Category: Blog Post 2 (Page 1 of 2)

“Cleopatra’s Needle” – Khemetic Obelisk :: Central Park, NYC

The moment where the Ankh around my neck started to glisten and glow like never before, and glancing up in astonishment I saw it. Or rather, it saw me. This Ancient relic of Ancient Khemet was magnetizing my Ankh with insane amount of energy.  In that course of vibrational uplift and energy, I realized how powerful this stolen artifact really is; I realized that we are technologically nowhere near where our ancient ancestors were thousands of years ago.

A powerful moment it was for a young fox just learning about true history, and this obelisk isn’t any stranger. I remember the first time approaching the structure, fascinated by its cryptic language  and its ancient origins. When I read the assignment for Blog Post 2, I knew this had to be in here.

Imagine a warm, sunny day – a stroll through the massive Central Park. Greenery, scenery, plant life and abundance of Nature’s fresh and rich atmosphere – a true insight into the mind of the universe around us. Smiles amongst faces in the crowds, laughter, love and photos, the air is humid, but not too humid; a breeze can be felt. Suddenly, as I turned my attention to the all-familiar opening in the park, I felt the atmosphere become magnetic, uplifting, and grounded. Then, as if my legs pulled through a warp-hole into an opening in outer space, there is was. The Obelisk. The structure which I have came to numerous times in the past for study, spirituality, conversation, and of course, meditation.

You can seriously understand what’s it was like to walk in Khemet when near this obelisk. Central Park turns into a magnetization field of an insanely high stream of consciousness, and the pineal and pituitary glands in the back of your brain start to vibrate faster than you ever thought possible. All of a sudden the wildlife around you seems more like a living organism than simply separate entities of meaningless life. The sun shines through the Obelisk into what feels like the True-You, the Soul. As a matter of fact, still to this day I can approach the Ancient Energy Needle and feel the unbelievable energy looping infinitely into my Ankh as I meditate on the frequencies emitted by the Obelisk.

“The Temple’s Cult & Decoration” – Khemetic Artifacts :: MOMA, NYC

Upon entry into the mysterious, dark and occult exhibit, I could very strongly argue that one of the statues gave me a stern look as I approached the relics. All jokes aside, the experience was so real that I even felt back at home in Khemet because the stones and carvings still carry energy that has been working through them for thousands of years. Besides the fact that most the Khemetic artifacts in Museums around the world are stolen, its excellent to know that they are taken care of, and that they haven’t been altered or cleaned enough to relinquish the vibrations that make these great structures what they are.

Given, when approaching the exhibit, I immediately noticed that the area was more dim (enter Night) and it made the artifacts stand out even more. While natural sunlight from the exhibit in the day time would’ve almost perfectly emulated what it might’ve felt like back in Khemet, the luminous nighttime lighting in the exhibit casted a much more mystical and awesome experience.

The statues themselves seemed to be made out of a grayish stone material, and the building structure towards the other side of the exhibit seemed to take on the classic Khemetic limestone look and feel. Given, the artifacts make the environment fade away, as opposed to the Obelisk’s environment, to which it gave life.

Overall, my experience at both pieces of art deeply connected me back to where I believe my roots are, all where the beginnings of Al-khemy and Khem-istry were actually realized. From the land which the nescient masses call Egypt, from the land of Khemet, which I call home.

Kerry James Marshall (b. 1955)

While wandering aimlessly through the David Zwerner Gallery in Chelsea, I had a hard time trying to find a piece of art that spoke directly to me. However, when I turned the corner into the third white cube, there he was. He was tall and strong, his dark skin shiny with an obsidian gloss. Immediately, I know he is a slave. His straw-colored, coarse garments indicate that he was most likely a field worker. This man is also holding a bloody axe. Although this man is the star of the painting, there is a startling crime scene behind him. There is a door broken off of its hinges and streaks through it, as if he fought his way into the room with the axe. The bed he is standing in front of has white sheets that are disheveled, and a white man who was presumably murdered by the man holding the axe. The blood of the ivory man is scattered everywhere and trails from the pale white sheets to where the man holding the axe is standing. A closer look at the painting will reveal that the deceased man does not appear to be fully there. Only his decapitated head on the pillow. By the shadows casted on the man and furniture, and the dark undertones in the room it is transparent that this attack was done at night. The man in the bed was most likely the slave master, indicating that this attack was premeditated. The black man didn’t seem to be looking at me, but rather through me, as if he was in a trance. He just finished what he set out to do and it released a weight off of him. Chopping someone’s head off, especially with such a clean cut, is not an easy thing to do. Howbeit so, he also looks as if he has more work to do. The mission is not accomplished.

