I thought the Early Modern Era period was quite an interesting era to learn about. In this era, there were so many different styles, and breakthroughs for art. I enjoyed learning about this era because there were many different influences that created the art styles in this era, many of which we still see today. Early Modern Era art allows the audience to connect with the experiences that the countries have had to go through, which allowed artists to express their feelings and visions during this time.
The first image I chose for this blog is called “Landscape with a Bridge” by Picasso. In the lesson for this era, I learned that this style of artwork made its first appearance before WWI. This piece stuck out to me because of the style of artwork. The style is called Cubism. This style of art is so fascinating to me because of how the 3D shapes can make an image come to life. From looking at the different images drawn in the Cubism design, I can tell that the lines and edges are sharp and defined of the shapes. The colors and shadows allow each angle to pop out and make the whole image come together. In this image, I like how the idea behind this picture is kind of hidden behind each shape, but the different shapes allow me to find the main subject of the image. This picture is seen as a simple bridge, that looks to have a waterfall flowing beneath it. This piece has many fine qualities and the intricate details make this piece unique.
“Landscape with Bridge”
Pablo Picasso, 1909
I couldn’t find the exact location of this painting was created in, but my educated guess is Paris.
Another style of art from the Early Modern Era that I enjoyed was Photography. Personally, I really enjoy taking photos myself, so it made this style of art more interesting since I could connect to it. The image I chose for photography is called “Migrant Mother.” This piece was created by Dorothea Lange in 1936. I thought the artist did a great job of bringing out every detail and emotion that goes into this image. I liked how each shadow and shade of the photo makes the mother the main subject of this image, which helps the message behind this piece stand out. Although the title is a great help in determining the message behind this image, the details in the photo also helped tremendously. The details in the image told me that the mother had been going through a hard time, and she may be pondering what she can do to make the best of her current situation. In this photo, I can also tell that the mother seems to be the type of person that would do anything for her children. Photography was an important creation during the wars and the harsh times, such as this. The photos from this incredibly difficult time, shows the generations to come that many people sacrificed and fought for our country and their own. It shares the history of society.
“Migrant Mother”
Dorothea Lange, 1936
This photo was taken in California
The last style of art I choose for this blog is Surrealism. This style of art was a bit harder for me to depict, so I decided to add it to my blog to learn more about it. The image I choose for this style is called “Golconde.” Rene Magritte created this piece in 1953. In the lesson on Blackboard, I learned that this style of art was created after WWI but before WWII. I also learned that this type of art allows the artist to put what they are thinking, and create it into a unique piece. Between the different art styles that I was looking at to add into my blog, I thought this one was quite interesting and caught my attention. This style of art is different, because it made me think harder to try and interpret the image. For example, the image I choose “Golconde” looked as though men were falling out of the sky. Although I’m not quite sure what the artist exactly meant by this piece, it made me think of ideas that the artist may have meant. I thought it was also a good idea to add the building in the background. I don’t know if the building has a significant meaning to the artist, but it did help me depict the perspective of this image and helped me realize that the men were falling or floating. After reading more about this style of art, the message I took away from these different image styles is that this style of art would take the ordinary, and made them unordinary (Urton, 2019).
“Golconde”
Rene Magritte, 1953
I couldn’t find the specific location on where this piece was created, but since Magritte was from Belgium, my educated guess is that is was created in Belgium.
Literature Cited
Urton, Robin. “Surrealism.” Eyeconart:Modern Surrealism, 2019, http://robinurton.com/history/surrealism.htm.
Voorhies, James. “Surrealism.” Metmuseum.org, 2004, https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/surr/hd_surr.htm.
“Migrant Mother.” Migrant Mother, 1936, 2005, http://www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/migrantmother.htm.
Urton, Robin. “Cubism.” Eyeconart: Cubism, 2019, http://robinurton.com/history/cubism.htm.
I also used the lesson on blackboard as a helpful tool as well
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