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Week 13

This week’s blog post is about chapter 11, the Early Middle Ages. This is the final blog post for this class and I am overall happy with how this class has turned out. At the beginning of the semester, I had no desire to learn about the history of ancient art. I have now learned that the term “middle ages” generally, is referring to the period following the decline of the Roman Empire. Prior to this chapter in the book, I had only heard of this term but never knew what time period it was referring to. Normally at the beginning of every chapter, I look through the chapter to check for paintings, architecture or sculptures that I have some prior knowledge of. I think that it is more interesting if I have heard of the artwork before, then I can compare what I already know to what the book is sharing with me. Most people have a tendency to think the other way, they would rather not read about a topic they are already educated on. I think it is important to see and try to understand what other viewpoints are over a topic before making my own opinion. However, looking through this chapter, I can confidently say that I have never seen or heard of anything in this chapter, other than the term “middle ages.” Of all the things that I have read throughout this chapter, the one that really caught my attention was The Palace Chapel, mainly because of its beauty and the fact that it’s a palace which is always something cool to read about. Charlemagne moved to Aachen and constructed his palace with offices, workshops, and other buildings to go along with it. The Palace Chapel was very important in architecture to Charlemagne and his kingdom. This chapel doubled as Charlemagne’s personal chapel and place of worship for the imperial courts. When Charlemagne moved to Aachen, his vision was to create a “New Rome.” From 936 to 1531, nearly 600 years, the Aachen cathedral was the church of coronation for 30 German kings. Another aspect of this chapter that interested me, was the Anglo-Saxon Metalwork. This section of the chapter talks about a belief they had, that really caught my attention. I have always found these “cultural beliefs” to be very interesting, no matter what the culture is. The book says, “A good example of Anglo-Saxon metalwork is the seventh century cover of a purse, originally containing gold coins…” The point of this section was to teach the reader about how coins and purses were made of gold and became very popular during this time, thanks to these groups of people in Western Europe. However, just because I am very interested in the broader cultural aspect of things, what they said after is what really caught my attention. It is said that these gold purses and coins were discovered in the treasures of a pagan ship burial. A pagan ship burial was when a ship was sent out, with no one on it aside from the deceased. This practice indicated that it was believed that boats carried the souls of the deceased to the afterlife. For myself, this was the most interesting part of the chapter and I am glad both the art, and cultural beliefs were found among the wreckage.

The website I used was:

http://legalhistorysources.com/ChurchHistory220/LectureTwo/PalaceChapelHistory.htm

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chapter 10 week 12

Hello fellow readers and thank you for joining me on my blog today, I have now moved on to the next chapter in the art book for my art class and if you are following along you will notice and also probably already know without me having to say that we are already on chapter ten for this week’s blog. In this week’s blog I will be doing what I normally do with every single other blog when it comes to posting it will of course be the usual summarizing of the passage, chapter of the book and then adding along with that my insights and thoughts regarding the chapter and of course adding any new thoughts that pop up while reading the chapters, I also as you guys might already know really like to relate my own personal experiences along with the truth about today’s society back to the original context of the current chapter that I am reading. By doing this, this helps me grasp a better understanding of what was happening back then, in that specific time frame, depending on what the chapter is since they are all different for the most part, and also it really helps me understand why things have become the way they have no in this time frame and year. So I hope this summary is really helpful to you the reader as well and hope you enjoy it.

So within the chapter it starts out with talking about Constantine and his relationship with Christianity. He had a very very strong relationship to this new religion Christianity and he wanted it to be known and he was very open about what kind of person it made him be and his outlook on life from this. To me that is what our population today is all about and not only the United States but also everyone around the world, we express who we are and we are not afraid to show it, we let what ever our religion may be we as humans let is determine what our outlook on life is and that is how it should be. What we decide is right and what is wrong and what we believe in is how we view life.

The divergence of east and west by this divergence there began a separation of cultures and how people went about their days. With this to me while reading I began to think about us as humans now we diverge and then go about our business sometimes we fall back to old habits but for the most part a lot of us are strong willed.Early Christian art began as part of a way to express their voices, and their cultures to anyone who wanted to see it. Centrally planned churches were then built for the usual ceremonies and baptisms like we do now at our churches we attend. This information was so lovely in ways that really helped me understand how things really began and how they continued and still continues to go on.

I have fully put all I have into this post and have really tried to help summarize at my best what this chapter, which was chapter ten and what its entirely meaning meant to me. So for the most part it is very safe to say that all of these that I have just listed above such as the centrally planned churches, the facts behind the Early Christian Art, also the facts behind the divergence of the east and west, which really helped with creating the difference in cultures which also helped with creating the difference in art so to speak, not to mention also having the information behind Constantine and Christianity have all really tied in very well to conclusion of this blog. Thank you for your view and hope it was helpful, please also leave any comment or question you may have regarding my post. Thank you and have a very blessed day.

aubreecota-blog

I enjoyed reading the part of this post about how “as humans” we go about our business however we please, but when the end of the day rolls around, we have typically fallen back into our old habits though most of us are strong-willed. I think it is hard to break an old habit, but the first part of it is, realizing that your habit needs to be broken. I found it interesting that this person thought people in our modern times are open about their religion, or more or less confident in talking about it. Maybe it is just because of the area in which I live, but I found this hard to believe. When I think of being confident in one's religion, to me that means openly talking about it and often times bringing it up yourself. In my small area of the world, not many people bring this up in an attempt to avoid an argument.

