Critique

1.

Part 1. Art Component

I woke up 

beginning to consider

what makes me special 

and why I won’t wither 

I am a result of reflection

true identity 

that holds unique detection

of my capability

 

I woke up 

beginning to consider 

with the brain I have 

I could never be bitter 

I am a result of actions

which makes me deliver 

my goals as a person 

which I refuse to wither 

 

Part 2. Written Component Briefly describe your creative process. 

I decided to connect our Art Day with my essay on personhood as I wrote a poem on my definition of a person. This specific section of our class caught my attention right away because it was something that I never contemplated before and it was a subject that took a long period of deliberation. I decided to create this work because it took me out of my comfort zone and made me really reflect on the characteristic that I believed made me a person. This project was quite more challenging than the essay because I had a limited amount of words I could incorporate into my poem which made me carefully consider characteristics that I saw as essential to my definition. In Of Identity and Diversity, John Locke explains how “we must consider what person stands for; which, I think, is an intelligent being, that has reason and reflection” (9). When I reflect on what makes someone a person I believe that the characteristic of reflection is a necessity. I believe that all persons should have the ability to recognize their actions and be able to understand the consequences that may follow them. This is the reason I decided to incorporate the idea of reflection and understanding of one's capability in my poem. I included the concept of having goals as a person which is another key topic to my definition. When defining personhood in my own words, I found it important to state that a person should be able to set certain goals and accomplish them periodically. I was attempting to win the Most Creative Work of Art award because I feel as though I took two incredibly difficult things, making a poem and defining personhood, and integrated them. Knowing that I would not usually have expressed this creative side of myself, I was aware that simple things like rhyming were going to be challenging. I believe my project embodied the spirit of this award because I pushed myself out of my regular routine and forced my creative side to emerge.

2.

Art Component: Visual Art

Part 2: Written Component

I’ve lost my artistic touch over the past few years, so I wasn’t really sure what to do at first for this DISS. So, I thought why not use Animal Crossing, a game I’m guessing at least half the class is playing right now, as my art piece! I’ll be connecting this photo I took of myself in the game with our recent lesson on art evaluation, particularly the theory of taste and individual sentiment.

 

To give everyone a bit of background of the photo, my character is in the center, the character on the left in red is named Kid Cat, and the character on the right is named Zell. According to fans of the game, they are ranked fairly low on the popularity list. On a grading scale of S, A, B, C, and D, these two rank on the lower half of the scale.

 

Touching back onto the taste and individual sentiment, the individual sentiment is essentially an expression of like or dislike for an object. Everyone has individual taste and some people will like things that others do not. Taste can be applied to everything such as art, music, style, and much more. Taste can change over time but everyone has preferences and can be based on our own features.

                           

Putting the context of the photo with the theory, many people would not have a preference for these two villagers. However, I find these two to be some of my favorite villagers in the game, which is why I kept them unlike a lot of players. The main message I am trying to get across is that everyone has individual taste, and in this case, I preferred something that others may not have liked as much. Hume states that “… Beauty is no quality in things themselves: It exists merely in the mind which contemplates them; an each mind perceives a different beauty…” In this case, beauty and aesthetic is the domain for taste.

 

Personally, I was not attempting to win one of the awards, but this would most likely classify under the best philosophical content/connection because most people wouldn’t think beyond seeing the photo as just a screenshot of a game.

3.

Part 1. Art Component

Good and bad - 

This too shall pass. 

We fall and dry up

Like leaves on the grass. 

 

Everything comes,

And everything goes,

In the circle of life,

It springs and it snows.

 

There's nothing constant 

In this hectic world, 

Remember the important 

And try to stay unnerved. 

 

For you will also perish 

In time which no one knows.

So do your best to cherish 

Those who know your worth. 

 

Life begins and ends 

The same for everyone. 

Do what you intend

And be afraid of none. 

 

There's only one goal 

In living your life. 

Enjoy the rise and fall 

And achieve eudaimonia. 

 

Part 2. Written Component Briefly describe your creative process. 

