davisl15

[davisl15]

I was also outstanded by Duane Hanson’s The Cowboy for being able to make something look as real as it does. I also was amazed at how much emotion could someone get out of a head that is laying of its side. It shows so much more then just the head that is there. I also enjoy seeing environmental art it is just amazing what mother nature did to shape things the way they are. I also agree with you that art can be taken and used for a way to express multiple different meaning for different people. 

Week 11 - Ch. 31

In the beginning of chapter 31, I was very shocked by how real Duane Hanson’s, The Cowboy, looked. He made a life size figure of a man, looking like a cowboy. The figure was made out of flesh-colored polyester resin and reinforced with fiberglass. The figure was then painted and dressed in real clothes. At first glance, I thought that this was a photograph of a man. The hair and chest hair, along with a sweaty gloss makes it look extremely real. I can also see veins on the arms. I would have never known this was a figurine until I read about it. This definitely shows the realist concept.

Another sculpture appeared, looking just as real as The Cowboy. Ron Mueck created Mask II, it is just a head laying sideways. The head looks like it is alive. The eyes are closed, and the mouth is partially open like it is breathing, in the form of about to drool from sleeping. I think that this sculpture is creepy. It looks like a living head, without a neck or body. If it looked like it was decapitated, I would have completely thought it was real as well.

I love this style of art, because it looks extremely real. Hence the given name of realism. I would love to create figures that look real just for the fun of it. I could see these being used majorly at a haunted house. Could you imagine one of these figures running at you, then finding out that it is made out of a product instead of being real? I would completely fall for it.

I am not really into looking at images of architecture simply because I cannot see all of the detail or the real beauty of the place. I would rather visit the place and explore it. Along with having the beauty being fully taken in. My favorite image of a location from the book was done by Frank Gehry. The location pictured is the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum Bilbao in Bilbao, Spain. I would like to visit a place like this because the building is oddly shaped and put together, said to be referred to as a “metallic flower”. But being on the water gives it a breathtaking look.

Unlike looking at building architecture, I absolutely love environmental art. This is art created in the outdoors. I love being outdoors and looking at things in the nature simply because nature is beautiful in its own sense. The Spiral Jetty is a form of earthwork. It was done by Robert Smithson. It is absolutely gorgeous. Eventually this will not exist due to natural elements. Another reason why I love environmental art, nature can make it change.

Race and gender, along with feminism, are both topics near the end of the chapter. Art can be used for social and political developments, not just for personal creations. Art that has meaning behind it can create a movement. These movements can be created through protest art, what was used as a discussion topic today.

[davisl15]

Week 11 chapter 31

Chapter 31 is about everything in art from the late twentieth century to today. There is a lot to talk about and there are a lot of things that the book just doesn’t have enough room to cover. Globalization is a very important process that has a huge effect on everything that happens in the world. The important artistic result is that artists from all over the world have much better contact to everybody else. This helps to expand what types of art most people are accustomed to seeing. Before this time people in america would not be exposed to very much art that wasn’t affected by the american styles. Globalization changed this because then people saw art that expressed the rest of the world’s styles. Another important effect of globalization was the change in architecture. Since people from all around the world could see what kinds of architecture the other side of the world had, they started to adopt it. There was a movement where architecture from Asia was started to be adopted into certain american buildings. There was also European artists that had started to take the ideas of other parts of the world to enhance what they thought their buildings should look like. Another very important movement that happened was a return to realism. When photography became available to everyone there wasn’t a large need for people that can paint realistically. More people would rather have a photograph then have a painting. This changed in the late twentieth century because people found a way to paint realistically but not exactly. The textbook shows a very good example of this by showing Chuck Close’s Self Portrait. It is realistic enough that people that look at the painting know what it is. The main point is that the paintings doesn’t have just smooth contours that are shaded together. The paintings is split into several different small boxes that have very interesting shapes inside of them. This in my opinion is what the return to realism looks like to me. Another return to realism that I see is the return to sculptures. This time period brought back realistic sculptures that have been gone for an extended amount of time. Most sculptures before this era were abstract sculptures. There is still artists that make incredible abstract sculptures but overall there has been a shift to people making very realistic sculptures. I think that the reason that realistic sculptures are coming back are because people can’t take a photo and have a more realistic sculpture. There isn’t anything that is advanced enough that can produce 3D sculptures just by clicking a button. I think that there will eventually be technology that can do just what I described but I don’t know if it will become possible during my lifetime. I think that is the real reason that realistic paintings now have to be distorted in some way to be well accepted. It is so easy to just take a phone out and take a picture that is always going to be more realistic than anyone can ever paint onto a canvas. This is the reason that I think abstraction became such a big movement because it can’t be created by a photo.

