Arts in NYC 2016

1. “Five Cents a Spot” was a photograph taken by Jacob Riis in 1889 in one of the dilapidated tenements of New York City. I found this work to be particularly appealing because Riis was able to capture the terrible living conditions and expose this reality to the public through this one photo.  It was shocking to see all the tight, crowded living quarters that these men had to live in and their expressions revealed even more about the unfortunate situation they were in.  It brought to light how life was like for the poorer, working class so clearly and easily.  It’s an interesting photo to just observe and stare at for a few minutes because there seems to be so many things in the photo to look at.  From the filth on the walls to the belongings of the men, the photo does a great job of exposing the reality of the men who lived in these cheap, small tenements.

   

2. Tama Janowitz’s “Physics” is published in 1985 in “The New Yorker.” I really enjoyed this short story because I like how the plot revolved around a woman who’s trying to survive in the big apple.  Her struggle seems all too common with many artists and designers today who are trying to make it big in New York City and hopefully become rich and successful.  Janowitz portrays the life of Eleanor in a realistic and entertaining way.  It shows the superficiality of the glamorous lifestyle of some New Yorkers and one message that came across the story was to be grateful for what you have and that things aren’t always what they seem.  My favorite part of the story was the fact that it was set in New York City and that Eleanor and her boyfriend had a fancy party to attend.  That, for me, was a captivating scene where the author explored one of the many lifestyles that exist in New York City.https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5bJsJt8H0m1WW9zX0VMaV9Xb2c/view
3. “Hester Street” is an oil on canvas painted by George Luks in 1905. Hester Street is located in New York City’s Lower East Side.  I really enjoy paintings that depict busy New York City streets because it captures the hustle and bustle of the city that I know so well.  “Hester Street” does just that and it’s a colorful painting that shows crowds of people on the street.  There are people of all ages and sizes.  There’s a concentration of little children in the middle of the painting and I feel like that gives the painting a mixture of innocence and simplicity.  The people in the spotlight of the painting have their faces and bodies more defined while the people in the back are more blurred.  This gives the painting an interesting perspective.

   

4. “Fifth Avenue” is an oil on board painted by George Luks in 1920. This painting depicts Fifth Avenue which is known for its higher class attractions and shops in New York City.  Instantly, you get a feeling of luxuriousness from the painting.  Although the figures in the painting aren’t clear, you can tell that they’re wealthy because of the way they’re painted.  They have elongated bodies and it seems like some of them are wearing fur jackets.  The painting, in general, isn’t very defined and very blurred and smoothed out.  This painting appealed to me because of its connection with Fifth Avenue which I like to visit myself.  It also captures the business of New York City, with cars and double decker buses in the painting as well.

   

5. Walt Whitman’s “Manhatta” was written in sometime in the nineteenth century. Of course, the poem is about New York City and what one should expect to find there. I really enjoyed this poem because Whitman wrote this with a purpose of displaying his love for his city.  There’s a certain pride that you can hear in the poem and it’s confirmed when he says in his last line, “City nested in bays! My city!”  Whitman writes about the routine things one would find in the city such as the immigrants arriving every week and throngs of people walking on the streets.  However, Whitman writes these seemingly monotonous and simple things and makes it seem special and unique to only New York.  That’s why I feel a certain connection to Whitman’s poem about this city that’s so grandeur and beautiful. https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5bJsJt8H0m1RWxzaksyVlhHVHc/view
6. Allen Ginsberg “Mugging” was written in the 1970’s and inspired by his own experience in New York City. This story is about a very common occurrence in New York- mugging.  Although this isn’t a very proud thing to say of New York, Ginsberg’s short story captures the suddenness of such a mugging and it’s also a common occurrence today as well.  For many people, it’s a relatable experience.  However, I found this short story to be appealing because of the way it was written.  I love the descriptions of the things that the main character observed and everything was very “new york” in that he mentioned things you would only find in New York, such as taxicabs or things that are common and unique to New York. https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B5bJsJt8H0m1NXdwUGF2aVc1dWc/view
7. Alfred Stieglitz’ “From My Window at the Shelton, North” taken in 1931 outside the window of his gallery in New York City. I found this picture to be appealing because it’s very common today to take pictures outside windows, especially in a New York City skyscraper where the view is beautiful.  It was interesting to see a different version of the same kind of photo.  This photo was black and white and taken early in the twentieth century so it’s surprising to see how similar yet different this picture and a picture taken from a window today is.  Because it was black and white, the photo gave a different feeling to the viewers than a color photo.  This particular photo gives off a somber, rainy day kind of vibe even though it was probably a sunny day.  Of course, it’s because of technological advances that this photo and a photo taken today are so different.  But, all in all, it was just nice to see a different version of a common photo taken today.

   

8. Robert Henri’s “Snow in New York” was painted in 1902. This painting depicts a typical day after a snowstorm in New York City.  Even though this was painted in 1902, this image is all too familiar to when it snows in New York today.  I think it’s because of this common experience that makes this painting so appealing.  It’s also amusing how even though there’s so much snow on the ground, there’s still a car trying to drive through it just like how it is today.  People are out and about in the snow, just going on with their lives as if it hadn’t snowed several inches overnight.  It’s this familiarity with the snow in the city streets that make this painting slightly amusing.  But, in general, I enjoy paintings that depict New York City streets and this painting does just that but with snow on the ground.