I wrote a poem inspired by both Aristotle's teaching of ultimate happiness - "eudaimonia" and Confucius's style of rhyme. Since the work had to be pretty succinct, I decided to focus on one sole topic in my poem. In order to create the rhymes, I first read Confucius' poems and found out that he usually rhymed every other line - in other word, he did not have a perfect rhyme in every line of his poems. This inspired and encouraged me to overcome my fear of not having the most harmonious rhyme in my poem and so I began to compose. 

In writing my poem, I wanted to pick a topic that is pretty universal to various philosophical teachings and which resonates most with my belief system. Therefore, I chose Aristotle's theory of eudaimonia or ultimate happiness. Even though since ancient times, happiness and meaning of life have been discussed by various philosophers, including Kant, Aristotle, and Plato, many of their teachings do not seem applicable in modern society. For instance, Plato's proposition of a lifestyle that implies not having the freedom to choose an occupation or even enjoy poetry in order to achieve happiness and virtuousness seems a bit outdated and rather limiting. Kant's belief that people shall only be virtuous if their actions have no personal benefit also seems contradictory to a happy balanced lifestyle that people desire nowadays. Therefore, Aristotle's claim that happiness is the ultimate goal in life is the one that is most widely accepted in modern society and one that I inherently and sincerely agree with. That is why, I chose the topic of eudaimonia, or happiness, in writing a poem about the meaning of life. 

In composing my poem, I was not attempting to win any of the declared awards. I believe that even though my poem was in line with the task description, I am generally not a highly creative person and unable to produce a truly unique and captivating piece of art. At the same time, I am pleased with the way that I was able to connect the ideas covered in this class within my poem, and was also able to express my beliefs about the true meaning of life in a creative form, which is highly unusual for me. I am truly happy and excited about how the poem turned out and what it represents for me. If I were to get an award, I think an award for sincerity or for artistic debut would be appropriate in my case, because even though this is a rather unfamiliar experience for me, I did my best to express my true beliefs and enjoyed the process. 

4.

Part 1. Art Component: Vietnamese Water Puppet

 Hanoi "Water Puppet Theatre" (Links to an external site.)

Part 2. Written Component 

When it comes to art, there are a variety of artworks from visual art, music, dance, film, poetry, etc... in the world that we consider. Yet, another form of art similar to both dance and film that I have looked into is “Vietnamese Water Puppet.” Vietnamese Water Puppet is a type of art where people control puppets in the water like a small set up pool to tell a story from the past to the audience. During the show, these puppets are being controlled in a way to represent the realistic human movements. All other sounds and effects can also be incorporated into the puppets via humans. Humans sit behind or near the stage to make sounds that match the story using microphones. Searching for a compelling piece of art takes me about an hour because there are many arts to choose from. I first wanted to do a music piece since I do like listening to music in my free time. However, I feel like selecting a music piece that is compelling and attractive is hard because everyone has a different taste when it comes to music. Similar to how Hume says in “Of the Standard of Taste,” even the most knowledgeable men have different tastes even under one observation. With my Vietnamese background, I then decided to research exciting arts in Vietnam. I later found out about the Vietnamese Water Puppet, which I have found to be cool because it is the art where you control these puppets or to me, they are like miniature statues where you sometimes see at gift shops. I feel like it is interesting because Vietnamese people have recognized the compelling parts of these puppets and incorporate them into the water to make shows for both the locals and tourists coming to Vietnam. However, I'm unable to create this puppet show by myself, since I do not have all the equipment like the puppets, and sound effects. Therefore, I have decided to research a video version of it online and post it for my art component. I'm interested in this type of art and hope that it will appeal to you guys too. 

Moreover, when it comes to awards, I did not try to win any prizes; however, I think the best one for this type of art is the “Most Creative Work of Art.” I believe that this award is the best fit because this type of art where people use puppets with the combination of water is very creative and unusual. People know to use the tools that they have to reduce the cost of hiring actors and actresses for shows. 

5.

