Author: rachelswed

The Rubin Museum

rachelswed

What fascinated me the most about the Rubin Museum was the fact that it was not a typical museum with just art exhibits. One particular aspect of the museum is the focus on the World Is Sound. The exhibition illustrates what is heard rather than what is written or seen. It also emphasizes the message of the power in listening and sound. Two places that stood out to me in the World Is Sound were the room of “Oms” and the centerpiece of the museum which is the staircase. A common theme between the two places is the sound coming from all around and not from just one area. The sound waves were panoramic in that I saw the direction of sound in a sweeping pose. The first thing that was pointed out to us in the museum was the staircase. The staircase was the prominent piece of the museum. It displayed an alluring illusion of artwork. In the room of ‘Oms,” the “Oms” included different tones and texture of voices. Overall, I underestimated the aesthetic value of sound until I went to this museum.

 

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STEAM festival-2017

rachelswed

When I first heard about the STEAM Festival, I didn’t want to attend the festival because it was on a Sunday and we had many finals and assignments coming up. As a result of these things, I was really discouraged to go. However, when I went it was the complete opposite of what I expected. I loved looking at the different projects and ideas people presented and talked about. I also enjoyed that it was not only seminar one but also seminar three so we could hear about both science and art and the different seminars that we have in store for next year. I really enjoyed the makers space a lot because it allowed us to be very creative and have fun. Overall, it was a great experience and I would be happy to go there again.

Turandot-Themes

rachelswed

Two big themes in the play Turandot by Giacomo Puccini is love and revenge. The prince, Calaf, was willing to risk his life to answer the three riddles to marry princess Turandot. Many princes died before him because of this challenge and Calaf, seeing the princess just once, was still up for the challenge. He was so in love with Turandot that even after many people warned him not to put his life at risk, he still disregarded what they said and went to the gong and pounded it symbolizing that he accepted the challenge. The theme revenge is seen by this challenge. Turandot believes because of these very complicated riddles no one will ever marry her. Turandot does not want to get married because she is convinced that her ancestor princess Lo-u-Ling lives in her and Lou-u-Ling wants to avenge the fact that she was raped and murdered by a prince. She then asks Calaf to withdraw, warning him you only have one life but you still have to answer three riddles one mistake and he will be beheaded, but he does not listen again. She then asks him the three riddles and Calaf gets all of them right. After he gets them right Turandot now realizes she has to marry him and she does not want to. Calaf, still believing love will trump all, gives her one escape, to find out his name. Turandot quickly sends many people to discover his name or she will kill them. She also ends up finding Liu (calaf’s slave) and Calaf’s father. Liu says she is the only one who knows Calaf’s  name and ends up killing herself instead of the princess finding out, in spite of love for Calaf. After all of this, Calaf goes to visit Turandot, kisses her, and announces his name, so now his life sits in her hands. After the kiss, she softens and realized that she actually loves the prince. When it was time for Turandot to say his name she says his name is love. This show portrayed that love was triumph after all.

 

Fall for Dance-Vincent Mantsoe

rachelswed

Vincent Mantsoe

Vincent Mantsoe grew up in Soweto, South Africa. Mantsoe learned to dance through youth clubs, street dancing and music videos. He also participated in the traditional rituals involving song and dance that were practiced by the women in his family, who were traditional healers.

In 1990, Mantsoe won a scholarship to Sylvia Glasser’s Moving Into Dance Company. There, he began to explore the possibility of merging street dance with traditional dance. From 1997 until 2001, Mantsoe was associate artistic director of MID. Mantsoe is primarily a solo performer; he has also created work for ensembles including Dance Theatre of Harlem in New York City and COBA (Collective of Black Artists) in Toronto, Canada.

Mantsoe’s choreography combines traditional, contemporary African dance with Asian and ballet influences in a cross-cultural Afro-fusion style. He acknowledges the influence of spirituality in his creative work. He describes his dance as a process of “borrowing” from the “ancestors.” He notes the importance of understanding and appreciating the sources of his traditional movements.

I enjoy his dancing because it is very slow so you can focus on his movements. Also, I appreciate that he is a solo dancer so you can focus on him and not multiple dancers.

References:

http://artsalive.ca/en/dan/meet/bios/artistDetail.asp?artistID=155

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vincent_Mantsoe

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sw0JKIAD0d0

Torch song-Story

rachelswed

The plot and overview of the show, Torch Song, was about finding love and romance. The first scene was called International Stud. In this scene, Arnold talks about how he wants to meet the perfect guy and actually wants to love someone and settle down. He also talks about how he met many people and he still did not find the one. Then he meets Ed, at a bar, who is still “closeted” and does not want to accept who he is as a person. After their night together Arnold does not see Ed for a while. This gets Arnold anxious, and he calls Ed, Ed then states he just wants a “normal” life with a wife and kids. Arnold thought he met the perfect guy and really loves Ed but can not accept the fact that he wants to keep their relationship a secret. They end this “relationship” and Ed dates a girl named Laurel and they get serious. Meanwhile, Arnold meets a new guy, Alan. Arnold really does not love Alan and Ed does not really love Laurel. This still connects with the theme of love since it can often be complicated and hard. When Arnold comes to visit Ed, Ed even confesses he still likes Arnold, nothing happens as a result. After five years together Alan is killed from a hate crime on the street. Arnold misses him and loves him more now that he is dead. Ed leaves Laurel, wondering about what going on with them, and goes to see Arnold. Ed confesses his love for Arnold again and he accepts it and says they can finally talk about it. This show proves how love can be hard but can work out at the end.

The Brooklyn Museum- “A Storm in A Rocky Mountain”

rachelswed

 

My first impression of the painting was that it was very lifelike. I felt like I was in the painting when I looked at it closely and it felt real to me. My second impression was it looked very ethereal. The painting looked very light and airy. But there is also a kind of darkness when looking at the mountains so I feel that causes a contrast which was why the painting was so appealing to me. Another thing I noticed was many clouds forming causing the mountains to appear dark portraying a storm is coming which was a crucial part of the painting and what the painting was named after.