George B. – 30 Museums in 30 Days

My name is George and my project is 30 Museums in 30 Days. As a young child, it was always such a joy to go to the museum. When I was five, I had my birthday party at the New York Transit Museum, now I have more of an interest in art. Through this project, I have examined exhibition layout, curation, and how museums define genres of art. In the past year, I have taken an interest in programs outside of school to further my interest, this summer I made a podcast that is on the Museum of Art and Design’s website, and last spring I did a six week Experimental Study Program at the New Museum where we made art based on meeting with Artists being shown at the Museum. Through this extended interest, I created art that came from the impact of seeing many of the world’s greatest museums. 

Around the time I started to enjoy making art, my hands started to shake. I remember cutting out a print on linoleum and struggling to keep a straight line, I would try to draw and would have trouble keeping my hand steady. I realized later that it was because of anxiety, but I lost my confidence in making art for years because I had a hard time focussing on keeping my hands steady. Photography became a way for me to express that frustration, you only have to keep your hands steady for a moment to get a good picture. This project is a personal narrative for me because it allows me to forgive bumpy lines and edges. As I completed this project, I realized that I was able to create art for the audience of myself. If I hang it up on my wall and if   I like it, I included it in my project.   

In the last two months, I have visited 30 of the most prominent art museums in New York City. This experience was truly irreplaceable, even though I could have looked at all of the art online, being with these pieces in person changes how they are perceived. One of the last museums I visited was the Noguchi museum, known for minimalism and abstraction in sculpture. Many of the pieces looked like a boulder with a chunk missing but it helped me understand the impact of seeing art in person. The sculptures just look like big rocks in pictures but while physically present with these works, I was reconnected with the importance of proximity to art. For most of my senior project, after going to the museum, I would shift my focus to making art. With museums and galleries in the back of my mind, I thought about what my art could look like in a space and how art could interact with spaces. Imagining my pieces on the wall before they are finished helped me to build confidence in my bumpy lines and jagged edges and helped my hands stay steady.

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Senior Project Gallery – George Boulukos

 

Inspiration

Below are some of inspiration for my project. There were all taken at Museums visited during my project.