IB Visual Arts LINCOLN SCHOOL Costa Rica: VALERIE BEECHE IB Visual Arts 2015 Lincoln School Costa Rica

Wednesday, May 4, 2016

VALERIE BEECHE IB Visual Arts 2015 Lincoln School Costa Rica

The Artist Statement

by Valerie Beeche

When I was given the opportunity to take IB Visual Arts, I was in the midst of a confusing stage, where I did not manage to understand what I was truly feeling. In that moment I felt that if I were to take the class, I was going to be able to explore these hidden feelings. Just like in literature, I felt that in art your unconscious makes you create works based on what is happening inside you. I had a zeal to understand what was inside of me. Indeed, as I continued to work and loosen up, I was able to understand myself in a much better way.

As seen in all of my artwork, I worked with distortions of reality since the purpose behind almost all my artworks is to show how distorted our view of reality is. Inspired by different artists such as Salvador Dalí, Aneta Ivanova and the surrealism movement, I managed to understand that we humans never cease to see things as they are, but through cultural filters. As I explored different techniques such as printmaking, India ink, acrylics, photography and mixed media, I managed to use the media in a way that would convey the message behind the intended idea.

At first, I was really determined to make things look perfect and realistic, which now I notice really contradicted my overall message. As I practiced and explored different techniques, I managed to overcome this fear and simply allow myself to make “mistakes” and take risks. I believe I achieved this greatly and I can see the difference between my first and final artworks. I have had problems when developing ideas; yet, I have managed to work on this. The class has definitely helped me improve in different areas of my life: not only artistically, but emotionally as well.