​During the semester of this class, I have learned how to write a published article. It took multiple edits to get it there, but it was well worth it. I was so used to writing essays, that it was hard to get away from that. It’s a different way of writing, but I am glad I took this class to learn it. I think it will be very useful continuing into my art career as well as possibly thinking about writing another article in the future.
 
Throughout the semester, we had a few guest speakers come in to talk about writing articles and I think that was very beneficial to many of us. Many of us have never written an article before, much less had one published. So, this was a good experience for us and to have on our resume. I can’t speak for everyone, but this class has helped me learn a new way of writing. This class will definitely be a major part of my writing minor and I plan to write more like this now.

Creative Expression Causes Controversy
By: Brooke Steiner
 
“This series by MIAD’s emerging creatives explores both the apparent and hidden influences of professional art and design in the Milwaukee area.”
 
Art is created to challenge the viewer's limitations and thought processes, causing them to think about what is being presented in front of them. Creative expression can cause controversy due to artists pushing perceptive boundaries, much like Andres von Chrzanowski’s mural of The Unsung Hero in Milwaukee’s Third Ward.
 
Controversy has existed since before the practice of fine art. Marcel Duchamp created a piece called "Fountain" in 1917 that is still one of the most controversial art pieces people talk about today. He took an everyday object and turned it into a conceptual work of art. When Duchamp was asked why he created this specific piece he said, “I was drawing people’s attention to the fact that art is a mirage. A mirage, exactly like an oasis appears in the desert. It is very beautiful until, of course, you are dying of thirst. But you don’t die in the field of art. The mirage is solid.” (Insert "Marcel Duchamp’s Fountain Image Below Paragraph)
 
So, what makes an object or image “art” and how does it become controversial? These questions have been shaping creativity of all artists since the beginning of time. Art is created to challenge the viewer’s limitations and thought processes, making them think about what is being presented in front of them. Certain artists may be trying to push the boundaries of what art is, while others stay in the lines. This causes controversy between not only artists but the audience as well.
 
Heather Minogue, a graphic designer, states, “There certainly are more controversial pieces than others. I believe that all has to do with the subject matter and how far you are wanting to push your piece and how much of a reaction you want from the audience. I think Duchamp's "Fountain" is more controversial because he took an item that the audience views as extremely dirty because of its intended purpose and modified this object to make it into art.”
 
Controversial art is anything that sparks conversation and debate about that subject. The debates entail whether the piece should actually be considered art or not. Politics are often brought into the art world because of the subject matter the artist chooses to portray.
 
On the north side of the Dye House building, 320 E Buffalo Street, Case Maclaim (AKA Andres Von Chrzanowski) painted The Unsung Hero. Maclaim’s work is based around the pictorial motif of unity and power through overlaying hands. Maclaim stated in his Instagram post, “Throughout history, there have been many examples of female working-class heroes. The positive impact of their actions, words and ever-changing ingenuity hasn’t always received the respect and love it deserves.” (Insert "Maclaim's The Unsung Hero" Image Below Paragraph)
 
This mural has gotten many different reviews. Some people, such as Seiko Angelo think, “The more you look at it, the more meaningful it becomes” while others think it’s a constant reminder of how women are being poorly treated around the world.
 
Every culture is different, not only in ways they view art, but the controversy that comes with it. Minogue says, “Depending on the subject matter, some works of art that may be considered the norm in United States culture may be extremely taboo in other cultures. This then makes that art piece controversial.”
 
Artists have the ability to change society with the work they make. Certain works of art tend to be more controversial than others due to the artist pushing the audience’s perceptive boundaries, just like Maclaim’s The Unsung Hero.
 
Minogue states, “I believe art can change a society, although it is very gradual and may not even be noticeable until several years later. Looking back at the history of art you can see how subject matters began to be interpreted in more controversial ways and society slowly began to accept it.”
 
Art has the power to not only get people to think about what they are seeing, but also has the ability to generate conversation. Art is created for an artist to communicate an idea to an audience, no matter what the subject may be. No matter what kind of image the artist decided to portray, there will always be controversy between the artist’s original intent and what is seen. 

(Marcel Duchamp’s “Fountain”)
Photo after paragraph 2
Photo Caption- Marcel Duchamp, Fountain, 1917
URL: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fountain_(14935749534).jpg

(Maclaim’s “The Unsung Hero”)
Photo after paragraph 6
Photo Caption- Photo: Brooke Steiner, 2019
 
Case Maclaim’s Instagram Post URL – Hyperlink to “Instagram post” in paragraph 6 https://www.instagram.com/p/B1twqkMiL1E/?igshid=1pk12twg2l0db

(Embed Image in this paragraph) On the north side of the Dye House building, 320 E Buffalo Street, Andres Von Chrzanowski (AKA Case Maclaim) painted a mural call The Unsung Hero. Chrzanowski work is based around his pictorial motif of unity and power through overlaying hands. “Throughout history, there have been many examples of female working class heroes. The positive impact of their actions, words and ever-changing ingenuity hasn’t always received the respect and love it deserves.” stated Chrzanowski in his Instagram post. This mural has gotten many different reviews. Some people, such as Seiko Angelo think, “The more you look at it, the more meaningful it becomes.” while others think it’s a constant reminder of how women are being treated around the world.

Today we talked in our groups about our article progress and what we plan on doing with it. We also helped each other figure out some good interview questions in order to strengthen our articles. One idea they had for me was to talk to people specifically about why they think certain art is controversial. They also suggested I talk to NSP students and teachers about controversy a whole and where they see it the most. Some questions I came up with are:

• What does art controversy mean to you?
• What was your first reaction to the artwork?
• Why did you think you had the reaction you did?
• Does your opinion about the artwork change the longer you look at it and why? 
• How can you can connect the artwork to your own life?
• How might your interpretation of this artwork be different from someone in another culture.

