Video Review week 9

1.  The first video was “Lowdown on Lowbrow: West Coast Pop Art”. This video on the art of the Lowbrow genre. Lowbrow is best described as pop art; generally dreamlike characteristics and involves a lot of the figures we see on the television. Some examples of the figures used are automobiles and scantly clad pin-up type, as well as other abstract figures that really can’t be put in another categories. Some critics argue that it should take the name of “Lowbrow Surrealism”, and I feel that it resembles surrealist paintings from the readings. 

 

The second video was “Displaying Modern Art: The Tate Approach”.  This video discussed the method to displaying modern art in the Tate gallery. Throughout the 20^th century, art was displayed in galleries in a straight forward chronological style. With the Tate Approach, art pieces were broken down into four groups, or exhibits, which each piece being categorized to match that exhibit. This video focuses on grouping of artworks with the Tate Approach and the job of a curator breaking up the works into the right groups and themes. 

 

 The next video was “Bones of Contention: Native American Archaeology”. It features a Native American woman making a stand for the protection of Indian burial grounds. This movement was based on fighting for the rights to claim their ancestral artifacts from becoming amusement in museums and other exhibits. These Native rights groups fought for the protection of bones and remains being dug up, and boycott the museums that show Native artifacts. The artifacts can tell a great deal about the past and should not be destroyed, as well as not be moved because more can be discovered by examining remains in their nature state. It’s also about respect of the ascestors, because they fell that their cultural remains are not meant to be used for exhibit purposes. 

 

The last video was “George Eastman House: Picture Perfect”. This video talked about the George Eastman House located in Rochester, NY. It goes into discussing Eastman’s creation of the first camera, and the collection the visual history of photography that he created. It gives a good history on photography, including explaining the thousands of different kinds of cameras and lenses, and works from over 14,000 photographers. It was interesting to see the early models of cameras and the photographer's styles and how they can be compared to the changes in what the photography field is today.

2. I felt that three of the videos I could relate to my Art Exhibition project. Because it is based on Native American Art, I felt that the issues talked about in the “Bones of Contention" video were very relatable to my project. Most of my art I chose was more current, but I know that a lot of tribes are reluctant to let certain images to be portrayed because they do not want outsiders misrepresenting it. The history explained in the "George Eastman" video could relate because photography was something I liked when I was choosing my art pieces. Lastly, the "Lowdown and Lowbrow" video related because I discovered some very abstract pieces done by some current artists. Pop culture artists today have an array of influences, and mixing the traditions of the past and today's abstract style made for some really interesting pieces.

3. I felt the videos were very helpful, except the "Displaying Modern Art" video because it didn't really have to do too much with my project. But I felt that the rest of the videos gave me extra guidance to take me in the right direction for my project.

Week 8 - Video Blog review

The first video I chose was “Dance at the Moulin de la Galette”. I was interest in it because I have become very interest in France art, and Auguste Renoir seems to have had a major influence on the artistic culture of late 19^th century. The painting seemed to me as a painting that stood for Paris and all its pleasures. It depicts a scene in Paris of the people dancing, laughing, and just having a good ole time at the Butte Montmartre. What I like about the painting is that you feel as if you’re right there with people. It also is a very intimate piece, as Renoir does a good job of making all the actions of the towns people look very realistic. You got to believe that this piece is one of Paris most influential works because it is so well but together. The video tied in with the text because it shows how influential French art was during this time, before the globalization movement of the art capital to New York City.

The next video I chose was “Matisse and Picasso” video. The video was based on the different styles of each artist and how their style made them so famous. Some of the key concepts were that Matisse traveled the world and often took very little with him in search of artistic inspirations. Matisse struggled to find his latest paintings a great deal of the time. Picasso was more of an impulsive artist and would find your influences on the fly. He spend a lot of time in his studio and drew inspiration from what was around him. Picasso also grew bored quickly, so it wasn’t uncommon that he changed styles more than most artists. At one point, Picasso skipped over Fauvism and focused his mind on Cubism, which he would be known as the leader for. Both artists had there own style and it showed in on the canvas. With the text, I focused more on Picasso because I enjoyed his style more than Matisse’s. But it was interesting to learn more about his methods and the history behind him because the text only talked about so much.

The next video I chose was “Dada and Surrealism”. In the video George Grosz was seen as a political satirist. He came from a lower-class background, which didn’t provide him with many opportunities going up. His situation developed overtime into a great deal of bitterness directed towards the government, soldiers, lawyers and priests. The picture titled "Pillars of Society" was geared to be a picture of evil men, when it is clear the enormous social range gave off a satirical element to it. This ties into the text because of the book’s general definition of Dada that society had gone mad and refused to make sense or provide aesthetic comfort of refuge. It was sort of the “anti-art” which put emphasis on irrationality, chance, irony, childness, and absurdity. The video put it in perspective because it gave me the visual of just how Dada and Surrealist artists worked.

