Eastern Influence: Ming Dynasty

When we focus on Western civilization and art, it is hard to think there were other significant cultures out there other than ours. After all, the United States hadn’t been born yet and renaissances and exciting changes were taking place in Europe so it is easy to believe that this was the only significant civilization on the planet at the time. This is not the case. The Ming dynasty ruled eastern China for 276 years from 1368 to 1644. It is sometimes regarded as the one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history.

Forbidden City, Ming dynasty 

Built in 1406 to 1420, it is hard to know who the direct architect of the Forbidden City was. The Forbidden City, located in Beijing, was an imperial palace for many of the Ming dynasty emperors and forbidden to the general public, hence the name. The Forbidden City is almost just that, a city. It consists of 980 surviving buildings that cover 180 acres. What makes this piece so great is that is exemplifies traditional Chinese palatial architecture. When thinking of the architecture that came out of this era on this side of the world, this is the style seen and shown in history books and movies today. It not only has had a lasting impact on today, but also at the time with neighboring cultures. It has had strong influences in Korea, Vietnam, and Japan. It is also phenomenal that this traditional architecture style is still used in modern day, although due to the growing economies and growing cities, demand for high speed construction and higher floor area ratio means that this style has declined in recent years. Overall, this is probably one of the greatest non-Western pieces of all time. One unique thing about this style of architecture is the tiered roof. If you notice, below the main roof there is one some times two other tiers of roofing after that. Another feature of the Forbidden City is bilateral symmetry. If you notice, the complex itself is symmetric down the center. This is seen everywhere in Chinese architecture. This symmetry symbolizes balance. Being half Chinese, I love this style of architecture. Maybe I am a little biased. Not the only the details, but the symbolism as well make this work fascinating. Overall, this style of architecture is so phenomenal that I could post my entire post about just this style of art. Unfortunately, I can’t. I’ll let you looks at the pictures and observe the greatness yourself.

 

Watching the Spring and Listening to the Wind by Tang Yin

This next piece is called Watching the Spring and Listening to the Wind by Tang Yin. Born in 1470, Tang Yin was a renowned Chinese scholar, painter, calligrapher, and poet of the Ming dynasty. Although Tang Yin was a talented man, we will focus on the beauty of his artwork. To generalize his artwork, they usually encompassed an expansive landscape accompanied by calligraphy somewhere on the painting in and ink and wash style. One of my favorite elements of this piece is the incorporation of the paper and the fading of the background into this paper. The effect seems to suggest there is fog in the background or that the background melds seamlessly into the paper. The foreground, however, is flawless with detail. This style of painting is very classic Chinese. The paper style also adds great affect to this painting. Imagine this same painting completed on a white piece of paper or background. I think that we could all agree that it just wouldn’t look right. It could be the case that the paper has faded and worn over the tested time of history, but I like to think that this was purposefully done as I truly believe that the paper brings elements of the painting that compliment the rest of it. Aesthetically, I really enjoy this piece. If I heard the words “classic Chinese painting”, this is instantly the kind and style of painting I would think of. Overall, the aesthetics are gorgeous. When observing this paining, it seems very calming and relaxed. As the name suggests, its like I am watching the spring and listening to the wind.

 

Jar, Ming dynasty, Xaunde era (1426-1435)

The last type of art I want to note from the Ming dynasty is not architecture and not paintings, but a little bit of both. It is the pottery and porcelains of the Ming dynasty. This example here is of a jar created during the Ming dynasty. It has the Xuande mark indicating it was probably created between 1426 and 1435 from the Xuande era. Many of these porcelains during this period were so recognized that in the western world, they were just called “Ming”s. This piece is fascinating because of its sophistication. It exudes a sense of freedom and energy. The reason why I am so drawn to this piece is that we had these style vases, bowls, and other porcelains around the house! I got to see them everyday and didn’t think anything of it. Now learning the background of the artwork that was once in my house is awesome. Just like in this piece, our porcelains exhibited works or dragon and were painted extremely similar to that of this one here. Just as this piece, the dragon seemingly moved around the piece commanding its presence. The style of dragon was even the same with sharp back spines and strong features in the face. Overall, I really like this piece due to the connection with my childhood and I hopefully can go back to China one day to see all the works seen above.

 

Works Cited

“Chinese Architecture.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 27 July 2014. Web. 06 Aug. 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_architecture>.

“Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History.” Jar [China] (37.191.1). N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Aug. 2014. <http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/37.191.1>.

“Ming Dynasty.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 08 May 2014. Web. 06 Aug. 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ming_dynasty>.

