A Sculpture of Man for Our TImes

    Study the images in this posting. The second image is a close-up of the torso and head of the 17 foot marble  statue of the biblical David by Michelangelo. It was sculpted in the years 1501-1504, at the height of the Renaissance in Italy. The last image is image is a triumphant equestrian statue in bronze of a military leader named Colleoni on his horse by sculptor, Verrochio. This was also created at the time of the Renaissance, in 1475. The top image is a life size statue of an anonymous man. It was created by Swiss sculptor, Giacometti. He made it in the 1950's.

    How do the Renaissance images differ from the modern man image? List 5 elements/characteristics that show how the two types of images differ. What do you think the Renaissance artists felt and were trying to say about humans in their time?  What was the modern artist trying to communicate? If you were to create a statue to communicate your ideas of humans in our time in the form of a standing male statue, what kind of statue would you make? Would it be made of traditional materials like marble or bronze, or would it be made of found objects or electronics? Would it convey hope or loss of hope? Would it show man to be puzzled, forceful, weak or powerful? Write 2 paragraphs describing your statue idea and what you hope it would express.

How to Be Immortal

  Look at the image in this post and think- "Who was this person?" Why is his portrait still being seen throughout history? Who was  Salvador Dali?  Art has made him immortal. His own art and images of him have brought him lasting renown. How would you choose to be immortalized in art? As a statue? In a painting? In a photograph? What would your image look like? What would it say to people in the future who might see it?

"You can tell the ideals of a nation by its advertisements".- Norman Douglas

I read this quote by Norman Douglas today and got to thinking. What do advertisements in our U.S. culture say? What do they entice us to buy? To strive for? To desire?
Close your eyes and think of the first advertisement that comes to your mind, What is the product it advertises? What makes you remember it? Does it make you want something? If you look deeply, what is the product in the advertisement promising you? Youth? Strength? Success? 

What is the role of the artist in our world?

  What do you think the role of artists is in our world today?  Write 3 roles you think artists can play in our society and describe why you think they are important.

What do we want as a society?

   My Drawing One class is working on a response to letters we received from teenagers who are presently serving life sentences in prison. Some of these persons are guilty of a violent crime, some were hit with Califronia's 3 strikes law and some may have been imprisoned unjustly. All were under 19 at the time of the crimes commited.
    We asked ourselves if life in prison with little chance of parole was the Christlike response to these young people's situations.... most of those incarcerated come from abusive, poor, and uneducated families. Many had poor representation. Most are children of color.
      Perhaps the crime started way back when these teenagers were little- when we as a society failed to reach out to help them grow in health, education and welfare.
      Is imprisoning youth for life the answer to a more peaceful society? Or is the making of a peaceful society to be had in a more constructive way? We are making art postcards to send to these youth to let them know that they are not forgotten as they serve their time in prison. Can you think of other artistic responses to the problem of harsh sentencing of youth?

"Freedom is not a gift but a conquest"- Paulo Friere

Just read this quote by educational thinker, Paulo Friere. Friere, who grew up in poverty in Brazil, has spent his life thinking and writing about how education can truly bring equality, democracy and freedom to all people.
He talk about how people in poverty need to fight for equality of opportunity  and that educators need to teach critical thinking so that everyone can really think about and question the status quo. Throughout history, artists have been at the forefront of fighting for freedom and equality. How can schools improve or increase arts instruction for students in order for our society to have image makers who care about injustices?

GOT MY EYE ON YOU

  A new sculpture is getting attention in the city of Chicago. It is a  30 ft. high GIANT EYEBALL, complete with colorful iris and realistic red veins. It was made by artist, Tony Tasset and can be seen in Pritzer Park.
 It is big, but is it art? Write a few sentences about why you do or why you don't think it is art.

Myths and Money

     For centuries, humans have tried to make sense of their existence on earth through the use of myth.  Ancient Greek myths such as the story of Persephone gave the Greeks a way to think about the phenomenon of the changing seasons. The many gods and goddesses of Greek and Roman mythology embodied the many attributes of humankind-- speed (Mercury), power (Zeus), love of home and hearth (Hestia), romantic love (Aphrodite) etc.
    In modern times, advertisers create many ad campaigns based on images that are inspired by myth. Can you think of any?  Try to name a product and or advertisement that gets an underlying power from ancient myth. Gods, goddesses, pegasus, the minotaur, centaurs--what comes to mind?  You can include myths from Norse culture, Native American culture or other historic mythologies.
    See if you can describe an ad or product that uses this kind of imagery.
 Example #1- What myth does the U.S.C. football team invoke for it's identity?
 Example #2- What Norse myth is the mascot for Travelocity?
 Now you name one!!

