Friday, November 29, 2013
#4 Paramount Logo
1912–1916
1914
1914–1917
1917–1967
1968–present
1968–1975
1975–1982
1982–1989
1986–1987
1989
1989–1995
1994–2010
2002-2003
2010–present
2011–2012
#6 Leonardo v.s. Michelangelo
Leonardo v.s. Michelangelo
Leonardo da Vinci can easily be referred to as the renaissance man; he was regarded as more or less, the most skilled painter in renaissance times, and a highly accomplished scientist. Among other things, Leonardo was well schooled and grew up as an apprentice under other great artists. He mastered music by playing the lute and filled notebook after notebook with ideas theories, and fascinating concepts of the world around him. Though Leonardo was also an artful sculptor, he regarded painting as the highest form of art, and he did so for many reasons. As a scientist, Leonardo could not be idealistic, he looked at the world as it was, and found reason in how it worked and how things appeared, such as depth and perspective. He used these observations to depict realism in his art, and he used his imagination and skill to make his paintings as real and lifelike as humanly possible. With sculpture Leonardo believed there were limits, with painting, he had endless possibilities, and with these endless possibilities at his fingertips he could add certain symbols, and characteristics.
Michelangelo on the other hand, much preferred sculpting over painting, his belief was that sculpture was the highest form of art. For Michelangelo, sculpture was much more gratifying, and he loved getting his hands dirty and laboring in his works. He could apply his beliefs of neoplatonism to sculpting simply by creating something amazing and great, out of what began as a meaningless piece of marble. Two of his greatest sculptures are his David, and Pieta. Both of these sculptures are awesome in their own right, and for many reasons, like Michelangelo’s use of idealism. You can see this in his portrayal of David; when David triumphed over Goliath, he was merely a boy, though Michelangelo depicted him as the strong but steady king he would become. Michelangelo also fused Pagan and Christian beliefs by portraying the biblical David as being entirely nude. Though Michelangelo preferred sculpture he also painted when commissioned to, and his idealism, neo-platonic ideas, and fusion of Pagan and Christian beliefs showed here as well. All of these ideas can be seen on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in nude figures, and the overall way some of the pieces are painted. Because of the vaulted ceiling Michelangelo had to paint so that at ground level looking up, the paintings would appear to the eye, to be flat. Though Michelangelo’s style and approach to art was much different than Leonardo’s, his love for sculpting, and supreme abilities in both sculpting and painting proved him to be one of the top artists of his time.
The Last Supper, by Leonardo da Vinci is an oil and tempera on plaster, and depicts Jesus and his twelve disciples sitting at a table, at the moment where Jesus announces that one of them will betray him. Jesus and his disciples are all shown on one side of the table facing the viewer, with Jesus seated in the middle and two groups of six disciples at each of his sides. The way the disciples are grouped shows perfect mathematical division, as well as the four tapestries on each side that lead to the back of the room. The shape of Christ’s body is in the geometric shape of a triangle, depicting the holy trinity, and the three windows behind him show the same thing. The windows were painted with a shading technique called sfumato, making them look as though they are at a distance, which once again conveys the feeling of depth and realism in the painting. Leonardo also showed a great deal of individualism and humanism, by giving each disciple their own facial features, and distinct facial expressions. If Michelangelo would have painted the Last Supper, it would with no doubt, have a different look and feel. There would be little or no depth to the painting, and without the use of linear perspective, which Michelangelo did not use, it would appear to be flat. The way the painting is divided mathematically would be completely different. Instead of having equal division, there would probably be some amount of flawed mathematics, with the painting somehow still looking correct to the eye. The disciples would all look much more masculine, but would not have any individual traits, and the image of Jesus would be idealized, to look bigger or higher than his disciples.
Even though Leonardo and Michelangelo had different styles and approaches to art, they both were amazing artists for their time. They had their rivalries, but in the end they both created amazing works of art in their own way, and revolutionized painting and sculpture. Their works of art can hardly be matched, even in modern times.
