Explorations in Art

 Ukiyo-e      Ukiyo-e is a type of Japanese art, and the ones we are looking at today are made from blocks of wood. When making a piece like  this, the drawing is done first on paper, and is then used as an outline to chisel away at a block of wood where it is then painted. This is an interesting technique, and it basically makes the wood a stamp. The Ukiyo-e movement went on from the 17th - 19th century in Japan and while it had a lot of diversity, there are similar characteristics in a lot of the work. I will be showcasing three artists and one woodblock print from each one. Small woodblock print   The fist artist we will look at is Utagawa Hiroshige and the work titled Meguro From Bridge and Sunset Hill, No. 111 from One Hundred Famous Views of Edo. This was made in 1857, and was showing a place in what's now known as Meguro City. Meguro From Bridge and Sunset Hill      As you can see, the work isn't anything too special, but it's the bridge, one of the main subjects tha

 INSALLATION ART      One of the themes we looked at this week, was Installation art. These works can be extremely diverse and are often large, mixed-media sculptures, or builds that are setup to viewed in person for a set length of time. There are many elements from other types of art that come together in this theme, including perspective art, found object art, abstraction, and, yes, explosions.  TADASHI KAWAMATA      The first artist we will be looking at this week, is Tadashi Kawamata, a Japanese contemporary artist who has made some very famous installation works. His style consists of mostly woodwork, and found objects to make towering sculptures. Tadashi Kawamata - Chairs for Abu Dhabi, 2012      This installation was titled Chairs for Abu Dhabi  and consists of 1,000 different chairs. This work is meant to represent diversity, and for Abu Dhabi being a busy city that attracts people from all over, was only fitting. As all places that attract people from all over for business, t

Early Modern - Dada Exhibit     A bit of background on this style, the Dada movement originated in Switzerland after the First World War, and was essentially an artistic counter-culture movement to express the distain for everything that was going on at the time, from war politics, to art. To better understand the movement and the work, lets look at the first piece.  The Pillars of Society - George Grosz     The first Dada work I'll cover is titled "The Pillars of Society", and was painted as an oil on canvas by George Grosz in 1926. For something painting with such a specific message, it's wonder how that message is still just as relevant today, if you adjust some of the dated details. There are four main subjects that we see and upon closer inspection, they are the pillars the painting is named after.        The frontmost character is a Nazi, as you can see a swastika on their tie, and they are representing war. A sword is in his hand, drunk on 'power', and