PENTATHLON

Semester 4

As an experiential component of College Park Arts Scholars, I attended a selection of five art events during my third semester. These events ranged in art mediums and each sparked dialogue among my peers.

PENTATHLON 1: La La Land

Event Logistics 2.12.23, Netflix Film, at Home

Pentathlon category #film

For my first pentathlon event, I watched the movie La La Land. This is a movie that depicts the crossroads decision between choosing to be with who you love and chasing your artistic dreams and how choosing your dreams requires sacrifice, even though it is all for the best. The main character, Mia, is an aspiring actress who we see constantly failing her movie auditions in the first half of the movie. The love interest Sebastian is a pianist with a passion for jazz music who recently got fired from his job that required little creative direction.

I really loved this movie and its balance of fantasy and realism - realism in that Mia and Sebastian don’t end up together, and fantasy due to the movie musical - the theatrical colors, lights, and moods. Though some may paint Mia and Sebastian drifting apart as a sacrifice, I don’t see it as one, as some people come into our lives to share pieces of artistic wisdom or courage to move forward with our dreams, even if they will eventually leave (they will have a lasting impact on our lives forever). On a smaller scale, this movie reinforced the idea that we require feedback from others to reach our artistic potential, as one of the pillars of Arts Scholars. This movie to me felt like a love letter to cinema - it reminded me how movies can be stunning, One of the songs “Audition - Fools who Dream” reminded artists in the audience that they always need to be daring, and most importantly, know how to dream (in a pessimistic-ridden world). La La Land wholeheartedly deserved its Oscar in Best Picture,

PENTATHLON 2: Pandemic Ted Talk

Event Logistics: 3.1.23, Ted Talk, Youtube, viewed @ Arts Library

Pentathlon category: #Presentation

For my second Pentathlon, I watched the Ted Talk “The transformative role of art during the pandemic”. During this interview, TED interviewer Chee Pearlman spoke with Anne Pasternak, the director of Brooklyn Museum. They spoke about the role of museums during the pandemic and how art relating to national/international tragedies can spark community and increase empathy. At the beginning of the interview, the most profound point that Pasternak brought up was that art is immortal. People come and go, but what we create lasts many lifetimes and is essentially a record to future generations that reflect the mourning of catastrophes like the COVID-19 pandemic. Of course, there are written and oral records as well that reflect a nation’s history, but art oftentimes speaks louder than words. This is a critical reason why museums are so important in the face of loss, as they serve a reminder that we are not alone in our grief.

For my capstone project, my topic is around college student’s grief during the COVID-19 pandemic that came from constantly being exposed to horrific news as well as a general lack of communication with their peers. Now that we are back in-person and communicating, there is still a residue of the grief we experience that can come in subtle ways during our college career - a decreased sense of motivation, for instance. It is important to acknowledge these emotions. I hope that my capstone connects to my audience in a way that reminds them they are not alone. Before starting my capstone, I thought that art regarding the pandemic was cliche and that it had been done many times before, so there was no point in making more art. However, this Ted Talk reinforced the fact that the more art there is, the more voices get heard and unique perspectives become actualized.

PENTATHLON 3:

Event Logistics: 3.12.23, Story Reading Podcast, @ home

Pentathlon category: #Literature

For my next pentathlon, I listened to a literature podcast spoken by LeVar Burton. I listened to him read “Valedictorian” by N.K. Jeminison. She is one of my favorite authors as I’ve read both The Fifth Season and The City We Became (insanely creative book, takes the plot of major cities having souls and avatars who bond together to defeat a common enemy). I adore her writing style, so I thought I would give this reading a try.

Upon listening, I was drawn to Burton’s tones and emphasis on certain words of the story upon reading. The story “Valedictorian” follows the protagonist Zinhle as she is a top student among her class, acing every test she takes. The world, however, is a dystopian one - her society is confined in a Wall - every year, a bunch of the “lowest achieving” students and casts them outside the Wall. Until a conversation Zinhle had with one of the outer wall members, these kids getting taken out of the wall are taken care of robot-like people and their life course is unknown. Turns out they take low achieving students as well as one top achieving student, though Zinhle is given the choice to leave or not.

The theme of the story surrounds acceptance and being oneself - In her current reality, Zinhle gets bullied for being different due to her higher intelligence. Yet, she endures the bullying since she is stubborn in that she refuses to conform with her classmates, even when she has no knowledge of her real fate - either in the wall or out. I was disappointed in this story in that it felt like an average YA dystopian story to me and didn’t feel up to par with her other work. However, Burton's reading enhanced the emotional impact of the story by emphasizing on inner dialogue to make sense of the conflicts the protagonist experiences. For my capstone project, I plan on doing a reading for the poetry I'm writing - this pentathlon serves as a reminder that enunciation on certain syllables can make all the difference when it comes to keeping the audience engaged.

PENTATHLON 4: SUNSET PAINTING

Event Logistics: 3.22.23, acrylic on canvas, Black Hill Park

Pentathlon category: #Visualart

For my next Pentathlon, I went on a picnic with my friends and did a painting on a canvas with acrylic paint. It was a very casual but meaningful way to spend my time with my friends. I was happy with how this painting turned out, even though it was simple and abstract. In the past, I used to dislike abstract art but have grown to see its beauty. I usually desire for every drawing/painting I do to be heavily detailed (under the impression that the more details it has, the more impressive it will look). However, doing this painting - a simple desert sky - made me realize that the colors I pick can help pack a greater punch than any details I would’ve added. As I was doing the painting, I also didn’t put too much focus into my brushstrokes - I simply enjoyed the quiet conversations, the breezes, and the river view. This experience reminds me of how I learned in Scholars that sometimes it is better to be distracted to have great ideas or make better art - especially if it leads to a stress-free experience. Not being under any pressure upon painting led me to appreciate my painting even more. As the three of us laid our paintings side by side, I noticed how drastically they differed, and this was fascinating to me as we all simply sat there, together, painting with different brains.

PENTATHLON 5: Origami

Event Logistics: 4.21.23, Cambridge Community Center, Paper (origami)

Pentathlon category: #ArtsScholars

Today, I went to an origami event in the CCC hosted by the Arts Advisory Board. We had the option to create whatever we wanted, so I decided to make a paper crane. Many years ago, when I was an arts camp counselor, my assistant and I were making countless paper cranes for the children we were helping as we were teaching origami tutorials to them. Therefore, I thought it would be nice to remember how to make a paper crane again. Typically, I’m not great with paper related crafts, and oftentimes doing origami brings me frustration at times with new patterns and sweaty fingers. But today, since the atmosphere was very calm and there was little pressure on showing off your creation or making it perfect, it was a fun activity to direct my focus on as a break from my work. This activity proved to be a very effective break, as I am in general a very fidgety person. In Arts Scholars we are typically encouraged to perform strategies that keep our creative juices flowing (as in the individual research capstone class), and I believe I need to get my hands moving and also at the same time be in a quiet place to give me laser-sharp focus. Stepping out of the room, I felt refreshed and ready to continue my work.