For this lesson we had to answer some questions about Shuvinai’s artwork
“Untitled”
What creatures are in this artwork?
I see people, a walrus, and some fish
What do you think is happening in this artwork?
I think it’s a family showing off their art. One piece is some fish looking at a bleeding fish who are all floating in the air while it’s raining, and the other is a picture of a walrs with what looks like a bunch of tiny earths floating around his face.
Who are these people?
As mentioned above, I think it’s a family, therefore it would be the husband in the purple, the wife in the beige and the child in the jacket with her
Why would there be two heads inside one hood?
I think the two heads symbolize how close the family might be and maybe even the sacrifices one might make for their children.
What are the two drawings about in this artwork?
I think the fish drawing is a representation of rebirth, the one fish is dying, bleeding into what looks like a fish egg, we see the end of life and the start of a life in the same picture, in a way it also looks like the blood is turning into the egg. The second picture isn’t as clear to me. I think it could be representative of individual ecosystems in different climates. The earths make me think of different worlds and the walrus makes me think of the ocean, together I think of the beautiful different world under the water in the oceans.
“Attack of the Tentacle Monsters”
What creatures are in this artwork?
As the title says, they look like octopuses with human characteristics mixxed in. It’s an octupus with more than eight legs, an additional two human legs, and countless human faces o none and different types of eyes ont he other
What do you think is happening in this artwork?
These tentacle creatures are attacking the humans in this world, grabbing them and picking them off the ground and stepping on them
Who are these creatures and where did they come from?
I am inclined to say space but I feel like it might be deeper than that, maybe the one creature with different eyes is from the ocean.
Why would there be six heads inside one tentacle monster hood?
I want to believe it’s a trojan horse situation. The one real monster with the sasquatch legs is threatening earth and the one with six heads is actually just six people teaming together to work their way up the ranks in the alien society and planning to defeat them that way.
What are the two parts of this work that you notice in particular?
The parts that are the most eyecatching for me are definitely the two octopus creatures
“Earth Transformations”
Who do you think the globe-headed octopus character is? Is it nice? Or menacing? Where did it come from? What does it want?
It looks pretty menacing the first time I look at it because of the outstretched arms but the circles make me think otherwise
Who is the blue parka’d character? What is this person saying to the globe-headed character?
I think he’s trying to say that hunting and art are intertwined and that he needs more animals to draw inspiration from.
Who is the person in the white parka? Are these three characters friends or enemies? What is their relationship?
The person in the white parka is probably a friend of the blue parka, white and blue parka look up to the earth creature like he’s a god. The blue parka looks really excited to meet the earth creature
Why are there so many circles in this work? What do the circles represent to you?
The circles tell me that the creature is ever-changing, always rolling, unstable but friendly.
Why do you think this artwork is on display in the very prestigious Vancouver Art Gallery?
I think it’s on display because it’s incredibly unique, you don’t often see people use black paper because it’s so hard to use certain colours but it can be really rewarding like this piece because you can get so much contrast. The concept is also very intriguing. A creature who seems like a god made of planets is something ive never seen before.