Hello Everybody!
I posted this picture online and the Metropolitan Opera like it! I loved it. And I loved hanging out with you this semester. Have a great holiday!
Tosca was the first ballet I’ve been to and it did not disappoint. It was mostly enjoyable, except for the first act which I found a little bit boring. The singing was not as intense as it was in the second and third act. Speaking of singing, Sonda Radvanovsky’s performance was excellent and astounding. Her ability to portray her feelings in her face and her singing was captivating. My favorite part was when she was trying to convince Scarpia that her lover, Cavaradossi, is not hiding Angelotti. Her facial expressions were on point. Before she even said that she knew where Angelotti was hidden, her face showed it all. I knew right at the moment when her face went from strong to an expression of defeat, that she would reveal his location. Another moment I liked was when she stabbed Scarpia. It showed a subtle change of character within her. She went from a vulnerable women to one that was strong and driven. The difference between her personality in Act II and Act III shed new light into how I interpreted the rest of the opera. Even her clothing color changed from a bright red to a bold black. In the third act, she appeared stronger and was more in control of things. She wasn’t just going around and complaining about her problems anymore, she started to take initiative. She was more daring. This was all captured by Radvanovsky’s outstanding performance.
For the most part, this opera was good and to my surprise, not boring. I definitely want to go to more in the future.
Welcome to the Culinary ARTS: Twice Baked Potatoes
I always love cooking because I love to eat! In my free time, I like looking for recipes on the internet that taste great and require minimal ingredients. Today I tried making Twice Baked Potatoes (and for my first time, id say they looked pretty good, and more importantly, tasted good too). But don’t go by me, try making it for yourself! This recipe is easy to make and delicious to eat!
First I washed the potatoes and preheat the over to 350. Then i left them on a pan and let them bake for 1 hour. When they finish baking, cut off the the tops of the potato 3/4s up and scoop out all the insides into a bowl being careful to leave the shells in tact. Mash up the insides and add ingredients to make it creamy. I added milk, butter, salt, pepper, cumin, and some paprika. You can also add some chopped up chives or scallions. This recipe is great because it also allows you to make it however you want with different variations. After that, refill the potato shells with your potato mixture and re-bake for about 20-30 minutes or until golden brown. When they are finished let them cool and enjoy!!!!
I was looking through Saturday Morning Breakfast Cereal’s comics because I was bored. I looked at each one and clicked next pretty quickly, until I came across this one. This one got an actual chuckle out of me. It is basically the artist’s interpretation as to how Macgritte came up with the painting The Treachery of Images. I remember seeing the painting at the Macgritte exhibit at the MoMA and could not really understand the painting. A painting of a pipe with the words “this is not a pipe” was contradictory and so I remember just standing in front of the painting with a really puzzled face. I soon forgot about the painting as I walked around the exhibit. However, after coming across this very funny comic strip, it made me remember how I saw the painting. I accept this artist’s version of why Macgritte decided to come up with his The Treachery of Images.
Nail Art is Art too!
I know what everyone (or at least some of you) is thinking: nail art is not art. Well I beg to differ! Every time you see a pretty fresh design on someone’s fingernails, such as daisies, Christmas trees, or even dandelions blowing in the breeze, you just know that that person spent over 3 hours of their life working on it. Well, at least that’s what ends up happening to me about every time I paint my nails and decide to draw designs on them.
You may be thinking, “oh big deal, you’re just painting like you would on a piece of paper, except you’re doing it on your nail,” but it is not simply that. Painting on a flat surface and a relatively big canvas is loads easier than painting on a curved surface of a less than 1 square centimeter of space. That combined with the long drying time before top coat can be applied makes nail art both an art and a struggle. Whenever you think you are finally done with one nail, the worst thing possible happens and you have to start over because you accidentally scratched your face, and now your beautiful-spent-one-hour-on design is forever ruined, never to be resurrected. In addition, there are times when you are all finished and done with everything, but the final result is disappointing and you are not happy with your work. So, naturally, you erase all your hard work and start over, resisting the urge to rip out your hair. My point is, every time you see a pretty little nail art post on Instagram or whatever social media platform you prefer, click that little like button and share some love, acknowledging the time and nail polish remover spent on said nail art by that very patient and talented nail artist.
Long story short, I am not a professional nail artist, but I do dabble in it myself when I find those extra 5 hours to spare. I am still practicing the art myself, as I am not ambidextrous, so painting with my left hand is always a horror show. Since I am not as artistic as I would like to be, I usually opt for different simple designs and textures for my nails, while other more artsy and steady-handed people might opt for the fantastic and detailed miniature paintings of flowers or penguins on their nails. Whatever it might be, nail art is just as fun to look at as it is to do, and I encourage all the people out there to embrace your nails and have fun! (Just don’t go overboard and get those talon shaped acrylic nails, please?)
