Bicol Merchant Marine College Inc.

,
Brgy. Piot, Sorsogon City
AY: 2021
Course Code: GE 3
Course Descriptive Title: INTRODUCTION TO ARTS AND HUMANITIES
Week: 2nd
Topic: ARTS

Name: Rea Nica Gerona Course/Yr&Sec: BSTM 3A

Activity No. 2

Answer the following questions in 1-3 sentences only. Use English as your medium.
Attach your output in the link provided for submission.

 Choose one artist in any art form that you like.

 Write a very short background about the artist.
 Select one masterpiece/artwork from him/her and write the art form (music, visual
arts etc)
 What influences him/her in his artworks?
 Describe and explain the purpose/meaning of the work of art.
 I. Write a very short background about the artist.

Own Description:

Chuck Close is my favourite artist. This man has always inspired me. He has
demonstrated that being confined to a wheelchair does not limit or prevent him from
expressing his creative ideas through paintings. His meticulous approach to creating
detailed artwork should inspire everyone, especially the lazy and procrastinators. I
think the phrase "NO MORE EXCUSES" applies here.

MAJOR MILESTONES
 He was elected into the National Academy of Design as an Associate
Academician in 1990, and became a full Academician in 1992.

 He received the National Medal of Arts from President Clinton in 2000. He

is also the recipient of the New York State Governor's Art Award.

 In 2010, he was appointed by President Barack Obama to the President's

Committee on the Arts and Humanities.

TRIVIA: Chuck Close was one of the volunteers in President Barack Obama's Turnaround
Arts initiative, in which he mentored 34 students in the sixth through eighth grades at
Roosevelt School in Bridgeport, Connecticut.

Lives in Monroe,
Washington.

“Charles Thomas
Close”

Father:
Leslie Durward
Close

Mother:
Mildred Wagner
Close

Returned to the US
after completing his
studies and took up
the position of an
art teacher at the
University of
Massachusetts. He
moved to New
York City in 1967.
 II. Select one masterpiece/artwork from him/her and write the art form (music,
visual arts etc.)

“SELF- PORTRAIT, 2015”

(Visual Arts, 84 Colour Woodcuts, 47.25 X 37 Inches)

III. What influences him/her in his artworks?

He claims that his learning disabilities have influenced all of his artworks. He was inspired to paint portraits
in order to preserve images for friends and family. "Inspiration is for amateurs; the rest of us just show up
and get the work," he added, explaining that every idea he's ever had grew out of work itself. He is not
afraid to try and try again until you see where it leads you. He is simply stating that you must have belief in
the process. He also mentioned his own parents as his mentors or influencers because whenever he feels
inadequate in other areas, they are there to make him feel special.

IV. Describe and explain the purpose/meaning of the work of art

Chuck Close was a well-known American artist who specialized in large-scale Photorealist portraits. He
used a grid system to create his paintings, with each square on the canvas matching to a squared off cell
on a reference photograph. In one of his interviews, he stated that he paints people's faces or heads in
order to remember them. So, you may be wondering why he needs to remember the faces of his family
and friends through visual arts. So, here's why: Chuck Close will not recognize you if he sees you again.
He suffers from prosopagnosia, also known as face blindness. He can see the individual parts of your face
— your nose, eyes, and forehead, for example — but he can't put them together in a pattern that sticks in
his mind. That is one of a reason that he uses to create his artworks.
And the reason he employs a square or cell-by-cell pattern is that each pattern has its own colour,
brushstroke, number, etc., which enables him to feel a sense of strong concentration or focus. He adapted
it in the style of Egypt. He also discovered that when he breaks problems into bite sized chunks, they are
easier to solve. He compared it to a large problem, saying that large problems can be resolved by
breaking them into smaller parts. And I find that to be both extremely brilliantly articulated and inspiring.