   

9. Ella Fitzgerald’s “A-Tisket, A-Tasket” was recorded in 1938 but it was unclear as to where it was recorded. I love this particular song by Ella Fitzgerald because I think that this song showcases her eloquent, clear voice the best.  The song is extremely catchy and is reminiscent of a nursery rhyme played to the rhythm of jazz.  I liked how she was able to turn a nursery rhyme into a jazz song in the first place which seems to be her specialty.  I’ve heard this song before and it’s definitely one of Fitzgerald’s most highly regarded songs and for many good reasons too.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjJry0vhHj4
10. Palmer Hayden’s “Midsummer Night in Harlem” was painted in 1936, depicting a typical summer night on a Harlem Street. Like my other favorite paintings, this shows a New York City street. I love how Hayden was able capture the vibrancy of the African American culture during the Harlem Renaissance in this one painting.  African Americans are crowding the front stoops as well as the streets and it shows just how lively it is at night on a Harlem street.  It shows how the community is familiar with one another and they all seem to know each other and their business.  It shows a very intimate environment where they all enjoy each other’s company and it’s a very heart-warming painting.  The night sky is also depicted in the upper left hand corner and despite it being night, the street is just as busy as ever.

    

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Flushing’s History

Flushing, which had been previously called Vlissengen, was granted a charter by the Dutch West India Company in 1645. It consequently joined and formed part of the Dutch colony of New Netherlands. Among the earliest settlers of Flushing were the Quakers who came due to religious persecution in England after the Dutch. They felt that going to the New World would allow them to practice their religion freely without fear of persecution. However, once Peter Stuyvesant became the governor of New Netherlands, he issued an edict prohibiting anyone in the colony to allow a Quaker meeting to be held at his or her home for the punishment would be a fine of fifty pounds. A notable resident of Flushing, Henry Townsend, was fined and banished after he held a Quaker meeting at his house.  At this incident, many were furious and indignant, and this prompted them to write up the Flushing Remonstrance, a petition signed on December 27, 1657.  The Flushing Remonstrance appealed to Peter Stuyvesant and demanded religious freedom.  This was a significant time in Flushing’s history because this may have been the first time ever that American colonists in general fought for their basic fundamental rights on which America was supposed to have been founded.  Even after the Flushing Remonstrance, Quakers still continued to be persecuted.  John Bowne, another notable Flushing resident, held Quaker meetings at his farmhouse, which he had bought the land it stood on and had built the house himself. The house is still standing today on Bowne Street with just the front part of the house added in 1680.  Consequently, Stuyvesant sent Bowne back to Holland where Bowne was able to present his case to the Dutch West India Company. The Company then wrote a letter to Stuyvesant that established religious freedom in New Netherland in 1663. This ended the harsh persecution of Quakers.  Even though the English took over the colony the following year and still imposed some fines due to Quakers refusing to do military service, they were still allowed to have their meetings without fear of punishment; they continued to meet at Bowne’s house for the next three decades. Bowne donated some land and also bought land next to a burial ground he arranged on Northern Boulevard. This land was used for a house meeting site, which was called the Old Quaker Meeting House, and its first meeting was subsequently held in 1694.

Upon English colonial control of Flushing, all of New Amsterdam, which included Flushing, was renamed as the Province of New York in 1664 (Russell). Moreover, Queens County was then established in 1683, consisting of five towns: Flushing, Hempstead, Jamaica, Newtown, and Oyster Bay (Russell). However, the Flushing in Queens County was larger than present-day Flushing with its border being Newtown on the west by Flushing River, Jamaica on the south by the watershed, and Hempstead on the east by the present-day Nassau County line. During this time, Flushing was heavily populated with flora and was the first site for tree nurseries in the New World (Russell). Kissena Park contained beautiful, exotic trees that would be eventually be supplied for Central Park for the Greensward Plan (Valles). Even today, streets along Kissena Boulevard towards Kissena Park honor the once great trees located here as they are named Ash Avenue, Beech, Cherry, Poplar, Quince, and Rose.

Flushing also played an important factor during the American Revolution, similarly to much of Queens. The majority of the residents in present-day Queens favored the British in the war, and thus aided the British by quartering their troops. Flushing helped the British cause during the Battle of Long Island and also was the location of the heinous hanging of Nathan Hale, an American soldier and spy in the Continental Army, whose last words were “I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country” (History of Flushing Meeting). Following the war, New York City’s population increased enormously and started to grow as the economic capital of the world. Because Flushing was nearby Manhattan, it grew and transformed into a fashionable residential area (Weil).

The Town of Flushing continued to grow in population; in 1860, its population was 10,188 according the US Federal Census, and it incorporated new villages such as the Village of Flushing in 1837, the Village of College Point in 1867, and the Village of Whitestone in 1868. However, in 1898, major changes occurred to the Town of Flushing and New York City as a whole. The City of New York consolidated with neighboring locations such as East Bronx, Brooklyn, most of Queens, and Staten Island to form to New York City that is recognized today (Weil). Although Flushing opposed the proposal for a City of the Greater New York, it was still consolidated into the City of New York and became a part of the new Borough of Queens.

In the 20th Century, Flushing continued its economic and population growth in the same manner it had during the 19th century. Bridges constructed over the Flushing River, the construction of the Queensboro Bridge, the development of roads into Flushing, the introduction of railroad service to Manhattan by the Long Long Island Rail Road Port Washington Branch and the development of 7 train line in Flushing in 1928, all heavily contributed to the growth of Flushing as both a commuter suburb and a commercial center (Driscoll). Traffic increased in Flushing so much that a main roadway through Flushing named Broadway was widened and renamed to Northern Boulevard. Surprisingly, Flushing was also a major player in the Film Industry before the surge of Hollywood. RKO Keith’s Theater, built in 1928 and containing approximately 2,974 seats, was a famous movie palace in Flushing that hosted vaudeville acts and appearances by Mickey Rooney, The Marx Brothers and Bob Hope (Driscoll).

