Posts – Page 12 – Fall 2018 Art 1010 at Brooklyn College

met museum visit

I went on a Friday (bad idea)

Gerard David (Netherlandish, Oudewater ca. 1455–1523 Bruges) 1506

Said to be view from below to give the focus to more ethereal concepts. Being from the Renaissance it has a center of focus. it rely on the given information of the time to convey the center ideas considering that these pieces are multi-storied polyptych they are concept dedicated to each frame to tell a story throughtout

Guercino (Giovanni Francesco Barbieri) (Italian, Cento 1591–1666 Bologna)

This painting is from the Biblical book of Judges. Delilah, and is set upon by the Philistines, who bind him and blind him. Baroque art is more angled some more extreme than others this piece is angle diagonally to the right side. it work with the style of the time period to enhance the overall motion that the piece its trying to convey being tugged to the left side.

Final Project Proposal/Outline

Topic: The differences between Renaissance and Baroque art.

Renaissance Art

Gerard David The Annunciation, 1506 The Met

Venus and Cupid, Lorenzo Lotto (Italian, Venice ca. 1480–1556 Loreto), Oil on canvas

Lorenzo Lotto Venus and cupid, 1520s The Met

Baroque Art

Philippe de Champaigne The Annunciation, 1644 The Met

Venus and Adonis, Peter Paul Rubens (Flemish, Siegen 1577–1640 Antwerp), Oil on canvas

Peter Paul Rubens Venus and Adonis, mid 1630s The Met

Bearded Man with a Velvet Cap

Govert Flinck Bearded Man with a Velvet Cap, 1645 The Met

For the Final project I chose assignment #3 the Creative Project. My thesis or topic is the differences between Renaissance and baroque art. I will make a drawing that differentiates the differences between the art of the two eras. These images/paintings that I chose from The Met relate to my project for they are from the eras I will be discussing. They show some of the differences I will discuss such as perspective and lack of emotion due to the focus on perspective in Renaissance art and dramatic or strong use of detail/ emotion on the face in baroque art.

The Met Museum Visit

My experience at The Met was great. It was my first time going so I was very amazed by the greater amounts of work there was compared to the Brooklyn Museum. However it was a little overwhelming I only saw a small fractions of the art works in The Met. I will definitely go bacon a day where its not too crowed and i have more time on my hands so i can enjoy the experience more.

The Renaissance took place in the 1400s while the Baroque era took place in the 1600s. The art that was made during both time periods was often similar but had distinct differences. This was because artist from the Baroque era would often recreate work from the Renaissance but with different styles. During the Renaissance artist mainly focused on perspective in order to have more realism and depth but this would make the art lack emotion and appear still, most of the time. While artist from the Baroque era would dramatize their art to had emotion and was seen as odd.

Renaissance Art Gerard David The Annunciation, 1506

Baroque Art Philippe de Champaigne The Annunciation, 1644

Both pieces of art depict The Annunciation which is when Archangel Gabriel told Virgin Mary she would conceive Jesus the son of God. From these pieces of art one can see how the art from the Renaissance appears to have more depth but has the stillness in the lack of emotion in the angel and Mary who both have straight faces. There is also dark cool colors with the exception of the red on the angle’s cape and yellow light beam around the dove. While the art from the Baroque era has warmer colors and more facial expressions on both Mary and the angels. The angel also has light beams surrounding him and is floating as opposed to the other painting where the angel appears to be standing on the floor. An other difference is that one painting is divided in two pieces while the other is just one painting.

The Met Visit – Renaissance Painting

I have been to the MET countless of times, and I am still always so encaptured by the beauty of the art. I was lucky enough to have to look at Renaissance paintings because those are my favorite paintings in particular. On top with being fascinated with the history behind it, I think these paintings are extremely beautiful. I also deeply admire them because I feel as though these paintings were breaking free from tradition and were more daring. Renaissance painting where a changing point in our history and they should always be given a lot of significance because of that.

When learning about The Renaissance in highschool it was impossible to not mention the art. It is a staple piece of that time. The Renaissance period went from the 1300s to the 1600s, and it was all about the rebirth/reawakening of Europe. During The Renaissance, literature and art were obviously a significant thing. Ideologies and different types of art were embraced and accepted during this time.

