David
Caravaggio
The figure of Caravaggio's "Saul" is sensual and a recognizably physical human being. He looks like a man one might see on the street rather than a Biblical prophet who has undergone a profound conversion. Although the focus of the painting is on the figure of Saul, this converted saint's changed inner life is only signified by the softly glowing light on his face, and the name of the painting. By locating Saul in 'reality,' and even suggesting that Saul might have been taken for an ordinary drunk lying in the street, Caravaggio reminds the viewer of the fact that the figures we read about in the Bible are not stick figures, with no human needs and fears or physicality. This is not sacrilegious on the part of the artist. It is a reminder that just as the Bible's truths is present in our ordinary, daily lives; the Bible is populated by recognizable human beings. Caravaggio is not saying that Saul must have been drunk, and not blessed with a divine visitation but the drunk one sees walking home from the bar may have some goodness within him, some small spiritual trace of the Biblical prophet, as Saul was a great sinner who became a great saint.
Question 2: Which of the Davids could Americans adopt as symbolic of the time in which we are currently living -- and why?
Bernini's "David" is a man of action, not a static ideal. Bernini demonstrates why the Biblical figure of David is a hero and a future king of consequence. Michelangelo's beautiful "David" clutches the sling half-heartedly, and seems to justify his reputation through his youth and physical gifts, not his activity or struggle. His muscles are strong, but for what purpose? Young people must not justify their future reputations through beauty -- or fine clothes, like Donatello's "David." Bernini's "David" is willing to take risks, and willing to act. He does not think of himself, or admire his musculature or clothes, he thinks only of exercising leadership and slaying Goliath. This is the man we require today in America, this David. Young people may act more like Donatello's "David," but art should show us what we aspire to become, and that is embodied in Bernini's "David."
Such linkages and juxtapositions contributes to the search for hidden meanings, and concentration on Poussin's iconography shows that critics believe there is usually more meaning in the frame than a cursory look would convey. To a degree, this belies Poussin's emphasis on simply reflecting nature, for the hand of the artist is always evident in the way the frame is formed consciously around various symbols and icons as well
This painting is David's masterpiece and one of the great curiosities of modern art because, by a strange feat, it has nothing trivial or vile. What is most surprising in this very unusual visual poem is that it was painted very quickly. When one thinks of the beauty of the lines, this quickness is bewildering. This is food for the strong, the triumph of spiritualism. This painting is as
Impressions The Louvre The Louvre, an architectural masterpiece, has dominated central Paris since the late 12th century. The original structure was gradually dwarfed as the city grew. The dark fortress of the early days was transformed into the modernized dwelling of Francois I and, later, the sumptuous palace of the Sun King, Louis XIV. My online tour of the Louvre allowed me to take a virtual, self-guided, room-by-room tour of the museum.
The "self-portraits" might perhaps be viewed in terms of the artist's own past illnesses: At 37, Taylor-Woods, having already survived both colon cancer and breast cancer, likely understands, on personal level, the state of "suspense" between sickness and health, life and death. She may, then, have been "bound" to breast cancer (the invisible ropes may symbolize the disease), cured of it, and her body "released to freedom." In my opinion,
" In other words, that art springs from within, rather than must be supported from without. The author places the blame for female artists to be culturally central squarely upon culture itself, specifically Western culture's failure to create systems of educational nurturing for females. "The fault lies not in our stars, our hormones, our menstrual cycles, or our empty internal spaces, but in our institutions and our education -- education understood
Baroque Painters The Techniques of Five Baroque Painters The Baroque era painters, different as they were in terms of personal style, approach, and technique, had in common the ability to imbue their works with a certain dramatic quality much in demand in the era. The Baroque had followed on the heels of the High Renaissance with its humanism and emerging scientifically revolutionary theses. The Protestant Reformation had begun and religious and political
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