Hunter A.

Art History II

[kaleibiehl-arthistory-blog]

Week 10: Chapters 29 & 30

In Chapter 29 and 30, Adams covers new eras of artwork including minimalism, pop art, and abstract. According to Adams on page 518, abstract artwork emerged from a combination of Regionalism, Social Realism, and a large quantity of talented European artists moving to New York (Adams 518). I noticed that a lot of abstract artwork is defined with nameless shapes and seemingly “unfinished work.”  I saw this most clearly in Ablers’s series of paintings called “Homage to the Square.” As described by Adams, Ablers uses texture and medium to create his work, rather than detail and characters (519). Despite the simplicity of his piece, “Study for Homage to the Square,” Albers contrasts lines with different textures in the red square he painted. It should also be noted that his main goal for this project was to investigate light and color perception. As quoted by the artist himself, “Art should not represent, but present” (519). I think Albers speaks for many of the abstract artists of this time with the belief that there artwork was not created to mirror items and describe their thoughts, but rather to explore simplicities and leave details ominous. 

The second painting that caught my eye in this chapter was Willem de Kooning’s “Woman and Bicycle.” Kooning’s painting showed a crazed woman in the midst of rough and violent brushstrokes. Adams described the painting as, “an attack on the idealized Classical image of female beauty,” and comments that the woman’s body is massive and overtaking before it melts into uninformed brushstrokes (525). I think Adams is trying to tell readers that the artwork not only provokes viewers through it’s physical appearance, but it also dismantles the idealized woman in previous techniques seen in the Renaissance period. I like this piece because of it’s demand to be looked at, and it’s ability to normalize imperfection. It left a vague disturbance and interested from the expression of the woman depicted. To me, this painting has so much character and emotion that it draws the viewer to it even if it is frightening.

Moving in to the late 1950s and 60s, many artists began to reject abstract artwork using real objects and items found in everyday life. I found this interesting because of how quickly the techniques changed from drastic downplay to American objects. My favorite Pop-Art piece was created by Wayne Thiebaud entitled, “Thirteen Books.” In this oil on panel painting, Thiebaud painted a stack thirteen colorful books with blurred title names. I liked this painting because the meaning behind it was really interesting, and I would not have noticed it at first glance. According to Adams, the books are closed and blurred because they are meant to suggest “hidden, secret content.” She also describes the books as floating on a white plane, and his use of shadow to create sources of light and absorption (Adams 539). At first glance, the books look inviting due to their colors, but I can now also see the mystery incorporated into the painting and it connects me to the feeling of reading a book. I really enjoy reading, and I think Thiebaud captured how reading can be an adventure for anyone, but one must first open the book or it will forever hold it’s mysteries. 

[avenariush-blog]

It looks like, while we wrote about the same topics, we chose different pieces to go in depth about. I enjoy reading about the pieces that I did not pick, and still seeing similar views. I too also felt like I was looking at “unfinished work” with some pieces, however, that is just how that piece was supposed to be. I just relay the “this piece may look simple but it takes a lot of skill” thought through my head when I view abstract art.

[avenariush-blog]

Week 10 Blog

Reading this book is like riding a roller coaster. Sometimes you hit two chapters you like, two chapters you don’t like, and one of each. For me, the continuing theme of boredom comes with the abstract art chapters. With chapter 29, that boredom is back again! However, in 30, we get to go behind the scenes and look at some pop art as well as conceptual art to even the tide. In this blog, I will analyze main points from chapters 29 and 30 of the textbook, while relating them to the experiences of my own life.

When I look at The Gate by Hans Hofmann (p. 518), I see what I describe as “nothingness”, in a negative tone. It is an oil on canvas painting that primarily is made of rectangular painted boxes in green, blue, grey, white, yellow, and red. Before last week and watching the “I Could Do That” video, I would say, I could do that! However, after watching, I see something more than nothing. I see skill as it takes a high skill level to paint straight edges with oil on canvas, I also see Cubism in this as well with the rectangles. It’s still not my favorite, but I can at least appreciate it.

When it comes to abstract art, I actually liked looking and learning about the drip technique that Jackson Pollock used on page 521. This is a relatively new technique as he used it in 1947 and he also was innovative as he, “…engaged his whole body in the act of painting.” This means simply that he, “…controlled the placement of the drips and splatters through the motion of his arm and body.” It looks as you might imagine, like someone took a paint brush and flicked it a ton on a blank sheet of paper. Look at the photograph on page 521 of Jackson Pollock to see what I mean! I also enjoyed Tahkt-i-Sulayman I by Frank Stella (p. 528) as it was a polymer and fluorescent paint on canvas piece which was bright and vibrant in color. It looked like a bunch of protractors in different shapes lined up differently. It reminded me club colors in Miami, bright yellow, green, blue, orange, pink, and red, also like some of the Miami Heat throwback jerseys. For that, I liked it.

Gliding into something newer, we have pop art in chapter 30. Pop art is simply art that becomes popular with the public due to its recognizable image. The biggest example of this that I found happened to be the Campbell’s Soup (Tomato) can from 1968 by Andy Warhol. The design of the label is so basic as the top half is red and the bottom half is white, with inverse colored text on each side reading “Campbell’s condensed tomato soup.” However, that simplicity is what makes it recognizable and able to stick around for over 50 years. When someone tells you to grab the Campbell’s soup, your mind probably knows exactly what it is looking for (because of the simplicity). Brilliant idea for marketing (business major).

The last piece that I enjoyed was Untitled by Dan Flavin. It was a pink, yellow, blue, and green fluorescent light square across a corner (p. 544). The corner behind the checkerboard look-alike fluorescent lights, reminded me of the MGM Grand casino and hotel in Las Vegas. I often see the aerial snapshot of the MGM Grand as I watch UFC events or boxing matches and this image reminded me of the corner shaped building of the MGM grand at night, as the corner was bright in color and it faded out towards the edge. Compare the image to the MGM to see what I mean!

Overall, I would say that I was able to enjoy this art more because of that video last week. I also was able to make connections to stuff from my own life in these minimalist or abstract pieces to further enjoy them.

[elyseck-blog]

Chapters 27 & 28

After reading through chapters 27 & 28, cubism really stood out to me. I really enjoyed reading about the difference between synthetic and analytical cubism. Synthetic cubism involved artists incorporating texture, pattern, and various techniques into their paintings and work. Art is all about combinations of new and old, recreating one piece to make it different from the old. The cubism aspect reminds me of taking multiple styles such as: painting, plain paper, designed paper, etc. and creating something out of a number of things. The variations of cubism are different. I understood it as, synthetic is a mere combination of formats, where as analytical cubism is more the same object or subject but analyzing it from different angles, sides, etc. Overall, the cubism style really interests me as it is a combination of multiple styles and forms put together to create one piece. 

In addition to the chapters, I also enjoyed the video. The ‘I Could Do It” video was very informative. I know personally I’ve looked at work and thought that it was easy to do, or quite simple. However, people fail to realize that there is so much more to art than simple lines and shapes. While it may look easy, it more often than not really is not easy. Artists start and restart work more often then we truly realize. There is so much precision and detail that make a work of art fascinating. As mentioned, it’s also important to think about the reasoning behind works of art. They didn’t just wake up one day and start painting. Instead, there is often a strong reasoning behind why they chose to do what they did. The chapters and video were interesting to read and watch. 

[avenariush-blog]

I agree with you, before watching the video, I could not tell how some of the abstract art was so highly touted. After watching, I learned that some of those perfectly straight lines on oil on caves paintings (etc.), are super hard to make that straight because of the oil and canvas combination. Without watching something like that, I would not have the same appreciation for it.

[avenariush-blog]

Week 9 Blog

Driving to Wisconsin Dells, at least once per year, there’s a stretch of land for a couple of miles in which are houses made by Frank Floyd Wright. The most notable probably being the House on the Rock. His style is very distinct as the houses are boxy and often include a red exterior. I was very surprised to see that these houses were made in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s. I was also very surprised to see his name mentioned in these chapters! In this blog, I will analyze main points from chapters 27 and 28 of the textbook and the "I Could Do That" video, while relating them to the experiences of my own life.

Earlier this semester, we talked about Afrofuturism, which by default, is a subset of Futurism. It’s interesting to see that Futurism, a form of art in which combines the machinery age with industrial ideas, was made in the early 1900’s in Italy (p. 487). The first cast project of Futurism was Unique Forms of Continuity by Umberto Boccioni in 1913. This piece was a bronze cast of a man walking forward. However, this man’s anatomy was not that of a human, but some sort of robot or cyborg. The legs looked very similar to flare pants at the bottom and part of the head looked like the corner of an engine block. You could make out that it was a robotic-human model, painted in a gold tone. This is a very identifiable piece of art for the Futurism genre, taking very little knowledge of art to put a genre to it.

Next, my favorite part of the chapter, which is architecture with Frank Lloyd Wright. I enjoy his work because I can see it multiple times a year as it is just right over in Wisconsin, and I marble at how he was so ahead of his times with most of his work being done in the early 1900’s, but yet still so distinct and almost modern over a hundred years later. It’s interesting to note that Frank got a good architectural foundation from Louis Sullivan, the famous architect who developed the skyscraper (p. 494). Varying far from a skyscraper, Wright took what he new and developed the Prairie Style. This style included Wright taking architecture and fusing it with the natural landscape of wherever he was. He usually used rectangular shapes, asymmetrical arranged horizontal planes (p. 494), red exterior at parts, and of course, the fusing of nature into his pieces as seen with Fallingwater and House on the Rock in Wisconsin! Frank truly was an organic architect with the way he developed his pieces.

Shifting into chapter 28, we have another personal favorite of mine, Salvador Dali. I first learned about him in Spanish class as we studied culture, and of course, you can’t study culture without art! Dali was a Surrealism artist. I believe that I have mentioned him in a previous blog! His most famous piece of art arguably is The Persistence of Memory. This piece portrays a series of objects in a partly desert landscape that are melting, such as a clock melting over a tree limb. A dead fish, a pile of ants swarming over an orange item. This sort of art perfectly portrays irrational thoughts that artists are having at the time, which is what Surrealism is. Shout out to Grant Wood also making it into chapter 28, another artist that I mentioned in a previous blog (his work is also on display at the Dubuque Art Museum)!

Heading into my least favorite art, we have American Abstraction. This collection of art is essentially modern art which may relate to the social times or political times of the artist. Georgia O’Keeffe, an abstraction artist, made a piece called Black and White. It is a piece with an arrowhead like shape peaking out of the image on the left side in white, while the rest of the image is in black and grey. On the surface, one might think, wow, what is so special, I could make that myself. That’s where the “I Could Do That” video comes in. This piece was oil on canvas, and if you watched the video, you would know that making extremely straight edges with oil on canvas is extremely difficult (such as the arrowhead). So, after all, this piece is much more of an artist’s piece. What I am saying is that if you are an artist, you can appreciate this piece more because you know skill level it takes to produce a piece of this expertise, versus the knowledge of the general public who may not understand. I finally understand this “simplistic art form”, which I guess may not be so simple after all, but more of an artist expertise genre.

[codybertram-blog1]

Week 8, Ch 25 & 26

For this week’s assignment we first covered the Post-Impressionism of the Late Nineteenth Century. For this era a very important theme that stands out was the use of bright vivid colors. Along with the importance of bright colors was the use of a defined edge. The second section we covered was the Early Twentieth Century. Like the Late Nineteenth Century, the Early Twentieth Century was big on bright vivid colors. What makes this era unique though is the advancements in technology and how artists in the future would use these new developments such as plastics.

For the Post-Impressionism era what I found interesting was how Georges Seurat was just a little different but this slight difference in his style made him so unique. Like other artists of this era, bright colors were used in Seurat’s paintings. What made his work so unique though was that instead of using a typical brush strokes, he used dots to form shapes. Seurat called this technique divisionism and this technique is what makes him stand out as an impressive artist in my mind.

The reason this catches my eye so much is because to me there is something beautiful about being different in one’s field of work that separates the good from the great. This can be said about almost anything in my mind to include works of sports, medicine, food, cars, and more. For example, changing one small technique in a sport can allow a good athlete to become a great athlete and adding one small ingredient to a meal can make it become a great tasting meal compared to just an average one. This in my mind is what Seurat was accomplishing in his art work. He was becoming better at his trade by being different and unique.

For the Early Twentieth Century the group of Blue Rider artists was really interesting. For example, Vassily Kandinsky was a member of this group and what made him unique was that he eliminated all recognizable objects from his works of art. For him, art was strictly a matter of rhythmic lines, shapes, and colors. At first when I read this I thought that without recognizable objects these paintings would be disorganized and not something nice to look at. However, his works of art are actually very captivating and in a way relaxing. For instance, his workSeveral Circles, No. 323is a painting of just circles, but the way he uses his colors for each circle and the size comparison and placement of each circle makes me just gaze at it and relax. To have the ability to do this is remarkable considering there are no recognizable objects. This just shows how much knowledge Kandinsky had about the use lines, colors, and shapes.

In conclusion, both sections of this week’s assignment were big on the use of bright colors. A major take away from both sections is how to be unique and perfect your area of work. Seurat was a great artist and was unique because he used dots to form shapes. Then Kandinsky was unique because his work was captivating even without the use of recognizable objects. From this future artist can learn that being unique can be key into succeeding their own unique style of art.

[avenariush-blog]

Kandinsky definitely made art in his own way. The works he made were almost too unrecognizable for me. I enjoyed his and the Blue Riders’ works the least out of almost any work that we looked at. It was a little too overwhelming in color and underwhelming in content for me. Definitely looking to progress into more modern times to see different works. I wonder how modern we will get! Glad to see someone with a differing opinion on Kandinsky.

[avenariush-blog]

Week 8 Blog

The artist that I know the most about is Vincent van Gogh because of my elementary school art teacher. The Starry Night and van Gogh’s ear always were points of emphasis anytime we started and made new projects. Moving into the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century, we will encounter more of the art that often is known today as well as my favorite art from van Gogh. In this blog, I will analyze main points from chapters 25 and 26 of the textbook while relating them to the experiences of my own life.

Vincent van Gogh as I said is my favorite artist for a couple of reasons. Vincent comes across as extremely peculiar for a multitude of reasons. The first reason is because van Gogh only dedicated the last ten years of his life to painting (p. 457). Given that Vincent only lived for 37 years from 1853-1890, that means he spent roughly only a fourth of his life painting. However, in that short amount of time, the accomplishments of van Gogh would live forever. The Starry Night, which is known to be van Gogh’s most touted work, was an Impression painting, oil on canvas. The strokes of the wind through the air blowing across the night sky over a Dutch village are so distinct as well as vibrant for the dark hue of the painting. What strikes me as amazing is that this painting was done in a mental asylum and is said to reflect a disturbed mind. While I can see where people might get the disturbed mind feeling from the dark hue of the painting, I do not think that is how it is perceived today. I think it is just admired for the image’s creativity.

The second work of art that was shown in my elementary school teacher’s classroom was The Scream. I remember it very distinctly as it sat on the right side of the chalkboard in his room. I also tend to remember this because I wore a scream mask for Halloween for like two years in a row as a kid. However, even though I know the painting, I couldn’t remember the artist, Edvard Munch. In contrast to van Gogh, Munch lived for a much longer period, from 1863-1944. In comparison to van Gogh, Munch was said to suffer from mental issues (p. 464). Munch was more of a Symbolist (works often suggest states of mind and ideas), the most notable Symbolist work being The Scream, as I mentioned earlier. This painting is very interesting as it is seemed to be painted in waves and curves. The figure which is doing the “screaming” has its hands covering its ears. The hands are curved around the head and blending along with the pieces terrain which are curved as well. This piece is meant to describe a scream of colors and nature, as Munch felt for inspiration for this piece. I believe this painting could also express a disconnect from society as the character is blocking out the “noise.”