Before I did further research and discovered that this was a “Portrait of Nat Turner With the Head of his Master”, I already felt a weird sense of connectedness with the main character of this painting. This is more than just an illustration of him killing his master, but a message. The oppressed shall be oppressed no more and eventually they will fight back, with a vengeance.

This painting seemed very out of place. This was the darkest painting in the room. The other paintings in the room were mainly about European conquest and abstract concepts. Therefore, I was very thrown off when I saw this painting in the corner. The other people in the room who stopped to look at it did not stay for very long. Because this dark painting was placed in such a luminous room, with bright colored paintings and a white wall, it brings a sort of sullen tone to the room. In a room full of colors and happy thoughts, no one wants to stare at a painting that reminds us of the war we continue to face between black and white.

Often dubbed as the best city in the world, New York City is filled with nothing but surprises. That’s why, when I was driving across town with my mother on the way to the FDR drive, I was was astonished at what I saw. In front of NYU Langone’s Children’s Hospital was the cutest dog I had ever seen. Not only was he cute but he was colossal. This 38 foot tall statue of a sitting Dalmatian, approximately rising to the height of a three story building, was perfectly balancing a yellow taxi cab on its nose. Enclosed in a patch of grass, the dog was so huge and realistic, as if it was superbly trained to do this trick in the middle of all hustle and bustle going on around it.

“SPOT” by Donald Lipiski

Having this statue placed directly in front of the children’s hospital gives visitors a warm welcome and a feeling of playfulness as they come into a rather unsettling place. This dog is toying with an actual Prius, as if it is a ball given to it by its owner. If this dog was placed anywhere else in New York City, like in a park or a museum, the observer would undoubtedly still be in awe of its size and realistic features. However, because it is in front of a hospital, especially a children’s one, the viewer’s admiration and appreciation for such a warm, fuzzy work of art is enhanced. Having experience with visiting ill family members and loved ones in hospitals, I know personally that facilities such as these can make people nervous, uncomfortable, anxious, and just bring up bad memories. This sculpture sets a precedent for tone of the facility, lighthearted and fun, as much as a hospital can possibly be.  A child coming in to a scary place with a huge dog out front may feel just a tad bit better about going in, since dogs are often used to help relieve stress. This black and white animal is the epitome of fun and happiness, a stark contrast to the painting I described above.

On Tuesday, September 18th 2018, I visited multiple places on the West Side of Manhattan.  The art that I found in the streets of Manhattan and inside of galleries sparked emotions within me due to the messages behind the works of art.

(Disclaimer: Horror in Pink #1 and #2 are very graphic, violent and may be a trigger for some. Please view with caution)

After looking at galleries all afternoon, my friends and I arrived at the Tyler Rollins Fine Art Gallery in Chelsea.  We found the Manit Sriwanichpoom exhibition where we stayed for a very long time trying to understand what was happening, and what the artist was trying to say in this exhibit. We finally arrived to the back of the room where we saw “Horror in Pink #1” and “Horror in Pink #2”. We were horrified (no pun intended); how could an artist choose these black and white photographs from a massacre and then add on his character, the Pink Man, in vivid colors. I looked for an explanation, I didn’t understand the purpose and I wasn’t sure if I wanted to understand. Sriwanichpoom used these photos to show the hypocrisy of the Thai government, where the slogan is “Land of Smiles” while they refuse to mention this government-lead massacre in textbooks.

