Sofía Alrich Veytia

In the lecture: Thinking about the matrix, Paul Coldwell reflected on the matrix as an important element of expression and experimentation in printmaking, giving examples of artworks in which the matrix had been used in an unconventional or unexpected way. During this talk he compared and contrasted the ways artists work with a matrix and the different outcomes in artwork that can be achieved through playing with a matrix, at one point he briefly mentioned how artists often unconsciously or consciously match their personality with the print technique used, which got me thinking: Could it be beneficial to use a technique that goes against your personality?

Printmaking can be a very laborious, long, detailed process and at the same time it can also be a spontaneous, gestural, experimental art-form. Can working in a way that challenges your comfort zone help the artistic process or will it hinder it? Experimentation is often encouraged in art making but personally I had never heard of pushing one's own personality to its limits through art, normally what is pushed is the concept and the image itself, but maybe challenging oneself as a person can also bring forward captivating results. These are questions I will start asking myself in my art practice more often, trying to see how the media used connects to me as an individual and not just to the concepts I am researching and exploring.

Artist Kira Freije works with sculpture to examine human relationships, using techniques such as metalworking, glass blowing, and welding. During her artist talk at the Peckham Road Lecture Theatre on the 2nd of November 2022 she gave an overview of her practice and specifically her creative process. A main point she touched upon was the importance of visualization, of constantly having her visual references at sight along with notes and ideas that are relevant to her daily practice. She mentioned that having her references presented in a visual manner in her studio allows her to acknowledge what aspect of them can help or influence your practice and what doesn't. 

The way in which she groups her references together in a visual collage of text from books, other artworks, fragments of her notebook allows her to maintain constant inspiration in her artistic practice. Her method of collecting influences is one that I believe could greatly benefit my creative process, as usually I keep my references in different areas of my studio, for example the texts that interest me from books are all kept in a notebook, my visual references in my computer, and my notes of sudden reflections or ideas in my cellphone or another notebook. Perhaps if I borrowed this collage format and brought together these references visually I could make use of them more often and in turn have less artistic blocks.

In the talk Art and Industry, artist Ian Monroe talked about his art practice in public-facing projects funded by different organizations. Throughout his talk, he reflected on the importance of artists playing to their strengths to create successful work and for getting it out into the world. He recommended to us students to use our individual set of skills, to use our assets, and find what we do well and to go with that. He also mentioned that the university setting is an excellent place for experimentation and being daring because once we step out into the art world it could be a bit more difficult to do. 

This makes me reflect upon my set of skills and strengths. Usually, when thinking of this I  look at the broad abilities of making art, creativity, imagination, printmaking, painting, etc. But I haven't sat down in a while to analyze what is particular about me, how I approach art-making, and what is distinct about my imagery. I am usually much more concerned with thinking of how to get the concepts that interest me effectively into artwork but should be as preoccupied with thinking about how my particular skills help express those ideas.