First of all, I would apologize to all of you who emailed me to tell me I shouldn't be writing about this show since I am clearly an idiot for not agreeing with the judges' elimination last week. Except that I don't want to apologize because I am not sorry. I didn't love Erik, by any means. I just thought it was unfair to send him home when he was on a team monopolized by a crazy (if talented) person and his harem, none of whom would let him add anything creative to the project. It would have been nice to see him kicked out for actual art he did badly (which there has been plenty of so far). This time, Peregrine should have gone, in my opinion. She hasn't done anything truly standout since she's been here, and she proved herself a complete puppet last week. Oh, well. There's always tonight. So, previouslies: Nicole's team chose her as the winner, which didn't give her immunity. And Erik got sent packing. China repeated herself robotically.
In the morning, Mark and Ryan are happy to have won, but are upset about Erik being gone just for dealing with personalities he didn't click with. Ryan says he also thinks Miles is playing a part most of the time. Miles, on the other hand, wakes up and ... wants some cornflakes. Then he remembers Erik's gone and breathes a sigh of relief. As Miles struggles to open his cornflakes, Abdi suggests breakfast on the roof, so they go door to invite the ladies. Abdi thinks it would be awesome to get rid of last week's tension, so they all head up to the roof and look at the beautiful view of the city. Ryan and Abdi bond over ... having nothing in common, I guess. Abdi's lived in lots of East Coast cities. Ryan's only lived in Chicago suburbs, and was raised a Jehovah's Witness. He says his mother is very religious, so when he left the religion, he essentially became an outcast. Nicole notices how few of them are left. But a special guest, Simon, joins them. He's very privileged to take them to an amazing museum. Nicole: "Everyone's super excited. Artists really love to see art and be around it." Wow. Deep.
Simon over-enunciates his excitement as he walks the group through SoHo and finally takes them to the Children's Museum of the Arts. Not exactly what they were expecting. China's there to greet them. They sit at the little kiddie-sized tables, and China tells them their challenge: To create a piece of art that explores the first experiences that shaped them into the artist they are today. They will only get to use materials here in the museum. Which means pipe cleaners, tempera paint, colored pencils, etc. Miles says he wants to throw up and sneeze at the same time (?), because his tools are a huge comfort to him and he doesn't want to go home for not knowing how to use popsicle sticks. Simon gives them all day at the museum and then just one hour at the studio tomorrow to finish up. Simon gruffs: "Be bold! Be amazing!" He is really overdoing it this episode, even more than usual.
Jaclyn's not excited about this challenge at all. Presumably because she doesn't feel comfortable getting naked and photographing herself in a place where children might see her. Nicole and Ryan, on the other hand, are like kids in a candy store. Or, you know, in a children's museum. Ryan interviews about how amazing it would be for him to make it to the end and win $100,000. Then he pauses. "Or, I don't know, $1,000. I have $24 in my bank account. Um. And actually if my insurance kicked in, I might be negative right now. I'm not really sure." How can you not love this guy? Nicole talks about her twin sister and her dad, as we see her childhood artwork. She's cutting a series of frames (out of what looks like Styrofoam) that have rough edges getting to a perfect rectangle that gets to what her art was about as a kid. I'm sure we'll understand it later. Or, you know, we won't. Which is more likely.
Abdi talks about his relationship with his father, which is non-existent. He was raised by his mom since he was 1, so he's making a comic book of his mom as a superhero giving him art, to keep him on the right track. Miles tells Nicole her work is too surface. Then he works on his own, which is to remake a piece of a piece he already made, about nine months ago. It's a series of geometric designs. He says even though it isn't reminiscent of his childhood, he feels good about it and thinks it will work. And, because it's crazy Miles, it probably will. Peregrine notices Jaclyn's moving slowly on this, then Jaclyn says this is hard for her because she doesn't like to think about her childhood, since she was very lonely. She would go eat her lunch alone in a bathroom stall, so she knows she has to re-create that feeling of isolation. Hey, it's better than voyeurism.
Nicole's still working, and having a hard time cutting her pieces without a knife or exacto blade. Mark says he didn't have nice materials as a child, so used white-out, masking tape and pens instead of real art supplies. He decides to make a children's book about how he became an artist. That might be a little too on-the-nose. Then again, this is Mark, master of the obvious. Peregrine says her dad saved her sketchbooks from when she was a child, and she did a lot of sexual drawings. We see a series of weirdly anatomical line drawings. She was raised on an art commune, where there was a lot of experimentation and drugs. She says her piece is an idea of a child at an adults' party. She's making a My Little Pony covered in sex ads (uh, where did she get the sex ads at the Children's Museum?) and a cigarette out of a piece of chalk. Jaclyn's still at a loss, because her childhood years weren't the best. She starts to play and experiment to try to trigger memories. Ryan's coming up with memories that he didn't remember since he was little. He remembers being closer to his mom, and how she inspired him by telling him he could do those illustrations someday. He gets very choked up when he says he knows his mom still loves him but can't be close to him because she doesn't respect his life choices. "But she is the reason that I'm an artist, and she gave me all of the initial impetus to do all of the work that I do now." Okay, finally we have someone getting to something deep and important without being totally egotistical.