Part 1. Art Component

Part 2. Written Component

Though I haven’t drawn in a while, I have decided to create a piece on Procreate. I wanted to draw something I was passionate about which is dancing. I got inspiration from recently being in contact with my old dance classmates. We were conversing with each other like we haven’t been apart for a couple of months and it reminded me of how I used to be in such a well-bonded dance group. Looking back to our first week of class, this relates to our big lesson on communal persons. Being a part of a community is a huge part of who I am and what makes me, me. I am someone that learns from other people, shaping some of my characteristics. I only joined the dance community when I was a freshman in high school, but it has made such an impact on me. It made me appreciate all aspects of art more and helped me learn my love of performance.  Menkiti’s focus on achieving personhood in a community is an exact description of me amongst other dancers. He writes, “is in rootedness in an ongoing human community that the individual comes to see himself as man” (171-172); in my dance community I earned parts of myself that I believe are defining characteristics. Everyone is different in this type of community, we all have a role, but we all feed off each other to make one cohesive group. Menkiti’s emphasis on staying in a community is like my decision to keep on dancing in college, which is why I auditioned and joined the dance team at SJSU. I am sticking to this community, continuing my journey and life to further establish myself amongst other people. My drawing has other people in different colors doing different positions to symbolize a team, a community, where everyone is different but, in the end, we all are together. Our unique roles in our community affect each other and help us achieve more defining parts of our own personhood.

Seeing as how I am not the best artist out there, I was not trying to win any awards. However, if I were to win one, I believe it should be the Best Philosophical Content/Connection. I made my drawing to specifically connect to Menkiti’s definition of personhood and my own life. I hope the drawing portrays that message and that the value I hold of the community is easily seen.

6.

Part 1: Art Component

Part 2: Written Component

The art component I chose for Art Day is a visual art that I have drawn before using just different point sizes of black pens. The artwork used techniques like pointillism to contrast each of the objects in the picture. I decided to use this artwork because it can connect to one of the philosophical content in the class which is taste in Unit three. According to Of the Standard of Taste, Hume stated, “On the contrary, a thousand different sentiments, excited by the same object, are all right: Because no sentiment represents what is really in the object” (Hume, para. 7). From looking at this artwork, different people would have different views or individual sentiments when deciding whether black and white is better than with color or using techniques like pointillism is better than just putting on some colors with no contrast. This is why taste is about physiology plus sentiment because beauty is completely mind-dependent and not about the object. Every person’s ideas or preferences are different so there could be a lot of disagreements regarding this artwork or anything when it is shown to a lot of people. In addition, it shows that when it is about something like art, there is no right or wrong about each person’s own sentiments, it is just each person’s own preferences. I decided to create this work using black and white with techniques like pointillism because I personally like the results of it even though some people might think it looks boring due to the lack of colors or do not like the use of pointillism because they have trypophobia. This philosophical content was able to let me deeply understand what taste really means and every one has their own taste, whether it is in visual art, music, dance, and more. I do not feel attempting to win the awards, but if I were to choose one that would be most appropriate for my project is the best philosophical content/connection because I think it does connect to the philosophical content of taste by giving a possibility of people having preferences or different opinions on this artwork.

7.

I write a lot of poetry, here's one of my recents :)

Part 1. Art Component

As the field gets colored in gold underneath the orange skies,

I stand here in a state of dawn (literally), 

Here as you walk, a gentle breeze will never leave you alone.

Eyes are wandering out at the river, with its calling getting strong.

I submit to the moment thinking. 

Most of the time, we don't work at all,

What's working is the time, most of just need to be in it. 

Some who have, give it away. Some give away anything to have it. 

-neal 

 

Part 2. Written Component Briefly describe your creative process. 

It's a poem I wrote to describe the human nature vis-a-vis the definition of personhood in today's capitalistic times. I sat down, thinking to myself, the importance of time for humans. It dawned on me as I walked on the peer of huntington beach, thinking to myself how if I had ten more minutes, my life would be a whole lot different. I was battling through some personal problems, and the effects were seen on all my activities. As the nature of personhood goes in today's time, in the good days or bad days, humans find a way to fulfill their selfish interests and that shows the dreadful state of capitalism we are in. Despite whats going on, I found comfort in my selfish choices, and that's where the nature of time plays a huge role. If i had ten more minutes, I would want to go back and make decisions that stem from morals. Most of the time, things are happening in our life as they are destined to be. You may like it or not, but they will happen and you can either live with it or not. Its the choices we make that define us. Just know that a lot of things come in your life once- love, wealth, compassion.. don't let it die down based on some capitalistic desires. Value your choices. Value your time. Value you. I don't plant to win any award for this--for the very nature of writing this to win some sort of award is the problem I might be trying to highlight--don't fall for the selfish human nature and desires :) 

8.

