I chose this piece because of it’s simplicity and because I felt I had more of a connection to understanding and being familiar with the key object as it is a small airplane. I imagine it may be a supplies plane that that travels into the tribal areas to bring in supplies and serve as a commuter, possibly. I like Efiambelo’s creativity in color templates and utilizing wood through first building or sculpting the object then painting the wood. That is always fun to do.

A bit about Fernando Botero:

He is from Columbia and he is considered to be Latin America’s most famous and beloved artist. “Botero is a painter, sculptor, and draftsman who is renowned for his extravagantly rounded, robust forms that are recognizable around the world. Botero is both a masterful storyteller and a critic, whose work is often laden with biting satirical and political commentary. His prolific work is exhibited in public spaces and galleries, and has inspired, challenged and delighted all who see it. Botero challenges the dimensions of our hearts and our minds with his provocative artwork, and celebrates his roots as a man from Colombia.” http://www.boterosa.org

This art piece I found to be colorful and fun. If you notice the guitar player and the drummer have a straight face…not to much excitment once you look at them a second time. But aside from that, when I view this picture I can hear the music and instrumentation accomodated by the fun festive lighting and upbeat rythems that are so indicitive to this region.

Viewing artwork from top (1st row)-left to right, 2nd row-left to right, and finally bottom (3rd row)-left to right, as follows:

–Top (1st Row)–
Exhibit 1: Playground Princesses Oil on Gessoboard. Painted on 2009-03-20 by Vicki Shuck (American-Bend, OR.), 7 in x 5in. This painting reflects two girls as playground princesses having fun and running at a playground with crowns on their heads. From a distance this is as though you are viewing this in real life. As you get closer it becomes more hazzier but this is a beautiful painting that is so happy and playful…as it is a real event taking place.
Exhibit 2: Ballet: Pink Princess. 2007-03-29. 7 in X 5 in Pastel by Johanna Bohoy (American-Beverly Farms, MA).This pastel painting reminds me of so many little girls who enjoy ballet and costumes. This tutu presents a touch of dressing-up, wearing special princess outfits, and performing.
Exhibit 3:Fairy Princess – Fairy Art for children. Oil on canvas panel by Deb Kirkeeide (American-Minneapolis, MN). 2008-05-17. 8 in X 16 in. This creative art piece offers enlightment and spark to the children’s world of imagination where little girls, fairies, and princesses exist as one.

–2nd Row–
Exhibit 4:Princess Painting – Original watercolor portrait by Gretchen Kelly (American-Hudson, NY). 2009-06-16. 4.5 in X 6.5 in. This watercolor portrait displays such a realistic event in a young girl’s life. Being a princess is who you are no matter what you wear, what you do, even the most basic girl performing a regular activity is a princess. You are not limited by a royal bloodline or fancy lifestyle, you are who you are and just being a girl, painting, playing, pretending, and having fun all fall under being a princess to your Mom, Dad, etc.
Exhibit 5: Princess Dreams. 4 in X 4 in Oil on Gallery Canvas by Angela Hardy (Canadian-Quebec City, Quebec). 2008-09-06. This painting shows a girl sitting on a bed with decorative heart pillows next to her as she has a design in her hair that depicts a crown. She is not real fancy looking but she looks nice and as though she just woke up from a nap and is smiling in the sense that she just had princess dreams.
Exhibit 6:Princess Jaidynby Carol Nelson (American-Aurora, CO.) 6 in X 6 in, Oil. 2010-02-04. This painting is incredibly characterized with such detail, fine brushstrokes, and exquisite portrait style painting of a young girl with rosey cheeks wearing a crown with a rose attached to it. This is an adorable piece of work of great talent, character, and color.

–Bottom (3rd Row)–
Exhibit 7: The Princess Child Princess Oil Painting 14 in X 11 in by Texas Artist Laurie Justus Pace (American- Dallas,TX.) Dated on 2010-03-19. Laurie Pace is a reknown Modern Impressionist who is Internationally Gallery Represented and Collected. This painting displays beautiful brushstrokes and coloring details of a young girl with a princess style dress holding a flower and gazing into the wonderous unknown that has caught her attention.

Supporting source: http://www.dailypainters.com

This piece was completed by Marcel Duchamp in 1917 titled Fountain. It was intended more as a prank for an avant garde art show that was open to display all entries but the particular piece gained high levels of shock and did not receive positive reaction by some of his fellow avant garde peers and judges. Due to this reaction, somehow the piece did not get into the exhibition as it was said to have gotten misplaced and shortly after it completely disappeared. Now, the only form of this art piece has been replicas of Duchamp’s Fountain that can be found in art museums.