They all take a break and hang out on the bouncy balls. Nicole and Miles flirt, and he says he'd like to take her on a date, which would be magical. Mark hopes their like for each other will weaken them in the competition. Simon comes in with bagged lunches for them and takes a look at their work. He starts with Ryan, who shows him the drawings he's doing, which look like a child did them. Simon's concerned it's too literal a way to interpret the challenge. Then he goes to Abdi, and tells him his work looks like he did it when he was eleven. Nicole agrees with Simon's criticisms being like what they did as a kid. Nicole shows her frames and says there are two pencils that represent her and her sister. It is layers of her memory. He likes that she's not re-creating the works she did as a kid, but is using her memories. Then Peregrine, who's also made candy to go with the cigarettes and pony, which has a very long tail. He thinks it has the potential to be interesting.
Simon asks Miles what his duct tape piece has to do with his childhood, and Miles says it doesn't. Mark thinks Miles is very talented, but thinks that using a piece he's already made is cheating, and Mark doesn't respect cheaters. Simon doesn't seem to have an opinion, but thanks Miles. He moves on to Jaclyn, who says she's finally figured out what she's doing. She'd like to fold a piece of paper in half after painting it to make an abstract work. He doesn't like it, but says she has to do what she feels inside her is the right thing, and was more intrigued by seeing her working with pipe cleaners, but she's gone away from that. She says it's a hard thing for her to be really open. Right. Simon tells them all he's concerned and unimpressed, so they better get their act together. Ryan says this really hurt morale, even for the people who got a good crit from him. Simon also announces no one will get immunity from now until the end, so they really have to get it right each week. Abdi takes a step back and realizes his piece is cliché and doesn't know what he's going to do now.
Two hours until midnight. Mark doesn't get Peregrine's piece. But she says children thrive under harsh conditions and her parents letting her grow up in a sex and drug culture was a "blessing." Abdi decides to not do the tribute to his mom, and instead to do a series of drawings of things people would ask him to draw as a kid. Jaclyn goes back to the pom poms and pipe cleaners, but can't figure out what to do with them, even though she wants to listen to Simon. Ryan also agrees with Simon, so he wants to add another layer to his piece and make it more complex. He knows being too literal has been his problem the whole time. Abdi says they all underestimated how difficult this piece would be. With a half-hour left, they're all working. Miles has started making rubber band balls in primary colors to add color to his piece. Ryan says he has only started to realize recently that Miles is a douchebag. Dude, it took you this long? Ryan says Miles isn't doing the challenge and instead is making rubber band balls to make it look like he did the challenge. They're done for the day. Abdi, of course, has a lot to finish the day.
Back at home, Ryan and Mark talk about Ryan's piece. He says he wouldn't be proud of it normally, but he thinks he can explain it in a way that will work. Mark tells him he loves him, but he looks drunk, stoned and ... Ryan finishes: "I look like I'm dead." He says he needs to sleep on it, because that's how he makes art: You make it, then you sleep, and wake up to see if it's wine or vinegar. morning, they're back at the studio with an hour to go. Nicole says it's going to be very personal, so facing the critics will be very tough. Mark says everyone is stressed, except Miles, which is no surprise, since he's made that piece several times. Ryan is meditating on his piece. He's decided to add torn-up construction paper, which he'll carefully dishevel, "like I do with my own hair." Jaclyn's pulling the piece together by thinking about how she used to climb trees as a kid to escape. She's going to hang the pipe cleaners and pom poms like they're hanging from the trees. Miles says Jaclyn's piece is so cold it makes him want to put on a hat, coat, and mittens. Abdi thinks his piece is good, and he hopes he doesn't let his mom down. Mark's done with his book, and Ryan likes it, but tells him not to talk about it too literally. Simon's there to tell them time's up.
Our seconds-long clip within the commercials is the group eating the lunches Simon brought: juice boxes, apples, and other nostalgic treats. They all thank him. And then it's back to commercials. I really do not get why Bravo does that.
