PRE WORK
The Veiled Virgin
NAME: The veiled virgin
MATERIAL: Carrara marble
ARTIST: Giovanni Strazza
DATE AND PLACE OF MAKING: 1850’s, Rome.
CURRENT LOCATION: Cathedral Square, St. John's.
DIMENSION: 48 cm
Why I love it: just the idea of making something solid look translucent blows my mind.
Padshahnama
NAME: Padshahnama
MATERIAL: natural paint and paper made with cotton
ARTIST: Abdul Hamid Lahori
DATE AND PLACE OF MAKING: 1630 to 1657, India (Agra and Delhi)
CURRENT LOCATION: Royal Library at Windsor Castle
DIMENSION: 58.6 x 36.8 cm
Why I love it: I have always been fond of the Mughal miniature paints. The detail and the use of natural colours catches my eyes every-time.
The relief of Lucknow
NAME: the relief of Lucknow
MATERIAL: oil painting
ARTIST: Thomas jones barker
DATE AND PLACE OF MAKING: 1857, India
CURRENT LOCATION:
DIMENSION: 105 cm x 181 cm
Why I love it: as a lover of history this painting allows me to see the story of that period unfold right in front of me the broken monastery in the background, the central ground lit showcasing the British on horses , a symbol of triumph, the death and blood in the foreground, all creates a still movie on my mind.
The Starry Night
NAME: the starry night
MATERIAL: oil paints
ARTIST: Vincent Van Gogh
DATE AND PLACE OF MAKING: 1889, France
CURRENT LOCATION: Museum of Morden art
DIMENSION: 73.7 cm × 92.1 cm
Why I love it: I know, a pretty cliche choice when it comes to painting but I couldn’t resist including this one in my list. The colours the strokes the meaning, everything about this painting make me go “wow”.
WAYS OF SEEING
according do John Berge, our perception of a painting can change prior if we look at the reproduction instead of the original image. The original work speaks to you in a way that a reproduction is not able to. Real analysis of the painting can only be achieved by experiencing the silence of the painting, while staying in its proximity, feeling the material and paint. Information is loud and chaotic, it is not comparable with the silence and calm of the painting.
Berge, also comments on the hypocrisy of the “nudes” which are regarded as a tradition subject of oil paintings. The nude portrait of a woman is always painted to make it seem that their is a presence of a man, whether in the painting or the viewer. He points out the difference between being nude and naked. Naked is about embracing your body and being yourself. While being nude is related to presenting the sexuality of a woman in a way that pleases the desires of the man.
He comments on the apparent value of paintings. Describing how paintings were reduced nothing but material possessions that depicted the status of the owners. Portraits were seen as a symbol of the owners powerful characteristics while religious paintings were used to showcase their moral values. The artist used metaphorical symbols that fulfilled these desires of the buyers. Rarely was an object painting just because there was always a self serving purpose behind it.
He talks about how Morden advertisement takes inspiration from traditional oil paintings. Both depict a world that you need to achieve in order to be successful and wanted. Advertisements pray on envy. They make people believe that they need to buy some thing in order to be happy. Morden advertisement have also introduced a new notion of “glamour” within the society. Everyone wants to be glamorous and this has created a materialistic environment.
DAY 1
WARM UP
Group member :-
GROUP 5
VRINDA ARORA
TANVI GUPTA
SOUMYA BUTTAN
SHIKHA TRIPATHI
RASHIKA LUNGANI
GROUP 6
AADITI PRABHU
AMISHA BANSAL
GARVIT SHARMA
ANANDITA BANERJEE
VANSHIKA YOGENDRA
REFLECTION
I had began the discussion hoping we could come to a consensus however that did not happen at all. While everyone agreed with everybody’s opinion they also emphasised on the relative importance of something else. However for me, these trigger question unleashed a a wave of thoughts in my mind. When talking about inspiration I couldn’t help but wonder, how I as an artist draw my inspiration - Emotions? My experience? The message I want to convey? Or it’s the trends? Instagram? Task given to me? I found myself questioning my level of sensitivity when I make creative expressions. Similarly when faced with the question of why do we create art, I wondered whether my art was just an outcome of my boredom or some unconscious thought that I am yet to fully unveil.
But there was one question I knew the answer to, that was, who is an artist? Anyone and everyone. Despite my doubts about the previous question the answer to this came naturally and convivially. We all immediately agreed on this point as we all believed that art has not dimension and an artist has no definition.
GROUP NORMS
DAY 1-4
MAIN INQUIRY
BRIEF
To research about the socio culture and political situation of our designated geographical region in the given period of time
To research about the art and design practices prevalent in that area
To draw connections between the two to answer the 5W1H questions that come up along the way.
To analysis the data to identify popular themes, inspirations, prominent influences, ideas, and ideologies.