[davisl15]

I agree that action painting is a very fun type of painting. I enjoy doing it myself because I don’t have much realistic painting talent. I really like how you give as clear of a description as you can of “White Light.” It really helps to picture what the painting is without seeing it. I enjoy you trying to figure out the artist’s meaning in “Elvis I & II” but I don’t think that there is really a meaning behind it. I think that the painting is just exposed to show off Elvis to get people to look at his painting. 

Week 10 - Ch. 29&30

In chapter 29, action painting caught my eye. I absolutely love doing this style of art. It’s always fun to see what comes out of the painting, because it isn’t supposed to be perfect. Action painting is used by dripping, splattering, spraying, rolling, and throwing paint on to a canvas. I really wanted to do this in my bedroom as a child, but my parents wouldn’t let me. I had it all planned out, it was a brand-new home being built, which meant no carpeting, trim, or doors yet. I wanted to paint the walls either black or white and just go crazy with all kinds of colors. Sadly, my parents were against the whole idea because of the mess they thought it would have made. A painting I really liked that was done by Jackson Pollock, with the action painting style, is called “White Light”. This canvas is completely covered and overlapped in colors. There are no images or things to be made out of this portrait. The colors being used are black, white, blue, yellow, orange, and red. White is the most used color, which explains the title of the painting. He trims the painting as well to show the rhythm of the colors for a more dynamic look, even though this painting is “self-propelled”.  The reason I am drawn into this painting is because there are so many lines from throwing paint off a paint brush. I also like the color choices. Around the edges with the white, black, and blue, it reminds me of the ocean waves crashing against the rocks and walls. I just like the painting in general because it was done with action, not preciseness. Gives it a look that can’t be done again exactly the same as the original. The opening collage of chapter 30 was extremely interesting. This was done by Richard Hamilton. The title of this collage is “Just what is it that makes today’s homes so different, so appealing?”. I used to create collages from old magazines to see what I could come up with. So instantly when I saw this, I was into it. I was looking at all of the different images. After reading about this, I learned that it was intended to be used for “reproduction on a poster”. It also portrayed what was to come from the pop art movement. I can definitely see that this was intended for the younger generation. Elvis Presley is one of my favorite old-time music artists. I actually visited his home, Graceland. Again, with this painting, I instantly was interested. The painting is called “Elvis I & II” created by Andy Warhol. There are two panels, and four images of Elvis. Elvis is holding a gun, that is drawn into an aggressive stance. From the left, he is clearer to see but going to the right, he starts to fade. Warhol was creating the impression of photographic repetition. Elvis goes from being a conventional cowboy to a pop star. I like this painting, but it is not one that I would have hanging in my home. I recognized that it was Elvis, but I don’t really understand the meaning. His song ��Viva Las Vegas” is what came to mind.

[davisl15]

Week 10 chapters 29 and 30

Chapter 29 is about mid-century american abstraction. There was rise in the mid 20th century for art that was abstract. I think that the main reason that there was a large increase in abstraction is because photography started to gain popularity so there was less demand for art that was realistic. The art environment also changed dramatically because art was focused in america now. The main reason for this is because Europe was stuck in the world wars which made numerous artists come to america to be away from all the fighting that was happening back home. The major art center in america was New York. I think the reason that New York became a major art center is because the artists that came from Europe stayed more on the side of america closer to Europe in case they ever wanted to go back home.

Another major movement in art was action painting. Action paintings was the process of applying paint in many different manors. There was a movement to use paint by dripping, spraying, or splattering the paint. This produced a very different kind of art then when artists were using paint brushes to paint onto their canvas. This also produced a lot of paintings that were similar but were never going to be the exact same painting.

