc.)
What proved strikingly interesting about this project – was the realization that artists indeed created their own unique (and therefore different) environments, consisting of habits, hobbies and forced circumstances, and affecting, consciously or not, their creativity and creation.

I hereby thank all the artists who allowed me a look into their private world, their life, family, loves, aspirations and longings!

About me

2006-07-01T17:54:38+02:00

My name is Liat Harel , and I am 24 years old.
In these very days I'm finishing 4 years of studies at Bezalel Academy of Art and Designing, in Jerusalem. From this moment on, everything is open and my life is about to launch…
I was born and brought up in Jerusalem - a holly city but difficult, soaked with beauty and magic, but also with constant daily conflicts. I'm grateful for my life in Jerusalem, but I also know that at this stage I already look forward to something else… though, I'm not yet sure what …However, I feel that for now I have exhausted what the city has to offer me.
I love everything about art and designing, and am greatly interested in fashion and fashion-designing. Also, my great passion all along my life is my love of dancing.

I often visit various exhibitions (as can be seen in the photo documenting my visit to Lacroix's Exhibition in Tel Aviv). I also go frequently to see dance and theatre shows. Good movies drive me to deep thinking and give me inspiration, and so do books and music. When I have the time, I like to go dancing, but if I don't – then, I can settle for a good workout in the Gym or an intensive aerobic class. In the past, I used to dance professionally with several companies and I am trained as an aerobic-dance instructor.
For me, the sea is the most magical place, but being a Jerusalemite, I need to plan my visits to the coast. The most beautiful beaches, in my eyes, are of Haifa – they are clean and pleasant and also arranged with lanes for walking.

My Daily Routine
During the last 4 years my routine was structured to fit my heavy schedule of studies (but as pointed, this is about to change very soon…).
I wake up around 7.30am but do not get out of bed until about 8.00 o'clock. I need this extra half hour, which I call "time of mercy", in order to take another deep relaxing breath before charging on to another overloaded day. I drink my coffee still in bed, or at summertime – in my back lawn, while I listen to the birds singing.
Then I shower and get ready to leave for school.
While I drive, I usually pass through my mind all the things on my schedule for that day, trying to plan various time-tables according to given dead-lines.
I finish my classes around 5.00pm, and go to the Gym near the Academy, to work out. During the workout I think about new ideas and concepts (for my work).
When I go to the Gym on pleasant weekends, I usually bring with me materials to work on, and after working out I spread myself on the green lawn by the swimming-pool, put music on and work.
When I come home after school, I have a light snack (lunch I usually eat at school), then sit at my computer and start to carry out my ideas. If I'm not overloaded with too much work, I like in the evening to meet and hang up with my friends - go out together for a drink or to see a show. When I am overloaded with assignments, I recruit my self discipline and work through until 2.00am or until the project is ready (if I have a dead-line to meet...).

I love nature and am privileged to live in an area which, though within the city, is countryside like - full of greenery as well as history. So, I can always choose between the quiet of the countryside and the big city noises, between history and modernity…

I love the goodness in mankind and insist on finding it even where it is deeply covered; I believe that truth and sincerity exist in all the walks of Life. I enjoy the coincidences and surprises in life.

Creativity, for me, is that inner nudge in the pit of my stomach, that never leaves me alone or goes away, but without which life has no meaning or point. Creativity is the urge to grow and develop, to change things and make a difference. Even a small difference – is still a difference. Part of the fulfillment of creativity is the realization and acceptance of the fact that the creation, like a child, once born into the world, assumes life of its own, and the artist, like a good parent, needs to let it go!

Foreword

2006-07-01T17:32:45+02:00

"Hi,
My name is Liat Harel and I am a student of Visual Communication at the Bezalel Academy of Art and Design in Jerusalem. As part of my fourth and last year of studies, I have to submit a final project which will be displayed at a large, festive exhibition celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Academy.
After giving it much thought, I decided that my final project would be about artists from different places in the world who focus on the various visual arts, their daily routine, hobbies and habits. It should be interesting to study the similarities and differences between them against the variations in culture, environment and scenery, as well as what creative people go through during a routine day.
I apply to you as an important and interesting artist, in the hope that you will agree to take part in my project…"

So begins my letter, which I have addressed, a few months back, to about 100 artists in the various fields of the visual arts, throughout the world.
As I mailed this letter to them, I wandered: Would I get any response? Would established artists be willing to cooperate with a foreign student who lives across the world and has nothing to do with them?
So, I found myself every morning eager to open my email box in anticipation for any kind of response – whether acceptance or refusal. Eventually, more and more answers of acceptance came in, and the project started to shape up.