“Tang Yin.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 27 July 2014. Web. 06 Aug. 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tang_Yin>.

It’s All About Perspective

3D Street Art is taking the Internet world by storm. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram. There is always some sort of 3D Street Art that is being spread across social media. This also makes the style very informal and personal. It is for anyone to enjoy and not something that can be sold. It can be observed by many without an entry fee into a museum or exhibit. Also, it is in the setting of a street or public area. This makes the work more public and for everyone. What makes this style really fascinating (at least to me) is two things. First, this style of art has detail and detail takes effort and effort takes time. For me, I can really appreciate this style of art due to the time that is taken to do this work. Second is the creativity of perspective. As you will see with the following works, this style of art creates a unique perspective for the viewer. It makes it seem as if the art on the flat surface truly comes out of the ground. Another fascinating aspect is that some artists incorporate the surrounding physical 3D items in the street into their artwork. It blends in so well, from the pictures you can barely pick out the painting part of the artwork from the physical items of the artwork. Anyways, enjoy the exhibit…

The first artist is Edgar Mueller. He was born in July 10th, 1968 in Muelheim, Ruhr, Germany. His fascination with painting started at a young age and throughout his teen years he had one multiple competitions. It wasn’t until about the age of 25 that he devoted himself to street paintings. That goodness he did because now, he is considered by some to be the top 3D street painter in the world. 

Cave Drawing by Edgar Mueller (from two perspectives) 

First piece is Cave Drawing by Edgar Mueller. It was created during the West India Quay’s Festival in London. This man is one of the best known 3d street artists in the world. The above photo you see above is the artwork from the perspective to create a 3D illusion. The photo below, however, is the same artwork, but photographed from the opposite end. This, one, proves the validity of the artwork, but two, it shows the artwork in another light. Before I saw both perspectives, I didn’t realize that the far away perspective didn’t require much detail. It never occurred to me. If you take a look at the below photo, the grey part in the back seems to be a couple feet in length, but only looks like an inch when photographed in the correct perspective. This work is phenomenal that it shows both sides of the artwork. When observing the other artwork in the exhibit, keep in mind this perspective. As you can kind of tell, I love this kind of artwork. I hope you think the same when looking at the following pieces.

Waterfall by Edgar Mueller (from two perspectives)

The next piece I would like to share with you in Waterfall by Edgar Mueller. This piece was created during the Prairie Art Festival in Moose Jaw, Canada. He turned River Street into a river of artwork, literally. In this piece, we get to see Mr. Mueller start to incorporate surrounding objectives into his work. We can see on the sides that Edgar starts to work in non-flat surfaces like the curb and a small wall. This piece was also fortunate enough to have a non-straight perspective. I would like to point out how the falling water seems to be falling straight down in the straight-on perspective, but looks vastly different from the side perspective. My favorite part of this work is the incorporation of the surrounding elements into the artwork including the curb and short wall.

The Crevasse by Edgar Mueller

Lastly from Edgar Mueller is The Crevasse. This piece was created during the “Festival of World Culture” in Dun Laoghaire from August 21^st, 2008 to August 24^th, 2008. This piece of art is truly amazing and done in such a magnitude as this! If you still don’t believe these paintings are real and you think someone is just really good at Photoshop, please see the video above. This illustrates well how linear perspective comes into play. Notice at the beginning of the video, he draws his guidelines to establish what is “vertical” to the viewer. Note these aren’t parallel in real life. It’s all about linear perspective my friend. This is my favorite out of all his work due to the shear size of the artwork, but also the color vibrance. The blacks are really black, the blues are really blue, and the whites are really white. 

My next favorite artist with this style of art is Julian Beever. Julian Beever was originally from Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire UK. Born in 1960, he first became interested in 3D street paintings in the 1980s while working in York. In the following artwork, you will get to see why Julian Beever is one of the best at what he does…

Series called Treasures by Julian Beever

This is a series of photos created by Julian Beever called Treasures. This is probably my favorite work of this post, but also possibly out of all post-modern artwork. This piece is unique in that it tells a story. But also each painting or photo before needs to be strategically placed so that it can be covered up by the next artwork or easily erased. This in combination with keeping in mind linear perspective is absolutely amazing. ALSO, if you take notice photos 3 and 5, those are drawn in shovels, while photos 1, 2, and 4 are actual shovels. Clever, subtle details are seen throughout Julian Beever’s artwork and that is why it is so fascinating. Also the piece is done in public which adds to the complexity.

