Garden of Eden Mask

I found myself selecting masks that definitely displayed elements and principles. Visually I wanted to see color and shapes. Masks that were developed more for fun. I did not like the masks that looked mean or evil. I know that masks are used for rituals and cultural beliefs and in viewing them I tried to relate what the culture might be trying to say.

Artist: NA, Java, painted wood and real hair. 8inches.
I see a man with a large nose and eyes that tell a story of amazement.
The waves on the face are to visualize the brain thought.
The use of color, shapes and circles create a flow of harmony. The unity and balance is clearly visual.
Nicolae Popa, Romanin Folk mask, Painted wood, cloth, fiber hair
And beans. 13”.




I see a hippie. In the mask I visualize a cultural fashion. The
Mask symbolizes a certain group of individuals. The mask is
Used for tradition at Christmas and New years Eve celebrations.

There are lines, shapes and circles. The space gives a visual of real
Shin. The hair has a visual texture. The ears are rectangles with lines and
Circles for earrings. The Bandana leopard pattern creates a visual of
A hair or symbolic for the group,



Giuseppe Arcimboldo
Commedia dell,art mask, Painted paper mache, 13.5 inches.
In the European Mask I visualize the artist is trying to display the
Power and knowledge of books and wise older gentleman. Books
Are knowledge. Read them.

I see lines, squares and rectangles. Visually I see a library. The
Balance of the books create the cheeks and the top of the mask
Displays pages with rectangles and long leafs. The color is what
Gives the mask drama and creates the thought of wisdom.


Kimberly Will, The mask of Eden, modeling clay, 7/2010, 10"
The subject for my mask was the garden of Eden. I used shapes of vegetables to create the face of my mask. The eyes are round blueberries. the hair is cylinder corn silk, the hat is a cabbage leaf, the earrings are long green beans with round red cherry tomatoes at the bottom. The nose is an orange carrot and the smile and teeth is an ear of yellow corn. The carrot has a visual texture and the blueberries create balance.

I enjoyed creating my mask. I used a cultural theme from my home town of Eden, we grow vegetables and we are the home of the Eden Corn Festival. This was definitely a cultural experience.

Islamic,African,Buddhism,Hinduism

1. I choose: What is Islamic Art, African Art, Hinduism, and Buddhism because of the way each culture relates their religion to art. Each culture has a different concept of worship and their artistic objects that they worship. It was interesting to visual their works of art in relationship to worship and religion.
2. Hinduism: In Varanasi the River Ganges is the symbol of life, death and rebirth. Priests perform aarti a ceremony to honor Brahma/God. Varanasi is the holiest city in India. Similar to Christian saints, Hinduism gods and goddesses provide access to Brahma. Architecture is lush and decorative. There are many sculptures of gods. If a person is cremated in Varanasi on the Ganges they will have direct access to heaven. In mamallapuram Mother Ganges turns to stone. The place is holy and highly decorated. The caves are decorated with the epic and the ordinary. They are carved in boulders of stone and the shrines in Mamallapuram are highly decorated. Shrines can rest on pillars for over 1500 years. The shore temple is a treasure house of Hindu art and architecture. In the 9th century the Chandella rules built The Kandariya Mahadev Temple, which stands in Khajuraho. Panels are covered in erotic images. Pilgrims pay homage to the lingam/phallus for its life giving and creative forces. Hinduism religion teaches that there are many ways to Brahma and Hinduism carries a deep sense of sprit in everyday life.
Buddhism; The key to Buddhist teaching is tanha. This is getting rid of all desire and all things that feed the ego and obstruct enlightenment. Hinayana and Mahanyana are the two groups of Buddhism. The Golden Age of Buddha is when art and architecture grew across India. Sanchi is a center of Buddhist art and architecture. The Bodhi Tree represents and symbolizes Buddha. As pilgrims walk clockwise around the Stupa, they let go of material things for the attainment of virtue. The walkway is a discovery of art and architecture. Borobudur is the largest Buddhist shrine. There are 432 carved Buddha’s and was uncovered in 1815. The Chuang Yen Monastery is dedicated to Buddhism. This contains the largest Buddha in the Western Hemisphere. Buddhism religion and Hinduism share beliefs.
African Art: The oldest existing African art is African rock art. The paints were of animals and humans. Bronze was used in Egyptian and Nigerian Art that display influences of agriculture. Zimbabwean Art was a form of royal art and is symbolic to architectural style of the 14th century. Picasso was influenced by Primitive Art. Most African art is conceptual. European art is perceptual. Crafts are combined with art. Traditional designs are used, but artist do show individuality. African art objects do reflect Supernatural powers. Masks and costumes are designed to be used by fire light. Much of Modern African art is used for a large retail business.
Islamic Art: Art does not play a role in Islamic rituals. The Jameel Gallery in London’s Victoria and Albert Museum is the home of the greatest collection of Islamic art. The rock crystal ewer is rare and precious. The Quranic manuscripts display the literal word of God. Ivory is used for many pieces of artwork. The Ardabil Carpet is one of the most important carpets in the world. Islamic art is directed towards objects used in every day life. Art work is very visual. Turkish silks and velvets are used in art collections. Islam art has rules and restrictions about using images of animals and humans. Poetry and romance is used in Islamic art. Art patrons have typically been rulers. Islamic Art is difficult to trace. Inlaid metalwork is one of the most wonderful traditions. Islamic art and European Art share many connections.
3. I tend to find the videos give much more detail. The readings tell us about the cultures and their ways, where viewing the videos display how serious and meaningful their people feel about heir religions and their places of worship.
4. I think the films are a great way for us the see other aspects of religion and history in other parts of the world

