Author: vvj5056

Religion and art have traveled hand in hand through the centuries. Religion has utilized art in order to transmit messages, values, and promote the religion throughout the lands. But art, it has done much more than what religion actually needed, art could go both ways, it could perpetuate, idolize, and heighten many aspects of religion, but could also expose, criticize, and reveal sides to the audience that could have been clouded by the other-wise pedestaling form of representation.

A modern presentation of spiritual aspects of religion and churches is highlighted by art and enhanced with psychoactive drugs that links and brings religion and art to a tighter bond. It is called the International Church of Cannabis, which is the perfect example for this blog, because just like religion-themed art from before, it is controversial, some may like the new input and some may disagree in alarming levels, such as the introduction of Christians, where they had to make their religious art as ordinary things that could be interpreted within a religious context and they had to meet in colorful catacombs just so  they would not be murdered or ostracized for their religion. Art helped this new and rising religion pull through turbulent times of political and religious refute. Going back to the International Church of Cannabis, not only does it address religious disputes, such as homosexuality, drug use, and liberalism almost as a whole, but it shows and addresses a new way to connect with the religion within yourself, they utilize what the church criticizes in order to find a deeper connection with a greater force, even if they do not provide Marihuana themselves, they allow for church-goers to use their own type of Cannabis.

The Church is decorated with myriad colors, and contains intricate designs of animals, with distorted geometric shapes and explosive, vibrant colors schemes. The purpose of this art is to enhance the religious experience and connection of the cannabis users and Elevationist. It is truly impressive how art can bring forward and enhance religion, politics, points of view, and most importantly opinions. Art and Religion have come a long way together, creating new concepts and heightening valuable ideas, and as I stated above, Art and Religion have tightly held hands through the centuries and they will continue on to do so for the good and the bad of society.

Link to the church’s website: https://www.elevationists.org

Art is beautiful to look at, observe, analyze, and connect with in many levels, from mentally, physically and emotionally. This is true and the sole reason of modern and contemporary art, they want to express be opinionated, address controversial situations in society and let the rest to be interpreted by the viewer, they also pose for great pics.

But that is how art works in actuality, and by actuality I mean every piece of art that was created after Anno Domini. Now the pieces BC such as the stone slabs and spears of the pre-historic period, the ostracon in ancient Mesopotamia, even the scrolls and hieroglyphs in Ancient Egypt had different uses. All these mentioned art pieces had a purpose, not only did they portray the progress and technological and intellectual advances of the epoch but they also had a function beyond transmitting a message.

The first example, dates back thousands of years ago, specifically in the Stone Age, where something that is considered art to us was used as a weapon and a means for survival, the hand axe and the spear. This is when the most early of the hominids carved out pointy ends on rock in order to live as what we define them now, hunters and gatherers, what is now considered an art piece served as more than what we see today, today we see a hand axe that represents and portrays the way in which they lived, it exposes characteristics of the society they lived in and their life styles, but to them it was a new tool, a technological advance that would give them higher and easier chances too survive in the prehistoric times.

Another example that lies within the two categories of function, art and functionality, are the scrolls of Ancient Egypt. AN example of one of these scrolls is the papyrus scroll of the Book of the dead, displaying the last judgment of Hunefer. It lies within both functions and contains this duality due to the fact that, the first purpose of the scroll was to guide the Ka, which is the soul of the king, through the underworld and trials until it reached the afterlife, so it had a purpose in Egyptian society. The piece also lies on the art display side of function, since it was crafted by scribes and decorated lavishly in order to show the wealth, power, and greatness of the king being depicted, so it also worked as the art pieces in actuality, it worked as propaganda and to communicate and transmit political ideals and agendas, as well as spreading the religion, the belief of the afterlife, and express their polytheism.

Overall, art always has a function, but it is impressive how art has evolved and how throughout the times it has persisted on being involved in political, social, and religious aspects, from using it to survive, to displaying ownership such as the ostracon, and even to guide a soul through the afterlife. Art, most certainly goes beyond what meets the eye.

This post is not about an artistic moment, function, or artist but about their contribution to the youth and the importance of art history in a high school and college curriculum. As you begin to take art history courses, you begin to gain knowledge of the political, cultural , and economic context of the time the piece was created and sold. Just imagine how much knowledge you gain from knowing the background of one single artwork.

