Downtown Presbyterian Church

The Downtown Presbyterian Church was an interesting experience for me. The historic building was beautiful from the outside, and made me feel small already, so I had a feeling that there would be a similar element when I entered. I was right. Walking into the sanctuary made me shrink. The Pillars were tall and vast, and there were some more painted behind them to give the room depth. The bold colors of the pillars and wall along with the stained-glass windows illuminated the building. The maroon carpet, the pink chair, and the simple pews did not seem to flow with the the rest of magnificent and strong architecture. In the choir loft, I could really identify the use of trapezoids and triangles. Geometry was used very well.

When our group discuss how we felt in the church some were offended by the style, and some were not. I can understand how someone would take offense to a place decorated like a country that worshipped other gods than the God that they worship in that space. They may think that decoration is out of place for a church. But the design of the church and the way it is decorated can also be seen as a completely different aspect of the church, and have nothing to do with the worship.

Turkish politics embraces body art

http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/meast/09/17/turkey.tattoos.ataturk/index.html?iref=allsearch

I read an article on tattoos in Turkey called, Turkish politics embraces body art. This article is about the recent popularity in getting the signature and/or face of founder and former political leader Mustafa Kemal Ataturk on a visible part of the body such as the arm. Turkey is going through a time of political change where and Islamic leader is beginning to rule, and some people are upset about it. The Ataturk signature and portrait are a well known symbol of freedom and support of the deceased leader. In the past, it was common to see an Ataturk tattoo on someone's chest, or another less-visible part of the body, but times have changed, and some tattoo artists do as many as 5 Ataturk tattoos a day. One artist noted that the number of Ataturk tattoos increase on a day-to-day basis. There is even a particular salon that gives free Ataturk tattoos every year on the anniversary of his death.

Personally, I think this is one of the coolest stories I have ever heard. Not only are the tattoos attractive and subtle, but it states a political view and brings unity to the country. Every country needs unity, and I think that tattoos of a signature of a the founder of your country is a beautiful way of doing so. It says a lot about the country that the citizens would be proud enough of a political leader to permanently dye their skin to support him. I think it is special when tattoos can be more that a fashion statement. Many people are against tattoos. I personally am not, but if I were, this article would make me think again about my opinion on tattoos. In egyptian times, art was about kings and queens that were important and special to the people. The same thing is going on here with the tattoos. The Turks are making art of a political leader that they respected. THe only difference is that the art is on their bodies instead of carved out of stone.

Menkaure and a Queen

This week in class we looked at Menkaure and a Queen. Menkaure, heir of Khafre, ruled in the fourth dynasty. The Egyptian people were obsessed with the thought of death and the afterlife. In fact, the working class was thought to continue their work even after death, meaning that they would never get to rest. In Egypt at this time, the deceased were buried with their possessions. This is why a statue from 2472 B.C.E. is still standing. Like other Egyptian artifacts, Menkaure and a Queen was kept in a place that was safe from weather and extreme temperatures. The figures are also wearing the traditional clothes of the time. The king would be wearing a kilt, beard, and headdress, and the Queen would wear a sheer form-fitting dress that shows off her curves.

This piece stood out to me because of how striking it is. The portrait of the two come off as poised, strong, and calm. The book also mentions that dignity and permanence are features of the piece, and I agree. However, the dignity and permanence of the portrait is not a coincidence. Menkaure and a Queen were specifically carved to look this way. Balance, proportion, and rhythm are themes in Egyptian art that Menkaure and a Queen incorporate. The same height of both people creates balance, and the repeated lines and parallels of the lines of their bodies create rhythm. Also, the fact that they are taking a step allows for movement in the piece. It appears that the figures are actually walking when in reality they are standing still. There is so much to this statue that attracts me to it, and I enjoyed learning about it.

