Good afternoon UpGrade Media Arts Community! It's time for today's quote of the day. This quote was spoken by Langston Hughes, a famous poet and writer during the Harlem Renaissance. Today's quote comes from his poem "Dream." I think that dreams are our missions in life. Sometimes, what we dream is what we are destined for. If we don't at least try to accomplish them, part of us will never be complete. We will never achieve all that we are born to do. If that happens, then we'll never truly fly in this life. We'll never truly be happy in our circumstances. Therefore, chase your dreams everybody and achieve all you can while you still have the time. Have a great day everyone!
Good morning UpGrade Media Arts Community! Today's quote of the day comes from Dr.Seuss. We all know this famous author from his works "The Cat in the Hat," and, "Green Eggs and Ham." Today's quote reminds us to always be authentically ourselves. Who we are and what we say matters. We shouldn't let the opinions of others stop us from being our authentic selves. Something that my grandma says is, "I've reached the age that I'm old enough to say whatever I want." I say, why wait until we're old to speak our minds and be who we are? Let's start now. Let's be who we are right now. Life is too short to live it for others or in fear of them. Let's be and express ourselves every single day, no matter what other people have to say. If they have a problem with it, they're not for you, and that's okay. Those who are truly for you will love you for who you are. Have a great day everyone!
Good Morning UpGrade Media Arts Community! It is time for today's quote of the day. Todays words were spoken by the famous Vincent Van Gogh. Vincent Van Gogh is famous for his "The Starry Night" painting and has created nearly 900 paintings in 10 years. Have you ever heard of, "Do not scoff at small beginnings?" Well this quote proves why we shouldn't. The success, the dream, the change, all of them won't come over night. It doesn't happen as soon as you want it to. You can't just decide to be famous and then the next day the paparazzi shows up at your house. You need to work on it. Did you know that celebrities like John Legend and Fluffy, Gabriel Iglesias, worked for years before getting to the level that they are at now? They worked for years before getting their big break. I advise you to start now with whatever dream or change that you want to see. Start now with the little you have and work up to something big. I assure you that success will taste much sweeter once you go through the process of getting there. Have a great day everyone!
Good morning UpGrade Media Arts Community! Time for today's quote of the day. This quote comes from the famous sculptor who created the David statue, Michelangelo. If you're a fan of superheroes, Spider-Man in particular, you've likely heard the phrase, "With great power comes great responsibility." Well the same concept also applies to skill. The David sculpture is one of the best examples of realism art. Realism is art that reflects the real world in how it actually looks. It's very difficult to master, and takes a lot of time and energy. This is what Michelangelo was referring to. In order to make or do something as amazing as the David sculpture of Michelangelo, you have to put in the work. Skills don't come easily. You must first learn them and sharpen them over time. Therefore, don't shy away from hard work because hard work is a requirement for greatness. Have a great day everyone!
Good Afternoon UpGrade Media Arts Community! Time for our last quote of the week. This quote comes from Salvador Dali. Salvador Dali is a famous spanish artist and his most well known work is “The Persistence of Memory.” Today’s quote is a very needed sober reminder. STOP TRYING TO DO EVERYTHING PERFECTLY. I know, it stings. Especially if you’re a perfectionist like me or want to do things the best way possible. Guess what though? YOU’RE HUMAN AND YOU WILL MESS UP. Messing up is unavoidable in this life, so get out there and give it a shot. Ask out that girl or boy, go get that job, write a book. Just know that mistakes are normal, not abnormal. Have a great weekend everyone and I’ll see y’all later!
Good afternoon UpGrade Media Arts Community! It is time for our new quote of the day. This quote comes from Georgia O'Keeffe. She was an American painter who completed over 2,000 pieces of art and nearly lived to be a century years old. This quote today rings so true that it stings a little. It's scary to go out there and create the world that you want for yourself. Trust me I get it. It takes courage for you to stand up for yourself, it takes courage to do what is healthy for you, and it takes courage to speak out. Just know that you are not courageous because of the absence of fear. You're going to get scared, that's unavoidable. You are courageous because you didn't allow fear to stop you from molding the life around you. If you have to cry then cry. If you have to scream, then scream. If you have to take a hike, take a hike. Just develop the courage to go out there, and create the world, the life that you want for yourself. Be strong and courageous everyone and I'll see y'all later.