Michelangelo
Creation of Adam
1510
Fresco
Cappella Sistina, Vatican
Marble
Michelangelo
Pietà
Marbel
1498–1499
Leonardo Da Vinci
The Last Supper
1494-1498
Tempera on gesso
Leonardo Da Vinci
The Mona Lisa
1503-1506
Oil on paper
Leonardo Da Vinci
Sketches
On paper
#3 Leonardo v.s. Jacob Lawrence
Leonardo v.s. Jacob Lawrence
Leonardo showed genius in many things. Eventually, his father was worn down by the boy's undeniable talent, and took him to Florence to study painting, sculpting and engineering under the great Andrea del Verrocchio. Leonardo quickly outstripped his master and was admitted to the Florence painters' guild in 1472. He lived long enough to be appreciated and well-paid, a rarity among artists. Throughout it all, he kept notebooks, in "mirror" writing, to keep track of his ideas, designs, and numerous sketches. Only about a dozen paintings can be definitely attributed to him, there is however hundreds of drawings, weather he was working on his engineering or designs of military weapons he was always drawing or sketching. In a notebook that was published after his death that we call Treatise on Painting you see an array of drawings he had done for numerous jobs or ideas he had. Drawing may not have been the career Leonardo wanted but its what he became more known for. In my opinion Da Vinci was a fine painter but had extraordinary talent when it came to drawing and sketching. When I look at his drawings I feel like I know what he was feeling and thinking, I feel as if i'm getting an insight into who he really was. But with his paintings they seem dull and done for the wrong purpose. To be excellent at anything you have to let your heart do the talking and that is what Da Vinci did when he would draw. Much like Leonardo Da Vinci, Jacob Lawrence was able to put his heart on the page, but not with a drawing, Lawrence excelled in painting. Both artists produced work because they loved doing it, so in that sense they are very much alike, but when it comes to their styles they are almost polar opposites. Leonardo is very structured in his drawings, making every muscle and vein placed in the correct anatomical position. Whereas Lawrence is much more abstract, and since he works in paint he utilizes color. Leonardo worked during the Italian renaissance, and Jacob Lawrence produced his work during the Harlem Renaissance, a period in which African American were having an artistic and cultural awakening. As a young boy Jacob Lawrence attended an after-school program at Utopia Children's Center where he would paint on cardboard boxes, and whatever else he could find to paint on. He kept up painting when he could, but was forced to drop out of school to help support the family after his mother lost her job during the Great Depression. Luck, and the persistent help of sculptor Augusta Savage, got Lawrence an "easel job" as a part of the Works Progress Administration. His love of art, reading and history, combined with his quiet determination to show that African Americans, too, were a major factor in the history of the Western art, led him to embark on his first important series, The Life of Toussaint L'Ouverture. In the year 1941 Jacob Lawrence broke the "color barrier" when his seminal, 60-panel The Migration of the Negro was exhibited at the well known Downtown Gallery. Lawrence spent the rest of his life painting, teaching and writing. He is best known for his representational compositions, full of simplified shapes, and bold colors and his use of watercolor and gouache. Unlike nearly any other modern or contemporary artist, he always worked in series of paintings, each with a distinct theme. He will forever be known as the visual artist who "told" stories of the dignity, hopes, and struggles of African Americans in American history. Both These amazing artist have made huge impacts in the art world and to this day they affect the way artists go about making a piece that people respond to.
Leonardo Da Vinci
Anatomy drawings
:Study of arms and shoulders
(1452-1519 Italian)
Leonardo Da Vinci
Study of a human skull
1489
Leonardo Da Vinci
circa 1474
Study of hands
Silverpoint and white highlights on pink prepared paper
Jacob Lawrence
Forward
1967
Tempera on Masonite panel
Jacob Lawrence
“Play”
(1999)
silk Screen
Citations:
1. Esaak, Shelley. "Art History." Ask.com. N.p.. Web. 30 Sep 2013. <http://arthistory.about.com/cs/namesll/p/lawrence_j.htm >.
2. Getlein, Mark . Living with Art. 9th edition. new York, NY: McGraw Hill, 2010. 141,162. Print.
#7 Inspiration
Inspiration
Salvador Dalí was one of the most eccentric artists ever. He sported a spectacular handle bar mustache, beginning in the 1920’s, and is best known for his achievements in Surrealism Art. He used many methods to reflect his ideas, including paint, charcoal, film, and sculpture, all which were amusing and avant garde in their time.
In 1919, at the age of 14, Dalí’s dad held an exhibition in their own house for him. The next year he attended Academia de San Fernando for four years. Here he learned his technique and skills for all the other mixed medias he was going to use in the future. But, before the final exams were over, Dalí was expelled, for he had proclaimed that no teacher was competent enough to examine him. He left Spain, and went to Paris. There, he met Picasso, who had been his biggest influence up to then. To his surprise, Picasso had already heard of him through another artist, Joan Miró, and that he had spoke favorably of him. Besides Picasso, Dalí was influenced by Raphael, a Renaissance artist, Vermeer, a Dutch Baroque artist, and Velazquez, a Spanish Baroque artist. His work does not reflect their influence on him too much, but those were the artists he appreciated most.
In 1929, he met Luis Buñuel. Together, they made and produced a movie called Un Chien Andalou. It was 17 minutes long, and it incorporated all the Surrealists ideals. In it, ants come out of a watch, which later he painted in his painting, the Persistence of Memory. It is black and white, and in the beginning of the film, a boy on a bicycle is hit by a car, and ants start coming out from his hand. The film has no plot, and is suppose to make the viewer seem like they are dreaming. On the set of making this short film, he met Gala, a Russian immigrant whom he fell in love with. She was eleven years older than him, and she was married to a Surrealist poet at the time. His father disapproved of her and her connection with the Surrealists. Two years later, Dalí met Edward James, who became his new patron. He commissioned several works of art that resembled the Dada era. For instance, the Lobster Telephone. A person would talk into the lobster’s genitals, and listen through the head. Another piece was Mea West Lips Sofa. Dalí had a fascination with her lips, so he made them into a couch. The reason I chose salvador Dali for this assignment is because he was constantly being inspired by new artists, and that is how I am. I have such a hard time telling people who I am inspired by because it is constantly changing.
