Art in Society Final

Maya Palace at Palenque

(514-784) in what is now Mexico the center of one of serves successive empires in Central America Palenque provided living quarters for Mayan Royalty, a center for religious rites, facilities for astronomical studies and a administrative precinct several thrones were found within the galleries The 72 ft. tower added important verticality to the horizontal design Large tower windows facing the four cardinal points have had both astronomical and defensive uses The old Maya Empire in the Yucatan Peninsula thrived until around 900, with grand temples and palaces, like thePalace at Palenque Like the Persians, the Mayans of Central America created large palaces with high platforms and relief sculpture. Occupied from 514 to 784, but abandoned before the Spanish conquest, Palenque remained completely hidden by tropical flora until it was rediscovered in modern times. Palenque was the center of one of several successive empires in Central America It had the living quarters for the Mayan royalty, a center for religious rites, facilities for astronomical studies, and an administrative precinct. featured four courts, each surrounded with rooms and galleries, likely used for administrative purposes. Several thrones were found within the galleries. Built on a 30-foot-high platform, the complex measures 250 feet long by 200 feet wide. Large, painted stucco masks of human faces once adorned the ends of the terraces. Nearby, a vaulted underground aqueduct brought water to thePalace. The 72-foot-high tower adds important verticality to the horizontal design. Large tower windows facing the four cardinal points may have had both astronomical and defensive uses. The profusely decorated interior was covered by parallel rows of corbelvaults and arches. This allowed for thin inner walls and airy rooms that countered the fierce tropical heat. The outer walls were pierced with T-shaped windows and doorways. This complex featured four courts, each surrounded by rooms and galleries, which were likely used for administrative purposes

Genre painting

Paintings that contain subject matter of everyday life. Vermeer often painted ordinary scenes from everyday life, a category of paintings calledgenre painting. This was part of an overall tendency in the Netherlands of the seventeenth century to emphasize and elevate middle-class domestic life, where music, reading, and culture flourished and basic needs were met.

Persepolis

(559-330 BCE) Persian palace in ancient Persia, is a fortified citadel located on a terraced platform An outstanding early example of a palace comes from the Achaemenid civilization in ancient Persia, which produced a body of monumental art of outstanding splendor. The palace of Persepolis, begun by Darius I in 518bce and destroyed by Alexander the Great in 331 bce, took fifty years to build The heavily fortified palace citadel was located on an elevated, terraced platform measuring 1,500 feet by 900 feet, with mud walls reaching 60 feet high and sometimes faced with carved stone slabs and glazed brick. Interior spaces were large, widehypostyle halls, with many carved columns supporting the roofs. The windows were made of solid blocks of stone with cutout openings. Stairs were also chiseled from stone blocks and then fitted into place.The Royal Audience Hall was an impressive room in the palace. It was 200 feet square and 60 feet high and may have held up to 10,000 people. One hundred tall columns (some visible in the left background ofFig. 9.11 ) supported a massive wood-beam ceiling. On top were elaborate capitals with curving scrolls and foreparts of bulls or lions. Some had human heads. A grand staircase, cut directly from natural rock formations, was covered with reliefs depicting subjects presenting tribute to the king. Gates atPersepolis had guardian figures like the Lamassu This awesome palace complex consisted of many structures, including hypostyle halls with many carved columns that supported their roofs

Romanesque

(Roman-like) An architectural style in Medieval Europe that contained massive walls, barrel vaults, and rounded arches. Romanesque churches had cross-shaped plans. The Last Judgment sculpted in the Romanesque style, from the main entrance of the Church of St. Lazare. Unlike the muscular body of Laocoön, here the human bodies are depicted as miserable, frail, and pitifully unattractive.

Palette of King Narmer

(ca. 3000 BCE) Represents victory of Egyptian pharoah used for mixing black eye makeup the carving records the unification of Egypt The relief carvings both depicted commemorate the unification of upper and lower Egypt and the glory of the victorious pharaoh which was used for mixing black eye makeup worn by ancient Egyptian men and women. The carving records the forceful unification of Egypt, when Narmer (also called Menes), king of Upper Egypt, was victorious in war over Lower Egypt. At top center, the horizontal fish and the vertical chisel below it are pictographs for "Narmer." Flanking Narmer's name are two images of Hathor, the cow goddess of beauty, love, and fertility, who was the king's protector. Like Menkaure( Fig. 9.3 ), Narmer is shown in the formal, standardized pose typical of Egyptian art, but here he is larger than those around him because of his status. Horizontal divisions (orregisters) separate scenes.On the right , a large King Narmer, wearing the tall white crown of Upper Egypt, is about to administer a deadly blow to the enemy he grasps by the hair. Behind him is a servant who is carrying his sandals, his bare feet suggesting that this is a divinely predisposed event. The falcon represents Horus, the god of Upper Egypt, standing triumphantly on a head and papyrus, both representing Lower Egypt. In the bottom register are dead prisoners. On theleft , the triumphant Narmer wears the cobra crown of Lower Egypt. Preceded by standard-bearers, he inspects the beheaded enemies lined up in rows with their heads tucked between their feet. The intertwined necks of beasts may represent unification of Egypt.Compare the battle depictions in the Palette of King Narmer with a painting of a battle that occurred during the Kamakura era in medieval Japan. The country was convulsed by civil war and two invasions by the Mongol emperor Kublai Khan Warfare and artistry were particularly interwoven at this time. The martial arts were elevated to a precise art form, and literature featured long tales of war and battle, unlike the courtly love tales from the period immediately preceding.

Glyph

(glif) A figure or character that has symbolic meaning and is most often carved in relief.

Samurai

In feudal Japan, a member of the warrior class The warrior-rulers (orsamurai) built for themselves splendid stone castles that were both fortresses and self-aggrandizing monuments. Because of the stone construction, rooms in these castles were large, gray, and dimly lit. The warrior-rulers commissioned large screens, sliding doors, and wall paintings to lighten and decorate the dark, drab interiors.

Type I Sample question: Which of the following terms corresponds with this definition? Definition " A process used in creating a non[objective painting whereby the artist makes gestural movements to produce expressive brush strokes, drips, and splashes." A. Action painting B. Contrapposto C. Minimalism D. Pop Art

B. Action painting

Aztec Codex Borbonicus

16th century affirms aztec culture The Aztec Coatlicue is a colossal freestanding sculpture of a deity representing sacrificial death as well as the potential for new life. The Codex Borbonicus is an example of Aztec bookmaking and painting accomplishments that also shows the culture's calendar system. In 1519, the Spaniards conquered the Aztecs and attempted to wipe out their culture; later, they also conquered the Incas of Peru and established a large colonial empire in the Americas. This religious calendar was made close to the time of the Spanish conquest in Mexico. Its preservation affirms the history and culture of the Aztec people. Detail Depicting Quetzalcoatl and Texcatlipoca, paint on vellum In contrast, a different form of art can affirm the history and culture of a people even as that culture is being attacked and eradicated. The AztecCodex Borbonicus is a religious calendar that was made during the period of the Spanish conquest, either just before or just after the fall of the Aztec empire (see History Focus). The Codex Borbonicus and the handful of other manuscripts that have survived from this era preserve the pre-Columbian culture. This image depicts calendar glyphs surrounding the large image of two gods, Quetzalcoatl (light and sun) and Tezcatlipoca (moon and destruction), who are devouring a man. Many remnants of Aztec culture survive in Central America to the present day.

