Great Works II

–How is the theme of maternity explored in the story? Give at least two examples.
–Morrison adds issues of class to what is already a complicated story about race. Why? Where in the story do you see evidence of this?
–What is the meaning of Morrison’s title, Recitatif? How does it work as a title for this story?
–What are Twyla and Roberta fighting about in the section about school busing? What’s going on between them?
–Is the story’s perspective on race relations ultimately pessimistic or optimistic? Why?
–Why do you think Morrison chooses not to be explicit about which girl is African American and which girl is Caucasian?

“The Starry Night” by Vincent Van Gogh is arguably one of his most famous works. It is currently on exhibition at the MOMA. Vincent Van Gogh was a Dutch painter and is known as one of the most famous post-impressionist painters today. Van Gogh led a troubled life, he was in and out of asylums and battled with mental illness, which eventually led to him committing suicide at the age of 37.

Starry Night was painted during Van Gogh’s stay at the asylum, in June of 1889, it is a depiction of the view from the east-facing bedroom window. Starry Night was among many works he painted depicting the view, but it is the most widely recognized.  It depicts the view of the village under the night sky. The striking blue and yellow sky and the highly stylized cypress tree in the foreground are some of the most prominent parts of the composition. Beneath the vibrant night sky sits the silent and dark village, nestled between the mountains.

This work depicts the notion of modernism as it juxtaposes the liveliness of the night sky to the brooding nature of the village beneath. The night sky represents Van Gogh’s imagination and the village, his reality. The swirling nature of the clouds adds a whimsical element to the work, which adds to the notion that the sky represents his dreams and imagination. Van Gogh was going through a rough period while working on The Starry Night. The drastic juxtaposition between the sky and village could represent the reality of society and how hoped society would perceive him.

I was first introduced to “The Starry Night” years ago when I saw the Vincent Van Gogh Doctor Who episode in 2010. From the moment I saw the painting I have been captivated by it. I was drawn to the whimsical feeling that it evoked in me. I saw the painting in person for the first time early last year for my ART 1012 class here at Baruch. I’ve seen the painting multiple times since then, but every time I see it I am always astonished by it.

https://www.moma.org/collection/works/79802

An artistic movement centered around the 20th century, Surrealism is characterized through color choices, imagery and technique. Surrealist artist like Salvador Dali, Pablo Picasso or Joan Miro used their art to express the unconscious mind, and in turn their art resulted in abstract or dreamlike imagery.  Centered around illustrating the mind’s deepest thoughts automatically when they surface, “automatism”, which involves the act of automatic recording of the thoughts and images that emerge into an artists mind. Early Surrealist challenged the constraints of consciousness and rationality in order to liberate the unconscious mind. 

Salvador Dali was born in 1904 in Figueres, Spain. In the 1920s he became in contact with artists, including Picasso and Miro. He is best known for his 1931 painting The Persistence of Memory, showing melting clocks in a landscape setting. The limp clocks, against nature give off an idea that they are soft to the touch and the shape can be changed. This small framed painting is very memorable with its dream like landscape and its giant watches dominate the foreground. This soft watch is unknown to the real world and they drape over other objects in the scenery as if they had the texture of clothing. It seems to be a desolate region, the bottom of the painting seems to be sand and toward the background a body of water can be seen. The old fashioned silver watch with a blue face draped over the barely alive tree, reading 6 o’clock. The yellow clock below it reads 6:55 o’clock, the orange clock next to it is covered in ants. The last watch is draped over a strange object that almost looks as if it incorporated a closed human eye turned to its side. 

The Surrealist revolutionary movement with its goal of destabilizing societal political cultural norms. With their interest in Frued and alternative reality they began to overturn the publics’ expectations. 

My understanding of the paining is that through the title, The Persistence of Memory, I understand the clocks as memories itself, because memories exist within a time frame. A memory is a moment in time that has already occurred, and a specific memory can be time stamped through the face of the clock. Because the clocks here are in a melting state, the memory itself is not possible. That is the purpose of  the red clock in the corner is covered with ants, the ants demonstrate that how hard we “work” . The possibility of remembering is sealed off, that is why the case is closed. 

What specifically attracted me to this painting was that I did not know what the painter was trying to express. At first glance, it is something abstract that I have no way of connecting to. I used to think that abstract art was one that only the painter could connect to, because they would be the only one who understood its meaning. However that is not the case, after observing the painting for a moment and connecting it to the title, I was able to come up with my own interpretation of the work. 