The last video I chose was “Uncertainty: Modernity and Art”. It focuses on how modern life evolved out of old ideas, much similar to how modern art evolved out of older styles of art. Basically, the key concept is really just how uncertain modern life can be at times. It talks about how more modern art changes with modern life through different styles such as Abtract Expressionism and then Pop Art. We live in an ever-changing environment, its natural for things to change. The video went on to explain examples of how art has changed. For example, the Industrial Revolution helped move along modern life with the changes in technology, and in turn this directly affected the way art went about. It was above to gain influences from other cultures now due to globalization. This ties in with the text because globalization played such a major role in how art evolved. If we were never to have known how the cultures in Europe or Asia viewed art, we would have never seen a change. It’s a great thing to gain knowledge from these other nations because it benefits everyone in the end.

I fell like every time a Video Blog assignment comes up it does help me out a lot. There is only so much that the text can portray, so its good to see a visual aid to help me understand the material more. I’m a more visual learner anyways, so videos and the pictures in the books that go with the readings is what benefit me the most. The book might get dry, but the videos are there to give me the assistance I need to learn the material.

Mask Making

The three masks that inspired me were the Ecuador Mask Clown. This one inspired me because of the color in the mask. The next mask that inspired me was the hockey mask. One of the links describes this kind of mask as a protection or sports mask. To me it has a little bit more meaning because I have been playing hockey for so long I have worn this kind of mask as long as I can remember. The third mask that inspired me was the False Face mask because I am Native American and this kind of mask is part of my culture. The Ecuador Mask has white, black, green, and red colors in it and also is symmetrical on both sides. The hockey mask is white and has symmetrical holes on both sides. It also has brown straps on the back to keep the mask on. The false face mask is red and is the most powerful false face. It also has long hair and has big white eyes. The nose and is large and the wooden mask also has carvings in it at the top. The mouth in the mask is wide open.

My mask was incorporated all of my three inspirations in different ways. I based my physical features like the nose and eyes on the False Face. But my general focus was to make it look more like the hockey mask, so I keep the mouth holes as well as kept a majority of the mask white. The color inspirations came from the Ecuador Clown Mask with the green and red. Overall, I fell that my mask was well balanced in using elements from all the three masks.

I felt that in making this mask, even though we were to use the other masks as inspirations, I was able to keep my own creativity in the way I wanted it to look. It was a nice piece to work on because it's a field I don't have much experience in. I felt that my mask was put together well and served its purpose of being a well rounded piece.

Video Review

The first video I chose was on “African Art”. Based on the video, African art is based on the tradition of the culture and is found throughout everything, from clothing, to clay pots, sculptures and other everyday objects. African art, much like most cultures is based on ritual and created for ceremonies. The idea behind most African thought is that all figures and animals have a spirit is held within them. They used art to exemplify their imagery of what they think these spirits look like, using such as rock art and carvings of animals and humans. The readings talk about rock art just a little bit, but both the text and the video go into explaining the early carvings of humans and animals, and how they were stylized, but recognizable. They may have just been carving symbols with no real meaning because it is unknown whether or not they had meaning.

The next video I chose was “The Great Wave – Japanese Artwork”. I was very interested in Japanese art, and the “The Great Wave” was a major art piece in their culture. The woodblock print was used to create a series of images that was over lapped in several different colors. The vibrant lines give the giant wave detail and depict and source of chaos that are about to in gulf the Japanese citizens on the boat. It almost looks as if the wave is an army that is about to attack the people because the ends of the wave look like hands or claws. The video and the text both get into this style of Japanese art, like that was done by Kano Eitoku during the Momoyama period even though “The Great Wave” definitely in more detail than most works.

I also chose the “Buddhism” video. From my concept of the religion, it is based on the idea that time is important, and all beings are condemned to suffer an endless hell like events, endless they can gain release. Followers must then shy away from any sort of desire that may cause this fait by cultivating nonattachment and follow a moral and ethical path. The term from the video, “tanha”, is the action that Buddhist follower’s perform in order to extinguish the immoral desires. What I learned from the videos is the Buddhist religion is made up of two groups, the Hinayana and the Mahanyaha. The Hinayana were Monks who wanted to take a boat to cross over into nirvana and the Mahanyaha decided to seek companions and wait for a boat to come. It was very interesting it get more background on the religion because it has a lot of history, but I didn’t know very much about it. With this video and the text, it was good to find out more about it. The formal background I read in the text about the main idea of “breaking the cycle” was explained more with the video. To have followers that are willing to give up elements of life in order to pass into the next realm, it takes a great commitment.

