The Serene Arboretum

H.O Botanical Gardens at the Penn State Arboretum

        I would say I am pleasantly surprised at how impressed I was of my first visit at the Arboretum. I’m usually not a huge nature lover since I am deathly afraid of spiders, as I am sure most girls are. As much as a hate being categorized in that stereotype, it is the main reason I avoid any outdoor activities. However, that doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate the simplicity of the beauty of nature. I enjoy activities such as this one where is doesn’t involve me being trapped with a bunch of creepy crawler, such as camping or hiking, but it still allows me to be outside and observe nature in a way where it is comfortable and enjoyable.

            I actually could imagine myself coming here again. As we were discussing the group project I was observing a couple eating lunch together on the bench in the middle of the flowers. While watching them I just kept thinking how I wanted to go get lunch and eat it in this beautiful setting! It is very peaceful and I can see it as an escape from our campus, which is always swarming with people. The serene appearance of this garden just puts you at ease the second you enter the property.

            In the beginning I saw gorgeous flowers. As I kept walking I continued to see more flowers. Now, as much as I love flowers after awhile I wanted to see something else, something different. Beyond many pathways I came across something that I believe to be beautiful. It was a lily pond consisting of plant life that wasn’t necessarily found around the garden. Of course there were the beautiful flowers in the pond and as much as that was lovely, something else caught my attention. The roots of the flowers, beneath the surface, come across very intriguing to me. It was ugly in a pretty kind of way, if that makes any sense at all. To me, it resembled creepy hands reaching out of the water connecting to the beautiful flowers. It wasn’t what most people would consider the ‘pretty’ part of the lily pond, but to me it was the most interesting and it held my attention. I always feel as though the most beautiful things in nature are the things that are most unique and intricate. They are the things you cannot find everyday and everywhere you go. it might not mean they are the most gorgeous of things, but they definitely deserve some focus. 

            As well as the lily pond catching my attention, I of course loved the sole bench within the vine-covered roofing. It creates such a beautiful picture and to me it seemed as though it was be something on a painting or a storybook cover. I saw a lot of other students in the class taking pictures of it as well, so I guess we all showed a similar interest!

            Overall I enjoyed my experience at the garden today. I saw infinite flowers, which are always strikingly gorgeous. I got to appreciate the inner beauty of a lily pond and really examine what is beneath the surface instead of just looking at the typical flowers floating at the top! We all lucked out with the perfect day we had to explore the Arboretum.

Here is the plant life beneath the surface. It kind of resembles something trying to grab its way to the surface. To me, in person, it resembled hands reaching out. It was a bit creepy, but definitely interesting and worth exploring!

Here is the beautiful surface of the pond covered in flowers such as these. Of course these are very striking, but I believe the really interesting stuff is beneath all of this exterior, typical beauty.

This is just a simple, yet calming scene. It was very peaceful, well put together, and beautiful! 

Palmer Museum: Blog post 2

Peacock Blue and Yellow Seaform Set With Yellow Lip Wraps (1995)

Dale Chihuly

American, b. 1941

Blown Glass

·      This piece of art was developed late in the 20^th century when modern art became a strong influence. Modern art tends to lean more toward abstraction, which would explain the creation of this piece of work. This artwork has a very intricate design that directly reflects the abstract art trend taking place.

·      This work applies to pathos because the beauty of it is shocking. It makes you feel as though you are part of the piece and almost as if you were special enough to have been able to see it. It is gleaming as you walk by it and catches your eye. It connects to your values because it is simple yet beautiful. You respect the artist without having known him simply because he created such a remarkable piece without making it look like he’s trying too hard. It doesn’t have to be wildly outrageous to be beautiful. It makes me feel honored to have been able to witness its elegance.

·      “Chihuly has created more than a dozen well-known series of works, among them Cylinders and Baskets in the 1970s; Seaforms, Macchia, Venetians, and Persians in the 1980s; Niijima Floats and Chandeliers in the 1990s; and Fiori in the 2000s. He is also celebrated for large architectural installations. In 1986, he was honored with a solo exhibition.” He is clearly a well known and well respected artists. He has many forms of art including glass works, installations, drawings, exhibits, etc.