Uji Bridge

16th-17th centuries Japan, Large screen, Elite art for warrior-rulers Large golden screens were used to decorate the castles of warrior-rulers in Japan The warrior-rulers (orsamurai) built for themselves splendid stone castles that were both fortresses and self-aggrandizing monuments. Because of the stone construction, rooms in these castles were large, gray, and dimly lit. The warrior-rulers commissioned large screens, sliding doors, and wall paintings to lighten and decorate the dark, drab interiors. For example,Uji Bridge from the sixteenth or seventeenth century, is a large screen more than 5 feet tall. The bridge arcs across the top of the screen, partly obscured by mists. In the foreground, the river rolls past a water wheel. Dramatic willow branches contrast with budding leaves. The dark branches stand in stark contrast to the golds and reds of the background. The painting expresses qualities of simplicity and beauty, perishable with the passing of the moment. The gold leaf background reflected light in the dim castle interior. For lavish screens like the Uji Bridge, artists had much less latitude in the designs they produced.

La Grande Jatte

1884-1886, France, middle class is depicted enjoying time off work Art shows that the middle class enjoyed increased leisure time in Europe at the end of the 19th century A later painting records the increased affluence and leisure of the middle class in Western countries. Georges Seurat's La Grande Jatte dated 1884-1886, is a park scene. In an era of increasing industrialization, the very creation of parks was the result of the affluent middle class's desire to reintroduce nature into increasingly crowded cities. The painting shows a collection of strangers outdoors on a modern holiday. Unlike villagers attending a local festival, the groups do not know each other. The figures are proper, composed, and orderly. Details of middle-class dress are carefully recorded. Almost all figures are shown rigidly from the side, front, or back. Diagonals are reserved for the left side of the painting and are stopped by the orderly verticals on the right. Shadows mass in the foreground and light in the background.The painting reflects the growing emphasis on and awareness of science. The woman in the right foreground holds a monkey on a leash, and the similarity between the monkey's curved back and the bustle on her dress shows an awareness of Charles Darwin's theories of evolution and the resulting social Darwinism, which placed women closer on a continuum to the rest of nature than men were placed. Also, Seurat was influenced by the science of color and optics, especially the works of the scientist Eugène Chevreul, as he painted with small dots of intense colors laid side by side in a style called Pointillism. Chevreul theorized that contrasting colors applied that way could intensify each other. The dots of bright colors eliminated muddy mixtures, and, in fact, this painting up close is a somewhat dizzying and disorienting mass of small colorful dots. So labor intensive was this process that it took Seurat more than two years to complete the work.

Study for the Portrait of Okakura Tenshin

1922, Japan, represented as both eastern and western An example of a face rendered in traditional Japanese style, with outlines only, Komurasaki of the Tamaya Teahouse This drawing combines Japanese and Western art styles. It was made at the historical moment when both Japanese art and European art were profoundly influenced by each other Now let us turn to another example of a portrait that reflects profound cultural and political change. painted in 1922, records a face that emphasizes inner character and reveals a shrewd, intelligent individual. Additionally, the portrait mirrors the social, political, and aesthetic controversies in Japan during his time. Okakura (1862-1913) was a writer, aesthete, educator, and art curator who lived when rulers of Japan were ending three hundred years of isolation and embarking on a period of rapid Westernization. Eastern-influenced music, literature, religion, and medicine were suppressed, and Western modes were introduced. The one exception was the visual arts, in which traditional and Western styles—and mixtures of the two—flourished. Traditional Japanese paintings and prints were popular and sold well not only in Japan but also in the West. They influenced many Western artists, such as Vincent van Gogh Okakura co-authored the first Western-style history of Japanese art and established a Japanese museum, an academy of art, and art appreciation societies, which were essentially Western cultural institutions. Before this, the Japanese aesthetic tradition did not include these concepts and institutions. Later, Okakura wrote The Ideals of the East, in which he created the concept of Asia as the East in contrast to the West. Eventually, he moved to the United States and became an assistant curator in the Japanese and Chinese Department of the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.The very style of Study for the Portrait of Okakura Tenshin reflects this time of change. Japanese-style contour lines and flat shapes are apparent here, especially in Okakura's left hand and sleeve, but the face and hat are rendered with Western chiaroscuro—that is, by dark and light shading. Okakura smokes a Western cigarette, while wearing traditional Japanese garb. Okakura believed that only the combination of modernism and tradition meant progress in art. His face is the focal point of the composition, sitting atop the triangular shape of his body, and his features make a great study of shrewdness, toughness, and perception.

Jack Pollock, Lucifer

1947, USA, Uses his body in art-making process This style of painting is call gestural abstraction or action painting The body as an art tool, the most important tools of artists are their bodies: fingers, hands, and arms, guided by their minds His body movements were fixed and recorded in the paint surface, a rhythmic mesh of drips, congealed blobs, and looping swirls The poured and dripped paint is a permanent record of the actions of the artist's body as he bent his back, lunged forward, and swung his arm to make this painting the motion of his entire body was very significant. This style of painting is called "gestural abstraction" or action painting. The "action" came from the movement of the artist. The canvas was laid down on the ground, and Pollock poured, dripped, and flung paint upon it as he stood at the edges or walked across the surface. He lunged and swirled about in furious outbursts, which were followed by periods of reflection. His body movements were fixed and recorded in the paint surface, which is a rhythmic mesh of drips, congealed blobs, and looping swirls.Pollock's act of painting and the painting itself were frequently described in quasi-combat terms. He saw the canvas on the ground as a plane of action, but when hanging on the wall in front of the viewer, it became a plane of confrontation. Pollock believed his spontaneous, energetic painting style fit the mood of the United States immediately after World War II. He also believed that the power of his unconscious mind was being released in action painting and that his painting style was a burst of primal energy and a release from civilized constraints. The action painter was seen as being an isolated genius, almost always male, whose work had no moral message and no narrative, just pure paint and pure body action.

Agesandros, Athenodorus, and Polydorus, Laocoon

2nd-1st century BCE, Found in Rome, Over-the-top representation of pained body, muscles The dramatic display of emotions in this sculpture stands in contrast to Doryphorus, which represents a balance between mind and body and emphasized restrained emotions At first glance, our focus figure seems to completely fit into the category of art that shows idealized human bodies. But Laocoön and His Sons dated 300 to 100 bce, was created during the centuries that followed the idealized image ofDoryphoros, when Greek art turned to depicting humans engaged in violent action, vulnerable to age, injured, diseased, and subject to feelings of pain, terror, or despair. Two cults were particularly influential in this era known as Hellenistic Greece:Stoicism, in which individuals were urged to endure nobly their fate and state in life; and Epicureanism, which advocated intelligent pleasure-seeking in life because death was the end of existence. Both philosophies imply a kind of resigned acceptance of fate and a withdrawal from the Classic Greek ideal of the active, heroic, involved person. TheHellenistic Greek art style then emerged.Laocoön and His Sonsshows these changing concepts of the human body and human nature. In Laocoön, the human bodies are impressively muscular, an inheritance of the Classical Greeks, but the balance of mind and body, and the contained emotion, has here burst apart in a scene of high drama and sensationalism. Laocoön was a Trojan priest who tried to warn his fellow citizens against accepting the Trojan Horse as an apparent token of surrender from the Greeks who had been warring against them. Greek warriors hid in the horse, and they overcame the Trojan forces once the horse was inside the fortifications. The gods, who sided with the Greeks against the Trojans, sent sea serpents to strangle and kill Laocoön and his sons, even as they were making offerings at an altar. The story seems to be one of great injustice, as a virtuous man helping his fellow citizens is cruelly crushed by the gods. Human vulnerability and lack of control of one's fate are well demonstrated.The figures are like a group of actors on a stage, all facing forward as if performing for an unseen audience (which is common in Hellenistic sculpture). Their struggles are theatrical. Their bodies are idealized, but the father's is overdeveloped and muscle-bound, more spectacular than heroic. Emotionality is increased by the deeply cut sculpture and Laocoön's dramatic reach into the surrounding space. The textures and surfaces vary from skin to hair and from cloth to serpent.