Lastly I chose the “The Islamic art” video. It discusses the key idea of Islamic art based on the fact that images of humans and animals were forbidden to be portrayed. This was because the Islamic followers believed that worshipping idols is not allowed according to the Qur’an. Instead, images of plants, flowers, and patterns were primarily used in Islamic art. This relates to the readings in that the readings emphasize the use of geometric patterns and script in Islamic art that made it very beautiful. Architecture in Mosques and places of worship were also emphasized in both the readings and video. It makes me think just how different every culture to each other, like where idols and gods are loved in Greek culture, in Islam they aren’t in art.

I like how these films gave me a better understanding of each one of these art styles. I’m not going to act like I have learned a lot of background on these styles before I took this course, but along with the videos and the text I now know why these cultures exemplify the images they do, and why they are so famous. I think these videos helped me out a great deal in my understanding.

Art Gallery Visit #2

The Exhibition

1. The title of the exhibit was "Clyfford Still"

2. The theme of the exhibit was works done by the artist Clyfford Still, an American painter who lived from 1904-1980 that worked a lot with Abstract Expression with his work

The Gallery

1. The lighting in the gallery was fairly light throughout the entire place, but extra light was shined on each one of the paintings to put more emphasis on them. 

2. The walls were strictly white, most likely to contrast with the colors of the paintings.

3. The interior architecture of the exhibit was plain, as the only thing that it had were a couple benches to sit on. Besides this, it was basically made of three rooms (2 small room and a larger room). Not a whole lot to it.

4. All the art were wall paintings, and each labeled at a single spot in a clockwise order. So the movement of the space was mostly a clockwise viewing. Look at one, move to the right, and so on. 

The Artwork

1. All the art works were done by Clyfford Still's, with each small room having 4 paintings each and several more in the larger room. The paintings were in 2 different sizes, either about 6.5 ft. x 6 ft., or 9 ft. x 8 ft., and not in any order throughout the exhibit.

2. Each artwork started on the same tan canvas and framed with the same wood finish. The method of abstract painting was a common theme for all of Still's paintings

3. Besides the size of the paintings, the choice of colors were about the only thing that was different. Still's had a array of color choices he used from painting to painting. Some would have minimal paint and a lot of canvas, others were painted throughout the whole thing. Some were darker with choices of black and blue paint, others focused on being lighter with red, yellow and white paints.

4. Each painting had the same exact simple wood frame, not too large, really just enough to make it look minimal. 

5. Each painting had a label to it on the wall with painting information. In the smaller rooms, each painting info was posted together in one spot, but let you know that the labels from top to bottom went clockwise with the paintings. In the larger room, the labels were posted right next to the paintings. 

6. All the paintings were pretty spaced out, as it was common that each wall only had one painting on it. This put about 10-15 ft. in between each painting.

-Clyfford Still, "October 1950", oil on canvas, 1950, 6.5 ft. x 6 ft.

What I see is a lot of abstract thought with Still's. The colors do not seem to be in any sort of particular form. It more free and has no direction. Best described as a non-representational art piece. What it really reminds me of is the Doppler Radar for the weather that we see on the news every night. What I think Still's is trying to say is just be free, just let the brush do the work.

-Clyfford Still, "November 1950 No. 2", oil on canvas, 1950, 6.5 ft. x 6 ft.

This painting is less involved than the first painting. The only colors that are present black, yellow, and a lighter tan than the canvas. This one also does not seem to have too much direction or any particular form, and is non-representational. This painting doesn't seem to remind me of anything really. What I think the artist is trying to stay is kept it simple and don't over complicate things.

-Clyfford Still, "November 1954", oil on canvas, 1954, 9 ft. x 8 ft. 

This painting follows the abstract style of Still's. What I see is not a lot of paint, with a lot of the color focusing on the white. The black takes up very little, and also goes for the orange. This too is a non-representational painting. This painting reminds me of a cloud over the western desert mountains. What I think Still's is trying to say in this is that everyday images can be put on canvas, even if they do not directly look like the image itself. 

These are photos of the exhibit at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery

4. I thought going in with a clear mind that I did look at the exhibit in a much different way. Still’s artworks may not seem to complex, and with a bias mind I probably would have never entered that room on the gallery. With the questions and Art Criticism guidelines, I was able to open my view to art in a much different way. The way each painting was placed in the room, to the similar frames, to the free flowing images, it all meant something. With a biased mind, I would have never realized any of this.

What is installation art?

A form of art in which a space is presented as a work of art that can be entered, explored, experienced, and reflected upon.

What materials are used installation art?