I see round flowers painted in primary and secondary colors. An image of a white person turned sideways and it even looks like a bed with pillows. I see the blue sky up in the left hand corner and I see verticle circles that look like rain drops. To me it symbolizes a bedroom with wall paper . I am not quite sure what the artist is trying to say, maybe a flower bed or bedroom with flower wall paper.


This is a wooden totum pole hand carved out of wood using the subtractive process. This pole features a circus and all of the performers. The 3 dimentional pole is hand carvedand has a visual weight of heaviness. The viewers eye travels the straight line upward visualizing shapes and figures of animals, performers and complementary colors lets the circus come alive. I feel the artists wants the viewer to enjoy the circus. Circus have been around for hundreds of years and the fun of them should live on forever.

In this artwork the humans are made out of fine wire and the box housing them is made of staniless steel. There is a family if three shapped with geometric shapes and lines. The lighting from the display helps to see the blance and the unity. I feel the artist is trying to tell how fragile life can be. The delicate visual humans are symbolic of fagile mankind.

I found Burchfield Penney Museum to have different themes around the museum. It was different because there were all different types of art including furniture, pottery clay, watercolors, charcoals, oils on canvas, sketches, wall drawings, woodcarvings, fantasy,photographs,lithographs,graphic designs, leather, wire, engine parts and even some calligraphy. The Museum would have some of the art work organized by the artist and some of the pieces were random. Some of the artwork was framed with gold leaf wooden frames, some were canvas, black frames, and some were even in glass cases. I most of the pieces were mounted on white walls. Some of the walls were curved and some of them were free standing. Some of the photographs were not on the walls they were displayed at eye level easels for reading purposes. Artwork was identified by the artists and some artwork stood out on its own and identified by its theme. I found this museum to be more personalized and individualized works of art. I could see personality of the artists, as apposed to the Albright Knox I found the world of art. I am trying to figure out if it was because of the way the museum was illustrated or if it was the different types of art, being more individualized.