There was also different styles being developed on the west coast of america as well. The styles were very similar but there was also difference between the two very different styles. The west coast style of abstraction usually used much more bright colors which made seem much brighter. There was also more sculptures in the west coast styles. From what I saw there was a larger amount of sculptures on the west coast. The reason that I think that this is the case is because there is much more space on the west coast. The east coast is overall much more congested and there is less space to make sculptures

Chapter 30 is about Pop art, op art, minimalism, and conceptualism. Pop art developed first in Britain in the 1960s, but was overall more influential in the Americas. Pop art is when art is made using items that are popular. This gives viewers a better understanding of what they are looking at because they are used to the items that are in the art. This is a very important movement because i don't think that pop art really ended. I think that there is still a lot of art today that uses some of the same principles of early pop art. I think that pop art is always going to be around in some way because there is a large market for people that like looking at items that are popular. Op art is art that uses optical illusions to trick your brain. I think this is a very interesting style of art. I really like the different uses of shapes that trick your brain into thinking that something is different when it really isn’t. Minimalism is where art is very minimalistic where there isn’t very much going on in the art. Surface deep there isn’t very much going on in minimalistic art. That is where you have to look past what you can actually see and look into the true meaning of the art. Conceptualism is an even more extended version of minimalism. There is even less to look at and you have to really look into the art deeply to try to understand what the artist is trying to convey.

[davisl15]

Week 9-chap 27-28

Chapter 27 is about cubism, futurism, and related twentieth-century styles. Cubism can even be separated into two separate movements. The first movement is analytical cubism which focuses on darker colors. This part of cubism also focuses on using numerous geometric shapes. The paintings that they made used a lot of small shapes to create the whole picture. The second movement is synthetic cubism. Synthetic cubism focused on colors more. There was a wider use of brighter colors that popped out of the picture at you. In what I see there was also an increase in the size of the shapes that people were using. They used a lot bigger shapes to make the main figures in the painting. The main person to really develop cubism was Pablo Picasso. He started both movements and had a major effect on everything that happened during this time.

Another major movement that happened was the futurism movement. The futurist movement focused on the development of new technologies. The works of art focused on showing the beauties of the modernized world. There was massive advancements in terms of industry and the economy during this time. The futurists also had an effect on the political environment during this time. There were many people that wanted to embrace the new industrial revolutions that were occuring at this time.  

There was also multiple small movements that didn’t have a huge effect on art in a whole. The other important movement that I find very influential was the international style of architecture. The international style developed in several different european cultures at the same time in the early 1920’s. It focused on using several geometric shapes in their houses. Before the international style most houses focused on having symmetry. In the international style there was a focus on having houses that were not symmetrical. The houses also were usually white instead of different colors. The reason that i find the international style very important is because it is a style that is coming back today. When houses are built today most people build them in a style that is very similar to the style that they developed almost a hundred years ago.

Chapter 28 is about Dada, Surrealism, Realism, Regionalism, and Abstraction. Dada is a movement that happened right after world war one where people were trying to distract themselves from the nationalist movements. The nationalist movements are what caused world war one in the first place so it was obvious that the people wanted to avoid everything that caused the terrible war. Surrealism is all about people exploring their own imagination. There was a focus on people showing their own fantasies that were mostly ignored before. They focused on people showing their own weird dreams that showed their own different ideas. This produced some very weird paintings that don’t make any logical sense. There was also a return of social realism that showed what most people were dealing with at this time. This included portraits and paintings of everyday items such as gas stations. That movement was also called regionalism which is basically the same as social realism. Abstraction also becomes a major movement during this time. The reason that abstraction is so big of a deal is because abstract paintings are still very popular today. The other reason that it was so popular is that almost nobody had seen abstraction art until this time period. They focused on art that most people could figure out and get a grasp at what was going on in the painting. This is what really changed because people were starting to make paintings that people didn’t have one meaning to it. 

[davisl15]

Week 8-chap 25-26

Chapter 25 is about post-impressionism and the late nineteenth century. This era is called post-impressionism because it came after impressionism and it was just a slight change from impressionism. The major difference from impressionism to post-impressionism is that post-impressionism had more defined edges. There was a clear separation between the figures and objects that were being painted.

One of the most important artists during the post-impressionist period is Paul Cezanne. When he started to paint he painted in an impressionist style. Through his life he started to paint in a more post-impressionist style. Most of his early paintings were very dark and less defined then his later works of art. One very important piece of work that he painted was Still Life with Apples which was an art piece that he painted in about 1875-1877. It was important because it showed a lot of people that you can make art out of a very simple subject matter. Most people that were making art during the late nineteenth century used very complex subjects. This made it so that people were focusing on how you painted the simple subjects instead of the complex subjects as a whole. The paintings was also special because Cezanne made the apples seem as if they were still moving. This made the whole painting have a really cool effect of motion that many other people used in their own paintings. He was one of the first to make a painting seem that it was really in motion. There were people that tried before but personally I don’t think that their paintings had the same effect as Cezanne’s did.

