Fourth

 

For my fourth blog I wanted to use a piece of artwork by Pablo Picasso. This is called 'The Old Guitarist' and was painted in 1903. I really like Picasso's paintings because they are unusual, but eye catching. I feel like maybe he sees everything differently or has a big imagination, and it's hard to understand what the meaning of his art is at first. This was painted after his friend committed suicide. In a lot of his art Picasso represents people who are poor, miserable, and outcasts. I can tell by looking at this picture that the man in it is probably poor because of how skinny he is, and miserable. Even just looking at it makes me feel sad, it brings out a lot of emotions. I think the colors contribute to the sadness of it too, it is very dark and blue with no bright or 'happy' colors.

Third

         For my third blog I choose to write about a Spirit Spouse from African culture. This is from chapter 28, picture 28-11. Spirit spouses are small statues that are cared for like real people. The are carved from wood and decorated with beads. The owner keeps it in there house, dresses it beautifully, and gives it jewelry and will 'feed it.' People who get spirit spouses are unmarried and believe that there soul mates have not came down to the natural world to be with them yet. I think that the figure is stunning and all of the details are so precise. It also shows what African culture values in a spouse. I also think the thought process of caring for a figure of your spirit spouse until your real one comes down to be with you is so different yet sweet and caring at the same time. One thing I noticed about the figure is how much it actually resembles a real person, and it really shows what they believed in and shows you a lot about there culture. This was definitely the most interesting thing I learned about in chapters 23-28.

Second assignment 2/28

I chose to write about Chenonceau, or Castle of the Ladies for my second blog. This is a castle in France built over the River Cher in France. It was lived in by people for a very long then used as a hospital during World War II. The archeitecture of this castle is goregous and it looks like something out of a fairytale, and the fact that is right on top of a river makes it even more beautiful and unbelievable. Out of everything we saw in the book so far this has definitely been the most striking to me.

First assignment 1/31

        I choose to write about this painting called 'Double Portrait Of A Giovanni Arnolfini And His Wife' by Jan van Eyck for my first assignment because it intrigues me. For some reason it really creeps me out. I think it is because of the dark colors, and especially because he is wearing all black and they are both very pale. Another reason is the various meanings everything has, like the dog, which could indicate wealth or death but it is unknown. Also, the random person in the double portrait. Overall, I think the painting is very beautiful, and it is amazing how everything looks almost real like your actually there, but it also gives me a very eerie feeling at the same time.

Hey

Hi my name is Angela and I had to make this blog for art history class.