Part 1:  Part 2: This oil painting that I created was made to reflect the importance that Indian culture and Indian lifestyle has had on my personhood. Growing up in an Indian community, I gained a lot of important values about myself and others in my community through the cultural teachings I was brought up on. I believe that personhood is dependent upon our surrounding community and that our environment plays an important role in shaping how we choose to formulate and act upon our second order desires. While a person has some independent characteristics, I think they are ultimately dependent entities because they depend on their environment to shape their identity (whether they realize it or not). I relate this to Menkiti’s statement in his book, Person and Community in African Traditional Thought, where he says that “man is defined by reference to the environment community... ‘I am because we are, and since we are, therefore I am’.” Regarding the last part of that quote, I believe that who I am is due to what my community is. Therefore, I wanted to make a painting of a traditional Indian lady to show the importance that Indian culture has had in my life (Honestly, I was trying to make a painting of my mother, but it ended up looking nothing like her LOL). What I was hoping to show was the importance that my family and surrounding community has had on me and defining my personhood. Indian culture has also allowed me to understand various religious and spiritual beliefs and has helped me choose which beliefs to follow. Overall, I think my identity, desires, and beliefs are all heavily defined by the Indian culture and teachings I grew up on and I wanted to express that through a painting! I’m not trying to win any award, but I think the most appropriate award would probably be “Most creative work of art”.

9.

Art Component:

Written Component:

This drawing that I did is a combination of graphite and charcoal. I drew the girl using a photo that I actually took out of a magazine. What first caught my eye was the angle of the photo. I really loved the colors and angles in the original photo that I wanted to draw it. It's an interesting choice to leave out the color, an aspect that originally drew my attention, but I did that because I wanted this drawing to be my own interpretation of what made the photo beautiful, not just a recreation of the photo. This goes back to what Hume was saying in The Standard of Taste  about how “a thousand different sentiments, excited by the same object, are all right…” I always find it interesting to try and figure out what an artist or designer was thinking when they made certain decisions. So in the photographer’s case, they were trying to capture the model’s beauty in the best way they could. In my case, I found the lines that the photographer captured really beautiful which in turn made me believe she was beautiful like the photographer originally intended. The beauty that came from the line and angle of the photo is what made me want to draw but the beauty of the model is what the photographer was trying to capture. This explanation is how I understand Hume’s statement. So the model is the “object” and the different sentiments are the photographer’s and mine. Although we are representing the same thing (the model) our interpretation of what her beauty is is different to both of us and it shows in our different work and both convey the same idea of “beauty.”

I was not attempting to win any of the awards as I had done this piece a while ago and thought it was applicable for this assignment (because of my process). I think if I had to choose which award this piece would best fall under I would probably say one that focuses on the creativity of the art rather than social or persuasive. 

10.

This is a photo I took six years ago as I am struggling with my new life. In 2014, I first came to the U.S. to finish my senior high school year. The days went by swiftly without any major incidents. However, that was the main issue for me. Everything was too plain, and I could not find any motivation at all! My uncle then gave me his old digital camera and I decided to go take some pictures in my pastimes. This photo was taken at his front yard when I tested out different perspectives from the normal human view to the lower, smaller view of insects.

This workpiece is my favorite which displays my “taste” in art and in my personal life as well. In Hume’s “Of the Standard of Taste”, one can see that beauty is something that is strongly dependent on the mind and it is somewhat influenced by your surroundings. To see this point of view, let’s start with a bit of my background. Coming from Vietnam, I grew up in one of the most modern cities which is Ho Chi Minh city, also known as Saigon. Although the country as a whole can be considered a third-world country at the time, Ho Chi Minh city keeps up really well with the world. I was exposed to computers, PDAs, etc. as young as the age of 3. Given that background, I am earnestly lacking knowledge of the simpler Vietnam. In other words, I do not know much about the beauty of nature growing up. Hence, the more I am exposed to different environments, the more it dawns on me that the beauty of a simple nature is what I love the most. From there, I deduce that there are so many different views and perspectives that are yet to be discovered. To me, what I am lacking is what I find most intriguing. Hence, my “taste” in the thing that I like was formed from all of my experience and reasonings. I recognize that I enjoy the difference in perspectives of different beings. Therefore, it is quite difficult for me to find something that I do not really enjoy. But of all perspective, I tend to focus on the matter at its utmost simplicity. Tying it back to Hume’s idea, one can see that as taste is mind-dependent, the object in discussion experience which contributes to their mind will also affect its taste. And I can see that in myself that the thing that was lacking the most in my childhood actually made me acquire a “crave and taste” for it later on in my life.