Moving onto the early twentieth century, we have Expressionism and artists such as Franz Marc and Vassily Kandinsky, who were a part of the German Expressionist group, The Blue Rider (p. 472/473). Off the bat, I am going to be honest, I find this genre of art to be similar to looking at a world of nothingness. The bright exhibition of blue, green, orange, and yellow lull me to sleep along with the often-long shapes used in these works. One of these works that tend to lull me to sleep is The Large Blue Horses by Franz Marc. This painting is said to represent red dogs, pink skies, and blue horses. However, the only thing that I can make out from the oil on canvas painting is a few blue horses. I was actually able to make out more from Marc’s other corresponding painting, Small Yellow Horses, which is essentially a template of the horses used in The Large Blue Horses, painted yellow and placed on another piece of canvas, with a different background.

Overall, I was mostly impressed by chapter 25 with the works of van Gogh and Munch. Their works resembled each other with the Impressionist styles. It was also interesting to see that these artists went through mental suffering and still produced legendary works. As for chapter 26, I will hold my silence (or you can just read the second to last paragraph).

[ellaosterkamp-blog]

Week 7, Ch 23 &24

I find it appropriate that realism is the topic of focus when reading about the nineteenth century because that is a time where people are beginning to point out the realities of life instead of the luxuries. This is a time where artists are connecting people and art with nature and incorporating real life experiences into their own artwork. 

 Gustave Courbet was an artist that stood out to me when reading chapter twenty-three of A History of Western Art because he believed that realism was created best by those who made art based off their own experiences. I connected to this because my personal favorite art to create comes from my own experiences in traveling. In my free time, I enjoy painting things in relation to the ocean. Some of my most enjoyable memories come from spending time by the sea, which inspires me to paint portraits of beach scenery and creatures of the ocean. I connect with these moments so much that all the tattoos I have thus far are of ocean theme. I agree with Courbet when he says that the realest and most authentic artworks in realism come from those who have experienced it themselves (page 418).  

Honore Daumier’s, Louis Philippe as Gargantua, was a great example of the mockery of artists to political figures in the nineteenth century. This print of the prince carelessly eating all the people in poverty’s goods showed what was happening in political society and how it was affecting people. Although this was an exaggeration, Daumier was sent to jail for this print and a new law was proposed so that no illustrations were allowed in the press, only words instead. I like this story because it shows the power of corrupt politicians and how artists were standing up for civilians with no voice even though there would be consequences in the end.  

Chapter twenty-three also discusses the development of photography. When noticing some of the first stages of photography, it is so cool to see the monumental improvement to where we are today with capturing photos. Photography is something I have grown to enjoy as a personal hobby, and I almost always take my DSLR camera wherever I go. I am grateful for the development of photography and appreciate the process and knowledge it took to get to where cameras are today.  

In chapter twenty-four, it states that unlike realism in the 19th century, impressionism rarely gave a focus to political views. This is interesting in the fact that based off different styles of artwork, the artists seemed to have very different standpoints. Before reading chapter 24, I felt I could relate to realism artists more, but afterwards I have noticed that impressionism art focused on the effects of light in nature and weather occurrences, which is what I prefer as a better viewpoint myself.  

Claude Monet’s, Bassin des Nympheas, stood out to me on page 440 because it has so much detail in every brushstroke. The way the vibrant colors reflect a deep green onto the water to show the stillness of the water is not only clever, but visually appealing as well. I like that this painting was inspired by his own water garden, similar to how Gustave Courbet used his own experiences to create realism artwork in chapter 23.  

Chapters 23 and 24 discussed realism and impressionism in the nineteenth century and how the development of art and photography in real world situations were affective in the portrayal of politicians versus society. Nature and lighting were also a major part in the creation of realism and impressionism artworks.  

*All references to artwork and artists come from chapters 23 and 24 of Laurie Schneider Adams, A History of Western Art, 5th edition.  

[avenariush-blog]

Interesting to see that someone besides my aunt takes their DSLR with them wherever they go! Crazy to see how far photography has come in only about 200 years. I wonder how long President Lincoln had to stand still for Brady to get all his takes in back in the day! I also liked Monet’s works because of the way he depicted light in his paintings, as you mentioned, with the sun over the water. Very creative and almost a Realism theme even though it was Impressionism!

[avenariush-blog]

Week 7 Blog

Just less than seven weeks ago, we started off in the 13th century, and now we’re already exploring 20th century art with Realism and Impressionism. I must say, personally, these works are more up my alley as I tend to experience recency bias. Of course, before I get started, it is important to note that the industrial revolution has kicked off and that technology is starting to increase at a rapid pace. In this blog, I will analyze main points from chapters 23 and 24 of the textbook while relating them to the experiences of my own life.

Starting with Realism, in France, we have Rosa Bonheur whom used Realism with a touch of romanticism (which we talked about last week) in her work, The Horse Fair. This painting, which is oil on canvas, has some of the most real-life anatomy of animals and humans to the date of 1853. This painting portrays “… the struggle between humanity and untamed forces of nature (416).” Horses in this painting, of all different colors, are rumbling down a dirt path, some bucking in the air, and humans are trying to contain them by grabbing their headgear. The detail of the sky being dark, and the muscles of the horses being flexed as they are exerting massive amounts of energy is so realistic, much like nothing that we’ve seen before up to this point.