A neat story behind this art piece states, “Marcel Duchamp arrived in the United States less than two years prior to the creation of Fountain, and had become involved with Dada, an anti-rational, anti-art cultural movement, in New York City. Creation of Fountain began when, accompanied by artist Joseph Stella and art collector Walter Arensberg, he purchased a standard Bedfordshire model urinal from the J. L. Mott Iron Works, 118 Fifth Avenue. The artist brought the urinal to his studio at 33 West 67th Street, reoriented it to a position 90 degrees from its normal position of use, and wrote on it, “R. Mutt 1917″. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fountain_(Duchamp)

As I reflect on the Impressionistic style of arts I am surrounded by many pieces and influental forms that are linked to the Impressionistic period. Some Impressionistic characteristics and contributors that stand out with me are the paintings and their artists. For the majority, I love the Impressionisitic design of painting. Beginning with Claude Monet (1840-1926) known as the “Father of Impressionism” when his painting Impression, Sunrise 1872 was exhibited.
This painting is the first among the four above. It displays long brushstrokes and vivid coloring that makes this such a beautiful painting. The three following paintings are also Monet’s, called Poplar Trees Series. This actual location was on the Epte River and it was painted in 1891 as Monet would revist the scenery to capture the changing light and weather conditions. I really like his artistic desire to recounter this scene as the seasons change and recapture their image each time. I really like the last painting with its gorgeous colorations and techniques he displays in full bloom.

In comparison to this Impressionistic style of Monet, there is another artist that was in the Post-Impressionistic period named Vincent Van Gogh. His works are quiet different than Monet’s but interesting in their own way. A particular painting I am thinking of is the reknown Starry Night. On an interesting note this greatly sought after and famous painting of Van Gogh’s was painted while he was in an Asylum at Saint-Remy in 1889.Vincent Van Gogh used color not to depict color but to depict emotion and emotion he would. The swirling clouds and moving character the painting withstands is captivating. He did a very talented piece that continues to intrigue his audience.

Between the two, I favor more of the Impressionistic style through the overall enlighting beauty and coloring rather the darker or emotional style but there is a place for all in the art world and Van Gogh was extremely talented.

Francois-Marie Arouet (1694-1778) aka. Voltaire
French Enlightenment author, critic, essayist, historian, and philosopher wrote: Candide
Playwright: Candide (1759)

Voltaire was known for his satirical views and projections in his playwrights during the classical era. By the age of 19, “he developed a love of theatre and started writing satirical poems despite strict censorship laws of the time, some of which landed him in the infamous Bastille in 1717. While in prison he started to use his pen name “Voltaire”, wrote his epic poem celebrating the life of Henry IV “Henriade” (pub. 1723), and worked on his successful tragedy Oedipe“. (Source: http://www.online-literature.com/voltaire/)

In 1759, he wrote the famous Candide. It “is a satirical examination on numerous themes like religion, philosophy, and government, written in the mordant wit and skepticism that Voltaire employs in so many of his works.” (Source: http://www.online-literature.com/voltaire/)

This was smack during the conflicting period when the Licensing Act of 1737 was in effect and the government was rolling with it’s high censorship in the classical theatre era. Supposedly, the government wanted to protect the people from these creative and rebellious artists-writers-and impressionables so they would not be persuaded and fall into “licentiousness”. The government felt it was neccessary to enact and enforce such stringent theatre laws due to their fear in the power of staged political satire. As one can declare, that Voltaire was definitally a key to this rebellious influence as a famous French playwriter supporting the staged political satire in his playswrights. This mannerism got Voltaire in a lot of trouble but he continued on as he dominated the French literary landscape of the 18th Century and became a millionaire by the age of 40 years old.
*Voltaire was an outspoken writer calling for social reform
*His writings were philosophical and witty
*Criticized the king and the church
*Jailed twice, and in constant fear of being jailed his entire life
*Due to censorship, his writing was banned
*Every time his writing was banned – more people bought it
*Traveled to England in exile and met important literary figures
(Sources: Course Notes)

At the end of his journey, at the age of eighty-three years old, he rested in Paris,France as he passed away a hero and a treasured playwright by his people.

Voltaire has been a very interesting part of artistic character to research and read about in the classical era. His playwrights were overall enjoyed by the people and it is amazing to hear about the passion he had that kept him in pursuit of art and expressionism no matter the sacrifice he incurred along the way.