I am not really attempting to win any of the categorical awards. I enjoy looking at other people’s artworks and perspective which make this whole entire discussion an award to myself already.

11.

 

I've been interested in photography for the longest time. I took this picture a couple of years ago when my friend and I had gone on a trekking trip to Uttarakhand, India. We came across a small town and decided to stop at a small snack shop that was right around the corner. The tallest boy in the picture came up to me and asked for some food and told me that he hadn't eaten in days. He was overjoyed when I bought him a hot meal and grabbed it from my hand and left hurriedly. The owner of the shop told me that the boy, Akash, was an orphan. Curious to know where he went, we followed him for about 5 minutes and saw this group of children. Akash, being the oldest, gave them all of the food, without taking any of it for himself. 

Thinking back to this now, I can relate all of this to Menkiti’s statement in his book, Person and Community in African Traditional Thought, where he says that “man is defined by reference to the environmental community and person-hood is something which has to be achieved and is not given simply because one is born of human seed. Menkiti didn't really believe that children were persons because they didn't do anything for the community but due to his unfortunate circumstances, Akash had to mature way faster than usual and he achieved personhood the moment he started viewing his community's (the orphans) needs to be above his own. This was a really humbling experience for me because, in today's world, all of us have been rather selfish and self-centered.

I'm attempting to win the award for the Best Philosophical Content/Connection. I believe my project embodied the spirit of this award because it clearly demonstrates Menkiti’s view of why personhood is the sort of thing which has to be attained and is attained in direct proportion as one participates in communal life through the discharge of the various obligations defined by one' s stations.

P.S. We bought them a lot more food before leaving :) 

12.

Part 1. Art component

I feel Him when I pray 

He always helps me pull through

He never leads me astray 

Never does He betray 

By my side everyday 

 

Sometimes I may try to push away 

Yet He always stays close by 

With the endless love He supplies 

My belief in Him never dies

It only grows in size 

 

Part 2. Written Component 

It has actually been a very long time since I got creative with my words and wrote any type of poem, so this was a bit challenging the first time I tried it. However, the second time around, I realized that I was thinking too hard so I decided to go with the flow. The topic that I chose to write about was God and more about my belief in Him. I decided to choose this topic because it is something that I have a very strong belief in. My biggest belief is actually on this topic. It is something that has been instilled in me since I was a young child and is a huge part of who I am today.  My work connects with the philosophical content of our class because it relates to our lecture on 6/8 Reasons For Belief. My belief in God is what I tried to talk about in my poem. I tried to explain my feelings about God. In the reading The Ethics of Belief, Clifford states,  “The fact that believers have found joy and peace in believing gives us the right to say that the doctrine is a comfortable doctrine, and pleasant to the soul; but it does not give us the right to say that it is true. And the question which our conscience is always asking about that which we are tempted to believe is not, "Is it comfortable and pleasant?" but, "Is it true?"”

I was not trying to win one of the awards, I just wanted to express the way that I feel about one of my biggest beliefs in my life. However, if I were to win an award, I believe that it would be for the Most Persuasive Work of Art. I think that I would receive this award because my poem explains the relationship that I have with God which may cause some readers to be persuaded that God is real if they did not think so before. It may also persuade readers about belief and how far belief can go in one’s life. Like I said earlier, I am not trying to win an award, however, I am glad that I was able to use this opportunity as a way to get back in touch with my creative side.

13.

