"Toothpaste on Earth" or "Humans on the sink"

Inspired by Van Aelst fingerprint series, I was wondering what could I do to make art with common objects, but different from Van Aelst’s? So, while I was brushing my teeth a very great idea come to my head! Why didn’t I use the toothpaste as painting and the sink as painting-surface? So I went to a grocery store, bought 4 different tubes of toothpaste and a toothbrush (I might use it like a paintbrush). I came back to my house and I started thinking how could I represent something personal, just like Van Aelst did.

I started thinking in others parts of my body, so I got this idea: Why don’t I represent a part of my body that wasn’t supposed to be on the sink? Yes, my feet. My first idea was just to “paint” two footprints on the center of the sink, but when I started drawing them I realized that there where many spaces in blank. So I decided to make more footprints, with different sizes. (I’m going to explain why in a minute). But there needed to be something else, maybe more color. So I made a mixture of toothpaste and coffee. At the end, it results in something like this:

Now let me explain you, why I choose every element for making the art. I chose toothpaste to follow Van Aelst’s style of doing art with common things, and that was another reason to choose the sink.

Why footprints? Why different sizes and colors? First, it is because I wanted to change the way we use the sink. Put feet instead of hands. And second and most important, it is because I wanted to represent a little bit of my personal philosophy and ideology of life.

I believe that the entire human race is connected someway, because we are very similar. And I’m not referring to our physical similarities. What I am trying to say is that spiritually, we are just the same. There are no women or men, homosexual or heterosexual, beautiful or ugly, black or white, Catholic or Muslim, young or old. WE ARE ALL HUMANS. There shouldn’t be any difference between us. Why do we need to fight? Why there need to be war? Why do we need to kill people?

I put white and brown (coffee came to my mind to make the color because I started drinking coffee like 2 months ago, so I think that is something that represents myself) footprints to express the difference of culture, religion and ideology. But then I don’t know if they are feet or footprints because if they are feet, then it could change the color. But if they are footprints, then there is no difference between my footprint and anyone’s. And that’s a simple example that we are equal. And I also put some footprints in different directions. That means that there are many people that still don’t know where they are going, others who are very sure, an others who are just lost.

I put some big and other small footprints to represents the difference of ages.

There also the ones who are being created.

And the ones that are not here anymore.

The sink represents the Earth, where we all live. The water is the essential element for life.

The Toothpaste and the toothbrush represents the One who is deciding where and when will be each one of us. You can call it God, destiny, Buda, Mahoma… It depends on what do you believe.

So there are the 3 Ingarden’s elements:
Physical object: Toothpaste, sink, footprints, coffee, and toothbrush.
The work of art: my ideology and philosophy of life, represented by the physical object.
The Aesthetic object: Witch is the combination of the Physical object and the work of art plus the aesthetic values.

But you could still filling in the blanks and interpret it in different way because… it is Art!

I was really sad when I had to destroy it…

I tried to do similar thing, but with a candle... It didn't work as well as I spected (maybe i chose the wrong surface) :S haha. Anyway here is a photo of it:

Kevin Van Aelst fingerprints

Kevin Van Aelst is a very recognized photographer from NY. I very liked his style because he becomes common objects and places from everyday life to AWESOME pieces of art. Van Aelts is just a new artist, so he isn’t part of any historical period. It’s just like a new way of doing art.

He was very fond of sciences like math, chemistry, physics, and biology when he was young. Now he has found the way to combine science with art; just as he said “This work is about creating order where we expect to find randomness, and also hints that the minutiae all around us are capable of communicating much larger ideas.” And that is true. All of his photographs are taking place in the kitchen, bathroom, bedroom… And he uses materials such as bread, milk, eggs, cat excrement, mustard… All together generates a new perspective of arts.

However, I want to focus on sequence of photos: The fingerprint series, 2007. Van Aelst represented each of his 10 fingerprints on different ways. He says it is like an autobiography because all of the fingerprints were made by objects that had some meaning in his life. For example, he describes that the cheese curls fingerprint remains him to a friend’s basement where they eat them and play Nintendo. And I find this very personal, I men, your fingerprints are unique. You will never find other person with the same ones. And what Van Aelst does its just beautiful. They all are very original, but he didn’t made them just because he had nothing to do. No! It’s his whole life, his hobbies, work, relatives, friends, problems, fears…

I think that currently, people, in general, are living a very fast world and they don't stop just for a minute to admire the beautiful world that we live on. We should stop for a moment and think all the things that we have, and the others that we want to have.It is nice to dream. And you could imagine that you are just in peace, with no stress, no problems, just happy, smiling.

I really like the photo of the “Right Index Finger” which is made of the tape of a cassette. Here is how I feel the blanks or “concrete” the photo. First of all, it represents music, a very important part of my life because I like to sing, dance, play guitar, make sounds, even I like to make rhythm with anything which is near me. Second, a fingerprint leaves a mark, like a song could mark your life or maybe remain you some memories or special moments. For example, I have my favorite song, and I could hear it the whole day without getting bored, and every time I heard it I can interpret it different. And I think that also make the song a piece of art. And the last one is the decorations around the fingerprint. It’s like he just put together all the things that were on his desks, and there is where the fingerprint get a whole meaning, the context.


Furthermore, I really believe that he is trying to explain us that there could be art everywhere! We just need to have something to express (the work of art, as Ingarden says). Then you need to find some material to make it (the physical object), and it could be ANYTHING. When you finish you could take a photo and keep it. Maybe it will be shown on a museum exhibition, maybe not. But the important thing is that you expressed what you felt. That is the very meaning of arts.

Here I put you the link to Kevin Van Aelst web page: http://www.kevinvanaelst.com/

Hope you enjoy it.