Traveling across the North Atlantic Ocean, we have examples of Realism in America with Mathew Brady. Brady is a very interesting character as he is known to have taken more than a third of the 100 known photographs of President Lincoln. One of the most notable photos of Lincoln that Brady took was “Cooper Union.” This photo was taken in 1860, with Lincoln standing straight-up, wearing a trench jacket, with a straight face. Lincoln’s left hand is firmly set on a pile of books, which is said to have given the photo a touch of Lincoln’s intellectual side as well as his serious side with his straight face (thus making this Realism). It is important to note that Realism in this time seems to be a world-trending phenomenon, even in forms of architecture with the Brooklyn Bridge and Eiffel Tower.

Shifting into Impressionism, in France again, we have Claude Monet, who, “…embodied the technical principles of Impressionism” more than any other artist at the time (439). The perfect piece to describe Impressionism is Monet’s Impression: Sunrise. This piece is oil on canvas, which depicts a boat on a body of water surrounded by trees during a sunrise. It has the famous silhouette of the sun onto the water, as well as the trees. One thing different about this piece is that the strokes are thicker than most impression pieces such as Monet’s Terrace at Sainte-Adresse, which is also an oil on canvas, impression. This piece looks almost like a low-resolution photograph, with its very thin strokes.

Heading back to America again, we also see Impressionism. John Singer Sargent, whom happened to live in Paris in the early 1880’s (448), had several great American renditions of Impressionism. One of the most popular, Breezing Up. This oil on canvas painting portrays an older man and three young men in the ocean on a boat, with the boat riding on its side nearly, and a flare of sun on the left side of the painting. Everyone in the photo is calm, and thin strokes appear to be used. Following the trend of many Impression paintings.

Overall, we see some trends with Realism and Impressionism. Both seem to start in France and creep over to America. Both also seem to be applied on oil on canvas paintings. Lastly, most can apply to almost any real-life depiction of humanity. I am very surprised by how far the anatomy and proportions of anatomy has come along with things such as the planes used in paintings, and the linear-perspective. This art seems to build on itself, using themes of the past, to build and become more REAL.

[codybertram-blog1]

Week 5 Baroque/Rococo

For this week’s assignment we covered two sections, the Baroque Style in Western Europe and Rococo movements in art. These art styles are very different as Baroque is a style that shows a lot of seriousness and action in the works of art while Rococo is a more relaxed style of art and does not show the same amount of seriousness. However, even though the styles are very different, some scholars still believe that Rococo was a refinement of the Baroque style.

It was very interesting learning about the Baroque art style in Western Europe because it was very easy to see the seriousness taking place in multiple works of art. For instance, Gianlorenzo Bernini’s sculpture of Davidis very captivating. When looking at this work of art just looking at the facial expression one can see how serious of a situating David is in. Just his face shows focus, determination, and will. I personally like this style of David more compared to say Donatello’s Davidbecause it was a very serious situation. Another good example of the Baroque style is Jacob van Ruisdael’s Extensive Landscape with Ruins. I like this example because even though there are no people in this work of art, the seriousness can still be identified without human expression. That to me takes a lot of skill and represents a great work of art. In this piece we can see the intensity through nature. The skies are very dark and are showing signs of a powerful storm that is about to hit a lone church tower. The power of mother nature can cause destruction and in this case the seriousness all falls on the lone church tower.

For the Rococo style I liked learning about how relaxed the setting of the art work generally was. For example, Antoine Watteau’s Pilgrimage to Cythera shows bright colors of a beautiful day and shows multiple couples enjoying the day. This to me is relatable for many as most of us have been on a great date where everything seemed perfect and that to me is what is happening in this work of art. Even the clothes the people are wearing in this painting signify a relaxing state as they are wearing silk clothes. Another good example of Rococo is done by Dominikus Zimmermann and his work through Wieskirche. In this work there are many bright colors to include pink which is often used in Rococo style. With this work it shows the positives of faith and heaven. I like to compare this work to Giovanni Battista Gaulli’s Triumph of the Name of Jesus, which is the Baroque style. I like to compare these two because they both show heaven, but the Baroque style still has a seriousness side to it by showing the damned near the bottom whereas the Rococo style does not. This to me shows how the style are different as stated earlier.

In conclusion, both the Baroque style and Rococo style are very interesting. Baroque style has a very serious aspect to it which is unique and captivating, while the Rococo style is a relaxing one in my opinion with bright colors. For this reason, I would agree with the scholars who believe that these styles are different completely and that Rococo is not a refinement of the Baroque style.

[avenariush-blog]

I’ve always wondered what intrigued artists of this time period to copy-cat one another, in particular, with the sculpting of David. I agree with you that Bernini’s David appears to be very serious and reflects the use of mannerism. I can’t really tell which sculpture of David is my favorite as they all have their own tweaks. One thing I notice though is that each David reflects the time period in which it came from in reference to the style of sculptures.

[avenariush-blog]

Week 5 Blog

When I think of the most immaculate art museum in the world, I think of the Louvre, located in France. I know popular art works, my personal favorite, the Mona Lisa is in the Louvre. However, I did not know before reading chapter 19 that the Louvre was originally built as a palace (I’ve taken a Western Civilization course, but I lost count of all the different King Louis(s)). You’re telling me that a royal family and hundreds, if not thousands of assistants lived in what is now an art museum? In this blog, I will analyze main points from chapters 19 and 20 of the textbook while relating them to the experiences of my own life.