SYNOPSIS
My study of Europe in 1850-1890, was mainly concentrated in the area assigned to me by my group, Republic of France, Italian states, Kingdom of Netherlands, and Belgium, each going through their own socio-cultural and political issues. In my research I decoded how these situations affected the Art and Artist of that period and how these led to the rise of new art movements. I study how art transformed from the perfect world of Romanticism to the raw and bitter world of realism, who were the perpetrators and most importantly why? I also discuss about the rise of new technology, like photography and how it led to the decline of two major art movements. This information was further analysed and to understand how art movements and situations influenced other forms of art like Architecture, Opera, Print media, sculptures, and fashion.
Through the later half of this research, I shifted my focus to The art movement of Impressionism. Trying to understand, how it emerged and what led to its fragmentation into other major and minor art movements. I also analysed how it correlated with the social and political context of that time, what led to their spread and it’s eventual decline.
DAY- 1
DIVISION OF WORK
After the warm up and laying down the group norms, we were given our designated area and time periods. For us it was Europe between 1850-1890. Me and my group members decided to follow the strategy of “divide and conquer.” Each of us took 3-4 of the then European kingdoms and started working on them. I chose the Republic of France, Italian states, Kingdom of Netherlands, Belgium. We also created categories of research to ensure uniformity amongst our work, focusing mainly on
A) background information- politics, culture, society, religion- of our chosen areas
B) Art,Artists and Art movements
C) Architecture
D) Opera/music/Literature
E) Photography or any other tradition arts and crafts
F) Sculptures
G) Fashion
H) Exhibitions and Museums for the display of these works
DAY 2
By the second day I had most of my information collected. I added this information to the google sheets and google slides. I attached images for references. These images have also been added to a pinterest board.
LINK TO GOOGLE SHEET: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-XlqX4GkLXbOEE0rDfieaoTb5EKUt6IcFplq9mPJLz0/edit#gid=1219889145
LINK TO GOOGLE SLIDES: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/128LbDa8eLRhwI0Ki7v2jkpqNznUBtd-HKOcFpPdhgk0/edit#slide=id.gc4a121638b_0_124
VISUAL REFERENCES (PINTEREST BOARD): https://pin.it/410aTTp
DAY 3
We presented our presentation on the bases of our selected regions.
FEEDBACK
During the presentation, the details, depth, and width of information was appreciated. Our faculty, asked us to shift our focus to the categories created by us. So that we can have an in-depth study of each of these :-
A) background information- politics, culture, society, religion- of our chosen areas
B) Art,Artists and Art movements
C) Architecture
D) Opera/music/Literature
E) Photography or any other tradition arts and crafts
F) Sculptures
G) Fashion
H) Exhibitions and Museums for the display of these works
Following this we redistributed our work
I focused my attention to the Art Movements and their prominent artist across Europe. I also added my information on miro for better understanding of my data.
MIND MAP
LINK TO MIRO BOARD: https://miro.com/app/board/o9J_lR40TiI=/
DAY 4
With all this information we compiled our “Final presentation” on google slides. We used colour coding to emphasis of popular themes, ideas and ideology, and forces in the immediate surroundings.
FEEDBACK
Following our presentation our faculty wanted us to shift our focus to each Art movement. We as a group listed down the prominent art movements and took one each.
I decided to follow upon Impressionist movement, trying to analyse and understand their connections with the background information, other forms of art, and Art movements.
We redistributed our works once again. In the end we created a mind map to list our findings and get a better idea on how to move forward.
MIND MAP
INDIVIDUAL WORK
LINK TO MIRO BOARD: https://miro.com/app/board/o9J_lR40TiI=/
KEY REALISATIONS (GENERALISATION)
Social change was mainly dominated by public discontent.
The desire of man to improve by adopted more scientific and sophisticated techniques has been prevalent throughout history.
Development in technology caused the decline of traditions artist expressions and the search for new areas to capture.
Politics and religion often intermingled in the realm of art due to the high value assigned to them within the social context.
People in different regions often adapted the popular movements by incorporating their own elements leading to the creation of a concentrated sub-branch with its unique Essence.
DELIVERABLES OF PHASE 1
VISUAL ORGANISER
Video explaining the visual organiser
LINK TO THE VIDEO ON YOUTUBE: https://youtu.be/7sG_XKW5N2U
ESSAY
PRE WORK
PDF OF ESSAY
PDF OF ESSDAY (REVISED)
DAY 5 (WEEK 2)
VISUAL LANGUAGE
PREWORK
“A Sunday on La Grande Jatte” by Georges Seurat was my chosen painting. This painting played a very significant role in the art movement of Impressionism by bringing into the scene a new scientific technique for the application of colour, pointillism. The advent of pointillism led to the start of Neo-impressionist, a sub movement of Impressionism, that was based on using more scientific and mathematical techniques to capture the transient effect of light and shadows. This painting, thought initially critiqued for its extremely scientific approach and lack of emotions, marked a major landmark in the history of art movement in Europe between 1850-1890.
