Wifredo Lam is a Cuban artist who was raised in Sagua La Grande which is the sugar farming area of Villa Clara, Cuba. His father was a Chinese immigrant his mother’s parents were former Cuban slaves. Lam’s art was influence by Afro-Cubans, using Cubist and surrealist ideas in creating iconography of the Afro-Cuban religion, not belonging to a single art movement. His beliefs were that society focused to much on individuality and he focused on society as a whole.
I chose this artist because his art style has a cartoon appeal to it. It appears be mostly abstract, yet there is an obvious meaning behind them. His use of geometric/cartoon shapes and dark pastel colors makes his work very eye catching. This artist was primarily a painter, but also did sculpture and ceramics.
His materpiece was La Jungla” (“The Jungle”, 1943). This piece focuses on the closeness of humans, animals, and plants. His intention for this painting was to depict a spiritual state.
I decided on African art because I have always had an interest and appreciation for the coloration and style of this art. I picked James Cudjoe, who was born in Takoradi, Ghana, on September 7th, 1971. In 1966 Cudjoe graduated from a private art college called Ghanatta. This artist does a variety of work, from energetic colorful paintings to calm, subdued paintings. I found a piece by this artist that I really liked for several reasons. The name of the piece got my attention right away, “Dance to the Rhythm, ” I found the title appealing because it’s has a positive and free feel to it, not to mention I like to dance. The bright, sunny pastel colors give a nice movement, which match the theme. The use of multiple colors with different brush strokes leave an image of an african women, decorated with beads, and a blue hat. She seems to be swaying more than dancing, however, there is definate movement in the painting, as she blends into the sunset background.
The theme for this exhibit is street art, which is art that can be viewed more publicly than going into a gallery. This art can exist in the form of painting, chalk, or even others on the street that is exposed directly to the public. This form of art is greatly appreciated, not only because it can be viewed easily publicly, but because the public can watch the making of it.
Kurt Wenner started his love for art in 1982 in Rome, though his talent was noticed much earlier as a teenager. He was well known for his three dimensional paintings which started a whole new trend of art. Kurt attended college at Rhode Island’s School of Design and Art. Kurt became NASA’s scientific space illustrator after attending college, then decided to follow his own path for love of his art. The base and a big majority of Wenner’s art came from his knowledge of the classical era of the Renaissance. It was in 1984 that Wenner created illusionist street paintings.
Jean Michel Basquiat was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1960. He was known as a graffiti artist in his teenager years. Gallery owners slowly began to notice his art on the streets, which made him a big deal. A lot of his work were based on the exploitation of black heroes. He worked with Andy Warhol, who was a big influence on him. In the early 1980’s he had his art exhibits in New York, Japan, Europe, and California. He died of a drug overdose in 1988, possibly over how distraught he was over Andy Warhol’s death, and was buried in his hometown Brooklyn.
American Jazz originated from the southern United States, but based on the rhythm and vocals from Western Africa. This influenced African Americans during the Harlem Renaissance because it brought African Americans to to the northern cities known as Harlem. Scott Joplin(1868-1917) was the son of a slave who wrote Maple Lead Rag, which was America’s first pop hit. I enjoy Maple Lead Rag because it’s very uplifting unlike most music I hear. This song has a rhythm that makes you want to smile and dance. Anything musical that has that effect on you should be considered worth of listening to.
I love the idea of impressionism. I think the concept is great because it means to be unforgettable, which makes it of value. If one is left with an impression relative to anything, especially art, that means it had some sort of effect, good or bad on someone. I enjoy the Japanese prints, not only because they are were the roots of impressionism but because it makes me think of my uncle, who is Japanese, and who I see as a very bold person that has always had a way of leaving an impression on me. I chose Claude Monet’s painting, Rue Montorgueil, Paris, Festival of June 30, 1878. Without knowing the meaning of this picture, with the coloration and movement of the figures, gives you the idea of some celebration. If you don’t really look to hard at this picture it looks as if everything is flowing together to one central point, but it is really just the depth of the picture your seeing.
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s fortieth symphony is by far my favorite piece of music composition of this time. This was created on July 25, in 1788, in Vienna, Paris.
I enjoy the dramatic feel that is given off and yet how calming it is. Something about this style of music wouldn’t put me to sleep because of it’s intensity. It has slower moments, which feel like a clarity of thoughts, then it almost becomes more progressively anxious. I am relating this based on how I feel when I listen to it. This work connects to the rise of the middle class because it has a sophisticated sound and yet he also wrote comedy which would be more appealing to the Neoclassical era, in which the people were nervous about. Just as the plays of that time had restrictions because of their jokes on politics, I think that Mozart’s music made that era easier for the people and lightened it up a bit.
I chose Peter Paul Rebuns’s piece The Fall of the Damned as my favorite composition. He created this amazing, yet somewhat morbid painting in 1620, in Alte Pinakothek, Munich, Bavaria, Germany. This corresponds best to the thirty years war because of it’s religious element. The story behind the picture is that it was god’s decision or judgement rather to send guilty people to hell. I think this painting is not only visually fascinating, with very intriquet detail, but with intense meaning. In the painting you can actaully see the people falling from the light of heaven and being pulled, or sucked almost into the abyss.
Catherine Hemessen is a female artist of the northern Renaissance. In 1548, at Basel, she created the self portrait, labeled Self Portrait, of either gender. Catherine Hemessen’s artist connects to humanism because it is the focus on humans and individuality. Humanism is the primary focus on human importance and dignity. As her work connects to humanism, it shows that the times have adapted and women artist are becoming openly accepted. I find the Self Portrait appealing not only for the fact that she is a female artist who created the first self portrait, but because she put some thought into the painting. The painting is Hemessen sitting at her easel.
This is my first blog for this semester, I am currently enjoying the sound of the band Seether, and my afternoon coffee. Hello to everyone and have a super day!!