Back Off, Creep by Julian Beever

This work is called Back Off, Creep by Julian Beever. This piece exemplifies the fun you can have with this style of art. It not only incorporates human beings into the artwork, but also the surrounding environment. The easy thing to point out is that the snail is drawn on the bench in such a perspective as to appear 3D, but take a look at the left antenna of the snail. Yes, thats right, thats an actual pole that is sticking out of the ground that is incorporated into the artwork as the snail’s antenna. Making these clever and subtle incorporations makes this style of art work fun, surprising, and interesting. You can look at this piece for a lot of time and still discover new things. I probably looked at this piece for thirty minutes before I found out about the pole! Things like this amaze me and they make this art style fun.

Waste of Water by Julian Beever

Last but not least is Waste of Water by Julian Beever. I enjoy this piece because it is simple and detailed. Sounds like an oxymoron, but its not. The artwork depicts Julian “holding” a hose and spraying water in the street into a drain. This work is so detailed, I honestly don’t know if the drain is drawn or not and that is what makes me like this piece so much. Also, to note the detail, the reflection in the water also seemingly seems to match the buildings on either side. The subject is so simple, yet the details are so complex. Even the arc of the water is almost physically correct. This work phenomenal and I hope he continues to create work as simple, yet complex as this one.

Overall, 3D street art has been taking the world by storm. The art type is currently very popular and with the accessibility of the artwork through either the internet or the street allows for the artwork to spread rapidly and rapidly it has. This adds a whole new dimension to “paintings” and it truly shows that the world is your canvas. 

 

Works Cited

“Edgar Mueller – 3D Street Art.” Squidoo. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Aug. 2014. <http://www.squidoo.com/edgar-mueller-3d-street-art>.

“Edgar Müller.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 30 July 2014. Web. 04 Aug. 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgar_M%C3%BCller>.

“Julian Beever.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 22 July 2014. Web. 04 Aug. 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julian_Beever>.

Harlem: Not Just Home to the Globetrotters

The Harlem Renaissance was one of the greatest culture movements of modern day history. With the mass migration of African Americans from the south to the north, a new economic freedom started to arise with African American. With the rise of economic standing, art flourishes. Culture hotspots started to develop within the African American community in the north. One of these hotspots was Harlem district in New York City. This was the hub of African American culture in the north and had a huge influence on art coming out of this area. Many of artwork from this area depicted life back in the south. This renaissance made sure that the trials and tribulations of the African American people would not be forgotten. As a result, much of the artwork has slavery of freedom subject matters. When looking at the exhibits below, keep in mind the subject matter of the works as they all relate to the lifestyles or history of the African American people.

 

Aspects of Negro Life: Songs of the Towers by Aaron Douglas

Some of the greatest paintings to come out of the Harlem Renaissance were the Aspects of Negro Life series by Aaron Douglas. Aaron Douglas was huge Harlem Renaissance activist and was one of the first to grow the Harlem Renaissance in New York City. His series, Aspects of Negro Life, were a series of four large-scale murals painted in 1934 as a result of the Works Progress Administration for New York Public Library’s 135^th Street branch, which is now known as the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture. Aspects of Negro Life: From Slavery Through Reconstruction depicts the former life of the African Americans before the abolishment of slavery. It shows the turmoil and shows what look like African Americans working in cotton fields. It also shows a man pointing to where the people show go. Aspects of Negro Life: Songs of the Towers is another great piece of work by Aaron Douglas. It depicts a man fleeing from slavery and to a big city. This is symbolic of the move of many African Americans during this time period from the south to the north, particularly Harlem in New York City. The person in the mural is also holding a saxophone, a popular instrument in the new jazz style in Harlem. This further shows the influence of the African American population and the Harlem Renaissance movement during this time period. I like all four pieces from the series Aspects of Negro Life, but my favorite is Songs of the Towers. This symbolic mural wraps almost everything to do with the African American culture of the time into one. The person running symbolizes the run from the south and slavery. The man in the middle holding up his hands toward the city shows that African American population found “salvation” in New York City. Finally, the saxophone depicts the influence of African American community in Harlem district of New York City.

