Post #22

Yasunao Tone is a Japanese artist who has expressed his art through different media types. First of all, he was born in Tokyo, Japan in 1935. In 1957, he graduated from Chiba Japanese National University, majoring in Japanese literature. He became involved in the Fluxus movement during the 1960s, moving to the United States in 1972. He is most recognized for his musical work. To create distinct sounds, he used music players that extracted pieces from CDs and used those to create new selections. As a result of modern devices not being able to perform this, he uses old equipment. In honor of his work he has been awarded multiple grants from prestigious foundations. This includes the Foundation for Contemporary Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Arts

Post #21

http://listverse.com/2007/12/08/top-10-inkblot-test-cards/

      To begin with, my subconscious sees the head of a wolf. The bottom set of triangles are the eyes, while the pointy shapes on the sides of the head are the ears. In addition, it appears to be an upside down crown. Moreover, there seems to be two creatures on the left and right pulling apart the shape in the middle. That shape is a woman with her hands up. Also, if you flip the shape upside down, you can see two birds on either side with their beaks open eating some sort of fruit.

Post #20

               Bicycle Wheel
The Dada Movement began in the early twentieth century. It changed the meaning of contemporary art, bringing about new styles and techniques. It originally developed as an anti-war movement full of odd ideas and irrationality. A famous artist part of this was Marcel Duchamp. His kinetic sculpture, Bicycle Wheel, is an example of artworks during the Dada movement. To begin with, he put an upside down wheel on a wooden kitchen stool. He invented objects to challenge the real meaning of art. This made people rethink the established definition of art. Furthermore, his sculpture enhanced the interaction between the viewer and craft. 

Post #19

            I enjoyed the experience of creating portraits during this unit because I learned what portraiture was all about. Before this project, I thought portraiture referred only to the making of a self portrait. I now understand that portraits are more than just a picture. They tell the viewer about the lives of the subjects. It teaches us about different time periods and important changes in history. Moreover, I learned the process of making my own portraits and developing my own style. My favorite part was adding color to my drawings. I was anxious to see if my portrait resembled the actual photographs. However, the size of the drawings made it harder to paint small details such as facial lines and lips. Even the smaller brushes were not small enough to fill tiny spaces. Despite of this, I was able to create the pictures based on people that inspire me. That made the project more meaningful and important.   

Post #18

                                http://www.lisahebden.com/blog/?attachment_id=395
                                                                   A Boo Day
First and foremost, the painting was created by Lisa Hebden. It feautures a young girl with a sad complexion. The artist added white to the colors to create tints. As you can see, the colors appear to be mostly faded and worn. Her hair is a mixture of white and beige, a possible variation of yellow. The fact that the artist used this dull coloring rather than bright colors signifies that the overall emotion is cheerlessness. The eyes of the girl look shiny, as if on the verge of tears. Her lips are a dry brown with no sign of a smile. Overall, the skin of the little girl is pale white rather than a creamy peachy color. Clearly, the painting portrays no sign of livelihood.

Post #17 SPRITE

 

                            Chief Joseph, Nez Percé, 1903 

           This is a photograph of Chief Joseph taken by portrait artist Edward Sheriff Curtis. He is part of the Nez Perce tribe in Washington. The social aspect of the picture is that the subject is part of a Native American group. Also, by the numerous feathers on his headdress he shows he holds an important position in society. Furthermore, politics is portrayed in the photograph because Chief Joseph is the leader of his tribe. In other words he acted like a president in modern government. Adding to that, we can see a glimpse of religion by the fact that the Chief is wearing a headdress full of eagle feathers. This shows that the eagle was a sacred animal. Moreover, the intellectual aspect is evident because the Chief is well dressed and looks healthy meaning he has skills to sustain a good lifestyle. The craftsmanship of the headdress, the necklace and clothing is a form of technology. They probably used animal material to sew and decorate their creations. The photograph shows that the tribe had a stable economy because the Native American Chief is adequately dressed and has many feathers. The feathers signify great triumphs of the Chief such as defeating an enemy where he gained power. Overall, the photograph provides an insight into the lives of Native Americans.

Post #16

Carrie Mae Weems

 The Kitchen Table Series

This is a photograph by the artist Carrie Mae Weems. I can relate to this piece because the kitchen table is where I do everthing at home. I do my homework on  it, I eat, I watch TV, and I talk on the phone there. Just as in the photo, at home the kitchen table is the center of the house. I like the fact that the picture shows a kitchen table and not a dining table which is more formal. The dining table is the ideal in a household because it's where people eat. My kitchen table is located in the kitchen but has the size to be a dining table. The lamp shining on the table emphasizes the table as the protagonist both in the picture and title.

Post #15

Self Portrait with Champagne Glass 1919

Max Beckam

This artwork is a self portrait of the artist Max Beckam. It was created during the Surrealism era in the early 1900s. To begin with, surrealistic means having an oddly dreamlike or unreal quality.This is true for the painting because the skin tone is unlike real skin color. There many tints and shades that would otherwise not appear in a real human. It appears as if the hands are a grayish tint. This was probably the result of adding white to a beige skin color.The left side of the face has a darker value as a consequence of lighting not reaching that part.Also the background is a variation of reds and oranges. The man in the background is also unrealistic because his glass lense is pure white and not clear like glass. Overall, the painting has a human resemblance but can be described more as cartoonish.