Dalí, Salvador. “Salvador Dalí. The Persistence of Memory. 1931: MoMA.” The Museum of Modern Art, www.moma.org/collection/works/79018

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The artist Aaron Douglas, born in 1899, was an artist whose style can be described as modernist. He was a leading figure in the Harlem Renaissance, influencing many others as well as creating opportunities for artists to flourish as well.

 One work of his that I would like to talk about is Let My People Go (1935). The painting sets a scene for us in a flat, silhouetted style. It shows a man, kneeling in the middle of  what seems like a large conflict taking place in Egypt, as shown by the pyramids in the background. The kneeling man also has a ray of light shining down on him, and only him, leaving the others in the shadow. The painting is telling the story of Moses as God orders him to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. The painting also serves to symbolize the struggles and fights that African Americans have gone through in their quest for freedom in 20th Century America. This fresh take on a popular biblical tale showcases one of the main points in modernism, which is finding new ways to convey emotion and stories through art.

In this case, Douglas moves away from typical classic depictions of religious imagery that focused on hyper-realism and classical depictions of beauty, instead using the flat, heavily stylized art style that he was known for, and was still able to convey the severity and importance of the event with his use of only a few colors. I encountered this work while walking through a modernism focused section of the Met, and I was drawn in by its composition. It’s use of green, purple, and a few shades of yellow/tan make the piece seem simple at first, but it’s an amazing contrast helped keep me focused on its subject without getting distracted by other features like I would have in a Renaissance painting, without losing its symbolism and strong emotions. It forces ones focus on the actual message of the painting, and on their emotions regarding the piece, instead of simply thinking to themselves that it looks pretty and then move on. The colors also compliment each other really well, making it easy for me to look at and enjoy, as well as add in a new layer of symbolism, showing all the other people being covered by a dark purple shadow, while God’s golden light only reaches Moses, kneeling in the desert. 

Marc Chagall was a French, Russian, and Jewish artist. He was born in July 1887 and died in March 1985. He was one of the early modernist artists and the influence of his work has reached many places in the world. He was associated with major artistic styles and created a large variety of art, such as book illustrations, stained glass, drawings, the Paris Opera ceiling, the windows in the UN, Chicago, and Israel and more. Pablo Picasso remarked in the 1950s, “Chagall will be the only painter left who understands what colour really is”.

The painting I selected is called I and the Village. It was created in 1911 by Marc Chagall. 

This painting has many modernist elements. It includes the use of vibrant colors – red, pink, blue, green, yellow and a mix of them. It also expresses emotions such as the artists’ longingness for his village and the people who lived there – we can see a woman milking a cow, perhaps this was his mother. The use of straight lines to separate and combine many different ideas in one painting such as a man with a sickle, houses and a church, a horse and a green face looking at each other, woman milking a cow, a hand with jewelry and a tree blooming. I am sure that this painting hides many more images in it that will reveal themselves when revisited with a fresh look. 

I encountered this painting during my visit to MoMA. At first glance, this work seemed too busy to me, but the more I looked at it, I began to see the many details Chagall integrated into it. A feeling of curiosity arose and I found myself standing in front of the huge puzzle trying to understand the artists’ message. I like that this painting expresses a variety of emotions, and you can always find something to relate to in this work in any emotional state.

(https://www.moma.org/collection/works/78984?artist_id=1055&locale=en&page=1&sov_referrer=artist) 

This painting of shoes is by Vincent van Gogh. He was a dutch post-impressionist painter who is now regarded as one of the most famous and most influential of this movement although this did not occur until after his death at 37 years old. His most famous works of art came from the last three years of his life which he spent in Arles, France. Over this time he produced over 860 works of art. While he lived in Arles he occupied a small yellow cottage next by an Inn which he frequented normally. Here is where he made most of these pieces.

Although Van Gogh made many stills of shoes over his carry this one is one of the most recognizable. It is thought that these shoes represented Van Gogh’s psychological state which was deteriorating at the time. He was in and out of mental institutions at the time. A fellow artist stated that Vincent had bought them at a flea market for the purpose of using them as a still but thought they were in too good condition so he proceeded to wear them out until they looked very broken in which was the look he desired for the still.

I encountered this art work while strolling though the MET. I was making my way through the impressionism section. I passed paintings by Monet, Renoir, Matisse, and Gauguin. I saw a few of Van Goghs portraits that were displayed but I ultimately decided to write about this one. I chose this one because one of my favorite films is At Eternity’s Gate which is about the last three years of Van Goghs life. This film particularly focuses on his mental collapse, his relationship with fellow painter Gauguin, and his struggles to breakthrough as an established and liked artist.

