Mining the MIA - Beauty

The three pieces I found at the MIA were "Dressing Bureau" by the Crawford Riddle's Journeymen Cabinet Makers, "Psyche Abandoned" by Augustin Pajou, and a piece I could not attach a title or artist to (no signs at museum that I could find, not on MIA site).

These are the images:


"Psyche Abandoned"


(Unknown title/author)


"Dressing Bureau"

I would set up these pieces in a plain hallway - dark wood floors and white or very light grey walls.

First you would walk by the sculpture ("Psyche Abandoned"), which depicts a woman, Psyche, distraught by her love's abandonment. Distress is visible on her face, yet her curvaceous figure and soft features are pleasing to the eye regardless of how broken and unattractive she may feel (much as anyone's self esteem may be damaged after someone he or she loves leaves him or her).

Up ahead would be a 90-degree turn in the hallway - on the wall facing you as you approach the turn is the painting of the fallen men. Once again, it is obvious that these figures have been through something terrible - they appear weary, their bodies in awkward positions and their faces drained of any sign of joy. Again, despite the sadness one feels from the painting, the beautiful colors and shading don't allow you to look away - these people are, like Psyche, attractive despite what they have suffered.

The common trait is that both of these pieces of art depict beauty within suffering.

As you round the corner, the final object is at the end of the hall - the bureau with the mirror situated on top. This piece seems to be the 'odd one out;' it displays no people, no suffering, and though it is beautiful, it is in a different way than the other pieces. However, as you near the bureau, you see your own reflection in the mirror. "So?" you might ask. "I've seen my reflection a thousand times before."

What I would like this series to show is the beauty you can find in suffering and in those that suffer. So often people are heartbroken by something and can not find any good in the situation, or in themselves. It's really quite upsetting when you look in the mirror and can only focus on parts of yourself that you dislike. So, at the end of the exhibit, when you face the mirror, I would hope that you might not just notice the hair that fell out of place or the way your eyes look a little too tired - the beauty you have already seen should allow you to see the beauty in your own life.

Criticizing Art Chapter 2 - Postmodern Assignment

Alright, so I understand the idea of postmodern art but I'm not sure I understand how to analyze a piece of art from a postmodern standpoint... We'll give this a shot, though, seeing as it's required. :)

I have chosen 3 pieces by one artist to analyze - the artist is Rene Magritte (names of pieces and artist found here.)

The pieces are entitled "The Son of Man," "L'Homme au Chapeau Melon," and "La Chef d'Oeuvre ou les Mysteres."


All three images depict what is apparently a self-portrait of Magritte, none of them showing the full face and all of them in the same attire.

One thing that I immediately noticed when I found these images was the similarities between the three. In postmodernism, artists often do not believe that there can be total originality in art, and although Magritte's ideas may not be from other artists' work, he certainly replicates things throughout his own paintings. The hat in all three paintings is the same, as well as the black suit jacket (the tie however, changes color and is sometimes not visible). The paintings also lack something similar - the full face of Magritte. In one ("The Son of Man") it is blocked by an apple, in another by a bird ("L'Homme au Chapeau Melon"), and in the last we see the back of his head twice and a profile view ("La Chef d'Oeuvre ou les Mysteres"). Although it could be argued that the profile view disrupts this chain, I believe that it is rather difficult to know what someone will look like from a straight-on view based on the view of their profile sometimes.

I also noticed the traditional painting style Magritte uses that most would use for a still life - his paintings are very smooth and the colors are, for the most part, fairly realistic. However, rather than having an apple sit on a table, Magritte takes an old idea and puts it into a new context; the apple is floating in front of his face ("The Son of Man"). Similarly, in "L'Homme au Chapeau Melon," a bird that would usually placed up in the sky above a person's head just happens to be flying directly in front of his face. Although nothing is floating in his face in "La Chef d'Oeuvre ou les Mysteres," Magritte still takes an unoriginal idea - a landscape under moonlight or a person walking in the moonlight - and puts a new spin on it; there are three moons and three of the same people.

Those were the biggest postmodern ideas that I found in Magritte's art. The images are below.

Adios, amigos.
-Cati

The Son of Man


L'Homme au Chapeau Melon


La Chef d'Oeuvre ou les Mysteres

(All images linked back to source - AllPosters.com)

Does anybody remember back when you were very young?

Umm I love Brand New.
FIRST POST WOO.

Now onto the homework post.