BMA Pieces

#1
My favorite piece from the BMA was Dancer at Pigalle's by Gino Severini. 

The composition of this piece was interesting. There were lines all throughout the painting pointing you to the dancer that is in the middle. There are a lot of organic shapes that are used in this piece, along with a lot of texture. It can't be seen in this photo, but there are thing that are actually raised off the page slightly. To me, this looked like a moving dancer. I felt like it was probably to an upbeat song but also elegant. It seemed like it was in the middle of the dance and while the dancer was in motion. I thought that the bottom part of the painting was the audience. Its darker than the rest of the painting which could represent all of the people that are sitting in the crowd and how it just looks like a dark blob. There also looks like there might be some people that are standing because of how it kind of goes up and down and not just a line that is straight across at the bottom of the page. I also think this is in the middle of the dance because there are light yellow/white lines that are coming down at the top of the page into the middle that looks like spot lights on the dancer. 

#2

My second favorite was Large Fish with a Cliff by Henri Matisse

This painting uses dots in order to give things in the painting texture. It also uses dull colors to set the tone for the picture. This seemed like this was at sunset possibly on a small private beach. It doesn't look like it is a big beach and I cant picture it being much more beach behind us where we can't see. When you're look at this picture you almost feel like you are standing on this beach because of the way the dead fish are laid. They are in a position where it almost looks like you are looking down on them or standing right next to them. I almost imagine this beach being in California. The colors and the dead fish kind of make it seem like there is not something happy going on in this picture. Maybe the people in the picture are planning on cooking and eating those fish and that is why they are laid out on something. Or maybe they just got washed up to land. 

#3

My third favorite painting was View of St Lazare Railway Station, Paris by Norbert Goeneutte 

This painting looks like a photograph when you first look at it in a way. There are a lot of lines that seem to pointing to one building in the middle of the painting however, they are not straight lines, it is the smoke lines from the trains. This picture seems like it is early in the morning as the sun is rising and everyone is going to work. It feels like it is during a depressing time, I imagine the Great Depression for some reason when I am looking at this photo. Also, the smoke from the trains and the trains in the stop make it seem like everyone is off to work. Putting yourself in this painting, it feels like you are at a window looking out into the town. 

John Berger - Ways of Seeing

In order for us to describe something or explain something we first imagine it. From this imagination is where we find the words to depict this image. From there it is up to the person that is listening to imagine what is being described in their own head. It is very likely that whatever the person describing this thing is thinking of is completely different than what the person listening is thinking of. The images that are created in our heads come from things that we have seen or believe in.

Invention of camera allowed us to capture these images and created this notion of time. In order for a picture to be taken, that person had to be in a certain place at a certain time. Photos weren't something that people imagined like a painting or drawing. A photo puts the viewer directly in that time and place when it is being looked at. Each photo is taken from a different perspective. When someone is looking at a photo that are in that perspective, there is nothing else to look at or understand.

The camera also allowed paintings to be seen millions of times. Paintings used to be only seen once, but now could be see across the globe. Now a painting had a million different meanings. Each person looking at a painting had there own reasons for the purpose of the painting and idea or images behind it. When before the camera, a painting was in one place and not everyone got a chance to look at it.

For example, this painting. Each person looking at this painting could have a different perspective, a different reasoning for the painting and different ideas of who these people are. 

Visibility

The idea of Visibility is something that we all understand. While reading anything we are constantly visualizing things as we read to help better understand the story. Visualizations and pictures help to make a story more clear or more understanding. It is how we connect to something by thinking of our own ideas of something. We all think of things in different ways and it is because we visual different things when thinking of something. 

Visualizations have been helping us learn things and imagine things for a long time. Mentioned in the chapter is religious images. We all have an image of what Jesus and God both look like. We have an image of many of the bible stories in our heads. That is what we were taught when we were younger, we were shown pictures to visual what scenes in the bible might have looked like. Another example is Unicorns. We all have an image in our head what a Unicorn or any fake object is even though we haven't actually seen it. 

This idea of having visualizations when reading something or simply thinking about something could be a form of art. In order for art to be made it first must be thought of. Art starts with an idea and a visualization of something. If visualizations are a form of art than it could be argued that art is everything. Since when something is invented it first much be thought of. Someone had to have an idea and visual picture when creating something. This creation could considered art. 

The Whole Ball of Wax by Jerry Saltz

First, I do not agree with the fact that art cannot change the world. Maybe art can't directly change the world, but individuals can be inspired to change the world. When something happens often times someone turns that thing into art. Through that piece of art, most people have some type of reaction to that event. A piece of art can bring out emotions to something that has happened. This is in turn is going to get some people to react and try to help out with this event. A lot of ways we get to see events happening are through photographs. These photographs are a piece of art, and this helps people to see what is actually happening and makes it feel as if one is right there.

The Time magazine cover that was shown in class is a good example of this. There is a man that is running towards the camera in that picture. That picture helps to depict that mans emotions during that moment. This will bring out others emotions when looking at the picture. You can almost sense the fear of the people during this event just by that picture. It helps to visualize the situation and to see what is actually happening to fully understand.

This is how art is used as a way to see the world. With art, we can see many variations of the way others live or their culture. It broadens our horizons where we can look at the world through different lenses. This gives us a way to see things that we don't get to see just by looking outside our door. It shows how others think and how everyone has different interpretations of things. There is no one way to do art or a right or wrong way to do art. It is all about how one perceives something. Which helps to open up our eyes to other things that are in the world and other peoples ideas and beliefs.