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Saavri Biswal

Mrs. Miller

Humanities Art

13 April 2019

Art Gallery Review

For my gallery review, I went to the Whitney Museum in New York. The show I saw is called Spilling Over: Paintings Color in the 1960s. There were various featured artists in this show. The show displayed many paintings and sculptures from the 1960s and the early 1970s. A common theme I noticed is the artwork is very abstract. As well as, each piece portrays a variety of vibrant colors and shapes in a unique format. A lot of the pieces used rigid geometric shapes while others used smooth and flowing stokes. Also, each painting has its own personal meaning to the artist. For example, one piece that moved me is called Jigsaw, by Miriam Schapiro which was made in 1969. In her piece, she uses bold colors and shapes to show her view on the female body. She used her artwork to represent the human body and gender identity. This piece spoke to me because it represents feminism. The vibrant colors and powerful shapes she used are expressing a women. When first looking at this piece, I did not see a female body, however taking a deeper look at it now, I am seeing a very powerful message. I see a woman stuck in one position. Meaning the shapes are tense and the woman seems to be unable to change who she is and what she wants to be. During this time period, women were very restricted. They were not allowed to live their dreams, and they had to live up to the title of being a household wife. The message I am taking away from the piece, is women wanted to be free but could not due to the pressure of fulfilling being a household wife. Another piece that I saw is called, Gamma Delta, by Morris Louis, created in 1950-1960. His piece used a lot more freedom and did not have a specific meaning. His painting is described by disembodied. To me, his piece demonstrates relaxation and flowiness. The colors he used, were on the cooler side of the spectrum. The technique he used, was to let the colors bleed around the canvas. He also had a lot of open space in the center of the canvas. . Another piece that spoke to me was Dan Johnson’s Surprise, by Frank Bowling. In his painting, he had three images of South America. He used different shapes in an abstract form to create this continent. His piece is expressing the colonization and the African diaspora. I like how this piece had some historic background. Overall, I like how the pieces were abstract, yet everyone would have their own meaning to it.

I really enjoyed going to see this show. I liked how all the art was different and unique in its own way. I thought it was unique how each painting had not only a meaning to the artist, but to the audience as well. It was interesting for me to see how people create pieces by only using shapes and colors. The colors in the show were unbelievable. Artists used a variety of colors such as vibrant or faded or neon. While being in the Whitney, I did not have much appreciation for this art. Looking back, I thought the art were just shapes and colors, but now, I am realizing the significant meaning that the artist had. It is hard for me to find something that I disliked, however, one thing was the colors. Some of the colors were so bright that it was hard for me to look at the painting without squinting my eyes.

I think this show was very successful. Many people, including myself were enjoying it. I would definitely recommend it to others. I feel that others would enjoy this show because it was fun to learn about the different meanings the artists had with their paintings. One question I want to ask the artists is Why? Why did they decide to make these paintings? Did they plan out their paintings or did it come naturally? My overall experience at the Whitney was really fun. I really enjoyed seeing all the paintings.

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Saavri Biswal

Humanities Final Project

Wassily Kandinsky Abstract Art

Wassily Kandinsky was born and raised in Moscow, Russia on December 16, 1866. Kandinsky is from the Expressionism period which took place in 1905 through 1930. He grew up in a town called Odessa where he enjoyed art and music. As a child he took cello, piano, and art lessons. As he grew older, Kandinsky put aside art and music and enrolled in the University of Moscow to pursue a career in law and economics. After becoming a lawyer, at the age of thirty, Kandinsky decided to pursue a career in art.