Salvador Dali
1931
Oil on Canvas
Salvador Dali (1943)
"Geopoliticus Child Watching the Birth of the New Man"
Painting
1929
oil on canvas
Salvador Dali
Self Portrait
Photograph
#8 Georgia O’keefe & Kathe Kollwitz
Georgia O’keefe & Kathe Kollwitz
Georgia O’Keeffe was born in Sun Prairie, Wisconsin in 1867. The second of seven children, O’Keeffe longed to be an artist from an early age. In 1905 she attended the Art Institute of Chicago and a year later went to study at the Art Students League of New York. Though her student work was well received she found it unfulfilling, and for a short time abandoned the fine arts. She worked briefly as a commercial artist in Chicago before moving to Texas to teach. During the summer of 1915, O’Keeffe took classes at the Teachers College of Columbia University in South Carolina, and there began her re-entry into the world of painting. While in South Carolina she met Arthur Dow, a specialist in Oriental Art. Dow’s interest in non-European art helped O’Keeffe move away from the forms she had found so stifling in her previous studies. Soon after O’Keeffe’s return to Texas, she made a handful of charcoal drawings, which she sent to a friend in New York. That friend ended up getting her work shown at a gallery and in time persuaded O’keefe to move to New York. While there O’Keeffe painted some of her most famous work. During the 1920s, her large canvasses of lush overpowering flowers filled the still life's with dynamic energy and erotic tension, while her cityscapes were testaments to subtle beauty within the most industrial circumstances. In 1929 O’Keeffe took a vacation with her friend to Taos, New Mexico. The trip would forever alter the course of her life. In love with the open skies and sun-drenched landscape, O’Keeffe returned every summer to travel and to paint. When Steiglitz, her husband died in 1946, O’Keeffe took up permanent residence there. More than almost any of her other works, these early New Mexico landscapes and still lifes have come to represent her unique gifts. The rich texture of the clouds and sky were similar to her earlier, more sensuous representations of flowers. But beneath these clouds one found the bleached bones of animals long gone. Throughout the 1950s and 1960s, O’Keeffe’s fame continued to grow. In March of 1986, at the age of 98, O’Keeffe passed away at St. Vincent’s Hospital in Santa Fe, New Mexico. For many, her paintings represent the beginnings of a new American art free from the irony and cynicism of the late 20th century.
flower of life II
1925
Cow's Skull: Red, White, and Blue, 1931
Georgia O'Keeffe
Oil on canvas
Alfred Stieglitz Collection, 1952
Georiga O'Keefe
Pelvis with Moon
Oil on Canvas
1943
Kathe Kollwitz's imagery is marked by poverty stricken, sickly women who are barely able to care for or nourish their children. Kollwitz's art resounds with compassion as she makes appeals on behalf of the working poor, the suffering and the sick. Her work serves as an indictment of the social conditions in Germany during the late 19th and early 20th century. The daughter of a well to do mason, Kathe Schmidt was born in East Prussia. Her father encouraged her to draw and when she was 14 years old she began art lessons. She attended The Berlin School of Art in 1884 and later went to study in Munich. After her marriage to Dr. Karl Kollwitz, the couple settled in Berlin living in one of the poorest sections of the city. It was here that Kollwitz developed her strong social conscious which is so fiercely reflected in her work. Her art features dark, oppressive subject matter depicting the revolts and uprisings of contemporary relevance. Images of death, war and injustice dominate her work. She worked with a variety of media including sculpture, and lithography.It may be argued that her work was an expression of her own life experience. Her personal life was marred by hardship and heartache. She came into contact with some of the cities most needy people and was exposed to great suffering due to the nature of her husband's work. She lost her son to World War I and her grandson to World War II and these losses contributed to her works as well. Kathe Kollwitz became the first woman elected to the Prussian Academy but because of her beliefs, and her art, she was expelled from the academy in 1933. Harassed by the Nazi regime, Kollwitz's home was bombed in 1943. She was forbidden to exhibit, and her art was classified as "degenerate." Despite these events, Kollwitz remained in Berlin unlike artists such as Max Beckman and George Grosz who fled the country. She was proud of her work and stood up for what she believed to be right.
Artist : Käthe Kollwitz (Germany, b.1867, d.1945)
sketch on paper
Date : 1920
1924
Charcoal on Paper
1908
The Prisoners
Etching on paper
Käthe Kollwitz
The Survivors
Charcoal on Paper
1923
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