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african art s influence to western art
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African art is very unique in many aspects. African art is traditionally abstract, and beautiful in its own way. Many people believe that African art is so different that judging it based on the scale of the rest of the world is useless, due to the fact that African art is not like anything else in the world. African art seems to have never gotten the proper discovery it deserved, and here’s why. The process of the discovery of these artifacts were poor. The archeologists who found the arts were educated and wealthy white European men who just wanted to “try it”. They had no experience or skill at doing this. They put all of the artifacts into jeopardy. Jeopardizing the very history that the creators tried so hard to preserve and show in their …show more content…
European artists created works that were smooth and beautiful versions of the real world. Sculptures like Michelangelo’s David are more than what the person looked like. They were beautiful, flawless sculptures. The sculptures and paintings are of real things and portray real objects. This makes them more pleasing to the eye, more desirable and more popular. The European attitude to the arts of other cultures were negative, they were influenced by ideas of evolution. Both ideas put European culture at the top of the scales, using its works as the judgement standard for the arts of other cultures. And since most of the sculptures and masks from Africa were very abstract in style, European people looked down on them as "primitive" and a sad attempt at recreating life like images. Even though in the early 1920’s the discovery of terracotta heads and brass figures happened they thought it was the works of foreigners. They believed that it was the Greeks. African art was traditional, and abstract in style. In Europe artists created works of art for viewing. There was no other deeper meaning behind their art. That is one huge difference in art type. The African people had more connection with their art. The artists of Africa created figures for shrines, to worship their gods, in the pavement areas of the Yoruba
Western attitudes to African people and culture have always affected how their art was appreciated and this has also coloured the response to the art from Benin.
At first, art seemed to only focus on Jesus Christ and sin, but later on “the essence of the Renaissance” seemed to bring “stronger emotions in the subjects” and more of an “symbolic representation giving way to depictions of recognizable scenes (Document A from Theodore Rabb’s text).” The visual arts seemed to also have a greater detail of “well-defined landscapes, natural folds in drapery, and three-dimensional figures” as stated on Document A. It seems as though the human’s attention to detail seemed to be greater than ever, so that the viewers of the painting can get
Many African cultures see life as a cycle we are born, we grow and mature, enter adulthood, and one day we will eventually die but the cycle continues long after death. In Africa art is used as a way to express many things in their society, in this paper I will focus on different ways traditional African art are used to describe the cycle of one’s life. Since Africa is such a large continent it is important to keep in mind that every country and tribe has different rituals and views when it comes to the cycle of life. It is estimated to be well over a thousand different ethnic groups and cultures in Africa today. Thousands of cultures in Africa see the stages of life bound together in a continuous cycle; a cycle of birth, growth, maturity,
People always had a strong fascination with ancient Egypt for the great pyramids, the kings and queens, hieroglyphs and their advance knowledge. Many artists had appropriated ancient Egypt within there work; you can find it in many artwork, pop culture and literature. As example, Cleopatra 1963 Hollywood movie, Dark horse by katy Parry and many more. One of the artwork what grabbed my attention was a piece done during the Harlem Renaissance what displayed a lot of Ancient Egyptian symbolism in the artwork.
Despite the long history of African American art, many black artists in contemporary society still have a difficult time getting their art viewed or accepted by the masses. Society, in general, tends to look at African art as ethnic, trivial, simple, folk art, perhaps even collectable, but not worthy of true in-depth exploration of fine art accreditation. However, Laurie Cooper and Lorna Simpson disrupt these perceptions in their art.