 

Going to Church by William Johnson

Going to Church by William Johnson was another great piece of Harlem Renaissance. William Johnson’s history of art changed throughout his career as an artist. As a result, his work has been influenced by many different events during his life time. In his early works, many of the paintings were influenced by German Expressionism and Impressionism. His early works were considered Van Gogh like and the subject of them were landscapes with long visible brushstrokes. As you can clearly see, this is NOT how Going to Church is painted. Going to Church is clearly a different style and had different influences behind it. Painted in 1941, Going to Church is a blocky style painting. In 1938, Johnson moved from Europe and his European influences to New York where Harlem started influencing his work. As a result, the style of his paintings started to change as seen in Going to Church. The subject of his paintings started becoming areas of home or his culture back in South Carolina. In Going to Church, a family of four is going to church on their ox or cattle. The blocky style of painting with bold colors also symbolizes quilts made by African American women. African American women would patches pieces of cloth together to make their quilts and the painting style of Going to Church mimics that. Overall, Going to Church had a large influence from Harlem through William Johnson’s painting style to remember home. I personally like the painting. Some critics say it is “childlike” or “primitive” and I agree with them! But that doesn’t make it bad art. The factor of the matter is that this style of painting was never really seen before. Although not popular at the time, it stuck out just enough to stay alive and make it into the history books.

 

And the Migrants Kept Coming by Jacob Lawrence 

Born in 1917 and in New Jersey, Jacob Lawrence was born in the setting of the Harlem Renaissance. Although he might have not been directly born in Harlem, ties from the Harlem Renaissance and African American movement to his artwork are very apparent from an early age. In 1941, when Jacob Lawrence was 24, he created And the Migrants Kept Coming. This work of art depicts clearly African American migrants waiting for the train with luggage. It is thought that the people at the train station are moving from the south to the north in attempt to seek economic freedom and escape the old entrapment of the south. Although Jacob Lawrence was not born in the south, this influence from the African American movement to the north and the Harlem Renaissance influenced his work greatly. This work of art was one of many in a series called the Migration Series. This series was a series of paintings depicting the move or migration of the African American migrants from the south to the north. These were all influenced by the Harlem Renaissance as ties back to the African American culture and history were a strong subject matter in Harlem. I like this piece a similar way I do the last. This style feels more quintessential African American style of the artwork. It is also very powerful while being very undetailed. With this, I appreciate the art less from an aesthetic view, but a meaning viewpoint.  

 

Works Cited

“Treasures of The New York Public Library.” Treasures of The New York Public Library. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 July 2014. <http://exhibitions.nypl.org/treasures/items/show/170>.

Libby. “Jitterbugs–William H. Johnson’s World on Paper at PMA.” Theartblog. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 July 2014. <http://www.theartblog.org/2007/05/jitterbugs-william-h-johnsons-world-on-paper-at-pma/>.

Cotter, Holland. “Visions Of a People In Motion.” The New York Times. The New York Times, 27 Dec. 2007. Web. 20 July 2014. <http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/28/arts/design/28lawr.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0>.

Impressionism Leaves Quite The Impression

Impression Sunrise by Claude Monet

Claude Monet leaves quite the impression with his work, Impression Sunrise. Impression Sunrise is an oil-on-canvas painting. Its dimensions are 48 cm high by 63 cm wide. The work was created in 1872 and now resides in the Musee Marmottan Monet, a museum for many of Claude Monet’s works. The subject of the painting is the harbor of Le Havre in France. A fun fact of this piece is that it was actually stolen from the museum in 1985 and wasn’t recovered until 1990. My first impressions of Impression Sunrise are “Wow”. This painting and style of painting is so much different from anything we have seen before. For me, this is where starts becoming more contemporary and interesting. Paintings are more abstract and open up the audience’s mind a little more than before. I really like how, with the style of brush strokes, the waves look like they are moving. I also like how the background is blended with shades of gray and oranges to blend the ships and the sunrise with the marine fog. This work leaves such an impression that it would later basically invent the Impressionism style art of the late 19th century.

The Starry Night by Vincent van Gogh

Impressionist paintings had small and thin, yet visible brush strokes. Lighting was always a theme of Impressionist paintings. Impressionist paintings, like Impression Sunrise, accentuated lighting. The subjects of their paintings were usually outdoors with light reflecting off water or around and object or with some special aspect of lighting. Impressionist paintings also exhibited the sense of a quickly changing atmosphere. Impressionist paintings like Impression Sunrise, the lighting seems to reflect off the water in ripples making it seem like the water is moving. The same is true about post-impressionist paintings like Vincent van Gogh’s paintings. In particular, The Starry Night, included the impression of twinkling stars. A piece of work that exhibits both these qualities is Starry Night over the Rhone by van Gogh. Another distinctive characteristic of impressionist paintings is the unfinished nature to them. Before, paintings were very polished and finished works seemed to be properly, well, finished. Paintings during impressionism were not this way, at least not at first. Paintings seemed like a quick thought or sketch. They looked like they were the first impression of an artist’s idea. This would later help mold the name of this era. Lastly, paintings during the impressionist time were usually landscape based and not history painting. After all, this style of painting broke away from the Academy’s norm in almost every way.