This helps students understand the why’s of today and how humanity has evolved, knowing where you come from and the roots of things are key for being a cultivated and exquisite person. This helps you analyze and see the world in a new light, to be introspective and extrospective. See the world from one’s point of view and understand and learn to see it outside our minds and in someone else’s view. I know this sounds as a skill that you can know or learn with out needing the specific subject of art history in your curriculum, but the subject develops a mindset that we create with all the background knowledge that is provided to us, you can develop a political stance to changing your artistic point of view.

Art history not only allows you to create a new mindset toward social, political, and economic issues, but teaches you to appreciate history in the right way. By right way I mean in the context in which it is supposed to be appreciated, for example, A professor at Brown University, taught Roman Art, and he took the students to chapels where they could appreciate the art pieces, these pieces are to be appreciated in the somber light of these chapels, how they were supposed to be in the past when they were created and sold, the chapel allowed you to add coins to turn on the light, but none of his students did because they knew better that that type of art should be appreciated in the darkness, just as it was in its time.

This is a quality that must be preserved and passed on through generations, but if the amount of students taking this subject subsides, since most are being pushed into STEM fields given the funding and scholarships available by Republican entities, then there is not going to be anyone that translates and passes on this beautiful knowledge that is the history of art and everything that has influenced its making, its location, and style.

Link:

Charney, Noah. “The Art of Learning: Why Art History Might Be the Most Important Subject You Could Study Today.” Salon, Salon.com, 16 Jan. 2017, www.salon.com/2017/01/15/the-art-of-learning-why-art-history-might-be-the-most-important-subject-you-could-study-today/.

My passion for art, has led me places where you see the unbelievable, this weekend where I went to Philadelphia, I found a place, called The Barnes Foundation, where its sole purpose is to demonstrate how Dr. Albert C. Barnes, who was a chemist, a writer, a businessman, teacher, and most importantly an art collector, arranged an array of early modernist paintings, his collection contains pieces mainly from Renoir, Cézanne, Matisse, and it is arranged with items that are Native American, Pennsylvania German, and paintings.

The most amazing part of The Barnes Foundation is that each room is not arranged by the movement, or by artist, you could find a room with a painting of El Greco which belonged to the Spanish renaissance right next to a painting by Cézanne, belonging to the Post-Impressionism movement; every room interlaced every art piece together, it was kind of like solving a puzzle you had to sit there and find a way the pieces were related, either by shape, content, function, context, or perspective, even themes played a role in the organization of these rooms.

What captivated me the most was the proximity to which you could admire and take in what the painting or the art piece had to offer, you could see the intricate brushstrokes by Vincent Van Gogh, in the Portrait of the Postman Joseph Roulin, or in his Portrait of Still Life. These iconic pieces are close enough for you to transport back in time, submerge in the world that the such renowned painter used to live in, experience what he or she was experiencing and see something that with his or her own hands and eyes have interacted with the piece, in times unimaginable and unreachable to the human being now a days.

From an “art history junkie’s” point of view, this place is the pit of wonders, the opportunity to appreciate the house of a man with such a passion for art and such an understanding stirs up feelings inside that are impossible to describe, this foundation is not only a demonstration of the largest European art collection in the United States, but an inspiration for the youth to seek cultural and artistic understanding, art speaks politics, art speaks science, art is everything and it should be in the lives of the youth, which why it is amazing that this collection is available to everyone in there Lower Merion Township in Philadelphia.

I can say this was definitely an experience of a lifetime, to be surrounded by art pieces by Van Gogh, Gauguin, Goya, Monet, and many more renowned artists that have spoken through their art that has surpassed the test of time.

 Here is a panoramic view of one of the rooms, you can see a painting by Pierre- Auguste Renoir(Impressionist) and Paul Cézanne (Post Modernist) next to a Spanish Renaissance painting by El Greco.

What can be considered chaotic, yet motherly, a symbol of hope for people in times of distress, well the answer is hippos! Yes! the creature we consider cute and funny in today’s society, back in the time of Middle Kingdom Egypt it had two very contradicting meanings.

