Tuesday, May 3, 2011

Discussion Poem

Momma don’t worry I’ll be alright
Really momma don’t cry
It doesn’t bother me that I’m gonna die
You can’t say that sweetheart
The doctors are going to make you better
Your life is going to become even greater
I heard what the doctor said momma, I understand
Its okay though really, I don’t mind
I’m not afraid, I’ve had plenty of time
No no sweetheart your going to have a long life
You know those cookies that you always eat
Imagine all the empty boxes of treats there will be
But really I already ate enough cookies
I’ve ate them till my stomach hurts
Those and every other desert

I’ll be okay mom, I’ve already gotten to try every food I would ever want to.

Friday, April 15, 2011

The Death of Marat,Jacques-Louis David

The ribbons in "The Death of Marat" by  Jacques-Louis David create a path for the eye to follow. The ribbons tie the different elements in the painting together. In this painting the figures left arm flows to his head and then down to to floor. Also the line of the table flows up his arm and over his head.

Friday, April 8, 2011

Fiction Story

For my fiction story i am going to base it off of a person finding out they have very little time to live, like a month or so, and how their actions and views change.

Friday, April 1, 2011

Critique 2

When people fear something they tend to push it aside, out of sight and out of mind.  Death is one of the most commonly and greatly feared things, so naturally people try to avoid it. But, how can you think things through and come to accept them when you are avoiding it. Death is something that is greatly feared and mostly avoided; so often people never come to accept that dying is just a part of life. By using color and juxtaposition in “Homunculus” Fred Einaudi creates the feeling that death is simply a part of life, not something to be dreaded.
            Strong earthly colors represent life and growth. All the colors in “Homunculus” are vivid and bright but can be found in nature. Even the body of the fetus is in bright strong colors. Although the body of the fetus, the girl, and the background are all different colors they all go together harmoniously. The harmony between the different hues of color represents harmony between different stages of life. The fetus’ color works as a part of the whole color of the painting, just as death is a part of a whole life. The colors in this painting working together even thought they are different represent death simply being an aspect of life that also fits in.
            Little girls are often used as symbols for innocence and sweetness, whereas dead fetuses and abortion is something that is often thought to be horrible and unethical. The contrast created by juxtaposition between the two creates a shock when you first look at the painting, making the viewer then look more deeply into the painting and what it represents. The fetus is not what the normal would look like, but looks more to be the shape of a formed man, opposed to an unformed baby. The fetus is used as a shocking form of death to get the viewers’ attention, but Fred Einaudi created the fetus as a formed man to say that though it is death it’s not cruel because the deceased still got an opportunity to live and grow. Comparison between the little girl and the formed fetus using juxtaposition creates the feeling that the fetus is not to be feared, and that the sweet girl accepts it.
            People spend their whole life running from death. Women worry about wrinkles, men worry about balding, all because they are signs of getting closer to death. “Homunculus” focuses on the fact that death is not something to be feared and it is merely another part of life. The harmony of the colors emphasizes that although it is a different stage life, but it is still essential. In using juxtaposition Fred Einaudi puts the fetus next to the sweet girl, creating visual shock while giving the feeling that the girl accepts death. “Homunculus” by Fred Einaudi creates shock to get the viewer to look into the painting’s acceptance of death.
           

Friday, March 18, 2011

Self portrait assignment

-Self portrait in a dark felt hat,
Vincent van Gogh, Netherlands, 1886

-reflection (self-portrait), Lucian Freud, united kingdom, 1985

-self portrait at lezanen, Paul Gauguin, France, 1888
Rembrandt van rijn, self-portrait, 1659, Leiden Amsterdam

-Susanna Coffey, self portrait, new york, 2002

-Pablo Picasso, self portrait 1907, 1907, Paris

-Gregory Gillespie, self portrait, 1973, Massachusetts

-Paul Cezanne self portrait, 1880, France

-Brett gamache, self portrait ( frontal view), 2008, new Hampshire

2) Three similar self portraits are Cézanne’s, Rembrandt van Rijn’s and Vincent van Gogh’s. they are all a fairly close up view of the artists face; also they are painted with dark deep colors. There is contrast between the figure and the background using lightness and darkness which draws attention directly to the figure. The self portraits are all very detailed and realistic. The three self portraits by Cézanne, Rembrandt van Rijn and Vincent van Gogh use dark colors and contrast to draw attention to the figure and specific parts of the figures face.
3) The self portrait by Susanna Coffey is the strongest. Although there isn’t color there is still a lot of contrast. Also, the lack of color makes the portrait look more serious. The figure is looking strait on with the focal point fairly centered. It looks like the figure is looking strait at you which makes it the most intense. Also it is very realistic to what people look like when they age, making it look almost ominous because of its unattractiveness.
4) living artists don’t need to make self portraits for people to know what they looked like in the future because we have cameras; but you cant show opinions and views in photographs. If an artist has a certain view or opinion of themselves they can paint that into their portrait. In photographs you cant add details that show your views of yourself. Self portrait let you express ideas and views that specifically relate to you.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Monday, March 7, 2011

critique 1

 Often things that are used up and have nothing left are called dead. Usually when you throw something in the trash it is dead, has no more use, isn’t functional an, is gone forever. The word death makes people think of the end, everything gone, whether you are taking about lettuce being dead or a human that is actually dead. When people think of someone being dead often they think of them as being gone forever and that dying is completely leaving this word. Is the painting “Lane of Poplars at Sunset”, Vincent Van Gogh uses the barren trees, lack of detail, and the view of the figures to depict the idea that with death everything either leaves or ends.
            Healthy and live trees are usually depicted as being full and colorful. Healthy trees can often represent life and growing. The trees in “Lane of Poplars at Sunset” are very thin and barren, they look lifelike but not necessarily alive. Once trees are dead, once they stop growing they start to rot and eventually decompose. Once people die, in theory their memory starts to fade, starts to leave and once a memory is gone you cant just get it back, and you cant just relive it. In “Lane of Poplars at sunset” the tree’s lack of life is an example of memories of someone leaving, decomposing, till eventually that person is forever gone.
            Paintings that are full of detail often look more alive and vibrant. The viewer is distracted by the intricate detail which almost makes the painting look like a photograph. This distraction makes the viewer focus less on the subject of the painting. Vincent Van Gogh used less detail to keep the viewer more focused on the subject of the painting because the nature of the subject makes people want to ignore it. Death and lose are things that are greatly ignored because people don’t want to face them, the lack of detail is used to make obvious that once someone dies they really are gone.
             In literature and art there is often the character of “death”. “Death” is usually presented as a figure in a black cloak that seems faceless. Also, sometimes “death” is carrying a body in his arms, or the soul he has just taken away. The cloaked figure in “Lane of Poplars at Sunset” appears as a black outline giving him an eerie feeling. It appears that he is carrying a body away, walking into the sunset and the end of the day. The black outline of the figure is used to make him seem more ominous, and the way he is carrying a body walking away towards the end of the day gives a sense of departure. All the aspects of the figure combine to make him appear as death walking away with someone’s life, representing how once someone is death everything about them starts to walk away till they are gone.
            In general death is something people try to ignore, espashally when it is that after death everything is gone. Vincent Van Gogh used a lot of diffent aspects in “Lane of Poplars at Sunset” to emphisize its subject since it is something that people often want to ignore. He used the baren dead trees to represent memories of someone decaying and the lack of detail to make the veiwer think more about the subject of the painting. Also, he used the figure to depict the character of “death” walking away with someones life. Death and lose are things that are inevitable, and Vincent Van Gogh used “Lane of Poplars at Sunset” to show that once something dies everything about it either leaves or ends.