Register

A band that contains imagery or visual motifs; often, several registers are stacked one above the other to convey a narrative sequence Narmer is shown in the formal, standardized pose typical of Egyptian art, but here he is larger than those around him because of his status. Horizontal divisions (orregisters) separate scenes.

Action painting

A process used in creating a non-objective painting whereby the artist makes gestural movements to produce expressive brush strokes, drips, and splashes. lucifer This style of painting is called "gestural abstraction" or action painting. The "action" came from the movement of the artist.

Contrapposto

A standing position in which the body weight rests on one straight leg, with the other leg relaxed and bent, giving the torso an s-shaped curve. (counter balanced) This stance is the way many people stand, the sculpture re-creates an image of a living, flexing body

Type II Sample question: Which of the following was made during the Harlem Renaissance? A. Uji Bridge B. Oath of the Horatii C. Society Ladies D. Battle of Little Big Horn

A. Society Ladies

Pointillism

An art movement in Europe in the late nineteenth century in which artists applied daubs of pure pigment to a ground to create an image. The paint daubs appear to blend when viewed from a distance. Seurat was influenced by the science of color and optics, especially the works of the scientist Eugène Chevreul, as he painted with small dots of intense colors laid side by side in a style

Surrealism

An art movement in early twentieth-century Europe influenced by the work of Sigmund Freud. Fantastic and dreamlike imagery drawn from the subconscious; or automatic drawing similar to doodling. Picasso immediately set down sketches for the painting, blending the nightmarish aspects of Surrealism with his own style of Cubism. Chilean artist Matta's painting Listen to Living His work is an example ofSurrealism, a movement that emphasized absurd or dream states.

Pop Art

An art movement in the mid-twentieth century that used common commercial items as subject matter, including newspapers, comic strips, celebrities, political personalities, Campbell's soup cans, and Coca-Cola bottles. Usually created as satire, these artworks glorified the products of mass popular culture and elevated them to twentieth-century icons. Richard Hamilton, Just What Is It That Makes Today's Homes So Different, So Appealing? In this Pop Art collage, we see the aestheticized body ideals of the late twentieth century: the buff, muscular man of amazing sexual prowess (the Tootsie pop) and a super-thin, sexy woman with a fashion-model pout on her face.

Fauvism

An early-twentieth-century art movement in Europe led by Henri Matisse that focused on bright colors and patterns. The term comes from the French word fauve, meaning "wild beast." the space in the foreground of the picture appears fractured, which Chagall devised from Cubism to represent instability. The colors are fromFauvism, an art movement that originated in Paris in which color was exaggerated in paintings for greater power and expression.

Neoclassicism

An eighteenth-century revival of the Classical Greek and Roman styles in art and architecture, as well as styles from the European Renaissance Pugin and Barry were hotly criticized for breaking away fromNeoclassic architecture, which was widely used for public and government buildings in western Europe and the United States, like theU.S. Capitol Building. In art, the revolutionary spirit was presented in Neoclassical terms, as seen in Oath of the Horatii

Great Beaded Crown of the Orangun-Ila

Beadworkers of the Adesina Family of Efon-Alaye, 20th century Nigeria, Elite art for a ruler Rulers in many cultures are often distinguished by crowns and elaborate dress. Priests of most religions also dress distinctively to show their status.) Here, we will focus on one example, the Great Beaded Crown of the Orangun-Ila rom the Yoruba people of Nigeria. The image shows not only the crown but also the robe and staff that are signs of rank. Crowns such as this one are worn by high-ranking territorial chiefs and are similar to the headgear worn by priests and the supreme ruler. Rank is made apparent through dress in a number of ways: (1) the shape of the clothing or headgear, (2) the materials used, and (3) the meaning of the decorative symbols. The conical shape of the crown is a highly significant Yoruba symbol. It represents the inner self, which, in the case of those of rank, is connected with the spirit world. The cone shape is repeated in the umbrella that protects the chief from the sun and in the peaked-roofed verandas where he sits while functioning as the ruler. According to Michael Roth, a noted collector of African art, beads have been used in Yoruba crowns at least since the 1550s and likely even earlier, and they have two important functions: to protect the identity of the wearer and to symbolize wisdom. The bead strands are removed when the piece is taken out of use. The birds on the chief's crown and robe represent generative power, closely associated with women's reproductive abilities and the life-giving, stabilizing structure of Yoruba society. The long, white feathers at the top of the crown are from the Okine, called the royal bird by the Yoruba people.

The Liberation of Aunt Jemima

Betye Saar, 1972, USA, Represents 3 versions of Aunt Jemima in order to question racist images This work illustrates and therefore protests the ways that African Americans were often depicted in folk art and in commercial imagery Unflattering images of African Americans have been common in popular culture over the past 150 years—for example, the pickaninny, Little Black Sambo, and Uncle Tom. Another is Aunt Jemima, a domestic servant whose title of "aunt" was a commonly used term for African American domestic servants, nannies, and maids. Aunt Jemima is a caricatured jolly, fat woman who has been used for years to sell commercially prepared pancake mix. In the 1972 mixed-media pieceThe Liberation of Aunt Jemima Betye Saar uses three versions of Aunt Jemima to question and turn around such images. The oldest version is the small image at the center, in which a cartooned Jemima hitches up a squalling child on her hip. In the background, the modern version shows a thinner Jemima with lighter skin, deemphasizing her Negroid features. The older one makes Jemima a caricature, while the new one implies she is more attractive if she appears less black. Look for Aunt Jemima's pancake mix in the supermarket or online, and compare the latest image of her on the package with Saar's images.The middle Jemima is the largest figure and the most emphasized. Her patterned clothing is very bright and colorful. Her black skin makes her white eyes and teeth look like dots and checks, too. This Jemima holds a rifle and pistol as well as a broom. A black-power fist makes a strong silhouette shape in front of all the figures, introducing militant power to the image. The idea of Aunt Jemima, in any of its forms, can no longer seem innocuous. Saar enshrined these images in a shallow glass display box to make them venerable. Symmetry and pattern are strong visual elements.