Good Afternoon UpGrade Media Arts Community! Today's quote of the day comes from Andrew Okpeaha MacLean. He is a Iñupiaq Inuit filmmaker and made the first film to be completely spoken in the Iñupiaq language. The film is called "On the Ice." This quote of the day reminds us of the purpose of art. Art should reflect truth and the only way that you can reflect truth is by finding out who you truly are. When you know who you are, you can reflect out into the world something that you would want to see. Has anyone seen the movie "Nappily Ever After"? It's a self-love movie starring Sanaa Lathan and Lynn Whitfield. At some point, Sanaa Lathan's character, Violet Jones, and her love interest Will Wright, played by Lyriq Bent, were discussing advertisement. Violet was saying how advertisement only reflects what society wants, but Will argues that advertisement should reflect what society should be like. It should reflect the positive changes that we would like to see in the world, and that's what Andrew meant with his quote. By finding out who you are, you can create art that reflects what should be out in this world and inspire others to do the same. Have a great day everyone!
Good Afternoon UpGrade Media Arts Community! Today's quote of the week was said by Misty Copeland. Misty Copeland is a famous black ballerina who is the first African American ballerina to be the principle female dancer at the American Ballet Theater. Today's quote shows that it really doesn't matter how you start, because you can still finish well. Did you know that Vera Wang, a famous fashion designer, didn't design her first dress until she was 40? Marsai Martin, the actress who played Diane in Black-ish, became the youngest person to produce a film and the youngest African-American producer at 13. Steve Harvey at some point was dirt broke, but now he's a millionaire. What you look like, where you started, how you started, how old you are, that doesn't matter. Once you found what you are destined to do on this earth, nothing can stop you. Go out there and be great everyone and I'll talk to y'all tomorrow!
Good afternoon UpGrade Media Arts Community! It is time for the first quote of the week. The quote this week comes from Audre Lorde. She was a woman who wore many hats, one of them being poetry. Her most famous poem is "A Litany for Survival." To comment on this quote of the week I would like to tell a metaphor that I've heard on a tv show before. Has anyone heard of "Fruits Basket"? It is an anime from Japan about a girl who's mother died and was taken in by a family with a humongous secret. At some point in the show, the main character, Tohru Honda, realized that Kyo Sohma, one of the main male leads, did not know how truly special he was. She told him how he didn't realize that because his plum is on his back. She explains how we all think of ourselves as a plain rice ball in this life. We look at other people and see how they have special plums or shapes or fruits on their back. Meanwhile, we are blind to our own plums. Why? Because they are on our backs. We can't see our own greatness because it's not directly in our faces. Can you imagine how many people want the plum that you have? I believe that we can pull that plum to the front and show it to the whole world. I challenge you community, to bring your plums to the front and show the world that you know and are confident in how great you are. Have a great day everybody!
Good afternoon UpGrade Media Arts Community! It's time for another quote of the day. Since we've already done one by her husband this week, I figure it's appropriate to do one by her as well. Who am I talking about? Coretta Scott King, wife of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. She was an author and wrote books such as "Coretta: My Life, My Love, My Legacy" and "My Life with Martin Luther King, Jr." I'm so excited to get into this quote today because I've been thinking about this subject a lot lately. Why does hatred hurt you more than the other person? Because your energy is being wasted on someone who isn't even worth it. You are putting all of your brain power into despising a person when you, quite honestly, have better things to do. You could write a book, learn how to speak another language, create a cure for cancer, but no. You're sitting around hating a person who isn't even giving you a second thought. I understand that the person may have harmed you in some sort of way, and if so you still need to let go and forgive them. Only then will you grow from what happened and create a new life for yourself. If you're hating for no reason, get some self-confidence. Often times we hate other people because we hate ourselves. From there we project onto others to make ourselves feel better and that's not right. Take yourself out on a date, go to the movies, go to a restaurant, eat a ton of ice cream! Love up on yourself so you can love up on others. That's all I have on this quote everyone. Have a great day and stay safe out there!