As I mentioned in my hook, I was very excited to gain more knowledge of the Louvre. One thing I remember from my Western Civilization courses is that the Louis(s) had a rather elegant taste. I remembered this elegant taste in particular with all the drama that happened in Versailles. One thing I did not hear about was whom helped design and build Versailles, which was a combination of architects and painters such as Charles Le Brun, Louis Le Vau, and André Le Nôtre. The landscape architect, Le Nôtre, implemented a variety of gardens, pools, and fountains, all with Baroque features (p. 340). Baroque is essentially a subset of an architectural style (as well as a genre of other arts) of European descent in which has decisive detail with mannerism. It is incredible to think that Versailles, the wonderful art piece that it is once housed 4,000 servants, had hundreds of rooms, and had the capacity to serve more than 20,000 people (p. 340).

It is hard to mention the Baroque style without bringing up Gianlorenzo Bernini. Much like artists in past blogs that I wrote about, Bernini too sculpted a version of David. In true Baroque style, Bernini’s marble sculpture of David shows intense mannerisms at every turn. David’s full body is in motion as he is lunging forward with his right leg, while leaning to his right to pull a contraption that is behind him. It is said that David in this sculpture is looking over his shoulder to assume the presence of Goliath (p. 344).

Transitioning from the Baroque style with palace buildings such as the Louvre and the palace of Versailles, we have the Rococo style and pagodas. The Rococo style is mostly known for its asymmetrical aspects, as well as the usage of white and pastel colors. I had never imagined that a pagoda would reside in England of all places, in the 18th century. Thanks to Sir William Chamber, there was a pagoda built in Middlesex, England, which is on the outskirts of London (p. 367). The pagoda overlooks Kew Gardens (a botanical garden) and serves as a watch tower (much like the original use of a Chinese pagoda).

Along with Rococo in the 18th century, the Classical style made a comeback. In the same location that I talked about earlier, Middlesex England, Robert Adam, an interior designer, began the Osterley Park House renovation. This included his trademark fireplace, as well as a touch of white pastel color schemes, symmetrical aspects, and what seem to be religious symbols (angels) on the walls. This house has crown molding and high ceilings with portions that are vaulted (very much like the taste I have in houses).

Overall, it is incredible to think that in England there was a Pagoda being built at near the same time that Adam was making classical work and numerous other artists making Gothic works. The diversity of art even in the 18th century seemed to be moving at a rapid pace!

[kaleibiehl-arthistory-blog]

Blog Post Week 3: Chapters 15 & 16

Chapters 15 and 16 described the Early/High Renaissance time period, noted as an evolutionary time period with growing political and religious ideas. I characterized these chapters with differing perspectives on religion, evident in many paintings I read about. In my blog, I will cover the importance of religion in artwork in Chapter 15, and my interest in the anatomical sketches described in Chapter 16. 

In Chapter 15, I was especially interested in painting 15.8, called “Dead Christ” by Andrea Mantegna. I believe I was partly so interested in it because of the disturbing image it left in my head. Mantegna depicted a “haunting” image of Christ, who lay unconscious with holes in his feet and tattered clothes. According to Adams, Mantegna used a tactic called one-point linear perspective which created 3-D imagery using the idea that, “distant objects seem smaller than closer ones and far edges of uniformly shaped objects appear shorter than the near edges” (248). I think this created a lot more depth to the painting, making it appear very realistic and in return: all the more haunting. It seemed to me that Christ’s feet was the center point of the painting, which I believe had important symbolic significance; the representation of suffering and crucification. I also noted the translucent hallow that hovered over the body’s head, and members of the community sobbing and paying respects to Him. This deepened my understanding of Mantegna’s religious views in his painting by showing he viewed Christ as a holy being and is, in a way, paying his respects to him through his artwork. Aside from the visual symbols of the painting, Adams described the painter’s method as a phycological effect. At first I was confused by this statement, and I wondered how others perceived the painting. After I thought about it for a while, I think the perspectival theory created images in artwork that stick in your head and force you to turn them over with thought. In Dead Christ, I thought about the realistic image of Christ long after I viewed it and continued reading, and thought about the pain and emotion the painting is showing. This is very powerful because after taking classes that focus on religion, I don’t really have a set belief, but this painting made me take a deeper look into Catholicism simply from an image with no words. 

Secondly, Leonardo da Vinci’s anatomical drawings in Chapter 16 was the most interesting thing to me that we have read so far. It astounded me that the thoughts and theories on the origins of life were represented so largely dating back centuries ago.  Da Vinci’s “Embryo of The Womb” sketch not only depicted different views of early-life, but also it’s connection with the mother’s blood supply (283). Being a biology major, I could relate to his interest in the study of how the body functions. As I read, I wondered why Da Vinci never fully finished his sketches, but rather just made them halfway and stopped. Adams mentioned on page 283 how he had hoped to further his studies but never did. I think that he was using these sketches as an experimental outlet but never got around to finish it. I was pleasantly surprised to see that artwork media can spread as far as biological interests, and I hope to read more about anatomy. 

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I wondered the very same thing about Leonardo da Vinci’s sketches. Why were so many unfinished? I don’t think we will ever know, but none the less, he definitely covered a wide variety of subjects and seemed to be way ahead of his time. My favorite sketch of his was the Adoration of the Magi sketch, which exemplified one-point perspective and the advancements of art during this time period. Leonardo da Vinci was by far the highlight of this chapter for me, for so many reasons.