Collage

Becca Fox

I will start with the background. It is a map of the U.S. I chose this as my background to represent my love for U.S. travel, travel in general, and the country I am from. I have outlined every state that I have been to. There are a group of southern states that I have not yet visited, so I put the character from Oh! The Places You’ll Go, by Dr. Seuss. I also put that character there because Dr. Seuss is my favorite author.  I craved vanilla soft serve ice cream with rainbow sprinkles all summer so I incorporated that into my collage. I am from Annapolis, Maryland and traveled to Nashville by car for school so I traced the trip from MD, through VA, to TN on the map. Annapolis is the sailing capital of the world, which is the reason I have a sailboat on my collage. I love season changes. That is what the leaves represent along with autumn, my favorite season. Sunflowers are my favorite flower. The sun is vital to their survival, so I made a sun out of sunflower seeds. I have pictures of my mom, sister, some of my best friends, and my favorite tree in the entire world to represent my family.  The puzzle pieces symbolize the world today. The worlds problems can be resolved, however, it is a puzzle that needs to be worked on with much thought and perfection. Until that moment, the puzzle will be incomplete. History and art go together in many ways. One of those ways is through the building of Mount Rushmore, where history and art actually came together as one. The day I saw Mount Rushmore in real life was the day that I began my love for history. I am going to be an art therapist. I believe it is of great importance that people are given chances to express themselves, and there are other ways of doing so than with words. Painting how one feels can also be very healing for a person, therefore, I have painted the world “feel” on my collage.

Light: the puzzle pieces were a mix of light and dark colors because the world is full of good and evil.

Texture: there is texture on the sailboat mast, the paintbrush, the sunshine, the ice cream cone, and the leaves.

Volume: the yellow puzzle piece has a darker puzzle piece behind it to create volume.

Line: the roads on the map itself make up lines, but my outline of the states I have been to add to this. The axis of my collage is created with the tilt of the paintbrush. It is split in half diagonally

Space: everything is on top of the map. The states I have no been to are the background of for the character from Oh! The Places You’ll Go.

Scale: my family, career, the world, and where I am from are most important to me. I have made these objects the biggest on the collage because I believe that they will be a huge part of who I will become as I continue to grow.

Symbolism: described in paragraph.

“Paradigm Shift”

http://teach.belmont.edu:2411/hww/results/results_single_fulltext.jhtml;hwwilsonid=ALKVCDFXMWZ4DQA3DILSFGGADUNGIIV0

This article explains an art show that the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) put on in 2009 called “Housepaint, Phase 2: Shelter”. The show included art from Toronto’s street artists to promote homelessness in the city. It enlightened viewers on many of the issues of homelessness, allowing the homeless to finally have a voice and be heard in the city. This article really moved me. As a social work major I am repeatedly reminded about the issues of homelessness, not to mention the amount I am reminded just by walking outside and around Nashville. It seem that homelessness is a problem that no one can get a grasp on, partly because the homeless are rarely allowed a voice. So to read about a huge museum putting on an entire show to advocate for homelessness truly filled me with joy. In the classroom we have learned about what we can tell about the artist/culture/time period of the piece; therefore, the work done by the street artists in Toronto also tell about their lives on the street, and those are important lives to know about. 

The Parthenon, By Frederic Church

The Parthenon by Frederic Church incorporates many artistic decisions in the painting. The use of color, angle, and light tell a lot about the piece, as well as other elements that show insight to the time period that The Parthenon was painted. Church chose natural/accurate colors to paint his piece meaning that he wanted the viewer to know what the Parthenon looked like in reality. The angle he chose to view the building from gives a sense of power and strength. Church obviously was representing the value of the structure to the people in his painting. The light source signifies the “coming out” of a hard, or dark time. All of the rubble is in the darkness, but the Parthenon is in the light signifying willpower to be free from the negativity or ruin.

It is possible to tell a lot about the time period and cultural beliefs and values of the people when Church painted The Parthenon solely by looking at the piece itself. The structure is already in ruins; therefore, it was painted after ancient times. However, the emphasis of abstract art, present in contemporary art is not incorporated in the painting, so it was not painted in recent years. The Parthenon was painted during a lot of classical training. Today, people are not taught to paint with the exact precision of line, making the painting look like a photograph. The illumination of the Parthenon along with the size Church painted the structure again proves the importance of the Parthenon in the society. Lastly, the petite size of the person in the painting symbolizes how unimportant people are compared to the accomplishments of a society as a whole. A group of people built the Parthenon, not one person. When a civilization works together as one, much more is accomplish than one person doing the work on his/her own.