·      I think this piece is making an claim of elegance. As I said above, it is showing that you can create a work of art without creating something that is totally ridiculous or seems to be outlandish. This piece to me resembles something from the ocean, but others might interpret it a totally different way. That’s the beauty of this piece. It can be seen however you intend it, but that doesn’t change how striking and memorable it is. I think this artist is making a claim of uniqueness. He has other glass blown pieces as well, so I believe he was trying to establish a collection and a sense of respect towards his talent with this type of material. Personally, I believe it was very successfully accomplished.

·      My overall experience at The Palmer Museum was shockingly exciting. I’ve never been to this museum nor have I been to one by choice, simply because I think it is boring. I was pleasantly surprised when I walked into this museum because I was taken back by numerous pieces in this museum. There were so many to pick from, but the one I wrote about was the one that was most memorable to me. I can imagine going back because I’d like to learn more about some of the other pieces that I found interesting as well. On the upper level there were pieces that I felt myself starring at for a long period of time just trying to figure out the message behind it. In the past I usually wouldn’t have cared, but for some reason I was really taken back by how interesting everything was.

·      Did anyone else have a good time at the museum like I did? Was anyone else surprised that they actually enjoyed looking at some of the pieces in this museum?

Links to where I found my Background info:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/20th-century_art

http://www.chihuly.com/biography.aspx

blog post 1

Part 2: ANALYZE

Title: I chose this title because I feel like any opinions that are written through my blog are in fact my own internal words of wisdom. I guess that sounds lame but its my own personal opinions and my personal responses to the questions that will be at hand.

Font: For the font of my entire blog I chose a very simple font, ‘Droid Sans’ because I didn’t want the font itself to be distracting from the actual message that is written. I didn’t want the font to take away from the meaning. I wanted everything to look uniformed and organized because that’s the type of person I am. I chose a fancier font for the title, ‘Corsiva’ because it has a stronger purpose. I wanted it to catch the attention of whoever views the blog and make is look like it is important.

Pages: I chose to include pages in my blog because I simply liked how it appeared better. I also believe it creates a more organized and formal look to the blog. Everything isn’t written all over the place, its nicely organized into separate, easy to access pages. I included a detailed about me page so that people could get a better feel for the outgoing person I am that you wouldn’t get from the simple template. I specifically chose to include really random facts about myself because I’m a random person and still don’t know exactly who I am. I believe people are constantly changing and developing into a stronger and more mature person. So, I decided to include only a few things that I’m sure about and so that people got a good glimpse of the type of easygoing, open person I am!

Template: The template I chose was meant to be simple but attractive. The template helped me create colors that all flowed with each other so it was appealing to the eye. I’m very controlling when it comes to creating projects, so I like everything to be easily located. I didn’t want it to be too crazy because I wanted to avoid it being too overwhelming.

Layout: I picked this very structured layout because I’m a very organized person. It made the posts center of attention and the things that weren’t as important are on the side. I wanted it to be easy to navigate and be organized. All of my pages are easily accessible at the top of my blog and are simple to find.

Colors: Usually I would pick anything blue. Blue is my absolute favorite color, which is why I wanted to stray away from it. I was trying to mix it up and do something I usually wouldn’t pick. I wanted all the colors to flow and tie in with the peaceful background of my blog. I think it’s very easy to look at and just creates a calming feeling.  It isn’t some extravagant lime-based color that is blinding because I didn’t want anything too loud. I wanted a subtle, but pretty and memorable blog.

PART 3: PHILOSOPHIZE

I love how my blog turned out. I liked the simplicity yet the elegance of it. I feel like its very approachable and appealing. I believe the organized structure and yet open personal about me section reflects my personality very well. I’m very structural yet outgoing and easy to talk to. Once I figured out how to do it (which took a very long time) it was easy to build my blog. I knew exactly what I had in mind. I wanted nothing to obnoxious or ridiculous and I wanted it all to flow and look nice together. I’m a control freak when it comes to the organization of my schoolwork. I wanted to add a little personal excitement in it which is why I included the about me section. From blogging, I expect to be able to express my personal opinions and thoughts and view other people’s thoughts as well.