Fanny (Fingerpainting)

Chuck Close, 1985, USA, hyper-realistic, non-idealized figure; painting looks like a photo This is a large portrait with an amazing amount of textural detail artist Chuck Close has used the portrait not so much to reveal inner personality as to create an amazingly detailed record of the structure, ridges, pores, and wrinkles of an elderly woman's head. The scale is enormous. Her head is more than 9 feet high. Her face fills the foreground space of the painting, pushing toward us her lizard-like eyelids, her watery eyes and cracked lips, and the sagging skin of her neck. With this painting, we can stare curiously at a person's face, an action considered impolite in U.S. culture.The pose is ordinary, like that on a driver's license. Her nonidealized features are lit unflatteringly from both sides, leaving darker shadows at the center of her face. But the scale and surface make her face forceful and imposing. Copying his photographic sources, Close has the painting in sharp focus in certain areas, such as the tip of the nose, and soft focus in more distant points, such as the hair, base of the neck, and shoulders. The expression on the woman's face also makes evident the photographic source: her eyes are focused on the camera, which is close to her nose, and she seems both tolerant of and slightly affronted by it. artist Chuck Close created the woman's enormous head in detail, showing the texture of her hair, her skin wrinkles, her watery eyes, and the cloth of her dress. The entire work was painted with the artist's hand and fingerprints. Although it looks like a photograph, the face, in fact, is a mass of finger smudges, a record of everywhere the artist touched. The mark of the hand relates to fossils and the handprints in prehistoric cave paintings and to the first marks we made as children.

Las Meninas

Diego Velazquez, 1656 Spain, "Maids of Honor", Infanta Marguerita (daughter of king and queen) is focal point of emphasis; ladies in waiting surround her This painting depicts the family of the Spanish monarch. In addition, because the painting is a large and costly item, possessing it is another indicator of status. The title means "Maids of Honor," which by itself marks the upper class. At the center of the composition is the blond Infanta Margarita, the daughter of King Philip IV and Queen Mariana of Spain, the focus of considerable attention and energy. She is shown almost casually in the painter's studio. This informal image was meant not for public display but for the king's private office. Although the Infanta is not painted in a throne room or with a crown, we can understand her exalted position through many elements in the painting. Her location at the center of the picture, the light that floods her, and her glowing white dress all mark her as the most important figure. As the presence of servants is also a sign of rank, she is attended by two young ladies in waiting, two dwarfs, and two adult chaperones, male and female, in the shadowy right background. Her royal parents are reflected in the mirror against the back wall; presumably, they are standing where the viewer of the painting would be.The space of the painting is majestic: light floods the foreground; the room is grand; the deep space extends back in the distance. The space is also made complex by mirrors. One we see, but the other we cannot, although its presence is implied by the fact that Velazquez peers outward, presumably into a mirror, to paint himself. Velazquez is the standing figure at the left of the painting, working on a large canvas, perhaps this very picture.Size is important. This painting is 10½ feet by 9 feet. A physical object this large is a sign of rank and a mark of distinction, as is owning, possessing, or commissioning such an artwork. Diego Velazquez was a celebrated and famous artist. His prestige is an important addition to the royal commissions.

Handspring, A Flying Pigeon Interfering, June 26, 1885

Eadweard Muybridge, 1887, England/Scotland/USA, scientific interest in the body The photograph allows artists and scientists to study the mechanics of human movement Moving closer to our present era, new technologies changed the understanding of the human body. For artists, the invention of photography meant that human movement could be stopped and examined as never before. Handspring, a Flying Pigeon Interfering is a study of the human body in action made by Eadweard Muybridge and subsequently published with other such studies in the book Animal Locomotion. Muybridge invented a special camera shutter and then placed twelve cameras so outfitted in a row. When the athlete performed the handstand, his movements broke the series of strings stretched across his path, thus progressively triggering each of the twelve cameras. For Muybridge, the human body was an object of detached, scientific study and not a powerful presence likeDavid or the Male Torsofrom Baule. With Muybridge, the concept of the human body was altered and was recognized as being modified by time and space. Muybridge made similar studies for all kinds of human and animal movement. He also developed a cylindrical device that allowed his images to be mounted, rotated, and viewed to give the illusion of motion. In this respect, his work was a precursor of cinema.

Sun Mad

Ester Hernandez, 1981 comments on the use of pesticides in vineyards Humor is another strategy for effective protest. In Sun Mad dated 1981, Ester Hernandez takes familiar imagery from popular, commercial culture and subverts it. For decades, the raisin growers around Hernandez's hometown heavily used insecticides that contaminated the groundwater the local population used for drinking and bathing. Hernandez took the packaging of the best-known raisin producer, Sun Maid, and changed the usual image of healthy eating into a message of death. Her grimly humorous work is effective because the raisin industry advertising is so successful and we know the original image.Hernandez chose an art form that allows her to reach many people, just as advertising does. This work is a color screen print that has been reproduced and widely disseminated on T-shirts and postcards. Even though Hernandez was reacting to a specific instance of contamination, her work reaches out to everyone who ingests pesticide residue or to farm workers who were sprayed with pesticides while working in the fields. This work exposes the dangerous chemical pesticides that are used in vineyards to grow grapes that eventually become raisins. These poisons leach into public drinking water.

Self-Portrait with Monkey

Frida Kahlo, 1938, Mexico, Presents herself as Mexican and as a peasant: also alludes to her personal history Compare the subtle emotions of Rembrandt's face with the fiercely unblinking expression in our next example. In her fifty-five self-portraits, Frida Kahlo conducted a long inquiry into her inner and her outer being as well as the broader social and political forces that had influenced her life. Yet her face stays almost the same in all her paintings: distinctive and unemotional, with an unrelenting gaze that looks back at the viewer. She surrounds herself with signs and images of the different factors that shaped her very self, such as her ancestry, her physical body, her nearly fatal accident and chronic pain, the indigenous Mexican culture, the landscape, the Christian religion, and her relationship with Diego Rivera, a prominent Mexican artist. Kahlo's face is central, studying us as we study her. Her long hair is braided and pulled on top of her head in traditional Mexican style, to show her identification with the peasant culture. Lush foliage from the Mexican landscape surrounds her head. For Kahlo, the monkey was her animal alter ego. In other self-portraits, Kahlo uses such symbols as hummingbirds, which stood for the souls of dead Mayan warriors, and blood, which alludes to the crippling injuries she suffered in a bus accident, to Mayan bloodletting ceremonies, and to the Christian crown of thorns. Kahlo painted her face many times, almost always with the same impassive expression. She surrounded her image with symbols of her personal history and of Mexican history that were significant in her life. Kahlo's and Rembrandt's self-portraits show the inner self of a unique, deeply feeling person.

