-
From Murals to Masterpieces: The Legacy of Diego Rivera
Diego Rivera was born into a Mexico that consisted of a class-tiered society dependent on blood lines and political affiliations. The period was called the Porfiriato after the administration of autocratic President Don Porfirio Díaz.
-
Hungary – Crying over its lost freedom?
Politics is always a hot topic. Not a day goes by without reports of something happening with high profile leaders or a controversial decision being made which can impact not only a country, but also those who are in allegiance with them and the people who live there, and for those that are outside of the country that is being reported on, it is so easy for us to judge what is happening, from a distance, without the real consideration or understanding of how it is impacting everyday lives. This is nothing new, and places will strive to give the right impression to their tourists. Hungary is no different, and…
-
Filth for Filth’s Sake
It is not the mission of art to wallow in filth for filth’s sake, to paint the human being only in a state of putrefaction, to draw cretins as symbols of motherhood, or to present deformed idiots as representatives of manly strength. So declared Adolf Hitler in 1935, leaving no uncertainty over his views on much of modern art. Many German and Austrian artists at the time were trying to express their own views of the world and their anger and despair towards society following the horrors of the First World War, yet Hitler saw only intolerable statements undermining his vision of a perfect German society. In 1937, the Degenerate…
-
Learning from Africa
Africa has long been a source of fascination for people from the West. From Cy Endfield’s 1964 classic film Zulu starring Michael Caine and Stanley Baker, to Disney’s The Lion King, from Elton John crooning The Circle of Life, to Shakira’s foot-tapping World Cup anthem This Time for Africa*, the land of our origins still maintains a deep hold over our thoughts and is firmly embedded into our culture. When we look at Africa, we see a myriad of possibilities, destinations, languages, cultures, politics, wildlife, levels of wealth and poverty, violence and peace, landscapes, and geography.
-
Power of Love VS Love of Power
A mind free of ignorance, greed, and hatred – peaceful and drama-free sounds nearly too good to be true. However, this state of being is amongst the ideals of Buddhism and basing my opinion simply on those standards, I see no wrong. A fair portion of the world has its qualms with religion – the concept in general, religions and philosophies which are not our own, and especially concepts we know little or nothing about. If you’re religious, so be it. I simply ask that you keep which ever God or gods you follow to yourself and leave me out of it. It’s a sensitive matter which falls amongst other…
-
If it ain’t Baroque, fix it!
Bear with me here. The Baroque movement is a combination of beauty and grotesque; high drama with intense focus on every element. It started under the influence of the Roman Catholic Church in Italy during the 1600s. A century later, during the late 1720s in France, Rococo was invented – was this a backhanded attempt at a war between the Romance languages and arts? Meant to create imagery for those unable to read, Baroque set out to be a symbol of unity among the masses. In light of the most recent events in the US, a country that claims to want unity while ceaselessly coming up short, I can’t help…


















You must be logged in to post a comment.