From the Brooklyn Museum I chose Bird Lady figurine from the Predynastic Period 3500-3400 BC. This pottery was made during the Badarian period (4400-3800 BC) and was named after the village of Badari where it was first found. My first impressions were the subtle details that stood out. First, the shape of the body and arms are curvy which gives off the portrait of a feminine body. Her hands are in the air giving a peaceful vibe as if she was dancing or celebrating in joy. In deeper look, her face and arms resemble the beak and wings of a bird along with her legs which aren’t there as it was a tail. There can also be another meaning since she is so bird like it can resemble freedom or flying. Back in Ancient Egypt women didn’t have many rights. This figurine can represent what women wanted to achieve or feel like because their was a hierarchy where women had to listen to obey men.

The Bird Lady has body parts of both a woman and bird. Another aspect I saw was the two toned color. The top part of the woman has a copper like color which could be made up of clay where the bottom has a sandstone color which makes it look like a rock. The bottom half of the figurine can also resemble a dress or skirt. What shocked me the most was the nudity shown on the upper body because I wouldn’t expect ancient Egypt to include it in art.

When I browsed around the Soul Of The Nation exhibit, I stumbled upon this painting that caught my attention. This artwork, Did The Bear Sit Under a Tree, by Benny Andrews spoke to me with such intensity. The first thing I noticed was the sloppiness in the execution. I saw that there were multiple colors on the flag and man. For example, the stripes are red and orange and the stars have a light and dark blue background. Also, the entirety of the flag is filled with flaws such as imperfect sizes of the stars followed up with cracks in the stripes. The flag also seems to be rolled up away from the man as if he is fighting for something against what the flag represents.

The colored man’s facial expression shows confusion or an undecided look along with anger. His hand gesture clearly shows he is ready to fight or resist against the flag. Meanwhile, his face expresses uncertainty and indecisiveness whether or not to carry out the action. Regardless, the flag is rolled up covering about a third of the portrait as the man  is pushing it away from him. The caption for the painting is a representation of a colored man during the civil rights movement with a shaking fist at the flag which was supposed to protect him. The painter portrays a sense of betrayal and anger in the man because of his unhappiness of how the United States treats colored people.

 

The bust of the Goddess Sakhmet was gosh-darned cool.Color: Seems to be comprised of some black stone. The particular luster it may have once had is likely not what the rustic remains portray.
Line(?): There are plenty of etchings on the bust to indicate the appearal worn by sakhmet. The bust seems to have been going for a general impression of the human body rather a realistic approach: perhaps implying simplicity for the sake of mass production or perhaps to keep Sakhmet from looking relatable.
Scale: The scale of the bust seems to be a good fit for a an ornament: meant to evoke the thought of Sakhmet but not as a center piece.
Sakhmet’s head is feline in appearance; I imagine this has something to do with Egypt’s culture. A lot of cats–a lot of felines.
Sakhmet is the daughter of the sun-god Re, taking on the role of ”The Eye of Re”: destroying the enemies of Egypt abroad. That is why I chose this work specifically: it was cool and I need a piece.
There is a big disk crowning the bust. Only a bottom portion of the disk remains. I would go so far as to say that perhaps the large disk crowning the ‘Eye of The Sun’ might perhaps just maybe be a representation of the sun
The patterns could represent ritual appearal. The face seems to be expressionless. The disk may have been used to tell the time–though that really is stretching too far.

 

In the Soul of a Nation collection I chose ‘The United States of Attica’ by Faith RInggold to write about on this blog. It is a very powerful image.
Map is split into four quadrants, with the colors being inverted through a reflection in the x-axis. I suppose the this is to reflect the information written in each quadrant. This could also just be aestheticly pleasing; it is aestheticly pleasing but I mean only for that reason and not to reflect the information.
Since this is mapping out injustices suffered throughout America: I would imagine that RInggold had wanted to use the north American continent for the map–and she did.
RInggold created the map in tribute to the men who died in the police raid on the prisoner’s rebellion in Attica, New York. A revolt had occured regarding the conditions the prisoners had to suffer through. She must have felt that this incident would be thematically appropriate to bring together all the evil of the world–and relevant too. Hence the name ‘The United States of Attica.
It seems that the colors are in reference to a popular black nationalist flag from the 60s. Appropriate considering the context.
The fact that it is a map rather than a collection of clippings containing articles and texts about these events is a part of the appeal. The fact that it is in the form of a map gives the events that RInggold had listed a lot more impact and wieght behind their reality.

