Giotto's "Lamentation", In-Class Writing

Giotto, Lamentation, Fresco in Scrovegni Chapel, Padua, 1304

A dark, brooding sky. A barren land, rocky, with little apparent plant life. A man is fallen to the ground, clad only in a cloth around his waist. He is wounded, his feet and hands bleeding. People surround him, tending to him, calming him, reassuring him, easing him. One woman tends to his feet, holding them. Another two women hold one wrist each. A fourth woman holds this man's shoulders up off of the ground, and a fifth woman keeps his head upright. His eyes are closed. Is he dead? There is little sign of life in him other than the attention he receives from these people. Two men stand back observing, discussing, as three other women react with anguish and pain. A crowd is gathering in the distance. Obviously this man is of some importance to the people who are trying so hard to make him comfortable. Their attention to him makes one wonder if they are doing it out of concern for him or out of concern for how they themselves will exist without him. Floating above, in various states of lamentation and observation are ten angels, their wings keeping them aloft. Some weep, some stare. All watch and wait. But one pressing question...why do only some who attend to this man's pain and suffering have halos? Who is determining which individual gets a halo? Is it the artist, Giotto, or is he working from the ideas of another? Is he depicting, or interpreting?

Art of Conflict

Some of the most powerful art in the world comes out of conflict. The Bayeux Tapestry is one such piece. I think this comes from a natural human instinct to report, record, and retell powerful and important moments to as many people as possible. It is easy to find inspiration to create such works, as conflict finds us every day everywhere. 

Consider the power of photography in war, especially since Vietnam. Vietnam was described as the first televised war, but that broadcast contained some images that could be considered art. Cameras were constantly shooting, capturing some of the most brutal moments of war. Those images spread across the world, and Vietnam is now known as a devastatingly brutal war, difficult to wage and difficult to endure.

What about WWII? I remember being taught about World War II in high school history classes, and even in some of my college history courses, and it was always regarded with some element of reverence, as if it were a noble war. Not to suggest that WWII or any of the soldiers fighting in it were anything less than heroes, but why might there be a more general understanding of WWII as noble and heroic than Vietnam. Obviously political differences have a lot to do with the perceptions of these wars. But I think that it also has something to do with media and art. Compare the image above, one of the most famous and important images of Vietnam, with the image below, one of the most important images of World War II, and think about how each one makes you feel.

This is especially present in my mind in regards to the riots in Oakland of the past few weeks. On New Years Day, an Oakland man was shot and killed by a BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) police officer. The man was being arrested, and was clearly laying flat on his stomach with his hands in plain view when he was shot in the back. Multiple cell phone cameras captured what's being described by some as an execution and the video of the event has been widely circulated on the internet. Riots have broken out in Oakland. I've been watching a lot of Bay Area photographers on flickr, especially Thomas Hawk, and some very powerful shots are being taken, capturing very well the tension that hangs in the air in the Bay Area right now.

Assignment for Jan 15

Myths of Perfect Circles...

Mars Edit

So I tried to use an external blog editor called MarsEdit to edit this blog recently. It didn't work as well as I had hoped and so I lost some stuff I had. Hopefully I can save it...I know it's in the program somewhere.

If anyone knows of a good (and powerful) blog editor application for Mac, please let me know...

Assignments 1 & 2

I tend to be a bit skeptical of organized religions, especially global entities such as Christianity. I respect and tolerate the belief of others (to an extent) but I do not wish to call myself a believer in God. I don't feel particularly comfortable in churches and cathedrals. I find them intimidating and oppressive. But perhaps that is the point.

Medieval churches and cathedrals seem to have been designed to impress and awe their patrons. Their design and construction is a testament to the power and glory of God, and consequently they are quite powerful structures. Therefore it's probably intentional that I, as a non-believer, find them intimidating. What better way to control the masses than with an elaborate, beautiful structure built by the grace of God? What better way to show everyone, including your enemies, that your religion is best than a place of worship that is bigger and better than the other guy's?

My skepticism of organized religion leads me to believe in some less-than-positive concepts regarding churches. My apologies for any offense... 

Design is powerful. The architects of these places of worship knew this. They also knew that design can be functional. The church is designed to awe the churchgoer at every turn and convince them bit by bit of the power of God. You might think that pulpits are elevated to make it easier for churchgoers to see the priest. It also conveniently places them higher than the constituents of the church, and places them closer to God. Cathedrals are purpose-built.

So let's say I want to design my own worship space. First, I would need to determine my purpose. How do I want patrons to feel? How do I want to engage them? How do I want them to interface with whatever is being presented to them? What is the content they are receiving, and how do I want them to receive it? How do I want them to interface with each other, if at all? Personally, if I were designing my own worship space for my own self-designed religion, I would want to encourage openness and a sense of community. I want "worshippers" to communicate with each other and interact with each other, to share ideas and thoughts and feelings, and hopefully to influence each other and prompt them to search deep for inspirations. Consequently, a large open space where everyone mingles would be important. This is a trait common with most worship spaces, but mine is based on togetherness and forced interaction rather than on delivering a message of worship simultaneously to a mass of people. So no pews. No seats. Only a floor, maybe cushions spread around. 

I think I'd be taking a page out of Pixar's book and designing a space similar to their building in Emeryville, CA. The building is designed with a large open atrium at its center. The building's only bathrooms and eating areas are attached to the atrium, and this is intended to create opportunities for spontaneous meet-ups between people from different departments, hopefully occasionally sparking some new element of creativity. This kind of mentality, beyond simply helping Pixar with its creativity, does a lot to make better people. The free-flowing exchange of ideas is something that is very important to me, and perhaps even we could consider that a fundamental tenet of this "religion" for which I'm designing a worship space.

How do I get multiple images to appear in a post, and how do I move them around? I'd rather have had the Pixar image after the paragraph above...

First Blog

I really like the idea of this commonplace book...a place to collect my thoughts and ideas and respond to questions and assignments from class. I think it's a great idea and a fantastic way to encourage us as students to develop the incredibly beneficial habit of writing down and cataloging our ideas. I like it enough to really want to do this on my own without a specific through-line of art history. (We'll see if that works out...) Not that I find the assigned topic of art history (at least, an extension of our art history class) to be a burden. In fact, I've always wanted to start a place where I can catalog my ideas (especially a blog) but it would seem that my internal motivations for such a project periodically fade and nothing ever really develops to fruition. 

So hopefully this will work out, and I can include a few things that don't necessarily specifically relate to class, but at least to art and the concept of art in general. 

PS I love this picture, and this photographer. Thomas Hawk, based in San Francisco. Found his work on flickr. I love flickr. So easy to get lost there for hours...