Chapter 26 is about the early twentieth century. This was a very important era because it gave rise to numerous artistic influences that are still seen today. The time period is also significant because there are usually very strong changes that happen during a turn of a century. This era also feels especially important because the closer we get to our own time the more important it starts to feel. The early twentieth century doesn’t seem that far away so we start to focus on this time period more.

The major people that helped develop the early twentieth century styles were Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse. Picasso is more well known in general because he started to develop his style first before Matisse did. Picasso started a blue period where a number of his paintings were almost completely blue. The blue color that he used is usually thought of as a depressing color. He used it to make very sad paintings. I think that the reason that he was doing this is because he was probably depressed during this time and he thought that the only way to get it out was through his passion for paintings. Matisse played a major role in developing Fauvism. It was a short lived period only from 1905-1906. This period was different because they used very bright vibrant colors that many people didn’t use in their paintings. Most people were using colors that were close to what something would actually look like. Fauvism challenged that and used colors that most people didn’t associate with the subject in the painting.

[davisl15]

I agree with you in that the industrial revolution was a very influential time period. It changed the way that everyone lived. For most people it made it significantly better. I like how you pointed out the specifics ways that people made art during this time period. I also like how you made a point to talk about the specific areas that the industrial revolution had a major effect. I very much agree that the industrial revolution changed the entire world which in tern changed the history of art. 

Week 7

The 19th century is, in my opinion, the most interesting period yet. I feel this way mostly because I am indecisive of the results. The industrial revolution changed the economy and the way people live. Before the industrial revolution people were self-reliant. People had to make it on their own or die trying. They had to work hard to provide for their families but had untold freedoms. The industrial revolution made life easier but came with a price. The price was a never-ending dependency. Ever since the industrial revolution people have been reliant on corporations and government. This dependency haunts us today more than ever. Part of me wants to live in a pre-industrial revolution world, but all of me knows we don’t have what it takes to make it there anymore. We will never know whether the industrial revolution was overall beneficial or not. My theory is that it was necessary but was easily taken advantage of. It could have been more beneficial if it was fair.

Art during the 19th century depicted situations occurring during the time. Artist painted portraits of people living during the period. This was called realism. Honore Daumier captured the emotion of the class system installed by the industrial revolution. It was the beginning of the ultimate separation of the rich and the poor. These distinctions were clear in paintings of royalty and of peasants. Daumier captured the oppression development in what looks like a political newspaper add. I believe this gave birth to opinionated art about politics in the media.

The industrial revolution was not without its benefits. It made life easier for humans in general. Many inventions came with industrialization. These included electricity, communication improvements, and the camera. The camera allowed for a new form of art known as photography. This would eventually lead to video entertainment. The population of knew metals steel and iron gave birth to new forms of architectural art. With strong and more versatile metals, architecture could be built bigger, better, and more interesting. Famous bridges were now able to be constructed. The Eiffel Tower was made possible by the industrial revolution. Skyscrapers were sent high into the sky.

Art in the 19th century depicted the changing world. The world had not changed this rapidly in the past. New ways of life were spreading like wildfire as people transformed from a self-reliant populous to a herd of sheep ready and willing to feed the wolf. The industrial revolution gave an opportunity for a better life for the small cost of freedom. This was demonstrated through realism and impressionism.

[davisl15]

Week 7 chapters 23 and 24

Chapter 23 talks about nineteenth century realism. The realistic movement was most prevalent in France. The world was starting to change during this time. The enlightenment movement was happening and there was also multiple revolutions that developed out of this time period. The industrial revolution also helped develop different social classes. The newspapers helped bring cartoons and pictures to a wider audience. Now that newspapers were common to most people critics came out and judged certain artists works of art which affected who wanted to buy that particular artist’s work. This helped to develop the way that a lot of art is perceived today. The paintings during this time worked to become more realistic instead of having fantasy ideas. There was also a focus on painting everyday life instead of just the major events.

