Assignment 11-Poetry

Describe Ekphrasis.

Ekphrasis is an artistic concept in which all five senses are used to describe a person, place, or experience. In this picture, I don't hear anything but my very own breathing. There is no wind nor are there any animals out there. All I can see are two endless lines of trees and I am stuck in between them. The sky is gray there is straw on the ground. I smell an upcoming rain shower mixed with the smell of grass. Finally, I feel the beginning of fall. The leaves on the tree and the grass are still green however, it is very gray outside and when I look at this picture I fell chilly (as if I were getting a slight breeze on a cool day).

The tunnel goes on.
I walk alone, through a tunnel of trees.
The day is crisp, cold, and seems dark.
The nature around covers me like a blanket during the winter and I wonder,
why I am walking alone.
The very stillness of this day is not comforting to me
and I begin to feel like an infant taken from the warmth of its mother.
The tunnel goes on. 

Assignment 10

I chose to observe the Mckissick museum. This structure sits in the center of a the  McKissick was first built in 1939 as a project from the Works Progress Administration. Originally McKissick served as the university's library and in 1976 it was elected to serve as a museum showing southern culture and an archive of artifacts from the university dating back to USC's opening in 1801. The design of the McKissick buildings follows that of a pre-Civil War structure. The columns as well as the building itself are made from concrete. A dome ceiling sits on top of the structure and the columns of the building are made to model the columns of Ancient Roman architecture. The use of the columns is also an ancient form of architecture that is know as post and lintel. The structure also displays a style which is like that of Greek revival buildings. All in all McKissick is one of the most popular buidings on USC campus and its creative and unique design makes it one of the most classic buildings on any college campus.

Art Event Five- Trinity Cathedral

1.  The trinity cathedral has the following features: a nave, aspe, transept.  The nave is the rectangular figure in the center of the church where the member of the congregation sit. Just beyond the nave, at the very end of the church is the aspe where the priest and leaders of the congregation sit. Finally, in the middle of the church is the transept which is a walkway that lies across horizontally. If one was to look at the church from the sky they would notice that the church is shaped like a cross. The nave and the aspe lie vertically and the transept lie horizontally.

2.  Inside the church there are detailed stain glass windows, beautiful mosaics, as well as moldings and cornice. The chapel of the church is also located inside.

3.  The church is built in a Greek Revival style. The church as very high ceilings and holds many different decorations such as stained glass windows, moldings, and mosaics. The church allows as much light to enter it as possible.

Tree Of Life

1. Describe- The Tree of Life is a film directed by Terrence Malick which examines the meaning of existing and the beginnings of life. The film stars Brad Pitt, Sean Penn, and Jessica Chastain. The majority of movie is set in 1950s Texas but we are taken to several time periods throughout the film.

2, Analyze- The Tree of Life was a very abstract and existentialist film. The movie first opened with a quote from the Book of Job and then the audience was then introduced to the O'Brien family (who were the focus of our film). The first event the audience witnesses with the family is the death of a son at the age of 19. I assumed from the telegraph that it was possible he was killed in service with the army. Throughout the movie through the audience is exposed to very elaborate imagery (most often representing the beginning of time and the universe) and we often her the main characters Jack O'Brien, Mr. O'Brien, and Mrs. O'Brien asking very existential questions as their evaluate their lives, the lives of their family and neighbors, and why certain happen to people.

3. Interpret- I believe the director chose to have his film produced in an abstract way because the meaning of life and the evaluation of life are two very abstract and existential concepts. The film was very thought provoking and often proposed very secular themes to the audience. The film definitely has more than one meaning and more than one theme.  All of the images and stories found in the film either dealt with living life, consequences of living your life a certain way, the value of life, and how emotions (both ours and of those around us) affect how we live. The story also examines how the death of a loved one and cause someone to reminisce over the lost family members life.

4. Evaluate- Personally, The Tree of Life was not my cup of tea. I appreciated the overall messages of the film however, I felt as though there was a lot of dead footage in the film. For example, there was about 15 or so minutes of (what seemed to me) random music and imagery. I felt as though that part could have been a tad less expansive and long. However, there were many images as well as themes that appealed to me, but I did feel as though the movie had a lot of miscellaneous scenes that could have been left out.

