Mask Making

 

I found this mask to be disturbing yet fascinating. There are circles and rectangles in this mask. The colors are light in this mask but the tea list color brings a nice contrast. There's no symmetry in this mask . There are distinct lines such as the ones that form the mouth and the nose. The surface looks rough and there is a lot of space. I think the colors bring a balance to the mask, but the overall form of it is not balanced in my opinion. There i repetition in the circles and I think those are emphasized as well because that is the first thing I see in the mask.

This is an ancient Chinese mask that I found really beautiful. The colors are so bright and intense. There are red, blue, and yellow hues throughout it. This mask has symmetry and there is a rhythm though the repeated shapes. This is definitely a 3D mask. You can see the lines not just because they are painted with colors but because they are engraved in the mask. 

Although simple, this mask was probably my favorite. It has exaggerated features like the lips and nose, but it does look very realistic. There is no color but you can see the value of dark to light in the eyes, lips, and eyebrows. That emphasis brings out those features and makes it three dimensional. You can see the shape of the cheeks and lips and the face is very symmetric. The texture is smooth.

My Mask

I didn't make sketches for my mask because I really didn't know how I wanted it to look. However, I really like the simplicity of the last image I found on the Internet. So I wanted to make a mask that followed that simplicity. I followed a simple face mask and used napkins dipped in water to add emphasis and texture. I also do like color and intensity so I wanted to add that affect with the bright red mouth and the black glittered eyes. There is some symmetry in my mask but the teeth, made out of cotton swabs, are random. Everyone doesn't have perfect teeth right! The mouth is pen and hollowed out. There is balance in the green and black colors and the red adds a nice contrast. 

I found this assignment very difficult at first because it had to be 3D. Then, I started getting into it and was inspired by the masks I searched on the Internet. I realized that a mask can look like anything and be anything you want it to be. This is what I came up with. 

Module 10

1. I chose the African art video because I was interested in learning more about african Art. I chose the Hinduism video because our discussion post didn't talk about this religion and its art influence, so I wanted to learn more about it. 

2. In the African Art video, I learned how important art is to their daily lives. Art is in their utensils, homes, dress, hairstyles, and their traditional rituals. In their rituals, masks and statues, as well as dance, are all art influenced. Unlike the perceptual style of art that is often found in Europe, Africans use the conceptual style. This style is based in the imagination and expresses an inner set of ideas. I alos learned how important symbolism is to them. In the Hindusim video, I learned about Varanasi. It's considered the holiest city of Hindisum. This religion believes in the idea of life, death and then rebirth. The great river Ganges is where people go to remit there sins until they receive liberation. Although Hindusim doesn't focus on a specific place to worship, because they worship anywhere, their temples are very elaborate and decorative. I also learned that a key principle is to let go of things since you will not be able to keep those things forever. I totally agree with that principle. 

3. These videos definitely relate to the readings because chapter 18 goes into great detail about Africa and its art influence on its culture. It specially talks about masks and how important those are in their rituals and that exactly what the African Art video talked about. Chapter 19 ties in with the Hindusim video perfectly and how their gods influenced their art. Figure 19.8 is of the Kandariya temple that was shown in the video. 

4. I really enjoyed both videos, but they also disturbed me a little. However, it was informative for me and gave me a real look into their cultures which is something I appreciate. 

Video response module 9

1. I chose the Velazquez video because I haven't really heard of him before. I wanted to learn more about him and his work. I chose Leonardo da Vinci- mind of the Renaissance because he is probably the most known, to me, artist.

2. I liked the artistic freedom Velazquez had, partly because he was friends with the king. He painted what he wanted to paint. He was an abstract painter. Although many called him a realist, his art portrayed ideas or ideals. He wanted to conform reality to order and he used his minds eye to create art. Leonardo da Vinci really was a mastermind when it can to art. He was a master of perspective and was the first to make landscape a subject of art. He contributed to the understanding of depth in art. He also would study everything and anything before he started to draw it. The greater knowledge he had about something, the more praise that came.

3. My first video related to the readings because chapter 17 discussed the baroque style and Velazquez created masterpieces based on that style. The second video related because Lenoardo is the Renaissance man and all of chapter 16 talked about that. 

4. Thee videos definitely added even more flavor to the readings. I liked learned about someone new to me like Velazquez and realizing just how magnificent da Vinci was.  