Last Judgment

Gislebertus Ca. 1130, France, Frail mortal bodies contrasted with spiritual realm In medieval Europe, human nature was held in very low esteem. Medieval Christian saw a great split between God's divine realm and the natural world, a place of sin and corruption The bottom band shows humans raised from the dead on the last day, while Heaven is shown at center left, and the scales of judgement and Hell are at center right. Body styles differ between holy and evil characters. Compare now a representation of the body when human nature was held in low esteem. In Europe, medieval Christians saw a great split between the purity of God's divine realm and the natural world, a transitory place of sin and corruption. The mortal body was given over to appetites and lusts that led humans into sin and endangered their immortal souls. Salvation with God was possible only through the Church. We have another example of art depicting flawed humanity in The Last Judgment dated c. 1130 and sculpted in theRomanesque style, from the main entrance of the Church of St. Lazare. Unlike the muscular body of Laocoön, here the human bodies are depicted as miserable, frail, and pitifully unattractive. The scene illustrates the end of time, when every person rises from the ground to be judged forever as worthy of heaven or condemned to hell. In the lower section of this carving, the cowering humans rise from their box-like graves and huddle in line until a pair of large hands, like oversized pliers, clamps around their heads. All are then plucked up and deposited on the scales of Judgment, where they risk being snatched by demons and stuffed in hell for eternity. The saved souls clutch fearfully at the robes of the angels.Because human nature was considered so base, the idealized Greek nude was inconceivable, and the concept of a naturalistic body as beautiful and good had long since disappeared. The body in medieval art was distorted to communicate moral status. Thus, naked humans are puny. Good angels are elongated and serene, their anatomical distortions emphasizing their distance from earthly beings. The demons, however, seem to have been modeled on a flayed human corpse, with the exposed ribs and muscles of a tortured body, while their faces grimace horribly. Their claw feet are beast-like, and indeed the human body was associated with animals, which were seen as even more distant from God. Jesus is depicted in a grand manner reigning over heaven and earth, frontal and symmetrical, and much larger than all others.It is interesting to compare the medieval depiction of the human form with an example from the Renaissance. Attitudes about human nature had shifted again. Humanistic philosophy of this time celebrated the glory of humanity: Italian philosopher Giovanni Pico della Mirandola declared in the fifteenth century, "There is nothing to be seen more wonderful than man," reflecting an attitude very similar to the Greeks'. Michelangelo Buonarroti, the famous painter, sculptor, and architect of the ItalianRenaissance, believed that the human form was the most perfect and important subject to depict. He believed that his work was an echo of God's divine creation of humanity. Like most other Italian artists of that time, he was strongly influenced by Hellenistic and Roman sculptures that were being excavated in central Italy—for example, Laocoön and His Sons The nude as an ideal form became popular again.

MetroMobilitan

Hans Haacke, 1985 deals with corporate support of both South African apartheid and an African art exhibition 1985, is art designed to raise social consciousness. Haacke was advocating for native Africans in South Africa who were politically and economically repressed under apartheid, a system of legal racial separation. In the 1980s, many nations, including the United States, denounced apartheid. However, some corporations profited from apartheid enforcement, including U.S.-based Mobil Oil, which sold supplies to the South African police and military. To counter negative publicity, Mobil provided major financial backing to the Metropolitan Museum in New York City to mount a blockbuster exhibition entitled "Treasures of Ancient Nigeria."MetroMobiltanraises awareness of the often-hidden ways that one country's culture and economy can profit from an unjust situation halfway around the world.Formally, MetroMobiltanis like a stately altar. The elaborate frieze echoes the Metropolitan Museum façade, but the inscription is from the museum's 1980s pamphlet advising corporations to sponsor museum shows as "creative and cost effective answers" if the corporation is experiencing difficulties in "international, government or consumer relations." The three silk banners indicate Mobil's policies. Hidden behind is a black-and-white photomural of a funeral procession for black South Africans shot by police. MetroMobiltanlinks the museum, the oil company, and apartheid, but the layering shows that people might be unknowingly involved in an oppressive situation that they condemn. Compare MetroMobiltanto works that memorialize past events, like the USA Marine Corps War Memorial. Both have monumental presences and realistic elements. However, MetroMobiltan combines different points of view about a situation, while the War Memorial represents a single perspective. Haacke showed that three apparently different phenomena are actually intertwined: the oppressive policies of the apartheid in South Africa, the profits of an oil company, and artwork shown at a major museum

Trauma

Hung Liu, 1989 China/USA; refers to female foot binding (as well as Tianamen Square) Foot binding, a tradition from imperial China, is here associated with a massacre of student protestors that happened in 1989 in Beijing People change their bodies to enhance their femininity or masculinity, usually by dieting, plastic surgery, implants, scarification, and various bindings that mold body parts. In her work, artist Hung Liu has examined foot binding, practiced in China from the Song Dynasty (960-1279) until the beginning of the twentieth century. Many Chinese women's feet were bound from birth to artificially confine their growth, distorting them into small, twisted fists that were sexually attractive to men. With bound feet, walking was extremely difficult, but the mincing steps were considered delicate and lovely. Bound feet left women handicapped, which also ensured that they remained subservient. When imperial rule ended in China and the Communist government came to power and mandated physical labor for all able-bodied people, many foot-bound women resorted to prostitution.Liu ties oppressive gender practices to broader political repression. In Trauma dated 1989, the woman at the center publicly shows her bound feet. Although bound feet were considered erotic in private, public exposure was a shameful act. Below her is an image of a dead Chinese student, killed by Chinese government forces when they violently crushed the demonstrations for freedom in 1989 in Tiananmen Square. Liu sees the killings in Tiananmen Square as a shameful event for China. Behind the woman's head, the outline map of China is upside down, whereas its reflection below, cut out of red felt, becomes a bloodstain on the floor below the student. The bowl on the floor is a vessel often emptied and filled—but never in exactly the same way. Poetically, the empty bowl represents China and the artist herself, emptied and then refilled by the cycles of history. Because of their long history, the Chinese commonly make associations between contemporary events and events of the distant past, a habit of thought that is evident in Liu's work.

Performance

Influenced by the "Happening," performance art consists of live-action events staged as artworks.

Oath of the Horatii

Jacques-Louis David, 1784 France, scene from Roman mythology/history: 3 brothers fight enemy Difference in way in which men and women are depicted: men are in active, public realm; women are in passive domestic sphere While this painting illustrates an event from Roman history, it also shows the kinds of behavior that reflected felinity and masculinity in 18th century France. The Neoclassical architecture was associated with masculinity and revolution. All kinds of trappings can serve as indicators of masculinity or femininity. In Oath of the Horatii painted in 1784, Jacques-Louis David represents a scene from the early history of ancient Rome, in which three brothers vow to represent the Roman army in a fight to the death against three representatives of an opposing army. Their father hands them their swords, reminding them of the manly virtues of courage and patriotism, while their sisters and wives swoon at the right, in dread and sorrow at the anticipated killing (one of the sisters was to marry a representative of the opposing army). Heroic actions are a mark of masculinity, reinforced by the women's passivity. In a moment of male bonding, forged in the face of danger, the three brothers become a single force, a part of each other, and each is willing to die for the others and for an external cause. There are other gender indicators. The male dress is rendered in angular lines that contrast with the soft curves of the female attire. The men hold weapons as their job is war, while women's jobs are concerned with children. The architecture's symmetry and the composition's overall balance suggest the orderliness of this world. The images both reflect the "reality" of gender roles and create that "reality." They spring to some extent from existing social conditions, but they also entrench those conditions and make them seem natural, not just social conventions.In this painting, one indicator of masculinity is the background of classical architecture, which was popular during the French Revolutionary era when this painting was executed. The use of classical elements in art and architecture at this time formed a style called Neoclassicism, which was a revival of Greek and Roman aesthetics after the ruins of Pompeii were discovered. Also at this time, French citizens were about to overthrow the oppressive, parasitic French monarchy and aristocracy.