Let me give you a background story, the Middle Kingdom was a time of political and public chaos, given the recent unification of Upper and Lower Egypt, so normally these rulers and the people where not having the most prosperous time on Earth so they found comfort and hope in the after life and looked for deeper meanings in telluric and the available beings. That is where the hippopotamus and its two very contradicting meanings arise, the need to know there is something greater, more powerful, beyond the mundane.

The hippo was known for its motherly features, you would see them cruising the Nile taking care of their little creatures, hovering over them, and always together. This, for the Egyptians was seen as a sign of kindness and a reflection of Mother Nature in earthly creatures. The hippos were then a representation of Mother Nature and what she had to give the people and how she takes care of the people by hovering over them and giving them her fertile produce.

Not only was the hippo seen as a motherly figure in these desperate times, but was also a symbol for chaos. This came about due to the aggressiveness of the hippos in the Nile River, who stirred up the waters, flipped canoes throwing men overboard and drowning these men by stepping on the them mercilessly. So this creature filled with love, to those is also a representation that Mother Nature who takes care of the people can also wreak havoc and rampage.

An art work that represents these both sides, as simple as it seems, is the Faience Hippo, who is called William, it is painted in a very vibrant blue-green color representing the water of the nile, with papyrus drawn on it as if it where hiding under water amidst the papyrus. An example of the people’s fear of the hippopotamus’ chaos was that when they found the hippo it was leg-less, since they destroyed the legs so it would not be able to attack those who worked in the Nile or navigated through it, since it can stand up or step it cannot tip over the boats or bash the working men underwater.

Rulers, and their propaganda, Bronze head of a Ruler, Augustus of Prima Porta, The Daric, and Icons in Christianity, all a way to popularize a a ruler, a religion, or an ideal. But these were also a way to shame them, discredit a religion, and terminate an ideal set by the higher official and priests, through something called iconoclasm.

Iconoclasm as defined by the New World Encyclopedia, is “the deliberate destruction of religious icons or monuments, usually for religious or political motives.”  For example, the destruction and removal of inlay eyes in the Head of a Ruler who was supposed to be Sargon of Akkad, whose empire was taken by the Babylonians, who destroyed and scraped the face not for the sake of destroying it but to humiliate it and leave it there in the debris and ruins of what used to be the great empire of Sumer and Mesopotamia united under the great ruler Sargon of Akkad.

Examples of Propaganda:

Augustus of Prima Porta, here he is showing his power by the different components on his warrior chest ( created to make him seem as a powerful and strong willed fighting ruler).

Another example of Iconoclasm, shown in holy illuminated manuscripts, the Gospels written by the four evangelists is when there is a depiction of Christ being crucified accompanied by the soldiers who gave him vinegar to quench Christ’s thirst, under it there is an image of John the VII damaging an Icon of Christ by scratching the face off.

Given the last post, there was some kind of religion or organized belief amongst the earliest peoples. Like the bird headed man of Lascaux or the Running Horned woman. But another icon is now recognize as a symbol of religion. Very similar, is the archaic calf bearer, which is before Christ even existed but it is so similar to the Christian representation of Jonah as the good shepherd that it is almost odd that they are so similar even if they were not based on the same concept.

A little background check on Jonah, there is a story about him, that is supposed to represent the three days and nights of Christ’s resurrection. Jonah was on a raft and he kept on denying God in his life, so the sea became rough and the people on the raft said Jonah was causing it for not praying, so he volunteered to jump of the boat so the raft could get safely to shore. When he jumped he was eaten by a sea monster, desperate, he prayed inside the beast’s belly, and three days and three nights later the beast spit him out unharmed by the grace of God, and the waters were calm again. This story was made to worship any kind of statuettes without it being pagan, so that is where the statuette of Jonah the Good Shepherd came from, to implicitly represent the sacrifice and the resurrection of Christ.

The statuette of the archaic mind carrying a calf, is IDENTICAL to the one of the Good Shepherd, but it was before Christ, so it is amazing how two different and separate civilizations depict sacrifice and religion through sheep and calfs, on being to avoid paganism and the other to idolize the sacrifices made to the many gods, that in the eyes of the Early Christinas, and still today is vena as paganism in its maximum expression.

 Archaic Calf Bearer, 570 BC, the calf instead of representing a god represents and offering to a gods, which is also a pagan practice, or at least it was considered that way by the new emerging monotheistic Christians.