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Week 3 Blog

When I think of the Renaissance, I think of the evolution of ideas such as realism, humanism, and individualism. In chapter fourteen (Pre-Renaissance), I did not see much of individualism in paintings in formats such as portraits. I noticed much more religion in paintings and sculptures such as Madonna Enthroned (Mary holding child Christ on a throne) by Cimabue. A lot of artists would also copy-cat each other. They would do so by remaking the same piece and adding their own touch by the way they drew bodies (slim or bulky) or by the way they applied colors. However, the religion-based theme started to change in chapter fifteen with increasingly popular styles of paintings such as Ucello’s Sir John Hawkwood Equestrian Portrait, which was a painting to honor Sir John Hawkwood, an English soldier of the fourteenth century (p. 258). In this blog, I will analyze main points from chapters fifteen and sixteen of the textbook while relating them to the experiences of my own life.

I would say that a strong beginning with the theme change of art began with the Medici family, a wealthy banking family from Florence in the fifteenth century. This family commissioned artists to make pieces for them, one of the most notable being Donatello who sculpted David for their courtyard. Donatello sculpted a nude, life-sized figure of David from bronze. This figure stands over a slain Goliath with a thin figure and a feminine pose. The book articulates a viewpoint that Donatello may have been a homosexual as it says, “…likely that Donatello drew on his own homosexuality for such was his reputation in fifteenth-century Florence in his characterization of David.” This is important as that could be a reason why his David was portrayed with a slender, feminine pose. It is important to note that other than a religion motif, that this statue could have represented Florence’s republic (underdog), winning against tyranny (larger opposition).

When I would attempt to draw for classes I had leading up to this point, I always liked to draw landscape paintings with depth. I found attempting to draw depth to be a challenge. I was surprised to notice after reading these chapters that Brunelleschi was credited with linear perspective, which is a form of drawing that makes distant objects smaller than closer ones and far object’s edges shorter than near object’s edges (p. 248). I am also enthused by looking at blue-prints as well as sketches. It was interesting to see Leonardo da Vinci’s Adoration of the Magi sketch, which included linear perspective. There is a lot of defined lines of buildings, but also a lot of faint sketches of things such as horses bucking up into the air in this piece.

Relating back to the hook of my last blog, I was thrilled to see the Mona Lisa by Leonardo da Vinci in this chapter (p. 286). As I am enthused by Leonardo’s great scientific sketches and abilities, I always loved the classic Mona Lisa for the slight grin and scenic, yet murky background otherwise known as sfumato, which is Italian for “vanished in smoke.” This painting shows off the advances in art during the sixteenth century as the Mona Lisa portrayed realistic anatomy of a female with a touch of atmospheric perspective (foggy background).

I can’t just mention da Vinci without mentioning Michelangelo! They almost go hand in hand in references. Much like Donatello, Michelangelo was also commissioned to sculpt David in fifteen-hundred-and-one (later than Donatello who created his during fourteen-thirty and fourteen-forty). Some contrasts of Michelangelo and Donatello’s David are that Michelangelo’s is sculpted out of marble while Donatello’s is sculpted out of bronze, David is not standing on Goliath (Michelangelo’s), David has more girth (Michelangelo’s), and has a more masculine, tense pose (Michelangelo’s). It is also important to note that Michelangelo worked on sculpting his piece for three years in secret out of a fourteen-foot block of marble (p. 288).

Overall, I enjoyed these chapters more than the last. As I said before, I was surprised to learn about Brunelleschi inventing linear perspective as well as seeing the Mona Lisa. I don’t mind the religious works because I am well versed in the Old Testament. So, when I see the David statues, I know how he slew Goliath, however, it was nice to learn how it reflected on the time-period when Donatello made his (Florence republic versus tyranny). I am thrilled to get to the following chapters!

[elyseck-blog]

Week 2 Blog Post

Reading about ancient art and it’s connection with history has been quite interesting. It’s so inspiring and neat to see how artists, artwork, and styles and techniques have evolved over time. The Pre-Renaissance period was full of new ideas, people, and art evolutions. As I read thru chapter fourteen, Giotto di Bondone, and The Arena Chapel really stuck out to me. The Arena Chapel piece alone is just fascinating in my eyes. There is such great detail, style, and color that really brings the entire piece to life. As referenced in the text, Giotto was a well known artist who was transported to various parts of Italy to create various artwork. As I scanned thru each piece of art throughout chapter fourteen, Giotto’s stuck out the most. The colors really brought it to life, and as mentioned by Petrarch, his painting style truly made the piece radiant. I found it very interesting that the Arena Chapel was founded by Enrico Scrovegni. I’ve heard of this man before, and after a little research after reading chapter fourteen I was able to come to the conclusion that the chapel was originally bought and built to serve as Scrovegni’s family’s private oratory, and as a funerary monument for him and his wife. This is all so interesting and unique. It’s nice to learn about how one piece of work or art was originated and the ideas behind the original making, and then to see and learn about how the ideas and work have changed over time. As I look and study the chapel itself, it amazes me to see the extreme detail that went into this marvelous creation. The perfect symmetry on each wall is so intriguing, not to mention the perfect detail of the people pictured all throughout as well. Overall, the piece in general is quite fascinating. The scenes depicted on each wall of the chapel are quite interesting as well. In connection with what I’ve seen in churches today, it reminds me of the stations of the cross that are displayed all around the perimeter of my Catholic Church here in Iowa. Although It’s a very different story compared to the Arena Chapel, I was able to make that connection to what I’ve experienced and seen throughout my life. In addition, I can also connect my Roman Catholic faith learnings and experiences to the Nativity scene depicted in the chapel. I’m quite familiar with the nativity scene so it was easy to make a connection there too. Ultimately, it simply amazes me how all of these scenes and events make up the entirety of the chapel as a whole. The time, effort, detail, perseverance, etc. is just unimaginable. I’ve never really thought about the connection of art and religion. After reading about this Pre-Renaissance period it all makes sense. Art and religion go hand in hand. If it weren’t for artists, the sculptures, artwork, etc. wouldn’t be on display in various religious facilities. In terms of a connection to my own life, I most often see these types of work in my school and church. Growing up a Catholic my entire life, and attending a catholic school for the past ten years, I’ve been able to learn about these different times in history and their connection with various religions, etc. This was very interesting to read about and I look forward to reading more about the history of art!