–Joanna Huang
Holiday Window Displays at Saks!
The holiday season is here once again!! All the stores along 5th Avenue and Soho are dressed up for the holidays, with their display window mannequins all decked out in holiday clothing and gear. Whether its a snow yeti or nutcracker figurines or white-winged angels, the holiday store displays all signal one thing: it’s the holidays!! I love going window shopping especially this time of year, because all the windows are so pretty and intricate.
Although one might not think of store window displays as art, that quality is highlighted for the holiday season. This year, Saks Fifth Avenue has a series of iconic windows featuring their mascot, the Saks Yeti. Each window depicts a scene from the Saks Yeti’s life, from his humble beginnings as an unappreciated snowmaker in Siberia to his starring role as a true snowflake artist in New York. The heartwarming story is coupled with a daily 3D light show projected onto the side of the Saks building on Fifth Avenue. Using 3D projection through 6 projectors, the light show is truly a sight to behold. The light show and the Saks Yeti “exhibit” will be on view all through the holiday season.
I highly recommend you guys to check it out, especially if you are looking forward to getting into the holiday spirit! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! 🙂
Here’s the light show spectacular: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8vwrz4fZJw&list=UU_97RTgW61rYhBo46f1PsuA#t=99
–Joanna Huang
Tosca: Highlights, Connections, and Improvements
Tosca was an amazing experience with some wonderful highlights. I must say, simply stating that I was going to the opera made me feel like a high class New Yorker, but being able to talk about and make comments on the opera Tosca was even better.
The most memorable aspect was the main character Floria. Her voice was absolutely beautiful and amazing, every time she sang I was left in awe. She clearly outshone every character in the Opera with her voice and range. I couldn’t help but think of her extraordinary lung capacity, during an intermission some tried to sing Opera, and one can tell it’s difficulty by giving it a quick try. The orchestra playing music for Tosca was also extremely memorable. I’ve never had much musical skill, so hearing such professionals play so beautifully was a real treat.
Sondra Radvanovsky (Floria) after killing John Del Carlo (Scarpia)
What made Tosca the most interesting were the connections I could make from my prior experiences. Over the summer I visited Rome and Vatican City: two big areas for churches. They were simply everywhere, just walking in unknown areas would likely garner a visit to one, so after reading the playbill and realizing that the first act was in the Church of Sant’Andrea della Valle I decided to look it up. Honestly, the Church looks like every church in Rome (they all have a distinct lavish look about them) so I very well could have been there, perhaps I haven’t, but I did enjoy making the connection. The other connection I made was that of a video game: Assassins Creed II. It may sound odd, but a major part is set in Rome during the 15th century – yes the Opera’s setting is during the 19th century, but there were still some connections. In the video game, the main character’s family get caught up in political upheaval and he must avenge his father’s death against the powerfully corrupt religious men in the country. The plot does have it’s connections, but I was instantaneously reminded in the last act with the guard’s circular movements and I later realized that in the second act, the women who dressed provocatively looked extremely similar to the prostitutes in the video game.
Inside of the Church of Sant’Andrea della Valle
Despite this ability for the Opera to resonate with me, I did have some problems with it – none of which have anything against the performers and the orchestra, for they were all absolutely fantastic. However, my problems lay with the actual plot. After hearing a synopsis of the play, namely that all the characters die, I expected something that mirrored my favorite Shakespearian play, Hamlet. Hamlet’s ending is grand and exciting with plot twists and action where by the end, everyone dies due to some turn of events likened to emotions of in numeral levels. However with Tosca I did not find this to be true. I felt as though the building climax was simplistic and easy to determine. Even without knowing her lover would die could I easily suspect it. Floria did kill Scarpia after all – did she not think others would find out? I thought her acceptance that a mock execution would occur was extremely naïve and inaccurate. Despite this one problem, I thought the Opera was a whole was wonderful, and going back to the Met Operahouse will certainly be something I do in the near future.
Rick and Morty Public Art
Recently, on my way home after a long day at school, something caught my eye as I neared the Flatiron Building. It was a spaceship that had seemingly crashed onto the pedestrian plaza, and the engine looked like it was still on fire. The detail on the spaceship was great: the artists behind it had even put chunks of concrete resembling the pebbled floor of the pedestrian plaza all around the sculpture so that it looked realistic. It really surprised me how much attention to detail was put into this promotion: I really thought it was a public art installation before I saw the benches placed next to the spaceship advertising the show.
The smoke-spewing, people-confusing thing turned out to be a promotion for a new animated television series, called “Rick and Morty” on adult swim. Although its not the typical thing that would come to mind when one talks about public art, I thought this idea was a very clever way to promote the show and attract people’s attention. This also goes to show how business can work with engineers and artists to create something together that is part art and part marketing strategy.
