The Titian Exhibit

I just realized I never posted anything about my latest visit to the High, so what better time than now. Typically my attention span for 'museum' art is very low. Wandering around and reading about ancient paintings and sculptures of Gods isn't exactly what I would call a good time, although I absolutely appreciate the work and its beauty. However, the Titian exhibit was actually very interesting to me. I realize that it is an exhibit and it should have a certain flow, however I was particularly intrigued by the descriptions throughout this one in particular. More so on the third floor than the second, the way the paintings and descriptions were set-up truly told a story. I was able to learn the background of Titian, what he did, and how all of his paintings came to be. It was very interesting to me that the royal family admired his work so much and paid for anything that he created. I even was very interested in observing the Diana's. While I normally can't stand in front of a painting and actually think about it, those two paintings have a very intriguing subject and fit together very nicely. What I surely enjoyed the most about the entire exhibit was the use of color in the paintings. I don't believe I have ever seen oil paintings with such vivid and boldly used colors, and that definitely set them apart from other works and genres. Very impressive exhibit all around!

Wood Carpet

After I posted the entry about the paper models, we began building models out of cardboard. I came upon this really interesting website that describes the design of a wooden carpet. I personally was impressed that somebody was able to construct a rug out of wood, because that isn't a material that most people would ever consider using in that context. I'm not really sure how effective it is in terms of keeping a person warm, but I thought the idea was awesome.
http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/7Y5Y5g/www.designboom.com/weblog/cat/8/view/8823/elisa-strozyk-wooden-carpet.html

Websites!

After today's tutorial at the library, I realized I have already done the exact same thing. In computer science (which is actually quite a torturous subject for me), we learned how to write HTML and CSS. The amateur website that I made is already on my prism account at http://www.prism.gatech.edu/~hyeganegi3. Basically, we just had to write the text and set all of the colors, text, etc. in html code. We needed to have one paragraph about ourselves and a few links. I happened to include a good amount about turtles, which are my favorite animals! So I feel  much more prepared for our current project knowing that I have done something similar previously.

Coffee Art

I remember somebody posting something a few weeks prior about food art. I recently stumbled upon this really fascinating article that is titled "30 Examples of Latte Art Too Beautiful to Drink".

http://webdesignledger.com/inspiration/30-examples-of-latte-art-too-beautiful-to-drink

It is actually art the baristas made with the foam on top of a latte. I thought this was really interesting because I have never seen 'art' in coffee or any drink type thing in general.

The Smithsonian

Since we are discussing museums now, I thought it would completely appropriate to write a blog about my trip to the Smithsonian Institute. When I was in about third or fourth grade, my grandparents took my sister and I on a road trip to Washington D.C. and other notable southern cities. One stop along the way included a visit to the Smithsonian. There are many things I remember very well, like the giant dinosaur skeleton. But the one item that I remember the most was the Hope Diamond. I'm not sure if I loved it so much simply because I was a girl and it was a massive diamond, or if it was because The Titanic was still a reasonably recent movie and I was amazed that I was actually looking at the same diamond it referenced. Either way, I still have the pictures from my trip, and I would definitely love to return there now that I am older!

Paper Art

We began a new exercise this week in architecture with modeling. We are using different weights of paper and cardboard to form models that echo the movements of everyday objects. One of the particular videos that my instructor had us view as a reference was showing a model created by Theo Jansen. Jansen is a Dutch artist, best known for his kinetic sculptures as shown. His style is known as a fusion between art and engineering, and this was the video that amazed everyone I know, made completely from paper.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOF3C4Q5eJY&feature=related

The Fantastic Fox

After taking pictures of the Fox Theater for my assignment, I became very interested in the design of it and why the architects used such unique styles for the building. The Fox seats about 5,000 and contains an "Arabian Courtyard"  of a night sky made from one hundred embedded crystal 'stars'. I learned that the building was originally part of a large mosque, explaining the characteristically arabian architecture. As a theater, it opened in 1929, not even two months after the stock market crash. Many very famous movies premiered at the Fox in the mid-century, including Gone With The Wind. The theater closed and re-opened a few times before it was named a national historic landmark in 1976. It is estimated that around 750,000 people visit each year.

