Fostering Creativity Blog

 I'm sure many of us in the College of Arts and Media would agree that art speaks to us on some level. In recent weeks I've really been feeling this way about the works of Frida Kahlo. My friend has been a big fan of Frida for all her life and she originally informed me that the Kahlo exhibition was coming to Denver Art Museum. She asked if I would like to go, and I said I would. At the time, I knew Frida Kahlo's name and face, but I really hadn't seen much of her work and I didn't know anything of her story.  Since then, we've had the chance to listen to Ann Lambson walk us through her role in setting up the Kahlo exhibit at Denver Art Museum in our Fostering Creativity class. Through this presentation, I learned a lot more about events in Frida's life and the stories behind her artwork.  After that, my friend and I watched the Frida movie which is on Netflix to kind of "prep" for going to see the exhibit at the museum this week. I expected the mo

 This post is to reflect on my experience applying for my first Internship though CU Denver! I've never had a professional internship before, so when I got an email from CAM that Meow Wolf is hiring interns for their Denver installation, I couldn't quite believe it.  For those of you who aren't familiar, Meow Wolf is an immersive art experience. It's arguably the first, after which so many other pop ups like Natura Obscura, and Wonder Wonder have tried to create similar experiences. Immersive art experiences are entirely different from a gallery walkthrough like many are familiar with. Instead of art hanging on the walls or set out around the space to be observed, immersive art aims for the viewer to become part of the art world and have a transformative walkthrough experience. There's lighting, sounds, sometimes smells and tactile sensations, and every inch of the space is used to display art.  Meow Wolf's 2020 installation in Denver will be its biggest yet. It

After my last post about experiencing a lack of motivation and direction, I'm very happy to report that I'm approaching the end of the semester and the start of the next with a renewed interest in majors. I've been researching, talking to advisors and career counsellors, and even had a one on one meeting with Ann Lambson (our teacher for Fostering Creativity!) to explore the world of museum studies.  I had no idea museums had so many departments and people responsible for what goes on within them. I think it would be wonderful to be part of a team that creates art experiences for people and brings them art and culture they may not otherwise have ever had the chance to see. Museums are community focused and people oriented, and they seem like a field which would perfectly blend my interests in working with people and my passion for art and history. I have always had a strange sense of interest in "behind the scenes" type work as well. Everything from looking at how

This week I wanted to take some time to reflect on my experience with remote schooling. 2020 has been  a year unlike any other and we are all feeling the effects of a global pandemic. Remote school has been especially challenging for me, which is odd because I'm doing fine in classes, and I'm submitting assignments on time or even early. Despite all of this, I've never felt so much emotional struggle with school.  In 2016, after bouncing around different schools for partial class loads and different jobs in retail, food service, and just about any other entry level position you could think of, I went back to school at Red Rocks Community College. Though there was a bit of a rough start, I began to excel in school. I was so motivated for all of my classes, even those outside my major (Business at the time) I approached with a growth mindset and was able to find immense value in just learning for learning's sake. I felt like I was expanding my horizons, broadening my mind

       Scrolling Facebook the other day, this video popped up on a "recommended for you" page. I was instantly drawn into the content and able to connect so many of the ideas we're learning for class with what the designers of the neighborhood were doing.  Check out the neighborhood here This neighborhood is in Tabasco, Mexico and it's entirely 3D printed! I couldn't believe it when I saw how beautiful the buildings were. The neighborhood is for people who are living on just three dollars a day or less. The houses only take 24 hours to print! A computer is hooked up to a machine which lays cement on an X/Y axis and creates the buildings from the ground up. After the foundation is laid, local workers are hired to attach doors and do electricity and plumbing work.  This is an amazing example of a creative approach to problem solving. A non-profit company called New Story, together with a tech company called ICON came up with the unique solution to address global hom

Since October is here and ghost stories abound, I'm starting to think about the time I visited the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park for the first time. I went with my now ex boyfriend and I forced him to watch The Shining the night before so he would have context for why the hotel is creepy and cool (he fell asleep).  The hotel is open to the public for people to walk around and there's lots of movie memorabilia, it even has a resident psychic and a miniature of the maze used for the movie. I remember being drawn to the grander of the building and laughing at the fact that we looked so out of place there in our grimy hiking gear with our school backpacks among the guests who could afford to spend around $300 a night for a room.  It's a lavish and beautiful building (although I've heard the food is bad) and it is definitely a fun tourist attraction to check off the Colorado List while the leaves are turning up in the mountains. After we roamed around the lobby and the outside