Week 12

For this blog post, I will be writing about chapter ten, Early Christian and Byzantine Art. One of the first few sentences that I read in this chapter stated the following, “Christianity began as one of many Eastern cults in the Mediterranean world and in Rome itself during the first century after Christ. …Like certain other cults, Christianity offered a promise of eternal salvation for the faithful. But it differed from these cults in two crucial aspects.” I found these few sentences to be very puzzling as I had never before heard Christianity be referred to as a cult. When I think of cult my initial thought is a group of people gathering together to rebel. This leads me to think of groups such as the KKK and the Heavens Gate documentary, definitely not in the direction of Christianity. I have now realized that I had not really thought about where Christianity came from, that maybe I just thought that it originated here in the United States back in the time of the New World. One thing that I have always found to be interesting about all of these chapters, is the attention to little detail and symbolism. Initially, when looking at the image named, Early Christian sarcophagus, I would have simply taken the leaves and trees to be background fillers with no meaning other than the people of this time were very Earthy and utilized their resources. However, in the text, it talks about how the leafy branches of a tree that are spreading out from behind her palms symbolize a reminder that the cross that Jesus was crucified on, was made of wood. This detail to symbolism is apparent throughout all of the chapters and captures most of my attention while reading. Looking at images similar to that of the sarcophagus is my favorite. They are large images, which are easier to see than those that are painted of vases and other similar objects, and there is typically a story to each part of the piece. I love how they are set up to be interpreted differently by each person viewing, and yet the person often times cannot be wrong in what they are thinking could be happening. The topic of symbolism gets brought up again towards the end of the chapter in a different form, “They argued that images of holy figures in human form would lead to idolatry—worship of the image itself rather than what it represented.” Two things about that sentence alone really caught my attention. First of all, it baffles me every time that we know so much about what people from that time were thinking. Second, I believe that this term, idolatry, happens a lot in modern times. I feel that not many people appreciate the symbolism and purpose of ancient art pieces, therefore their value and significance to history has decreased due to lack of knowledge and appreciation. I think that this chapter caught my attention more with the words used than the images of artwork that was implemented.

As I was completing the research portion of this blog, I thought it would be a good idea to research North American art from 1 AD to 500 AD. I believe that other areas of the world would be more interesting after reading that information, but I felt that I was too invested to start over again. Plus, I have the flu so I would like to go to bed decent tonight. As I was researching, I found the burial methods in Point Hope, Alaska. I eventually found one website that held lots of interesting facts, that one would not think about when researching an Eskimo tribe. Thinking about a group of people who live next to the ocean, most people would assume that their diet consisted of fish and occasionally seal. However, we have it backward. I guess that fish and birds were a minor part of their diet, and they are walrus and seal regularly. That seems amazing to me since they are such large animals. This ties into art because these people would use the walrus teeth, which are made of ivory, to create their art pieces as well as use them as gifts to bury with their elders. I find this interested because walrus tusk could have been used for many more useful things, that were necessary to survive, than as a parting gift with their elders.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Ipiutak-culture

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chapter 9 week 11

This week’s blog as we all know in our art class is reviewing what we read in chapter nine which was promptly over architecture and famous buildings and so on. As we mostly probably already know that the Romans are very gifted in building from concrete and making anything they set their minds to. It is very astonishing to me the work they do and the work that they create. The mind sets behind what ever the Romans are possible thinking have to be super strong and not to mention strong willed at that. They invent all different kinds of stuff that we now have read about and seen. To be honest I had no idea that the arches ,domes, and vaults, were part of the Ancient Romans pieces of art work, that part of this reading has really blown my mind and made me not only realize but highly appreciate what the Romans have gone through as far as the time it took to not only think about making these arches, domes , and vaults but putting in the effort into building these domes, arches, and vaults, essentially in a way we should all be thankful for the Romans for their brilliant ideas and fascinations over building things from concrete and being super good at it.

Domestic architecture which are the single and or multiple dwellings built back in the past in Ancient Rome. As the Romans had discovered their potential with the concrete and also with their potential in building architectures they then invented arches and domes and also not to forget the vaults these are illustrated in some of the pages throughout the book on page 127 to be exact so you should stop right here on what you are reading and go check that out right now then come back and continue to read you will not be disappointed in what you see, then when you come back comment on what you think about relating to the arches, domes, and vaults, I want to know. A lot of us readers have heard at one point in time a little something about the incredible Julius Caesar, to be exact Julius Caesar was one of the greatest politician figures in his generation and if you would like to know a little more history behind Julius Caesar then you should go check out page 129 in the art book.