Visual Essay

Today, I was a victim of what I might call over planning. I spent hours preparing for the assignment, in addition to the hours I spent wandering around Midtown taking pictures. After editing all of the pictures, I continued to make notes about everything I wanted to say for each slide, which in the end totalled over a page of text. With that text, I timed my speech for every slide, added self-timers, and transferred it all to note cards. Those note cards never left my sight for an entire day - I was determined to nail my presentation. However, when I got in front of the class, I froze.
I am definitely not a fan of speaking in public, however I do not usually have a hard time with presenting in front of a classroom, especially one of a reasonably small size like our class. It was very disappointing when I stalled several times because I had spent so much time preparing. By watching other people, I think I definitely may have gone a bit too far into planning. In the future, I hope I will be able to relax a bit more and verbalize all of my thoughts, because I think they are pretty significant.

Explorations

I went out to search for examples of public art this week, and while wandering around midtown I entered Piedmont Park. I had never been to the park before, even though I have lived locally my entire life. Entering, I was immediately shocked that I had never been there before, observing the beautiful trees, paths, and lake. Everybody there seemed so relaxed and enjoying the gorgeous weather outside with their family. From the entrance, I glanced up and saw large colorful shapes, so of course I made my way up there. I was amazed at the beautiful children's play area that had been constructed. The design was bright, modern, and sleek (which are not typical characteristics of children's play-sets.

And I will definitely be revisiting to take advantage of the fun play attractions!

Homecoming!

For the last week, the entire campus has been able to watch all of the Greek Houses prepare for homecoming week. Each of them proudly display their banners and the results of constant pomping. Thinking about it, all of these definitely could be considered 'public art' even though it's all temporary. The decorations are all about homecoming week and Georgia Tech's history. So, as all of the past alumni visit for the football game, they will get to see all of this art that has been produced just for the occasion. Very cool!

public art

Coming from a family that travels out of the country quite often, I have been exposed to great amounts of public art. However, I definitely notice great differences in the 'public art' that one can see in European cities and the 'public art' that one can see in the United States. I think one main reason for this is simply the amount of history that exists in Europe as compared to here. Off the top of my head, I can't think of numerous examples of public art in Atlanta, all though there is a good amount on campus. However, as a student in the College of Architecture, I am slightly biased in my opinion of buildings and furnishing as the most beautiful forms of art. In particular, my favorite has always been the Bank of America building, or what my friends typically refer to as "The Pencil Building".

Obviously, now that I have moved onto campus, the building is something that I have grown completely used to seeing on a daily basis (and all of my friends are completely jealous). I'm not sure what it is about the building that I love so much. However, the most appealing part is the top that glows with a warm colored light at night. When you actually get very close to building, you can see that it is made of a dark marble. After researching a bit, I learned that the Bank of America building was built in 14 months (record time) in 1992 becoming the 26th tallest building in the world, and costing 150 million dollars to produce. This is by-far a landmark of Atlanta and a beautiful example of public art.

Lunch atop a Skyscraper

My absolute favorite form of art is, and has always been, the gorgeous black and white scenic photographs.

As long as I can remember, my sister has had a large copy of the photo that depicts construction workers eating lunch and dangling off of the edge. It is so appealing to me how you can understand the age and setting, far above the beautiful city scene and the fog. These men are sitting hundreds of feet above the ground, and yet this is their job, and they are composed enough to sit down, eat their bagged lunches, and leisurely pose for the camera.
After looking up the history of the photo, I learned that it was taken in 1932 in New York City. The workers were constructing what would eventually become the GE Building at Rockefeller Center. The photo appeared in a Sunday issue of the New York Herald Tribune.

During the last few months of construction, a second photo was taken from the 69th floor of the GE Building of the same workers sleeping on the beam. I cannot even begin to imagine how much fear I would have to conquer in order to each lunch in that setting, let alone take a nap. Regardless, I find this photo absolutely breathtaking.





OOPS, forgot!

After the first few weeks of 100% attentiveness this semester, I slowly began to forget my responsibilities that went unmentioned. In other words, it would run through my mind on a daily basis 'do your blog posts, do your blog posts...' and of course, it would slip my mind at the end of the night.
So, at this moment, I estimate that I am somewhere around three blog posts behind, and I stopped to think about how blogs came about. After searching around about blogs and their origin, I realize I have zero interest in blogs in computer terms, but I figured there was still some really interesting blogs in cyber space, leading me to http://theartblog.org/.
The Art Blog has been named one of the top American art blogs. It offers some really interesting critiques and links to art displays and programs. The founders' goal is 'to bridge the gap between ordinary people and art', which they definitely accomplish. The blog is the perfect place for completely clueless artist to be exposed to art in the community.