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Giotto’s works also stood out to me the most because of his usage of vibrant colors (check my blog post)! Even though Giotto did not come first in this series of artists that we viewed, he remained paramount in regard to other artists in the time period. Another thing I can relate to you on is the comparison of art and religion during the Pre-Renaissance period. Almost every work of art that we looked at this chapter had religion as a focal point, except for a few pieces, one of which was Ambrogio Lorenzetti’s The Allegory of Good and Bad Government, which had government as a primary focus. 

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Week 2 Blog

Have you ever looked at old paintings such as the Mona Lisa and thought to yourself, wow even art hundreds of years ago was amazing too? That is how I felt while reading Chapter 14 and looking at the works of Cimabue, Giotto, Duccio, Lorenzetti, Sluter, Andrea Orcagna, and the Limbourg brothers. I can’t get over the skills and time it would take to make art pieces with the degree of detail that they did. Now a days one can just use a computer and generate perfect shapes and shading in a fraction of the time that it would have taken those artists to do near the same. In this blog, I will explore the Pre-Renaissance art in Chapter 14, it’s connection to the time period as well as my personal insight on the art and how it relates to my life.

The single artist out of the group that I’ve listed above that stood out the most to me was Giotto. Although Cimabue came before Giotto, Giotto was the artist who the later artists modeled after largely. For instance, let’s look at the piece Madonna Enthroned. It was originally created by Cimabue during the years of 1280-1290 and had a focus on Mary, who was holding what was to be “Child Christ”, however, the remake by Giotto in 1310 seemed to be more prevalent in history. It was more prevalent in my opinion because unlike Cimabue who largely was influenced by Byzantine art (Byzantine had heavy influence on Italy during his time), which included gold backgrounds and thin and long figures, Giotto was influenced by classic antiquity. Giotto’s painting contrasted Cimabue’s in the fashion of it having bulky characters, more shading, and obeying the law of gravity when it comes to the throne placement that Mary is sitting on. Other points of contrast include human proportions as Child Christ in Giotto’s painting is more infant-like proportionally compared to Cimabue’s Child Christ which seems adult-like proportionally. It is important to note that both Cimabue and Giotto’s paintings of Madonna Enthroned were tempera paintings which is usually a paint mixture composed of ground up minerals mixed in water and egg then painted on wood panels. Giotto’s influence can also be seen on Duccio as he remade a version of Giotto’s Kiss of Judas with his own touches.

On the flip side of paintings in the chapter, we also had sculptures. The most relatable sculpture in this chapter to me was the Well of Moses, sculpted by Claus Sluter in 1395. This work is most relatable to me because out of everything in religion (largely influenced this time period), I am most knowledgeable on the Old Testament. I even took a course on it! Moses happened to be my favorite character in the Old Testament as well. I appreciated Moses being humble during the calling of his prophecy as well as his willingness to lead the Israelites away from the Egyptians through the Red Sea. I particularly like that this piece has life-sized characters and the fine detail in each and every turn. I too am very meticulous when it comes to my projects.

In closing, I thought it was also very interesting how events affected the pieces of art being produced. Coming out of the middle ages, Giotto ignored the darkness and became vibrant with his colors. On the contrary, Andrea Orcagna was influenced by disasters such as famine, floods, and the plague. The piece Triumph of Death by Orcagna in the title alone refers to those events, and the wilting people in the painting reflect the times as well. Even though I appreciated the Well of Moses the most because I could relate to it so much, I am going to say Giotto was the most influential. Giotto’s works helped later artists see the way for their advances in 3D illusions, use of bright colors, and realism.

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I think it’s interesting to see how people work out their emotions and express themselves and their experiences through art.

I enjoy writing stories, video games, and coming up with new, creative ideas. I’m after an Associate of Arts degree.

I hope I can find out new ways to express myself through art, using the examples I see in the class as a guide.

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I also enjoy seeing people’s ideas relayed into art!

This piece of art hurts my eyes if I look too long. I get dizzy!

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Introduction

When it comes to art, I am mostly interested in fashion. I do not go to fashion shows or spend my time looking up fashion, however, when related to art, I like looking at designer clothes or art with designer clothing emblems.

Outside of art, my main interests are in sports, mostly football. I love the Washington Redskins and like the Iowa Hawkeyes. Currently, I am pursuing a Bachelor's Degree at Clarke University in Business Administration with an emphasis in Management.

I would like to learn more about European art during World War II. I feel like World War II definitely was an interesting time in Europe and I would like to see how artists expressed themselves during that time period.

Below is one my favorite art pieces growing up, The Starry Night by Vincent van Gogh.