However, in the 1970s, the demographics of Flushing started to change dramatically. Flushing was a predominantly non-Hispanic white community with a small Japanese community, but in the 1970s a Chinese community explosion occurred (Chen). At first, those of Taiwanese descent, primarily former soldiers and political supporters of the Chinese Nationalist Party, who lost the war against the Communist Party of China, arrived and developed Flushing’s Chinatown to the point where it was first known as Little Taiwan (Chen). Because the Taiwanese immigrants spoke Mandarin Chinese opposed to Cantonese-speaking immigrants who resided in Manhattan’s Chinatown, the Taiwanese immigrants did not relate to Manhattan’s Chinatown and decided to settle in Flushing where there was better living standards. Over time and up to present day, new non-Cantonese ethnic Chinese immigrants came gradually to Flushing and transformed Little Taiwan into Flushing’s own Chinatown (Chen). Today, Flushing’s Chinese population is very diverse with various regional and provincial dialects spoken and many varied Asian cultures coming together to create Flushing’s beautiful Chinatown.

Overview of Culture Events and Institutions 

Corona Park World’s Fairs

First appearing in 1939, and then in 1964, Flushing Meadows Corona Park hosted two World’s Fairs. These fairs would later become the two largest international exhibitions to be held in the United States. The fairs that were held 1964/1965 was much more known and successful than the first one. The fair’s theme for that year was “Peace Through Understanding”. The main objective for hosting the fair was to showcase the American culture and technology of the mid 20th century. Although initially the turnout was expected to be 70 million in attendance, 51 million people attended the fair. The fair also showcased many American consumer products. Many products included those related to transportation, living, and consumer electronics. The fair is credited to putting Queens on the map as alternative destination from New York’s popular Manhattan borough. What remains of the fair today are the Unisphere, and the ruins of the observatory towers, both of which have been featured in multiple films as a landmark.

Queens Botanical Garden

The Queens Botanical Garden first opened as an exhibit in 1939 during the New York World’s Fair. The garden carries on almost a three century long tradition of horticulture which was famous for their tree nurseries and seed farms. The construction of the garden totaled to an estimated $12 million dollars during construction for the 1964 World’s Fair.

Sports Stadiums

Flushing is also known for housing some of the nation’s most well-known stadiums. The home of the New York Mets, Citi Field is located just a few minutes away from Flushing’s Main Street. Also located in Flushing is the home of the US Tennis Open, the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center.

Flushing Night Out

Although Flushing Night Out is an event that was established recently in 2015 by the Greater Flushing Chamber of Commerce, it has become increasingly popular for not only residents in Queens, but it has also attracted the attention of commuters from other boroughs. Flushing Night Out is the first community market and social event to be hosted in downtown Flushing in recent years. Annually, the event brings in local restaurants, artists, entertainers and fashion entrepreneurs. The point of this event for the Greater Flushing Chamber of Commerce was to help local businesses get acquainted with their community as well as embrace the sense of community in the very diverse town in Queens. This year, the event is hosting four events, each with a different theme including “Summer Nights”, “Beach Day”, “Unwind” and “718 Love”. In their first year hosting this community event, organizers were able to draw in over 3,000 attendees and they expect even more to come for their 2016 dates. The event this year was hosted at Flushing High School, to accommodate the expected attendance increase. The event also comes at a great time to celebrate the 140th year anniversary of the historic Queens landmark: the oldest public high school in New York City.

“Empire State of Mind” By: Jay-Z ft. Alicia Keys

This song is essentially Jay-Z’s tribute to New York City which is where he was born and raised, more specifically in Brooklyn.  What drew me to the song initially was the hip hop style of the song that combined rapping by Jay-Z and vocal segments sung by Alicia Keys.  When I first heard the song, I thought it was a very successful collaboration between the two artists and their respective parts complemented each other extremely well.  The second thing that drew me to the song was the topic of New York City.  The song felt familiar and comforting because it had many references to places in New York City and includes things that only New Yorkers would understand.  It was almost like an insider secret between the song and New Yorkers.  It made me, as a New Yorker, included in this special “in” group that Jay-Z creates as he is rapping and I guess that’s what made the song even more meaningful to me.

The song was released in 2009 in Jay-Z’s 11^th studio album, The Blueprint 3.  As mentioned before, the song was a tribute to New York City from the two artists who are both New York City natives.  Jay-Z was born and raised in Brooklyn and grew up to become one of the most well-known, successful hip hop artists and rapper of our times.  Alicia Keys was born and raised in Manhattan and had always been involved with the arts from a young age.  As both artists are New York natives, it makes sense for them to be the ones singing and rapping a song about New York City.

“Empire State of Mind” has a lot of references to specific places in New York City and Jay-Z raps about the culture of the city as well.  The diversity of the city is also evident in the rapping parts of the song because Jay-Z talks about the Hispanic population and says “welcome to the melting pot.”  The chorus sung by Alicia Keys, however, best encapsulates the song’s main message:

In New York

Concrete jungle where dreams are made of

There’s nothing you can’t do

Now you’re in New York

These streets will make you feel brand new

Big lights will inspire you

Let’s hear it for New York, New York, New York

The message is pretty simple and self-explanatory.  The song is trying to convey the idea that New York City is a city like no other and in this city, you can do anything you put your heart to.  It’s the atmosphere and ambiance that the city gives that causes its inhabitants to take a leap of faith in achieving their dreams and to work hard towards that goal.  It also proposes the concept of if you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere in the world.  There is a kind of magic that only exists in New York and it’s that magic that makes a person feel “brand new.”  The hustle and bustle of this city and the culture can make anyone feel like they can achieve anything and conquer the world.  In general, the song depicts the uniqueness and idiosyncrasies of the greatest city in the world and how it’s in this city, people feel invincible.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HhyUVM2w6ro