Assignment 9- Printmaking

 

1. There are four types of Printmaking:

• Relief- Common on stamps. Wood or linoleum is cut with a sharp tool so that the raised portion is the only part seen on the paper.
• Itaglio- Most commonly seen on dollar bills. The lowered areas are printed instead of the raised portion. A substance called "ground" is placed on a copper or zinc sheet. A etching tool is used to expose the metal while drawing the picture. Acid is then dropped on the sheet and a thick ink is rubbed into the grooves. Damp paper is then placed on top and the image and paper are run through the press. 
• Lithography- The artist draws on a stone slab with a greasy crayon. Then they roll ink onto the stone causing only the greasy crayon to show up witch allows the artist to make a print. 
• Stencil-  Used to create an image on clothing or paper. A screen is pulled across a frame, then using a hand-cut print painted with tusche or using photosensitive emulsion an opening is created in the screen where the ink can pass through the screen 

2.  Lithography uses the general principle that oil and water do not mix.  To start, the artist draws the image using a greasy crayon on a  stone. The artist then rubs  water onto the stone. Ink is then rubbed all over the stone so that the ink is only attracted to the greasy image because the water repels the grease. The print can then be made by placing the paper on the stone and putting it through a press. 

3.  The most prominent difference between silk screen and etching is that the image is not a mirror image in silk screen. Also with etching you can control the details of your work include texture and tone. Also in etching there is no color. The artist can only use black and white, while in silk screen various colors can be used.

Truman show- Rear Window

1. Directors Hitchcock and Weir are both known to be very thought-provoking directors. Peter Weir (The Truman Show) and Alfred Hitchcock (The Rear Window) both examine the same theme in both of their works, watching someone as the go about the day (or evening) unaware that they are being watched. Truman who is being watched by society and  Weir in a satirical comedic way and Hitchcock in a suspenseful appeal.  In both films though, the viewers had complete control and dominance over their victim. Both directors used very similar camera angles that produced a suspenseful appeal from the audience.

2. As stated earlier, the films share a common theme. The main character in each film goes through a psychological conflict within them self about what they are doing. Both characters examine if what they are doing is morally right. The two films also share a similar sunset shot. In the Truman Show, Marlon and the title character and looking into the sunset and in the Rear Window the audience sees the sunset of the city. Finally, both films also have to very domineering characters. In the Truman Show this is wife and in the Rear Window it is L. B. Jeffery.

3. Voyeurism is a termed used when a person has gotten pleasure from watching another person. This can happen either when the person knows that are being watched or if they are unaware that they are being watched. There are three types of voyeurism in films: characters watching each other, the camera recording an event, and finally the audience watching the characters. We see the first type of voyeurism in each film. I believe people partake in voyeurism because they want to have a glimpse of what life is like for other people.

Phantom of the Opera

1. In the opening scene of Phantom of the Opera we are taken to Paris in 1919. As two elderly citizens are looking at the remains of a building in lot 666 which used to be an opera house. The audience is then taken to 1870 when the house was up and running (the duration of the movie remains in 1870).  During this time period going to the opera was a very important and prestigious event. Audience members would often dress very elegantly and were also (mainly) members of the upper class. Performances were often filled with very extravagant costumes, make up, and scenery. This period of opera was known as grand opera.

2. Main Characters

• The Phantom- Scarred as a young boy on his face Erik (the phantom) has found comfort in living in the catacombs of the opera house. The phantom is a musical virtuoso and has written several operas for the opera house. Throughout the movie he begins to fall in love and obsess over a young opera singer named Christine. 
• Christine- A young soprano and rising opera star, Christine instantly becomes the phantom's love interest and obsession. As she is tutored by the phantom she believes that he is the "angel of music" and the spirit of her late father. However, she grows attached to the phantom and she must choose between her childhood love, Raoul, and the Phantom. 
• Raoul- We are first introduced to the elderly Raoul in the opening scene of the movie. In his younger days, Raoul was the love of Christine. We often see him fighting the Phantom of Christine's affection and love. 
• Madame Giry- Madame Giry is the ballet Mistress of the opera house. She assumed the role as Christine's guardian after her father passed. She is also response for bringing the Phantom to the opera house to avoid him from facing persecution. 
• Meg Giry- Meg is a ballerina at the opera house and is also Christine's best friend. After the phantom kidnaps Christine, Meg, leads the effort to go find her. 

 3. The Phantom of the Opera is a disfigured music genius who lives beneath the opera house. He falls in love with Christine and tutors her to become the opera house's new star. However, the phantom falls in love with Christine, who is already in love with another, Raoul. After a series of duels the phantom gives Christine an ultimatum. She can either live with him (the phantom) for the rest of her life and Raoul's life will be spared or he will let her go but he will kill Raoul. Christine chooses to spare Raoul's life but the Phantom has realized that he has deeply hurt Christine so he lets her go, and live with Raoul.

4. I believe the overall meaning of the musical was that one can not expect to live happily if hatred and anger compel them. The phantom was living with deep anger and hate for those who treated him with the same feelings and thus he poured them back into his relationship with Christine which turned her away from him. In turn, his negative feelings ruined something that could have made him very happy. Christine was able to find the phantom to be an amazing person however, his internal ugliness turned her against him.