Video Review Week 9

Leonardo da Vinci: The Mind of the Renaissance

1. Explain why you selected each of the TWO videos you choose from the selection listed above.

I chose this video because da Vinci is always fascinating and I knew it would be interesting to watch.

2. For each video list/discuss the key concepts you learned.

Da Vinci was left handed and started drawing at a very young age; he was a very precocious child; he was a model for statues made by his master; his master quit painting once he saw what da Vinci was capable of; he was treated very poorly by his contemporaries and people were very petty even back then; his anatomy drawings were based on his own dissections.

3. How do the videos relate to the readings in the text?

The video helped to illuminate how highly regarded good artists were during that period of time.

4. What is your opinion of the films? How do they add depth to understanding of the readings and art concepts?

It was an interesting video based on a very interesting man, and it helped to show exactly how important he was to so many different fields beyond art.

Albrecht Duerer: Image of a Master

1. Explain why you selected each of the TWO videos you choose from the selection listed above.

On our art discovery project from a few weeks ago, I had chosen a drawing that Duerer made of a rhino (which he had never seen before) and I thought it was a very interesting drawing from an anatomy standpoint.

2. For each video list/discuss the key concepts you learned.

Duerer followed the Roman sculptors example and drew and painted people very truthfully, especially in the context of their age, people were not idealized. Duerer left Germany to go to Italy, which he loved and loved him, and this is where he became famous. Like da Vinci, Duerer liked making treatises on things that he was beginning to understand, specifically perspective. He was a very religious man and he and Martin Luther were contemporaries, with Duerer’s religious woodprints being very wonderful to people who agreed with Luther’s contempt for Rome.

3. How do the videos relate to the readings in the text?

The video helped to illuminate how highly regarded good artists were during that period of time, showing how much better the German people treated him after he returned from Italy. It also helped to illustrate the differences in prints that could be achieved by carving different materials.

4. What is your opinion of the films? How do they add depth to understanding of the readings and art concepts?

The video was very dry, but it was useful in its explanations of woodcuttings and other print making materials, as well as Duerer’s closeness with Martin Luther.

 

Module 7 - Video Review

Science of Design

For each video list/discuss the key concepts you learned.
This video describes the technical aspects of building large structures, such as using deep pile ons anchored deep into the earth for structure, the swaying distance from the wind at the top of a skyscraper is much larger than I expected, and how the future of homes is automation.

How do the videos relate to the readings in the text?

The video helped to explain some of the more technical aspects of architecture, especially of very tall buildings, and how an architect must be aware of these aspects while designing a structure.

What is your opinion of the films? How do they add depth to understanding of Architecture?

The ‘home of the future’ in this video was amusing, as any videos showing the current time from a past person’s perspective usually are. I liked the explanation of how they keep extremely tall skyscrapers from falling.

Why did you choose the films that you watched?

I chose Science of Design because the title made it seem like it would be about the math and technical aspects of making a safe building.

Prairie Style

For each video list/discuss the key concepts you learned.

Frank Lloyd Wright created the ‘Prairie Style’ with a wide open floor plan, horizontal living spaces that match the horizontal lines on the outside of the house, windows all around, and it was designed to blend into the landscape, instead of defining it.

How do the videos relate to the readings in the text?

The video gave more insight into Frank Lloyd Wright and his design philosophies, especially his prairie style of architecture.

What is your opinion of the films? How do they add depth to understanding of Architecture?

I liked this video because it was concise and informative. I believe that I would now be able to recognize a structure built in this style immediately, which to me means the video was successful.

Why did you choose the films that you watched?

I had heard the term ‘prairie style’ but I wasn’t sure what it meant and wanted to learn about it.

Peer Review

First Blog Review -

1. http://jess1cacunn1ngham.blogspot.com/

                #1 - http://jess1cacunn1ngham.blogspot.com/2013/09/elements-and-principles.html

                #2 - http://jess1cacunn1ngham.blogspot.com/2013/09/art-gallery.html

2.  I do agree with the images that were chosen, I believe that they met the criteria that were defined as the principles and elements of art in the book. The contrast picture may have needed a bit more contrast, but I think that’s just how waterfronts look in this part of the country.

3.  No.

4.  I really liked the Tadasuke Kuwayama concentric circle piece. I looked up the piece and found it was part of a bigger movement called ‘Op Art’ that was popular in the middle of last century and kind of died out. It’s a very interesting movement and I plan on looking into it further.

Second Blog Review -

1. http://courtneypepper421.blogspot.com/

                #1 - http://courtneypepper421.blogspot.com/2013/09/project-1.html

                #2 - http://courtneypepper421.blogspot.com/2013/09/art-gallery-visit-1_8068.html

2.  I think the author did a fantastic job finding pictures that tied into the elements and principles of design in our book. I really liked the line choice, as a railroad track disappearing into the horizon.

3.  No.

4.  I think that the sculpture ‘Born’ by Kiki Smith is very interesting. I looked for more sculptures by her and they get pretty graphic in their content, but her drawings are all pretty fascinating.

5.  It did help me to understand the pieces better because I could read another person’s interpretation of what they saw which helps to contextualize my interpretation.

Module 6 Video Review

1. For each video list/discuss the key concepts you learned.

Through the Eyes of the Sculptor –

·         Limestone is even easier to cut with a chainsaw than wood

·         Resculpting details back into a monument as old and important as Notre Dame must be extremely nerve wracking

·         The man on the bridge is able to look at a limestone carving from hundreds of years ago and sculpt a copy; he talks of getting into the original sculptor’s mind to help him do this

·         Statue casting sounds dangerous when dealing with such large casts

Glass and Ceramics –

·         The process to create a stained glass window is very intricate and time consuming

·         The different manufacturing processes for creating different items out of clay are really interesting – especially the little balls that are pressed into a plate

·         People’s insides are gross

2. How do the videos relate to the readings in the text?

Through the Eyes of the Sculptor – The text goes into detail with the casting process used to create a bronze or marble statue as they showed in the video and also goes through rock carving’s long history as an art form.

Glass and Ceramics – According to the book, ceramics have been around for over 18,000 years and glass has been around for at least 3000 years. The book also goes into detail about the production and purpose of stained glass.

3. What is your opinion of the films? How do they add depth to understanding of the topics: Sculpture, Installation, and Craft?

Through the Eyes of the Sculptor – I enjoyed this video very much. A couple of the highlights were the re-sculpting of the heads on the bridge, which seemed very difficult, and the sculptor’s finished pieces in the beautiful garden, all of which were huge and very well done and seeing them on video makes it easier to understand than a still photograph.

Glass and Ceramics – The 90s aesthetics of the video (specifically the early computer effects, and the host’s attire) were distracting at first, but once it was a few minutes in I began to see past that. I enjoyed that they still worked with lead to make the stained glass windows and the various manufacturing processes used with ceramics.