Kandinsky was known for the creation of abstract art. He is considered one of the founding fathers of this art form. Before Kandinsky became an abstract painter, he was greatly influenced by many artists from the impressionist period. During this time, he painted many landscapes. One of his most famous landscape piece is, The Blue Rider, which he made in 1903. In 1909, Kandinsky realized that there did not need to be a certain subject in art. Meaning, he could express his ideas by using colors and shapes. After this discovery, many pieces were filled with many unique shapes and colors. These shapes and colors expressed emotions and music. His most favorite shapes were the triangle, square, and circle. These shapes had powerful feelings as well. The triangle represents aggressive emotions, the square represents calm emotions, and the circle represents spiritual feelings. For the representation of music, Kandinsky also used different colors. The different colors would resonate with each other which made them look like chords. Another famous piece from his abstract time is called, Composition VII, which he made in 1913. Kandinsky brought a whole new form of art to society, called abstract art, which states that shapes and colors can have their own meanings or emotions.

To make my painting more like Kandinsky, the medium I used was watercolor and pen. Just like Kandinsky, I listened to music while I painted so the music could impact my piece. I also used different shapes, such as the triangle, square, and circle; as well as different lines, such as a rigid and smooth lines. Another feature I included was several different colors. The emotions I incorporated in my piece is calmness and liveliness. To make my piece lively and calm, I used warm colors and cool colors. I used different techniques to make my piece very similar to Wassily Kandinsky.

Work Cited:

“Wassily Kandinsky.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 5 Apr. 2019, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wassily_Kandinsky.

Nelson, Ken. "Biography: Wassily Kandinsky Art for Kids." Ducksters, Technological Solutions, Inc. (TSI), www.ducksters.com/biography/artists/wassily_kandinsky.php. Accessed 10 April 2019.

McBurney, Gerard. “Wassily Kandinsky: the Painter of Sound and Vision.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 24 June 2006, www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2006/jun/24/art.art.

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For my picture, I chose to take a photo of a new rose. I tried to make my style Dutch baroque. In the actual picture the leaves under the rose are a dark green. However, in my photo, I edited it to have a darker background and leaves because a lot of the Dutch art had darker backgrounds. I also chose a secular object.

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1. Perspective, Modeling, Anatomy

2. Light and Dark

3. Da Vinci, Michaelanglo

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A vanishing impacted the Renaissance because it made the paintings more realistic

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There are many scenes I would like to be in my tomb. One memorable moment for me, was when I went to Hawaii. My trip to Hawaii this year was not any ordinary trip, this trip was my very last with my sister before she goes off to college. I am sure there will be more with her in the future, however, this is the last one with her living under the same roof. In my drawings, I drew the Hawaiian Islands, my mom, my sister and I. In this image, my sister and I are carrying a surfboard. I am proud to say, I went snorkeling to another end of the bay all by myself. Another image I put on my drawing is the words, “You are accepted too...JLS and Pinewood” This moment was huge for me. These two schools have changed my life and I am very proud of myself for getting into both. An object I would want to be buried with me is my rings; I have rings on my hands and feet. Every time I go to Hawaii, my mom, my sister, and I all get a new ring. I really like to wear these rings because it shows that I am an artistic person and I feel that it represents me. This is what I want to be in my future tomb so that I will be satisfied in my afterlife.

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For my portable sculpture, I would choose a friendship ring. I chose this object because having connections and friendships with people is very important to me. The ring has a infinity sign which represents endless friendship and eternity. Having friendships during the Nomadic time would keep me going and minimize the labor.

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What is art to me? I think of art as a way of expression. Many use art to deliver a powerful message. I believe art is something that is created with significant meaning or is a piece of work which is done with their personal style. Art does not have to be handmade, it could be an ordinary object which the artist could add or change it to make it their own. Art is also a controversial topic. For example, a controversial piece is the urinal, by Marcel Duchamp. Many view this piece as something very unique which has meaning and which had inspired the artist. Others view this piece as just an ordinary urinal. Those who view this piece with a meaning have a awareness of their surroundings and they can view not only art but the world differently. Those who also have this ability can also interpret it, meaning they can view it in their own perspective and relate with it. I believe to make something art, the artist has to connect with it. Not only that, the artist gets to decide whether or not their work is art. Art is a way of expression which can be interpreted differently. This is what art means to me.