As the public grew amongst the Roman population as did the need for space and not only private space but as well as public space. So with that increase need for public space the Romans came up with two new building promptly known as the forum and the basilica.(page 129). These buildings that were made really reminds me of a Walmart or a target here in the United States it reminds me that people where in need of the same thing so we built a bigger building to help everyone who needs the same thing they get to go to the same building. The chapels here in the United States where you would go for religious reasons is the same thing as the Temples in Rome. These are amzing and fascinating to me to be able to read about similarities amongst two different societies and as well as countries at that. A lot of things have been accomplished by the Romans and have made an everlasting impact on the world as a whole.

This was a very fun read and I hope you all enjoyed it. Please feel free to comment any new thoughts or questions regarding my post, thank you and have a very blessed day!

aubreecota-blog

As I went about reading the chapter, I too got thinking about how crazy it is that we all seem to know what certain things look like or what their purpose is. But we almost never know the history behind its invention or where it came from. I think that this chapter really helped me see just how much more information there is out there. It is almost like a whole new type of learning, the history of the invention of objects and where they came from. Great post!

Week 11

This week I will be writing about chapter nine, ancient Rome. When I think of Ancient Rome, I think of large buildings, statues, majestic sculptures, and arenas. Most of what I know of the Romans was brought to me from my 9 grade U.S. History class. So with that being said, we can assume that my prior knowledge of the Romans is little to none. As I read through this chapter in our book, I am learning more and more about each of those topics that had originally come to my mind, along with many others. I learned that the large Roman buildings originally contained the main hall that one entered into right away from the street, called the atrium. This was later shrunk down in size to be similar to a closet right when you walk in the door. I found it very interesting that the roof sloped inward allowing for an area to open in the roof to collect rainwater and sunlight. This seems like a risky plan for a building, I wonder what they did when a large storm came allowing for lots of water to enter into the building. I also found it interesting that during this time, apartments were popular. These apartments could be up to five stories high and house numerous families who lived separately but shared certain facilities such as the kitchen. The next topic in the book that caught my attention was the Colosseum. I had heard stories about the colosseums and the events that were held there, but I have never known much about the architectural side of things. These colosseums were designed for gladiatorial contests and combats between men and animals, or animals alone. I also read in this section that the Colosseum was intentionally built over a pond with a built-in drainage system. This was so that they could wash away the blood and gore of combat and subterranean passages for animals. Next is the sculpture and statue section. One of the first terms I read was “sarcophagus.” I had previously heard the term, but I had no idea what it was or meant, nor that it came from the Romans. I later found out that the sarcophagus was a stone coffin with inscriptions associated with the Romans. Just as the tombs were a way of keeping the dead alive, portraits had the same intention, keeping the dead alive in memory. I think this a very symbolic method of keeping the memory of those who had died before us, and I am glad this became popular. I could not think of a better way to keep the memory of our loved ones, than a form of sight. It amazes me the techniques that were used to make these portraits so beautiful. The book says that wax death masks were often used to make sure even the most specific physiognomic details were preserved. Can you imagine pouring hot wax over your deceased family member in order to get a marble carving of his or her head? I am glad I had the opportunity to read this chapter!

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chapter 10 week 12

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I found it very interesting that the thought process about being proud of one’s religion was more important back then in comparison to today. I think that indeed, it is common to express who we are and most people are not afraid to do this in today’s society. I also found the viewpoint of humans going about their business and rarely falling back into their old habits because they are strong-willed. I think this is a great aspect to look at when thinking about the people in our area of the world. I really enjoyed reading this post!

While reading this chapter’s information, chapter 8 “The Art of the Etruscans,” I found myself laughing at my attempts of trying to pronounce words rather than reading with ambition. One of the very first things I read on the first page was that the Etruscans coexisted as separate city states with their own ruler, in a way similar to the Greeks. I am not very educated on the history of government in all these historical locations, and I find myself being amazed by the intelligence of these groups of people more and more every day. The author also mentions that they have only been able to decipher a few words from the Etruscans, and these words and names were taken off of religious texts and the head stones on graves. It saddens me to know that the rest of the Etruscan literature has disappeared. This information often pains me as I think of a complicated puzzle that must take lots of intelligence and practice to solve, completely missing from our deep collection of puzzles. The disappearance of parts of a language makes it so much more difficult to create an image as to what life was like back in those times. However, we were lucky enough to recover more information about this group of people from buried tombs and cities of the dead that were not destroyed by the Romans. I hope that researchers and scholars are able to continue processing and learning from these artifacts.