STEP 2 (OBSERVE AND ANALYSIS)
LINK TO PERSONAL MIRO BOARD: https://miro.com/app/board/o9J_lQu31h8=/
STEP 2 (INTERPRET)
LINK TO MIRO BOARD: https://miro.com/app/board/o9J_lQu31h8=/
STEP 3 (RECREATE - ABSTRACT COMPOSITION)
While thinking about abstraction I first decided to plot a few basic things
the first one being the 3 rhythms present in this paint (linear, zigzag & gradation).I used these rhythms as the basic guild line that would help me create a balanced composition.
2. The second was colour. I identified the colour theory used within the painting and tried to. stick to it.
ABSTRACTION
REJECTED ATTEMPT 1
I cut circles our of glazed paper and arranged them to match the physical layout of the painting.
I left the work midway because it was not going in the direction I wanted
REJECTED ATTEMPT 2
Dots make up the essence of this painting. Thus I decided to use dots for my second attempt. I arranged dots of different sizes to match the composition and coloured them to match the colour scheme used. However it did not match my vision
FINAL OUTCOME
I used geometric shapes to represent the human figures in the garden scene. I played with the placement of shapes and added shading and colour variations based on the composition. I really enjoyed the outcome of this.
IN PROCESS
FINAL ABSTRACTION
The positioning of the elements remains true to the composition of the original painting. The Abstraction comprises of all 3 rhythms that were present in the artwork. The complementary colour theme along with the affect of light and shadows have been represented. The perspective of the abstraction is synonymous to that used in the painting
LINK TO MIRO BOARD: https://miro.com/app/board/o9J_lQu31h8=/
DAY 7 (WEEK 2)
STEP 4 - PRESENTATION
YOUTUBE LINK TO THE VIDEO: https://youtu.be/HoJWzgU0LIQ
QUICK RECAP OF EVERYTHING MENTIONED IN THE VIDEO:
A Sunday evening on the Island of La grande Jatte by Georges Seurat carries behind it a legacy of Neo Impressionism and scientific know how. The Mathematical technique of pointillism used within the painting, incorporated the complimentary colour scheme using blue and orange, with variations in values. Lines are made with dots of complementary colours. Emphasis was created by the positioning of elements and contrasting colours. Rhythm is added vertically, horizontally and with gradation. Perspective was created by gradation in size, Harmony was the use of a uniform colour scheme, balance by the placement of elements, variety by variations in clothing's and props. All came together to create a mysterious apparently emotionless painting as well as an experiment to prove Seurat’s convection that dots create brighter colours than strokes.
WHAT I LEARNED FROM OTHER PEOPLES PRESENTATION
during the presentation I was able to understand the significance of establishing the context. When a few of my peers didn’t give the context behind the painting I saw myself confused and full of questions. This enables me to fully grasp the role of context in effective communication of thoughts.
I noticed how everyone’s approach towards the abstraction of unique. While I took a complicated route some of my peers like Tanvi, took a very simplistic route towards the representation. This made me wonder about more possible explorations of my artworks.
I was also able to understand the possibility of 3D explorations of 2D artworks, As some of my peers had used different forms of materials for their abstraction
STEP 5 - CONCLUDE
A Sunday afternoon on the island of La Grande Jatte is a comprehensive artwork that incorporates many elements and principles of design. However some elements and principles dominate this painting and comprise its essence. The most significantly of these has to be the use of dots. The pointillist painting involved the use of dots of contrasting colours. These dots stood as a replacement for the lines in the painting. This technique also adds a unique grainy texture to the artwork that tingles the mind of the viewer. The use of a complementary colour scheme and the unity/harmony it brings to the painting is also evident. The third most significant principle followed in this painting is the use of rhythm. George Seurat very meticulous places the various elements in a way that would please the human eye by providing three different eye movements, vertical, horizontal and gradation. And finally the use of gradation to add perspective along with the effective representation of light via the play with shadows comprises the third most significant principle that Seurat incorporated in his painting. Thus the dots, colours, rhythm and perspective together comprise the key visual characteristics that define the visual language of this painting.
DAY 8 - VISUAL & MATERIAL CULTURE
STEP 1
LINK TO MIRO BOARD: https://miro.com/app/board/o9J_lQu31h8=/
STEP 2
VISUAL BOARD
LINK TO MIRO BOARD: https://miro.com/app/board/o9J_lQu31h8=/
LINK TO PINTEREST BOARD: https://pin.it/5eo7DYf
STEP 3
The creative expressions of any region undergoes a change over time. This change is naturally influenced by many political, social, cultural, religious and economic situations. Often the creative expression becomes a symbol for these changes and carries its legacy forward. Thus by looking at these works of art we can identify the situations that influenced their existence. For instance, Industrialisation and discontent of the working classes led to the rise of realism and Impressionism which was based on representing contemporary subjects and issues. I was able to notice this by analysing the use of dull colours and costumes of the figures represented in the paintings.
