Thursday, May 20, 2010
Assignment 5: An Empire of Signs and Clement Greenberg
Assignment 5: An Empire of Signs and Clement Greenberg
Lesson 7: 19.4.2010 - Pop Art, Abstract Expressionism and American Identity
Lesson 7: 19.4.2010 -
Pop Art, Abstract Expressionism and American Identity
Visit to the National Portrait Gallery - 21.4.2010
21.4.2010 Visit to the National Portrait Gallery
After hearing the talk about the National Photographic Portrait Prize and seeing the exhibition make your own choice about a winner and about one that, in your opinion did not merit inclusion in the final selection.
Portraiture is an area of photography that i truly appreciate. It has the ability to capture so many different moods and atmospheres often giving an insight into the subject. I love the emotion and intimate honesty that is often displayed through portraiture and the connection that can be produced between viewer and photograph.
To start of our experience at the National Portrait Gallery we had a short talk with the curator as well as one of the Exhibition finalists Lee Grant. I actually hold Lee in a very high regard as i used to look after her two kids at childcare and she is a very down to earth lady with a very unique style of portraiture which focuses on the gaze of the subject and the environment they are surrounded by. She focuses strongly on the 'encounter' and the clarity and honesty often found in her subjects. I was lucky enough to have my portrait taken by Lee last year.
Of the 1,400 entrants 43 finalists were chosen for their particular way to capture a moment or emotion and the powerful images that evoke a sense of self awareness. In the exhibition i tried to consider what we are learning from the portraits. Are we learning about the subject or about the viewer? This was a position that Lee Grant raised in her talk and one that we could spend much time deliberating over.
The portrait i have chosen as my winner is the one that stood out the most to me. Gori, Bougainville by Stuart Miller i found to be a very powerful image and one that captivated me to look in depth at the portrait.
Gori, Bougainville
2009
Stuart Miller
Digital Print
"The name of this man is Gori and at 35 years of age he is an active environmentalist and youth leader among his own Hako community in north Bougainville. When Gori stood for this portrait on the beachfront of the Buka passage a storm had just begun and i was struck by his confidence. Gori, and youth living in Bougainville are an incredibly resilient group of people, which is remarkable considering their hardship living in a post-conflict and troubled environment."
Above is the artist's statement and in my opinion the portrait has brilliantly captured what the artists intended to show about the subject. His confidence and resilience has been perfectly displayed and to add to the atmosphere as well as the insight into his character the the building storm is almost like a metaphor for the hardships that Gori and his community have had to overcome. The lighting has created an almost silver/metallic effect that adds to the intensity of the photograph as well as the strong gaze that the subject holds demonstrating his fearless and strong approach to life. To me Stuart Miller has pressented Gori as a modern day warrior. This portrait is composed beautifully and is such a strong image that would in my opinion by worthy of the winning.
Daniel at thirteen by Rozalind Drummond, in my oppinion, does not merit inclusion in the final selection for the portrait prize. I believe that it lacks a certain depth that the majority of the other images contain. I found that as a viewer it was important to make a connection with the subjects and try to understand a bit about the intent of the photograph.
Daniel at thirteen
2009
Rozalind Drummond
Digital Print
The photograph also has poor technical compostion with the top of Daniel's head being cropped of and the soft focusing does not match the expression of the boy. The artist's statement also describes Daniel as "curious, sort of pensive; yet completely engaged for the briefest moment in being photographed." To me this doesn't match the expression on the boy's face i see him as uninterested and apathetic. The overall photograph just doesn't grab me from the dull colours to the poor execution of the cropped photograph.
Images from: http://www.portrait.gov.au/exhibit/nppp3/photos.php?startat=6&numperpage=24
After hearing the talk about the National Photographic Portrait Prize and seeing the exhibition make your own choice about a winner and about one that, in your opinion did not merit inclusion in the final selection.
Portraiture is an area of photography that i truly appreciate. It has the ability to capture so many different moods and atmospheres often giving an insight into the subject. I love the emotion and intimate honesty that is often displayed through portraiture and the connection that can be produced between viewer and photograph.
To start of our experience at the National Portrait Gallery we had a short talk with the curator as well as one of the Exhibition finalists Lee Grant. I actually hold Lee in a very high regard as i used to look after her two kids at childcare and she is a very down to earth lady with a very unique style of portraiture which focuses on the gaze of the subject and the environment they are surrounded by. She focuses strongly on the 'encounter' and the clarity and honesty often found in her subjects. I was lucky enough to have my portrait taken by Lee last year.
