postmodern videos

Andy Warhol- I chose this video because he is a very popular artist, and I am familiar with his work. My uncle went to the Warhol museum and said once that Warhol was very messed up and he didn't like his artworks, so I wanted to learn more about Warhol and see for myself what I think about him. The video didn't really show him as being too nuts, so I decided that I still like him, unlike my uncle. The most interesting part for me was about how he made a lot of screen prints, because I am currently in the middle of screen printing here at home and it gives me inspiration.

Hockney- I had never heard of this artist before, but I enjoy photography so I decided to give him a shot. I really enjoyed the video and learning about the collages Hockney made out of poloroids. I find poloroids to be very classic and I love the way he put the piece together. I liked that this video concentrated on the artist and his process', I haven't seen that in many of the videos I have been watching this summer (maybe I have been choosing the wrong ones!).

Both the videos make the information in the book moer concrete in my mind. The end.

modern world videos

Dada and Surrealism- I chose this video because I find the Dada style very interesting...and sometimes strange. I wanted to learn more about it. I know of the artist Salvador Dali, so it was interesting getting to learn more about his works. Also I found it very interesting to learn about surrealism. I have completely looked over surrealism in the past, and now have a new appreciation for it because of its psychological background.

Expressionism- I don't know much about later styles of art, I have focused mainly on the renaissance in the past, so I wanted to explore styles such as Expressionism. I found the style a little confusing still, as the video taught me that this style uses color instead of perfection to represent something, and that it aims to show a sensation or feeling.

These videos reinforced what was in the book...as always.

Mask

 I was first drawn to this Batak mask from the Dutch East Indies, I like the elongated face that was created. I think the point of the mask is already to be someone you are not and so elongating that face into an even more abstract representation makes the effect even more impressive. I also like the playfulness of the faces, and the exaggerated features.

 My second inspiration is the Fang mask used in ceremony searching for sorcerers, again I like the elongated face and on this one I like the lack of facial features. It is simple and pleasing.

My last inspiration piece is the "Kifwebe" mask from the Songye people in Zaire. This is a mask described as portraying an dangerous force, and I like the simplicity of it. I like the geometric patterns the African people have used on their masks, seen on this and many others.

The mask I created is made out of clay that I let air harden and then painted an earth brown color. I wanted my mask to be completely 3D so I made a mini model of what a full version would look like, since I didn't have enough clay to make a life-size model.
My mask is a mix between all of my inspiration pieces. I wanted to use simple geometric forms and balance them on an enlongated face, but also keep the "dangerous force" aspect. My mask I think would be used to ward of bad spirits.
I had fun doing this project because I got to make something with my hands and be creative. Coming up with an idea wasn't very hard, once I got the clay in my hands it all just came together as one piece.

Video reviews week 8

I watched 3 asian videos, “Chinese Art:Treasures of National Palace Museum”, “The Great Wave” and the Buddhism video, as well as the Islamic Art video. I am not really a fan of Chinese art, so I didn’t really get much out of the first video, they have a lot of delicate decorated china, such as the tea bowl in the video. It is beautiful, but doesn’t really interest me. I tried to watch the video to get a greater appreciation for Chinese art. I know of the Japanese work “Great Wave” so I figured I’d watch the video to learn more behind the piece. I learned how the wave is representative of our lives, and especially enjoyed seeing all the places the piece has be reused, such as in comics. From the Buddhism video, I learned about their pilgrimage “Great Stupa”, I never knew Asian religions had Pilgrimages like Christian’s and Islam’s. The Islamic video was quite different from the other three, since it is a completely different culture. I think Islamic art is beautiful, and I appreciated that the video tried to break the barrier between the stereotype of terrorism and their religion. The videos added to this weeks reading by giving me more visual references and personal accounts.