 

Octopod by Mikael Hvidtfeldt Christensen

Lets contrast and compare impressionism with an even more contemporary style of art, Algorithmic art, a subset of Visionary art. Visionary art is a style of art that tries to transcend the audience from the physical world to better connect it to the spiritual or mystical world/themes. Although this style of art was seen before, in 1946, the Vienna School of Fantastic Realism was established. This school is considered to be a strong and important catalyst for contemporary visionary art. Symbolism, Surrealism, and Psychedelic art are all direct precursors of contemporary visionary art. With the rise of the technology age, a sub-form of Psychedelic art was created called Algorithmic art, or also Cyberdelic. In this form, a computer is used to create Psychedelic style art. This form of art was bridge between the Psychedelic art of the 1960s and the advancement of digital technologies of the modern age. A good example of this is Octopod by Mikael Hvidtfeldt Christensen. With the rise of the digital age, it is hard to know when and who truly made it. I would infer that it was created sometime in the mid-1990s. Another example of this new Algorithmic art is Tree of Life by Jamy Sheridan. This work was created in 1995. As far as pure art, I enjoy Impressionism style art much better than algorithmic art. To me, when computers are involved, art gets less personal and more manufactured.

 

Tree of Life by Jamy Sheridan

As far as timing, both Impressionistic and Algorithmic art was very contemporary considering their history. Impressionism art pioneered the styles and characteristics listed above, while Algorithmic art pioneered art in the digital age. Now, moving pictures or lights of rainbow colors could accompany psychedelic music. And with the increasing popularity and affordability of the personal computer, people at home could now create their own algorithmic art. I remembered when I was little in the mid 1990s looking at the visual music player with the lines of different colors flowing across the screen with different shapes and sizes. It put me in a seemingly hypnotic state. Comparing the features, Impressionism art has fluid movement, while in algorithmic art the shapes are usually concrete. Colors used in Impressionism style art were mostly blues, greys, oranges, and browns. They were very light colors. In Algorithmic art, colors can widely vary. We see mostly mellow tones in Octopod while we seen harsh psychedelic colors in Tree of Life. Overall, both styles of art were revolutionary and will be remembered for long times to come.

 

Works Cited

“Algorithmic Art.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 13 July 2014. Web. 14 July 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Algorithmic_art&gt;.

“Algorithmic Art: Composing the Score for Fine Art.” Algorithmic Art: Composing the Score for Fine Art. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 July 2014. <http://www.verostko.com/algorithm.html&gt;.

“Impressionism.” Smarthistory. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 July 2014. <http://smarthistory.khanacademy.org/impressionism-france.html&gt;.

“The Starry Night.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 13 July 2014. Web. 14 July 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Starry_Night&gt;.

 

The Influences of the Rising Middle Class

The rising of the middle class was one of the most impactful influences in the classical era. Artists and composers didn’t just write, sculpt, or paint for the wealthy or the church anymore. The Classical era was one of the first times in history where art is was now being written and composed for the middle class. Music was affected heavily during this “enlightenment” period. As a result, music was less complex, but still very much dynamic, and probably more entertaining than ever. As a result forms of music such as the symphony, sonata, and solo concerto were all formed as a result of the rising middle class. The following pieces of work each have their own unique contributions to society as well as influences by the middle class.

Ludwig van Beethoven’s Ode to Joy

This is one of the best and well known musical compositions of all time. This piece was heavily influenced by the middle class. All of Beethoven’s works were! Beethoven is known as the culmination of the Classical music era. If one has every seen a documentary on Beethoven you know that Beethoven was not a rich composer for aristocracy or religion. He did things his way and he is known for that. Beethoven’s 9th Symphony debuted on May 7th, 1824 in front of much of the public.  He wrote this not for royalty or religion, but for the good of music and for people to enjoy good music. Also, as the middle class economic standing grew and the focus of target audience of the arts shifted, new forms of music were created. One of them was the symphony like this one by Beethoven. Ode to Joy by Beethoven has to be my favorite by Mr. Beethoven. It was his last hurrah. His final salute. It is so great and even better that it has been entombed into the pages of history.