The materials used in installation art can be anything the artist wants. An example of the materials used in one installation is the materials used in Thomas Hirshhorn’s installation Jumbo Spoons and Big Cake. He uses common, inexpensive material like cardboard, adhesive tape, aluminum foil, and wood. It’s mostly the work of putting all these things together that is the beauty of the work not what’s actually in it.

Why make installation art?

Installation was made into art because of the changing times. Art can manifest itself in many more ways then the 18^th century philosophers who invented the category every dreamed. Art can be presented in so many different ways and installation is one way for artist to do this.

Which artist/installation did I find most interesting?

I think the installation created by Ann Hamilton to be very interesting. I feel like I get what she is trying to say with all this stuff going on behind the women and the women still doing what she was doing like it was not there. I really understood this picture and think it is very interesting how Hamilton did this.

From the material reviewed, is there an inspiration piece that I feel a connection with?

One of the pieces I felt a connection with was Thomas Hirshhorn’s installation Jumbo Spoons and Big Cake. I love how he put the most random things together but still had a message come across and a reason for doing so. His image is of world problems and that is really important to me.

What theme do I want to explore in my installation?

The theme I was thinking about exploring was Self. I want to create an installation that shows all about me.

What materials will I use?

The materials I will use are sports equipment, school stuff, native American material, clothes, shoes.

Where will this installation be located and why?

My installation will be located in my room because it is where I spend the most time and where I have everything that is mine.

Describe my Installation:

The first thing I put into my installation is a Wayne Gretzky poster. The next thing I put on top of the poster is two hockey sticks crossing each other and a lacrosse stick crossing them in the middle. I place a Chicago Blackhawks puck in my lacrosse stick. Next I folded my Buffalo State Hockey T-shirt and placed it in the top right. The next thing I added was a picture of my dad holding me when I was little. I placed a carving my dad made me from soapstone next to our picture. I placed a dream catcher in the installation next. I placed a trophy I had won playing hockey in my installation as well. I also included two very important key chains to me. The first is a player pass to the National Championships for hockey. The second is my name tag to where I work, Hard Rock Cafe. The very last thing I included were my hockey skates.

Analyzing my Installation:

Wayne Gretzky is my all time favorite hockey player and I have had this poster in my bed room since I can remember. I used my two game sticks that I use for every game I play and I also play lacrosse so I added that to it. I added the Chicago Blackhawks puck because they are one of my favorite teams and won the Stanley Cup this year. I play hockey for Buffalo State and it is a huge part of my life. My dad is the most important person in my life and has always been there for me through everything. The carving is one of my favorite things I own. My dad used to make them when he was younger and my grandma recently gave them all to me. The dream catcher represents my culture, which is Native American. The hockey trophy represents all the years of dedication I have put into hockey and the reward I get from it. The keychains are important to me because going to the National Championships was one of the best times of my life and something I will never forget. The Hard Rock Keychain is important because I spend 90% of my time working there and I also really enjoy it though. My hockey skates are so important to me. I would rather wear them then any other shoe in the world and they have helped me achieve so much in my life.

What are your thoughts on the planning and creation of a site specific installation?

My thought on the planning and creation of this site specific installation is that it was a lot of fun and I really enjoyed sharing myself with people. I liked creating something that was all about me and it being somewhere were I could see it and my family and friends could see it as well.

Video Review

1. For each video list/discuss the key concepts you learned.

Through the Eyes of the Sculptor: This video was very interesting to me because I learned how much time, hard work, and dedication go into a sculpture. I think it is very intertersting that the the artist does so much of their own dirty work, for example picking out the marble right from the quarry! I would think most artist go to stores and just purchase marble.

Glass and Ceramics: This video taught me more then I ever knew about glass and ceramics. I had no idea that the person creating a dish and glazing it would put their whole arm into the glaze. I also enjoyed when the video discussed how to keep glass from changing colors and the concept of glass blowing.

Installation Art: From this video I learned that installations take a very long time to do and that they aren’t permanent.

Prairie Style: I think the houses in this video were so cool. I would love to have that many windows and enjoy everything outside. I wouldn’t even mind people seeing in. I really enjoy the outdoors and I enjoy seeing all types of weather and nature around me outside.

2. How do the videos relate to the readings in the text?

I think the videos relate in a way to the readings. I think they kind of explained things in a different way and gave me a better understanding of the readings and also a different look into the text.

3. What is your opinion of the films?

I think the films were very good. I mean sometimes they would get boring but I think I just enjoy reading better. I have a better thought process when I look at words and videos are good for a picture in my head but sometimes I overlook what they are saying or trying to say. I really enjoyed the sculpture video. My family is really into native American carvings so I also find anything like sculpture very interesting and tend to pay closer attention to it. I also enjoyed seeing the different buildings in the architecture video. I think there are really gifted people out there who are able to create such wonderful things and I really do enjoy learning about it.