The aspects of this painting that push the narrative of modernism and it’s aesthetics and what draws me to it even more so are the details in and around the shoes. The untied shoelaces emphasis the feeling of a long day and exhaustion and the worn, broken down make of the shoe expresses this worn out battered person which may be a representation of Van Goghs being at the time. The red work out tile where the shoes sit on also adds to the painting. Not only are the shoes worn out which leads you to assume that the wearer (the artist) is the same but so are his surroundings and you can only imagine what that does to someone mentally. Someone who’s talent is constantly rejected and that their mind and their surroundings are on the decline.

This painting is named The Studio (Vase Before a Window) by Georges Braque. It was painted in 1939(The MET). The painting shows the artists studio in Varengeville. According to  Georges Braque.org Georges Braque was  born on May 13, 1882 in the city of Argenteuil, France and died on august 31. 1963 in Paris, France. In addition to Pablo Piccaso he is credited as one of the two founders of Cubism. A distinct aspect of his work is his use of distinct shapes and bold colors. He would also change the style and color of his work according to the time weather it was dark or happy times. He also worked with Pablo Piccasso for a lot of his career this was the time period when the two men created the style known as Cubism. Cubism is defined as the use of cubes and interlocking panes to create a picture.

This piece of work shows his studio along the normandy coast. The work also shows his use of bold colors and sharp lines as seen in the darker part of the painting. Being a post World War 2 painting it was a bit different from his immediate post war works as this piece was brightly colored as opposed to his other post war work which was darker in color and tone. This painting has elements of modernism one of the elements is the deviation from the traditional painting style of very realistic and detailed. This piece deviated from that idea in the sense that it muddles the details and focuses into a certain element. Also another element that reflects modernists idea is the use of color in traditional artwork the colors are very close to the real thing whereas in this piece they are very vibrant and bold. In addition to the vibrant and bold colors they do not seem to match the object they are colored to. This in itself is an aspect of modernism as modernism is meant to stray away from tradition and try new things. Another aspect of this piece that shows its modernism is that fact that the colors are sectioned into rectangles and are mismatched.

I was drawn to this piece because the room that this piece was housed in was full of very realistic and true to life paintings. In addition most of the paintings in the room were dark and realistically colored so the bold and non-realistic coloring of this piece caught my eye. another aspect that drew me to this was the sharp lines that the painting had the the use of black. One of the questions that I have is why are the colors sectioned off the way they are because they have to have some meaning but I can’t seem to figure out what it is. In addition I wonder what the use of black is meant to represent.

https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/486270

 

This painting is by artist Frantisek Kupka, and it’s called “Mme Kupka among the Verticals”. This was painted in 1911, and is oil on canvas. This is a painting of Kupka’s wife, who was his muse. Kupka painted it from an unfinished portrait of her.

Frantisek Kupka was a Czech artist who lived from 1871-1957 and was originally trained as a saddle maker by a man who taught him about “spirituality and the cosmos”. This spurred his interest in the “relationship between religion, color, and geometry”, which I think can be seen in this painting. The exploration of religion shows the modernist concept of questioning the relationship of the complex self, and religious institutions. Modernism in literature moves away from a traditional plot line, which this painting almost does through the use of shape and color in a non traditional way through studying abstract art formally. “The result, like many of his important paintings and works on paper, plays between abstraction and portraiture. He would soon tip the balance toward total abstraction, becoming one of the earliest artists to do so.”

This was the first painting I noticed when I walked into the room, probably because of the very bright colors and large size of the work. I looked at it for a few seconds before noticing the face in the middle which I thought had a green beard, but when you look closely you can tell it is a woman’s face, which is another hallmark of modernism, it’s not easy to understand. There is also a repetitive quality to the painting, you can see the same or similar shapes throughout the whole piece, again reflecting repetition of words in modernist literature. The only question I had about the painting was, did the artist know that the woman’s face looks like it has a green beard? Maybe it’s something that only I see when I look at it, but she looks like a green Santa Claus to me. I struggle with the use of green and why only on the lower part of her face? I still think it’s beautiful, just odd i guess.