Amanda Zhang

Professor Hoffman

November 17, 2016

IDC 1001H

Alexandra’s One Day

            The sun shone through the thin, lacy curtains and spread across Alexandra’s bed as she shuffled and groaned.  It was 7:30 A.M. and her heart skipped a beat when she remembered that she had a day off from work that day.  She hadn’t been feeling well the day before at the factory and her manager who was kind enough to notice insisted that she take the day off.  Alexandra shook her head and laughed at the thought that the manager actually cared for her well-being.  He was probably afraid that she would spread her germs to the other girls working near her, and it would be a domino effect and hurt the productivity in his shirt factory.  All is well, she sighed.  After drinking some lemon tea yesterday that her mother brewed for her when she got home from work, she went straight to bed.  She woke up feeling rejuvenated and she felt even better knowing she had an empty expanse of free time ahead of her.  She flung the blanket from her body, feeling the growing heat from the sunshine to be unbearable.  It was only still morning, so the heat outside wasn’t too bad just yet.  Her family’s tenement on Elizabeth Street was empty and quiet except for the hushed bustle of people walking by outside her window.  Her little brother, Antonio, had gone with her mother on a supermarket run to buy the ingredients for that night’s dinner.  Everyone knew that the morning was the ideal time to get the freshest groceries for the fairest price.  It was Isabella’s, her fifteen-year-old little sister, birthday today and so it was bound to be a special night.  Isabella had gotten up at 5 A.M. to go to work and so Alexandra was unable to wish her a happy birthday.  Even on her birthday, she had to work to bring home money for the family.  Even though her family wasn’t rich, Alexandra considered herself to be lucky because they had their very own place to call home.  Their snug 2-room apartment cost them $8 per month so every penny they earned counted.  Everyone dreamed of achieving the American dream.  That was why her parents had immigrated to New York in the first place along with many other Italian immigrants from their motherland.  They weren’t the only ones.  There were a lot of Chinese immigrants as well near them in New York’s very own Chinatown.  Her encounters with the Chinese have all been very pleasant whenever she visited Mei Lin, her best friend, at her tenement building.  But nevertheless, Alexandra, who had just turned seventeen last month, was practically considered an adult and she understood her responsibilities in the household.  Her father was a shoe repairer and they had their own shop just a few blocks away from their apartment.

Alexandra brushed her teeth and prepared her morning breakfast of a biscuit and tea.  On the dining table was that morning’s newspaper.  Splashed across the headlines were the words “August 2, 1923: President Harding Dead.”  Alexandra’s jaw dropped and she skimmed the article about this startling and tragic news.  She shook her head as she placed the newspaper back in its place and daydreamed as she had her breakfast.  She wondered about the future of America and how things would be affected because of the president’s sudden death.  As she cleaned up the mess she made, Alexandra began mentally listing all the errands she had to complete and looked forward to the one exciting thing she had planned to do later in the day.  Since she had no work, she decided to attend to household duties her mother usually attended to.  Since it was Isabella’s birthday, Alexandra figured her mother would be busy and so it would make things easier if she completed some of the household tasks.  On the kitchen counter was a list of things that her mother planned to get.  Alexandra knew her mother would be rushing to get the last two things on the list, so she decided to get those things for her.  Even though they were a household of only five people, there were always so many errands to run and food to buy.  Her mother knew very well that her five-person family could very well eat for a family of eight.  But of course, they only feasted for birthdays and holidays and that day was one of those occasions.  Naturally, there were even more things to do that day.

Alexandra slipped on a white, cotton sundress and her sunhat to block the intense summer sun from her face and out she went, locking the door behind her.  She swung her coin purse on her left hand as she skipped down the few flights of stair and out onto the concrete pavements.  It was getting close to afternoon, and already tons of people were out and about.  Street vendors were encouraging passersby; shouts of Italian could be heard from a group of men gathered near a barber shop as the men jovially patted one another on the back.  New York City was up and fully awake.  As Alexandra walked down the street and turned a corner, she saw little boys and girls squealing as water was being sprayed from a hose and onto the street.  Some of the littlest ones were running around shirtless, enjoying the cool mist on a hot, summer day.  Alexandra continued on her way and finally stopped in front of a penny store to pick up a bag of chocolates for Isabella, who had an intense sweet tooth.  Her mother usually reprimanded Isabella for eating too many sweets, but since it was her birthday Alexandra was sure their mother would relent this one time.  After paying for her purchase, she proceeded to the General store where they had all household items in the store.  Her mother needed a new pin and needle as well as a new kitchen knife, as their old one had turned blunt and was useless in cutting anything.  After those two things had been crossed off the list, she went on her way home.  As she was walking on the sidewalk, cars drove by her on the street.  She marveled at how there had been a significant increase of automobiles in New York City, especially since Henry Ford had just recently introduced the first affordable car to the public.  It was exciting that now anyone could afford this incredible machine that was once only accessible to the rich.  Things are changing, she happily thought.

When she entered the apartment, she found her mother unloading the groceries and Antonio sitting in the corner, huddled in his book.

“Mama, I got the last two items on the list for you,” said Alexandra.

“Oh thank you sweetheart.  I knew I could count on you.  I kept putting off getting those things. Nevertheless, Isabella should be home in about four hours.  Plenty of time to prepare,” replied her mother.

Alexandra began, “I need to leave soon again but I’ll be back when Isabella should be back home.  I won’t be late, I promise.”

Without glancing up, her mother replied, “Okay Alexie, but don’t get yourself into trouble.  I want everyone to be home for dinner.”

“I will Mama, I promise” Alexandra answered.

After putting her purse back at her bedside, she got ready to get in her excitement for the day.  Alexandra had planned on sneaking into the Cotton Club, a place she only dreamed of being in and she smiled at the thought of being able to see her idols on stage.  She didn’t think it was crazy to sneak in because she had other friends who had done so too.  She loved listening to the croons of Billie Holiday, and the laughter of the amusing Duke Ellington.  She had only imagined being able to see and hear these artists perform.  But everyone knew that the Cotton Club was the place where all her favorite singers performed and the club was of such a high caliber.  Alexandra felt butterflies in her stomach thinking about finally being able to experience what it’s like to be in the audience of a Cotton Club performance.