Numerous works of art during the realistic period showed the servants as darker and more distant than the surrounding landscape. I think that the way that the reason that they do this is because you are looking in as a richer person. The peasants that are working only see darkness because nothing is good in their life. The workers conditions were horrible and they were treated very poorly during this time period. The rich person sees the workers as darkness because they don’t care about the workers. The rich sees brighter lights around the workers because that is what is making them money and power.

Architecture was also changed significantly during this time period. With the introduction of steel and iron they could build taller and bigger structures. When steel was first introduced people didn’t think that a building made of steel could be considered art. They thought that steel was mainly going to be used for its utility. They were wrong because there was a lot of people that used steel to make incredibly expansive buildings. One such example was the Eiffel tower in Paris. Most people didn’t like the style and thought that it should’ve come down. The structure  survived the backlash anyway. I think that there was many buildings that were built during this time that didn’t appeal to the style of everyone and were taken down such as the Eiffel tower almost was. I think that there were structures that didn’t get the credit for how beautiful they actually were.

Chapter 24 is about nineteenth century impressionism. The impressionist era was also most popular in France. The main difference between realism and impressionism is that impressionism wasn’t affected by the changing political climate. Impressionist paintings were just a small change from realism. The impressionist paintings focused more on getting the light correct. In the realistic era the lights were often manipulated and not realistic but in impressionism the lights are much more realistic. This gives the paintings a better feel and makes them seem even more realistic. In the later nineteenth century the impressionist movement moved towards america. The americas were largely ignored in terms of art during this time. They were seen as a new nation that didn’t need art, they needed to improve their economics and political before they should focus on the arts. This is what most people thought about the americans. They were mostly correct in thinking this way, but in the later half of the nineteenth century they had their economy figured out and could focus more on the arts. This was important because it provided another area where art could be affected.

[davisl15]

Week 5-chapters 19 and 20

Chapter 19 talks about the baroque style in western europe. The baroque style was during the late 16th century to about 1750 in some places. The world was starting to have doubts about absolute rule from religion. Religious figures were starting to lose their power and less works of art were centered around religion. The seventeenth century was a huge time period for science. There were many strides in science during this time period. Baroque art is filled with dramatized events, deep rich colors, and very strong shadows. The paintings are also very smooth and the figures flow together. Baroque style was very prevalent in architecture. The baroque style was defined by two major architectural feats that were produced during this time.  The first is the completion of St. Peters in Rome. The building was being rebuilt during this time. The interior of the building is very heavily influenced by the baroque style. There is very strong contrast between dark and light. The building is also heavily adorned with metals that are very designed which show the skill of the artists. The second is the sumptuous court of Louis XIV. That building shows the tremendous amount of resources that were put into the arts at that time. The palace was intended to show the immense power of the french monarch. It was a gigantic palace that boasted hundreds of rooms and could hold more than twenty thousand people.The building was split into separate sections that were completed at different times by different people. The different people had different styles so some rooms look completely different from others.

Baroque styles played a gigantic role in paintings at this time. One of the most prevalent painters in Italy was Caravaggio. He had trouble with the law multiple times and that reduced the time that he spent making art. His style of painting was distinct because his themes were meant to appeal to the average person. He also differed from other artists by the fact that he didn’t make early drawings. Most painters at this time made a beginning sketch of what they were going to paint before they made the final piece of art. Caravaggio didn’t and that makes his paintings less planned and it shows in his works. He still payed very close attention to the miniscule details in his paintings. In his piece Boy with a Basket of Fruit he shows very close attention to making the fruit look as realistic as possible. He does this in numerous ways with hows he shapes the light and the shading on the fruit. The piece also shows the very common style of lighting in the background. The background is shaded very smoothly were there isn’t a sharp line splitting the light.

Chapter 20 is about the rococo style which was around from about 1700 to 1775. Rococo style is sometimes called a refinement of baroque style. I agree with this because rococo pieces share some very similar characteristics. Rococo style shows a world of fantasy and exoticism. The 18th century was heavily influenced by the enlightenment. There were multiple works that were made to depict the secrets of the enlightenment leaders.Some of the works depicted the experiments that enlightenment leaders were participating in. Rococo stylized works were similar in some ways to the baroque styled works. There was a major difference though. Rococo works didn’t have an emphasis on shadows. They were usually lighter and not very much darkness. This is different from baroque works because they usually had a strong emphasis on the shadowy part of those works.