How About No More War?

      On a website called costofthewar.com, we can  read that the war in Afghanistan has cost more that 800,000,000,000 dollars. That's eight hundred billion (with a B) dollars. In a comment by Steven O. in response to my Blogpost, Patriotic Art, Steven imagined a conceptual artwork that would utilize 800 billion bullets- one for each dollar spent-  built into a pyramid.  Supposing the actual size of a standard issue M-16 rifle bullet, a solid pyramid would be as big as the Pyramid at Giza in Egypt.  What have we as a society built?
    My question for today's blogpost is, "How can artists be peacemakers in our world?"
What images, sculptures, installations or activities can be made that could move our society to a more rational response to danger, alienation and fear?
    Think and imagine an artistic response to the theme IMAGINE PEACE. Describe your artwork. Questions you can ask yourself might be, "What kind of image would have a strong impact on the viewer?" How can my work be visually poetic? How can I make something memorable?
    
  
 

IT'S ALL ABOUT YOU

   Way before YOU TUBE, iMovie, Twitter, personal blogs, Facebook and Flickr and all the other amazing ways of making yourself 'famous', artists were making self-portraits to make their mark in history. Up until the 20th century, artists were concerned with painting themselves and their wealthy patrons.  It was Andy Warhol in the 1960's who foresaw a future world in which everyone would have their "15 minutes of fame".  With the onset of so many magazines, movies and T.V. shows, people suddenly became  famous just for their celebrity.  Paris Hilton comes to mind as a person who is famous for no reason other than for being famous.
Look at these pictures of famous people by Andy Warhol.  His idea to paint them in serial form (repeated images) brings to mind the effect we have of seeing the same famous people over and over and over. Their image gets into our subconscious minds making them feel to us more important than they actually are.

   Now--- think of the first famous person that comes to your mind. Name that person. How is their image  portrayed in the media?  What do we think we know about this person from the press he/she gets?

Write a paragraph telling us about how this person's power is wrapped up with their media image.  Include your name and period # in your comment.

What is Patriotic Art?

    This week at school, we are celebrating Patriotic Week. We will be thinking about what it means to be an American citizen and what America means to us. This celebration is coming right during the week when the nation will be commemorating the 9-11 disaster in New York City in 2001. In the aftermath of the 9-11 tragedy, Americans came together in sadness, fear and anger.  And it was in the immediate aftermath that the country began a pre-emptive war against the country of Iraq as a response to the destruction.  In this week's entry, I would like to to reflect on what our own ideas are about that event and the subsequent events that happened as a result of it through the study of art.


     Art can heal, shock, instruct, inspire, provoke thought and sometimes provoke action. If you were to make an artwork about our nations' response to the destruction of the Twin Towers, what would it look like? What would it "say"? Would your art piece be about the fallen firefighters? Would you remember the innocent people who died? What did the towers represent?  What materials would you use? What do you think the public would say/think about your 9-11 artwork? Would it be a tribute, an historical commemoration or a controversial question?  


    Think about your ideas surrounding this historic event in the life of the United States.  Describe a concept that you would make in response to what happened to our country at the moment the planes crashed and then in the years after.  Some examples of art that speaks about our country at war are; The Vietnam War Memorial, and the statue of the flag- raising at Iwo Jima which commemorates the sacrifice of American soldiers in Japan during WWII.  You can also research mural art of the underground artist, Banksy, who has commented through his art on  many controversial subjects.


     I'm looking forward to reading your proposals for a painting or sculpture or other kind of artwork based on the reflection suggested in this post.


     Here are some examples by professional artists that were inspired by historic national and international events

Wall Graffiti by Bansky 

In London, England

Post WWII Painting by Salvador Dali 

This painting is an example of a response by a Surrealist artist to the carnage of the second world war.

Guernica by Pablo Picasso 

This monumental painting commemorates the loss of innocent lives in the Spanish Civil War.