Greek Pottery: Neck-amphora

This amphora was created by the artist Exekias in around 540 BCE and used as an all-purpose storage jar. It is a black figure piece, which means that glaze was applied to the people and shapes and when fired, the glazed areas would turn black and the unfinished areas would be reddish orange. They would later finish the piece by detailing the objects and people and adding white and red glaze in certain areas over the figures. This really brings out the contrast of color and draws the eye in to the picture on the belly of the vase.

This particular piece is very detailed and decorated in almost every inch of the pot. It portrays a wedding scene with two people in the carriage that are being pulled by two horses. There are also three more figures in the picture; a woman facing the chariot, a man walking behind the horses, and a small scaled man leading the horses. The reverse side is very similar to this. It is unknown if this is a depiction of a marriage of gods or just regular people. It seems so divine and ornate that it could easily be applied to a union of gods.

Pattern and repetition are also used on the top and bottom of the amphora. On the top there is a repeated floral pattern on the neck and a battle scene surrounding the top of the vase. On the bottom there are repeated images of lotus flowers and the Greek keys. The work as a whole is very symmetrical and balanced by color and visual weight of the figures versus ground. 

The Modern Egyptian

The Modern Egyptian Link

The Dying Warrior

              The work I chose to write about this week is the Dying Warrior that we studied in class. The warriors are wounded on the ground and it appears that they are struggling to get up even though their wounds are beyond repair. Even though they are hurt so badly they still seem to appear to balance gracefully on their sides. On their faces there is a small smile known as the archaic smile that makes them look content even in near death. The texture of the skin is so much more realistic than ever before. It almost looks like silk because it’s so smooth. Also, the facial features and body types are much more proportional to real life. The materials used were a hard stone or marble. There are also many strong diagonal lines in these pieces that represent motion and movement.

            The sculptures come from Athena in around 490 BCE. They were made to be put on the west pediment of the Temple of Aphaia. It represents the struggles of ancient Greek and a tribute to the men lost in war. Since then they were taken down and are now seen as sculptures on their own. However at the time they were used to decorate architecture and to communicate a message of war and history to the people.

           

             

Art Brings Hope to Haiti

The article I read was about how art is being used in Haiti to bring up the spirits of those affected by the earthquake at the beginning of the year. It’s being used as a healing power and a therapy to convey emotions to express themselves. People of all ages are taking part in this process to take the focus off the devastation and put their energy into something hopeful and uplifting. Right now they are in between receiving help and financial aid so it’s a difficult time and art therapy is needed even more because of this.

            Personally, I really love the idea that they are using art as a form of healing and bringing it into a situation where so much as been lost. I think it sends across a powerful message. It also gives the people of Haiti a chance to respond and react to this natural disaster and get their feelings out in a beautiful format. The point is proven by giving many examples of people and colleges that are currently practicing this technique. In class we have studied art that was made for all kinds of purposes. The theme for these pieces of work seems to be hope and inspiration in an otherwise dark time.

http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Global-News/2010/1013/Art-lifts-hope-in-Haiti

Egypt in the Most Unusual Places!

From the outside of the church I thought very little of how it differed from any other church, especially since it is so tightly squeezed onto a city block, it is almost hard to even notice. The site was very cramped because it is located in the heart of downtown in a pretty big city. However as soon as we walked in I was immediately taken by surprise. When I think of a Protestant church, I think of a wide open space, with wooden pews, stained class windows, and statues by the alter. The Downtown Presbyterian Church had all of that, just not at all as how I would have imaged it. Every aspect of the church was so engulfed in ancient Egyptian art and culture and thought out so carefully. The stained glass windows at this church were represented by the sandy grounds of Egypt and the papyrus plants, which symbolized their culture. The colors and designs on every corner were consistent with the Egyptian theme. It was very well thought out and executed to get a certain message across.

            

The walls were so brightly colored and intricately decorated with Egyptian symbols and inspired art. The main colors were deep reds, browns and teal. Even the cross at the front of the church was themed Egyptian in pattern and in color.

            The space in it felt massive and open like I’m used to feeling in churches, but the walls and how they were painted made me perceive it differently. The walls were decorated just like the Great Temple at Karnak with the many massive columns decorated with papyrus leaves at the top. In the church however, there was one row of columns and then the rest were just painted on to make it look like there was much more depth in the room then there really was. The space seemed so massive and made me feel so small in comparison. The ceiling imitated light and the sky. It was just you were looking up in a temple and could see the clouds rolling over and the bright sky which was much lighter than the rest of the church. 

 

     

    The materials that I mainly saw used were wood for the pews and concrete for the exterior. The interior was created to look as if it was made of stone and decorated to impersonate what the actual walls of an Egyptian temple. There was a definite rhythm as well throughout the church. The designs created a constant pattern all around the walls. Also the repeated images of the stained glass windows also gave the church some rhythm. A couple of distinctive features I noticed were the use of the symbol of Ra, the Egyptian sun god and the Egyptian crosses.

            I didn’t really talk to my group as a whole, but I did talk to members of it here and there. I think everyone generally had a similar reaction and were taken aback by the extensive theme and decoration of Egypt in a modern day Presbyterian Church.

           

Individual Blog- Part 1: Votive Figures

The art that I choose to analyze is the votive figures of the Sumerian culture. They all appear very similar to one another as far as shape goes. They are all very cylinder-like and positioned in the same way. The women and men all look very similar. However the scale of each figure is different. There are some that are very large and others smaller. Their proportions all appear to pretty normal with the exception of the eyes. The eyes in all of the votive figures are extremely large in comparison with the rest of their features. They almost take on a cartoonish look. They are all textured to create depth in the sculpture. For example their hair and clothes are all sculpted to create lines and texture. The detail of each work is created with straight vertical lines on the skirts and horizontal ones on the beards and hair. The general lines of all of these figures are on a vertical axis. The hands however, create a horizontal line that almost looks like an intersection with their bodies. They are all created of the same material, limestone, so they have the same color of gray although when the light hits them it creates shadowed areas of light and dark.

            The original purposes of these figures were for religious worship. They were created about 2900- 2600 BCE. Their eyes suggest a strong connected gaze with God. It was even said that the Sumerians were supposed to approach the gods with an attentive gaze, which explains the oversized staring eyes of the statues. They are also all standing in the same position, which tells us that may have been a stance of worship that they took when partaking in religious traditions. They are supposed to represent themselves as “one who offers prayers” and may have been set up in shrine to show their admiration to the gods. 

Individual Blog- Part 2: Restoring Da Vinci

The article I read was titled “Leonardo in a new light” and written by Emily Sharpe. It was about famous works of daVinci’s being cleaned and restored to what it would have looked like at the time of creation. Since then they have aged greatly and a yellow fog has plastered over the surface. Art officials feel it is distracting and takes away from the aesthetic experience of those viewing these greatly famous works. The first piece that was restored was “The Virgin On the Rocks” which is located in the National Gallery in London. They are now researching and trying to figure out the best way to do the same to the world renowned the “Mona Lisa”.

I have mixed feelings about this process being applied to these paintings. On one hand the results are beautiful and really pleasing to the eye. I understand how the aged effects were detracting from the image itself and its beauty. The way that “The Virgin On the Rocks” came out was stunning and added so much to its aesthetic value. However, I almost feel that this takes away from the authentic worth of the piece and the work shouldn’t have been touched because then it becomes more of other people’s work and less of da Vinci’s. Also, with the “Mona Lisa” it was determined that the paint layers were thinner than a hair and there was over thirty of them. Taking off the top varnish could easily remove some of the paint. I know that they have the top researchers and other authorities performing the cleaning, it just makes me a little nervous when we’re interfering with something so valuable that we will never have again.






 http://www.theartnewspaper.com/articles/Leonardo+in+a+new+light/21415