Franz Joseph Haydn’s Piano Sonata No. 52

Piano Sonata No. 52 by Franz Joseph Haydn is his last and considered his best sonata. A sonata is a form of musical created during the Classical Era as a result of the rise of the middle class. It usually consists of a keyboard instrument or a solo instrument accompanied by a keyboard instrument. It has three parts: an exposition, a development, and a recapitulation. Haydn’s last sonata as seen or heard above is an exemplary example of the characteristics of a sonata which was created as a result of the rising of the middle class. Piano Sonata No. 52 by Haydn was written in 1794. It consisted of three movements: Allegro, Adagio, and Presto. Overall, I like Haydn’s Piano Sonata No. 52. Before this class, I can’t say I have heard of him, but his music and compositions definitely sound familiar. His last sonata is peppy and delightful and will forever be engraved in my brain.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 21

Mozart’s Piano Concerto No. 21 was created on March 9, 1785 and boy was it a thing of beauty. It is his most famous piano concerto. His concerto was broken up into three parts: Allegro maestoso, Andante, and Allegro vivace assai. This breaking up into three or four parts shows the influence of the middle class on music during the Classical Era. Once again, as the middle class grew in standing, music became less complex and simpler and structured. As you can see here, this piece by Mozart has three movements that can be distinguished. It is also simpler as it focuses on a single piano soloist. These are both influences from the increasing middle class standing. I, although haven’t heard the piece this class, still found it joyful and enlightening. Music during the time period was so “classic” and it soothed me as I wrote each one of these entries about each piece. Overall, this era of music had a huge impact on the history of music and I hope it can be seen how the middle class influenced these works with the creation of different forms of music due to the want for simpler, more structured, focused music.

 

Works Cited

Alessandro152. “Mozart: Piano Concerto N. No. 21 in C Major, K.467 Pollini-Muti.” YouTube. YouTube, 12 Sept. 2011. Web. 04 July 2014. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2uYb6bMKyI>.

Dobney, Jayson K. “Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History.” Nineteenth-Century Classical Music. N.p., Oct. 2004. Web. 03 July 2014. <http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/amcm/hd_amcm.htm>.

“Keyboard Sonata in E-flat Major, Hob.XVI:52 (Haydn, Joseph).” – IMSLP/Petrucci Music Library: Free Public Domain Sheet Music. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 July 2014. <http://imslp.org/wiki/Keyboard_Sonata_in_E-flat_major%2C_Hob.XVI%3A52_%28Haydn%2C_Joseph%29>.

Musically Speaking. “Ludwig Van Beethoven.” Ludwig Van Beethoven. Musically Speaking, n.d. Web. 03 July 2014. <http://www.musicallyspeaking.com/id60.html>.

“Piano Concerto No. 21 (Mozart).” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 21 June 2014. Web. 04 July 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Piano_Concerto_No._21_%28Mozart%29>.

SaraDavisBuechner. “Haydn’s Last Piano Sonata, No. 52 in E-flat Major (Hob XVI/52 ), Allegro.” YouTube. YouTube, n.d. Web. 04 July 2014. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXws1ZqZ3PI>.

The Spirit of Classical Music. “Beethoven – Symphony No. 9: Ode To Joy.”YouTube. YouTube, 4 Oct. 2012. Web. 03 July 2014. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVL7gLwzct0>.

“Symphony No. 9 (Beethoven).” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 07 Mar. 2014. Web. 03 July 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symphony_No._9_%28Beethoven%29>.

 

Bernini’s David

Bernini’s David

Bernini’s David is another great iteration of the heroic biblical character, David. The marble sculpture was created between 1623 and 1624 in Rome, Italy. It stands about 67 inches high. In the sculpture, David is in the act of throwing. Note that this is vastly different than the previous iterations of David, but more on that later. The statue was one of many commissions to decorate the Galleria Borghese in Rome, Italy. According to the records, Bernini started his David in mid-1623 and his biographer, Filippo Baldinucci, stated that he had finished the piece in seven months.