The Artifact Piece

James Luna, 1986, Native American, Postmodern USA, installation/performance at the San Diego Museum of Man Questioned displays of Native American culture in museums Also included glass case with personal items used a contemporary reservation: Rolling Stones, Jimi Hendrix recordings; shoes, political buttons The purpose of art is often to make simple stereotypes more nuance and accurate. Luna's work is intended to debunk a simplistic image of Native Americans. In The Artifact Piece performed in 1986, Native American artist James Luna challenged the way contemporary American culture and museums have presented his race as essentially extinct and vanished. In this performance piece, Luna "installed" himself in an exhibition case in the San Diego Museum of Man in a section on the Kumeyaay Indians, who once inhabited San Diego County. All around were other exhibition areas with mannequins and props showing the long-lost Kumeyaay way of life. Among them, Luna posed himself, living and breathing, dressed only in a leather cloth. Various personal items were displayed in a glass case, including contemporary ritual objects used currently on the La Jolla reservation where Luna lives, recordings by the Rolling Stones and Jimi Hendrix, shoes, political buttons, and other cultural artifacts. Around Luna were labels pointing out his scars from wounds suffered when drunk and fighting. The mixture of elements revealed a living culture.In this striking piece, Luna challenged the viewer to reconsider what museums teach about cultures and what constitutes a cultural artifact. Museum artifacts may be simply the things that, by chance, happened to survive. In other cases, some objects are kept, whereas others are ignored or destroyed. Thus, we learn less about Native American cultures than we learn about the current culture's ideas about Native American cultures. In addition, museums and museum visitors often discount living cultures of today and are interested only in preconceived ideas of "cultural purity." "Authentic Indians"are those who are long dead. Native Americans who are alive today are less interesting to museums because they are cultural mixtures who may wear athletic shoes rather than moccasins. Luna sees himself in a new way. Although he still considers himself a warrior, he is a new one who uses art and the legal system to fight for Native Americans. In The Artifact Piece, Luna also touches on the effects of alcohol on Native Americans.

Society Ladies

James VanDerZee, 1927, Postmodern, USA, Harlem Renaissance, Represents positive, strong, independent African American Women VanDerZee's photographs contrast strongly with the two kinds of images of African Americans from that time. The most common were crude racial caricatures of African Americans from postcards, comics, magazines, picture books, and greeting cards. On the other hand, a few photographers depicted African Americans as helpless victims of racism and their situation as a problem to be solved. In contrast, VanDerZee's African Americans are autonomous, healthy, and self-aware. They were the black middle class, like the women pictured in Society Ladies photographed in 1927. His subjects were intellectuals, merchants, and writers who demanded full participation for blacks in U.S. politics and culture. The furniture and trappings of comfort surround his well-dressed sitters. Their poses convey a variety of emotions, including confidence, humor, directness, and dreamy wistfulness. VanDerZee was influenced by movies of the 1920s and 1930s and encouraged sitters to take poses from the films. At times, VanDerZee provided costumes and props that allowed his sitters to expand their personalities.

KitchenMaid

Jan Vermeer van Delft, The Kitchen Maid (1660) The Netherlands servant is depicted as being dignified She is only pouring milk, but this working-class woman appears dignified within a glowing space painted by Jan Vermeer in 1660, showing a maid in a modest home in the Netherlands of the seventeenth century. In this painting, the working class is elevated in dignity. The mundane tasks of pouring milk and arranging bread seem almost sacred. The gentle light bathes, outlines, and gives a strong sense of the physical presence of a humble woman, an image with such simplicity and directness that she almost personifies virtue. Her work seems healthy and life sustaining. The woven basket, the crust of the bread, the earthen jug, and the texture of the wall seem glowing and burnished with age. The color harmonies of cream, gold, and rust are earthen versions of the strong primary colors of red and yellow. Vermeer often painted ordinary scenes from everyday life, a category of paintings calledgenre painting. This was part of an overall tendency in the Netherlands of the seventeenth century to emphasize and elevate middle-class domestic life, where music, reading, and culture flourished and basic needs were met. The maid, from an even lower social level, is treated with the same respect. The sphere of women was the home, and The Kitchen Maidreflects the ideals of womanhood at that time: virtue, modesty, and hard work. As a country with a strong middle class, the Netherlands focused on the family and family life and on the individual. Portraits were common, as were moralizing genre scenes that criticized such vices as laziness, drunkenness, and lust. The Self-Portrait by Rembrandt van Rijn reflects the same sense of individual worth and the sacredness of a modest life as does Vermeer'sThe Kitchen Maid. Compare the quiet ofThe Kitchen Maid with the bustle of our next image. Kaifeng, the longtime capital of China, had 260,000 households in the year 1105. Scenes of its urban culture are recorded in the scroll painting Spring Festival along the River

Komurasaki of the Tamaya Teahouse

Kitagawa Utamaro, 1794 Japan, Ukiyo-e print (woodblock print) mass-produced, affordable art for middle class For an example of a face rendered in traditional Japanese style, with outlines only, see Komurasaki of the Tamaya Teahouse Color woodblock prints were favored art form of the Japanese merchant class. Also during this time, Japan saw the continued rise of its merchant class, and color woodblock prints called ukiyo-e were made that appealed to their tastes and financial means. One example is Komurasaki of the Tamaya Teahouse The Japanese middle class also developed theatrical forms that were distinct from those of the ruling class. Japan was ruled by the Tokugawa Shogunate, which held military power, whereas the emperor was the political and religious leader. Ukiyo-e prints showed generally one of three subjects: famous Kabuki actors, beautiful young women, and landscapes. Komurasaki of the Tamaya Teahouse designed by Kitagawa Utamaro in 1794, is an example of the beautiful woman theme, showing the courtesan Komurasaki. The woman is charming, but human existence is fleeting and transitory; thus, the beautiful can add a melancholy note, making humans ache all the more for life's passing. This wistfulness is a quality of many Japanese images, as we saw even with the Uji Bridge screen. The colors are exceedingly delicate, with yellow ochres, olive tones, dull reds, grays, and blacks—not blazingly bright. The line quality of the prints was splendid—elegant, fine, curving, and graceful here (or, in the case of prints of the energetic Kabuki actors, vigorous and even wild). The lines in the face and hair are especially refined, while the folds of the drapery are expressed in bold marks and curves. Geishas and courtesans were depicted in ways that would make them outlets for male desires; the market for these pictures was married men, who would see in these women for hire a fleeting beauty and an erotic perfection that they desired. Especially famous courtesans and geishas would be depicted in popular prints and their images circulated and collected.