As we have progressed through our texts book, I always enjoy learning about the roles of women in that time and location. In Greece, the women were rarely seen in public and their main job was childbearing. Whereas the Etruscan women were often seen in public with their husbands wearing elaborate clothing and jewelry. Learning about the women then brought me to reading about the bronze mirrors. These mirrors were used only by women and were found to be decorated with mythological scenes. Within the decorations on the back, there were also inscriptions. These inscriptions were thought to say the name of the woman, which also provided insight into whether or not they were literate. One of the images in our text shows that a man is being breast fed by a goddess in front of both males and females. It is thought that these extravagant images were created with the intent of depicting myths. These myths often included women dominating men by being older, more powerful, or women being higher in divine status. I find it very interesting that people of this time period believed it was a crazy thought that a woman might hold a higher position on the social status pole, than some men. It is also fascinating that these were created on the back of mirrors which were only used by women. It was almost like the artist thought of this with the intent of his artwork becoming a dream for women; I think this is similar to creating a female superhero in our time.

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chapter 7 week 8 blog

So this weeks blog is regarding chapter seven and the podcast, for me I really enjoyed this read due to there is so many things regarding to the beauty of things such as art and what is considered “Good” and in the podcast there was a statement that says “what does beauty do” the response to this really blew my mind in a sense because it really put things into perspective the response being “beauty put the emphasis on attractiveness and desire”. After following this response they began to talk about that some art work has such beauty that people can end up developing a desire to be close and affiliate themselves with art pieces such as these, I cannot remember what the word was that they had called it, it was some kind of aphelia and this is where people would actually get to be so attracted to this art piece that some people would actually take it to further extremes to go as far as being intimate with these pieces, and being caught with them. That part really blew my mind because of how I guess I could not really understand how someone would be able to affiliate themselves to a sculpture, or statue in this such intimate ways. In a way that is sort of displeasing to such people passing by and noticing the interaction of a live human being trying to become intimae with such sculptures and statues, the thoughts that some people had to be thinking has me thinking what I would have done if I was the one to have saw this interaction going on myself. I honestly have no idea what I would have done if I saw such things as intimate interactions going on within a person and a sculpture or statue, to be honest I might be not necessarily disgusted but like maybe a little confused but actually really confused I would try to keep my thought to myself but it would definitely be an interesting sight to see. Also in my opinion I was trying to think of if such doings was in a way disrespectful to the art piece or if the artist would be flattered. I could not wrap my head around a good enough answer other than maybe there is just different artists who would react in different ways to it.

After reading through chapter seven and then after listening to the podcast all the way I began to research further and by that I began to dig deeper into my head and try and put together some things that I noticed or found interesting about both the chapter seven and the podcast. Both genuinely intrigued me in the fact that in the podcast and throughout chapter seven they talk about beauty and what is classified as beauty in the different levels of beauty, so it is interesting to me that in the podcast they said there was a book that was titles “survival of the prettiest” which they had also said that it had come from the ways that Greek’s view not only people but their sculptures. This was an interesting read and I hope you guys enjoyed this blog.

aubreecota-blog

I really enjoyed reading this post and found that we had similar thoughts in regards to the comment made about intimacy with statues. I still can’t wrap my head around the idea that someone might attempt to become intimate with a figure carved from stone. Similar to Madeline, I would be confused as to what I was seeing and just try to act as if it did not happen. One might take this as me trying to give them their privacy or me just trying to un-see what I just saw! Either way, I would be leaving the scene at a brisk walk, if not run.

Week 8 Chapter 7

This week’s blog post is about chapter 7: The Art of Ancient Greece as well as a podcast. I personally struggle with reading textbooks about new topics, especially ones that do not exactly grab my attention. Part of the reading for this week, however, did catch my eye. When I think about a culture that I would like to learn more about, one of the first that comes to mind is the Greek era. I think that this society was very complex and detailed, and I believe that their art agreed with me.

Due to my struggle of reading the textbook, I chose to start by listening to the podcast. I am also not the type of person to typically listen to podcasts, but this one was interesting enough to keep my attention for the whole nine minutes and thirty-nine seconds. I already had an interest in the Greek sculptures, and when one of the men in the podcast spoke of their being stories where members of society had a sexual attraction towards some statues, I knew what I was going to write about. I found this bit of information mind-boggling. How crazy would it be to walk into a museum one afternoon and find your next door neighbor trying to be intimate with a large figure made out of carvings from stone blocks? Had I been one of those who came across this sight, I could not tell you what I might do. My first reaction would be to look around to see if anyone else was seeing what I was because I would think my eyes were playing tricks on me!