The Renaissance was a time of beauty in Europe. Before this era, Europe was going through the “dark ages” era. Europe was going through extreme hardships like a plague, religious persecution, famine, and extreme poverty due to social class. All of a sudden, the plague ended and the economic business was better as a result, the rich could no longer dictate how the people under them lived, and there was no war. The Renaissance had pioneers like Queen Elizabeth, Leonardo Da Vinci, Michelangelo, William Shakespeare, The Medici’s, and many others.

The art during The Renaissance was very hard to miss. Many had very similar colors and themes running in them. One piece that I saw at the MET that screamed “classic renaissance” was Pietro Di Domenico da Montepulciando‘s Madonna and Child with Angels. Although it is very similar to most renaissance paintings. It has the blues, pinks, and gold all present. However, the beauty of the gold just strikes out at you. It‘s everywhere but it is not overwhelming. Something else that made me know that it was a Renaissance painting was the halos around the madonna, the baby and the angels. Halo’s are a staple piece for Renaissance art. They are showed in bright gold hues or even be dimmed but nonetheless, they are still present in these paintings. It’s a thing of unique beauty and that is exactly what The Renaissance represented.

Final Project Topic & Annotated Bibliography

Topic: the importance of faces and symbols within the artworks devoted to the civil rights movement

https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/exhibitions/soul_of_a_nation

Soul of a Nation at the Brooklyn Museum focuses on 20 years of post-civil rights movement art depicting various leaders in the artworks.

https://www.moma.org/explore/inside_out/2016/07/09/how-do-black-lives-matter-in-momas-collection/

MoMa’s gallery consists of the injustices committed against blacks in the civil rights movement, before and after.

https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/676458

“Let My People Go” shows the continuous struggle for black Americans expressed in the Harlem Renaissance, tied into the symbolism of slavery and the Biblical story of Egyptian captivity of the Hebrews.

Article 1: https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/02/12/civil-rights-art_n_4769268.html

This article displays many of the artists contributing their art to the cause of civil rights during the Civil Rights Movements. It is a showcase for the different artists and forms of art that took part in this movement.

Article 2: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/arts-culture/the-power-of-imagery-in-advancing-civil-rights-72983041/

This article focuses on the importance that images have in shaping self perception and unification of a movement. It describes how important civil rights artists’ roles were in their movement.

Annotate Bibliography

http://en.chnmuseum.cn/Default.aspx?TabId=520&ExhibitionLanguageID=74&AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1

This article talks about Buddhism which originated in the 6th century BC in ancient India. Throughout, the earliest Buddhist sculpture was in northwest ancient India. However, Buddhism spread to china as it was talking about the Chinese elements and unique Chinese style. What more important is about the evolution of Chinese Buddhist sculpture and inspire of artistic expression.

2. http://www.facts-about-japan.com/sculpture

This article talks about the Japanese sculpture is a very interesting form of Japanese art. It also discuss how certain piece of sculpture is made out of plastic, stainless steel or aluminum. Now days, material like wood became important in creating sculpture. The artist takes an experiments of how the lights is being used. However, Japanese sculpture mostly focused on Buddhist and continues to experience creative Japanese art sculpture.

3. https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/kobs/hd_kobs.htm

Talking how Buddhism was originated in India around the 5th century B.C. Eventually it was spread quickly and widely. The Buddhism was introduced to through their artistic achievements and were strongly important in history and religions.

4. https://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/buddhistworld/east-asia.htm

The spread of Buddhism among the Chinese, Japan, and Korea had been widely spread everywhere. Different countries has its own unique ideas of how a certain kinds of sculpture should be design. Not just the design and sculpture has changed but as well the languages. From Indian languages to Chinese. The Tang Dynasty had influenced more Buddhism to more and more people. It soon became an important part of Chinese culture and had great influence on Chinese Art, Literature, Sculpture, Architecture and Philosophy of that time. During the sixth and seventh centuries, many Korean monks went to China to study and brought back with them the teachings of the various Chinese schools of Buddhism. During the sixth and seventh centuries, many Korean monks went to China to study and brought back with them the teachings of the various Chinese schools of Buddhism. Now days Buddhism has playing an important role in the life of people. Buddhism has also spread throughout Japan, it is a way to bring benefits to the country.