Barcelona 2005
In 2005, I was in Barcelona on a student-exchange program. I was used to working long hours and spending sleepless nights on finalizing projects, so I was surprised to discover that life in Barcelona was very much different:
People there, started their working day fairly late, then took a long lunch-break and finished working altogether when it was still daylight. Then, they got engaged in planning their recreation activities for the evening and night hours, and those usually lasted until day-break. Notwithstanding, they started on the next morning, though again late, a fruitful day of work and creation, and so it went on and forth. The most wonderful thing about it is that their creativity is of the highest quality and much appreciated throughout the world.
Witnessing this kind of life-style stirred in me many questions about environmental influences upon creativity and creation: Does the easy-going, stress-less and rather festive life-style of the Spaniards have an affect on their creative abilities and qualities? Can the environment actually influence creation? Could the daily routine of designers influence the way they create? In this era of Globalization, is there really an identity or even an extensive similarity between the daily routines of different artists? And if so, does each of them also retain, alongside the similarities, a personal uniqueness and a local aspect? Is it possible that in this era of Globalization, if there is too much similarity in the everyday life – then creation and creativity could too become global?

Birth of a Project
So, I took those questions and turned them into the corner-stones of my project. As a first step, I structured in accordance, a schematic formula (of aspects) which covers both the visual and conceptual angles of my research. Then, I transformed it into the aforementioned address to artists in the various fields of the visual arts, who live and work in different places around the world. (See appended letter). In it, I asked them to document their daily routine, using a variety of visual and verbal means in accordance to the detailed instructions of this itemized scheme. My purpose was to have them perform this documenting work on themselves as subjects, on the basis of a clear and identical guideline formula. The activities and moments I've asked them to document are all routine and entirely "regular" – the most ordinary things of habit. However, they can open a window into one's most intimate moments – at home, with the family, within the soul, and along the creative process, at work.
The documentation of these moments opens the way – to track similarities and differences between the various artists; to examine the connection and relationship between "personal" and "global"; and - to study the role and function of culture, society and environment in the life of a creative artist.

Selection of Artists
I tracked down the various visual Artists all around the world, through a fascinating journey of research in: the professional literature – books about Designing; the Internet; Exhibitions around the world; International Art Festivals; various Trade Unions (of designers, animators, artists, etc.); Magazines; and also through personal and social acquaintances.
Thus I found hundreds of artists, of whom I've selected only about 100 to mail to my letter of address. Almost everybody responded: I received 40 refusals (for lake of time, unwillingness to expose personal life, etc.), and 48 answers of acceptance, from which I selected 15 artists who fulfilled the following criteria:
International deployment; urban as well as countryside environment; multi disciplines; pieces published in the professional literature or exhibited in shows; winners of awards and prizes; mobility; gender; age; products (the quality of the received materials).
To sum it all up – I tried to reach the widest deployment of artists throughout the world; to accumulate a wide variety of the visual art disciplines (painters, designers, animators, illustrators, sculptors, etc.); to get to those who due to their mobility tendency have lived and created in different places, as well as others who live and create in one steady location; to reach women-artists as much as men, since I'm much intrigued by the angle of women's art. I've tried especially hard to reach women artists whose work left great impression upon me (like the work of the "Guerrilla Girl's" which I saw at the 2005 Biennalle di Venezia – they refused my approach, claiming unwillingness to expose their privacy, even though I appealed in the name of their professed ideology), but they proved more reluctant than the men. Yet, at last I succeeded to attract 4 most interesting and fascinating women artists;
I aspired to approach a range of age-groups in order to review two questions: What are the differences (if there are any) between veteran artists in the peak of their career, and the young and starting ones? Also, how do those who lived and created in the pre-"Global" era react to and handle the new "open world"?
Of course, a crucial criterion for the final selection was also the quality of the products and materials sent to me.
In this way, I chose 15 artists from all around the world – Italy, Germany, France, Spain, Sweden, U.K, USA, Argentina, Kenya, Taiwan and New Zealand. During the accumulation of their materials I came to learn how willing those artists were to cooperate, to give of their precious time and even money (expenditures on photographing, developing, mailing, etc.) in order to help an unknown art student, all on behalf of, or for the sake of – Art.
On the whole, it seemed that illustrators and animators were more inclined to respond favorably than graphic designers – a phenomenon open to many interpretations. Also, I received no materials at all from Japanese or Australian designers, nor - from the Arab world and East Europe.
I've decided in advance not to approach any Israeli artists (residing in Israel) – as their selection could have proven too difficult, and might have justified a full focus upon them (which is a separate project that I still intend to do and exhibit, maybe as part of my studies for the Masters). Hence, I chose myself – a senior-year art-student and starting designer, looking out at the world – to first try on (as a test-case) the schematic guidelines for self documentation (before sending it out to others).

The Blog
For the sake of documenting the actual work-process, and also in order to establish more personal connection between myself and the participating artists, as well as among themselves, I opened a blog in the Internet, as a channel to raise questions for discussion, analyze ideas and thoughts and document the entire process of this project.
I chose not to include the blog in this exhibit, but I keep my options open to further develop and expand it, and maybe even exhibit it in the future through other means.