The part of the reading that really reeled me in was the section on the Greek Theatre. I have never really been a music type of person, but lately, it has been an important part of my life. I can only start to understand the thought that must be brought forth to make a theatre be as effective as possible. The book talks about how the design of this theatre was famous for its acoustics. Acoustics are based on scientific knowledge of how sound travels. Greek theatre grew out of rituals performed in honor of the wine god Dionysos. There was an area in the front and center of the theatre, where an altar dedicated to the god Dionysos. Throughout history before the fifth century B.C., theatres were hollow spaces in the hills. When the fifth century came, wooden benches were incorporated as well as drama with a landscape. I find it interesting that there were slight changes made to the original theme, but yet it was a major step in the history of the arts. Without these alterations made to the theatres in the hills, our theatres today could look completely different. Another reason why this is interesting to me is because I have been to outdoor theatres in areas similar to those talked about in the book, and it just makes the entertainment so much more interesting! I really enjoyed the change in the vibe that was brought from this outdoor theatre and it will be a memory that I will never forget.

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week 6 blog

Throughout chapter five I started learning more about the Ancient Egyptians instead of just mummies and The Great Pyramid of Giza. I learned more not only regarding the mummification, Kings, Gods, the Old Kingdom, the Middle Kingdom, the New Kingdom, the temples, but also the sculptures and also paintings. All of this information is very interesting and very captivating and has me very excited to write about it.

During this chapter you have read about all of the above points listed and have got some sort of understanding easy enough for you to remember them. They all have very fascinating background information as far as who built them, when were they built, what they are made from, how long it took to make them, and how many people were involved with them, and most importantly the meaning behind them.

All of this really truly amazes me when reading through this chapter because when I look at all of these sculptures or the tombs all I can think about is how long it truly took someone to make those, the amount of talent and artistry that someone has that can produce such beautiful artwork that can last for years on end. If you can take a step back and just look through chapter five and not saying to sit down and reread the whole chapter but just seriously sit down and admire the work that they have accomplished it is truly remarkable and astonishes me to be able to think about how after all this time the pyramids and all that the Egyptian’s have created has lasted for so long and for all of those people who had sat down and taken the time out of their day to make all these sculptures is remarkable.

So just to give you guys a little more insight about the history of the Ancient Egyptians because after the chapter five reading I had started looking up a little bit more into detail the information I was interested in and really wanted to learn more about and I hope you guys enjoy it too. I will not state everything that I had listed above into further detail but I will just tell you about The Great Egyptian Pyramids, they are what really caught my eye do the how marvelous they are in my eyes, they amaze me and I hope you guys also find this information more interesting just like I did. The Egyptians had built the pyramids based on how good, and the values of their ruling Pharaoh were so that is why you have the “Great Pyramids” because they had made that out of respect of their current Pharaoh at the time. I found this information very interesting and I really enjoyed this opinion.

I have had so much fun reading this chapter and being able to reflect my opinions out to you guys to read has been interesting and fun at the same time. It is very amusing to me how a lot of these sculptures, pyramids, tombs, ect… from way back in the BC era is still being studied and fascinated over hundreds of thousands of years later.

here is a link to where I had received my information from regarding the additional research.

http://www.touregypt.net/featurestories/sphinx4.htm

aubreecota-blog

This was a great post! I loved reading your post and seeing how your views were different than mine. I always love seeing the different things that interest other people and comparing them to my own interests and views. I also found myself looking at images of pyramids in awe and stunned at the amount of detail and configuration that went into the creation of these magnificent structures. I did not know that the pyramids were built in scale to the pharaoh's ability to rule. This information was new and very interesting to me!

Week 6: Ancient Egypt

Throughout chapter five’s reading, I learned about the true meaning behind the creation of pyramids, along with the religion that goes with it. This by far was the most intriguing part to me. I had always wondered how they came up with this idea, and how they made it work. I found it very interesting that the pyramid could have been created with the burial chamber underground as I always thought that the body was kept in the base of the pyramid, more commonly known as the mastaba base. The shaft leading to the burial chamber was built 90 feet long, leading to an underground room where the body was kept. I believe that the people from this area and time period were extremely intelligent. They created these beautiful structures with great detail both in looks and in symbolism. The four corners are pointed in the cardinal directions. A gilded capstone reflected the sun signifying the pharaoh’s divinity and identification with the sun. The three most famous pyramids were created for three kingdom pharaohs: Khufu, his son Khafre, and Khafre’s son Menkaure. These three pyramids were on the west bank of the Nile, facing the direction of the sunset as a symbol of death. I also found it slightly odd that there were additional rooms built into the temple, possibly for the queen and organs of the deceased. I am curious to know why they happened to have these organs on hand, it is my assumption they are thought to be “better” organs for the king in the afterlife. Another thing that makes me think that the Egyptians were very smart is that they created a maze within the pyramid in an attempt to confuse grave robbers out of stealing the gifts meant for the king in his afterlife. Though they went through a short period where this was unsuccessful, they learned from their mistakes and it was later very useful.