Harlem Renaissance

Lawrence trained in Harlem during the Harlem Renaissance and was influenced by the vibrant community of artists, writers, and performers, as shown in Faith Ringgold's The Bitter Nest, Part II: The Harlem Renaissance Party

Leo, 48 Inches High, 8 Years Old, Picks Up Bobbins at 15 cents a Day

Lewis Hine, 1910, shows child labor Lewis Hines photographed miserable labor conditions and slum housing in the United States. Known for exposing child labor in mines and textile mills. Where children were doing the lowest-paying, most tedious jobs. We again have several figures for comparison here. One of the most direct ways to make social protest art is to illustrate the oppressive situation. At the beginning of the twentieth century, sociologist and artist Lewis Hine photographed miserable labor conditions and slum housing in the United States. He was particularly known for exposing child labor in mines and textile mills, where children were doing the lowest-paying, most tedious jobs. Leo, 48 Inches High, 8 Years Old, Picks Up Bobbins at 15¢ a Day from 1910, shows a young boy who dodges under textile looms to pick up loose thread spools. Children in these jobs ran the risk of injury or death from moving machinery. They typically worked ten- to twelve-hour shifts in the mills, six days a week, making schooling impossible. Child laborers were destined to remain illiterate, poor, and overworked. Hine fully documented the youthfulness of the child laborers by giving his photos long titles, yet in some ways these titles were unnecessary. Hine's composition emphasizes the large scale of the weaving machines—their great length and height—that dwarf the child. Leo seems very young and apprehensive. The factory is gloomy, littered, and staffed by women, another underpaid group. Hine's pictures are more difficult to forget than wordy ideological arguments, pro or con, on labor conditions.Hine worked with the National Child Labor Committee, a private group dedicated to protecting working children, and the loosely organized Progressive Movement of the early twentieth century, which sought reform for many problems resulting from urbanization and industrialization. He lectured and his images were published in magazines, making his work unusually successful in changing both public opinion and public policy. Child labor was eventually outlawed in the 1930s.

Over Vitebsk

Marc Chagall, after a painting of 1914, Russia/France, 1915-1920 Aquired through the Lilian P. Bliss Bequest 1949 Chagall's painting re-creates and memorializes the experiences of Jewish people in Russia at the end of the 19th century Our focus figure was created by Marc Chagall, a prominent Jewish artist who grew up in Russia but spent most of his long life in Paris. Many of his paintings imaginatively re-created Jewish village life at the turn of the twentieth century in Russia, which was in fact disintegrating as a result of political, religious, and economic pressures. Chagall's imagery was a personal (sometimes incoherent) reordering of bits and pieces of his experiences, which included folktales, festivals, marriages, funeral practices, and finally suffering and death caused by anti-Semitism. In Over Vitebsk Chagall painted a large solitary figure floating over his own village, representing thousands of eastern European Jewish refugees who fled to Russia, displaced by World War I. In Yiddish, "passing through" is expressed as wandering "over the village," which Chagall painted literally by means of the "refugee" floating figure in the composition. A sense of being rootless and in a state of upheaval pervades the picture. The space in the foreground of the picture appears fractured, which Chagall devised from Cubism to represent instability. The colors are fromFauvism, an art movement that originated in Paris in which color was exaggerated in paintings for greater power and expression. Compare Chagall's lyrical scene with the frank, forth-right portraiture of James VanDerZee, a commercial studio photographer whose works are a record of the Black Renaissance of Harlem, generally dating from 1919 to 1929 (he continued to photograph Harlem residents through the 1940s).

Vietnam Veterans Memorial

Maya Ying Lin. 1982 Commerates soldiers in Vietnam War; uses minimalism nonobjective art movement in which artists reduce images and object to pure form visitors meditate or mourn rather than celebrate A recurrent and quiet space, the shrine wall contains the names of 58,000 men and women who died in the Vietnam war For contrast in design, we look at another commemoration for Americans lost in war. The Vietnam Veterans Memorial 1982, by Maya Lin, is located on the Mall in Washington, D.C. The names of nearly 58,000 men and women who died in the Vietnam War, from 1959 until 1975, are carved in chronological order on its black granite face. Its polished surface reflects the faces of the living and superimposes them on the names of the dead, which forces a personal connection between the two. Family and friends make rubbings of the names and leave all kinds of remembrances, such as poems or childhood mementos. Visitors meditate or mourn rather than celebrate. This lack of glory made the Memorial very controversial, so figurative sculptures of heroic soldiers and nurses were added later near the site. Taken all together, these monuments create a powerful memorial to the Vietnam War.The long, V-shaped memorial is set into the ground with one end pointing to the Washington Monument, a symbol of national unity, and the other end pointing to the Lincoln Memorial, remembering a nation divided by civil war. This reflects the national anguish over soldiers who died in a war about which the general population was ambivalent. Magazine and newspaper coverage had brought the blunt realities of the war into U.S. homes, as evident in Brigadier General Nguyen Ngoc Loan summarily executing the suspected leader of a Vietcong commando unit

David

Michelangelo 1501-1504, Italy, Renewed interest in classicized body, with Renaissance additions (e.g., large hands, head) Compare the Medieval depiction of the human form with an example from the Renaissance. Because human nature was considered so base, the idealized Greek nude was inconceivable, and the idea of the body as beautiful and good disappeared. The youthfulness of David is expressed in the oversized hands and the tension on his face. Renaissance nudes were different from Classical nudes. On the one hand, the body was seen now as a work of God and deserving of respect and honor. Yet the medieval beliefs persisted regarding the enduring soul versus the corruptible body. dated 1501 to 1504, represents the Israelite youth who fought the giant warrior Goliath, saved his people, and later became the greatest king of the Old Testament. Michelangelo chose the moment that the young David first faces Goliath. Tension is apparent in his frown, tensed muscles, and protruding veins. The sculpture is not self-contained, in contrast to Doryphoros the turning figure of David is "completed" by the unseen Goliath. The head and hands are oversized, indicating youthful potential still maturing and a greater potential violence, all attributes that differ from the restrained, relaxed Doryphoros. David's inner tension speaks of the core of being, the soul, that is separate from the body. The body is ennobled and emphasized, but only as a vehicle for expressing the soul.David reflects some broad trends. During the Renaissance, there was also a growing interest in scientific inquiry and the study of human anatomy. Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and other Italian artists performed dissections to assist them in rendering muscles. Also, David versus Goliath was a popular story in the republic of Florence, the city-state in central Italy for which this sculpture was made. Florence was ruled by a group of wealthy families rather than by a single leader, and Florentines saw themselves as much more self-determining than citizens of areas that were ruled by tyrants. anatomical studies were written or republished in many parts of the world throughout the second millennium, most for medical or artistic reasons. This growing interest in anatomy resulted in body depictions that differ from those designed to reveal religious truths, philosophical positions, or inner emotions.