Part 1.     Art Component

 

Part 2.     Written Component 

While I’m not much of an artist, I do occasionally like to draw because it helps me relieve my stress. I decided to create something that I knew was going to take a lot of time as I wanted to have a more enjoyable experience for this assignment and ultimately feel more proud of myself for creating something I never thought I would. When I first read the instructions for this assignment, I was unsure of what to do, however as I went outside to feed the birds, I noticed that a squirrel was eating from the bird’s bowl. This strange yet very cute encounter inspired me to draw a squirrel. This artwork was entirely done with a pen and used various types of shades in different tones to contrast each individual square. My work connects with the philosophical content of the class as it relates to how Hume sees and defines taste. As David Hume states in Of the Standard of Taste, “ though some objects, by the structure of the mind, be naturally calculated to give pleasure, it is not to be expected, that in every individual the pleasure will be equally felt”. Every human has their own personal taste so not everyone will appreciate the things others do. In other words, my art will make people feel different ways and have different individual sentiments when analyzing it. For example, some people may not like that I decided to only use black and white in my artwork and will argue that I should’ve used different colors to not make it look so boring. However, I took the creative decision to keep it black and white because I like its simplicity and how cleaned it looked. Through this unit, I was able to understand that the standard of taste is mind-dependent because it depends upon facts about us, the perceivers. I was not attempting to win any of the awards presented as I don’t feel my artwork is all that great. I think that if I had to choose which award would be most appropriate for my project would probably be the best philosophical content/connection because of how I explained taste.

14.

Part 1: Visual Video 

Play media comment.

Part 2: Written Component

This video is of a dance that I made up relating to the Black Lives Matter Protest that are happening in the U.S. This topic is very personal and important to me, especially as an African-American female. I believe this relates to philosophy in a couple of ways. Mainly the first being personhood. In of Identity and Diversity, John Locke states how "we must consider what person; stands for; which I think, is an intelligent being that has reason and reflection." (Locke, 9) First, I think it's important to acknowledge  the philosophical ideas of what a person is. John Locke believed that the only components  that "made up" a person were "material things" (Bodies or matter) , "immaterial substances" (soul), and "intelligence, reason and reflection." However, I believe that there are many other components that contribute to being a person: personality, race and ethnicity, environment, and experiences. Racial equality for Black people in America is such a relevant topic today and it is infatomable that myself, along with other African-Americans are fighting for basic human rights, when we identify as "a person" according to philosophical definition. I made this dance in my form of art, which is my way of saying that I matter as person and deserve to be treated like every other human. As we are all human, I think it is important to use our right to reflect on how we treat one another and how we make use of our time on Earth. If there is one thing you as the reader will take out of my essay, is to spread love to one other. Love is the root and solution to all of the problems that are happening today. If we (the people) learn to love one another despite the color of your skin, the religion you practice, etc. The world would be a better place. "To Love our neighbor as ourselves, is such a truth for regulating human society, that by that aline one might determine all the cases in social morality." - John Locke. I Also would like to run for most Socially-Conscious award or Most persuasive award because I think that my art Is very relevant today and believe that it could really Make a positive impact on someones life. 

15.

 

For my art component, I chose to draw a butterfly with each wing representing my two identities. The left side is the American flag, which I think symbolizes patriotism and pride for my country.  I view America as the land of freedom and opportunity to create the life I want to live. My parents were born in Nigeria and I’ve always known that coming to America was for them to create a better life not only for themselves but for me as well. The right side represents my Nigerian identity in which I have been raised all my life. I was born in America, but I also lived in Nigeria when I was younger. I have gone back to visit multiple times throughout my life and I recently went to visit in December 2019. Being Nigerian is a source of pride for me because it has shaped me into the person I am today. I have always immersed myself in the culture and customs, as well as speaking the Igbo language and knowing the history of my country. I can relate this to Locke’s version of personal identity in his article Of Identity and Diversity where he comments on the idea that “we must consider what PERSON stands for; which I think is a thinking intelligent being, that has reason and reflection, and can consider itself as itself, the same thinking thing, in different times and places.”  Locke is saying that persons are therefore not just thinking intelligent beings that can reason and reflect, and consider themselves as the same thinking things in different times and places, but also entities that can be held accountable for their actions. I think that for me, I can still have these two identities, but it doesn’t change who I am or what I have experienced. Overall, I am not really attempting to win an award, I think that this project helped me explore who I am and be able to see others from their own perspectives.

