Discussions

On Transforming Public Spaces at Dartmouth College and Elsewhere

2/24/17

The Mexican Muralists and Humphrey strived to make an impression on the audience acknowledging both positive and negative reactions. The Mexican Muralists not only focused on representing mestizaje during the Mexican Revolution, but they also depicted the values of communism in a society where there’s an “unseen” hierarchy placed. Humphrey demonstrates his point of view of Dartmouth not only by reacting to Orozco’s murals, but painting his own murals as a response. The Hovey Murals were impressive based on the color and the realistic characteristics of the individuals. There were many issues represented such as how society believes there is this one race that is above the rest, and the idea that women are unequal to men.

While looking at street artists and having studied Orozco, Rivera, Siqueiros, and Humphrey’s art work, the purpose of public art is to respond to a certain movement in society or to reveal the flaws/beauty of the world. At the same time, public art sparks an emotion in the audience, making small changes inside the individuals. An art museum exposes a larger audience allowing an artist’s work to become more prominent in the community.The great thing about art museums and public art is that they are available to the public and exposes people to question their own stance on certain issues. Art allows for controversy. If art museums began mixing their exhibitions, I feel like the public would be more exposed and vulnerable to other media that they might usually not look at. Art in our society should be questioning things that we have always been certain of. Not only that, but art also has to be representing the flaws of society and how it’s impacting communities abroad and at home. Without art, the public would not be aware of the tragedies in history or the beauty of diversity.

 

On Cradle Will Rock and Art & Power

2/16/17

The film Cradle Will Rock brought to life the struggle of the Great Depression, specifically with how the Federal Theater Project kept politicians constantly in fear of communism when its purpose was to put people to work: give hope to the community. I liked how the film incorporated humor to magnify certain things about the Great Depression. Not only was fear constantly present, but courage was also growing. The scene at the end of the movie resonates the most with me since it was not a fictional moment, but an actual event that occurred in the past. I admire how the director conflated the events in history to incorporate Diego Rivera’s commission with Rockefeller. Despite this, I was not content with how Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo were portrayed. I thought Frida would have been more stubborn or chaotic when protesting the destruction of Rivera’s mural. I am aware that I may be comparing the character Diego Rivera and Frida Kahlo to the actors in the movie Frida. I really like how Frida had captured Rivera’s complicated personality and Frida’s independence. Overall, I enjoyed watching this film because it brought up the idea of who commissions artists and why. Although Brecht states, “artist are the worst whores of them all,” it made me wonder how many artists make art without wanting money in return to later be commissioned by the wealthy and such.

 

On Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera

2/2/17

The film Frida is awe-inspiring in how it portrays Frida: as a strong individual who not only survived a horrible accident but also loved the man who caused her the most pain. Frida’s character resonates with the values of feminism, making the viewers respect her for her actions as well as for her art. Frida’s sexuality and her manner of dressing express Frida’s willpower to disregard women stereotypes. Although Frida’s character relied on her emotions, as many stereotypes of women state, she becomes a powerful, determined woman when creating her art. I admire how Julie Taymor portrays Rivera because of combining this great “admiration” women had for him, while she also reproduces the love Rivera had for Frida as shown during Rivera’s speech at Frida’s gallery opening. Rivera’s political ideals were also part of his character whereas Frida’s political ideals were not as prominent. I would have liked to see how Frida had affected the political sphere, separate from her husband’s impact. All in all, I like how Taymor captured the complexity of Frida and Rivera’s relationship.

Additionally, Taymor brings kinetic properties to Frida’s artwork, appealing to the audience’s emotions enhancing the effect of despair or joy of the portraits. For example, the portrait of Frida and Rivera standing next to each other the day of their wedding brings forth cheerfulness, as represented when Frida and Rivera begin moving around, talking to the guests. On the contrary, Frida’s portrait of the car accident and her miscarriages is very gruesome. These two examples resonate with me because of how much color and emotion Frida incorporated into the portraits.

Taymor successfully characterizes Frida’s portraits as well as Frida’s connections to her family. I value how Taymor reveals the close relationship between Frida and her father, Guillermo, through her admiration of his work. Although Frida’s mother, Matilde, disapproves of Frida’s clothing style, Taymor reveals the love Matilde had for Frida despite disagreeing with her life style. In general, the film depicts the life of the artists we have been studying as a complicated, bittersweet, and costly roller coaster that never stops, only upon death: there are family complications, political ideals to acknowledge, and essential fearlessness when it comes to dealing with criticism.

 

On the Orozco Murals at Dartmouth College

1/9/17

When I first saw Orozco’s murals in the fall, I felt a bit overwhelmed by the historical events represented on the walls. After discussing the murals in class, I became aware of the similarities between the murals painted in the first half of the room with the rest of the murals in the other half of the room. The murals Ancient Human Sacrifice and Modern Human Sacrifice represent the death of the soldiers and warriors as utilized by their homeland to keep peace in the world. Through the similar historical events, we not only gain a new view on history and its implication, but we also get to acknowledge that history can and does repeat itself. In both cases, innocent human beings died because of the society’s beliefs.

Throughout Orozco’s murals, more color is present as one gets closer to his mural on the far right of the library: Modern Migration of the Spirit. There, Orozco colorfully painted Christ in a manner that screams, “I’m over this,” due to Christ facing forward as if to a better moment. Orozco also employs small details such as the holes on the hands and feet of Christ in order to represent where he had been nailed to the cross before leaving the cross behind.

Overall, I enjoyed Orozco’s critical point on education in Gods of the Modern World, as well as his attention to detail in each of the murals’ background.