Module 9: Art Making & Material Exploration Drawings

                                               
I enjoyed using my hand as the subject matter for this week. I am not the best artist but I enjoyed doing it myself. I got to explore all the lines and details in my hands. The media I selected  was a pencil and it was just because it was more convenient for me. It felt very awkward trying to draw my hand with my less dominant hand. I am not to sure if they were successful because I can't draw to well with my dominant hand to begin with and I think there are slight differences between the two. I wouldn't consider using my non dominant hand for future projects because it was very hard and more time consuming.

Module 9

This week the task was to watch two videos and the two videos I chose were Albrecht Dürer: The Image Of A Master and Veláquez. I chose the two videos because they seemed the most interesting and were fairly short videos. In the first video Albrecht Dürer: The Image Of A Master some key concepts I learned is that he was born in Germany in the year 1471 and died in 1528 and in 1506 the noblesmen gave him commission to create a glass portrait for the church. The other artists who were born and raised in Italy grew jealous and threatened to poison him. In the second video Veláquez some key concepts I learned was that he was born in 1599 in Serville and died in 1660 and in 1623 when he was 24 years old  he was a court painter to William the 4th. The video's relate to the reading because in the first video Dürer painted a portrait in the church and added himself in the background with a document with his name and date. Also Albrecht Dürer felt like he was a nobody in Germany but was considered a noblemen in Venice because of his work. In the second video Veláquez studied and analyzed Italian paintings in Italy and Rome for two years. Also he created a portrait from mythology and it was really rare that Spanish painters painted Greek mythology. I enjoyed the first video better than the second video because I felt like it was more interesting and wasn't as boring. I believe the video's were more helpful than the reading because the reading has alot of extra information.

Module 8: Ancient Mediterranean Worlds Through The Middle Ages

In Module 8 the two videos that I watched this week was a documentary on BBC entitled "More Human Than Human" and "The Greek Awakening: Art Form From The 5th Century B.C.".  I chose to watch this video because the title seemed interesting. In the first video some key concepts that I learned that common influential people resemble humans and that 5000 B.C. Egypt was the first settled civilization because the Nile flooded which helped stabilize agriculture. In the second video some key concepts that I learned are that the capital of Greece which is Athens is housed to 4 million people and it is the birthplace of Western Civilization. In Greece during that time period Gods and Goddesses were idolized there statues were created resembling humans.

The videos and assigned reading relate in many different ways. In the first video "More Human Than Human" they both discuss the Female Figure from Willendorf. This figure was discovered 25,000 years ago near Willendorf which is modern day Austria. Many different types of female figurines have been discovered in areas of Russia, France, Italy, Czech Republic etc.  and each statue has highlighted features that are most important such as childbirth and fertility. In the second video "The Greek Awakening: Art Form From the 5th Century" they both discuss how in the 5th/6th century B.C.  there was a revolution in art, theatre, architecture and philosophy. They both discuss how the Greek Gods statues resembled the men during this time period which were tall with a very strong and healthy athletic build. They also discuss how the cities were built around Acropolis.

In my opinion I enjoyed the video and feel like I learn more from watching the videos than trying to interpret the readings which are very long. The videos did add depth for helping me understand the readings and I find them helpful

Architecture

This week in Module 7 the main topic we discussed was Architecture. This week our objective was to read the chapter and then choose two out of five videos to watch and compare. The two videos I choose are "Prairie Style: Frank Lloyd Wright" and "Architecture: The Science of Design". In the first  video some key concepts that I learned are that skyscrapers are made up of two distinct parts which are the super structure which is all above ground and the underground substructure. I also learned that  one of the main problems when building a skyscraper is the wind and that it can cause the building to sway a whole meter. In the second video I learned that Frank Lloyd Wright developed the prairie style living. His dream was to have the buildings blend into surroundings. The videos and the text related because in the first video and the reading they both discuss the technique of driving steel,wood or concrete pillars deep into the ground until they reach a layer of solid rock which is more than 60 meters in the ground. In the second video and the reading they discuss how Frank Lloyd Wright designed a lot of houses in suburban Chicago. While he was designing these house he was determined to reflect the time, place and landscape. 

I think that the videos are more helpful than the readings because it is very straightforward on information that is helpful meanwhile the readings are very long. I guess watching the videos after reading the chapter helps clarify information but I wish we could do one or the other. I chose these films because they looked the most interesting.

Reviewing Peer Response Artwork

http://dana-art-yka.blogspot.com/ : Dana Aftyka

http://hollyspoor.blogspot.com/    : Holly Spoor 

These are the two classmates that I reviewed there artwork this week. I agreed with Dana's project on elements and principle project. I saw a lot of the elements and principles without looking at the captions. I wasn't able to find Holly's project to review. Most of Dana's photos were similar to mine creativity wise and thinking out of the box. A lot of Dana's photos were outside and nature filled and mine were mostly stuff inside. I really enjoyed the photos Holly posted when visiting the Albright Knox Art Museum. My favorite was the Andy Warhol's 100 Cans and The Kill Yourself oil canvas. I think the process of reading others reflections is different especially since we won't meet face to face and it is like getting to know someone. I don't really find this valuable to learning because I won't know for sure if what they are doing is correct. I always find criticism helpful because I get to better myself in the process. 

Module 6: Sculpture, Installation, and Arts of Ritual and Daily Life

This week our focus was on Sculptures, Installation and Arts of Ritual and Daily Life. In the first video "Through The Eyes of the Sculptor" some key concepts that I learned is that a carver must use feelings to put life back in the shape and sculptors first draw out their ideas on paper and then use clay to sculpt out the figures. Models who pose feel like their soul is being dissected and that they aren't able to hide their inner most feelings. These two concepts relate to the reading because in the section entitled "Carving" they discuss how limewood carves the easiest and it allows more details which helps the carver "put life back into the figure". In another section on the text entitled "The Human Figure in Sculpture" they discuss how when a statue is being carved that the goal is to make it as beautiful as possible to encourage the spirit to take up residence within it.

In the second video entitled "Glass and Ceramics"they discuss how glass is made and how stained glass windows are created and used. In the reading and video they discuss the main materials for glass which are sand and that when it is heated that it becomes molten and it is easy to shape and mold. They also discuss stained glass which is a technique used for windows, lampshades and other similar structures that permit light to pass through.

In my opinion I feel that the videos were able to help me understand the concepts easier because the text has a lot of information and sometimes it is hard to understand and the videos break it down for me and help me comprehend the information.