Alexandra left the house after giving her goodbyes to her mother and Antonio, with the promise of returning by dinner time.  Alexandra trekked all the way to Harlem which wasn’t too far from where she lived.  The Cotton Club stood before her as a sparkling emblem of magnificence, with its huge, bright letters across the front.

Clusters of couples, white men, rich ladies in fancy sun hats all gathered at the front entrance.  Alexandra was glad that she had decided to wear her hat too, hoping that she would blend in with the crowd.  Black, shiny cars were pulling up to the front entrance of the club with chauffeurs coming around to open the door.  White women in pearls and men in top hats stepped out of each of these cars.  They joined the conglomeration of people already milling around by the entrance of the club, waiting to go in.  Although the show time hadn’t started yet, people began filing slowly into the theatre with the doors swinging open and shut everytime someone walked through them.  Alexandra took a deep breath as if she were going underwater and walked next to a couple of middle aged ladies in floral dresses.  They huddled together in a group and walked into the theatre with their tickets flashing between their fingertips.  Alexandra pushed herself among the ladies and the young man checking tickets simply nodded at the group and let them pass.  Once through the front door, Alexandra gave a sigh of relief and quickly detached herself from the oblivious ladies.  The ladies, too busy chattering among themselves to notice that a stranger had used them as a shield, went deeper into the theatre to find some seats and order some drinks.  Alexandra braced her shoulders and took in her surroundings.  There were mini tables with about four chairs to each table that surrounded the stage which was located at the rear of the Club.  There was a large expanse of empty space in the middle of the club right by the stage for the audience to stand and drink while watching the performances.  The stools were already filled with people ordering drinks from the bartender to the left of the club.  The chattering rose as more people filed in.  Cigarette smoke wafted throughout the air while women stood gossiping and puffing their cigarettes between their fingers.  The musty smell of alcohol and cigarettes made Alexandra feel even more excited to be there.  She smiled to herself and couldn’t believe where she was.  Adrenaline ran through her nerves and she took a seat to the left which was obscured in shadows.  People were milling around with drinks in their hands and greeting each other jovially.  All of a sudden, the lights dimmed and a spotlight shone on the stage.  Everyone became hushed and rushed to find a seat or gathered in the middle of the empty space.   In a quick few minutes, a man of a dark brown skin complexion appeared on stage and bean to sing a few notes that progressed into a beautiful melody.  He was accompanied by another man on the piano.  Everyone had their eyes fixed on the singer and clapped immensely when he was done with his first number.  Alexandra herself couldn’t contain her excitement and clapped profusely.  She knew that this was a moment she would never forget.  This was part of the American dream and a dream that she herself pursued.  It was being able to join the celebration of music and being a part of an atmosphere that was carefree and joyful.  Being able to come to the Cotton Club and not having to sneak in would be an accomplishment that Alexandra strove for.  For her, that meant that she made it and that her parents’ hard work and dedication for immigrating to the United States was paid off.  It wasn’t only about being able to enjoy all the pleasures that came with being in the upper class but it was about knowing that she was able to climb up from her poor roots and achieve the American dream.  Of course, that didn’t mean forgetting where she came from.  She would always be grateful for what she had and strive to achieve better and greater things.

Noticing how late it was getting, she got up from her seat and maneuvered her way out of the crowded theatre.  For Alexandra, that exhilarating experience at the Cotton Club was enough to satiate her desire for watching a beautiful performance at the elite Cotton Club.  She took a shortcut to go back home.  When she arrived, her entire family was already setting the table for Isabella’s birthday dinner.  Alexandra was out of breath, but she was grinning from ear to ear.

“What took you so long,” Isabella asked.

“Happy birthday Isabel!  Sorry about that, I had to do something important” Alexandra responded.

“Something more important than my birthday,” Isabella jokingly replied.

Alexandra answered, “Ha-ha, very funny.  Just because you’re a year older doesn’t mean you get to be a wisecrack.”

“Let’s all eat dinner,” the mother said, “It’s a special day!”

Alexandra replied more to herself, “Yes it definitely is.”

Amanda Zhang

Professor Hoffman

IDC 1001H

October 16, 2016

The Great Gatsby (2013)

The story in The Great Gatsby is told by Nick Carraway, an aspiring author who gave up writing to work with bonds in the financial industry of Wall Street.  At the start of the movie, he was seeing a doctor for his issues such as his alcoholism and insomnia.  He told the doctor that Gatsby was the one person that didn’t disgust him and that was how he started from the very beginning with his story about Jay Gatsby.  In 1922, Nick Carraway moved from the Midwest to West Egg in New York and had a small house.  He meets with his cousin, Daisy Buchanan and his Yale colleague and Daisy’s husband, Tom Buchanan.  The Buchanans are of old money and live in East Egg of Long Island.  Daisy tries setting Nick up with Jordan Baker, a professional golfer, but Jordan doesn’t seem to take interest in him.  There is tension in the Buchanan house because everyone seems to know about Tom’s mistress.  Tom takes Nick to Tom’s mistress, Myrtle’s, place who lives in the Valley of Ashes.  They go to an apartment that Tom keeps for Myrtle and they invite friends over and have a party.  When Nick is back home, he receives an invitation to one of the legendary parties that Gatsby hosts at his mansion next door.  When Nick arrives, there are people from all over flooding the place.  The party is an extremely extravagant and over the top get together where Gatsby seems nowhere to be found.  Nick hears rumors about Gatsby, his history and his wealth.  Nick finally meets Gatsby unintentionally and is instantly in awe of him.  The next day, Gatsby takes Nick out to lunch where he tells Nick all about his “past”.  Gatsby asks Nick a favor in which Jordan Baker is involved.  Jordan tells Nick all about how Gatsby is in love with Daisy and how they met five years ago.  Nick reunites Gatsby and Daisy together at his house over some tea.  The two lovers then start seeing each other in secret.  Gatsby has this fantasy and plan of his future life with Daisy and so he wants Daisy to tell Tom that she never loved him and always loved Gatsby.  Tom gets increasingly suspicious of Gatsby and Daisy.  When Daisy is ready to tell Tom about her and Gatsby, she changes her mind at the last minute but her true feelings are already exposed to Tom.  Tom, furious, takes them all out to town where he, Daisy, Gatsby, Nick, and Jordan are in a room of a plaza.  Before they got to the plaza, Tom finds out his mistress and her husband are leaving for the West and Tom already flustered feels more panic.  Soon things get out of hand when Gatsby reveals the truth to Tom and encourages Daisy to tell Tom too.  Daisy, feeling pressured, breaks down.  Gatsby loses his temper with Tom, and Daisy withdraws away from Gatsby.  Daisy goes home first and Gatsby chases her.  On their way home, they accidentally run over Myrtle who ran out into the street.  Tom finds out when goes home after them and he allows Gatsby to be blamed for the hit and run.  Back in the East Egg, Daisy and Tom are reconciled and Gatsby, still hopeful, waits for Daisy to call him.  Gatsby tells Nick the truth of his life and his hopes.  Gatsby is shot by Myrtle’s husband and has a funeral.  Tom, Daisy, and their daughter move.  Nick sees all this and is disgusted with everyone, except Gatsby.

