Event 5: The Getty

Although living in Los Angeles my entire life, the Getty center had never crossed my mind to visit. As I decided to visit this museum for this class, i was still oblivious to what the main concept of this museum was. After taking the tram to the beginning of the Getty center, I soon found out about the medieval art. 

One of the first pictures I saw was this one, which is described as cupids looking down on these people. This Shows the allegory of the picture to be love. This picture was created using oils painted on a canvas. 

This next picture was a portrait painting of Tzioano Valley, who was considered to be the greatest portrait painter in Europe during his lifetime.  Most of his paintings were all the same genre, standing portraits. He painted this portrait to allow us viewers to see both the physical and mental stress he was enduring before going into battle with his army. As he is lost in his thoughts, he is oblivious to the child attempting to hand him his helmet. With his hand placed on his sword, you are able to see his is ready to take on whatever is ahead. 

 

After visiting this museum, I was really able to relate it to week one's topic of two cultures. Using art, these artists were able to express historical events and important dates in history. The only times I have seen similar pictures like this in history books. It was very intriguing to witness these pieces of art in person, especially looking at it with a different point of view with these two cultures idea. 

Event 4: Fowler Museum

Fowler Museum truly has a grand variety of exhibits. Like many traditional art and culture museums, there are a plethora of objects on display, but every exhibit seems to also include some kind of digital component to enhance and evolve the offerings. Of its current exhibits, I visited the following: “Enduring Splendor: Jewelry of India’s Thar Desert,” and “Popular Dance & Fashion in Johannesburg.”

Beginning with “Enduring Splendor,” I observed that there were many displays playing videos of the artisans crafting some of the very objects on display in the cases. This was a very interesting way to bring context to the items on display, aside from the traditional captions. There were also text descriptions next to the displays that I witnessed many people browsing, in addition to the screens. There were also slideshows being projected on some of the walls, providing additional options for utilizing otherwise empty space.

For the “Popular Dance and Fashion in Johannesburg” exhibit, there were many displays on the walls, featuring locals performing their dances, while simultaneously showing off the style that follows that particular Pantsula dance culture. Some of the displays had speakers below them, which leneded to the communication of the rhythm, from the sounds of the footsteps, to the whistling involved. Stone benches set in front of these displays also made for a more comfortable viewing experience. Along with some of the displays, there were also prints of select frames from the performances being shown, which offered insight into the steps and more in-depth exploration of the style.

This event relates to week one, where we talked about two cultures. For example, there were many displays connecting the culture of African Americans and dancing. I found this interesting as I have never seen these two connections before. Another connection was the combination of the culture and silvery. The different pieces made, whether jewelry or tea cups, created based off of the African culture. Visiting this museum was very insightful and I’m glad I did for this class, as I never would have even known about the museum.

Week 9: Space and Art

Space has always been intriguing to me, possibly because there is an infinite amount of information we are able to achieve yet have such little knowledge of. Almost every kid grows up wishing to be an astronaut and travel in space one day. We truly have so much to learn about space, and as Carl Sagan explains, “our imagined self-importance, the delusion that we have some privileged position in the Universe, are challenged by this point of pale light." This meaning we believe we are so powerful in this universe, but we really are so small in such a large picture.

Consolations are very interesting regarding space. As stars surround each other, they create pictures that people are able to identify. One I am able to see above my house is the Little Dipper, or formally known as the Ursa Minor. “Most constellation names are Latin in origin, dating from the Roman empire, but their meanings often originated in the distant past of human civilization” (Star Date). Constellation come from the Italian word constellatio, which is also referred to as the set of stars. This term was first used in the English language in the 14th century and are now 88+ groups of stars creating patterns. One of the most well-known constellations along with the Ursa Minor is the Ursa Major, or Big Dipper.

Many movies are exploring the unknown in the entertainment industry, as Interstellar is one of the more recent ones. This movie was a huge hit when it came out and still is today years later. Many people, like me, enjoy fictional space movies as it gives us a sense of prediction and imagination for what is out there in the infinite sky we see above us. In this film, astronauts travel through a wormhole to see if they are able to find a new home for the world. This film, as do others, turn controversial and get the viewers to debate on their beliefs of the unknown.

Sources

"Constellation Guide." StarDate. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 June 2017.

"Movie Posters for Interstellar." Cher Cabula's Mindbox. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 June 2017.

Sagan, Carl. "A Pale Blue Dot Quotes." Good Reads. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 June 2017.

"The Space." Google. Google, n.d. Web. 04 June 2017.

WikiHow. "How to Find the Big Dipper." WikiHow. WikiHow, 04 June 2017. Web. 04 June 2017.

Event 3: Hammer Museum

In week one, we talked about two cultures which is what Karin Higa did here with this piece at the Hammer Museum. She connects the worlds of Asian America and the US. Karin was known for introducing Japanese American artists to museums in the Los Angeles area. The colorful ribbons piecing together is a signature Japanese style. These represent the coming together and denying segregation in the world.

When asking a worker her opinion on the objective of this gallery, she told me it was contemporary art to show societal issues. There was no art piece throughout the whole exhibit that displayed her explanation better than this. Although slavery has been outlawed for decades now, it is still obvious that white supremacy still exists. Especially with the new elected president, it just shows how strong white supremacy still is in the world. When reading the sign, I looked at the black lettering being a representation of minorities, and the red background being their blood caused by unnecessary reasons. As strong as a visualization as that is, it strikes out to me, wanting to help societal change for equality.

Of course, one of the most famous parts of the museum are these chairs. As you lean back, you feel like you’re about to fall on your back, cracking your head. The unevenness of the chair makes your stomach drop as you put your life in its hands attempting to spin around. As you lean and trust the chair, you start spinning round, rotating as well. This goes along with the combination of art and science, as the science is being able to rotate and spin around without falling and art plays in effect with the style of the chair.