Shanna Fliege’s Demo

Shanna Fliege’s Wrapped Whale. To see more of Shanna’s works please visit https://www.shannafliegel.com/

I found the demo and presentation very educational. It was interesting and she bounced back and forth between her art and life experience very fluently. There was one part of her demo that stuck out to me very much though. The fact that she transferred and traced was very alarming to me. During her demo, we see her trace and transfer a printed out whale onto her piece. Much like the whale in her piece that I’ve included attached to this post.  

In high school, it was taboo for us to transfer and trace unless it was something we created. Even free clipart I’ve always been taught not to trace or transfer or draw exactly. We could use drawings as references in the beginning art classes but as we got older we always had to make them our own. The only time I can recall being allowed to transfer and trace was an oil painting I did. It was a divisionism/pointillism self-portrait and my teacher only let me because of time. It makes me rethink what I was taught.  

Seeing her use trace and transfer for more than just a guideline or pattern is still very shocking to me, it makes me wonder why my high school art teacher was so against it. Is this just a something I was mistaught or is it controversial in the art world? Could it be because we were unskilled artists or is it something my art teacher was taught to be wrong? Was it just alarming to others or am I the only one? Please feel free to leave your opinions on the topic.