Bernini was young when he started David, only 24 years of age. But he had huge backing from Cardinal Scipione Borghese, who could be considered religious royalty. In fact, as a huge patron for the arts, Cardinal Scipione Borghese had the sculpture commissioned for the Galleria Borghese. Bernini had actually stopped working on his current work Apollo and Daphne to work on David. With this, one could say that Scipione Borghese had a large influence in whether Bernini created David. Also, before Bernini was finished with David, his good friend, Maffeo Barberini was elected pope, as Pope Urban VIII. Since Pope Urban VIII also being a strong patron of the arts, he influenced and encouraged Bernini on his works. This tells us why Bernini created David, but not how he created it or what influenced the actual subject matter. To this we turn to the Council of Trent. Bernini was a strong devout Catholic and the Council of Trent indirectly shaped the subject of his artwork and, in turn, David. Bernini attended mass every day and took communion twice a week. Bernini agreed with the ideas of the Council of Trent. The Encyclopedia Britannica sums it up nicely. “He would agree with the formulations of the Council of Trent (1545–63) that the purpose of religious art was to teach and inspire the faithful and to serve as propaganda for the Roman Catholic Church. Religious art should always be intelligible and realistic, and, above all, it should serve as an emotional stimulus to piety. The development of Bernini’s religious art was largely determined by his conscientious efforts to conform to those principles” (Hibbard). Overall, Bernini’s David had a large influence by outside forces whether it be the religious “royalty” promoting the arts and advocating for Bernini to create David or whether it be the Council and Trent and even the Catholic Church as a whole influencing a young Bernini as a person and, in turn, influencing the artwork he created.

Bernini’s David is vastly different from Michelangelo’s David and it is hard, if I was comparing them (which I will do in a second), to whose is better. Overall, the artwork, visual, is phenomenal of course. The physiology of the sculpture is amazing. It is quite an impressive sculpture considering that “action shots” although sometimes painted, were not usually sculpted. In terms of difficulty, I think Bernini’s David was much harder to sculpt than Michelangelo’s due to the movement and the action of the piece. I would say, though, that Michelangelo’s execution, in my opinion, is better than Bernini’s. Michelangelo’s detail is finer on a much larger piece, although it is a possibility that this is not what Bernini wanted in his piece.

Bernini’s David and Michelangelo’s David are fascinatingly different. The first thing to notice in Bernini’s sculpture compared to Michelangelo’s is that David is depicted in the act of throwing the stone instead of before the act, like Michelangelo’s sculpture. This shows the changing of eras in which the two different David’s were created. First, Michelangelo’s David was created when humanism and new ways of thinking were on the rise. This is depicted strongly in the facial expression of the sculpture. Michelangelo’s David has a furrowed look on his face indicating that he is thinking before the fight with Goliath. This idea of thinking in a new way, or “work smarter not harder”, was a theme of the Italian Renaissance era and is seen heavily in Michelangelo’s work. On the other hand, Bernini’s David is depicted in the action of throwing the stone. Although this might not have been Bernini’s intention, but the sculpture could symbolically represent a push back to the old Catholic ways, back to “taking a leap of faith” mentality. David in Bernini’s piece is in the act of throwing so we do not know whether he thought about his decision or he just let God help him in his action. Experts say that the clothing in Bernini’s sculpture is God’s will and help around him. Although unlikely, Bernini’s David could have also been a literal attempt to “one-up” Michelangelo’s David. Overall, both works are absolutely amazing and it is truly an honor to have seen, analyzed, and written about these two works of art. I hope these sculptures last for many millennia to come and I hope to one day see both of these works in person.

 

Works Cited

“Bernini’s David.” Bernini. Khan Academy, n.d. Web. 23 June 2014. <http://smarthistory.khanacademy.org/Bernini-David.html>.

“David (Bernini).” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 20 June 2014. Web. 23 June 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_%28Bernini%29>.

“David (Michelangelo).” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 06 Oct. 2014. Web. 12 June 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_%28Michelangelo%29>.

Hibbard, Howard. “Patronage of Urban VIII.” Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Oct. 2013. Web. 23 June 2014. <http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/62547/Gian-Lorenzo-Bernini/8222/Patronage-of-Urban-VIII>.

McClinton, Brian. “Michelangelo’s David.” Humanism Ireland • No 117 • July-August 2009 Humanist Masterpieces (n.d.): n. pag. Humanism Ireland. Web. 12 June 2014. <http://www.humanistni.org/filestore/file/david%20michelangelo.pdf>.

“Michelangelo, David.” Khan Academy. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 June 2014. <https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/art-history/art-history-1500-1600-end-of-the-renaissance-and-the-reformation/high-renaissance/v/michelangelo–david–marble–1501-04–galleria-dell-accademia–florence>.