more about Warhol

Although I was slightly familiar with the silkscreen process (mostly in terms of t-shirts) I was interested in the process in regards to just paint on a surface. I found this very poor quality video of somebody observing a festival-type affair where they were demonstrating screen printing on a smaller scale. As you can see, each screen has cut-outs of part of the picture according to where different colors would be designated. In Andy's pieces, there would be several different layers that he would continue to overlay on top of the same canvas.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btxouQ-Mzio&feature=related


The second video that I found actually is a Photoshop tutorial to achieve a Warhol-esque effect in photos. However, the first few minutes highlights a major background on Andy Warhol. The host discusses how his works were 'designed to copied' and he directly references the 'Marilyn' piece throughout his discussion of Warhol as an 'evil genius'.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LziSflliwA4&feature=related

Barthes

Barthes piece was very interesting to a read. Particularly, from an amature photographer's point of view, it was interesting to understand his view on why observers enjoy certain photographs. I never stopped to think about particular reasons why I loved a picture, other than the over-all scene was pleasing to my eye. I had never taken the time to actually analyze a photo so deeply before. When you really look at a composite photograph such as that we analyzed in class by Peter Sekar, you can begin to truly understand what the photographer was trying to portray.

I was very intrigued throughout our conversation about what people would point out, only because I would never stop and look at those points. The one thing I did notice was the obvious direction of a spot light, because of the shaows behind the two young boys. However, I failed to notice the directions of the gazes of all of the people, and the hat pulled down below the old man's eyes. In the future, it will definitely provide much more insight should I be able to look at a picture for more than immediate asthetic appeal.

perks from our paper

For the paper that we are currently working on, I chose a portrait of Marilyn Monroe, 'Marilyn', by Andy Warhol. At the exact time that I decided to use this piece, I had countless thoughts running through my head as to how I could interpret the work and argue different points. However, when I actually needed body to write about for a five or six page paper, I began to worry.
Anybody who is familiar with the works of Andy Warhol is aware of the shocking simplicity of them. I became worried that I had chosen something that presented no argument. Then, my mind began to drift more. Warhol had to have some reasoning in his isolationist patterns; this was all related to his pop art genre.
So I began researching and reading all about Andy Warhol and pop art, which I discovered was very interesting and enjoyable rather than just a homework assignment. Like all artists, Warhol went through a grand journey before he was internationally known and recognized. But what I found the most interesting about his works and those of other pop artists was the desire for their art to appear to be mass produced. It seems that most every form of art that I have heard of up until this point aspired towards uniqueness. Did people not pay thousands of dollars for original and unique works of art? What about this mass produced effect was so appealing? I'm not really positive why this particular characteristic of the pop art trend existed, but it definitely exists still today.

The Baptism of Christ

We looked closely at the painting The Baptism of Christ by painter Piero della Francesca in class. While observing the painting, we were asked to begin writing things that we noticed in the painting. Immediately, my eyes were directed towards the Christ figure being baptised in the central region of the piece. Obviously this is the main focus of the painting based on both the location and the coloration. Further, I noticed the hovering dove, stripping man in the background, and the three angels looking onto the occurring baptism.
After class, I was still curious about this painting and it's hidden meaning. Through some web browsing, I came upon this website: http://www.independent.co.uk/arts. Reading their critique, the writers pointed of most of what we did in class. However, the one thing nobody thought about was the largely dominant tree in the upper part of the painting. The tree is very large and arches with the arch in the frame of the picture. Further, critics have identified the tree as a walnut tree, which is said to be a symbol of Christ's crucifixion. The walnut tree is also described as having guardian power in the scene.
Had I not further searched about this painting, I would definitely not have even paid any attention to the tree (which is normal according to the article). This is only one more detail of the painting that contributes to our understanding of its meaning.

Las Meninas

Foucault's 'Las Meninas' was a very entertaining piece to read. Beginning, I was completely unsure as to what the author was describing, as he began "The painter is standing a little back from his canvas..." which no further introduction as to the setting. The descriptive language and amazing imagery that he uses really allows the reader to visualize in their head the scene that he is describing. After reading the passage and interpreting it as one may, the painting itself is presented for visual interpretation. Just as Bal and Bryson's piece described, there are infinite amounts of ways that one may look at Las Meninas. Who or what is the painter's gaze directed at? Why is the mirror so illuminated in the background, and what is the roll of the insignificant man standing in the doorway? The whole picture and its mysteries fully support the idea that society may never know the true meaning of a work of art, and that in the end, it is a creation of an artist.

