Art & Authenticy

Sure, it isnt unusual to see how what an artist sees before he paints: could be flowers, a landscape, another person. But how do these artists see themselves? “The Lens And the Mirror:Self Portraits…” was an exhibition at the MET that allowed the viewer to tap into the head of the artist and see how he/she views him/herself.

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Richard Avedon’s photography in the MoMA is something that I couldn’t walk away from.  A photographer myself, I have a distinct and very narrow-minded opinion on what “good” photography should look like.  In fact, most pictures I see I don’t like – I always find a way to criticize them and find a flaw.

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At the Folk Art Museum, I  find “Girl in Red Dress with Cat and Dog” (yes, that’s the title of the painting); I, then, decided to walk up another flight of stairs and find “Boy in Blue Dress with Dog.” Comparing the two is fun, yet questionable. Boys are almost always associated with boys and red is associated with love, thereby fitting with a girl’s portrait. I wasn’t all excited about this though. There’s always so much generalizing and assuming! Okay, okay.. I’ve got to tell you guys something; when Solana and I walked past the “Boy in Blue Dress with Dog”, I thought it was a girl. The artist draws girly eyes, rosey cheeks, and a tenderly-held  flowers. I couldn’t tell the differences and not sure if that was a good thing or not. Art is supposed to be distinctful; the two paintings weren’t. I like authenticity and originality, something like me and you. 😉

As I walked through the Abraham Lincoln and New york exhibition in the New York Historical Society, I realized how influential New York had been to Lincoln and his presidency. Even though, Abraham Lincoln has only been to New York for a couple days, New York’s support for Lincoln’s run for presidency was immense. I also learned that even with such great support from New York, Lincoln didn’t seem to be fulfilling his promises of ending the war quickly that the New Yorkers had wished to see. Because of this, many people began to lose trust in Lincoln as they began to doubt that man they thought would change everything. However, after his assassination, the New Yorkers realized what a great president they had lost. Throughout the exhibition, I was able to experience the relation between New York and Lincoln almost live with the numerous documents, artifacts and videos.

As I walked through the Museum of Art and Design, the Read my Pins: The Madelein Albright Collection exhibition caught my eye the most. There were so many different pins that Albright owned and it seemed like every time she had a meeting with somebody as the Secretary of State, her pin had a meaning behind it. There were hundreds of pins that separated into groups including bugs, plants, fruits and much more. The pin that caught my attention the most was the a pin that had a man carrying the world on his shoulder. Albright used this pin only in the most important meetings which described how much responsibility she carried. Many of the pins she owned were well designed and they were all so beautiful. Many of her pins also made statements including the time she had a meeting with a high official in Afghanistan. She wore a bright pin of the U.S. flag which emphasized the importance of representing her country.

The work of Claes Oldenburg must’ve been treasured by the folks at the Whitney Museum.  He practically got an entire floor devoted to his work.

If you look past the weird subjects of his drawings and sculptures you will find an interesting exploration of differences, in this case, the difference between the soft and malleable and the hard and rigid.

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Titanic– The Artifact Exhibition

Rating: 4 stars

Reasons:

For as long as I remember, I have loved Titanic (the movie) with all my heart. Of course, this affinity has something (or everything) to do with Leonardo Dicaprio being the main actor. So out of curiosity, I visited the Titanic exhibition at the Artifact museum.

Their slogan for the show tugs at my heart string: “97 years later, the Titanic arrived at New York City.” I had a tear in my eye just thinking about the amount of people dying, and the love story that also went to the bottom of the ocean. The clocks, hats, money, photographs and footage of people and the Titanic exemplified my experience at that museum. The whole time, I was looking for artifacts that could reassure me that Jack and Rose (from Titanic) were a real love story.

Disclaimer: If you don’t like artifacts or like the movie Titanic, you will not like this museum.

Who Shot Rock & Roll–Brooklyn Museum

Rating: 4.5 stars

Reasons:

I don’t think we, as the young generation, care about who actually shot rock and roll, but what did they shoot it of. In other words, we don’t care about the photographers; we only care about their photographs.

I was not expecting to see such a contemporary artist’s image in the exhibit since the hype of Rock & Rock passed with the 60’s and 70’s. So I was automatically drawn to Amy Winehouse’s photo when I saw it in the exhibit. I love her music and I love her style (for some reason, the big hair, the exaggerated eye liner, and animal-print bras are extremely attractive). I even went as far as dressing up as her for Halloween.

Oh, and can someone explain to me why Jay-Z’s picture was there, please?

Vermeer Exhibit At the MET–The Milkmaid

Rating: 5 stars plus permanent admiration

Reasons:

Ok, first, let’s address the naughty aspects of Vermeer’s maids. I didn’t put naughty in my title only to make you read my blog.

1. There is a subtle kind of sexuality and desire in Vermeer’s paintings that is hard to find by the modern-day public.
2. Maids of the 17th century  = Pin-up girls of the 40’s and 50’s = Playboy Bunny of the 21st century = sex symbol.
3. In the 17th century, the opening of the jug that the maid is holding can be interpreted as THE part of a female’s anatomy.
4. The Maid is thinking of her lover. How can we tell? Through the depiction of Cupid and a man on the tiles, near the bottom of the painting.
5. Male patrons usually bought Vermeer’s paintings to fantasize about a possible relationship they could have with their maids. Many of these patrons actually had sexual encounters with the maids.

And secondly, why do I love Vermeer so much? The answer is simple. It’s because no one says, “Less is more” as beautifully as Vermeer does.

My favorite poet’s, Rives

Meet the Artist- Poetry reading

Rating: 5 stars and much more

Reasons:

I came to Meet the Artist a few months ago, expecting to hear a middle age man talk about the art of poetry writing, but I got four amazing poets in return. The experience is so powerful that I am inspired to participate in a writer’s retreat for my next summer.

The poems ranges from the bitting off of a nipple to inspirational figures to the Iraq War to drug use and hand-me-down Halloween costumes. It was not only the content that got me so mesmerized, it also the poets’ voices that got me so intrigued. Listening to them makes me scare to read my own poetry; comparing to these professionals, I don’t slam my poems, I simply put them on the table.

Side note: I think you should check out my favorite contemporary poet: Rives.