The Four Videos

1. Explain why you selected each of the FOUR videos you choose from the selection listed above. I choose The Drawings of Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci: The Mind of the Renaissance, Cataclym: The Black Death Visits Tuscany, and Albrecht Durer: Image of a Master. My first to videos were just out of tremendous curiosity. I wanted to visualize their minds and see the difference. I liked Albert Durer and the Italian Renaissance.
2. For each video list/discuss the key concepts you learned.
1. The Drawings of Michelangelo: Michelangelo was a true perfectionist. He taught himself to sculpt and his drawings reveal emphasis on the solar plexus of human figures. Michelangelo’s painting of the Sistine Chapel was his greatest, but most difficult. The church of San Lorenzo became a funerary chapel and family tomb. Michelangelo had a strong Christian faith and this is what drove his passion for creating faith based paintings and drawings. His crucifixion drawings were contemplation of his own death.
2. Leonardo da Vinci: The Mind of the Renaissance. Always demonstrated exceptional gifts from infantancy. Leonardo was a painter, sculptor, architect, engineer, and student of anatomy, physiology, botany, architecture, hydrodynamics, aeronautics, and he was the Renaissance Man. Leonardo has a tremendous perspective of man, animals and nature. Leonardo loved to tour the truth. His mind worked technically and philosophically. Leonardo faced tremendous slander and caricatures the faces of the men involved in the slander. Leonardo loved to study machines and reinvent more complex ones. When sent to the court of Milan as a musician he came armed with intricate drawings of weapons and machinery. Leonardo organized entertainment and shows. He developed grand urban projects. “Beauty and harmony are the divine nature.” Leonardo designed and excavator large enough to build canals.
3. Albrecht Durer: Image of a Master. Greatest artist of the Northern Renaissance. Intrigued by aging, Durer delivered Italian Renaissance to Germany. Durer is the first true landscape artist. Durer left traditional woodcuts and started engraving on copper. Durer gave visual expression to the Protestant Reformation in Germany by mass printing his work in support of Martin Luther.
4. Cataclysm: the Black Death Visits Tuscany. From a tragedy a new spiritual inquiry would spring the way for the High Renaissance. Sienna and Florence competed with each other in their architectural achievements. Business and multinational banking failed. The plague lasted seven months and killed up to one-half of Europe’s population. The Sienese built a small cathedral in thanks to the Virgin Mary when the plague was over. Christian mosaics depict heaven, hell and other Christian motifs such as the second coming of Christ. A good death in Medieval times was a focus of a good life. Suspicions about the Plague fell upon the Jews who were thought to be poisoning Christians. Cities no longer welcomed travelers or outsiders for fear of the Plague. Painting changed after the Plague, figures emerge flatter and they would paint gruesome images of hell. Giotto treats art as a service to mankind. Depicting figures with human emotions that tell stories. Many Renaissance crafts are alive and well in Florence today. The Renaissance period left many legacies, rise of the modern city, modern banking, literature, arts, Arabic numerals, eyeglasses, charities, paved streets, and underground water systems. The greatest innovation after the plague is the new way of thinking about our selves. Naturalism changes the way we see the world.

2. How do the videos relate to the readings in the text? I find that the videos personalize the artists. The videos take us as viewers in the minds and souls of the artist and reveals when, why and how they create their works of arts. It was interesting to compare the different artists.
3. What is your opinion of the films? How do they add depth to understanding of the readings and art concepts? The videos gave more of a perspective on time and place. In the videos I could actual witness the cultures. I enjoyed the video’s, but I did find them a little harder at the end to stay focused.

My Installation Art

Installation art is art that has been installed and arranged in a space or place by an artist. The art can be site specific, indoor or out, or temporary or permanent. Installation art will become known to posterity through documentation. Installation art has difficulty being commodified. An artist can use any type of material or object or subject. EX. Wood, metal, glass, cardboard etc……. it is endless. Installation art is the art of the moment and it brings new definition and challenges to artwork. Viewers interact with artwork and expect the unexpected. Richard Wilson to me was very interesting. I liked how the artist incorporated the moving parts.

I felt a connection with Susan Hiller and her Video Installation. It was interesting and I felt like every time a new picture came up, it was a surprise. I was expecting the unexpected.

