As if seeing Picasso’s exhibition wasn’t enough, my experience at the Pace gallery was taken to a whole new level as I walked up the spiral staircase to the second floor. What I saw immediately intrigued me to explore the pixelated art of Chuck Close. From a distance, the portraits looked like snapshots taken by a digital camera. As I got closer, I realized it was a trick of perception – The images were comprised of mini thumbprint-like paint spots. To make it even more interesting, the spots each had different patterns and colors within them. The grid-like spots made me wonder how the artist plotted the points so perfectly to make the portraits come to life. As I researched the artist, I found it even more incredible that although Close was paralyzed, he continued to paint by using a brush holding device strapped to his wrist and forearm. His punch-card painting technique is inventive and makes his the works enjoyable to study.
The paintings were captivating – each individual square was an art form in itself made of concentric circles and squares. Each of these broken brush strokes were vibrant colors that made intricate designs. The pixels were a psychedelic abstraction. Hundreds of these segments were indiscernible at close range, but made up precise portraits from afar. Examining the art from different angles and distances was like a game of perception – the small pixels were greatly contrasted by the image of a human face visible when taking a few steps back.
The illusion that each individual thumbprint is connected hints at the idea that everything is not always what it seems. If you think you know something, taking a closer look may give you a completely different idea than the one you started with. In this sense, viewing Close’s art made me more attentive as my experience of the art changed just by taking a few steps closer.
Walking to the Met was a bit confusing at first- it was my first time there, and google maps had decided to lead me behind the opera house to the parking garage. However, once I got there, I was astounded. The entire complex reminded me of the Greek pavilions, and I felt like I was walking among the temples of the gods. The Met on the outside was visually stunning, but inside was somehow even more grand. It was difficult to feel intimidated by the wealth and all the fancy people with suits and dresses; instead, I was overcome with a sense of awe and wonderment at the splendor of the place. 
While waiting for our ticket problem to be resolved, I was reading an advertisement near the ticket booth. It was an ad for an Egyptian opera, and one critic had said something to the effect of, “with all the grandeur, the costumes and sets, it feels as though you are really in ancient Egypt.” I wondered if I would experience this over the top, immersive feeling from Carmen. Good thing it did not disappoint.
Going into the show, I had a feeling that I would hate it-I would fall asleep and not understand anything. I thought that those three hours would be the longest of my life. Instead, I found myself completely into the performance, and by the second half I was captivated by the music,singing and acting. I was amazed that someone could sing so loud, for so long at such a high pitched voice, and I have newfound respect for my high school music teacher who was once an opera singer. The themes were all very catchy-I still can’t get the theme of Carmen and the toreador out of my head.
Although I enjoyed all the acts, my favorite by far was the finale. In the opening, where the opera’s main theme is welcoming the entrance of the toreador, the sheer number of people on stage, the joyous theme of the music and all the festivities evoked a sense of grandeur. It really made me feel as though I was in Southern Spain, eagerly awaiting the arrival of the toreador. Throughout the scene between Carmen and the soldier, I loved the use of the toreador’s theme in the background. It was a clever way to show that the scene was happening during another event instead of just a scene following another scene. The mirroring of the deaths of the bull and Carmen was really cool as well.
All in all, Carmen was a completely unique, enjoyable experience with a bunch of “firsts” for me. It was my first time to the opera. It was the first time I’ve gotten to see the orchestra pit up close during intermission. It was the first time that I’ve seen people eat courses of dinner during intermission. I’m glad I was able to have the opportunity to go to the opera, something that I probably would’ve never done on my own
. 
I am finally able to say, I have experienced a Picasso!
It was indeed a powerful experience to observe his paintings and drawings in the PACE gallery today on 57th street.
Picasso was born in the year 1881 in Spain, though he had spent most of his career as an artist in France. He is known for the development of analytic and synthetic cubism as well as surrealism- types of art that have ever since remained highly influential and appreciated all around the world.