Video review

I watched La Primavera, Leonardo Da Vinci, and Night Watch. I chose these because I am familiar with the two paintings, and spent a semester abroad in Italy so I am also interseted in Da Vinci. I researched La Primavera a lot in a previous class, but through the video I learned even more takes on the painting. Everyone has their own opinion about interpreting art so it is always interesting to hear more takes on it. A surprising thing I learned from Da Vinci was that he performed autopsies....That is strange and interesting, and maybe something I didn't want to know. I wonder if his studies helped perfecting his art at all. I have always been intrigued by Rembrandt's Night Watch because of the extreme chiaroscuro he uses, but I learned how much this painting has been through in vandalism, and as always I am shocked that people would treat someones creation like that...whether or not it was valuable at the time. As always these videos add to the reading by providing visual aids and more in depth insight on specific topics.

Gallery Visit #2

Exhibit
Title: "The Fateful Trip: Burchfeild, Lankes, and Schwanekamp
Theme: This exhibit shows Buffalo in the early 1900's

Gallery
Type of lighting: Track lighting on the ceiling giving natural light to the gallery, lights pointed at the art on the walls
Colors on walls: White/off-white

What materials are used in the interior architecture of the space?: the walls are placed at angles, giving a more artistic feel to the room.

How is the movement of the viewer through the gallery space?: Very open, art is along all of the walls and allows viewers to move through easily.

Artwork
How are the artworks organized?: They are all at eye level, organized by artist.

How are the artworks similar?: They seem to all be nature scenes, both landscapes and people.

How are the artworks different?: They are different styles, sizes, and media.

How are the artworks framed?: They are mostly all in wooden rectangular frames of various colors.

How are the artworks identified and labeled?: There are plaques next to each each artwork with it's information on it.

What is the proximity of the artwork to each other?: They are about 1-3ft apart, smaller pieces are closer and larger are further apart.

Art Criticism

1. Artist: Charles Burchfeild
Title: Genesis
Media: Watercolor, gauche, and charcoal on paper
Date: 1924

This piece shows a scene of stormy looking clouds above a rough seas with mountains. There is a lot of emotion with the dark clouds against the light sky and water. Principles and elements of bold lines and brush strokes, bold colors and contrast are used. This reminds me possible of the creation of earth as described in the christian bible and as the name implies.

2. Artist: J. J. Lankes
Title: Buffalo Harbor (Blackwell Canal)
Media: Wood engraving on paper
Date: 1922

This shows a scene of a boat moving through a body of water next to a large building. It has a very industrial feel to it. The principles and elements of line contrast and shape are used. Before I saw the title, it reminded me of the big boat that used to be docked next to one of the abandoned factories on the way into downtown Buffalo from the southtowns. Now I know that it is something just like that, but back in the day when Buffalo was the industrial center.

3. Artist: J. J. Lankes
Title: W. J. Schwanekamp's Portrait
Media: Charcoal on paper
Date: 1912

This shows a scene of a young man sitting on a chair with his foot on a stool, either reading or writing on his knee. He is wearing dress slacks and a shirt with a tie or scarf. This uses line, value, and shape. When first looking at this piece it reminded me of a young man in the military, possibly writing a letter to home or reading one. However, the title says it is a portrait of W.J. Schwanekamp. Maybe he was sketching or just enjoyed reading.

Exploring Line

1. What was it like using your hand as subject matter for a drawing?

Every kid has drawn hands before  so it was nice that it was a very familiar object so that even though I am not very good at drawing, I was still able to get the basic shape.

2. What media did you select - pencil or charcoal? Why?

I chose pencil, simply because it was available. I have worked with charcoal before and its easier to get better shading, but aso a lot messier and less forgiving.

3. How did it feel to create a drawing with your non-dominant hand?

It was terrbile! I cannot do anything with my left had, I felt so useless I could barely draw a straight line. I hope I never break my right hand and have to be stuck using my left one.

4. Compare and contrast your final drawings. Do you think they are successful studies?

They are alright..obviously my dominant hand drawing is a lot better and more realistic than my left handed drawing. They are both pretty terrible art-wise, but at least you can tell they are hands! My left handed dawing looks like it was done by a 3 yr. old...whoops!

5. Would you consider using your non-dominant hand to create artwork in the future?

I would consider using my left hand to do a large scale splatter painting, something that never looks wrong no matter how you do it. It might also be an idea for an art project in the future, based around a topsy-turvy upside down world theme or something.