My theme is Self. I used my hair salon for the installation art piece. I used a chair, scissors, cape, mirrors, plant, blow dryer, curling iron, product, business cards, mat on the floor, hair, utility cart, and a vase. I chose this site because this is my life. My hair salon has been one of my passions. I am proud to be a business owner. How could I not express
a passion of mine. The location is 1780 Abbott Rd.

In my photograph I see the stage for performance. The salon is very busy and when I see the photographs it reminds me of how I want the customers to be sitting in the chair. The salon would not be what it is if it was not for the customers. I almost feel because the customers are not there something is missing.

I felt my space was a little busy. There are plenty of shapes. The station it self is balanced and emphasized in the photograph. I found it hard to find unity because of the busy space. The mirror creates movement and shows more of the salon. The station creates the 3-dimentional look of installation art.

Artist: Kimberly Will
Title of work: The Work is Waiting.
Media: Photograph
Date: 2010

The Video Expo

The Through the Eyes of a Sculpture I learned Concepts come alive in clay, dies in plaster, and is reborn in marble. Carvers must create a detailed picture first, then they develop it in clay, then the sculptor makes a silicon mold and then makes a plaster cast. The sculptor must have a visual first. Every stone has a different smell due to the stones environment. Lime stone is tested by sound. Carvers use geometric shapes and specialized tools. An artdeJohn is another name for a craftsman. Quarry marble is the sculptor’s canvas. There is no waste in the marble quarry’s. Industries use fine pieces in the cosmetic industry and the paper industry. Mining the marble years ago was very dangerous and very laborious. It can take months to develop a sculpture.

In Glass and ceramics I learned that glass is the oldest man made material. Glass making is everywhere and it is made of sand. It is mixed with fluxes such as limestone, sods, potash or oyster shells. Heat is used to break structure. Molten glass is used for blowing and Marvor is used to shape glass. Glass can be worked cold and can be engraved with hydrochloric acid. Stain glass is a varying of texture of color and glass. The lead method is the oldest technique. First they develop a drawing, then a cartoon, then they out the puzzle together channeled through lead strips. Stain glass can tell stories. They use chloride sulfate based paint on glass. Ceramics are clay based and depending on the raw materials used is what differentiates ceramics and temperature of what degree they are fired. 1400 degree for fine china, and 1100 degree for brick or floor tile. Raw materials such as quartz and feldspar are used. Molds are made of plaster and there are many new uses for ceramics in the medical field, auto trade, radar, spacecraft and home uses. This is because ceramic is stronger than steel.

Glass is replacing stone and building material and is being used in architecture. Glass can absorb sound and provide thermal insulation and heat reflection and heat retention. Safety glass is being used in school and sport facilities. Glass is used as a form of energy savings.

Installation art is something that is all around us. It is three dimensional and forces us to deal with the environment. They are site specific, indoor or out and can be temporary or permanent sites. The artist can reinvent media in certain ways. Pop art is a form of symbolism. Invisible art is usually computer generated. Video installation is the relationship between image and space of the viewer. Art mover and installation has become a new industry. It can take months to collect and move items. Very laborious and intensive. Installation art is the art of the moment. It has challenged art off the wall and placed it with interaction and expect the unexpected. Installation art has an attitude, takes over space and defines space.

Prairie Style is floating horizontal planes and organic relationship to natural surroundings, changed the face of modern architecture. Frank Lloyd Wright developed this. Numerous windows, reflect time, place and landscape, layering of horizontals, harmony between client and archeicture, natural, integration of outdoor landscape with indoor living space, detail and perfection.

Our text book and the video's I feel taught some thing totally different. The text book focused on cultural, history, and different types of media. Where the video's I felt were more on a personal level. Getting to know the sculptors or artists was real. Showing the true passion of the sculptors or artist. Giving them a chance to explain in detail and showing the display of how this passion has become their whole life.