Of the 1,400 entrants 43 finalists were chosen for their particular way to capture a moment or emotion and the powerful images that evoke a sense of self awareness. In the exhibition i tried to consider what we are learning from the portraits. Are we learning about the subject or about the viewer? This was a position that Lee Grant raised in her talk and one that we could spend much time deliberating over.
The portrait i have chosen as my winner is the one that stood out the most to me. Gori, Bougainville by Stuart Miller i found to be a very powerful image and one that captivated me to look in depth at the portrait.
Gori, Bougainville
2009
Stuart Miller
Digital Print
"The name of this man is Gori and at 35 years of age he is an active environmentalist and youth leader among his own Hako community in north Bougainville. When Gori stood for this portrait on the beachfront of the Buka passage a storm had just begun and i was struck by his confidence. Gori, and youth living in Bougainville are an incredibly resilient group of people, which is remarkable considering their hardship living in a post-conflict and troubled environment."
Above is the artist's statement and in my opinion the portrait has brilliantly captured what the artists intended to show about the subject. His confidence and resilience has been perfectly displayed and to add to the atmosphere as well as the insight into his character the the building storm is almost like a metaphor for the hardships that Gori and his community have had to overcome. The lighting has created an almost silver/metallic effect that adds to the intensity of the photograph as well as the strong gaze that the subject holds demonstrating his fearless and strong approach to life. To me Stuart Miller has pressented Gori as a modern day warrior. This portrait is composed beautifully and is such a strong image that would in my opinion by worthy of the winning.
Daniel at thirteen by Rozalind Drummond, in my oppinion, does not merit inclusion in the final selection for the portrait prize. I believe that it lacks a certain depth that the majority of the other images contain. I found that as a viewer it was important to make a connection with the subjects and try to understand a bit about the intent of the photograph.
Daniel at thirteen
2009
Rozalind Drummond
Digital Print
The photograph also has poor technical compostion with the top of Daniel's head being cropped of and the soft focusing does not match the expression of the boy. The artist's statement also describes Daniel as "curious, sort of pensive; yet completely engaged for the briefest moment in being photographed." To me this doesn't match the expression on the boy's face i see him as uninterested and apathetic. The overall photograph just doesn't grab me from the dull colours to the poor execution of the cropped photograph.
Images from: http://www.portrait.gov.au/exhibit/nppp3/photos.php?startat=6&numperpage=24
The Australian War Memorial - 24.3.2010
24.3.2010
The Australian War Memorial
War is a time of great social and political change. It brings about new ways of thinking and destroys tradition and alters cultural practice.
War is also a time a great technological change and has been the beginnins of some of the basic technology we rely on today, for example; modile phone technology wouldn't have been possible without military communications satelites.
Find 2 examples of technological change in photography.
What is significant about this?
Why is it significant?
Does it impact on photography today?
Post your responses on your blog?
The Australian War Memorial
War is a time of great social and political change. It brings about new ways of thinking and destroys tradition and alters cultural practice.
War is also a time a great technological change and has been the beginnins of some of the basic technology we rely on today, for example; modile phone technology wouldn't have been possible without military communications satelites.
Find 2 examples of technological change in photography.
What is significant about this?
Why is it significant?
Does it impact on photography today?
Post your responses on your blog?
Lesson 6: 29.3.2010 - Primitivism and Colonialism
Lesson 6: 29.3.2010
Primitivism and Colonialism
Cultural syncretism = combining cultures and religions. Gauguin painted Tahitians mixed with other cultures. eg posed as Egyptians. Tribal art was inferior. What is the distinction between art and artifact? Displaying objects within the cultural context in which they were found. Oriental fascination had an effect on European architecture. Respond to the orient very strongly captivated by turkey. 19th Century travellers inspired by other cultures and brought back that influence into homes, art and architecture. Eg. Julian Boavrd - changed his name to Pieree Loti - traveller. Claude Cahun - Photographer - she photographed herself in different persona's. A world beyond the three dimensional limitations. Andre Derain - another cultural painter. Paul Klee - Masks.
Paul Gauguin
Images:
http://www.artfinding.com/Artwork/Masks/Iban-Shamans-mask/4721.html
http://blog.magnumphotos.com/2008/11/surfing_the_archive_competition_entries.html
Lesson 5: 22.3.2010 - Russian Constructivism and the Bauhaus
Lesson 5: 22.3.2010
Russian Constructivism and the Bauhaus
Constructivism
Images:
Russian Constructivism and the Bauhaus
Today's lesson was taken by Sam Bowker. Sam begun the lesson with a short animation video by Theodore Ushev. This video had many qualities that could be considered Russian Constructivism.