The Equator
So, my project was launched by 15 selected participant-artists, from all around the world, who documented their daily routine - moving from the private to the general, from getting up in their bedroom, on to the rest of the house, then to the street, to the studio/workplace and the creation process, then, further on to time spent with friends, to recreation activities, to books and music and even a personal artifact which holds a special meaning.
They've all opened doors for me, each to a home, family and soul. So even though we never met in person, I feel like an old friend of theirs. Bit by bit I've discovered the nature of the environments in which they create, and their sources of inspiration. I've discovered the "person" in people whom I formerly could identify only as artists. From the moment they "exposed" their personal information by filing it in a CD or any other means – they actually transformed their private stories into much larger ones. Because from that very moment, the intricate relationships that are being woven between all the exhibited life-styles and stories make a new story that becomes the main story in itself, and in return, redefines all the private stories. Each personal story is being redefined by boundaries set to it by all the other stories!

Hi everybody!

2006-07-01T17:30:45+02:00

Well…It's been a while, I know, but finally I have the time to update the blog.
Well….What's new? Actually, the book is almost ready, and my presentation is due to next Sunday (wish me luck….)
Our exhibition opens at July 18th, in the Tel-Aviv's air port, in the old terminal.
There is going to be a festive opening, and many artists and designers from all over the world will attend (you know….100th anniversary!)
I invite you all to come!
In the blog you will find some updates regarding to the content of the book.
Please feel fee to express yourselves.
Thank you for your help!
Hope to see you soon,
Liat 

T.V

2006-04-15T19:18:35+02:00

I don't really have time to watch T.V, so I can't say I have a favorite show, but there is one show that always makes me laugh and keeps me in a good mood, and that is "The Simpsons".

My Books

2006-04-15T18:55:00+02:00

I really like to read. I usually read at least 3 books on the same time: On in Hebrew, my mother tongue, a another one in English, so I could practice the language and stay "up to date", and recently I've started reading in Spanish which is a new language for me and which I had learned during my stay in Barcelona last year.
I never read "bestsellers". At least not intentionally ( it happens that I read a new book that in time becomes a" bestseller"). I love the feeling of having a personal experience while reading a book, without feeling like everyone is sharing my "secret" on the same time…..I know it sound weird but this way I get to discover the best books ever.
The books I'm reading right now, happen to be "bestsellers"….I know….But I have a good reason for reading them: The Hebrew book is about globalization and I thought to use some of the information that is in it in my project, The English book is a very unique one that combines an autobiography of the writer (M. Satrapi) and also her own comics illustration of her life stories. I'm trying to get M. Strafi to participate in my project so….If any of you know her…..
About the 3rd book, I think there is no much to say. One of the most famous books ever. I read it because it reminds me of Barcelona and of all the "Cervants celebrations" that were there last year.
Well…That's it for the books…..
Liat

Another Thought

2006-04-15T18:45:15+02:00

Hi again. I know it has been a while since my last update..... But at least it was due to some good reasons.
The first reason is our holiday which over here requires some heavy "Family Time",
And the other reason is the fact that I've got lots of new materials from many of you, which means I've got much more work (which again, is good) to do!
Anyway... I wanted to discuss something with everyone who follow this blog: Would you like me to publish some of your materials also in this blog? I thought it could be nice and would help everyone to get to know one another, but if any of you feel uncomfortable with it, please let me know.
Well....That was my thought. Please let me know what you think.
Liat

The Faces Behind The Names

2006-03-30T21:25:00+02:00

This week I started getting some of your materials. It was very exiting to see the faces behind the names and to read more about your lives.
I also started reading some books that deals with art and environment. The more I read it the more I find it interesting and relevant to my project.
As you can see, I also took pictures of myself ( you wouldn't think I'd ask you to do that without testing it first on myself Right…?). Every once and a while I'll "expose" some pictures of myself following the project.

Something Nice

2006-03-28T21:26:10+02:00

I have just wanted to share with eveyone something very nice that one of you wrote to me :

"The true meaning of art is the shared beauty of helping minds to generate best ways for our communities in the art of living harmoniously."

A Birth of a Project

2006-03-28T20:25:00+02:00

Many people ask me what led me to the idea of this project. Well….I can't really put my finger on one thing, but I do know it has to do with last year…
Last year I was an exchange student in Barcelona for eight months.
I was walking in the Ramblas, riding the metro from one place to another, admiring Gaudy's architecture and then it suddenly hit me: I was somewhere else.
I was still me, but my environment was different and it even showed in my work.
The transformation from a holy-stiff environment to a carefree environment made me think about all kinds of environments, cultures and influences, and about it's effect on creativity. What leads us to our creation? How effected are we by our surroundings?

These questions and others had occupied me since, so when I came back to Jerusalem I have decided to look more into it.
I've also thought about all these artists and designers that we all know as icons. Non of us really think of them as individuals who always seek for ideas and creation.
I've been thinking about it together with the environmental issue and thought of a way that I could investigate it
After a thought I've decided to start this project.

Question: What do you think, does the environment effect your work?
Does your daily routine has an influence on your creative ideas?

Please share your thoughts.