Exploring Line

1. I liked using my hand as my vision sort of speak. I don't really take the time to look at my hands, but I realized how chunky they are!

2. I chose pencil because it's cleaner and I can see the actual lines better than charcoal would show.

3. I'm right handed, but I use my let hand is actually stronger, so it wasn't that hard to use my left hand to draw. It felt a little weird.

4. I feel these are good sketches, but not successful studies, because you would really need to focus and stare at every detail in your hand and that takes skill. 

5. I would definitely use my left hand to draw in the future. 

Module 8

1. The required video talked about Ancient Greece and was really interesting, so I chose the Greek awakening video on art from the 5th century. 

2. In the required video, I learned the reason why today we are so vain about our bodies. It is because of how our ancestors viewed the body. I also learned that Egyptians sculpt and paint the body from the clearest angle in a 2D style, a style that has lasted for centuries, because of consistency and order. They use a grid pattern to paint or sculpt and have used it forever and in every building, statute, or pyramid. It is an unrealistic way to view body, but not as unrealistic as the Greeks vowed as I ałos learned from the required video. They were a very vain civilization and wanted to show a perfect body. That meant an athletic body with, the key to all our body issues today, exaggerated features. They had that view because they believed gods took a human form. Therefore, the better the body, the more godlike you seemed. I learned from the second video that Greece gave us a lot of culture and tradition. They sort of shaped a lot of what we do and what we feel today. This video also tied in with the first because it tlked about how vain Greeks were.

3. These videos relate to the text because they talked about Egypt and Greece. They also related to the text because it talked about body. 

4. I really like the required video. I learned a lot about why these civilizations painted and sculpted the way they did. I would totally share this video with someone. 

Video Response

1. The Prairie Style and Architecture is Art videos were interesting to watch.

The Prairie style was developed by artist, Frank Lloyd Wright. I learned about his concept of floating, horizontal planes. He also redefined the idea of a house by opening up space. It was cool that he planned his house according to the rotation of the sun, this way the light reflects throughout the different parts of the home throughout the day. Frank Gehry's Architecture is Art video taught me how important it is to have a sense of feeling in what you build or create. 

2. The prairie style video related to chapter 13 because it devoted a whole page to Frank Llyod Wright and his artistic contribution. The second video related because this whole chapter discussed the influence of history on architecture we see today, as well as how art and architecture share many elements. 

3. I really liked the videos. I totally agree with Frank Lloyd Wrights concept of a house. I would love to live in a house with panoramic views, less walls, the landscape outside connecting with the inside, and organizing my interior in a way that brings harmony to those who enter. I also enjoyed Frank Gehry's view of having a sense of movement in a building and making your designs humanistic. It's very important to have a sense of feeling and if a building can spark an emotional response in you, that is beautiful. 

4. I chose the prairie style video because I knew that was associated with Frank Lloyd Wright from the readings. I chose the other video because I believe that architecture is an art form. 

Video Review

1. The Through the Eyes of a Sculptor video was very interesting to watch. I realized how important it is to first visualize what you want to create. You want a detailed picture in your head, but you also want to be open to new ideas as well. I also learned the process of creating a sculpture. You first mold it in clay and once you apply the silicone, it will preserve the clay and you will get your negative of the sculpture. Then you are ready for the plaster, where the sculpture will "die". Lastly, it is reborn in marble. I also  learned about bridges, or reinforcements, that hold the sculpture together and prevent it from breaking. The second video focused on glass and ceramics and was just as cool. I learned that glass is made from sand, but it's really a liquid that, when stiffened by a cool element, becomes glass. You harden it by a furnace. You can shape your glass by a number of different  ways one being a propane torch. I also learned  about laminated glass and double glass, which is air molecules sandwiched by two sheets of glass. 

2. These videos directly relate to chapter 11 and 12 because they were talking about glass and crafts. Both of these videos were discussing elements of art and are considered fine arts in my opinion. Ceramics is also a craft that chapter 12 was talking about. 

3. Again, I found these videos fascinating and I learned a lot. I definitely could tell others about the sculpture making process because of this video and how glass is made. I actually connected with the glass video because about 10 years ago, I went to the Corning museum of glass and I got to make a sketch of a sculpture and then watch them make it in front of the audience. It was very cool.