Well, here's how I feel about Chapter Four: I found this week to be very challenging. Challenging with my own personal beliefs, and challenging with my conflicting opinion with classmates. I suppose we all were pu to the test with this unit. But you know what? The most beneficial thing we can take from arguing over a piece of controversial art is that we learn a lot about ourselves.
I think the image that we studied this week that threw me off the most was Chris Olifi's Holy Virgin Mary. Needless to say, I was very taken aback the first time looking at this piece. I read into it a little bit more, studied Olifi and what his intentions were, studied other professor's analysis on it. I understand it more now that I have learned the cultural significance behind it, the explanation of the elephant dung, and so on. But to be very honest, I still don't know how much I agree with Olifi's rendition of the Virgin Mary.
Yes, my beliefs were challenged and that was good for me to hear other people's thoughts on it. But I simply just don't really like seeing a sacred being depicted as Olifi has done so. I love how he has given the Blessed Virgin dark skin, because she is indeed mother to all around the world, not just white Christian Europeans. But the bare behinds cut out from porn and elephant dung...I'm just not sure about that and I completely understand why people were so offended by the piece. Please note that this is just my personal opinion...
It did surprise me a little bit to hear the reactions of others about this piece--how many people actually liked it. Kind of made me question myself if I was overreacting?? But I have simply learned that other's have their opinions, I have mine and that is what makes art so exciting.
There's just no way we could all share the same opinion about artwork. Every single being will see a piece differently from the next guy because we all have different backgrounds, different upbringings, different thoughts. And really? There would be no beauty in art if it meant the same to every single person. We are all special.
Time has changed us too. What we as humans saw hundreds of is not that which we see today. Examples: Michealangelo's David and Edouard Manet's Lucheon on the Grass (both seen here) caused a huge uproar in their time, hundreds of years apart. But today, they are no longer as controversial and now beautiful classic pieces of art, a painting and a sculpture.
Contraversial art is a wonderful thing. How much we can learn about each other and our world with it!
I think the image that we studied this week that threw me off the most was Chris Olifi's Holy Virgin Mary. Needless to say, I was very taken aback the first time looking at this piece. I read into it a little bit more, studied Olifi and what his intentions were, studied other professor's analysis on it. I understand it more now that I have learned the cultural significance behind it, the explanation of the elephant dung, and so on. But to be very honest, I still don't know how much I agree with Olifi's rendition of the Virgin Mary.
Yes, my beliefs were challenged and that was good for me to hear other people's thoughts on it. But I simply just don't really like seeing a sacred being depicted as Olifi has done so. I love how he has given the Blessed Virgin dark skin, because she is indeed mother to all around the world, not just white Christian Europeans. But the bare behinds cut out from porn and elephant dung...I'm just not sure about that and I completely understand why people were so offended by the piece. Please note that this is just my personal opinion...
It did surprise me a little bit to hear the reactions of others about this piece--how many people actually liked it. Kind of made me question myself if I was overreacting?? But I have simply learned that other's have their opinions, I have mine and that is what makes art so exciting.
There's just no way we could all share the same opinion about artwork. Every single being will see a piece differently from the next guy because we all have different backgrounds, different upbringings, different thoughts. And really? There would be no beauty in art if it meant the same to every single person. We are all special.
Time has changed us too. What we as humans saw hundreds of is not that which we see today. Examples: Michealangelo's David and Edouard Manet's Lucheon on the Grass (both seen here) caused a huge uproar in their time, hundreds of years apart. But today, they are no longer as controversial and now beautiful classic pieces of art, a painting and a sculpture.
Contraversial art is a wonderful thing. How much we can learn about each other and our world with it!
3 comments:
Kathleen, good for you for keeping an open mind with this learning unit. It's good that you felt stretched and it looks like you came to some important realizations along the way. Great post!
-Michelle
Kathleen,
I really enjoyed reading your comments about last week. I have to say that I was one of the people that enjoyed Ofili's rendition of the Virgin Mary, but also understand where your coming from. I really like the positive attitude you kept when reading that other people liked it even though you didn't agree, and even went as far as to question if you were overreacting. I wish more people stopped to do this including myself. Empathy seems to help me a lot when trying to understand why my thoughts differ from so many others.
good job!
-Shawn
Kathleen...I'm here to deliver a nudge. You're late with your week five post. -Michelle
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