The Accident by William Geets Un-Directed Blog - Week5

The Accident by William Geets:
I visited the Cantor Arts Center in Stanford as part of the Art History course work. I have not been to any art museums before and this visit was an interesting experience for me. We read about famous artists whose works are familiar in all parts of the world. But I realized that there are many others who do not get as much recognition, but never the less, are very talented. There is this painting called The Accident by William Geets which was really very good. I came home and tried to search it on the web to learn more about the artist and his works, but could not find any information.

When ever I look at an old painting it is amazing how I feel that I am transported to that time in history. I enjoy observing the clothes of the people at that period, the furniture they used to use, the houses they used to live in and many such things that these paintings depict. I feel this is an important aspect of art – telling the history to the future generations. This is exactly why I liked the painting The Accident.

The painting shows the response of a crowd to an accident. The crowd in this painting reflects the complete society as it has all kinds of people in it, young- old, male- female, rich and poor. We get to learn a lot about the people of that time, their dressing, their status in the society, their way of expression and much more. The most appealing aspect in the painting is how every one is showing similar expression but in their own different way. I feel it is an amazing piece of art and I encourage everyone to see it.

I am sure there are many unsung artists like William Geets whose art is lost in the history, but I really appreciate the collectors and art enthusiasts for preserving what ever is left.

Directed Blog - Week5

Neoclassical Vs Romanticism Art in the modern day:

In the modern day art, Neoclassical style is more visible in Architecture. To compare Neoclassical and Romanticism styles of art in the present time, it is easy to look into the field of architecture and get perfect examples. There are many famous buildings that are built in the Neoclassical style, like the Whitehouse, the Pentagon, etc. These are symmetrical, have long columns and other features which are typical of Neoclassical style.

In my opinion, Romanticism, which do no adhere to the strict rules of the art and give more importance to the emotion, is seen in the works of Frank Lloyd Wright. Falling Water also known as Edgar J. Kaufmann Sr. Residence, is a classical example that shows how Frank Lloyd Wright did not stick to the traditional aspects of architecture. The way he built the house on a waterfall and how the house blends with the surroundings reflects the nature and purpose of this masterpiece.

Directed Blog- Week4

Even in the midst of iconoclasm, Reformers advocated the use of low-key images such as woodcut prints because prints --they believed--could be a way to "educate the masses" for the reason that they could be printed easily permitting wide circulation and the sale of numerous copies. An example of this is the wide circulation of Luther's writings; especially the German translation of Bible and other works. This was so huge that it lead to the establishment of the Protestant Church in Germany.

In the present times, I think Radio is the best means to reach out to the masses. Though it has been a very long time since it was invented, it still has not lost it's value as a mass communication device. Though internet is cathching up, when we consider countries which are still developing or under developed, radio plays a very important role. Radio is still the most important form of communication between the governments and the people in many countries around the world. As it is not costly many people, even the poor, try to use it. I think no matter how many television stations, and internet sites we have, radio is still the best way to reach out and educate the masses.

Un directed blog for week 3: Artists as Leaders

Artists, particularly actors, getting into politics is something that has been happening for a while around the world, particularly in India. But in India this trend is increasing in the past 15 years or so. Many people I have grown up seeing in movies are now being seen in Indian politics. It makes me wonder how they got into politics? I am always thinking, what in the world might have inspired these actors to suddenly get into politics for serving the people and the nation? Is it the money or is it the power or is it because they are at the tail end of their on-screen careers? Or are they really into serving and leading the people? Whatever be their motive, the question that concerns me most is why do people elect their on-screen idols as their leaders? Why don’t they understand that the person on the screen is not the reflection of the actor? In my opinion, a leader should have a good track record of serving the community, leading good developmental initiatives that benefit everyone and a good vision of the progress he/she wants to see in the community. Just because a person is a famous artist people should not vote and elect that person and hand him/her an important position in the society. I feel people should look at a persons’ background, understand the skills and motives of that person and then vote. Things like Art and Politics should not be overlapped. An artist should be voted to power based on his/her leadership skills and not any other skills.

Directed Blog: Artists as professionals and intellectuals

Ravi Shankar is an Indian Sitar player and composer. He is considered a leading Indian instrumentalist of modern era. He is considered a genius in his field of music. He is not known as just a musician but as a great intellectual because of the kind of work he has done through the medium of music. For example, he was one of the organizers of The Concert for Bangladesh in 1971, which was an attempt to raise awareness of the growing crisis that was occurring in East Pakistan (now independent Bangladesh). He has composed extensively in India, Canada, Europe, and the United States, including Chappaqua, Charly, Gandhi (for which he was nominated for an Academy Award), and the Apu Trilogy. Along with his fame as a musician, his status was elevated as an intellectual and he was nominated to be a member of India's upper house of Parliament, for six years. He was also awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honor.

Un directed blog for week 2: The psychological aspect

We have seen in Donatello’s Mary Magdalene, that not only the physical aspect of an art brings beauty and elegance to it but also the psychological aspect. To understand any art from a psychological stand point, we have to spend some time with it, focus our attention and try to listen to what it is trying to say. Many times, what we see depends on our state of mind also. This applies to our lives also. We should not just go by the face value of anyone or anything. We should realize that there is always a psychological angel which we tend to miss in the first glance. If we can spend time and understand anything from a psychological angle, we can see and enjoy the real beauty of it.

Donatello's Mary Magdalene - Directed #2

Donatello's Mary Magdalene:

Looking at Donatello's Mary Magdalene, it is evident that the sculpture does not highlight or reflect feminine beauty at all. Unlike the conventional ways of representing Mary Magdalene by showing her beauty, Donatello focused on a different aspect of her. Looking at the sculpture, I was drawn towards the eyes and secondly to the hands folded in prayer. It felt like everything else does not matter. There is a lot of emotion in her eyes. And the way she is bringing her hands together in prayer, talks about the emotion in her eyes. I got a very different feeling from the picture in the Power point slide where she is placed in front of Jesus Christ. It added a whole new meaning to the sculpture itself. The way her body is covered by her hair, tells us how it did not matter to her what she wears. Also, anyone looking at the picture will not be distracted by her clothes or her body but will be taken directly to the actual purpose and meaning of her which is evident from her eyes.

The way Donatello did not follow the classical form and showed us a totally different perspective of Mary Magdalene reminds me of Ballari Raghava (1880-1946) a famous stage actor from South India.

Generally in the plays based on Ramayana, the Hindu epic, Ravana, who is the antagonist of Rama, will always be portrayed by a person with a large mustache, long hair, thick eyebrows and all such things that would frighten the audience. Everyone can make out Ravana just by looking at the costume. Contrary to this, Ballari Raghava playing Ravana in a play, entered the scene wearing a white costume and with a smile on his face. People became very angry and no one accepted the way he was portraying a demon king. He then explained that the good and evil is in our minds and not the way we dress. He wanted to show that Ravana is also a regular human being who looked just like any one of us, but his thoughts and deeds made him a demon. Though it took time for the people to accept this radical presentation of Ravana, his philosophy was later praised by everyone.