On the November 26th I went to London to view Ana Mendieta’s art exhibition: Traces at the Hayward gallery. Here I observed her work which focused on topics such as, what it is to belong in a modern society; the role of the body in art; the affect death has on people; feminism and the female body which was all reflected at the gallery. But, what really stood out to me when I was looking at her work was her use of nature, primitive-styled ritual and the utilization of her body which was displayed in works such as Imagen de Yagul along with, Earth Body where she blended herself into the environment. This particular subject interested me due to it being a recurring theme in many of her works; the intrigue that arises when seeing her being involved …show more content…
One of these Silueta or silhouettes that Mendieta created and filmed was her Alma silueta en Feugo or Soul silhouette on fire. Filmed using a Bolex camera with Super-8 film, a camera which she preferred for its easy use and compact shape, Mendieta created a figure out of organic material of mud, rocks and leaves, covering it all in a white sheet giving it a look of a supernatural ghost. This haunting quality that it portrays is also added to, as it figure spontaneously, but slowly combusts, the fire then gradually dying out from the driving wind. Furthermore, the poor quality of the film helps to convey the eerie impression of the piece. Again, like the majority of her work, Mendieta’s ‘creation’ is entirely symbolic and representative: Fire has two uses in the piece, firstly, it joins together or reconnects Mendieta herself and the earth with the organic materials, as she has done in her previous Silueta series due to her feelings of separation from her home source . Secondly, Mendieta also focuses on the ritualistic and religious. The fire is largely believed to represent rebirth as in some Latin religions. The flames and earthly materials used in the Alma Silueta en Feugo piece merge to display a scene of ‘renewal of the soul within the body’, which goes someway to explain the name: Soul silhouette on
Ester Hernandez is a Chicana artist, best known for her works of Chicana women. Ester’s goal is to recreate women’s lives to produce positive images of women’s lifestyle and to create icons. Her piece, Frida y Yo, contains the iconic painter Frida Kahlo. Frida, after being in multiple accidents causing long-term pain and suffering, began painting, mostly self-portraits, to portray her reality and glorify the pain. Similar to how Hernandez's goals are a juxtaposition to Frida’s artwork, the art piece Frida y Yo creates a juxtaposition between life and suffering and death and fortune.
Artemisia Gentileschi (1593-1654?) was one of the most important women artists before the modern period and certainly one of the most famous female painters from the seventeenth century. Gentileschi’s paintings regularly featured women as the protagonists acting in a manner equal to men. In fact, forty nine of her paintings fall into this category. She was raped at the age of 18 and the subsequent events lent her a certain amount of notoriety. These factors have led many to interpret her artwork as an expression of her role as a female victim looking for revenge through her art. Instead, a closer examination of Gentileschi’s life and her artwork exposes the artist as an individual with personal strength and incredible talent who painted subjects similar to or the same as those of her male counterparts, instead of staying within the guiding principles of what was acceptable “feminine” art.
The two pieces of art that I have chosen to compare is the ‘Green Tara 14th century’ and ‘Tara 19th century’ which are both from the collection at the Rubin Museum of Art. The Green Tara sculpture is from central Tibet and is made of Gilt copper alloy. The Tara 19th century is from Kham province in Tibet and is painted with pigments on a piece of cloth.
A quick read of Ana Castillo’s poetry will provide a reader with a good knowledge of the style she uses. The style used in “Seduced by Natassja Kinski” and “El Chicle” is conveyed vividly. A key ingredient to Castillo’s style is imagery. Castillo uses imagery to portray the environment, object movements, emotions, and everything else that is of utmost importance. Also important to Castillo’s style is her choice of words.
In the great tradition of classical art, nudity and death have been two main themes of the masters. Sally Mann’s photographs twist this tradition when the nudes are her prepubescent children and the corpses are real people. The issue is that her photographs are a lens into unfiltered actuality, and consumers question the morality of the images based on the fact that children and corpses are unable to give legal consent. Her work feels too personal and too private. Mainly, people question whether or not Mann meant to cause an uproar with her work or if the results were completely unintentional. After looking through what Sally Mann herself has said, it can be determined that both options have a grain of truth. She wanted to provoke thought,
Japanese art comes in many styles, and I am focusing on a specific kind of artwork that was created during the Muromachi period, and is called Japanese wall scroll art. I will discus the political, and aesthetic motivations for the art as well as the styles the artists used.
...owing us with her great works. She has led a driven and captivating career. While she has received much controversy in her time she has managed to continue creating great works. She is widely acknowledge, and so far through out her life, has made quite an impact. Her love of nature and in it’s importance is rippled through out all her work, mostly in the freedom of her later works. Her ability to maintain balance between her love for architecture and art, has helped to make her stand out in both crowds. Her sculptures will please viewers for centuries to come.
