Week 11 Video Review

I watched the Buddhism video because I learned a lot about this way of life in my anthropology class called “Religion, Magic, and Culture.”  This video added to the knowledge I learned in that class as well as in the textbook readings this week.  For example, I knew that the fundamental goal of Buddhism is to be free from all desire, but I didn’t know there was a word for it (tanja) until watching the film.  I enjoyed seeing the Great Stupa (and all of the Buddhist ideas incorporated into it), which I did not know was a pilgrimage site for Buddhists and also inspired the Parliament building design.  Overall, I thought this film was good because it included a lot of information in a short amount of time.

I watched Islamic Art: India and the Middle East because I wanted to learn about Islamic mosques because my sister recently visited some in Istanbul.  I appreciated learning about the history of Islam throughout this video; it is interesting to note that the medieval Islamic map is oriented with the south and north the opposite of what we are used to.  Ever since seeing my sister’s pictures from mosques in Istanbul, I was interested in learning more about the beautiful art involved in these places of worship.   The narrator pointed out that elements of the Christian basilica, Roman temple, and visions of paradise from Buddhism can all be seen in the Islamic mosque.  I thought this film was very well done and tied into the readings from the book.  Furthermore, as an anthropology major, I also appreciated that Waldemar Januszczak alluded to breaking down the stereotypes of Muslim terrorists. 

I chose to view African Art: Legacy of Oppression because I am interested in Africa because my grandma and grandpa once lived there for 4 years.  I learned that this art is often stereotyped as “primitive,” but it actually holds very deep meaning.  I personally enjoyed learning about the more abstract African art and ideas.  I thought it was interesting that some of the art from the turn of the century even had influences from Picasso.  Besides going along with the readings, this film was also useful in that it focused a lot on masks, which are considered magical art objects in African culture and may serve as inspiration for my project this week.  The film was interesting and although a little outdated, it was great to learn about the art of a different culture.

Finally, I watched Chinese Art: Treasures of the National Palace Museum because the title sounded interesting.  I really enjoyed it and have found a new appreciation for Chinese art – each piece was so beautiful.  I especially admire the simple touches, such as the leaf incorporated into the Zhou dynasty tea bowl.  It was amazing to see these pieces as you would normally never see them unless you visited the museum – I learned so much about artworks I have never heard about before, such as the curio cabinet.  I also like the succinct style of the film and the fact that it gave interesting facts about each piece.  It was nice to see so many examples of the art we have been learning about in the book.