Moore & Rothko

I chose the video on Henry Moore because I didn’t know much about him and Pop Art and Photography are forms of art that don’t catch my interest as much as sculpting and painting does.

Henry Moore

1. 20^th century artist exploring the human figure.
2. One of seven children in a tiny house.
3. He had a coal mining back round but was expected to become a teacher due to a couple of his siblings taking that profession.
4. He had an obsession with the idea of mother and child. So much that he could turn just about anything into a figure resembling a mother with her child.
5. The reclining figure is a theme of Moore’s sculptures.
6. He proposed the idea that sculptures should have meaning to the architecture that surrounds it.
7. Moore used his family upbringing to bring life and meaning to his artwork.
8. He felt form captured more than facial expressions and experimented with proportions throughout his work.
9. His drawings required him to pay more attention to detail and that is when he decided to separate both sculpting and drawing into two completely different categories.

This video was great. I enjoy watching biographies of artist’s, especially those that aren’t so familiar to me because I’d much rather see new artwork rather than to see a popular piece such as, “Starry Night”. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mean “Starry Night” isn’t a masterpiece, but it’s nice to have you open the door for us to so many other artists.

Videos such as this always remind me of the pages in the book that give us a “sneak peak” into the lives of artists. I really enjoy his style. It reminds me of a specific set of collector items that Hallmark sells that are made out of wood. There’s a soft, flowy way about his style.

The Power of Art: Rothko

I chose this video for the exact same reason I chose to watch, “Henry Moore.” I wanted to know more about an artist I was not very familiar with.

1. 9 paintings of Rothko were delivered to the Tate Gallery in London the same day he killed himself.
2. He was born in Russia and it was during an era that “beating up on the Jews” was a familiar hobby.
3. To “make ends meet” he even taught kids at a Jewish Community Center.
4. Rothko began experimenting with Expressionism. This included thick dark lines.
5. The “Subway Series” were his first set of paintings.
6. He felt there was no psychological explanation for his work.
7. Eventually he took a turn for the worst
8. He had even created artwork for a restaurant that he hoped would be gruesome enough to make customers sick as they dined.
9. He led a very dark life that was evidently shown in his work.
10. His writings include a depressed cycle that sound as if he wished there were still no critics and that art could be done with out any backlash.

I think it’s interesting to hear how many artists live disturbing lives. His story just seems very similar to that of other artists and ironically Van Gogh’s, since I had just mentioned him in my previous discussion. It’s almost as if they were so lost in their own minds that painting was their only true way of expressing themselves. I remember when my grandmother passed away my mom began painting again after what was probably a twenty-year break. Her brush strokes were heavy and filled with anger and her color selection was dark and depressing. I guess you can’t really paint flowers and rainbows if you’re experiencing deep anguish. It’s a lot easier than I thought to get “into” the mind of an artist. At least to understand what feelings they are trying to express. I feel like the book and these videos have provided us such an intense understanding of what to observer when looking at art and how to break down the different elements used.