Reflection
1. This project really wasn't too challenging for me because it mostly required creative and art-based work which is very easy for me. I enjoyed the whole project and never thought of it as "work" because making beautiful artwork is something that I love to do.
2. I especially enjoyed building my ofrenda. I consumed most of my time in the small details of my project such as the miniature papel picado in the image above. Researching shoebox ofrendas that others have done also gave me inspiration and some idea on how to construct mine. I worked on the most important parts of the project ahead of time so that I could spend more time on the minute details.
3. Yes, I did receive some helpful critique from my classmates during a gallery walk that we did in class. The critique included that I should add more photographs and paint the inside of the panel on the left-hand side of the box. The feedback was definitely helpful, but I was not able to include that in my final presentation because I do not have many photos of my great-grandmother and by that time it was too late to paint the other part of the box because I had already built the steps of the ofrenda.
4. I think I deserve an A for this project because I really spent a significant amount of effort to make my ofrenda as well as my artist statement excellent. I never put any part of the project off until the last minute and efficiently used the class time that I had to work on it. I made sure that every aspect of the project was professional and presentable.
5. One thing that I would change about this project is the way the frame is secured in the box. The photo frame was a little too big because I had overestimated the size of the box. The frame would occasionally come loose and fall out. I would also remember to paint that one unfinished side of the inside of the box.
Artist Statement
The ofrenda that I have constructed honors my great-grandmother (my grandmother's aunt). I'm not sure about which month or day she was born, because they didn't keep track of that back then, but I do know that she was born in the year of 1925. She passed away three years ago in 2014. My great grandmother grew up in rural South India on a small farm. I really don't know of many major accomplishments that she achieved. I chose to honor her for Dia de los Muertos because she was the only great-grandparent who I actually got to know. My mom always told me that as a kid she would visit my great-grandmother during the summer holidays. She told me that my great-grandmother told her and her cousins stories and taught them important life lessons. My great-grandmother really enjoyed cooking for her family and always took great pleasure in watching everyone eat. In my ofrenda, I have placed miniature pots and pans to represent my great-grandmother's passion for cooking and tiny books to represent all the stories she told. Her photo in the frame shows that I am honoring her in my ofrenda. The colors don't really hold as much meaning as the objects that I have placed.