Though for the most part, I wrote about the pyramids, I found this whole chapter to be very interesting! The process of mummification was also intriguing; I did not know it was a seventy-two-day process! I would love to learn more about how the Egyptians came up with the method of mummification and how they came to find that sodium carbonate and sodium bicarbonate would dehydrate the body and dissolve fats. Another section of this chapter that I found to be interesting was the tomb of Tutankhamon. I did some more research on King Tutankhamon and I found out that he died at the age of 18 from what scientist believe could have been gangrene infection in his leg. Due to his death at an early age, scientists believe that his burial was a hasty one considering he was buried in a smaller tomb most likely built for a lesser noble. For centuries after his death, King Tutankhamon remained virtually unknown. The location of his tomb was lost; its entrance had been covered by the debris from a tomb that had been built sometime later. I thought it was very cool that the story of Tutankhamon’s funeral and his journey to the afterworld was painted as a mural on the walls of one of the chambers. Someday in the future, I hope to take a trip out to see these incredible structures for myself!

This is the website I used to do my research

https://www.biography.com/people/king-tut-9512446

Week 4

As I was reading about the Neolithic Era, I found myself returning back to my thoughts about the first paragraph, in regards to the general location where the invention of writing occurred. I realized that I did not have the slightest idea about how sophisticated writing was originally created, but I did not think that communication in the form of writing went from pictures to words, then to honorable literature and epic poetry. In my mind, there should be a large gap between the first humans and historic poets. A gap that was not in any interest of mine to be filled with knowledge and answers. I had just assumed that when writing came along, humans were still producing incomplete and illiterate sentences out loud, but thinking back I realize that I had never really given much thought as to what that gap could be filled with. I now know that I stand incorrect, in reality, communities of this time had blueprints of what their cities were to be. These communities had structured plans on how to build their cities to be the strongest, safest, and most efficient that they thought was possible at that time in history. In the past I did not give them enough credit as they made their mark on the world in more ways than one, they were the start of many innovations that we still use and branch off of today. After reading the section on Mesopotamia, I also realized that these groups of people were far more intelligent than I assumed after reading about the Neolithic Era. The Mesopotamians experimented to find ways to make their land fertile and they built incredible temples which still stand today. Not only did they build them, they also added in religion and other beliefs to these incredible structures, which had been passed on from generation to generation. Religion played a huge role in the lives of everyone at this point in time. Every activity or task that was completed had to have some involvement with religion and their belief system. They believed mountains held the powers of nature, at this time they knew that mountains gave them water and thought this was a gift from the gods. Because of this, Mesopotamians would build imitation mountains, also known as ziggurats, for the god. For me, the most interesting sections were “Cylinder Seals,” and “From Pictures to Words.” These were the most interesting because they illustrated how written communication was kept, and they touched base on what the illustrations meant. These sections also briefly informed us how these scripts have helped archeologists understand and decipher the language of that period in history. It stuns me that we have found so many artifacts that were preserved to near perfection from this time, and they have been able to tell us so much about our own history. I found this chapter to be helpful in understanding how art and writing came to be, where it came from and to also fill knowledge gaps that I did not know existed in my mind.

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week 4 blog

This week’s post is about chapter four “The Ancient Near East” where it states the first forms of writing, in the different agriculture sites along with different art pieces that tag along with the creation of the first forms of writing and the progress towards civilization. To get a better understanding of the reading afterwards I had decided to search up a summary of the chapter to make sure I was understanding it correctly and being capable to comprehend what I needed to in order to make this week’s blog. I had found a summary that pretty much thought a lot like I did so I will be making sure to reference this website as my blog goes on.

So to start this blog off I will be explaining the chapter in a way that I hope is most helpful to you guys reading it. As the chapter goes on I have comprehend that this was the era that the beginning of the very first “true” civilization was developed in the Neolithic era, with the Neolithic communities of the near and Far East. By growing into social complex cities this is where the invention of writing had allowed for the growth of knowledge as well among this very city. The foundation of cuneiform writing was developed in the Mesopotamian region. This Mesopotamian region was based upon region, this is where the culture of work and nature really took place and meant something to the village. (Cengage Leanring)

I have really enjoyed reading this chapter and getting a better understanding of how the creation of writing truly began and how the creation of the first civilizations occurred and how that also played a huge important role in the emergence of writing. For me when I was reading the chapter before this chapter I was thinking that when I was doing my research about cave paintings that the stone age people which had created those cave paintings and had used the multiple different signs, symbols, lines and dots, that those were kind of the “first” forms of writing. All of this is very interesting to me and after reading all about the actual ways of life was started it makes me appreciate a lot more about what we have now versus what life was like without all of these things we have now. All of this stuff that is possible and known now is all because of the events and moments from back in the day.

