History of Art II

  “Indrajit meets with Ravana, then binds Rama and Laksmana with magic serpents; Sita is told they are dead,”  c. 1650-52, watercolor on paper Throughout the whole art piece, there are various poses, gestures, and colors. All of these elements come together to portray several events across different timelines. Each scene being portrayed is from the ancient Indian epic poem Ramayana. The story centers around the confrontation of good and evil. While centering around good and evil, it also focuses on the human condition, where the characters experience various emotions. Loss, love, fear, and other topics are encountered throughout the story. While looking at the painting, some of these topics are visible in the scenes. Without knowing that the painting is about the poem, Ramayana, a person could have their own interpretation about what is going on. However, once knowing that the painting depicts scenes from Ramayana, you can see which characters there are and where they are. ...

Umbo (Otto Umbehr), The Roving Reporter, photomontage, 1926                 Originally, photography was appreciated for its ability to replicate exact details. People also valued photography for being able to help with reproducing artworks for publication. Besides these uses, photographers were not seen as artists or struggled severely to be able to be seen as artists. Slowly, photography was climbing its way next to art. Photography’s potential was then being recognize for its innovative form of helping artists understand the world around them.                 At first, photography was accepted and valued by people who wanted to document the world. Instead of wanting to use photography for people, the subject matter began to change. People were able to document things as they were and movement that the human eye was not able to. Just like how naturalist artists wanted to...

  Aztec feathered headdress, reproduction. Original: early 16th century,  quetzal, cotinga, roseate spoonbill, piaya feathers, wood, fibers, amate paper, cotton, gold, and gilded brass      Moctezuma’s headdress should be returned to Mexico. It is unknown whether the headdress actually belonged to the emperor, Moctezuma. This could mean that it may have been stolen and even if it weren’t, the indigenous community would appreciate having a part of their history and culture back. While looking at the headdress, it can serve as a reminder of what the culture was like to be able to make a headdress. It is proof of the hard work that the amanteca (in Nahuatl), feather worker, put into their culture to create a visually stunning and durable art piece.      The Aztecs were master feather-workers who put a lot of effort into making headdresses. To assemble Moctezuma’s headdress, 500 quetzal feathers were taken from 250 birds, who only have two or three ta...