Tower (Bawher) - Animation by Theodore Ushev, 2009, The music is Time, Forward! Composed by Georgy Sviridov in 1967
Video Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zap6AlCQsQk&feature=related
The video was fast paced, the music was extremely appropriate, it consisted of repetition, the animations often represented music, sound and instruments. Lots of movement and machinery was present as well as a sense of development, industrialism and propaganda. The title Bawher (meaning tower) could be found many times in the video placed between the block shapes and minimal colours.
1912 - Russian Revolution - communism, established Soviet union.
Constructivism = visual representation of a revolution.
Kasimir Malevich 1915-16 House Under Construction
Surrealism - Artwork by the subconscious mind
Dada - Artwork inspired by Anarchy things that don't make sense.
Constructivism
Art can only refer to itself.
El Lissitzky 1919 - Beat the whites with the red wedge
This image consists of shattered points, displays the divided Russia, abstract, contains strong text.
Aleksandr Rodchenko, Circa 1920 - Spacial Construction #12
- At the telephone 1928
Photomontages - Popularised by constructivism
The Bauhaus
- 'Form reflects function'
- Response to counter the soulless aspects of the 'machine aesthetic' and also the floribund and wasteful decorative aspects of previous art movements.
- Common sense, mass production principles
Laszlo Maholy-Nagy Photographer
Constructivism and the Bauhaus were political and visual movements. Photography was a means of unifying art with technology.
Images:
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Lesson: 4 - 15.3.2010 - Impressionism and Post Impressionism
Lesson: 4 - 15.3.2010
Impressionism and Post Impressionism
Neoimpressionists used logic in paintings not spontaneity. This was based on science.
Romanticism - Emotions used as an aesthetic, sublime quality of nature.
Photography - Complied science
Landscapes where important to early impressionists,
Eg. Monet's Water Lilies. Monet painted at various times of the day to capture the changing light.
Claude Monet - Water Lilies (1907)
Water Lilies, Claude Monet
Other recommended artists: Edgar Degas, Marry Cassat (Both do intimate style paintings)
Young Woman Sewing in a Garden by Mary Cassatt(oil on canvas, 36-1/4x24-3/8 inches) resides inthe Musée d'Orsay, Paris.
Young Woman Sewing in a Garden by Mary Cassatt. Mary Cassatt completed Young Woman Sewing in a Garden between 1880 and 1882. Like Hilaire-Germain-Edgar Degas, Cassatt experimented with bold compositions. In Young Woman Sewing in a Garden, the figure is pushed up to the very surface of the picture plane, while the garden path behind her cuts across the back of the canvas in a diagonal axis. But in contrast to Edgar Degas's tight drawing style, Mary Cassatt handled her paint with a loose and confident stroke.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Lesson 3: 1.3.2010 - Library Lesson
Lesson 3 - 1.3.2010
Library Lesson
Today's lesson was all about the resources that the library has to offer. We learnt that when starting assignments a good strategy is to identify the key concepts, the instructing words and any limiting or narrowing words.
We learnt that when searching their system if you type for example photography like this; "photography" it will be a specific search or if you type it like this; photography* it will cover similar words such as photographer.
Groove Art Online (Oxford's page) is a good resource
We also recapped on bibliography.
10% plagiarism rule for both direct and indirect quotes.
Use 3 main sources in reports; catalogue, database, online/Internet
A list of Reference - Is only things you have used directly
A Bibliography - Is everything you have viewed
Example: Freeman, M 1984, Achieving Photographic Style, Amphot, New York
Monday, March 1, 2010
Assignment 2: Masterpieces from Paris - 24.2.2010
Assignment 2: Masterpieces from Paris - 24.2.2010
Task: Are the artists embracing or rejecting modernist ideas. Choose one work; What are the formal qualities that appeal to you? Is there an implied narrative and what might this be? Is the work making you feel or think in a particular way? Write a concise response to the chosen work.