The Pink Man is a silent witness to these murders. In these photographs there is no one fighting back, there are only bystanders; some people are even laughing while watching. I feel like this art is not only supposed to be a criticism towards the Thai government but it is also supposed to be addressing the silence of the people in situations of injustice. The Pink Man stands there with his shopping cart while someone is being hung, as if he was about to go shopping but this event grabbed his attention and so he stayed and watched. If you looked closely at the images, you could see that he looks slightly entertained. The viewers of this art can feel the terror in these images, and we can almost hear the cries of the people, but people are crowding in a circle around a suffering individual as if it was not a dying person, but instead a street performer. This piece was thought-provoking and even made you think about the world today, and how many injustices are occurring at the moment while we sit and watch.

While “Horror in Pink #1” and “Horror in Pink #2” shows the apathy many have towards injustice, the public art that I found on the High Line sheds a light on an injustice. The artist of “Somos 11 Millones/ We Are 11 Million”, Andrea Bowers, addresses the importance of DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) by making art based around the fact that 11 million people are undocumented. An immigrant rights activist group, Movimiento Cosecha, came up with slogan “we are 11 millions” which Bowers used for this art piece. The slogan is written in both english and spanish and neon lights are used to write it out. As the daughter of immigrants, seeing art that supports my family and so many other New Yorkers is empowering. The color scheme of the city is very grey and dull, but “Somos 11 Millones” is bright red and large compared to other objects on the high line which makes it difficult to ignore or look away which helps bring awareness to a pressing issue.

Both works of art are criticism towards a government, however the two artists took very different approaches. Both are difficult to ignore, which is important when trying to shed a light on important social justice issues. Artists with intentions to criticize must be able to capture the eye of the viewer and make sure they can never forget what they saw.

Horror in Pink #1 and #2 (6 October 1976 Rightwing Fanatics’ Massacre of Democracy Protesters) by Manit Sriwanichpoom

Somos 11 Millones/ We Are 11 Million (in collaboration with Moviemento Cosecha) by Andrea Bowers 

“Head in the Clouds”, 2014

After viewing many beautiful works of art in many art galleries, I was finally able to choose the one most interesting to me. This work of art can be found in a small and serene art gallery in The Bronx. As one enters the gallery, this humongous piece of art is sitting directly in front of the entrance, begging its onlookers to take a moment and appreciate it. As any curious individual would do, I stopped and attempted to understand a little of what the artist was trying to say. This piece of art almost reached the ceiling, and although it was difficult to fully understand what was occurring, I understood that there was a man holding a house, possibly with a vision of something that he wanted others to know about. The man’s face seems thoughtful; as his mouth is ajar, it seems like he has something important he has to say but there is something impeding his ability to say what he thinks. The abstractness of his body may mean different things to different people but I saw this as society’s pessimistic view of this man, which would be causing his hesitation in relaying his thoughts. What I found interesting about this work of art, is that there are only two major colors: black and white. I took this as a symbol for dark and pureness. As the sculpture increases in elevation, white becomes the predominant color whereas black is only popular at the bottom. The artist might have chosen this color scheme because the abstractness of the sculpture was already too striking, but it could also symbolize the pureness of the man regardless of the abstractness of his body.

As I approached the sculpture and found the metal inscription plate, I learned that the piece of art is named “Head in the Clouds” and the house is actually the painter’s childhood home. The plate also mentions that the house could be pointing to Renaissance art in which important figures regularly held small houses in portraits to emphasize the importance of religion in daily life. Because this sculpture is placed in an art gallery and basically given it’s own exhibit, the environment creates an atmosphere of thoughtfulness that forces the audience to deeply look at the sculpture. On the other hand, if this sculpture was placed on a random city street, onlookers would not spend more than two minutes looking at it because of the fact that it’s abstract and can be confusing. Therefore, the environment shaped the perception of the sculpture because it force it’s viewers to take time and look for something that may not necessarily been present.

In New York City, it can be extremely easy to find a work of public art. Anywhere you look, you are bound to find public art. That’s why this part of this assignment was the most difficult, because I encountered so many wonderful pieces of art that I had difficulty choosing just one. After much deliberation, I choose to write about the most beautiful and insightful one I came across. It is a painting of La Virgen de Guadalupe on one of the most unlikely canvas–the metal overhead gate of a warehouse in Bushwick, Brooklyn. She is seen praying, with a thoughtful or peaceful facial expression. I really appreciated this piece of public art because of the location it is in. This closed warehouse is located in a sidestreet, where wholesale warehouses are located and commercial business is popular. At first, I thought it was random and a little weird to see this icon painted so beautifully on a metal rollup gate but then I appreciated it because of the bright colors and peaceful ambiance around it.