 

 

 

Michelangelo’s David: Humanism at its finest

David by Michelangelo

Michelangelo’s David is one of the greatest sculptures from the Italian Renaissance and probably of all time. The marble sculpture was created between 1501 and 1504 in Florence, Italy. It stands about 17.0 feet high. The sculpture depicts a the biblical hero, David. In the sculpture, David has a furrowed brow and concerned look on his face. The statue was originally unveiled outside Palazzo della Signoria, the seat of civic government in Florence, on September 8th, 1504. The eyes of the statue actually point towards Rome symbolizing the the defense of civil liberties of the Florentine Republic from rival states and the influence of the Medici family. Soon after its unveiling, Michelangelo’s David became a strong symbol for the people of Florence.

Michelangelo’s David is the perfect depiction of humanism for a couple reasons. First and foremost, Michelangelo’s David depicts rationality. The sculpture seems to show David after he has decided to fight Goliath, but before he has actually fought him. In the statue, David seems to be thinking or concerned. By this, Michelangelo can present rationality in his sculpture. David isn’t about to fight Goliath in a brutish way, but and intelligent smart way with skill and reason. If you don’t know the story of David and Goliath, David defeats Goliath, a huge man feared by all others except David, by hitting him in the head with a stone and slingshot. This shows humanism in the sculpture due the rationality that is depicted by David’s stance and facial expression. David represents humanist ideal of a man who can become a hero by his intelligence and will power. Another humanist value that David represents is civic virtue. David was created by the humanist, Michelangelo, to symbolize the defense of civil liberties of the Florentine Republic. The statue made its debut outside the Palazzo della Signoria, the place of civic government in Florence. David not only represented the ideal humanist man through rationality, but also through civic duty. In the story of David and Goliath, David is the only one to step up and fight Goliath confirming his symbolism of civic duty. Lastly, David depicts a properly proportioned human, but in a empowering way. Through David’s humanistic proportions and naked body, David showed the people of Florentine that the human body was a gift and is something that shouldn’t be hidden. Although David is large and depicts a hero, his proportions and physique are comparable to that of a common man showing that anyone can be a “hero” through will power and intelligence.

I think David by Michelangelo is one of the best works of art fromt he Renaissance. The sculpture is powerful yet very simple. It is simplistic in that it just depicts a standing man more or less. It is also simplistic in that the man is purely naked. The powerfulness comes from the interpretation and symbolism of the sculpture. Although, David is sculpted as just a standing man, his brow is furrowed and he is thinking. The grip in his right hand shows that he is just about ready to spring into action and fight Goliath. His look is concentrated, focusing on his enemy, Goliath. His naked body also conveys the naturalistic and humanistic ideas of the time. The level of detail in his body is incredible. His muscles, joints, bone structure, posture are so incredibly human-like and accurate. Even without the story behind the sculpture or the symbolism of what the sculpture represents, Michelangelo’s David is work of art purely in the attention to detail in the human body. Overall, Michelangelo’s David epitomizes the essence of humanism and is one of the greatest sculptures of all time.

 

Works Cited

“David (Michelangelo).” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 06 Oct. 2014. Web. 12 June 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_%28Michelangelo%29>.

McClinton, Brian. “Michelangelo’s David.” Humanism Ireland • No 117 • July-August 2009 Humanist Masterpieces (n.d.): n. pag. Humanism Ireland. Web. 12 June 2014. <http://www.humanistni.org/filestore/file/david%20michelangelo.pdf>.

“Michelangelo, David.” Khan Academy. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 June 2014. <https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/art-history/art-history-1500-1600-end-of-the-renaissance-and-the-reformation/high-renaissance/v/michelangelo–david–marble–1501-04–galleria-dell-accademia–florence>.

 

Introduction

Hello everyone! My name is Bradley Cruickshanks. I was born and raised in Eagle River, Alaska. I am currently a petroleum engineering major at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. I have been a life-long Alaskan. I love to hike, camp, fish, ski, snowboard, and play just about any sport. During the school semesters, I play intramural soccer, volleyball, broom ball, and ultimate frisbee. I am also a tutor in the math lab on the UAF main campus. Currently, I am down in Anchorage working full time and trying to make the most of what has been a pretty good summer so far.

As far as the arts go, I gravitate toward movies and music the most. I particularly enjoy films that make one think. Also, movies in recent years have been amazing in terms of graphics and visual effects. For me, these are great films and movies are the new paintings and sculptures of our time. Music is also one of my favorite types of a art. Music has amazing abilities to change one’s emotions. It can add suspense to a movie or raise excitement. A song can bring a nation together or just your local football team. Although these two types of media are not often referred to as “works of art”, I believe they are very much so. Lastly, although I don’t read much, my favorite type of books are dystopias. One of my favorites is 1984 by George Orwell

Lastly, here is some food for thought for those of you checking out my post.