[davisl15]

As I was reading I realized that we think very similarly. I agree that the protestant reformation had a very profound effect on art from this time period. I like how you say that life is not always aligned and perfect. I agree with this statement one hundred percent because life is almost never perfect and aligned with what you have hoped would happen. I also liked how you went in depth with specific pieces that mean a lot to you. 

Chapter 17 and 18

In the 16th century, things began to change quickly. The Protestant Reformation split the church which had many impacts on society. Artists were affected by this as it changed the society they were demonstrating in their paintings. With all the changes in the 16th century, art began to develop new styles such as Mannerisms. This style focuses on the human body which is usually elongated or in a twisted pose. These paintings also did not follow any sort of symmetry which caused a sense of instability in figures. I think it’s very interesting that this was the new trend in painting at the time. The oddities of this style made paintings look more unique and realistic. Not everything in life is perfectly aligned and calculated. It gave paintings a more natural feel as they were not following as many rules of painting. Pontormo and Parmigianino are great examples of painters whose work had the odd traits of Mannerism.

The Counter-Reformation also inspired a lot of art. Tintoretto painted the Last Supper according to counter reformation requirements. This painting is very interesting to me because it was painted where the table is at a diagonal angle. It is not parallel with the picture plane. This is one of the first times where a the perspective of a commonly known event had changed so much. While it conformed to the counter reformation requirements, it is still a very creative and unique perspective in the Last Supper.

The greatest architect of the late 1500’s was Andrea Palladio. His style consisted of a combination of Mannerism and High Renaissance. Palladio made the Villa Rotonda, which consisted of large columns and a square plan to it.  His style was so prominent and well received that it was later revived in America and England in the 18th century. Its really cool that a lot of older American buildings were greatly influenced by Palladio and his unique style. Being able to trace back traits of these buildings to those in Italy is very unique and special.

In the 16th century, Northern Europe was also going through many changes. Like the South, many were greatly affected by humanism. Many of the important artists for Northern Europe traveled to Italy and were very influenced by humanism. I think this shows just how important humanism was to the world as a whole. Not only was it affecting certain societies, but it was changing almost every society that was exposed to it. The changes in art and the overall perspective of people really show that well. Of the artists of Northern Europe, the one that is most interesting to me is Caterina van Hemessen. Her work is very unique as it uses many laid back colors while including impressive texture. It gives her work a very serious feel that many are unsuccessful at capturing. Another artist of Northern Europe that I enjoyed was Hans Holbein. His portrait of Henry VIII is very iconic. I know for a fact I have seen it a few times in history classes. His style includes a lot of detail which is very impressive. The pattern on Henry’s shirt in his portrait is a great example of the detail Holbein was able to produce. He also did a great job in showing Henry’s power and wealth through this portrait.

Overall, The humanist movement stayed prevalent throughout the 16th century, again showing its continued effects on society and art. Its spread throughout Europe shows the overall impact that it had and how exactly it was changing society. Art during this time was very interesting due to the variety of it. Many artists continued to be influenced by past styles, while others continued to add their own style into the mix.

[davisl15]

Week 4-chapters 17 and 18

Chapter seventeen is about mannerism, the counter-reformation, and architecture. Mannerism is a style of painting that uses distortion. The main focus of mannerism painting is the human body. The paintings that are done in this style usually have very distorted human figures. The people are put in complex poses or stretched in a very unusual way. This gives mannerism paintings a very distinct style that is usually easy to distinguish. The counter reformation had an effect on the art that came out of this period. The counter reformation made an effort to censor multiple paintings. The paintings that were allowed had to be accurate in terms of religious subjects. The paintings had to be very accurate when they depicted a certain scene of religious importance. Any paintings that did not meet the certain requirements had to be changed in some way. Architecture was also changed during this time. There were some architects that decided they wanted to take ideas from older buildings and incorporate them into new buildings. Andrea Palladio is an example of a person who used some older influences to influence his own architecture. Palladio is also very famous because he had a significant influence on most of the architecture in Italy at this time.