In this case, I think the painting of La Virgen did change the environment it was in because the area around this painting was pristine. There were no plastered ads, littered trash or even people loitering around this area. The area was cleared of these things. I also enjoyed the fact that this was painted on a metal roll up gate, providing a sense of humility to the viewers.

Virgen de Guadalupe

As my partner and I took refuge in the Garth Greenan Gallery from the rain, we were surrounded by white walls with paintings, sculptures, and abstract art. There were mostly paintings on the walls but there were a few sculptures that glistened in the florescent white lights. Many of the first paintings in the gallery seemed to be very intricate, with many styles of painting and colors to contrast the different pieces of artwork. As I moved through the gallery, I noticed that the pieces were in a chronological order; starting from the oldest piece in the gallery all the way to the most modern paintings and sculptures. This piece resided in a side room on the first floor of the gallery and as soon as you walk into the room, you notice that it shares the white wall with a painting much like itself, and also created by the same artist. I did not take a picture of the pair though because only the painting on the right caught my eye. This painting, created by Leonor Fini, seemed as if it was popping out of the frame to jump out of the black background and enter the world that I was in. I looked at the piece and immediately thought it was of a woman in a dress, but upon further inspection, I had a countering thought that maybe this person could be a warrior of some sort. Starting from the bottom of the painting, this person is upon a pedestal, as if to imply they are a person of great importance. Their boots are geometrically perfect in that they are the same height, width, and symmetrical in every way. Each boot has two semicircles that look like protractors that stop just halfway above the shin. The upper legs of this figure are stout and strong. There are triangles all of the piece, and the figure is holding one in their right hand, with a tape measure wrapped around their wrist. The right arm is straight and relaxed. The left arm is bent and the hand is located on their hip. On both arms, there are triangular shapes on the elbows and shoulders, as well as tape measures on their wrists, and compasses circling their upper arm. The figure’s left elbow protrudes the borders of the painting as well as the right hand holding the triangular object. The figure’s dress covers the entire torso and the upper legs. The ruffles of the dress have protractor-like images towards the end and right above them are tape measures aligned in a “V” formation around the figure’s waist. The design on the torso is completely symmetrical and curves towards the shoulders just like the collarbone would. The necklace that they are wearing is tight around their neck and has a ring attached to it. Their eyes are looking down and to their right with nostrils flared but no expression. The figure’s hair is curly and done upwards around a crown in a shape similar to the design of the dress.

This painting brought the room’s dimensions of the gallery into consideration and helped me appreciate the geometry and architecture of the building. Likewise, the white walls around the piece contrasted the colors so that it was more prominent.

My friends and I were walking home from the Macaulay Honors Building and came across this wonderful sculpture. This is a sculpture of a famous sled dog named Balto. The bronze sculpture glistened in the sunlight and reflected off of its fur. Balto is standing on a rock that is risen about 8 feet above the ground and along with that, he is placed on a pedestal. Balto is positioned so that he is sitting with his hind legs bent underneath him and his front legs straight and firm. His fur is layered and near his shoulders, there are many ruffles of fur. His mouth is open with his tongue out. His eyes are welcoming and ears are up and alert.

I used to watch the movie depicting Balto as the hero of Alaska during a disease outbreak and always dreamed of seeing the statue of him in Central Park, but never knew where to look. It was funny that I stumbled upon the statue, which was around a bend of the trail. Walking from west to east, he is closer to the east side. Balto seemed to actually be standing there on that rock like a hero and not just a frozen statue. He brought hope to the children in Alaska and his legacy lives on among the people of New York City.

L’archeologo by Giorgio de Chirico
(1927)

The painting shown above is an oil painting called “L’archeologo” by Giorgio de Chirico from 1927. The most prominent thing I noticed was the similarity of the figure represented in the painting to a human. The figure possesses two arms, two legs and a human-shaped head. However, the most jarring detail of the painting is the center or the body of the figure. The body of the figure is made up of a compilation of various arches and columns. The columns are of different sizes and colors, representing different internal organ of a human body. Upon taking a closer look, the columns and arches are surrounded by what appears to be reddish guts or blood, instilling the fact that the various structures represent the internal organs of a human body. Additionally, the head of the body lacks any features, making it completely blank and quite alarming. The lack of features definitely evokes the feeling of wonder while also dehumanizing the figure considerably.