Semiotics and Art History (What?)

When I initially sat down to read 'Semiotics and Art History' by Bal and Bryson, I was completely dumbfounded. It immediately became a passage that I read as just words and am unable to consume what is actually being said. Obviously, it was largely about semiotics, so I did  take it upon myself to look up the definition of that word (which, again, I was unable to comprehend). It did, however, largely help that the passage was divided in the way that it was. Knowing the title of each section and the general theme really helped in trying to understand what the authors were attempting to convey. I did really enjoy the repeated idea that art is unlimited and there are infinite amounts of interpretations and expansions. If there is one thing that I believe strongly related to art, it is that it may be interpreted in countless different ways based on who is looking at it or what they know, and from what I understood from the passage, I thoroughly agreed with.

The High Museum of Art

Today held many new experiences as I traveled to the High Museum of Art for the very first time. Besides actually exploring the museum, I had several other new ventures on my journey there. Although I am quite familiar with Atlanta, living very close, it was my first time using the MARTA. Fortunately for myself, there were many very friendly men that so kindly guided me along my way as I wandered very insecurely through the station. After I finally arrived, I was taken aback by a stunning old home that was to be sold in an auction. As a student of the College of Architecture, I had to spend a few minutes marveling at beauty of this home.

Home near the High Museum

Upon entering the museum, I was immediately struck by the sheer white starkness of the area. It amazed me how this plain scene was almost beautiful to look at as I progressed up the ramps to the second and third floors of the museum. Firstly, I explored the main areas of the museum. I was particularly interested in a beautiful piece of furniture that served as a desk or a secretary.

It's most likely that I was so interested in this piece because my grandmother has always kept a very similar piece of furniture in her den. This was the first time besides in her home that I have seen something so like it. The detail and beauty of this makes it very obvious how much craftsmanship had gone into it - a beautiful piece of art. Other than the fine furniture, I was most interested in a stunning Self-Portrait by Chuck Close. The portrait was very large and the coloration was a gorgeous impressive combination of smaller pieces of abstract art.

artinfo.com

This piece truly expresses how there is an infinite amount of ways to illustrate and create art. My first visit to the museum made me truly eager to experience what else they will have to offer throughout the winter.

SEEING COMES BEFORE WORDS

"SEEING COMES BEFORE WORDS, THE CHILD LOOKS AND RECONIZES BEFORE IT CAN SPEAK."

Unlike many required reading assignments, I thoroughly enjoyed the minutes I spent reading 'Ways of Seeing' by John Berger. The main idea that was taken out of this excerpt was the use of reproductions of works of art and the ongoing debate of a reproduction's worth. Through media such as cameras and television, the amount of people that have been able to experience art has multiplied more than imaginable. Although we are able to view these works of art, is it the same as seeing the real thing? That, I believe, is personal opinion. Berger presents the argument that "one might argue that all reproductions more or less distort" the original work (Berger 628). In opposition, he balances the argument that one may put aside the minute differences of the works and respect the fact that the work was desired for reproduction. In my opinion, a reproduction is as good as the original in that it allows me to view, often in detail, the general presentation of the piece of art. Although the original may present more finite details than an original, it can be even further respected for the details which proved less easy to reproduce.

For those, such as I, who do not mind appreciating the overall work of art through a reproduction, websites such as http://www.reproductionsart.com/ offers a wide variety of oil painting reproductions of 'famous world masterpieces'.

Art Defined

There has never been any arguement presented to argue to validity of the Mona Lisa and Monet's "Lilies" as 'art'. When the majority of today's society considers the word 'art', the immediate definition would most likely be a drawing, painting, sculpture, etc. That is, something that may be on display at an art museum or placed on a wall for decorative purposes. However, art is much more than this, it is a means by which a person chooses to express their thoughts, emotions, or creativity. This expression may also be out of necessity or purely for pleasure, as many do not realize. Virtually everything in today's consumer market was designed and developed by a person's creativity. Many of these 'works of art', such as beautiful works of architecture that millions walk past daily, remain unnoticed for their beauty and artistic relevance. All in all, art is something that is entirely appealing to the artist who created it, for any various reason.