Gallery. Artists line up in front of the judges: Jerry, Bill and guest judge Will Cotton, a celebrated New York painter. Jeanne's away curating a show in Europe. Must be a big show to take up all of Europe. China, who's dressed in an odd, yellow, geometric dress and has her hair in a fake-bob, reminds them all what their challenge was and then opens up the gallery. Abdi's piece, "Straight Line," is a wall full of very simple drawings. Will feels like it's a life story told through images. Abdi named it after people saying, "I can't even draw a straight line." And one of the drawings is, in fact, a straight line. If he really came up with that with three hours left, that's some pretty cool thinking and execution. Mark's book, "Origin Issue," is sort of comic-book style, illustrating the finer points of what made him an artist. China says it's a side of him they haven't seen. Peregrine's "Rainbow" is ballsy, according to Will. She says it's her homage to people she knows who have died of AIDS, and she's given a lot of herself. A group of kids think these are all "great art."
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China wonders if Nicole's series of Styrofoam plates, "Surfacing Memories," are supposed to be palettes. Nicole thinks it looks like a solid piece of art. Ryan's "Drawn Excavations" is about excavating into his past and bringing emotions to the surface. He says he cried while he made it, and Will thinks he's trying to get back into his childhood. Jaclyn's "Untitled" actually looks pretty cool. She divided the tree in two (and it looks almost ovarian this way). Bill thinks it has a Rorschach vibe. Jaclyn thinks this cold image says a lot more about her than people think, and she hopes the judges will like it. Miles eloquently titled his piece, "A Complete Roll of Duct Tape Over a 4' x 6' Plane, Accompanied by 3 Rubber Band Balls." Peregrine tells him it's Tetris, and he laughs. Will relates this one to his own childhood, by thinking of Space Invaders. Miles says he used feelings of depression from childhood to get where he wants to be as an artist. Good story.
China calls Abdi, Nicole, Peregrine, Ryan and Jaclyn for the crit. So Miles and Mark are safe and get to say good night. They start with Ryan. He says he began drawing how he drew when he was young, and the memories started hitting him. Will says Ryan's experience was the most intense part of this, so he has to think about how to translate that. Then he asks Ryan about the stuff on the floor (discarded construction paper, pencils, and other children's art supplies). Ryan says it's the first drawing he made. They all think it sucks and looks like a kid did it, and nothing more, that the process is more interesting than what it looks like. Peregrine explains her crazy childhood and how the people around her died of AIDS. Bill says he teared up, as a parent, seeing the drugs and candy together. They all love that it has details that tell the story. Jaclyn then explains her piece, and how she felt about trees as a child. Jerry and Bill have no emotional reaction and see nothing of her backstory in the work. Nicole explains her vignettes of her memories, and what each one means. Jerry likes that it created mystery for him. Will thinks the level of obscurity of what she put in it is just right for him. They all love it. Abdi explains being called on to draw these things, and feeling useful. They ask him which pieces he feels drawn to, because what's missing is editing. They think he's removed himself from the exercise. The artists have to go back up and wait to be called while the judges discuss.
The judges discuss. Bill says it's a fine line to create something inspired by childhood versus something that comes off as amateurish. They loved Peregrine's piece, and felt she was a natural with this material, and she took a risk. Will says making it personal made it universal. They love the mystery of Nicole's piece, and how she used these materials in her own vocabulary. Moving on to the pieces they didn't like. Ryan's first. Will wanted to know him more from those drawings, and wishes he could have seen more of Ryan's anecdotes in them. China wonders if they're getting through to them. China says Jaclyn's most successful work has been leaving herself open and vulnerable, which she didn't do here. They don't understand it and think she just threw something together with no idea development. They were very disappointed by Abdi's dull and safe piece. Weird. I sort of liked it. Definitely better than Ryan's, even though I think Ryan's has more heart behind it. They think Abdi's weaknesses are showing, and he's too self-satisfied. They've made their decisions, so it's obviously time for commercials.
First, they call Peregrine and Nicole back to praise their imaginative and personal pieces. But only one of them can win, and it's Peregrine. Will tells her he doesn't often see art he wishes he'd made, but he felt that way about hers. She says the cool gay guys she was friends with as a kid would be proud of her. So, okay, she did awesome and I'm glad she didn't get eliminated last week. Especially since Erik just became an artist and wouldn't have had much on this one. , the losers come in. Jerry tells Jaclyn they were disappointed in how guarded she was. Bill tells Ryan he gave them something that looked like it was made by a child. China tells Abdi his piece was conceptually and visually bland. So one of them is leaving tonight. Abdi's safe. So it's Jaclyn or Ryan. And we all know it's Ryan, which is sad. He had the saddest story to tell, but obviously didn't get it across. He thinks Jaclyn's piece was worst and is sad to leave, but now he'll go back to making what he loves: realistic oil paintings that he won't have to explain to anyone.
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week: They work in teams. Mark shows his nipples. Jaclyn does a private sexual act. It would be scandalous if it didn't happen every week.
DeAnn, a writer and editor in Portland, Oregon, probably likes Ryan more than anyone else on the show, but still isn't mad about this elimination like she was last week, because it was his own art that got him eliminated instead of someone else's. You can contact her at twopmodmars@gmail.com.
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