Sometimes people combine popular movements with their own thinking and beliefs leading to the emergence of new creative expressions for instance Religious interpretation of Impressionism, led to the rise of Les Nabis movement. They regarded every artwork as a path to connect with the divine. It surprised me how despite having such religious ideal their paintings were often focused on everyday scenes and not mystical and philosophical figures. Rather they interpreted everyday activities with a religious notion.
In some cases, social and technological changes led to the decline of popular art cultures, just like the rise of photography, led to the decline of Impressionism and realism. Photography forced artists to look into other area of creativity than lifelike portrayals which the camera could capture in a matter of Seconds, leading to the rise of neo- Impressionism, symbolism and the technique of pointillism as well as divisionism, which was based on capturing emotions and textures which the camera could not.
Thus behind every new form of creative expressions their is a legacy which encompasses the decline of other movements, development of new technology and techniques, change in the social and religious mindset, and the political and economic situation of the region from were they emerge.
LINK TO MIRO BOARD: https://miro.com/app/board/o9J_lQu31h8=/
STEP 4
Visual and material culture, in the easiest way, are the 2D/3D expressions created by man that encompasses the artistic heritage and carries the legacy of the comprehensive history of that region
visual culture encompasses the paintings, the photographs, lithographs and other 2D expressions
Material culture encompasses the tools, buildings, clothing, sculptures and other 3D expressions
For the longest time I regarded paintings as the only evidence of the artistic heritage in a region. It took me a long time to realise that material cultures like Architecture also carries behind it a story which has to be understood by analysing there style, period and the region where they emerged.
It is important to study the visual and materials as it gives us a more holistic view about the situation prevalent at that particular time and place. Historical books might tell us about the dates and timelines of the events but we can only understand the thoughts and feelings of the ordinary folks by looking at the creative expressions that they deployed as an outlet for there suffering.
DAY 9 (WEEK 3)
PHASE 3
GROUP DISCUSSION 1(VISUAL & MATERIAL CULTURE)
We started our work by first compiling our individual segregation of similarities & differences. We then funnelled down the common characteristics within various categories and divided them on the basis of material and non material.
LINK TO MIRO BOARD: https://miro.com/app/board/o9J_lR40TiI=/
CONCLUSION
In the end we further identified the common characteristics across the different categories and arrived at certain common characteristics
DAY 10
GROUP DISCUSSION 2 (MEANING MAKING)
We first started by brainstorming and discussing our perception of Meaning Making to come up with a definition that comprises our holistic understanding. This was followed by a discussion about the factors affecting it. We arrived at a 5 step programme that influences meaning making. Apart from visual expressions my group also drew examples from real life such as fashion and culture to convey the idea more efficiently to the audience.
LINK TO GOOGLE SLIDE: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1aRFYHvUYnCVL_HfUrNUNMEaE_tXMoq5fl3C7Hz_I718/edit#slide=id.gc65b0ead52_23_0
DAY 11
PHASE 3
GROUP DISCUSSION 3 ( CORRELATING ART & DESIGN)
The discussing about what is art & design as well as how they correlate led to a lot of chaos and minor arguments in my group, which was natural considering the extend of the topic and the open ended approach adopted. We were initially trying to arrive at a conclusion but very quickly realised that there is no answer. Thus we kept our presentation open to interpretation and added multiple definitions according to the different opinions of the group members
CULMINATIVE PRESENTATION
PROCESS
The process proved to be much more fun than we had anticipated. We all were enjoying the process by incorporating cartoons and adding a storyline of time travel. We wanted to include a video of Japanese dance theatre while talking about japonisme. However, since all the clips were copyrighted, we asked Vrinda to do learn the dance and perform and this led to the addition of a whole new “Green screen” concept. Since i was the one incharge of editing, this made the process a lot more fun.
LINK TO YOUTUBE VIDEO: https://youtu.be/2VzvPoLPay8
FINAL PRESENTATION
LINK TO YOUTUBE VIDEO: https://youtu.be/fMCS8yJj2Pk
FEEDBACK
We were extremely nervous before our presentation. Everyone was panicking on the phone after listening to the harsh feedback’s and feed forwards given to our peers. However the actual feedback came to us as a sigh of relief. Everyone loved our presentation and it was great to know that we were able to cover all the areas needed.
FEEDFORWARD GIVEN DURING THE PROJECT
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