The painting is comprised of very visibly strong strokes which gives the painting a slightly rough and unrealistic texture. The columns in the body of the figure also seem to be broken, certainly the one near the top of the body. The figure is visibly leaning back on the ground, appearing lazy. The surrounding space of the figure appears to be very blank and bare, much like that of a gallery. The figure rests its right hand upon a column or step, with its finger pointing towards his leg. The figure is also wearing a white cloth over its legs. The cloth also appears around its neck and underneath it. The numerous ripples and folds in the cloth make it appear very realistic, evoking a feeling of almost touching a soft white cloth. The cloth very naturally and elegantly curves around the figure’s body which also seems very realistic.

The surrounding environment of the art is very bare and uninteresting which allows for minimal distractions while routing all of the viewer’s focus towards the artwork. The walls are empty and white which makes you feel close and personal with the art, forcing the outside world to disappear. In this gallery, this painting was the only one on its wall, forcing all attention to one art piece. As seen above, the environment allows the viewer to think of absolutely nothing but the art itself while absorbing every detail in its fullest.

This mural is painted by Pixel Pancho on the corner of 10th avenue and West 22nd street. It depicts a very fancy and elegant robot woman. The woman is made of various mechanical parts and instruments. The cheeks of the woman are depicted as hollow gears while every joint on the woman’s body is represented with a gear. The robot has very human-like features, making it seem extremely realistic. The woman is wearing a white blouse which is also made of machine parts and appears very textured. Additionally, the woman is wearing a blue dress and two pink shoes. The top of the dress is very intricately designed to show various floral patterns. The woman is resting her feet upon a flower bed and a flower pot can also be seen on a column next to her. There are various representations of flowers all around the woman. The wallpaper behind the woman and her also depict a very intricate floral pattern. The mural is depicted to be very realistic even though it depicts an unrealistic robot woman. The ripples in her clothes give a very soft and smooth texture to her clothes, adding to the overall realistic feeling. The mechanical parts also appear to be very textured and layered.

The surrounding environment of the mural is very lively since it is painted in the heart of Chelsea. The surrounding area is filled with various buildings and restaurants, attracting numerous people along with an enormous amount of vehicular traffic. All of these aspects give the surrounding area a very loud and unappealing feel. This allows the mural to contrast the liveliness of the environment by introducing an aspect of calmness and elegance. The relaxed and beautiful feelings evoked by the mural harshly contrast those produced by the environment.

Overall, the environment and the space surrounding the art shapes the viewer’s perception of that particular piece of art and allows for a unique meaning to the art. For example, the lack of distractions in the environment allows the viewer to fully absorb the art and contemplate it, without any distractions. In contrast, the addition of distractions allows the viewer to relate the art to its surroundings, producing a unique meaning.

Untitled,  Robert Gober (2000-2001)

This piece was displayed in the David Zwirner Gallery in Chelsea. Although most people chose some piece of art that was hanging up, I chose this one for its unique qualities and the way it would stand out amongst the rest. This particular piece that has no title was simply just displayed in the middle of a room with hanging pieces of art around it. It is also made of uncommon materials like human hair and beeswax. This pieces seems to be a sculpture that is encompassed in a wooden basket which represents the purposeful unity of all the parts of the sculpture ( body parts, shoes, cans, toothpaste), they are all meant to be together. The first thing that clearly stands out about this piece is the dismantled body parts, it half a woman’s chest and half a man’s chest put together to look as part of one body, and opposite each other. Between them are textured lines, that also seem to run throughout the whole work, to symbolize that the two sides are in a way being wrinkled together. There is a drain right in the middle of the work possibly to symbolize that whether it be body parts or shoes or chains, eventually everything is going down the drain. To the right and left of the combined chests are pieces of what visibly are shoes, cans, and parts of a toothpaste tube. These objects are opposite each other on both sides of the chests similar to the parts of the chests as well which are also opposite each other. In a way, this piece is a reflection of it self, because should you cut it down the middle, each side would represent a reflection of the other. Another notable detail is the shoes, cans, and toothpaste tube all look wrinkled and worn as if they have been discarded and considered garbage. The juxtaposition of the body parts with what looks like garbage really brings attention to that fact that whether its our body parts, or pieces of garbage, it will all decompose together and end up at the same place as part of the earth.