https://www.moma.org/artists/3302

Dating back to the concentration camps during the 1940s, it is clear to see how people were treated under such inhumane conditions. In the short story, “This Way for the Gas, Ladies and Gentlemen” it describes vividly how people imprisoned at Auschwitz camp had to live their day to day lives. Walking around naked with no respect, having insufficient food, and not getting any treatment which would only lead to multiple threats. The story states, “The camp has been sealed off tight. Not a single prisoner, not one solitary louse, can sneak through the gate… Thousands of naked men shuffle up and down the roads.” This portrays the lifestyle that these innocent people had to live under a lot of pressure and with hope that they would not get any further mistreatment whenever soldiers felt the desire. Having the feeling of being insecure is not easy, and more so when it’s a fact that it will always turn into a bad outcome. Furthermore, one of the other difficulties that the imprisoned individuals had to suffer through was the actions against their will and beliefs. The thought of being forced to do things to please other people for no positive outcome is cruel; but this is what was meant to happen at these camps.

In a similar context, the novel that has captured a lot of attention and has been made into a film is “The Boy in the Stripped Pajamas”. The novel which was released in 2006 gave back to the readers a lot of vivid and traumatic experiences that a lot of people in the concentration camps went through. This text with its descriptions of its two primary characters has a lot of connections with Borowski’ short story. In this novel, two young boys with their lives ahead of them had no sense of how negative their reality was aside from being separated by a fence. However, when Bruno who is the boy from Berlin saw the difference of clothing and work that had to be put into daily marked the difference between him and Shmuel who is the Jew living under those harsh conditions in Brunos’ father concentration camp. Being this young at the age of eight, and in this situation marked interest on each of the boy’s eyes. Wondering if there was a possibility to actually meet aside from being separated by the fence. However, nothing could ever be done since there would always be malicious threats and death in the future for Shmuel.

Both stories have the similarity with the problematic system that occurred in concentration camps. I believe that each individual had a story to share for people to take into account how their lifestyle was drastically changed for worse. Each person living in the concentration camp had to deal with brutal experiences not only from their own but from what they could see being done to others. Everything that occurred during this time period was unacceptable and unforgivable. People in the concentration camps had to adjust to this new life forcibly and with much pain; and similarly to what they felt it will never be forgotten.

In Tayib Salih’s story, “The Doum tree of Wad Hamid” describes changes and modernization of the society which existed back then. The tree symbolized faith, prosperity, wisdom, and most importantly, strength. Wad Hamid was a slave to a man who did not allow him to express his religious values and prayer. He ran away to follow the will of God, and saw miracles happen in the form of prophesies and receiving help. His tomb buried next to the doum tree shaped the society and helped establish great principle amongst the people who resided at that time before modernization came into place. The story is much relatable to the events happening in society today, more in connection to the genocide and concentration camps in China.

In China, the Uyghurs are a small Turkic-speaking ethnic group residing in the northwestern region of Xinjiang. The Chinese government for the past few years, have been detaining more than one million Muslims in reeducation camps. This is a form used by Chinese authorities of cracking down on Uyghurs residing in parts of China and removing them from public. The biggest reason as to the cause of this movement is religion. Religion plays a huge role in society and establishes norms, values, and ethics amongst the people.

Islam, the sole religion of the Uyghurs, has been heavily criticized due to its faith, and differences in China. Those detained in camps are forced and influenced to pledge their loyalty to the Communist Party of China, and no longer accept their religion of Islam. The values, the culture, the ethics, and most importantly the faith, must all be dismissed, and adapt to the views of the society they are living in today. Each and every one of those affected in these camps grew up realizing the importance of religion and must be forced to give that up to fit into the norms of the civilization of China. This relates to the story of Wad Hamid, as growing up, he was not allowed to practice his religion nor express his values.

With religion being a big aspect in the shaping of society today, the correlation between the doum tree and Islam is impeccable. Majority of the Uyghurs in concentration camps struggle to have their voice heard because of the many indifferences they have. Forced to praise communism and adapt to the Mandarin language, these are just the few practices happening in these reeducation camps held for them. Relating back to the doum tree, people living in society looked up to its symbolism and importance as everything around them was being modernized and stripped of its values. Just like the situation in China, Uyghurs are being forced to change, adapt, and modernize to the norms of society. However they would still like to uphold their faith in religion because it’s the only thing that they have to look up to.

The doum tree of Wad Hamid has a stronger connotation than it’s face value. As time progresses, humanity evolves, and modernization takes place. Newer inventions are also discovered, but our values will always remain the same. There will always be something to believe in, whether it’s a higher power, or a greater good. The doum tree of Wad Hamid is a prime example of how the significance of symbolism, wisdom and faith are portrayed.