Canberra is lucky enough to have the Masterpieces from Paris featured at our own National Gallery of Australia. It features 112 post-impressionist paintings on temporary loan from the Musee D'Orsay in Paris.The exhibition runs from the 4th December 2009 to the 5th of April 2010. It is one exhibition that is definitely worth have a look at. Just last week the Gallery announced that this particular exhibition has had the most people attend out of any exhibition that they've featured at the Gallery. "Never before have so many masterpieces been brought together in one exhibition in this country," NGA director Mr Ron Radford said. (McLintock, P 2009, Viewed: 1.3.2010, www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/08/10/2651408.htm)
The exhibition had 6 rooms each with a different theme. In room 5 one painting by Gustave Moreau has a particular quality to it that just captivated me and really stood out from the rest. At first glance it was just another painting of a woman but open approaching i noticed that i dismembered head was in fact what she was holding. Room 5 has a high focus on symbolism and so to does Moreau's painting Orpheus. The painting has a sort of mystical quality to it, set in a barren landscape with a woman looking longingly into the head which appears to be placed on a plaque. The general narrative behind the painting is that Orpheus was a musician who was killed by a woman, in the painting Moreau does not depict the act of the killing rather he shows a scene from afterwards of a young woman starring deeply at the head of the dead Orpheus. The artist appears to be rejecting modernist idea's through the mystical qualities of his paintings. Moreau explored ideas such as mythology, philosophy and dreams through his work creating a very surreal element to his artworks. Featured in his painting appear to be three women playing music which could possibly symbolise the connection to the fact Orpheus was a musician. There is also a spiritual insight and a dreamlike quality to this work. The young woman appears to be very accepting and it almost a personal and intimate moment depicted.
The artwork really appeals to me as it is more than just a portrait of a woman. There are many hidden meanings and symbols behind it and you could spend hours breaking it down and considering all the different aspects of it. The work allows me to see the situation through the eyes of the young woman and interpret her feelings through the artwork. It evokes a feeling of sadness but also acceptance and compels a certain curiosity to understand the depicted scene.
Gustave Moreau
Orpheus
1865
Oil on canvas
Image can be found on http://www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/moreau_gustave.html
Task: Are the artists embracing or rejecting modernist ideas. Choose one work; What are the formal qualities that appeal to you? Is there an implied narrative and what might this be? Is the work making you feel or think in a particular way? Write a concise response to the chosen work.
Canberra is lucky enough to have the Masterpieces from Paris featured at our own National Gallery of Australia. It features 112 post-impressionist paintings on temporary loan from the Musee D'Orsay in Paris.The exhibition runs from the 4th December 2009 to the 5th of April 2010. It is one exhibition that is definitely worth have a look at. Just last week the Gallery announced that this particular exhibition has had the most people attend out of any exhibition that they've featured at the Gallery. "Never before have so many masterpieces been brought together in one exhibition in this country," NGA director Mr Ron Radford said. (McLintock, P 2009, Viewed: 1.3.2010, www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/08/10/2651408.htm)
The exhibition had 6 rooms each with a different theme. In room 5 one painting by Gustave Moreau has a particular quality to it that just captivated me and really stood out from the rest. At first glance it was just another painting of a woman but open approaching i noticed that i dismembered head was in fact what she was holding. Room 5 has a high focus on symbolism and so to does Moreau's painting Orpheus. The painting has a sort of mystical quality to it, set in a barren landscape with a woman looking longingly into the head which appears to be placed on a plaque. The general narrative behind the painting is that Orpheus was a musician who was killed by a woman, in the painting Moreau does not depict the act of the killing rather he shows a scene from afterwards of a young woman starring deeply at the head of the dead Orpheus. The artist appears to be rejecting modernist idea's through the mystical qualities of his paintings. Moreau explored ideas such as mythology, philosophy and dreams through his work creating a very surreal element to his artworks. Featured in his painting appear to be three women playing music which could possibly symbolise the connection to the fact Orpheus was a musician. There is also a spiritual insight and a dreamlike quality to this work. The young woman appears to be very accepting and it almost a personal and intimate moment depicted.
The artwork really appeals to me as it is more than just a portrait of a woman. There are many hidden meanings and symbols behind it and you could spend hours breaking it down and considering all the different aspects of it. The work allows me to see the situation through the eyes of the young woman and interpret her feelings through the artwork. It evokes a feeling of sadness but also acceptance and compels a certain curiosity to understand the depicted scene.
Gustave Moreau
Orpheus
1865
Oil on canvas
Image can be found on http://www.artcyclopedia.com/artists/moreau_gustave.html
Lesson 2: 22.2.2010 - Introduction to Art Theory and Modernism
Lesson 2: 22.2.2010
Introduction to Art Theory and Modernism
Theory: - A tool to develop visual and contextual analysis
- A tool for inquiry
- Some type of theory used in humanities
"The masters tool will never dismantle the master's house" Audre Lorde, Sister Outsider, 1984
The biggest aim of visual culture is for the individual to develop their own understanding of aesthetics.
Positivism
An approach to theory: only uses facts.