The environment of this piece was rather of a typical art gallery, the walls were white and the paintings were hung on the walls with just enough space for each piece of art to breathe and be unique.  However, because everything around this piece was hanging and this piece was just sitting on the floor, it added an aspect of estrangement. Usually, gallery floors are left empty so that spectators can walk around and view the art from different points in the room. As well, the floor is usually left empty to leave room for each piece or art to breathe or speak.  However here, not only was the floor black, a complete contrast to the walls but the floor also had this piece of art on it which helped draw immediate attention to it, as if the completely black contrasting color wasn’t enough. The piece being placed in this environment easily could make the spectator hesitant to approach it since, it looks like it doesn’t belong since the gallery floor is almost always left empty.

In this case, the gallery environment made this piece seem strange and out of place, which is adjacent to it’s subject matter. Had other pieces been placed on the floor it would’ve been different but, this piece was the only thing on the otherwise empty floor and amongst otherwise hanging pieces of art. The environment here distorts our perspective of the art because, before viewing it, it already gives us a sense of misplacement and discomfort. Before viewing the piece, we already feel weird about it, so we are naturally inclined to believe that the subject matter is meant to make us feel uncomfortable, which in this case, it does even if the environment didn’t set us up for it.

Drowning Liberty

The last time we had class, we were on our way to see a piece of public art titled Link. On our way, we encountered this piece that was used as an advertisement for the company Soda Stream but, was actually a brilliant piece of public art. Essentially, this piece is a rectangular metal, with horizontal and vertical lines creating a sort of barricade for all the garbage inside of it. Inside this box, are various containers of drinks, plastic bottles from water, soda cans, and many other drinks that we encounter on a daily basis. They were put their in such a way where plastic clear water bottles take up most of the space and there are pops of color from things like iced tea bottles with blue wrappers and red soda cans. On top of all this waste is the statue of liberty as it appears regularly just in smaller size, still holding her torch and her book as she always has been. However, the bottom half of the statue is immersed in all the waste. Essentially for advertisement purposes, it shows how we are drowning our land and most prized land marks in garbage from all the waste we produce. However, the meaning could be much deeper, with all the talk about deportation, building walls, and closing our borders to people coming in and out, it could represent that we are drowning our own values that the Statue of Liberty represents by saying all this “garbage”. Get it?

The environment was perfect for both purposes. Looking at the art as you see in the picture, behind it was the Flat Iron Building ( if you look from a slightly different angle, it will look like the statue is standing up against the building) as well as the stands that the Soda Stream company set up to sell their product, and many other New York City buildings that are structured brilliantly and add to the city scene behind the piece. In front of it was the plaza where people were talking, eating, and apparently filming The Bachelor in Paradise. To the left was Madison Square Park and to the left was the piece Link that we originally set up to see. The piece was in a densely populated public place which was perfect for the company and also perfect for showing that there is so many people and diversity to celebrate and encourage but we are instead now saying that diversity is not good for us and thus we should close ourselves off to the world, which of course drowns the virtues and values that Lady Liberty stands for.

In this case, the environment augments how we see the painting. The Soda Stream stands in front of it augment the view that we produce so much waste and garbage from our drinks that soon we will literally drown all of our space and precious land marks in it. The city scene behind the art and all the active, diverse population surrounding the statue augmented the view that we should celebrate our diverse population and embrace newcomers that contribute to it instead of drowning the values and virtues that our nation stands for with our actions.

New York Grenades by Russell Young

As I stepped into the Taglialatella Galleries, there were many colorful paintings and sculptures that have been put on display against the white walls. The painting was labeled “New York Grenades” painted by Russell Young was the first that had caught my eye.  At first glance, you see a marvelous blown up image of a World War II grenade that takes up most of the canvas. The  body of the grenade can be visualized as a vase with the boxy and grid-like skin of a pineapple. There are five rows and four columns of twenty boxes that can be seen from the painting. The boxes on this “pineapple skin” get smaller and smaller as it goes down the columns and reaches the end of the grenade.  The top of that “vase” contains a smooth and circular opening that looks like a huge chocolate rolo, as seen below.

