All Categories - YARI J MENA

Ely

8/17/2022

I met Ely in late July. They were taking a workshop next door, in the Photography department. It was exciting to learn that they are also from Atlanta and also attended Georgia State University. After being in the west for nearly two months, and right around the time I was getting a little more homesick, it was a blessing to meet someone from home.

Eliza Aviña is an artist who contributes to Chicana / Latine representation through photography. For this photo session, Ely was interested in combatting the sultry, exotic, and hot-tempered stereotypical light that Latina women are often depicted in. Never having identified with that stereotype, I was thrilled when they asked me to be part of her photoshoot for their last assignment in Ryan Pfleuger’s workshop.

I was still in my work clothes, and since I don’t live at the ranch anymore she had to work with my natural state on a Thursday evening at 8pm, which meant no make up that day and no way for me to brush my hair. Ely brought out two matching shirts (except in color) for us to wear throughout the shoot. Ely took photographs of us together, running back and forth between the camera and the stool we were sharing, and directing the composition and line in the photograph while still allowing me room to by myself and comfortable in the shoot. I hadn't thought about the shirt assignment until I saw the photographs recently: the warmth from Ely's hair color traveling down the photograph through the shirt the had me wear, and the darkness of my hair and her shirt balance the color versions beautifully.

It was interesting and exciting to be involved in a shoot with a person I met a couple of days prior and leave feeling like good friends.

Below are some photographs from the shoot :

Teen Drawing

7/29/2022

A couple of weeks back I stepped in to help cover a teen class for a couple of days. They were focusing on drawing from life and had been doing still lifes the first part of the week. My director and I came up with a syllabus for the final two days where I did a portrait demonstration for the class one day and I took them outside to draw the next day.

They were all incredibly focused, talented and did amazing work.

Below are some of the drawings they produced:

art thoughts, spoons, and a day off

7/23/2022

The past couple of weeks have been packed!

At work we had a Recognition Dinner for Yinka Shinobare and an art auction to raise funds for scholarships. I was able to drive Marilyn Minter, John Valadez, and Anna Katz to and from Aspen after sitting in on their Critical Dialogue on photorealism.

It's been amazing to be in such close proximity to so many accomplished artists, through these events and through our weekly workshops, hear about their career trajectory, how their work has changed and evolved, and overall how much rejection is such a part of an artist's journey. Hearing them talk about their work has helped me connect the dots and find verbage for the ideas I explore in my own, and find more confidence in how I speak about and consider about those ideas.

This past week we jumped back in to workshops and I had a lot of fun and learned so much assisting artist David Antonio Cruz. His workshop included a lot of reading, discussion, and time to make work. He was also so willing to share information and knowledge for his students (and so generously, I as well) to succeed and improve.

Wrapping up the weekends are a little tough, saying goodbye to the faculty is difficult sometimes between preparing to turnover for the next week (it's difficult anyway because I spend so much time with them over the course of 5 days!), putting things away, and making sure students have everything they need before they go.

Art-wise, I moved out of the intern studio last week, helped out a couple of photographers this week, and in the woodshop, started carving a spoon as a gift for someone.

Today on my day off : I got some errands done and grocery shopped (sort of), drank a smoothie, made quesadillas, napped, sat in a hot tub, and am considering what the future may hold.

homesick hopes

7/4/2022

It's been well over a month of being in Colorado and working at the ranch.

I am so much more comfortable with the facilities and making my way around, which is awesome! The familiarity I'm gaining here is giving me a little more confidence.

I have started to get a little homesick, but I have starting meeting more folks who either live in Atlanta or have loved ones there, which helps a little.

Art stuff:

I got some leftie art exercise in and I am BACK!! Back to physically altering photographs and experimenting in how I do it. As well as what I'm changing. I'm learning how to mess with Polaroids, both by lifting the emulsion and seeing what heat does to them (which I tried in 2017, but I'm doing it a little differently now).

The experiment below is from a Polaroid I took about a week after my heart started beating funny. After trimming the borders and blasting it at about 1000 degrees (F), the plastic came off with some emulsion (without me) and left most of my figure on the backing- which was something that was on my mind a lot during that time- what void (if any) would I leave in my environment or on my loved ones, and what did I do to deteriorate so badly (at the time). The image happened to peel off this way, I didn't plan it, but boy what a time to think about my mortality again :')

Polaroid experiment #2

Not work/art stuff / thoughts:
I'm practicing being more vulnerable around some of my new friends. I think I have a hard time achieving depth sometimes out of not wanting to make people uncomfortable, but that's going to change I hope!

I am also trying to figure out the best way to grow so I can help my family.

All in all I feel pretty good. Tired some days, but good tired and like I can handle my own, my emotions and insecurities, and my art much better than I could a few months ago. I'm sure the hot tub is helping lol.

Check out my interview in Canvas Rebel!

6/18/2022

oopsie. I think I've been using the title text for everything.

Oh well.

Anywho, if you don't know me very well, you can check out my Canvas Rebel interview here (or click on the picture below) to learn a little more about my recent life and thoughts: canvasrebel.com/meet-yari-mena/

I would love to know what you think! Chat me up in person or email me!

adventure in the west : first time camping

6/13/2022

Two other intern friends of mine and I visited Moab, Utah to visit the Arches National Park.