Refuses to engage with interpretation.
"ONLY FACTS" from sciences as the only source of knowledge.
Founder: Auguste Comte (1798-1857)
Highly Descriptive of formal qualities.
The opposite approach...
Critical Theory
Contextualise and interpret.
Politics of reception, power and ideology.
Interdisciplinary, not fixed.
How we talk about art - art history and art theory.
Theory as discourse - not neutral, not impartial, not universal.
Positivism (formalist approach)
- Facts only, against interpretation
- Human behaviours follows laws/ science (Comte)
- Descriptive account of art
Contemporary Approach (Critical Theory)
- Interdisciplinary
- Cultural, social and political contexts - not fixed
Introduction to Modernism
What is modernism? Contemporary, progress, new
What are the differences between 'modern', 'modernity' and 'modernism'?
How did the modernists differ from the romantics?
Formalist and positivist approaches to art theory.
Modernism (1930's/40's - current time = post modernism)
Theodore Gericault - The raft of medusa 1818- 1819
Eugene Delacrouix - Liberty Leading the People 1830
Gustave Courbet - The Stone breakers 1947
Jean Francois Millet - Angelus 1859
Edouard Manet - The Luncheon on the Grass 1863
- Olympia 1863
Ernest Putherford (1871-1937)
Niels Bohr 1885
Francis Picabia
Jean Arp
Natalya Goncharo - Peasants Dancing
John Heartfields - Adolf Superman
Marcel Duchamp - Fountain 1917 by R. Mutt
Edouard Manet
1863
Oil on Canvas
130.5 cm × 190 cm (51.4 in × 74.8 in)
Musee d'Orsay, Paris
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympia_(Manet)
Introduction to Art Theory and Modernism
Theory: - A tool to develop visual and contextual analysis
- A tool for inquiry
- Some type of theory used in humanities
"The masters tool will never dismantle the master's house" Audre Lorde, Sister Outsider, 1984
The biggest aim of visual culture is for the individual to develop their own understanding of aesthetics.
Positivism
An approach to theory: only uses facts.
Refuses to engage with interpretation.
"ONLY FACTS" from sciences as the only source of knowledge.
Founder: Auguste Comte (1798-1857)
Highly Descriptive of formal qualities.
The opposite approach...
Critical Theory
Contextualise and interpret.
Politics of reception, power and ideology.
Interdisciplinary, not fixed.
How we talk about art - art history and art theory.
Theory as discourse - not neutral, not impartial, not universal.
Positivism (formalist approach)
- Facts only, against interpretation
- Human behaviours follows laws/ science (Comte)
- Descriptive account of art
Contemporary Approach (Critical Theory)
- Interdisciplinary
- Cultural, social and political contexts - not fixed
Introduction to Modernism
What is modernism? Contemporary, progress, new
What are the differences between 'modern', 'modernity' and 'modernism'?
How did the modernists differ from the romantics?
Formalist and positivist approaches to art theory.
Modernism (1930's/40's - current time = post modernism)
Theodore Gericault - The raft of medusa 1818- 1819
Eugene Delacrouix - Liberty Leading the People 1830
Gustave Courbet - The Stone breakers 1947
Jean Francois Millet - Angelus 1859
Edouard Manet - The Luncheon on the Grass 1863
- Olympia 1863
Ernest Putherford (1871-1937)
Niels Bohr 1885
Francis Picabia
Jean Arp
Natalya Goncharo - Peasants Dancing
John Heartfields - Adolf Superman
Marcel Duchamp - Fountain 1917 by R. Mutt
Edouard Manet
1863
Oil on Canvas
130.5 cm × 190 cm (51.4 in × 74.8 in)
Musee d'Orsay, Paris
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympia_(Manet)
Lesson 1: 15.2.2010 - Introduction to Visual Culture
Lesson 1: 15.2.2010
Introduction to Visual Culture
Today's lesson was a basic overview of what we would be learning in Visual Culture. We learnt about to ways that the teachers would communicate with us through a private facebook page and a blog page found at: http://www.citphotographycentral.blogspot.com/
We learnt about the two major types of assessment which are;
(f) = Formative - Which is not graded
(s) = Summative - Which is graded
Introduction to Visual Culture
Today's lesson was a basic overview of what we would be learning in Visual Culture. We learnt about to ways that the teachers would communicate with us through a private facebook page and a blog page found at: http://www.citphotographycentral.blogspot.com/
We learnt about the two major types of assessment which are;
(f) = Formative - Which is not graded
(s) = Summative - Which is graded
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
