Symposia 2: Final Presentation on Michelangelo

Michelangelo Presentation

Symposium 2: Chosen Practitioner: Michelangelo

The Time Machine – Symposium 2

Chosen Practitioner: Michelangelo

Deadline: The Time Machine – Symposium 2. Thursday 31st March 2011

•The focus for this Symposium is to take a practitioner in the creative arena, and treat this practitioner in a similar way to the way in which you treated the object/artefact studied for Symposium 1 – as a starting point for broad contextual investigations.

•As with Symposium 1, you will need to examine the resonances, influences and connections in association with this practitioner, both forwards and backwards in time. How was their creative work influenced by others, and by past events? What influence did they have, directly or indirectly? How can they be viewed in the light of historical and contemporary contexts?

•The direction in which the research goes can be both linear and nonlinear. You are encouraged to research at tangents as well as in straight lines! The colourful and interesting byways of Symposium 1 were one of its principal strengths.

•The practitioner can be alive or dead, historical or contemporary.

•You must not use the practioner as the main basis for your Time Machine essay, although you may refer

Auto-S.O.S/recap of the brief:

1) A clear introduction to your presentation, which should also mention the

different published sources you have used and your reasons for choice. You

should use no less than 5 published sources to inform your presentation.

2) A clear definition of key ideas relating to your given topic, with supporting

evidence in the form of, no less than, 3 quotations from 3 different published

sources. Quotations must be interpreted and their importance discussed, they

should also be referenced correctly using the Harvard method.

3) The cultural context (political and social) in which the topic came out of/was in

reaction to.

4) An illustrated ‘who’s who’ of key individuals associated with given topic, with a

clear explanation of what you think their significance is and why.

5) Historical examples of key words/images/artefacts associated with given topic

and an assessment of their importance.

6) Contemporary examples of key words/images/artefacts associated with given

topic and a comparison to the historical examples.

7) A ‘bullet point’ conclusion.

8) A bibliography and illustration list correctly set out using the Harvard method.

9) A PDF version of presentation for uploading to myUCA.

Meeting in concrete - 17/03

I am not sure about Steph, but how does next Thursday sound after the seminar? We'll prepare in advance.

Research 2: Finalising the plan

Research 2: Finalising the plan

Group 13 | Picassos Guernica (1937) | Time Machine

·         The echo of "Guernica" was still alive when World War II broke out

·         Guernica is not specific to Cubism, however, it contains all the essential features of an artificial conception deducted directly from the hand of the Cubist (see point 5)

·         The image of "reality" and "unreality" is depicted within the black and white tension; Picasso's painting Guernica.

·         Cubism was the most radical ways of artistic expression used until then by Picasso's Guernica and therefore expresses modernity.

·         Through Guernica, Cubism is a tool of communication to get across the idea that in war the objects and people break sharply with the bombing, with shrapnel, with the pain. Also, the geometric simplification of Cubism was used by the techniques of advertising and political signs. In this sense, the Guernica is like a big poster, mass media, an example of political art

·         "Art is not made to decorate rooms. It is an offensive weapon in the defense against the enemy." (Pablo Picasso)  'Les lettres françaises' (1943-03-24)

·         Visually, it is possible to attach "chromatic austerity" (with respect to colour, and added sourness and harshness) to the theme of the Guernica

Bibliography

Seitz, C, W. (1983) Abstract expressionist painting in America. (1st ed.) Washington: Harvard University Press

Southworth, R, H. (1977) Guernica! Guernica!: A study of journalism, diplomacy, propaganda, and history. (1st ed.) USA: University of California Press

Research 1: Bulleting an initial plan

Research 1: Bulleting an initial plan

Group 13 | Picassos Guernica (1937) | Time Machine

The international handbook on innovation

(Book)

By Larisa V. Shavinina

Chapter 13

(pp.222)

•Guernica; the process of creation.

·         "Information concerning structure in Picasso's thought processes".

