Blog #3

The Battle of the Nudes by Antonio del Pollaiuolo was created to depict muscles of the male body reacting under tension. This is an engraving of men fighting. The artist took one model and put that model into different positions. This piece reminds me of how men fight. Although I do not think that men now a days would be fighting nude. They are trying to show how strong they are both physically and mentally. In the piece the artist shows just that. You can see all the muscles in their body flexing to show their strength. Also the piece shows how hard it is to deal with stress or tension. Every form in the image fights with great intent to live. It is all a competition. 

Blog #2

Martin Schongauer engraved this piece, Demons Tormenting Saint Anthony, in the 1470s. It is an illustration of the biblical meaning of temptation. Instead of portraying temptation as just inducement, the artist made it into a physical attack. The demons lifted Anthony up off the ground to torment him in mid air. Schongauer intensified the piece by having the demons in a swirling vortex of them beating, scratching, and shrieking at Saint Anthony. Anthony however stays calm. His faith made him impervious to all dangers. 

This piece reminds me of my friend's tattoo. I don't have a picture of it though. It is of a Geisha with three demons pulling at her. The same concept with this one to left is the same as my friend's tattoo. A lot of Japanese tattoo artists pick the art for the person. My friend's tattoo artist picked the concept which was perfect for him. 

In both pieces shows that temptation is always testing you or bringing you down. This is a very good idea to keep in mind.

Blog #1

In art, I believe that expressionism is one of the most important concepts. It is the whole reason to why people feel so close to a work of art no matter what it is. This piece is one of my favorite expressionistic pieces. The values in the image and the facial expression on the girl's face evoke a lonely and sad feeling. I view this piece when I am at my lowest point so that I know that I am not the only one who feels sad or lonely. She is in a world of darkness almost. What I relate to in this image is the feeling of a young girl in a grown up world or being a grown up that hides her worries. This piece is so widely open to interpretations, that it why it is an expressionistic piece. The artist brought all this imagery together to evoke emotions for the viewer.



This piece is inspired by the Disney story Beauty and the Beast. Annie Leibovitz, photographed this picture with the help of her patron, Disney. They both collaborated to bring a more real and humanistic feel to the story. This was an article in vogue which then turned into a whole project with almost all the Disney Classical stories.
In the image there are some words that say, "The beast looked as if he had died of a broken heart. Beauty swept and threw herself upon him." Love is a daring thing. I think everyone can see a little bit of themselves in this piece. Relationships usually end with someone hurting another person. That is why we should all have our own Beauty, to pick us up when we are down.







Richard Avadon, created this piece to symbolize the male view of beauty. Beauty to men is sexual, like this piece. The naked bodies are formed together with the shoes in an abstract way that produces the idea of sex. The bodies are twisted and turned to show a little glimpse of the body parts that men are attracted to. It is almost as if Avadon is making fun of this view.
Shoes are a wonderful way to express yourself. They can be sexy, funky, or what ever you like. I do have to agree with these images, in that men can take beauty to an awful level.