Though most works of art have some underlying, deeper meaning attached to them, our first impression of their significance comes through our initial visual interpretation. When we first view a painting or a statue or other piece of art, we notice first the visual details – its size, its medium, its color, and its condition, for example – before we begin to ponder its greater significance. Indeed, these visual clues are just as important as any other interpretation or meaning of a work, for they allow us to understand just what that deeper meaning is. The expression on a statue’s face tells us the emotion and message that the artist is trying to convey. Its color, too, can provide clues: darker or lighter colors can play a role in how we judge a piece of art. The type of lines used in a piece can send different messages. A sculpture, for example, may have been carved with hard, rough lines or it may have been carved with smoother, more flowing lines that portray a kind of gentleness.
This investigation will examine a few key works by the anonymous female artist group know in popular culture as the Guerrilla Girls. In this essay it will reveal several prominent themes within the groups works that uncover the racial and gender inequalities in politics, art and pop culture with the use of humor. These collaborating artists work and operate with a variety of mediums, their works display a strong message concerned with activism connected by humor allowing the Guerrilla Girls to communicate and resonate a more powerful message to the viewer. The ways in which this collaborating group has employed many questions and facts against the hierarchy and historical ideologies which have exploited women and their roles in art. This investigation will allow the reader to identify three areas in which the Guerrilla Girls apply a certain forms of humor to transform society’s view on the prominent issue of gender in the art world. These specific ploys that are performed by the Guerrilla Girls are in the way they dress, the masks they wear, pseudonymous names of dead women artists and the witty factual evidence in their works. These are all examples to evoke audiences in challenging not only the art society which dictates the value and worth of women in art but also to confront yourself and your own beliefs in a way that makes audiences rethink these growing issues.
When first approaching this work, one feels immediately attracted to its sense of wonder and awe. The bright colors used in the sun draws a viewer in, but the astonishment, fascination, and emotion depicted in the expression on the young woman keeps them intrigued in the painting. It reaches out to those who have worked hard in their life and who look forward to a better future. Even a small event such as a song of a lark gives them hope that there will be a better tomorrow, a thought that can be seen though the countenance by this girl. Although just a collection of oils on a canvas, she is someone who reaches out to people and inspires them to appreciate the small things that, even if only for a short moment, can make the road ahead seem brighter.
Artists of the Modernist era responded to the relationship of body and landscape in many different ways. This essay will focus on the works of Georgia O’Keeffe (1887-1986) and Barbara Hepworth (1903-1975) and will explore two works by each artist. A desire of the Modernist artist was the pursuit of pure forms and removal of extraneous detail that would encumber their vision of what the world should, or in fact did look like to them. As Honour and Flemming (2009) propose, the thought of seeking original elucidations to the issues that surrounded the production of paintings and sculpture helped to propel the movement forward.
“Dance is movement aware of itself. Dance is purposeful movement that employs artful communication to express ideas and feelings, meaning that aesthetic intention is present” (Cornett, 2014, p 394). Art could be anywhere and anything it just needs to have creativity in order to make it unique and beautiful. One simple art form, could speak for a thousand words and convey many significant messages such as the art form of dance. Baile Folklorico is a great example of communicating in a unique and a stunning art form. Baile Folklorico is a folk dance that elaborates different dances, music and costumes to represent a Latin or Mexican culture.
In fact, some of the works presented depict mythological paintings that resemble the transcending Metaphysical matter of nature. Take for instance, the general aspect of the artworks presented in this chapter. They depict different social levels through the use of objects, emotions and various conditions. The lower status contradicts, the slaves to the wealthy and royalty, all delineate the role of the people present in the society and their everyday life. In the images, the poor and the slaves depicted with little to no possessions, looking tired and over-worked. Through their everyday labor, they must survive as a less fortunate person. In contrast to the images of the po...
Williams, Bruce. "The Reflection of a Blind Gaze: Maria Luisa Bemberg, Filmmaker." A Woman's Gaze: Latin American Women Artists. Ed. Marjorie Agosin. New York; White Pine Press, 1998. 171-90.
The groundbreaking Demoiselles d’Avignon was controversial not only for the way the women looked but also for the positions of the women. Although Picasso did not emphasize on detail, he “saw that the rational, often geometric breakdown if the human head and body employed by so many African artists could provide him with the starting point for his own re-appraisal of his subjects”(Cubism 53). “The naked women become inextricably bound up in a flux of shapes or planes which tip backwards and forwards from the two-dimensional surface to produce much the same sensation as an elaborate sculpture…”(Cubism 54).