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Soft kitty, warm kitty, little ball of fur
One of the top Internet trends is undoubtedly cats. Pictures of felines wearing absurd clothes or doing funny stunts run rampant in the virtual world. Becoming the crazy cat-lady was everyone single girl’s worst nightmare, but owning cats is now the cool thing? I mean, if you don’t instagram a photo of your cat wearing tights, do you even exist? If fifty people don’t like the video you posted of your cat chasing its tail, does that mean your Facebook friends aren’t actually your friends? It seems that people have to validate their existence by constantly posting pictures and videos online. And for some reason cats are the best subject.…
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The Venetian (Beach) School
Before Arnold Schwarzenegger made it to Sacramento, or even to Hollywood, he could be found lifting weights at Muscle Beach in Venice. Very much like its Italian namesake, Venice Beach in Los Angeles is home to the artistic and the creative. But unlike the artists from the original Venice, those of the Los Angeles beach town paint beyond the canvas, and onto the streets. Amongst the street art found along the walls is Homage to Starry Night. The large mural replicating Starry Night by Vincent van Gogh, occasionally the ‘tagged’ over, is found on the side of an apartment building, behind a ‘No Parking’ street sign. The treatment and placement…
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Paris, je t’aime
Many people are acquainted with Stockholm syndrome, in which hostages develop feelings of sympathy or even defend their captors, but how many know of Paris syndrome? Typical to French style, Paris syndrome is much more romantic and far less violent than Stockholm syndrome. The intense idealization of France has deluded people into thinking that Paris lies at the top of Mount Olympus, that croissants are the baked version of ambrosia, and that the language is lovelier than a siren’s song. Some people, when they finally land at Charles de Gaulle airport and step into their Eden, suffer psychiatric symptoms – Paris syndrome. A handful of tourists a year suffer hallucinations,…
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Etch a Sketch
Raphael undoubtedly played a role in Renaissance art. One cannot think of that era without thinking of the beautiful Madonnas and little, fat cherubs done by Raphael. His talent, however, goes beyond that of painter, as he played a significant role in the development of reproductive print. Although Raphael never produced any prints himself, he created many drawings for the sole purpose of being engraved by Marcantonio Raimondi. Together, Raphael and Raimondi created some of the most famous Italian prints of the century and gave rise to print publishing in Rome. Just as the Gutenberg Press made printed word available to the general audience, through easily and affordable reproduction, the…
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A Dream Deferred
Dreams are as commonplace as breathing, but as elusive as the air. Although practically everyone dreams on a nightly basis, very few people remember or understand their dreams. Looking at paintings from the Renaissance, it is perceivable that the interpretation of dreams predates Freud. Many paintings portray people currently sleeping, suddenly waking up or being woken up, or dreaming. The current exhibition at the Musee du Luxembourg focuses on the little discussed aspect of sleep and dreams in the art of the Renaissance. Painters such as Veronese and Hieronymus Bosch depicted their subjects’ dreams in several of their paintings. But while Veronese used dreaming as a state to reach religious…
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Judith the Man Slayer
Men create; women inspire. While men stand behind the easel painting masterpieces rich in beauty, women have simply stood in front to model. One woman, though, Artemisia Gentileschi traversed the barrier. Rather than paint innocent and cheery little pictures, hers is a masterpiece of violence and revenge. Judith Slaying Holofernes depicts the Biblical scene in which Judith and her maidservant murder the General Holofernes in his sleep to save the Jewish people. Artemisia’s painting stands alone in the extreme portrayal of violence, seen in the anguished face of the general and in the vividness of the blood streaming down the white sheets.
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No Room in Hollywood
There is no doubt that Hollywood dominates the global film industry. Occasionally, popular films from other countries gain international notoriety like the French film Amélie or the Swedish film Let the Right One In, but those are rare instances. While the United States dominates the film industry, the rest of the world, mainly Europe, dominates in art. The U.S. does have renowned artists but not as renowned as Europe. Even as an American, I find it difficult to name fellow artistic countrymen, but I can easily rattle off several European artists. Edward Hopper, painter of the Nighthawks, is a celebrated American painter, but his international repute is an iota of…
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The Man who Loved Women
Sex sells. Or at least in today’s society, the marketing world strategically incorporates erotic imagery in advertisements to gain consumers’ attention. If the moniker “sex sells” is true for advertisements, could it also be true in art? In nude paintings, does the artist aim to “sell” something by enticing us with the image of a naked and supple body? When looking through Felix Vallotton’s artistic catalog, the amount of nudity is great. Vallotton used naked women in any context, from nude women bathing to nude women playing with kittens. Vallotton, like most artists, appreciated beauty, including the beauty of the naked human body. But while the artist might have seen…
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Art: I know It When I See It
Last year, Andres Serrano’s Piss Christ reignited the old “What is art?” discussion. Serrano shocked the art world in 1987 with a photograph of a crucifix submerged in a jar of his urine. He again sparked controversy in September 2012 when Piss Christ was featured at the Edward Tyler Nahem Gallery in New York. The photograph not only shocked the religious communities who were offended by the desecration of a holy symbol, Serrano’s work also forced even the most open-minded to ask, “Is this art?” A quick Google search of the definition of art yields this: “The expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual…
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Swagga like Us
When T.I. and Jay-Z sang about their unmatched amount of swagga in “Swagga like Us”*, I don’t think they imagined that John Singer Sargent’s niece Rose-Marie Ormond is also known for swagger. Swagger, or grand manner, is used for paintings that suggest noble qualities through visual metaphors, and Sargent is especially known for his swagger portraits. One of his many swagger portraits is The Cashmere Shawl featuring his niece Rose-Marie.
This is an interactive art blog in multi languages, you will find new articles on artists, art history, exhibitions, etc. Contributions welcome.
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