Do to this emergence of the the Mesopotamian civilization among them rose plenty more just like them such as the Egyptian civilization, which rose from the Nile Valley whose foundation was the Old Kingdom.(Cengage Learning) These traditions from the earliest civilizations had been passed down to the societies further down the road and eventually gave us what we have now. Near Eastern civilizations shared their myth-making world views which had helped many others then and now understand the universe and their societies. These civilizations had made many long lasting effects on this world and myths that will forever be in this universe’s history.

aubreecota-blog

Madeline, your post has given me a stronger sense of understanding of this chapter. I did not think about the concept that these advances are what makes a civilization. Without these advanced forms of communication, civilizations would have been in chaos and possibly self-destructed after some time. I also had not thought of looking up a chapter summary to help me understand some parts of the chapter, that was a great idea and I might have to use that in the near future! Great post!

lillianjackson29-blog

Chapter 3- Venus Figurines

Chapter 3 discussed prehistoric Europe and famous artwork pieces that date back 1800 b.c. It discussed cave paintings, monoliths, and Venus figurines. I am going to write specifically about the Venus figurines. I did not know what these were before reading this week’s chapter. A Venus sculpture or figurine is a very exaggerated and over the top version of the female body. Often having huge stomachs, legs, breasts, and hips. They tend to not have a lot of detail and extra features in the rest of the body such as arms and head area. They are most commonly made from mammoth tusk but there has been discoveries of limestone as well. There has been more than 200 of these Venus figurines discovered to present day. There are many theories about the Venus figures and many of these theories have to do with reproduction and sexuality but also religion. They say because the reproductive parts of these figurines are so over the top and exaggerated that they were made to be associated with sexuality and reproduction. Some even believe that these were worn as accessories, a necklace, and often used in religion, such as rituals. As I said before, theories say that these were used for religions rituals and in religion. I think this is most definitely a possibility because these dolls or figures are so extremely over the top. Something about the female body or females in general is clearly a very important aspect with these figurines. People can continue to make up theories and stories behind why these figurines ever came into existence in the first place. For all we know, this could have just been a popular art form during this BC era. We can never truly know the meaning or use of these Venus figurines but I am sure people will keep coming up with things based on the evidence they can find from the dolls and the time period in which they were created. People create art because of the happiness it brings them and you have the freedom to take art in any direction you’d prefer. That is why I believe these Venus figurines could have little to no meaning and we are thinking to hard for theories and explanations, but this is something we will never know or be able to find out. I think that is what makes this chapter and these ancient prehistoric pieces of art so interesting. You get the choice to believe the reasons and theories others have come up with and put together first, or you can create your own.

aubreecota-blog

Lillian, I also did not know what the Venus figurines were before reading this chapter. I had honestly never heard of the Venus figurines. I had never thought about a piece of art from this time period being related to the body of a woman. When I think of the stone age and the art that comes with it, my mind dwells momentarily on sculpted figures but never on what the figures were. I enjoyed that you talked about the truth being, that these are merely speculations and that we will never know or find out the truth! Great post!

Week 3

The topic I chose to research is cave paintings. Cave paintings are typically found deep within caves and underground, in areas that are hard to reach. In most occurrences, these areas are uninhabitable as well. These paintings were believed to be so well preserved due to the fact that they were, for the most part, found in limestone caves which had been sealed up for thousands of years and protected from the harsh outside atmosphere. The first painted cave from the stone age was located in Spain. Most examples of cave art have been found in parts of Spain and France, also in England, Portugal, Italy, Rome, Russia, and Germany. Deep cave paintings are rarely found anywhere outside of Europe, but can still be found in the Americas, while art in the open is found in abundance across the world. Most cave art paintings were created with either red or black pigment. The pigment is the basis of color, which is what made the paintings so eye catching. Pigments are colored powders made from plant and animal matter, or inorganic substances such as minerals and semiprecious stones. Red Pigment was made with iron oxides also known as hematite, and the black pigment consisted of manganese dioxide and charcoal. Cave artists would either rub the powder substance directly on damp walls or mix it with liquid to make them adhere to cave walls. The exact meanings of the images on the cave walls remain unknown, though some experts believe that they may have been created within the framework of shamanic beliefs and practices. It was first believed that these locations served as symbolic sanctuaries where important rituals were performed, as well as seasonal changes were recorded. Cave art is most commonly thought to have a symbolic or religious function, sometimes both. My personal thought on the reason as to why cave art was created goes along with the religion and symbolism, and also to send messages to future generations. I think there was most definitely some religious reasons behind its creation as we have paintings of worship and even paintings of the gods themselves. The symbolism also comes into play when thinking about the religion of that time period. Without the symbols that were painted on the cave walls, we would lack an understanding of their language and view on the world. Immediately following that comes with the thought that they wanted to preserve their language for future generations. At the time they did not have the knowledge of what happens to those whom they leave behind, but I cannot imagine they were not worried about their children and grandchildren after they went on to the next life. I believe that this thought was brought up to the leaders of their society and they wanted a way to make sure the children knew how to survive. The way the leaders chose to cease their communities worry was cave paintings. Their communication, experiences, and knowledge were written down in hopes of protecting the future of their kin.

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week 2 blog

After reading chapter two, The Language of Art, and the article “The Pleasure and Meaning of Making”, by Dissanayake I have finally been able to comprehend how I truly feel regarding both of these readings. They both explain and go into further depth about art. Though both are different very readings they both have similar meanings behind them. For instance the chapter two reading holds information regarding the simple things in art like the lines, depth perception, texture, so on and so on, while the article talks about one specific artist creations, and how she maintains her mind while creating art.