Final Project Outline

TOPIC:

The topic that I have chosen is Humanism throughout history. The reason as to why I have chosen the seven pieces of artwork below for my final project is because they all are related to the idea of Humanism. Each individual artwork represents a time period, before, during, and after humanism and the transition/movement from artwork that focused on religion and deities to artwork that focuses on the ideal human, making humans the center of attention.

Outline:

                                                     Artist: N/A
Title: Standing Male Worshiper   
Date: 2900–2600 B.C.                   
Museum: The Metropolitan Museum of Art                

Artist: N/A
Title: Stele of Naramsin
Date: 2245 BCE  
Museum: Louvre Museum (Paris) 
 
Artist: N/A
Title: Stele of Hammurabi
Date: 1780 BCE   
Museum: Louvre Museum (Paris)            

Artist: N/A
Title: Kouros
Date: 600 BCE  
Museum: The Metropolitan Museum of Art 

Artist: Polykleitos
Title: Doryphoros (Roman copy)
Date: 450-440 BCE
Museum: Museo Archaeologico Nazionale (Naples)

Artist: Michelangelo
Title: David
Date: 1504 
Museum: N/A
            
Artist: Raphael 
Title: School of Athens
Date: 1509 
Museum: N/A

Annotated Bibliography:
Dr. Steven Zucker and Dr. Beth Harris, "Standing Male Worshipper (Tell Asmar)," in Smarthistory, December 16, 2015, accessed December 17, 2018, https://smarthistory.org/standing-male-worshipper-from-the-square-temple-at-eshnunna-tell-asmar/.

“Standing Male Worshiper.” The Met's Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/40.156/.

The authors of the two sources listed above both talked about the Sumerian Sculpture called The Standing Male Worshiper. These sources relate to my topic due to the fact that they talk about a sculpture that was made before the idea of humanism. The sculpture is of a man who has his palms locked together and is praying to who the authors believe is the god Abu since it was found in "The Square Temple"at Tell Asmar. 

Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker, "Marble statue of a kouros (New York Kouros)," in Smarthistory, December 20, 2015, accessed December 17, 2018, https://smarthistory.org/marble-statue-of-a-kouros-new-york-kouros/.

“Marble Statue of a Kouros (Youth).” The Met's Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/32.11.1/.

The authors of the two sources listed above talked about the Greek Marble Sculpture of Kouros. These sources relate to my topic due to the fact that they are about a one of the earliest sculptures that focuses on the human body instead of a deity or a human worshiping a deity. The sculpture is of a young nude man. The sculpture details the muscle on the human body and also shows a sense of motion in the way that its left leg strides forward, one of the firs sculptures to show movement.

Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker, "Polykleitos, Doryphoros (Spear-Bearer)," in Smarthistory, August 8, 2015, accessed December 17, 2018, https://smarthistory.org/polykleitos-doryphoros-spear-bearer/.
“Marble Statue of a Kouros (Youth).” The Met's Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/32.11.1/.

The authors of the source listed about talked about the ancient roman copy of a Greek bronze original Polykleitos, the Doryphoros. This source relates to my topic since it is a sculpture that idealizes the human body. This sculpture was created when Humanism was at it's peak during that time. Similar to the statue of Kouros, the Doryphoros has a sense of movement but different to the Kouros, the Doryphoros has no symmetry, it instead has contrapposto, counter balancing to show that the statue is suppose to represent a person walking. It's one of the first statues that represents a human/person that could be a part of our world.

Unit 1 Summary

In Unit 1, we discussed the importance and components of formal analysis and examined different artifacts from ancient Neo-Sumerian civilization. Formal analysis is often used by art critic and interpreters to determine the purpose of the artwork and overall motivation behind the artist. Components that are studied to analyze the artwork include: composition, historical context, color scheme, contrast, and symbolism. Interpreting most of the elements of the artwork will give the viewer a better understanding of artist and his intentions behind the artwork. Most of the artifacts examined in class from ancient Sumeria held a significant amount of spiritual and class symbolism. In statues like the Statue of Gudea (2150 BCE), the depiction of the divine and spirituality is blatantly shown. The statue is a depiction of Gudea in a vulnerable and accepting position showing his openness to listen to his subjects. The crown placed on his head is symbolic for the divine. From this, we can conclude that the spiritual aspect of life had a huge influence on lives of Sumerians. In other artifacts, there was a display of class status in their civilization. For example, the Standard of Ur was a piece that showcased this class division. The artifact showed the distinct separation of the upper, middle, and lower class. The division is further illustrated through the difference in the attires worn, the occupations expected, and the responsibilities they performed. Not only was spirituality important in Sumerian society, but also class distinction.