–Joanna Huang
I Who Have Arrived in Heaven: Yayoi Kusama
Every day I am reminded how lucky I am to live in New York City. First of all, because of the city’s energy, second of all, the interesting people I meet, and last but not least, the art! That’s certainly not a comprehensive list, but you get the point–New York City is definitely one of the biggest cities for art. A few weeks ago, me and Karen decided to use our Thursday club hours to visit an art gallery. I had heard about a super cool super awesome infinity mirror room a gallery down in Chelsea. After some research, it turned out to be part of Yayoi Kusama’s gallery exhibition, “I Who Have Arrived in Heaven” (on view until December 21). Apparently, the line was supposed to be an over 2 hour wait on average to get into the infinity room, but we just wanted to check out the place even though we might not have time to get on the line.
When we got there, the line was indeed very long, so we decided to see some of her paintings in the same gallery exhibition and the other infinity mirror room instead. What we saw was pretty interesting. Up until that point, the only thing I knew about Kusama was her crazy polka dot motif. It turns out that she has many other motifs in her work, including Egyptian style profiles, eyes, and faces. To be honest, when I first saw her paintings, I thought to myself, “Wow, what does this even mean? It makes no sense.” All of her paintings give off a hallucinatory vibe because it doesn’t focus on one thing at a time. Everything seems pretty much thrown on the canvas all at once. After studying one of her paintings for a while, I came to the conclusion that Kusama must be very connected to her subconscious, because the things that she draws look so random and spontaneous. I just kept thinking, “Is this what she sees when she looks at the world? Is this always happening in her mind? Like how does she even think of this stuff???” Although looking passively at her work may give you the idea that she does not have any meaning behind it, I think the idea may be to make the viewer stop and think with their own mind to come up with a meaning that relates to them and speaks to them.
Besides seeing Kusama’s paintings, we also visited her infinity mirror room, “Love is Calling,” which features a mirror lined room that has glowing, orb-like sea urchin tentacles coming out of the ceiling and the floor. Combined with the mirrors surrounding the rooms on all sides, the viewer is given the illusion of an infinite world where there are tentacles as far as the eye can see. This visual effect is paired with a audio component, where Kusama herself recites a love poem of hers in Japanese. It is interesting to note that the New York Times says the tentacles are phallus symbols, but the whole time I was in that room, that never crossed my mind once. I just thought that the visual effect that the ever-changing colors on the tentacles gave were very vibrant and symbolized the fickle and colorful nature of loveand life.
Even though I was not able to see the mirror room that literally everyone is talking about, I still enjoyed myself very much at Kusama’s gallery exhibit. It gave me fresh insight to what art means in the contemporary world and also showed me how art is defined differently for each and every artist. The viewer does not only see art through the artist’s eyes, but their own eyes as well, and that is what art is all about.
I recommend everyone to check out the exhibition review on New York Times if you want to learn more, or even go to the exhibit and experience it yourself! It is on view at the David Wirner Gallery until December 21, so hurry! 🙂
Here is the article: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/06/arts/design/yayoi-kusama-i-who-have-arrived-in-heaven.html?_r=0
–Joanna Huang
Tosca
It was my first time at an opera and I found the physical setting to be somewhat weird because we were a bunch of kids while the theater was filled with well-dressed adults. However, all the awkwardness aside, I felt that the opera itself was really grand to say the least. The huge stage was filled with massive sets and the opera singers sang really well alongside the talented orchestra that did not receive as much credit. I also liked how enthusiastic the audience was, they would always clap where it was due, well I guess it’s because most of them actually came because they wanted to see it and knew about it.
I didn’t really know what to expect from the opera and how it would work out. The tale in itself seemed interesting but relatively short. I had no idea how they were going to make the story into a grand opera that would last three hours. My favorite part was act two. I actually don’t know why, but I felt that act two had a great deal of action in it, despite Tosca killing herself in the final act. I was really amazed at how quickly they were able to change the entire set during the intermissions. The Opera definitely made a bigger impact on me than just reading the story had. I didn’t really picture that much emotion and expression until I watched the actual opera.
The only problems I had with the opera isn’t really about the opera itself. One thing that distracted me a lot in the beginning was that I found it annoying to look down at my seat to read the translation and then look up at the acting going on in front of me. I wanted to just speak Italian and understand what they were saying so that I wouldn’t have to miss parts of the acting while I was reading the translations. Another annoying part was one of the kids from Staten Island who would constantly complain about people clapping during the opera. He would rant about it every intermission and it ruined my break. However, I feel that the opera was a great experience for me and a great way to end the class because it was such a great one at an amazing place.