The Great Gatsby was based off of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s 1925 novel The Great Gatsby.  The movie was directed by Baz Luhrmann (The Great Gatsby).  The movie was supposed to be filmed in New York City but instead the main settings were filmed in New South Wales, Australia, in particular, Gatsby’s mansion (Filming Locations).  The movie was also in a 3D format which was relatively innovative around the time they filmed it.  The director really wanted to effectively use space and distance in the scenes to create an illusion of depth (Giardina).  There were also a lot of mixed reviews for this movie.  Some criticized its literary element while others thoroughly praised the movie.  Fitzgerald’s granddaughter actually praised the film and said her grandfather would have loved it and even complimented the music from the movie (Miranda).  The Great Gatsby was supposed to have been originally released around Christmas 2012, but the studio, Warner Bros., postponed it until May 2013 where it was debuted at the Cannes Film Festival.  It was director Luhrmann’s “most commercially successful release with $351 million in worldwide grosses” (Giardina).  It also received many Oscar nominations for categories such as costume design and production design.

This movie seems to be mainly about Gatsby and Daisy, but underneath the surface of romance that seems to paint the entire movie are many issues that are just as significant.  The movie does a great job of highlighting the wealth that Gatsby possesses and the quiet, old money that Tom Buchanan comes from.  The new money that Gatsby possesses is illustrated by the colorful and flashy parties he holds at his palace every weekend.  His outfits and cars are also demonstrative of this fact.  I was consistently impressed by all of the settings in the movie from Tom and Gatsby’s mansions to the scenes on the Queensboro Bridge.  It isn’t easy trying to make everything seem like it was from the 1920s again and even with the technology that was used to recreate this era, I was definitely fascinated by the variety of the settings in the movie.  I think all of the actors did a great job playing their part, but my favorite was the actress who played Jordan Baker, Elizabeth Debicki.  I read the novel before so I had my preconceptions of how the characters should have been represented.  I believe Debicki played her part perfectly because she portrayed Jordan Baker the way I thought she should be portrayed, that is cool, calm and collected.  Even though she wasn’t one of the main characters, her role as a supporting character was, I felt, very instrumental to the development of Daisy’s character as well as Nick’s character.  A really eye opening part of the movie was when Nick comments on how Daisy and Tom are careless people because they destroy things, in this case, Gatsby, and then retreat back into their money.  I feel like that was a huge part of what the whole movie was about.  The fact that old money, like Daisy and Tom, could do whatever they wanted because of that status, it made them cold, heartless people in a time of hope and optimism that Gatsby reflected throughout the movie.  There are clear differences between old and new money and the unfortunate fate of Gatsby emphasizes this fact.  As Tom said, he was born into old money and it runs in his blood and this simple fact gave him privileges that other people lacked.  I think the movie tried to highlight the superficiality of wealth and the clear gap between social statuses with Tom’s character and Gatsby’s character.  Another significant aspect of the movie is the attachment that Gatsby placed on Daisy and how she was almost the equivalent of the American dream for him.  It made me wonder if Gatsby really loved Daisy or he just loved Daisy because for him, she represented all that he wanted in life.  This was made especially ambiguous during the scene when Gatsby told Nick about Daisy and there was a throwback scene to when Gatsby attended a party at Daisy’s house back in Louisville, Kentucky.  At that time, she seemed this unattainable wealthy dream that he wanted to achieve.  So it made me wonder if Gatsby was in love with Daisy or if he was just in love with the idea of her and what she could give him.  This movie is very much intertwined with several of our course themes.  For instance, the theme of social justice is one of the main aspects of the movie as depicted by the wealthy, including both old and new money, and the poor that was seen working and living in the Valley of Ashes.  Tom’s mansion and estate compared to the tiny, dirty apartment that Myrtle lives in emphasizes this enormous disparity between the upper class and the lower class.  Another theme that is related to the film is the New York City characters and lifestyles.  The characters in The Great Gatsby are ideal examples of how the upper class lived and behaved in the Roaring Twenties, especially in New York.  Their lifestyles can also be illustrated by the lavish parties thrown by Gatsby at his mansion.  Although this representation of people’s lifestyles in the 1920s may not be exactly accurate, it did give us an idea of the good times that came with the Roaring Twenties and the culture that was inhabited by the people of this era.  

Works Cited

“Filming Locations.” IMDb. IMDb.com, n.d. Web. 15 Oct. 2016.

Giardina, Carolyn. “Why ‘The Great Gatsby’ May Be the Most Influential Film of 2013.” The    Hollywood Reporter. N.p., 17 Jan. 2014. Web. 15 Oct. 2016.