In this particular exhibition, Picasso features his second wife Jacqueline as a beautiful, almost immortal figure. Jacqueline had accompanied Picasso for longer than any other woman had, and she’d been his artistic muse during the critical time before his death.
As I was looking at the various paintings in the gallery, I realized that many of them looked so simplistic yet so complex once you got a better, closer look. Picasso used many different variations of Jacqueline, painting her in different positions and colors, using cubism elements, or simply painting her portraits. Yet in spite of all these variations, it was possible to feel that she was greatly admired and loved by him through his art.
On one of the walls in the galleries I noticed a quote by Helene Parmelin that perfectly describes Jacqueline’s impact on this exhibition: “Jacqueline has, to an unimaginable degree, the gift of becoming painting… She unfolds to infinity. She invades everything, becomes everybody.” Undoubtedly, this is exactly what Picasso had intended to do: make Jacqueline become everything and everybody.
A particular set of paintings that I thought was interesting is called “Jacqueline With Multicolored Straw Hat”. This set consisted of 6 paintings of Jacqueline, each labeled by Picasso as an individual stage. Though all six are practically the same, the only difference among them is the color. This made me curious to know how was Picasso able to replicate the paintings 6 times, making them all look so similar to each other, almost as if he took a photograph of it and simply reprinted it in different colors. I found it astonishing that the details of each panting were so much alike. Perhaps, the variation of the colors (which were going from light to dark) was meant to represent the stages of life, the first being the lightest and last being the darkest, almost as if it was meant to represent life, death, and the stages in between.
Below is one of the paintings of Jacqueline With Multicolored Straw Hat:
“Jacqueline With Multicolored Straw Hat” (Picasso; January 17, 1962)
I certainly enjoyed visiting the PACE gallery today, and I feel proud to be able to say that I have finally really seen a Picasso.
“Reclining Woman on a Blue Divan” (Picasso; April 20th, 1966; Oil on Canvas)
“Reclining Nude & Man with Mask” (Picasso; September 5 1964; graphite on paper)
Today’s trip to the Pace Gallery provided an interesting, new experience. Walking in, I was already struck by the luxury; the golden lobby, the elevator man, and the customers suited up.
Although I was not allowed to take photos, three works of art resonated with me, as they chronicled Picasso’s later life.
Jacqueline in Turkish Costume, 1955:
This painting was only 2 years after Picasso met Jacqueline. Picasso was still expressing his younger exuberance, and energetic art through bright colors such as the yellow, red, blue. This was an example of Picasso expressing the beauty he saw in Jacqueline. Through his use of these vibrant colors, Picasso was communicating his love and affection toward her.
As Picasso was nearing death later on in his life, he realized that things will not be the same in the future for the both of them, and he began to express much more somber, serious, and gloomy portraits of Jacqueline. The “Jacqueline With a Headband I” painting got my attention as it expressed these very somber feelings that Picasso and Jacqueline were beginning to feel. Unlike his earlier paintings which were much more vivacious, this portrait was a dark, gloomy portrait of Jacqueline. Dark colors such as black and brown dominate the portrait, and a seemingly serious and worried look on Jacqueline’s face is portrayed. This is just one of many darker and more serious portraits that Picasso does of Jacqueline. When he began creating these somber portraits, it marked a stark contrast to his earlier more energetic, colorful, and sexual portraits.
Lastly, the “Face of a Woman” portrait, 1962 got my attention as well. At first glance, I thought it was a rather simple work as it was simply colored pencil that outlined her face. I realized however that this portrait looked similar to the “non-linear” work that we saw in class! This portrait differs from many of his other ones in that he doesn’t portray to us Jacqueline’s physical beauties. Instead what we see is a tall, narrow, expressionless face.
Overall, I’m extremely happy I got the chance to visit the Pace Gallery and learning more about one of the most influential artists in our history!
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