The Aboriginal Memorial

Paddy Dhatangu and others, The Aboriginal Memorial, 1988 Affirms Aboriginal culture in Australia We can also see how Aboriginal artists have used art to affirm their cultural values, which have been suppressed by Australians of European descent. Because of colonization, many Aborigines lost their land or were killed. While the rest of the country was celebrating the two-hundredth anniversary of Captain Cook's "discovery" of Australia, the Aboriginal population commemorated Invasion Day. Forty-three artists collaborated to make The Aboriginal Memorial installed in 1988. The work is composed of two hundred logs, one for each year of settlement, hollowed out as traditional Aboriginal coffins. They are memorials to all the native peoples who died as a result of European settlement and were never given proper Aboriginal mortuary rites. Artists painted the logs with their important clan Dreamtime symbols, affirming traditional Aboriginal culture, which was undermined and, at times, outlawed. Poles reach as high as 10 feet and seem like living growths springing up with vibrating patterns and vigorous animal imagery Like the Australian Aboriginal artists, many contemporary Native American artists continue to reference traditional imagery and art processes in the work they produce today, as in the late-twentieth-century Bowlby Maria Martinez This installation affirms the survival of the Aboriginal culture and commemorates the dead after the impact of the Europeans in Australia

Doryphoros

Polykleitos, Roman copy of Greek original ca. 450-440 BCE Original from Greece (copy from Rome) Classicized, muscular body Contrapposto Our first examples present the human body in ideal terms, although that varies from culture to culture. The Greek philosopher Protagoras said, "Of all things, the measure is man." The democratic government, although limited, meant that individuals were self-governing. Athlete, philosopher, scientist, statesman, playwright, and warrior were all ideal occupations for men. The Greeks believed that humans were capable of near perfection, defined as a fit body guided by a keen mind. Emotions were generally considered less important than the intellect and should be properly contained. Nudity was common in art and in athletic events, both of which glorified the unclothed, idealized human form. The focus figure for this section is Doryphoros(Spear-Bearer) This slightly larger-than-life-size nude male by Polykleitos idealized the human form in several ways: (1) in the balanced pose; (2) in the internal proportions; (3) in the restrained emotions; and (4) in the roles depicted—youth, athlete, and warrior. This work was executed in the Greek Classicalart style.The pose is simple, balanced, and understated. The statue's straight leg and arm create a vertical line on the left, balanced by the bent leg and arm on the right. Balance is also expressed across the body. The straight leg and bent arm are tensed, while the hanging arm and flexed leg are relaxed. The action is minimal and at the same time complex in its subtleties, with small twists, stretches, and compressions. Thiscontrapposto(counterbalanced) stance is the way many people stand, so the sculpture re-creates an image of a living, flexing body.Polykleitos invented and applied a now-lost system of mathematical and geometric proportions, called the Canon, which harmonized one body part with another in his sculptures. Doryphoroswas originally conceived as a sculpture that would illustrate and demonstrate the Canon. A few of the simpler proportions of the Canon are still known; for example, the length of the longest finger equaled the length of the palm of the hand, and together they were used as a measure for the length of the arm. The breast nipples are one head-length below the chin, and the navel is another head-length below the nipples. This system also determined the placement of all the muscles. Polykleitos and the Greeks of his era believed that mathematical proportions resulted in a harmonious figure that was morally and aesthetically good. (In fact, the body is blocky, the result of the application of the Canon.) Polykleitos' total combination of balance, proportion, restraint, and youthful heroism made Doryphoros one of the most famous nudes of its time as well as of the Roman era and the Italian Renaissance. Zeus or Poseidon to compare the similarity between images of gods and humans in Greek Classical art. The original Doryphoros was executed in bronze, using the lost wax process. Polykeitos developed a canon of proportions, in which each part of the ideal body was in carefully controlled proportion to all other parts It is interesting to compare Doryphoroswith the Male Torso which was likely carved in the twentieth century in the Baule area of Africa. Internal proportions, idealized character, harmony of parts, and restraint are important elements here as inDoryphoros, but the visual result is very different. In most traditional African sculpture, the front view of the human figure was sculpted symmetrically; arms are in parallel positions, legs both on the ground, head facing forward. This formal, frontal pose contributes to the dignified, almost solemn aspect of the sculpture. In contrast, the side view features counterbalanced curves: the abdomen and knees project forward, balanced by the buttocks to the back. The straight neck and back interrupt the curves. The distinctive silhouette of the head is the focus for the entire work. This sculpture is likely the depiction of an ancestor.

Watts Towers

Simon Rodia, Watta Towers (1921-1954), USA Working-class, self-taught artist made them in his spare time over 30 years These towers were built by a working-class man in his spare time, over a span of thirty-three years made by a working-class man for a working-class neighborhood in Los Angeles. Beginning in the 1920s when he was in his late forties, Simon Rodilla (also called Simon or Sam Rodia) labored for more than thirty years in his backyard to erect a nine-part sculpture, more than 100 feet high. It was an amazing artistic and physical effort. The tower forms rise dramatically against the sky, while the openwork pattern adds an element of rhythm. The Watts Towers are constructed of rods and bars shaped into openwork sculptures. The concrete coating on the Towers was encrusted with ceramic pieces, tiles, glass, seashells, mirror pieces, and other shiny or broken castoffs, creating a glittering mosaic-like surface. An immigrant from Italy, Rodia wanted to construct a monument to pay tribute to his adopted land.Rodia was not academically trained as an artist, and his work does not reflect the major art trends of his day. His work was not made for an upper-class audience. As a result, many critics place Watts Towers in categories outside of fine art. It has been variously described as folk art, outsider art, or naive art. The dense and shimmering surfaces have caused some to relate his work to crafts and decorative arts. Some have even called it "kook" art, claiming that Rodia was trying to make a transmitter to contact aliens. Some of these descriptors ("naive," "kook," "decorative," etc.) have more or less pejorative connotations, while "folk" suggests an art category of less value than fine art. But there is no denying the visual power of the Watts Towers.

Hellenistic

The culture that flourished around Greece, Macedonia, and some areas bordering the Mediterranean Sea from around 323 to 31 bce. n this era known as Hellenistic Greece:Stoicism, in which individuals were urged to endure nobly their fate and state in life; and Epicureanism, which advocated intelligent pleasure-seeking in life because death was the end of existence. Both philosophies imply a kind of resigned acceptance of fate and a withdrawal from the Classic Greek ideal of the active, heroic, involved person. TheHellenistic Greek art style then emerged.

Portrait of Dr.Gachet

Vincent Van Gogh. Portrait of Dr. Gachet 1890, The Netherlands, Portrait used to comment on modern life in city Portraits can be visual records of inner emotional states Van Gogh was less than two months away from his suicide portraits can be visual records of inner emotional states Next, we see an extreme example of a portrait that focuses on a person's inner mental and emotional state, yet even here there are also social dimensions to the image. In the Portrait of Dr. Gachet dated 1890, Vincent van Gogh painted a free-thinking, eccentric, homeopathic doctor with the foxglove flower to symbolize his profession. With a melancholy face and pose, Gachet leans on two nineteenth-century novels about tragic and degenerate life in Paris.Gachet's portrait is also a vehicle for van Gogh to make observations about modern urban life in general, which van Gogh found to be full of suffering. In this case, the artist may have revealed as much about himself as he did about his subject. Van Gogh found life in Paris to be unhealthy and miserable, and he took refuge in his art, in the countryside, and in medical help. At this time, van Gogh was painting at a feverish pace, but he was less than two months away from his death. Thick paint animates the entire surface, with emphatic dashes and tight swirls that model form, increase color saturation, and indicate van Gogh's own agitation and intensity. Thus, Gachet's likeness was also a reflection of van Gogh's own inner state.

Liminality (Duncan reading)

a passage into a time/space in which the normal business of life is suspended

Minimalism

an art movement in sculpture and painting that began in the 1950s and emphasized extreme simplification of form and color

Installation Art

an artistic genre of three-dimensional works that often are site-specific and designed to transform the perception of a space. The combining of elements into a singular artwork that is specifically located in one place; an artwork that exists only in the place in which it was/is installed, and is not able to be relocated like a painting or print.