Week #8
I have to say I enjoyed the podcast. I never quite understood the saliency of bread in my life, but it is clear that bread functioned as a tool of connection between my family and me. So, when it comes to answering the question, “what does bread mean to me?” I would have to say that it is an extension of life itself, the good and the bad. The good aspects of bread are the connections and togetherness it creates. The bad aspects of bread, I would say is its ability to create destruction in the context of class relations, politics, and religion which leads to fractures in families, nations, relationships, and people.
I am glad that I had the opportunity to listen to this podcast; it brought back nostalgic childhood memories. Growing up in my household, I can now say that bread was very present in my life. From the PB & J sandwiches in the morning, ham sandwiches for lunch, grilled cheese after school (while watching Pokémon), to experimenting with bread and sugar for dinner, I can honestly say that bread was a source of quick easy meals and some sadness. Growing up in poverty, my mother always had to be at work. As such, that left my sister and me in charge at home to watch our younger siblings. My mother would always buy a couple of loaves of bread and food items to compliment it so that it would be easy for my siblings and I to make ourselves food.
When growing up, I found myself eating bread frequently, particularly PB & J sandwiches. Nowadays, my comfort foods, or what I centre my meals around are more organic products from the earth such as greens, fruits, nuts, etc. Come to think of it, I rarely buy bread and if I do consume it, it would be when I’m eating out—in the form of a burger or a Cinnabon (which I have once in a blue moon).
The reason why I think that many people have been baking bread during this pandemic is because of the comfort and connection it offers families/people. During this time, our lives have changed drastically. In this vein, lots of time has been freed up and baking bread has become a healthy distraction. Since homes have turned into work, school, and entertainment environments, baking bread has become the tool to help relieve some stress providing comfort for many.
The part of the podcast that stood out to me was Steven Capplin’s dedication to bread. It was so interesting to see how Capplin’s interest in bread became his whole life work. With the subject of bread, he literally connected it to all aspects of life.
Cooking and art interact on many levels. They both require ingredients depending on the type (of meal or art) or style. However, the processes involved in creating the finished products differ. I think they differ when it comes to the overall process because you can make art with basically anything, but with cooking, it has to be more precise and balanced or it won’t be edible. I think that this is the most significant difference between the two. Regarding what they have in common, art can alter your mood and propel a series of emotions which is quite similar to cooking. You can feel really low at the start of preparing a meal/and or painting, and by the end feel uplifted, comforted/and or relieved.
Hi Daniel,
Note: If you have a new piece to show – let me know – Friday morning is your last chance to add any late work.
Week 1:
Katchadourian notes pretty minimal, 3 Book stack images complete – though seem to be organized around a subject mainly – rather than a real conceptual/critical intervention or idea at play, I like the one with the white side of the pages against the one title – seems more intentional.
Week 2:
Notes on two text works extremely minimal, not much evidence of curiosity and full engagement with material
Week 3:
Text banner exercise and description – no evidence here of reading the required text, or following the main instruction in the assignment to use text found in the article. Close looking and note making of the works in lecture materials will also help deepen your knowledge and give you ideas for strategies for working, and making decisions about materials, words, form, and context.
Week 4:
Nature videos missing
Be sure to add more notes showing you really engaged and watched all the materials, and give descriptions of how the artworks inform your new piece.
You have a lot of ideas of your own that you want to express, but try to follow the logic of my assignments to expand ways of communicating and to explore new ideas, and the ideas of other artists.
Try to approach your works with more experimentation (not knowing what will happen) and adventurousness (creating tension, discomfort, and surprise.) But remember, you are part of a conversation with other artists working historically and today – so to participate you have to really listen to those ideas too.
Thank you for your attendance and we’d all like to hear more from you in class discussions and activities.
If you would like to talk with me about your work in progress, readings, exercises, one-on-one comments on your work, and grades – send me an email in the morning to book a 15 minute appointment during the optional in person hours: Thursdays 2:30 – 4:30
And you can show up to a zoom meeting with Nathan anytime during these hours to ask your questions, and get tech support for using software and finishing your projects:
Mondays and Thursdays 1-4pm
Hi Daniel,
I appreciate your thoughts and revelation on bread, and that you participated in the exercise and baked! Looked good too, and I hope it might be an enjoyable and nourishing new skill. Unfortunately there is a lot of work missing here – the Zoom proposal, the final Zoom video and description, detailed notes on Food Art, the food piece, and the final exercise, Pandemic cake. I understand things have been exceptionally difficult for you and for many during this time, but even with extensions and other support, your grade will reflect that there is not a lot of evidence you have been deeply engaged with the course materials and lectures, and were missing/silent most of the synchronous classes this term. And do remember not to double-enroll in two studio courses simultaneously – this makes it impossible to do well in either class, is disrespectful to your teachers who are trying to support you, and is a loss to the community of each class. I enjoyed working with you when you were able to attend, and I sincerely hope things will be easier in the coming months for you and indeed for all of us.