Author Archives: Xiao Han

In the Power to Look

In the video “In the Power to Look” is part of the Art Institute of Chicago’s Art Explainer series, it illustrates that looking closely is one of the best tools to observe at the world. People can discover many details through careful observation and understand the true meaning of the work and understand what these artworks want to tell us. The video includes “American Gothic” by Grant Wood; “Yoruba Crown” from Nigeria; “Paris Street Rainy Day” by Gustave Caillebotte and “Untitled #92” by Cindy Sherman. There are four different methods which are standards of intellectual quality. They are clarity, breadth, depth, and relevance.

In the “Yoruba Crown” from Nigeria, the presenter use clarity that one of the standards of intellectual quality illustrates the true consciousness represented by some details of the crown, such as birds representing women, real eyes in front and back, etc. By observing these details, people can understand this crown clearly and simply. In addition, in the “ Paris Street Rainy Day” by Gustave Caillebotte in 1877, the relevant information allows us to connect this work with the social background, and I know that the author used the camera and some painting skills when creating, so that the page allows people to know the higher educational background of the painter because I do not think all people can use camera in 18s. Moreover, I think breadth and depth always relate together, the “Untitled #92” by Cindy Sherman expresses that the painting is very clear. The eyes in the painting intuitively show some ignorant details, but the fear diffuses from the eyes, triggering the association of the audience’s depth and breadth.

Therefore, the standards of intellectual quality are very significant because people author depend on it to convey some information accurately and audiences can rely on these to expand and develop deeper understand.

 

 

Why Art Matter

Art is a diverse range of human activities in creating visual, auditory or performing artifacts, expressing the author’s imaginative, conceptual ideas, or technical skill, intended to be appreciated for their beauty or emotional power. In the first video “Why Art Matters”, it demonstrates four people base their comprehension to explain to us that art affects people’s ideas through vision, it can be displayed in any form and in any way. when they look at it, art develops the thinking of people. Art can be anything. Thus, they highlight that art is significant in people’s lives because art expands and deep thinking.

In traditional art, art may be hard to understand, but as the times progress, I think art has changed a little bit. People start to relate between real life and art. Art comes from life.  More and more artists start to create art in very easy ways which is very prevalent right now. This is why more and more people are concerned about this. In fact, art is closer to people’s lives which is more accepted and understood by ordinary people. Moreover, most of the time art uses itself to communicate with people. It becomes a method in which people can get information or people start deeply thinking. This is special to art and it is more visual than other sciences or activities.

Also, I feel art is not only the communication between art and people. In fact, it also promotes the communication between people. Through an artwork, people who do not know each other can resonate or have a consistent view. It can also expand or develop people’s different views of the same thing, this kind of thing in this era, has been a direct way to promote communication and create activities.