Chapter eighteen is about the northern influences during this time period. Most of the influential people from the north were from the Netherlands and Germany. German painters were very skilled in their own right, but I enjoy works from artists from the Netherlands more.  The Netherlands had Hieronymus Bosch who was a very influential artist. One of his most important paintings was The Garden of Earthly Delights which was an enormous painting that was commissioned for the state room of the house of Nassau. The piece is in total 7 feet 2 inches by 12 feet 4 inches. That in itself is a very large painting for one person to do by themselves and is as detailed as it is. There has been a tremendous amount of debate over what the piece is exposed to represent. I interpret the piece as a way of saying that hell will one day be inevitable. The left panel is a depiction of the garden of eden where humans made the first sin. The first sin set of a chain of multiple other sins. Every single person has sinned in their life in some way, shape, or form. The center panel is a depiction of the world before the great flood. This shows what happens when sin gets out of control. The world ends up in chaos. The flood set forth a new beginning for the world because everything that wasn’t on the ark was destroyed. We are now getting to a point in the world where sin has started to engulf us. I don’t think the depiction of hell on the right panel is where people go after they die. I think that is what will come of the world when sin engulfs the world. This is a very different way of interpreting the painting. This is my what I see when I think about the meaning of the painting.

[davisl15]

I agree that powerful families had an influence on what kind of art was made. I also agree that powerful people have a way to control people that don’t have as much power as they do. I also understand that there was a major christian influence on the majority of the art. Almost every time that I think about a piece from the renaissance I end up thinking about some piece that has a christian influence. 

Week 3 Blog Post

As I read through chapters 15 and 16 I couldn’t help but focus on the influences of art. The renaissance included a revolution of ideas in art, politics, sciences, religion, and more. The progression in these areas seems to feed off each other. In Italy during the 1400’s the separation between church and state was vague if there was a line at all. Power, as it is today, was the primary influence of all things.

The power families influenced art by encouraging the humanistic approach. The goal was to reconcile Christianity. Christian art was becoming quite popular. The population of Christian manuscripts in the state house increased. Competitive art boomed with images of the Christian faith. Again, I do not find this a coincidence. The powerful families and churches were using their positions to influence the art work. The art work was influencing the opinions of the populous and therefore the political environment. There is no justification as to why those in power would not use their status to their benefit in this way. The same things happen today. Power is used to manipulate society in a way that most benefits the dominant group. It isn’t something that should be justified by the success of the renaissance period, but also didn’t seem to do much damage. It is just an example of historical repetition. We can all draw our own assumptions about when and how this abuse of power took wrong turns and had awful affects throughout history and into the present.

I don’t understand how so many good things happened during the renaissance with such strong influence from these people and groups. It is probably just my confirmation bias suggesting the impossibility of the situation based on current events and experiences throughout my own life. Noble children were educated alongside ordinary children. People seemed to have the same opportunities. It seemed like a fair population where society thrived. We all have something to learn from this period. We can better our world by using the renaissance as an example of a thriving time for Italy.

Throughout chapter 15 I continue to draw conclusions of religious influence in art. The most famous pieces seem to be of religious icons and within the property of churches. The Holy Trinity was a breathtaking piece depicting the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as Jesus is on his crucifix. The influences continue with various murals inside of churches. These murals are astonishing with vivid color, detail, depth, and an obvious dedication to the work. It got me thinking about how they knew what to paint. They must have such vivid imaginations spawning from literature. Surely, these magnificent works were completed with such awe to influence the opinion of the community in a positive way.

As we head into the chapter 16 we see that Leonardo da Vinci’s work becomes quite popular. The Vitruvian Man has always sparked my curiosity. I first remember being interested in the piece when it was used in Da Vinci’s code. Could there actually be some mystery behind his work? Da Vinci was also inspired by the church to paint one of the most iconic pieces in history, The Last Supper.

Throughout the renaissance it is apparent the influences that powered the culture of the period. Many artists were driven by the same things they are today, power and money. The power in the 14th century belonged primarily to the wealthy and religious leaders. This relationship created an abundance of iconic religious pieces. I was unaware that so many works of art that we know off the top of our heads comes from this short period of blossoming cultural development.

[davisl15]

Week 3-chap 15 and 16

Chapter 15 and 16 focus on the renaissance. The renaissance is an influential period for art because it pushes what some people thought art should be. I always thought of the renaissance as more a period of paintings. I was wrong in thinking this way. The renaissance had to do with a lot more than just paintings. Paintings were an important part but so were the numerous sculptures and the major effect on architecture. Science also played a huge role in the renaissance. The renaissance was known a great time for sculptures. There was numerous sculptures that came out of this period that made a difference in art. The renaissance also had a profound effect on the architecture of Italy. The architecture was changed significantly during the renaissance and some of its effects are still being seen today.

