.png)
MY BEAUTIFUL BEAUTIFUL MUG!!!!!!!!!!
I made this mug at Shawnee. Shawnee offered a lot of diversity in its art assignments so I was very excited to get to explore many mediums, especially ceramics, a material I hadnt worked with since elementary school. The assignment was to create some sort of cup. It couldve been a lot more elaborate but I ended up getting frustrated and kept it simple.
I think an interesting thing about this project was that, originally, I was gonna write something that I considered cool and punk –I was very into punk ideologies when I was in 9th and 10th grade– but ended up not going through with it because I was too nervous. I forget what it was exactly gonna say but it was probably gonna be something anti government.
I think it was ultimately a good decision on my part not to write such a thing because it wouldve been quite cringy to look at now. I think I cared and was invested a bit too much about politics when I was younger. Having to deal with people in Ithaca especially, I realized that people who make their politics and views their personality are very annoying– much like how I was when I was a lower schooler. New Roots also has made me realize a lot of things about my political standings and while I dont believe that a school is the best place for ideologies to be pushed so aggressively, I think its good that I was able to be exposed to such a place so I could develop my own thoughts better. Its extremely important for people to be exposed to people with different views so that they can add to their own.
I think that people need to be very open to change when talking about their beliefs. Putting my politics on a mug for example, would be incredibly stupid and annoying, because these thoughts are so fluid. While yes, politics do inherently mix themselves into artwork, I think I learned through reflection that having such a strong, explicit view on something etched permanently is not a good idea because you will most likely change your mind, especially when youre a 10th grader.
Through this reflection and a lot more, Ive learned to not take my views so seriously. I dont have many views where I feel as if they couldnt change. Change is a part of my ideologies I welcome, as I am always meeting new people and learning new things. Being open to change and not stubborn is an extremely useful skill.
This project made me also rekindle my love for ceramics and i did a few personal projects after it involving sculpting. Even now occasionally Ill go back to using clay because Ill look at the mug and suddenly have the urge to. Its a fun mug! I like to look at it! It holds my paint brushes and it is so fun!