16.

Part 1: Art Component

 

Part 2: Written Component

My creative process, in the beginning, was a bit difficult because I couldn't think of any way to create something that connected to philosophy. I decided to create this artwork because I am better at expressing myself through art in a visual component in things that I create by hand and that comes from my own mind. I drew myself in the middle in black and white, and then different groups of people, my family in green, friends in purple, my family in Mexico in red, and the rest of my community in yellow. All connecting to me and adding color to me.

That is why I decided to connect it to the reading of Menkiti's definition of what makes a person a person that is found in African traditional thought. In immigrant families, especially when you're not able to travel back to your country to visit your family for personal reasons, creating a community is the most important thing for survival. Without a community, you're invincible. A community can be seen as more than one person, as long as you are not alone. It does not go as far as not seeing someone as person until they create their own new community and have their own children, but it is a great factor in your personhood in a Mexican immigrant family.  And Menkiti also said that a person is defined by their community and based on my Mexican family, it rings true. The type of community that you surround yourself with represents the type of person you are. We are all tied together, whether blood or not. I used green for my family (mother, father, sister, and brother) because they bring me life, purple for my friend family that represents friendship, red for my family in Mexico to represent where my ancestral community comes from and remains in, and yellow for the rest of the community that I create along the way with my family and others that bring me happiness. Community is the best way to define a person, each part of them bringing different things for the person. 

Honestly, I'm not really expecting to win any of the awards because although I am content with the art piece, it's perhaps just a simple interpretation. But if I were to have to choose one it would perhaps be the "Best Received Message" because the message could be easily interpreted since it shows different groups of people that connect to a person.

 

17.

I took this picture on Monday when I went to the beach with some friends and coworkers after spending days planning the trip out. I stumbled upon this place when a friend decided she wanted to practice her photoshoot skills on me, during some downtime. The idea was I stand on one side of the bank with the waves crashing on to me while she stands on the other bankside. As I went to go stand on the other side it was nearing 10 minutes after sunset, so the tides were getting pretty high. I was thinking of jumping to get the other side, but some local told me to be careful because the gap in between the banks and the waves nearing high tide could be a depth of 10 -15 feet. So I decided to walk downwards away from the bank to find a place safe enough to cross. About a hundred feet from the bank this is where I decided to snap the picture. I thought the view looked beautiful and I thought should capture the moment because I was enjoying myself and was feeling adventurous. This is important because I belief this focuses on my “taste”.

 

I’m not someone who likes the beach, I actually hate it. I despise the sand, I hate the process of getting wet and having to wait to dry out and then I hate having to get sand out everything I had brought to the beach. I really hate the beach. Well, I thought I did. I’ve realized I’ve been going there a lot frequently in the past three weeks and I’m starting to see everything I thought I hated isn’t something I hate. I actually hated the fact that I wasn’t in control of my beach experiences or the process after leaving the beach after I was done. I’ve been realizing when I plan out my beach trips, the process to get there and the clean up afterwards I’ve been enjoying myself lately. The times I’ve got to the beach in the last couple weeks have been a grand experience and I’m starting to see my personal “taste”. It really is like the way Hume’s explains in the “Of the Standard of Taste”. Hume’s says in one of his excerpts that “Beauty is no quality in things themselves: It exists merely in the mind which contemplates them; and each mind perceives a different beauty...”. At first when I read that line I didn’t really resonate with it but after a while of thinking on it I understood it. The concept of a beach never really changes, it’s a body of water with sands on it’s shores and it’s place where people can relax. A beach majority wise stays the same in the aspect. However, for me as someone who used to hate the beach and now kind of likes it, I’m understanding what Hume’s was saying. The beach stayed the same, the only thing that changed was the way I contemplated them. Something that I disliked became something I liked when I changed the way I viewed them.

 

I’m not really trying to win an award, just trying to add to all the lovely art here. But if did try I think I would have gone for the Best Philosophical Content/Connection one because I felt like I was able to incorporate the philosophy into the art and vice versa