Miranda, Charles. “F Scott Fitzgerald Family Praises Baz Luhrmann’s The Great    Gatsby.” NewsComAu. N.p., 19 May 2013. Web. 15 Oct. 2016.

“The Great Gatsby.” Rotten Tomatoes. N.p., 21 Apr. 2011. Web. 15 Oct. 2016.

 

Amanda Zhang

Professor Hoffman

IDC 1001H

October 9, 2016

Man Ray

Man Ray was well known for his contributions to the Dada and Surrealist movements and was involved in all kinds of media as a painter and photographer among others.  Man Ray was born as Emmanuel Radnitzky on August 27, 1890 in Philadelphia.  He was born into a Russian Jewish family and had a younger brother and two younger sisters.  His mother was a seamstress and his father was a tailor (Jung).  This seemingly trivial fact actually had a significant impact on Man Ray’s work as an artist because he used materials associated with the occupation such as needles and threads in various forms.  When his family moved to Williamsburg in Brooklyn, they were compelled to change their family name due to the fear of anti-Semitism that was prevalent in that area around that time.  They changed their last name to Ray and Emmanuel became just Man, hence Man Ray.  Man Ray was not very open to the public about his family’s background or his childhood (Man Ray and His Artworks).  It was in high school where Man Ray cultivated his art skills as well as skills in architecture and engineering.  He also frequently visited museums and art galleries in New York City on his own and was attracted to the avant-garde art that originated in Europe.  He was offered a scholarship to study architecture but turned it down to pursue a career in the arts (Jung).  A few years later in 1912, he attended the Ferrer School.  This was where he found artists to look up to such as Robert Henri and Adolf Wolff.  He lived with Adolf Wolff in Manhattan for short period and then moved to an artist colony in New Jersey.  During this time, he frequently visited the 291 Gallery in New York City and became close with the gallery owner, Alfred Stieglitz.  It was Stieglitz who introduced Man Ray to the art of photography.  Man Ray had originally been influenced by cubism and expressionism.  Cubism abandoned the idea of perspective and instead used geometric shapes and objects to create art (Cubism).  Expressionism, on the other hand, tended to demonstrate a subjective rather than an objective view of one’s surroundings and to have those emotions appear in the art (Expressionism).  However, once Man Ray met Marcel Duchamp in 1915 and became friends with him, he was influenced by Duchamp and subsequently focused more on surrealism and Dadaism.  Surrealism rejected the rational mind and believed in releasing the unconscious mind as a means of creative imagination (Surrealism).  Dadaism was interesting because it wasn’t so much of art as it was a protest against society, politics, and cultural ideals at the time. Both art forms were 20th century avant-garde movements and it shows Man Ray’s consistency in his desire for rejecting the standards and norms of art and wanting to create new art.  Together, Ray and Duchamp formed the New York Group of Dada artists, however this was a failure when Dadaism didn’t appeal to the public (Man Ray).  In 1916, they also started the Society of Independent Artists and in 1920 published one issue in in New York Dada (Jung).  Then in 1921, Man Ray moved to Paris, France and lived there for most of the rest of his life.  There, he continued contributing to the avant-garde movement and he also became a fashion photographer for magazines like Vogue.  It was also in Paris where he invented his “rayograph” which was essentially a photogram that used light sensitive paper and objects.  Unlike many other artists that we’ve seen, Man Ray also produced several films later on in his life.  In 1940, Man Ray left for Hollywood to escape the war going on in France at the time and stayed there for several years before going back to France to live for the rest of his life (Man Ray and His Artworks).  

Man Ray’s artwork was definitely influenced by the cultural context of the time period.  At that time, there were large cultural movements especially in art where artists would reject the standard of art and adopt the unorthodox and unique forms of art instead.  Also around this time from 1914 to 1918 was World War I and it was from this that Dadaism emerged.  The cruelty and brutality of the war just confirmed the Dada artists’ belief in the deterioration of society (World War I).  From Dadaism emerged surrealism which similarly challenged the norms of artistic style.  Man Ray was influenced by these two art movements which were heavily influenced by the time period in which he lived.  Man Ray’s art intertwines with various course themes such as art and its purpose.  Since Man Ray’s art was heavily reflected Dadaism, we know with a certain confidence that the purpose of Man Ray’s art was to rebel against the norms of art and challenge the rational.  For Man Ray, art seemed to be a way to relay a message to its audience and we can see these messages in many of his art works.  One of Man Ray’s most famous art work is a sculpture called The Gift (1921) in which it consisted of two mundane objects- an iron with tacks attached to it.  This piece of work is the epitome of Dadaism and the work highlights the uselessness of such objects while posing questions about society in general.  One of Man Ray’s earliest “rayograph” was called The Kiss (1922).  For this rayograph, he used a pair of hands and two heads.  Another well-known art work is called Le Violon d’Ingres (1924) which is a modified photograph of Kiki de Montparnasse’s nude back.  He made her body to appear like a musical instrument by adding sound holes to her back (Jung).  In addition, Observatory Time: The Lovers (1936) is a painting of the lips of his past lover, Lee Miller, floating midair.  This painting is an ideal representation of a surrealist painting as it employs geometric shapes (Observatory Time).  This wide range of examples demonstrates the flexibility Man Ray had in his art skills as a painter, photographer, and inventor of a new kind of art.  

Bibliography

“Cubism Movement, Artists and Major Works.” The Art Story. The Art Story Foundation, n.d.    Web. 08 Oct. 2016.

“Expressionism.” Expressionism. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Oct. 2016.

Jung, Jin. “Man Ray Biography, Art, and Analysis of Works.” The Art Story. The Art Story     Foundation, n.d. Web. 08 Oct. 2016.

“Man Ray.” Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 08 Oct. 2016.