Good afternoon UpGrade Media Arts Community and welcome back to in-person classes! I hope you all are staying warm during this frigid time. Today's quote of the day comes from the former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Winston S. Churchill. During his time as Prime Minister, he was able to lead the people of the United Kingdom through the second world war. What the quote reminds us is that in life, things are going to change. You will have many highs and you will have many lows. That is an inescapable fact about life. That's why it's important for us to endure. No matter how hard it is, or how easy things may be, we must always endure like we are in a marathon. The marathon of life doesn't end until we're dead. Therefore, in success and in failure, we must be focused, dedicated, and not give up. Have a great day everybody!
Good afternoon UpGrade Media Arts Community! I hope that you all are staying warm on this frigid day. Today's quote of the day is in honor of Dr.Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. King was a civil rights leader who is known for his "I Have A Dream" speech and leading the Selma march. Let's talk about tension. Tension is defined as a strain or a stretching. When we learn, we stretch our minds to absorb new information. The reason why the absence of tension doesn't produce peace is because in order to have peace we need to learn. We must be open to learning about other people and their struggles. On the other hand, justice does produce peace because within justice there is knowledge and understanding of the people. Have a great day everyone!
Good afternoon everyone! Here is the last quote of the week. This quote was said by the former First Lady of the United States, Eleanor Roosevelt. She was the wife of former President Franklin D. Roosevelt and was very beloved by the American people for her compassion. Whenever we are about to enter the door to greatness, do you know who is the bouncer at the door? Fear. Fear will do its' best to stop us from doing something that we are destined or excited to do, but guess what? It's intimidation only. Fear means False Evidence Appearing Real. That's why this quote is important. In order to break the effect that fear has on us, we must do something that scares us everyday. The more we do, the more that we can just pass by the bouncer and not even see him as a threat. Happy snow day everyone and stay safe in this winter storm. Have a great weekend!
For today's episode of a quote break down, let's talk about this one by Beverly Sills. Beverly Sills was a famous soprano opera singer. Her career in the arts began at a young age and over time she became a well-rounded performer. This quote is inspirational to anyone who's too afraid to make a move. In the end, the pain of not even giving whatever it is a shot will hurt more than if you never tried at all. Why? Because you'll always think, "Where would I be if I would've done this? I should've done that." Moral of the story, stop procrastinating! Don't be afraid! Get out there and try! If they reject you, keep going, or try something new. Either way, at least you gave it a shot before deciding that you can't do it.
Let's talk about this quote by Henry Ford. Henry Ford is the founder of Ford Motor Company. Some of you may have a car at home from that company now. In the quote, Henry uses the imagery of a plane taking off to explain a very important concept. Adversity is a place that allows you to level up and rise to the occasion. The winds blowing against you isn't permission for you to give up. It's an invitation to push through and soar. Happy Tuesday everyone and remember that no matter how hard the winds may blow, you can still rise to the occasion and soar!
Good Afternoon UpGrade Media Arts Community!
It's so great to be back this semester! I wanted to introduce our book of the month a bit further. All American Boys was one of the most interesting books I've read when I was younger. The book tackles the issue of police brutality from two different perspectives. It follows our protagonists Rashad, displaying the perspective of the victim, and Quinn, displaying the perspective of someone who is close to the police officer in question. It is a great story about social justice and standing up for what's right. I hope the students will enjoy it!
Check out these UMA students at work!
#1: Kyla taking notes on fractions and ratios.
#2: Reggie producing the podcast "True and Drew," hosted by Trueman and Drew.
#3: Caleb preparing for his spotlight interview with CBS-58.
#4: Drew, Kameron, Khloe, and Kenya' taking a picture with Santa at MATC West Allis.
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