Chocolate Rolo

At the very top of the grenade, there is a rectangular piece of metal covered by a handle, as long as half the grenade. Attached to the long handle, is a large circular ring that takes up majority of the top half of the grenade. The first thing I was reminded of when I saw the colors of this painting was the thermal camera effect found on the photo booth application on my Mac Laptop. The thermal camera effect has four colors captured in the camera: red, yellow, green, blue. However, I need you to focus only on three colors: red, yellow, and black. Now, picture the large grenade described earlier with the thermal effect on only the grenade, contrasted against a solid yellow background, almost the color of mustard. The artist uses all the three colors to bring out the shape of the cubes and outline of the grenade. Other than the unique color choice and blown up image, the diamond dust covering the grenade lures the observer to come closer. The light in the gallery hits the painting perfectly in a way that the grenade was sparkling and makes one almost forget that this is a destructive and deadly device.

The gallery was quite empty when I came in, and that allowed me to take my time with each painting and sculpture. The atmosphere in the gallery was very calm and quiet, that even a whisper would seem like too much noise. All the walls were white and the floor was gray. All the colorful paintings and sculptures provided a pop of color to a plain and dull environment. The white background  lets the whole world fall away and make you feel like its only you and the painting. There were a good amount of space placed between each painting on the wall, which allowed me to focus on one painting without being distracted by another. By the left side of the gallery, there were four employees sitting by two long desks and working. Overall, the environment ends up enhancing our perception of the artwork by providing a clear white contrast against the colorful pieces of art. All the artworks on display shared the common playful and vibrant colors that makes the gallery space all the more enjoyable. It’s as if the paintings are able to speak for themselves and provide all the “noise” with its different colors in the quiet gallery space.

FIT College Mural

The Fashion Institute of Technology mural is painted on the bricks of the building and is quite tall that you would require a ladder to touch the top. The background color of the mural is a baby blue pastel color painted directly on the building, and you are still able to see the outline of the bricks.  The image depicted by the artist that takes up three quarter of the mural is a large New York City 23rd street sign. The street sign is positioned diagonally and is closer to the bottom of the mural. The street sign is so zoomed in that only the center of the sign makes it into the mural. The sign has the traditional dark green color and two thick white lines outlining the top and bottom of the sign. The artist also outlined the sign and letters with black to make the shapes stand out. The numbers 23 are written in a way that the outline of the number starts out thin from the top and gets thicker towards the end. There is a pigeon sitting on top of the street sign with a small olive branch in its mouth. The artist used the colors purple, teal, blue, light gray, dark gray, and white to depict the top portion of the bird only seen in the mural. The pigeon’s pink feet is painted on top of the sign as well, three toes for each foot with short claws extending at the end. The small olive branch held in its beak contains one green olive with two leaves, and a small white crescent shape on the olive to represent a glare.  Directly behind the pigeon’s head, there is a circular sun made up of two shades of yellow. The inner circle of the sun is a yellow-white color, and the circle encompassing the small circle is a light yellow shade. At the bottom right corner, the instagram account @LITTLEFOXLIFE and name of the artist, Kara, is written down.

Murals on FIT building

All the murals painted on the FIT walls were the same size and lined up one after the other. As opposed to the art gallery, the  public artworks are attached to one another and I ended up looking back and forth from artworks, instead of focusing on just one. The atmosphere outside by the murals was completely different than the one in the gallery. When I was viewing the mural, there were people who kept walking in front of me and there were trees placed in front of the art that kept obscuring my view. The murals on the brick wall and the paintings in the gallery are able to alter a space because it transforms a bland and ordinary wall into a masterpiece worthy of people’s attention. However, the noisy and crowded environment by the murals took away from my experience and caused me to lose interest in the art. The mural’s use of the olive branch and light pastel colors was supposed to evoke feelings of peace and tranquility, but the city’s boisterous atmosphere did not match with that aesthetic.