Section BEG4B

I went to the art gallery tour of Mercedes Matter to fulfill the Arts at Baruch requirement. The gallery is located on 22nd street at the Mishkin Gallery. I attended this with prior knowledge of art based on my experience from high school to the art class i am taking now. We were show ten works in sequential order and how they played a large part in the artist’s career. I was transfixed on the detail that the artists were able to capacitate in one work. However, I would only recommend this seminar to those who have a keen sense of art.

I attended the Blood Drive in NVC 1-107 on October 6. I was nervous at first because i hate needles and blood makes me squimish. However, the lady that worked there was very nice and attentive to my fear of needles. She helped me get through this and I realized that my cup of blood could be the difference in a life or death situation for someone in need. I came out of there feeling Exuberant to the fact that i faced my apprehension toward needles.

On October 6, 2009 at 1:30 PM, I attended the Blood Drive in NVC 1-107. A lot of people were there, willing to donate blood to the less fortunate. At first, I wasn’t sure about donating blood because I’ve donated blood in the past and I usually faint after donating blood. This time, I made sure to eat a full meal before donating, so I ate a Subway sandwich before I went to the Blood Drive. So I went, but then out of nowhere, I started to get scared again and I couldn’t bring myself to be hooked up. I honestly think I had a confused expression on my face because one of the mentors there came up to me and asked me what was wrong and I told the truth and explained how I tried to donate blood but the fear that I would faint again came into my head. He understood me and I guess he could tell I was being genuine because he still agreed to sign my workshop sheet. I really do regret not being able to donate blood that day because of my past experiences and I hope to be able to donate blood to the less fortunate someday in the future.

On November 26, I went to the Mercedes Matter Exhibition at the Sidney Mishkin Galler in Baruch College. A lady began to give us a tour of Mercedes Matter’s collection, starting from her earliest paintings of flowers and self-portraits. As we moved on in the gallery, a theme of abstract still-life was evident. Mercedes Matter painted a variety of table still-lifes and used the theme of abstraction throughout these paintings. I learned that many of these oil-on-canvas paintings were influenced by loved ones around her, such as her husband. Matter’s style of painting is definitely considered avant-garde and modern. It was an enjoyable workshop to attend, and although it was hard to grasp the concepts of her works, it made it much more appreciative. I found one of her self-portraits to be particularly interesting and ended up using that for one of my art history papers, so this exhibit really helped.