Isamu Noguchi: The Sculpture of SpacesI chose to watch this video because I am interested in the idea of spaces because of my goal to enter the field of urban planning. I agree with his idea that the earth itself will someday be the subject of sculpture. Furthermore, as he points out, civilizations have been doing this since the beginning of time, such as the Aztecs. I thought it was interesting that Noguchi started off by designing stage sets – like a miniature world. My favorite work featured in the video was his water sculpture; it is interesting how water can also define space. Although this video was a little dry without music, I enjoyed it because it brought a different dimension to sculpture besides what we learned from the book.
Hockney on PhotographyI watched this video because I am interested in photography and think it is a very accessible art form. The part I found most interesting to learn about is the void between the photographer and the subject. I also enjoyed Hockney’s Polaroid collages, which are actually more like mosaics. I really liked this film because it allowed me to understand what was going on inside the artist’s mind while he was creating the art or how he planned it, which you often do not get to hear about. In fact, this video discussed the artist’s entire life, which was interesting to relate to his artwork. I think this video most related to what we learned about photography earlier in the semester when learning about the history of art.
Abstract Expressionism and Pop: Art of the 50s and 60sI chose to watch this video because I thought the title was interesting. As it turns out, the video did help me to understand abstract art on a deeper level than was provided by the book. I liked the explanation that the point of abstract art is to “think and feel what the painting is.” This video was different than many that we have watched this semester – it just showed images of the paintings and other pictures and did not include any people talking besides the narrators. However, it did help me to understand and appreciate abstract art more. The video focused on six works and the artists. “C&O” by Kline is one abstract art this video focused on and it was emphasized that this artist used color to imply ambiguity. “Mountains and Sea” is by an American artist, Helen Frankenthaler. The narrator pointed out that works such as this make you question what a painting is. De Koonig’s “Morning: The Spring.” In abstract art like this, nothing is identifiable. However, after the narrator’s explanations, I agree that this work may represent natural elements such as plants and water. Jasper John’s “Flag” does not seem abstract at first – it just looks like a regular American flag. The artist wanted tomake us look hard at his subject as if we were seeing a flag for the first time, making us question its significance. This work is probably my favorite out of the group after I realized that it is mainly composed of newspaper. “The Texan” by Andy Warhol is a work by Warhol I have never seen before. It includes many images of the one man (who is in fact another artist). I learned that pop art, such as Andy Warhol’s, was the first to embrace the rhythms and textures of city life. The video also explains how “Girl with Hair Ribbon” by Lichtenstein conveys surprise and seduction.
Uncertainty: Modernity and ArtI watched this video because it seemed like I would be able to relate to the art in it more since it focuses on modernity. It turned out to be my favorite video from this week. The video suggested that art can tell us about ourselves; it started by discussing Greek statues, which mainly referenced divinity and “knowing thyself.” I agreed with the narrator’s suggestion that “modern art is contemporary society’s version of the Delphic Oracles.” The main point of this video is that uncertainty is the underlying message of modern art – everything is always changing. I thought this video was very well done and fast moving, which really kept my attention. Also, it used examples of many different works to expand on what we learned about modern art from the book.
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