“Man Ray and His Artworks.” Man Ray. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Oct. 2016.

“Observatory Time: The Lovers, 1936 by Man Ray.” Observatory Time: The Lovers, 1936 by Man    Ray. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Oct. 2016.

“Surrealism Movement, Artists and Major Works.” The Art Story. The Art Story Foundation, n.d.    Web. 08 Oct. 2016.

“World War I and Dada.” MoMA Learning. N.p., n.d. Web. 08 Oct. 2016.

Amanda Zhang

Professor Hoffman

IDC 1001H

September 16, 2016

Robert Henri

Robert Henri, an American painter and teacher, is well known for being one of the main figures of the Ashcan School.  He was born as Robert Henry Cozad on June 25, 1865 in Cincinnati, Ohio.  Interestingly, Robert Henri was a distant cousin of Mary Cassatt, an American Impressionist.  A dispute with a local rancher over the right to pasture cattle on the land owned by the family turned gruesome when Cozad’s father shot the rancher (Sullivan Goss 1).  To escape the negative reputation gained by this terrible scandal, the entire family fled and changed their names.  Hence, Robert Henry Cozad became known as Robert Earle Henri.  Robert Henri was sent to a boarding school in New York while his parents went to Atlantic City in New Jersey where they all later reunited as a family.  In 1884, Henri attended the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts for four years where we studied under Thomas Anshutz and was introduced to Thomas Eakins, an American realist painter.  He also went Paris and attended Academie Julian and the Ecole des Beauz-Arts (Britannica 2).  It was in Paris where Henri adopted a liking for the Impressionist style of painting.  The Impressionist style is focused more on capturing the sensory and momentary effect of a scene rather than relying on accurate depictions (Justin Wolf).  When he came back to the United States, he became a teacher at the School of Design for Women in Philadelphia.  This is also the time when he gained a few dedicated followers and they soon became known as “The Charcoal Club” and its members became known as “The Philadelphia Four.”  Robert Henri briefly went back to Paris where he had his work exhibited and then he came back to New York City where he taught at the New York School of Art.  By then, Robert Henri had rejected his admiration for Impressionism and began leaning towards a more realistic style of art.  The pivotal point in his life that led to the many subsequent developments for which he is well known for came when he was elected to the National Academy of Design.  Henri was infuriated, however, when the realist works of his fellow colleagues were rejected from being displayed at an exhibition (Sullivan Goss 6).  Robert Henri rallied the Philadelphia Four plus three other artists to display their work at group exhibition at the Macbeth Gallery in New York City.  The eight painters later assimilated into what became known as the Ashcan School, which was an artistic movement that was known for its urban subject matter, especially the poorer urban areas, and its depiction of the “real” (Ashcan School Movement). Later on in his life, Robert Henri taught at the Arts Student League in New York.  In 1929, he unfortunately passed away in New York City.

Robert Henri’s works were produced in and around the Progressive Era, which was a time of reform movements in response to industrialization and urbanization (The Progressive Era).  This time period influenced what Henri painted and how he wanted to depict his subjects in his numerous portraits.  Urbanization especially played a large role in a lot of his paintings in that he Robert Henri’s Ashcan School flourished mainly around the same time that muckraking journalists were highlighting the dismal conditions of the slums, especially in New York City. Most of Henri’s paintings are portraits of people and in particular, he narrowed a few of his paintings to immigrants living in Lower Manhattan (Ashcan School Movement).  Immigration is a prevalent seminar theme and understandably so.  It’s interesting that Henri as well as the other artists in the Ashcan School chose New York immigrants as the subjects of their paintings.  However, unlike photographers like Jacob Riis who had a motive for reform behind their works, Robert Henri and most of the Ashcan School artists painted just to depict the rawness and realness of the subjects.  “They [Ashcan School] were neither social critics nor reformers” (Weinberg).  This ties in with another seminar theme of what exactly art is and what is its purpose.  For Robert Henri, the purpose behind his art is mainly to depict the reality of life, especially urban life and to bring that vitality out through his paintings.  He didn’t have a goal of wanting to reform the poor social and economic conditions of the immigrants living in the slums.  He wanted to paint the way he did because he admired the style of realism and rejected impressionism.  His works clearly show his propensity for realistic depictions of his surroundings and of people.  One great example of this is his painting “Snow in New York.”  This demonstrates the spontaneity of this painting and how real and rough it is.  It’s an accurate depiction of the realism that Robert Henri consistently embodies in his works.  Another example would be a portrait named “Willie Gee” and it’s a portrait of a little African American boy from New York.  This is an uncommon subject as child portraits traditionally tend to be children of rich people wanting to display their wealth and memorialize their children.  But Henri decided to draw this little boy just because he thought he’d be an interesting subject to paint.  Additionally, one would think that because of the reformative era in which Robert Henri created his works and the fact that he used immigrants as subjects of some of his portraits that he would be commenting and criticizing the economic conditions of those who are less fortunate.  But Robert Henri seems to be more focused and intent on the artistic and realistic aspects of what an immigrant subject can bring to his works.

 

Bibliography/Works Cited

“Ashcan School Movement, Artists and Major Works.” The Art Story. The Art Story Foundation, n.d.       Web. 16 Sept. 2016.

“Robert Henri.” Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 16 Sept. 2016.

“Robert Henri.” Sullivan Goss: An American Gallery. Sullivan Goss, n.d. Web. 16 Sept. 2016.

“The Progressive Era (1890 – 1920).” The Progressive Era (1890 – 1920). George Washington    University, n.d. Web. 16 Sept. 2016.

Weinberg, Author: H. Barbara. “The Ashcan School | Essay.” The Met’s Heilbrunn Timeline of Art            History. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 Sept. 2016.

Wolf, Justin. “Impressionism Movement, Artists and Major Works.” The Art Story. N.p., n.d. Web.           16 Sept. 2016.