Final project annotated bibliography

-The Met’s Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History, www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/459007.

The painting made by Lorenzo Monaco between 1406-1410, “The Nativity” is described in an audio guide. This is a summary of it. There are 3 main figures in the painting. The Christ child is the center of attention, the virgin that is kneeling to the left adoring the Christ child she came birth to while the sun is above her head, and saint Joseph in the right looking up to the vision of the angel announcing to the Shepherd in the up right corner. Behind the Christ child is an Ox and a Donkey looking down on it.

–Harris, Beth and Zucker, Steven. Workshop of Campin, Annunciation Triptych (Merode Altarpiece). YouTube, commentary by Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker. 4 Feb. 2016, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1X0Lj7YEMs&t=607s

This video looks at the Merode Altarpiece and analyzes the religious symbolism and how it has is such an important biblical event to remember for Christian followers.

–Harris, Beth and Zucker, Steven. Van Eyck, Altarpiece (1 of 2). YouTube, commentary by Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker. 4 Nov. 2013, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=udgNvPpDb2I

This video analyzes the closed position of the large altarpiece and describes the multiple elements like the annunciation and the donors and statues.

–Harris, Beth and Zucker, Steven. Van Eyck, Altarpiece (1 of 2). YouTube, commentary by Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker. 10 Nov. 2013, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVhwinCiELI

This video looks at the opened position where it analyzes the story of the painting where God and Jesus Christ sacrifices so much to mankind despite their imperfections.

The Met Museum Visit

My visit to the Met was very pleasing as usual. I went on a Saturday so it was very packed with New Yorkers and tourists alike. This was actually my third time visiting as I had already gone once in high school and once just last semester. It is easy to notice however, that not even three visits are not enough to view the vast amount of works and exhibits available. The themes, styles, and subjects that the artwork and galleries represent are very large. In many works, I noticed elements and styles of the Renaissance and Baroque.

The Renaissance and the artwork attributed to it occurred during the 15th and 16th century. Generally, these types of works include elements such as calmness and serenity, uninterrupted contours, stability, and even lighting. They also tend to be idealized, and idealize whatever subject the art is portraying. One example of Renaissance art at the Met was Venus and Cupid by Lorenzo Lotto. The artwork is a nude painting that portrays the goddess Venus, along with her son, Cupid. The immediate theme given off is that of love, given the fact that it portrays a mother and her son, which shows the bond of love between them. Additionally, the background is compromised by a total red, which is also a color used to represent love. The features of Renaissance artwork is evident in this painting because the contours and hues used remain stable throughout the whole painting. Despite there being darker colors such as blue for the towel, and lighter colors such as white for the color of their skin, both colors appear to have a similar brightness to them. Furthermore, the lighting of the painting creates a feeling of calmness, while the subject itself creates an idealized scene of an idealized woman.

Artwork attributed to the Baroque is primarily introduced in the 17th century. This type of artwork is opposite of the Renaissance, and includes emotion, intensity, and drama. Lighting in these works fluctuates more, the artwork can be described as unstable, and it intends on capturing a moment in time. One example of Baroque art at the Met was Moses Shown the Promised Land by Benjamin West. The first thing I noticed in this painting was the contrasting light. Baroque art is all about energy and the energy given off by differing light and this painting is a perfect example. The top center of the painting shows a bright light opening up in the clouds that is supposed to represent the “promised land,” or Heaven. The right side of the painting is very bright compared to the left side of the painting. On the right, we see an angel who appears to be showing Moses the light from Heaven. Despite the far right consisting of darker colors, the lighting itself is still very bright. On the left side, we see Moses next to a very dark cloud that encompasses the majority of the left side. The colors used here and the lighting are very dark. Lighting is a major key that differentiates Baroque and Renaissance art. While Renaissance art has very smooth and consistent lighting, Baroque art encompasses a wide spectrum of lighting from the darkest darks, to the lightest lights.