I believe that both of these readings are very intriguing, the opinions expressed and the facts backed up made total sense to me. Take for example the chapter two reading expresses the different types of materials so to speak that are used within art. Do not get me wrong I understood that lines, texture, depth perception, space, colors, and so on are all used in the creation of art, but what I did not completely understand before is that the amount of definition and how much each one of these categories truly meant to the creation of art and how it would impact the art in the difference with and without them.

The article “The Pleasure and Meaning of Making” by Dissanayake also taught me some things I did not know and things that I would not have thought about in the world of art. For instance she speaks about how she goes to three places when needing to construct good work. She states how within her work she “goes into the into three good places in order to get insight on who we are and what we need most to live a good life.” She first says she looks into what is known about our species and the evolution of our species, then from there she looks into the insight of the origin as an individual, and lastly she says she “finds it helpful to look how art and life interpenetrate in what are called premodern or traditional societies”. Both of these readings have taught me multiple things that I did not know before.

I agree with Dissanayake and her reasoning behind her article and do not have any challenges regarding herarticle, as art has directly influenced my life as an escape from the real world as kind of a getaway and one of the best stress relievers. Without reading chapter two and the article by Dissanayake my mindset would have been the exact same as before than when I began these readings. Not knowing these things I know now I would keep undermining the importance of the art and as well as the meaning is behind the art. I would not have gone about art the way both of these readings have explained and defined it, as they truly fascinate me in the reasoning they both put behind the readings and how much more sense things mean to me now after reading the chapter and the article.

aubreecota-blog

Madeline, I enjoyed reading your blog post and seeing how these articles can be understood in many different ways. Your post was a perfect example of how art is different to everyone, you understand the symbols and process of the creation of art whereas I understand the art more as a whole.

While reading Dissanayake’s story, I also found it interesting how the evolution of humans plays into art and its creation. Because of her way of interpreting art, I now can see the web of relations dating back to the first species.

Week 2

When I look at art in any form, I look at the content first. In chapter 2, the term content refers to the themes, values, or ideas behind a work of art. I have been to many different types of art galleries and I generally look at what the material is as a whole and try to learn the story that goes with it, before I look at the colors or aspects. There can be many interpretations of art, but only the artist can know the true story behind their masterpiece.

Art, in the form of music, has been a large and important part of my life for the past few years. I have recently found comfort in listening to music, whether it be country or modern pop. I grew up listening to old country songs on the radio when I would help my grandparents on their farm or go riding horses with my family. Country music was always playing in the tractors and old trucks while my grandparents and I would be getting things accomplished around the farm. Till this day, old country songs and artists remind me of the time spent with my family on the farm, and I will always associate those two with each other. Along with that, around three years ago when I first met my boyfriend, he showed me the more modern artists at the time and introduced me to the hip-hop side of things. From this, I learned that music can bring me to a happier place. It can bring back specific memories that are associated with different songs, and it can flood my body with the same emotions I was feeling at the time of the memory. A specific example is music from Florida Georgia Line, the Dig Your Roots album. Any song from this album brings back the memory of my friends and I taking a road trip to Cedar Falls, IA to watch Florida Georgia Line in concert. My friends and I were 16 and 17, taking our first of many road trips to a country concert, in a city pretty far away from home. The feeling of freedom and excitement was coursing through my body at the time, and till this day I still get that feeling thinking about it. We spent the night dancing, singing, and laughing until we could not talk or move our feet anymore. It was a night I will never forget.

After reading “The Pleasure and Meaning of Making,” I agree with Dissanayake in the aspect that art is who we are and who we have always been. I had not thought of art as the pleasure of making, but it clicked when she said: “but the pleasure was in the making more than in what we did with the result.” For me, it was always about the feeling that I had accomplished something, I had made something great. It was never about playing with the object that I had created when I was done, I almost never touched it again after I had finished making it. I also enjoyed reading about Dissanayake’s thought process in regards to how children teach themselves art. They teach themselves rhythm and motor skills, both of which I would never have thought a baby taught him or herself. She then follows this with it is how you are raised, which makes me think that there is the assumption of strong family orientation. Dissanayake claims that children imitate their parents and those who surround them. With this theory, if an adult makes or uses tools, the child will as well. I agree with this part of the theory, but I wonder how the children who do not have strong family and social connections are taught how to fit into society. I know there are more studies out there to scientifically prove these children fall into the same category as the rest, but other than statistically speaking do we really know the answer. As I am writing this statement, I begin to think about the irony of my own question. In my community, I am part of the lesson to those who are being taught to fit into society, whether it be early or at a later point in life. I am part of the larger group that these individuals are watching and mirroring. They could be looking at you or me for advice and tips on how to fit in in our modern day society.

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