I also want to talk about the subject as a whole instead of just picking a specific work of art and talking to people about it. I might bring up one specific piece but only to strengthen the overall idea. I am contemplating mentioning past, well-known, controversial art works that could possibly strengthen where I want to go with the article and saying why they were so controversial. I have also come up with some questions overall for art controversy that I think would be a good idea to ask the people I will be interviewing.

• Who decides what is acceptable art?
• Why art can be dangerous or offensive?
• Why and how does once-controversial art become accepted, such as Duchamp’s “Fountain”?
• How can art challenge or change a society?
• Why are new art forms often controversial? 
• How do politics, economics, religion, gender, and/or culture help ignite controversy over a work of art?

I am also debating whether or not to mention graffiti/street art in my article. If I do, these are some questions I would bring up.

• Is graffiti art?
• Has graffiti succeeded in attaining a unique position in the institutionalized contemporary art world? 
• What would the world be like without graffiti or street art?

As of right now, I am working on finding people that are willing to do some short interviews with me for me to quote in my article.

Today Todd Mrozinski came in and talked about how he went about writing his articles, which I think was very helpful. I wasn't quite sure what to do at first and how to do it, but now I have a better idea on how I want to go about my article. I think that being an artist helps us understand the work better and gives us more of an incentive to write better. We all know how we would like our art written about and I think that helps us write about other's work. I also thought it was interesting how he went to the same show eight times before he wrote about it. By then I'm sure he understood everything in greater detail. If you go to an exhibit a second time or even a third time, you see things that didn't notice the first time. You pick up on different things and are able to look in greater detail. 

As for my research for the article so far and how things are progressing, I know that I am going to write about art controversy and how it affects the people in Milwaukee. I am still in the planning stages of how I want to lay things out and what order I want to talk about them, but with Todd coming in and talking to us, I think I have a better idea on how I will go about everything.

I am planning on writing about art controversy in Milwaukee for my article. Talking about the idea as a whole instead of a single artist, seems very interesting to me. I've been thinking about what I can all talk about in the article and how I want to format it. Some ideas I've had so far are talking about each artist's original intent with a specific controversial art piece in Milwaukee, finding artworks that have the artist original intent hidden and/or apparent, how others see it, and how that affects the community. I was thinking about asking people around town, inside of MIAD and outside, to see what they think of a specific piece. Seeing if they think it's controversial, if so why, and how it affects them. One artwork that is very controversial right now in Milwaukee is the "Headless Woman" on the north side of the P.H. Dye House building created by Andres Von Chrzanowski. It would be interesting to see how this work affects not only women but men. Another very controversial artwork in Milwaukee is the mural of "Devontay" in the Black Cat Alley by Adam James Stoner. Is it an unclear portrayal, a negative stereotype of African Americans or does it stand for Milwaukee's legacy of a high incarceration percentage of black men than any other city? It would be interesting to ask multiple people what they think of it and see how this mural affects them, if it does. It would be also interesting to see what they think about the vandalism of Stoner's mural that had just recently happened. 

I plan on finding many different controversial works around Milwaukee and asking people about them. I want to see how they react to specific art and what they have to say about them. I find art controversy to be a very interesting topic to not only write about, but research further and get more information on the subject. I want to get direct quotes from people I talk to and do a lot more research about why art controversy exists in hopes that will strengthen my articles importance. ​

​Vincent's professional website is separated into eight different
sections, which are separated by each medium he uses. Each section will then show all the work he has created. He does not have a main landing page, it goes straight to his art. In the top left corner of his website, he has "Hello", "Friends", and "Following" tabs that show more about him. He doesn't have a lot listed about himself on his professional website, but does keep his Linkedin and bio on Conrad Schmitt Studios update to date. Vincent's website is easy to navigate and all his images are good quality.

Timothy Goodman

Timothy is a designer, illustrator, muralist, and author in New York City, NY. He has work on walls, buildings, packaging, cars, people, shoes, clothing, books, jackets, magazine covers and galleries all over the world. Currently, Timothy is teaching at the School of Visual Arts (SVA) in New York. 

Timothy's website has a main landing page, which shows some of his featured work. In the top left corner, he has his work linked to another page with is separated into seven sections. They are separated into categories including, All, Murals & Wall Wraps, Personal Projects, Products, Packaging, Editorial & Publications, and Partnerships. This makes is easy to navigate through all his work. In the top right of his landing page, he has an About page linked, explaining everything he has achieved, as well as a shop section where you can purchase some of his works that he has for sale. 

Todd Mrozinski

Professional Website: Todd uses one main image as his landing page with seven different sections where you can view his work. The sections are separated by mediums, as well as having a contact page and a CV page. He also has links to his Instagram and YouTube channel. 

Blog Post by Artist-in-Residence: There is a small intro before the blog, about Todd. It is then followed by Todd’s artist statement with images filled in throughout of Todd himself taking photos and photos he has taken. After the artist statement, there are images of his work. Titled with the medium used. The bio of Todd is at the very end of the blog post, summarizing everything that was above it.

Portrait Society Show: This is an article written by Todd explaining the show in his perspective. There is a main title as to what the article is about. It then explains what the show was about, including images of other artists in the show. Each paragraph is about one artist and their work, with an image included to show their style. At the end it states the show’s title, where it is at (with the address), and what dates it will be open.