Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Egyptian Art

Egyptian Art refers to the style of painting, sculpture, crafts and architecture developed by the civilization in the lower Nile Valley from 5000 BC to 300 AD. Egyptian Art as expression in painting and sculpture was both high stylized and symbolic. Much of the surviving art comes from tombs and monuments and thus there is emphasis on life after death and the preservation of knowledge of the past.
Symbolism also played an important role in establishing a sense of order. Symbolism, ranging from the pharaoh's regalia (symbolizing his power to maintain order) to the individual symbols of Egyptian gods and goddesses, is omnipresent in Egyptian art. Animal were usually also highly symbolic figures in Egyptian art. Colors were more expressive rather than natural. Red skin implied youth, while yellow skin was used for women or middle aged men who worked indoors. Blue or gold indicated divinity because of its unnatural appearance and association with precious materials. The use of black for royal figures expressed the fertility of the Nile from which Egypt was born. Stereotypes were employed to indicate the geographical origins of foreigners. 
Egyptian Art was shown in many different forms including: Architecture, Paper, Pottery, Sculpture, Hieroglyphs, Literature, and Paintings. Below are some examples of Egyptian Art.

Architecture- Great Pyramids
http://library.thinkquest.org/11114/pictures/egypt2.gif

Paper- The Book of the Dead
http://www.egyptsbookofthedead.com/images_or/page3lg.jpg

Sculpture- Nefertiti
http://www.ancientscuplturegallery.com/images/274.jpg

Hieroglyphs
http://www.molon.de/galleries/Egypt/Luxor/Kings/images01/06%20Hieroglyphs.jpg







Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Pop Art Information

Pop art is a visual art movement that emerged in the mid 1950's in Britain and in the late 1950's in the United States. Pop art uses mass produced visual commodities of popular culture and removes material from its context and isolates the object, or combines it with other objects. The whole concept of pop art refers more to the attitude that led to it, not so much the art itself.
Characterized by themes and techniques drawn from popular culture, such as advertising and comic books. Pop art is widely interpreted as a reaction to the then dominant ideas of Abstract Expressionism, as well as an expansion upon them. It is also associated with the artists' use of mechanical means of reproduction or rendering techniques. Below are some well known artists and paintings.

Examples of Art

Andy Warhol- Marilyn Munroe 
http://www.lostateminor.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/andy-warhol-marilyn.jpg

Andy Warhol- Campbell's Soup Cans
http://www.moma.org/images/collection/FullSizes/80503002.jpg

Jasper Johns- Flag
http://malermanufaktur.files.wordpress.com/2008/12/jasper-johns-flag.jpg

Wayne Thiebaud- Three Machines
http://www.artnet.com/Magazine/news/newthismonth/Images/walrobinson2-1-16.jpg

Tom Wesselmann- Still Life
http://www.directoriodearte.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/06/still_life_mixed_media_work-tom_wesselmann-1962.jpg