Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Week 5 option 1
I am going with option one being the Minoan culture and its Bull Leaping “BL” (pg. 88) piece. For the comparison I will be going with the Egyptian culture and its Picking Figs “PF” (pg. 63) piece. Looking over the Minoan piece it is basically centered on a bull with three people doing various things around it. One seems to be holding or restraining it, another being upside down a little above the middle/back of it, and the third is behind it with his hands in a position as if he were to catch the person above the bull or something else. The Egyptian piece is centered on a tree with figs and three baboons while two men on each side are picking the figs with the baboons. Researching the two pieces both are big paintings that were done on big walls to show his/her art. For the BL piece it was designed and created upon a plaster surface being of wet or dry though one had ups and downs compared to the other. The PF piece being common with Egyptian artwork is made of mud plaster surface with a possible thin limestone layer as well to be more accepting of paint to stay on without decaying in the dry and hot climate. Comparing the two it is interesting in how they both are very simple in their design but at the same time they are complex in how to interpret it, as it isn’t easy to do so. BL is actually of people leaping over bulls and PF is a race between the baboons and men to pick the most or all the figs before the other does. What is easily identifiable is the fact that BL is very flat in depth since it does not have any shadow among it and PF has some on the stomach and legs of the two men but. Though the tree or baboons don’t show depth with shadow the figs do show a bit from what can be seen. Though PF has depth it seems Egyptian culture from the pieces I’ve seen don’t do too much detail in color or not a lot of different colors being brighter but prefer to be a little greyer/dimmer. This could be that they already have a bright sun to worry about most of the year they don’t want brighter artwork to add to this brightness. BL on the other hand and their culture like to give a good concept in different colors, or at least colors that would relate to one another unlike PF with the people being so much darker and gaining more attention than the tree with its baboons/figs. All in all it seems to me that Egyptian art can be easily identifiable since their work of art is very organized in what is where to describe what they’re trying to imply. What could seem to be unique to me about Minoan artwork is that they like to be Greekish but more flatter and straight forward in their pieces.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
These two works are interesting, too, because we see modified versions of the composite pose. The torsos of the Egyptian workers are shown in profile (although it is a strange, skewed profile, with the shoulders pushed in front of their bodies). Likewise, the torsos of the Minoan figures are also shown in profile. This is different from the strict, frontal torso which we have seen in the composite pose reserved for "upper class" members of Egyptian society.
ReplyDelete-Prof. Bowen
I liked the way you explained about two pieces such as difference between surfaces, depth, and color. Also I liked that you said “Comparing the two it is interesting in how they both are very simple in their design but at the same time they are complex in how to interpret it, as it isn’t easy.” I really agree with this. These are looks simple design but unless written record does not exist, it will be hard to interpret it.
ReplyDeleteThe leaping bull represented an initiation or fertility ritual. The pale skinned person at the right identified her as a women who is prepared to catch the dark skinned man in the midst of his leap and the pale skinned women on the left grasps the bull by its horns perhaps to help steady the bull or is beginning her own vault,
ReplyDeleteI think you did a really good job in explaining the two art pieces and their differences. These pieces are interesting choices, people racing baboons to pick up the most figs before the other is an interesting and unique game or event.
ReplyDelete