Sources:

http://www.theatrehistory.com/french/voltaire001.html

http://www.online-literature.com/voltaire/

Class Notes: https://classes.uaf.edu/webapps/portal/frameset.jsp?tab_id=_2_1&url=%2fwebapps%2fblackboard%2fexecute%2flauncher%3ftype%3dCourse%26id%3d_60839_1%26url%3d

As referenced in ipl2.org, “In 1717, Bach moved on to another post, this time as Kapellmeister at the court of Prince Leopold in Cöthen. During the years Bach was in the service of the courts, he was obliged to compose a great deal of instrumental music: hundreds of pieces for solo keyboard, orchestral dance suites, trio sonatas for various instruments, and concertos for various instruments and orchestra. Of these, the most famous are the six concerti grossi composed for the Duke of Brandenburg in 1721, and the Brandenburg Concerto no. 3 exemplifies the style of the concerto grosso in which a small group of instruments (in this case a small ensemble of strings) is set in concert with an orchestra of strings and continuo. Of Bach’s music for solo instruments, the six Suites for violoncello and the Sonatas and Partitas for solo violin are among the greatest for those instruments.” (Source:http://www.ipl.org/div/mushist/bar/bach.htm)

Bach, was an inspirational composer to the future eras and musicians alike. He worked with and composed for royalty, as noted above, for the Duke of Bradenburg and in the court of Prince Leopold in Cothen. One of the compositions Bach did during this period was the Bradenburg Concerto no. 3 which is the composition selected for this analysis assignment. This piece can be sampled by the link attached. It has immense flavor and is preformed with great precision and definition. Definitally, this composition is a highly designed and noteworthy piece of the Baroque Era by Johann Sebastian Bach.

As noted at wikpedia, this is an interesting quote below as additional support for link between Bach and his musical dedication of his composition to Margrave Christian Ludwig.

Here is the first sentence of his dedication to Margrave Christian Ludwig of Brandenburg-Schwedt, its tone, if not its rather remarkable length, typical of dedications of the period:

“As I had the good fortune a few years ago to be heard by Your Royal Highness, at Your Highness’s commands, and as I noticed then that Your Highness took some pleasure in the little talents which Heaven has given me for Music, and as in taking Leave of Your Royal Highness, Your Highness deigned to honour me with the command to send Your Highness some pieces of my Composition: I have in accordance with Your Highness’s most gracious orders taken the liberty of rendering my most humble duty to Your Royal Highness with the present Concertos, which I have adapted to several instruments; begging Your Highness most humbly not to judge their imperfection with the rigor of that discriminating and sensitive taste, which everyone knows Him to have for musical works, but rather to take into benign Consideration the profound respect and the most humble obedience which I thus attempt to show Him.” (Source:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brandenburg_concertos)

The Guiliano de’ Medici is a portrait painted in 1478 by the reknowned Italian Renaissance artist, a Florentine painter, Sandro Botticelli (1445-1510). This art piece is a portrait of Guiliano de’ Medici is a painted tempera on panel that measures 54 cm. x 36 cm. (21 in. x 14 in.) located at Staatliche Museen, Berlin. Late 15th century in Florence.

Sources:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portrait_of_Giuliano_de’_Medici_of_Berlin_(Botticelli)

http://www.lib-art.com/artgallery/7412-guiliano-de-medici-sandro-botticelli.html

Sandro Botticelli had many direct relations with the Medici family as they were known to sponsor his artwork as he performed many pieces for them. Other paintings he completed in likeness of the Medici family was Adoration of the Magi and or under This particular painting’s original became lost but since the assasination of Giuliano de’ Medici replications have been widely ordered, distributed, and erected at art exhibits.

Source: http://www.theartgallery.com.au/ArtEducation/greatartists/Botticelli/about/

This portrait painting is an exquisite piece of art in the many works created for the Medici family collection. I love the rich coloring and the symbolism in this painting. It looks very real and draws you in to study more.The storyline is facinating behind Lorenzo Medici’s brother, Giuliano, in this painting as you see a dove on the ledge perched on a dead branch, Giuliano’s lowered eyelids, the window open, etc. “Giuliano, younger brother of Lorenzo, was nursing a bad knee on Easter 1478 and had to be helped to the cathedral—by men intending to kill him and his brother during mass. The assassins, members and supporters of the Pazzi family, banking rivals of the Medici, awaited their signal. As worshipers bowed their heads at the elevation of the host, Giuliano was brutally stabbed. Lorenzo escaped to the sacristy, remaining in its refuge while the Pazzi partisans attempted to seize the government. They soon failed, however, and Lorenzo resumed control.

The murder of Giuliano shocked Florence, and a number of portraits were ordered for public display to serve both as memorials and as warnings to other plotters. Botticelli’s painting may have been the prototype for that series. The open window was a familiar symbol of death, alluding to the deceased’s passage to the afterlife. Some scholars, noting the lowered eyelids, suggest this portrait was painted posthumously from a death mask. Most, however, believe it was begun before Giuliano’s death, perhaps even commissioned by Giuliano himself to commemorate the death of his beloved Simonetta, two years earlier. On the ledge is a dove, which mates for life; it is perched on a dead branch, the only place, according to Renaissance lore, doves alight after their mates have died. Without written evidence, it is impossible to say for certain exactly what function this painting originally served.”
Source: http://www.nga.gov/collection/gallery/gg7/gg7-41671.html