I believe that as we grow up a worldview just kind of ingrades itself on us, we tell ourselves that that particular viewpoint is the normal one. European and African worldviews are completely different, analyzing both of them I can state that the European worldview is shallow and greedy. People who pride themselves on the European worldview are materialistic, only care about external fake beauty, and only care for themselves. People who have African worldview care for other in a genuine way, see beauty for what on the inside and not the outside, and have interpersonal
The construct of the ‘Roman copy’ in art history has deeply rooted and extensive origins. Whilst this prejudiced was attached to Roman sculpture from an extremely early time in modern archaeology and art history, the construct viewed in a current context reveals issues with both its development and contribution to historical understanding and education. The construct is formed upon several main factors that have recently been called into question by revisionist historians. Firstly, the development of the construct by conservative historians during the 18th century, a context that valued artistic originality and authenticity, lead to it’s popularisation and circulation as a respected model. Secondly, the construct rests entirely on the presumption that Greek art is in fact aesthetically and artistically superior, insinuating a negative predisposition towards Roman artistic workmanship and aesthetics. Lastly, technological advancements aiding historiography have asserted the fact that many conclusions drawn by conservative historians through their methodology are in fact irrefutably incorrect. While the basis for much of the conservative historians argument has been seen as flawed, or otherwise seriously questioned in terms of accurate and reliable history, the construct of ‘Roman copies’ of Greek originals has remained a legitimised understanding and interpretation of Roman art for centuries. The question can then be raised as to whether the attention given to this aspect of history is worth the fact that much of the history being taught is now being heavily questioned.
The artworks of Mesopotamia, Ancient Egypt, the Aegean cultures, and Ancient Greece have similarities that not only reflect objects and images, but also the media, style and representation. These countries were not always wealthy, clever, creative and powerful enough to gain supplies, but they all find a way to create art with what they had. They have all influenced on each other’s cultures and belief through their artistic values and ways, ranging from the materials and tools they use, position and representation of their monuments and their religious intent.
...reat talents of artists like Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael and many more. We don’t see the type of art that was done during the Renaissance in today’s world. Art has given us the opportunity to almost go back in time, to see people’s emotions and feelings and how events happening in the world just by looking at an artists masterpiece.
Connection - This is relevant to our class because throughout our studies we have seen that African art is usually functional. Some of the examples we have covered include the huge vases and the baskets which are both used in every day life. A main concept of this class is to understand that African art is not separate from African life, but instead it is part of the day to day life of African people. In turn, African Architecture is part of the day to day life as well.
Kasfir, S. L. (2007) African Art and the Colonial Encounter: Inventing a Global Commodity, Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
Many people were trying new, unheard of techniques, breaking rules and styles that were very common in the renaissance time period. Just as music composers were becoming famous for new styles of music artists were as well. While composers had seem to have gotten away from having their influence be completely from the church, it was quite the opposite for art. A clash of religious ideologies inadvertently created one of the most important time periods for art. From this many different styles and schools were created. Some of which are still considered artistic marvels
Almost every civilization or culture all at least has their own forms of traditional art, doesn’t matter if the art was influenced, taken, or created. Art includes almost everything to anything, from physical things to things you can only hear or even feel, for example: painting, music, sculptures, dance, architecture, literature, movies, plays, and much more. Art is also very important because it contains meaning and expression behind it. This all includes the Igbo culture, a civilization found in Nigeria, Africa. The Igbo culture reflects many types of traditional arts such as dances for various occasions, masks and maiden masks, various musical instruments, and architecture.
To begin this discussion, it is crucial to understand what exactly art conservation and restoration is and what it entails. Art Conservation/Restoration can be defined as an array of professions dedicated to “approaching every painting (or artwork) conservatively in that only what needs attention is addressed and nothing excessive is ever performed, all of the materials used are modern…” . This is the process of careful examination, documentation, and attention and treatment of a weakening art object due to age, neglect, and utilization. These objects can range from paintings to architecture to any number of things.
Most art has some sort of reason or purpose behind it. It might be religious, symbolic, literal, traditional, customary, or just a preference by the artist. Most African art has a symbolic reason. Masks, pottery, figures, portraits, jewelry, baskets and clothing reflect the religious belief of the different tribes. Africans believed that everything in nature is alive. For example: rocks, grass, plants, trees, rivers and mountains. African art was not popular and was looked down upon until recently. In Nigeria, people were tattooed as a test of courage. The figure- “Portrait Head of a King (Oni)” reflects this. The King has this tattooing on his entire face. The King has big slanted eyes, a prominent nose, and big full lips. All these things represented something to the Nigerian people; the King...