There were still very influential painting during the renaissance. One of the most well known paintings during the renaissance was the Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci. It was a very influential piece because it explored new techniques in painting. One of these techniques was the vanishing point. It is a way for the painter to show distance in their paintings. It makes the room they are in more three dimensional. It was a relatively new concept for the time.

There was many great sculptures during this time period. One that is very influential is Pieta by Michelangelo. It is a sculpture of Mary holding the recently dead Jesus. It is important because he does a very good job making the two figures have a special bond. Something to note as well is that a lot of the works that were done during this time frame were christian related. It was special to michelangelo because it was one of his very first monumental sculptures. It was also special because it was the only sculpture that he signed. That is important because for an artist to sign their name they have to be very proud of what the accomplished. It also

Architecture was a huge part of the renaissance as well. Architecture had a purpose because the building was being used for something. Painting and sculpture provided design and uniqueness to the buildings. In essence architecture was reliant on paintings and paintings were reliant on architecture to paint on. One of the most recognizable building was the Florence cathedral. It was special because Brunelleschi had to figure out a way to make the dome stay up. The way that they had made domes before wouldn’t have worked, the dome would’ve fallen down. Brunelleschi figured that he could use a collection of ribs to support the dome. He also made the dome more pointed to help it stay upright.

Another big part of the renaissance was the scientific portion. Science played a pretty big role during the renaissance. There were some artists that were also major contributors to science as well. Leonardo da Vinci was a artist but also a scientist. He made a number of detailed drawings that helped other scientists discover certain things.

[davisl15]

The Nativity

It is amazing to see two different versions of a very famous event that numerous people have depicted in very different ways. The two versions that the book decides to contribute are Giotto’s version and Nicola Pisano’s version. Giotto’s version is different because it takes away a lot of figures that are usually depicted in most people’s version of the nativity. Nicola Pisano’s version depicts the nativity, but also depicts the annunciation of mary, annunciation of the shepherds, and the washing of the infant christ. There is similarities between the pieces but there is also drastic differences.

Pisano’s version is overall very cluttered, but well put together. He is depicting 4 different scenes, the nativity, the annunciation of mary, the annunciation of the shepherds, and the washing of the infant christ. He does a really beautiful job morphing the 4 scenes together. The sculpture has Mary in the middle proving the point that the nativity scene is the most important. Most artists wouldn’t have been allowed to create a piece depicting a Christian event. He was allowed because it was made into a style that still represented the Roman style of art.

Giotto’s version of the Nativity is a special piece of work. It depicts the “annunciation to the shepherds” and the “Nativity”. It showcases each event separately but together at the same time. Both events have a lot to do with each other. The annunciation of the shepherds is the event that leads up to the Nativity. The Nativity is the overall more important part of the piece. I find the piece very interesting because it narrows down who is all involved with the piece. In this piece there is only 4 figures at the nativity. Compared with other depictions where there was most commonly 8 or more figures. I find it interesting because even in the part of the piece that is exposed to depict the annunciation of the shepherds, there is an angel that is focused on the baby jesus. The baby Jesus is the more important part of the piece and it shows with how the other figures are positioned.

The way that I can interpret Giotto’s piece, is that every single figure has a specific purpose and action to do. This is better than trying to fill every little space with people that aren’t necessary.   That is very true in every single day in life. People that only have friends that have a specific purpose usually have more loyal friends. They made a true connection to each and every one of the people that they call friends. They are usually more happy this way and their friends stay for a very long time. People that fill their life will an uncountable amount of friends usually end up hating most of the people that they once called their friends. Their friends are usually less loyal to a person that has numerous friends. They never formed a true bond to all of their friends. No one ever had a true connection to that person that thinks that they have a lot of friends. In reality that person maybe has one true friend.

[davisl15]

I feel like art can sometimes express certain moods, but I don’t think that every work of art makes you feel a certain moods. 

I like how art expresses a certain mood the artists wants to make you feel and I like the diversity of it. I like to see all the changes in art and it’s technique throughout history. My interests are running, swimming, and biking. I am trying to achieve my A.A. before I graduate from high school in two years. I hope we cover the Renaissance. 

[davisl15]

[davisl15]

Introduction

Art is a very broad topic. I like art because i feel more complete with art in my life. I like cars, biking, and being outdoors. I am pursuing my AA then I will transfer to a University. I hope that we cover Hellenistic style. It is one of my favorite styles of art.