Part 1

Figure of Goddess Nephthys, Ca. 664-30 B.C.E. Made in Africa

    This wooden figure represents the Goddess Nephthys. She sits kneeling on a colorful highly decorated rectangular box as a pedestal with her left arm resting on her thigh and her right arm held in front of her face. She has light brown skin, a blue wig, high yellow headdress, and a green garment bound under her exposed breasts.

Some of these colors represents her high status as a goddess. Her blue wig and yellow headdress that is supposed to represent gold symbolizes high status. This is also shown in her highly colorful and and detailed. The colors are red, yellow, blue, and green. The fact that so much color is even on the figure in the first place points to her importance as a goddess.

When we look the figures line, we can see a that this was carved by a skilled craftsmen. The figure has a smooth surface giving it a very recognizable silhouette. Examples are the large headdress Nephthys is wearing and the obvious shaped breasts on her chest.  This figure does not occupy alot of space. The dimensions of the piece is 16 by 7 by 11.5 inches. It seems to have been built to be mobile and placeable within a room.

This figure was definitely own by someone of high status because a figure of this quality would have been very expensive to purchase.  

 

Part 2

Mars Dust, 1972, By Alma Thomas

    This piece spoke to me because of its size that seemingly traps your gaze. I couldn’t help but be pulled in by the bold colors. I chose this because I immediately saw depth to it. There is a sense of complexity to it even though it looks simple and uniform. The piece relates to the rest of the exhibit because of how Alma Thomas is. She continued to create her art and express herself through it despite racial segregation and gained recognition and success through it all.

There are only three distinct colors utilized in the painting. Red, light blue and dark blue. The simplicity of the colors bring notice to the complexity of the painting. I creates a sense of 3D space. This is because the large splotches of light and dark blue behind the many splotches of red beads make it look like a beaded curtain with an unknown world behind it. And the messy lines that denies clarity is also a factor in its other worldliness.

As I have said in the first paragraph, the size being  69.25 by 57.125 inches creates a trap that steals your eyes. The size makes you want to walk right into it to discover a new world not your own. It looks like a huge portal that harbors the mystery of the world and I appreciate this feeling it portrays to me.

PART 1

From the Ancient World exhibit in the Brooklyn Museum, I chose the “Bird Woman” figurine from the 37th Century B.C.E. Just by looking at this statue, there were a couple of details that stood out to me. For example, the face has a similar structure to a birds beak, and the arms are unusually long. They are gracefully up in the air and have the possibility of representing wings. At the tip of the arms, the hands seem to display fingerlike structures. The “Bird Woman” is a very unique piece because it incorporates both a womanlike anatomy and a birdlike. The color is of copper tone and seems to be made up of clay. Its figure is very curvy as if the expectations of a woman at that point in time was to look like that. The artist also included the breasts of a woman. The height of the figurine is no taller than the height of a coffee cup.

After exploring the exhibit, I wanted to learn more about the figurine. After some research, I found out that the bottom half of the figure is actually a representation of a long white skirt covering the legs of the woman. That is why it looks as if the woman has no lower half. It is still unknown to this day if the sculpture represents a goddess or a woman.  I guess that part is up for interpretation.

PART 2

After the Ancient World exhibit, I got a chance to look at Brooklyn Museum’s Soul of a Nation exhibit. A lot of the pieces that I saw have some sort of political agenda, much of which relates to today’s current events. Even though these pieces were created around the 70’s, it’s quite sad how they can relate to problems in the world today. There is still a huge issue with oppression, discrimination, and inequality in our nation which should ultimately be fixed. I chose the piece known as “All Power to the People” by Faith Ringgold. This was an interesting choice for me because I noticed that at the bottom of the piece it says, “Free all political prisoners.” I pictured this as an art piece created in today’s society and the kind of response it would receive. Due to the fact that most of New York’s society is democratic, the response that this piece would get is a positive one.

When I saw the words “free all political prisoners,” I pictured a society oppressed by the government and their power plays. A society that has had enough with being used in politician’s games for power. A lot of people feel the same way today about the way the government acts. Another thing that was quite compelling is the color scheme of the piece. The background is red, the words are black, the figures are black, but the eyes and the clothing are green. Also, the guns are grey. The red background could symbolize the blood of the people and the black could symbolize the seriousness of the situation presented. The man, woman, and child all have a weapon of some sort colored grey. This symbolizes a revolution. However, the green clothing is quite a mystery. Only certain things are marked green but seems to me that it is random. Also, the lines that compose the figures of the man, woman, and child are not straight, but are curvy.

I found this exhibit to be refreshing in a way where even though it was in the past, it affects the future immensly. Art is the perfect way to express one’s self even if it is representing the vision of a whole society.