I will be printing out the pieces of art that I chose and bringing them to class. I will definitely upload them later to add that what is already on the blog page. While you won’t see them right now, the first work that I chose is a photograph. There is a bridge that leads the observer’s gaze into the horizon from the right center of the page, thrusting itself into the sea. The main focus of the piece is a really cool skyline of cumulous cloud formations. I chose this work because I have a real appreciation for clouds (both in art and in realtime), and for anyone that has the ability to capture their sublime-like essence in representation, whether it be through picture or painting or sketch. It takes great effort to make hem appear life-like.
The second piece of artwork that I chose is a shades painting of a city building, angled so that the viewer can see the river/stream that runs congruent to it, and off into the distance. The color was the first thing that struck me about this picture. The careful shading pulled me into the picture and made me want to be there. What I thought was especially interesting was the lack of human presence in body form. There is a certain peacefullness about the painting – it’s very calming.
The work that I did not prefer as much is in a much more modern style – caricature format. The piece is highlighting Barack Obama in the center, and several other political figures are angles to his side like his cronies. I just found the depiction of the human form in this work (and all those like it) to be very disturbing. I am not a fan of this cartoon version of these people: it looks very dehumanized in its exaggeration of human emotion, and almost laughable. I know that there is probably a particular intent for comedic relief/convenience in the formation of these type of works, but I do not like it at all.
-Ashley