Museum Visit

I went to the De Young Museum for the museum visit. It was a really nice day and I enjoyed walking through the gardens to get to the museum. Even before we entered the museum, there were so many beautiful things to see and take pictures of that I would have been happy never entering! In the front this vase really caught my eye, especially the miraculous detail.

The vase, "The Dore Vase, done in 1877-1822, was done by Paul Gustave Dore. It depicts an allegory of the wine vintage.

While I was outside admiring the sculptues, I also noticed an enclosed pond with a crane in it! I had to take a picture...
Very pretty. When we finally entered the museum, we didn't have a tourguide, so we had to find our own way around. The first exhibit we went into was the Andy Warhol exhibit. I really enjoyed it, even though it wasn't part of the time period we learned about in class. Neither was the Yves Saint Laurent exhibit, but I enjoyed this quote from it.
One painting that I enjoyed that was from somethign we learned, was this painting called Mother and Child by John Henry Twachtman. It is an impressionist painting, oil on canvas, done in America about 1893.

I also thought this table was really cool.






Overall I enjoyed the trip, but maybe next time I will pay for a tourguide so I know what exactly I am looking at and am given more information about the art than just the title and media (:

Last blog for the reading

So many things about this piece are so great. Compared with a bar scene today, a lot of things are strikingly differently. The first difference I noticed was the bowl of tangerines on the bar top. Today they have "bar nuts," but they aren't even that common. The presentation of the tangerines is a lot more high class than I would expect for a bar. It's also shocking that a female is working, because in the United States females were banned from working in bars until relatively recently. I also liked the tiny feet of the trapeze artist in the upper lefthand corner! My favorite part about this piece though is the correlation between the gaze of the bartender and her and a guest's reflection in the mirror. She appears to be interacting intimately with the guest, but the expression on her face suggests something different. She appears indifferent and a little adrift as she gazes at the viewer, hinting that she really feels alone.

Chapter 29, Blog 6

In this painting, Cornelia exemplifies the "good mother," which reminds me so much of my mother. As her three children are her jewels, so am I, my sister, and my brother for my mom. She seems so calm, graceful, and confident while introducing her children, it appears that she loves them a lot.

Chapter 22, Blog 5

For my blog, I have chosen Diego Velazquez's Las Meninas (The Maids of Honor). This painting appears to be a kodak moment, with the maids of honor surrounding the young princess in the middle. It could have been taken at a wedding in todays time, the exception being the style of dress. The girl knealing by the princess seems to be helping her in someway, possibly preparing her for an event. The girl to her right looks like she is posing for the camera. It truly looks like a snapshot moments before the ceremony. The girl on the right playfully puts her foot on the dog, and the dog's expression here is great. He seems to be a little annoyed, but relaxed at the same time. The lighting is phenomenal; very realistic. I really enjoy this painting, which is serving as a great subsitite for a camera in such a special time.

Assignment 3/4

From the reading, I have chosen to relate Antonio del Pollaiuolo's "Battle of the Nudes" to our world today. I believe Pollaiuolo's piece reveals his intentions of depicting the entire male figure under tension and stress. One way this engraving reminds me of todays world is just that fact that there are men fighting each other. Though it is not known what the Nudes are fighting over, it was and remains to be a symbol of male agression. They all seem to have different weapons, ranging from swords, to daggers, to hatchets/axes, to a bow and arrow. To me this symbolizes the differences in pride of men, and what they have to bring to battle with them. If not pride, possibly their defense mechanism when place in a competitive situation. Males are very competitive, and it seems to be a biological trait as these men especially have the bodies and stature to cause extreme harm. Today men that look similar to these figures train and fight one another in Mixed Martial Arts, or UFC competitions- except they use their fighting/defense skills without the use of weapons. However, the theme of male dominance is relevant in both times.

Blog 3, Assignment 2

From the reading, the Facade of the Palazzo Medici-Riccardi in Florence reminds me of the White House. The reason for this is that from the outside they are relatively simple buildings, though enormous inside. The level of extravagance of the rooms and courtyard of the palace reflect the intracacy of the rooms and architecture of the white house. Also, both of the places house wealthy families of power.

Just for fun!

I was on the de Young museum website looking at the exhibition for Yves Saint Laurent (which I get to go to tomorrow!), and this picture looked familiar- it reminded me of The Man in the Red Turban by Jan van Eyck!See why? (: