Drawings by Amy Cutler.  2002.  Institute of Contemporary Art.  6 November 2005.http://www.icaphilia.org/exhibitions/past/cutler.php

This article talks about the connection of Amy Cutler’s work to childhood through storytelling.  It also mentions how Cutler makes up her own symbolism that reflects her personal experience while still being easily accessible to others.  I like the idea of creating symbolisms and links to my personal life within the drawing that the viewer does not read.  This makes the work more for the viewer and less about the artist.     

Honigman, Anna Finel.  Interview with Amy Cutler.  26 August 2005.  Blogger.  6, November 2005. http://printfreak.blogspot.com/2005/08/interview-wiht-amycutler.html

This interview with Cutler is very helpful in seeing how she creates her work and how she considers its meanings after it is completed.  She talks about where she gets her inspiration from-current news and also her own personal life.  She also likes to find in these areas of “contemporary culture evidence of magic and folklore.”  She says that she usually does not have a narrative in mind when she first makes a work, but that she works in such a way that meaning is in there, but it just takes time for her to figure it out. 

Honigman, Anna Finel.  Reviews.  2004.  Artnet Magazine.  6 November 2005. http://www.artnet.com/magazine/reviews/honigman/honigman5-20-04.asp

This article talks about Amy Cutler’s paintings and how they address issues of women’s roles.  In particular they examine the way that fairy tales portray women as helpless and this was parallel to an actual women’s life through “self loathing and passivity” until recently.  Cutler’s work is very much about her personal life and women’s lives in general.   

Tyson, Janet S.  Exhibitions.  11 July, 2004.  Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art.  6, November 2005. http://kemperart.org/exhibits/ExhibitsCatalogueEssaysCutlerAmy.asp

This article addresses many aspects of Cutler’s work including formal issues, audience, and the artist’s role and intentions.  Tyson describes Cutler’s work as “dreamlike” and “surrealistic.”  Tyson talks about how the paintings and the open spaces affect the overall viewing experience.   She also addresses the openness in the work as well as ambiguity and how the stories are left up to the viewer’s imagination. 

Wayne Thiebaud, Livingstone, Marco.  Pop Art.  New York:  Harry N. Abrams, Incorporated, 1990. 71-72,

Marco talks about Thiebaud’s subject matter as very recognizable.  Thiebaud depicts food and things from American restaurants where there is no difference from one restaurant to the next.  Thiebaud’s still lives focus on the ordinary and     make them extraordinary.  I like how he has the viewer noticing the things on a counter as interesting and beautiful objects.   

Fineberg, Jonathan.  Art Since 1940- Strategies of Being.  London:  Laurence King Publishing Ltd, 2000.  170. 

Hurwitz, Laurie S.  “Wayne Thiebaud’s studied sensuality.”  American Artist  57.615 (1993): 1-5.  16 Sept. 2005

Hurwitz’ article talks about how Thiebaud really pays attention to each object that he is painting.  Even when he is doing multiple hotdogs he tries to find “the essence” of each object.  He is taking the everyday and making it interesting.              Hurwitz also describes his paintings as “honest.”  I think this means that Thiebaud isn’t trying to hard to wow the viewer or trick them with illusions, but rather he is sincerely interested in painting his subjects.  This sincerity is important for me in my own work.  I want to depict objects that I think are truly interesting and something of importance.

Tom Wesselmann, Lippard, Lucy R.  Pop Art.  New York: Frederick A. Praeger, Inc., 1968.  82, 90, 111.

Lippard’s writing describes Wesselman’s art work as ‘a slice of life.’  It showed the direct connection between the real space and wesselmann’s art space.  This connection is made because of his inclusion of found objects, magazines, and advertisements.  Although it showed that Wesselmann was interested in these common objects it was contradictory because he included a quote that said that Wesselmann did collages rather than painting because he wasn’t interested enough in these objects to take the time to paint them.

Whiting, Cecile.  A Taste For Pop.  California: Cambridge University Press, 1997.  50- 72.

In Whiting’s A Taste for Pop, the definition of art is addressed.  He also directs much of the discussion of Wesselmann’s art into the realm of gender differences.  Wesselmann is said to liken the organizing of domestic interior spaces to the organization and compositions of high art.  Wesselmann’s art is suppose to show true American life through the female’s perspective.

Fineberg, Jonathon.  Art Since 1940-Strategies of Being.  New York: Prentice Hall, Inc,            

 Fineberg’s writing included more about the formal qualities of Wesselmann’s collages.  It showed his emphasis on geometry and organizing.  Fineberg also talked about the switches in mediums and how this affected the reality of the spaces and their interpretations.  

Children’s Books

Mayer, Mercer.  Where the Wild Things Are.  New York: Dial Books for Young Readers, 1968. 

This book is all about imagination.  A young boy goes on an epic adventure across the sea, meets “wild things,” and becomes their king, all within the walls of his bedroom.  Mayer grabs the reader’s attention by the ridiculousness of the story and also because of the slight possibility that it just might be able to have happened. 

Parish, Peggy.  Amelia Bedilia.  U.S.A: Harper Collins Publisher, 1992.

Parish’s book is hilarious. It explores the ways that we communicate, our social norms, and conditioning and how people from other cultures or people who are oblivious, can be confuse and interpret things differently.  Amelia Bedilia sees every day objects with a naïve eye, it’s as though she is completely unaffected by societies definitions.

Silverstein, Shel.  A light in the Attic.  New York:  Harper Collins, 1981.

This is a compilation of poems and drawings. He turns the everyday into experiences of adventure and silliness.  Silverstein lets the reader remember how it was to be a kid; everything is worth investigating and entertaining. They are about growing up and deciding to not grow up. 

Silverstein, Shel.  The Missing Piece.  New York:  Harper Collins, 1976.

This is a story about a thing that is missing a piece.  He rolls around singing and looking for it.  The adventure and the searching turn out to be more important than finding the missing piece.

Silverstein, Shel.  Where the Sidewalk Ends.  New York:  Harper Collins, 1974.

This is a compilation of poems and drawings. They turn the everyday into experiences of adventure and silliness.  Silverstein lets the reader remember how it was to be a kid; everything is worth investigating and entertaining. They are about growing up and deciding to not grow up. 

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