Lauren Kwiatkowski
HUM Final Project
1. Explain why you believe humans have a need to express themselves through created artifacts. I believe humans are creative beings who are always seeking to find the greater meaning of life. From the Ancient world to the modern world, humans continue to create artifacts for the purpose of expressing their creativity, religious views, entertainment, and sometimes survival. Humans create artifacts in order to connect with each other, communicate, and share their universal ideas.
A. Explain the larger human need to express using the insights you gained from studying your artifact. Humans express themselves because of the culture around them. They're inspired by politics, pop culture, landscape, etc. Street artist Banksy's Girl with Balloon, that was later shredded when it sold for 1.4 M at auction, was a form of expression. Banksy was a non- conformist and never played by the rules. He did not want his art world sold, so he installed a hidden shredder. Although Girl with Red Balloon is now shredded, it remains an artifact despite the condition it's in.
B. Detail how a person and/or concept encountered in this course has informed your explanation. The concept of intent lead me to believe that Banksy's intent for shredding Girl with Red Balloon was that he did not want to be an "artist", he wanted his work to be on display for all; not in galleries or in the homes of the wealthy.
II. Explain how you think the act of human creative expression impacts and is impacted by the culture in which it was created. Humans are a product of the culture within their environment. Humans form a sense of self and are influenced/ inspired by others in their community. Culture and main stream media impact human creative expression as our culture/ media is constantly telling us what we should be/ what the norms are.
A. Explain the larger reciprocal relationship between human creative expression and the culture in which it was created using the insights you gained from studying your artifact. Prankster turned street artist Banksy, was a product of his environment and did not want to conform to societies norms. Banksy is "WOKE" and lives a non-conformist life style. He expressed and created artifacts, by illegally spray painting on buildings because he wanted the entire community to enjoy them. He also wanted to tell his story and express his political opinions.
B. Detail how a person and/or concept encountered in this course has informed your explanation. 3-2 Timeless Themes in the Humanities helped me form my opinion. Humans express themselves through the culture in which they were created in order to share their feelings and tell their story.
III. Explain how you believe human creative expression can impact issues we deal with today. Be sure to be specific about the issues you are addressing. Human creative expression feeds the world. Humans need to have a creative outlet to express themselves. Humans subconsciously find peace, love, fear, hate, courage, and selflessness,