(pp.227)

•"When Picasso painted Guernica, he was in his mid-50's and had been an artist for most of that time." Maybe look at some of his life experience, wisdom of his perceptivity which can be associated to bring/support findings on the internal symbology of Guernica.  

(pp.230)

•"Furthermore, the strong correspondence between Minotauromachy and Guernica shown in Table 5 is actually an underestimation of the true correspondence."

(pp.231)

•There is a link between Minotauromachy and Guernica

·         Linked by a web of interrelationships (complex network of illustrative meanings/symbolic)

•Guernica also contains the skeleton of a bullfight

•Guernica is the development of individual characters.

·         This illustrates a possible waypoint; in as much that we can begin to understand Picasso's thoughts and feeling.

Summary: Information connects/points to Picasso's earlier piece, Minotauromachy (1935).

_________________________________________________________________

LIFE - Picasso

(Magazine)

Picasso: his women: the wonder is that he found so much time to paint

(pp.92)

•Caption under the Minotauromachy image print: "Picasso's 1935 etching "Minotauromachy" anticipates the Guernica composition, but in reverse."

(pp.93)

•"Of all animals, bulls are the richest in mythical associations. In the Mediterranean imagination, which Picasso shares through heritage and blood, bulls figures both as gods and monsters, heroes and villians, saviors and victims."

·         Ancient Greek God: "Zeus himself took the shape of a noble bull to carry off Europa."  

•"No question in Guernica has been argued so headedly as the meaning of the bull, and the debate is still going on."

·         A friend a of Picasso, a critic: "Threatening bull, hence the fascist cause."

·         Countered: "Picasso himself is on record as stating, years ago, that the bull is not fascism; "brutality and darkness, yes, but not fascism."

·         Continued: "Yet his preliminary sketches show that he wavered between an evil bull and a noble one."

Fig 1. Picasso's Minotauromachy (1935).

_________________________________________________________________

List of Illustrations

Figure 1. Picasso, Pablo. (1935) Minotauromachy. [Etching] At: http://www.aestheticrealism.org/News-ck.jpg (Accessed on: 23.02.11)

Bibliography

Shavinina, V., L. (2003) The international handbook on innovation. (1st ed.) Oxford: Elsevier Science Ltd.

Research: Review and Commence

Research: Review and Commence

Recap!- Just so I an have an S.O.S for brief:

1) A clear introduction to your presentation, which should also mention the

different published sources you have used and your reasons for choice. You

should use no less than 5 published sources to inform your presentation.

2) A clear definition of key ideas relating to your given topic, with supporting

evidence in the form of, no less than, 3 quotations from 3 different published

sources. Quotations must be interpreted and their importance discussed, they

should also be referenced correctly using the Harvard method.

3) The cultural context (political and social) in which the topic came out of/was in

reaction to.

4) An illustrated ‘who’s who’ of key individuals associated with given topic, with a

clear explanation of what you think their significance is and why.

5) Historical examples of key words/images/artefacts associated with given topic

and an assessment of their importance.

6) Contemporary examples of key words/images/artefacts associated with given

topic and a comparison to the historical examples.

7) A ‘bullet point’ conclusion.

8) A bibliography and illustration list correctly set out using the Harvard method.

9) A PDF version of presentation for uploading to myUCA.

Okay, so this is my first entry. Will hopefully blast through some of the research this Saturday and get the ball rolling on this one. I will be looking at the art form embodiment and the visual language of the piece, touching up on "Cubist", "War art before and after" (analysing Spanish Civil War and similar), and other forms of art at the time in regard to war.

Initial thoughts for further development: Lots of iconicography going on within Picasso's Guernica. In terms of activity, there is much going on. A good starting point would be to translate the symbolic use of animals and their purposes which contribute towards the depths and qualities: Really, the expression lies within the configuration of each and every detail through simple lines. Etc, etc.

Very brief for now, will update with more on Saturday!   

                                                                                     

Note: Guys, have a chosen a group name? We need a group name!