There were a lot of red rocks and a lot of sand. They were just a bunch of rocks, but damn where they nice, beautiful, hot rocks. The views were unbelievable.

Mads also sold Mary Margaret & I some color film to take pictures with in the desert! Can't wait to get those developed.

We walked in heat advisory temperatures on Saturday through some of the trails at the national park and went back to the campsite on the Colorado River. Then, Mads made some dinner, after everyone struggled with the knives while trying to cut the sweet potatoes, then we went BACK to the park after dark to try to stargaze and see the Milky Way (but there was a bright moon and clouds so no milky way that night). The moon was so bright (and with no light pollution), there were shadows that night. A nice photographer man from Canada was there trying to capture the Milky Way as well, but no luck.

The next morning we skipped the sunrise hike, packed up, grabbed breakfast at the Jailhouse Café, previously a jailhouse, and went to the information center for souvenirs.

Then we drove back to Colorado, saw a Mystery Machine, a gas station inviting aliens to land there, and got back with an hour for Mads and I to spare to get ready for our shift at work.

I thought I would be so tired and beat, but after I showered and got back in to the swing of things, I felt so refreshed. I did get to sleep on the ride home, though, and I did have some caffeine afterwards. So. That may have had something to do with it.

In fact, I was so refreshed, that after my shift, I visited the other intern's housing situation and while Zeke and Tara were giving their tour, I walked straight into the screen door :') The residents taped around my forehead mark and labelled it "Yari 2022".

I facetimed my family after work and my dad said I looked a lot happier.

Other notable occurrences:

-A light flickers in the basement pro-shop a little too often. Sometimes in response to questions. Cat says the ghost's name is Frank.

-(a couple of days after the trip) I made some drawings from the pictures I took and had a small brain dump in my sketchbook about being the eldest daughter in an immigrant family.

week 3

6/10/2022

We finished training last week!

This week the workshops began.

One of my professors from GSU, Lauren Peterson came to teach a workshop this week and my fellow intern, SIlma, assisted in her class. Meanwhile the third intern in our group, Gilberto, and I assisted the master printer, Brian and his assistant, Amy with hand printing a large woodblock print by John Buck. Our director Liz came by to help too.

Other notable occurrences:

Silma asked us daily questions like :

If you were an animal what kind of animal would you be? Answers were:
1) a buffalo
2) a cat or a whale
3) an apex predator / great white shark
4) a roadrunner
5) a lizard
6) a dinosaur

What genre of music would you be?
1) heavy metal or reggae
2) death metal
3) a Jimi Hendrix song
4) country

Gilberto threw a one person dance party to Shakira’s Waka Waka this week.

Cat bought us chips.

Liz brought me an apple and cheese when my lunch wasn't ready.

I was informally coached in hitting the volleyball this week. I played a little bit better afterwards :')

two lists

6/8/2022

Things I miss:

-my family (obvi)

-really pink sunsets - the sun just kinda goes away behind the mountains like in the Teletubbies from where I am. (Except when I walked further down the valley, documented below)

-my dog, who doesn't understand why I'm gone and that I'll be back :(

-not having to drown my face in Aquaphor bc my skin would otherwise get super dry

Small things I'm really digging:

-reasonable DRY heat! I don't feel like I'm melting anytime I go outside :')

-beautiful drives to and from work (and anywhere)

-the chance to either play or watch volleyball immediately after work? unmatched! unheard of!

-the possibility of seeing a bear (from a safe distance ideally)

carless in CO

6/8/2022

some images from a walk through a nearby trail :)

the beginning

6/6/2022

Hello friends! I will be blogging about my adventures, thoughts, feelings in Colorado while I am away from home. Not quite in real time, but close enough. Visit this page to stay semi-caught up on what I’m doing!

To start: I both don’t know how this came to be, but I know exactly how it did.

The town is small, mountains and hills can be seen from virtually anywhere, so the walks and hikes here are amazing. The landscape is beautiful, the food is amazing, I get to live in a nice house - this opportunity is a dream come true. I’ve already gone on hikes with other interns, went rafting, and visited the John Denver Garden, the Aspen Art Museum, and a couple of local art galleries, which had art from legends like Anish Kapoor and Helen Frankenthaler. There is inspiration to be found everywhere- whether in nature or in the thriving art world here.

My department worked hard the first couple of weeks resurfacing tabletops and palettes, repainting the painting studio walls, and some of the office floors. I’m sure I will become a little more comfortable with power tools and interior painting while I’m here.

Within the first week interns were already connecting almost seamlessly. I truly feel like we were all destined to meet each other. Some of us even had eerily similar life experiences before arriving. The art talk happening here already is amazing: processes, ideas, past works. I am amazed at the work and experience my fellow interns are walking in with and am just as excited to learn from them as I am from the staff and visiting faculty. I’m even more excited to be around other artists who also think about memory in their work and also manipulate photographs :’)

On Memorial Day, my roommate and I saw a couple of meteors and a magnificent starry sky. Hundreds of stars. Back home, I’m lucky to see five.

The dreaminess and magic may wear off of course as we settle into our routines, whatever. I'm enjoying it as long as it lasts.