The Lecture9

15/05/09

About today’s lecture, we discussed about “Gender, the Body, and the Gaze. From my point of view, the definition of gender has refers to social attributes and opportunities that associated with being female and male, and the relationships between women and men also boys and girls, therefore, the relationships between women and between men. Besides, these attributes between male and female, those relationships in socially constructed are becoming an importance topical subject, generally it has becoming very common and popular socially relations that we can see in the world wide. Also, with the trend of times, gender can be changeable between those women and men relationships; although gender had another meaning that can be allowed or not allowed in contemporary sociality, but still some of people could not accept the “real” relationships between women and between men. In addition, I think “gender” means sexual identity, no matter male or female whom create the art history that influence the contemporary art, or whom try to pretend like a homosexual or heterosexuality people, I think it is the way of them personal ideas, they are using different viewpoint to look through themselves and change them outside of the figure.

Furthermore, I like the artist Grayson Perry, he is a brilliant potter that create the elegant and gorgeous pots. He change the traditional art form into another drawing lines and colors, for instance, I like one of his work called “Barbaric Splendour”(the picture which is above the first pargraph), the color and the picture which he drew is very artistic and had combined with the classic art and contemporary art. Also I like the way he used the black color to be an outline, then used the different color to paint the interior of the line area, he did not draw the fine line in those figure, but in whole conceptual idea is an outstanding creation that I have not seen before. However, he has a hobby that likes to wear the girl’s dress, he is not the “real homosexual”, he just like wearing the beautiful dress and pretend like a girl or woman. I very impressed that he wear the girl’s stuff like that and doing the girl’s attitude and doing any movement like the girl, I think it just like his performing art “pretend like somebody.”

Overall, it is a great lecture to realize how so popular and an important that gender had related not only the traditional art, but also had related to the contemporary art.

The images from http://www.artfacts.net/

Research-Lisa Reihana

Lisa Reihana: Digital Marae
A powerful photographic and new media series by leading Maori artist Lisa Reihana, in Govett-Brewster Gallery, 2007

Reihana’s work communicates complex ideas about indigenous identity and bi-cultural living and in this ongoing series she continues her investigation of the concept of the marae. In Digital marae she recreates a wharenui within a digital realm.

In a modern take on the pouwhenua or wooden carvings found lining a wharenui, Reihana’s large and dramatic photographs represent Maori ancestral figures. These images are imbued with a feeling of magic surrealism, seamlessly blending the traditional with contemporary elements. Govett-Brewster Director Rhana Devenport says, “Lisa Reihana’s Digital marae is without a doubt one of the most poetic and powerful photographic series produced in New Zealand in recent times. “This presentation of the work includes new dimensions within the series and the Govett-Brewster is honoured to be presenting these works for the first time.”

Her work is held in numerous public and private collections and she has a strong international presence, most recently exhibiting in Global feminisms at the Brooklyn Museum, and Native Portraits at Museo Laboratorio di Arte Contemporanea in Rome and delivering a lecture at the Tate Modern in London.

Research from

qag.qld.gov.au/exhibitions/apt/apt_2002

The Lecture8

08/05/09

In my point of view, we discussed about “Indigenous Narratives” has connected with art, such as art will talk about tribal native, ethnic, ancestral, majority and minority culture, etc. In definition of “narratives” this word is telling the story, or the other meaning that telling the protagonist and antagonist, so the whole meaning is the composition of artist work had the own background and connotation in it. That is why I like Richard Orjis and Lisa Reihana works, both them done very nice photo shot and represented the great performing art in their works.

About Richard’s composition, I like the way he used computer technical by using the Adobe Photoshop combine with his own photo shot, for example in his series of Gorse and Orchids, 2007. The whole overview and concept idea had represented the natural, native, and kind of talk about the tribal cultural decorations. I have seen his performing video before that the models grab the charcoal, then smeared over their bodies and made their whole figure looked like the “charcoal-burner” very dirty, unclean, also without the clothes. Richard took the models photo shot and used the photoshop to displayed the decorations around the body such as the wreath of flowers around the neck, or covered the face, or mouth. It was a brilliant idea and the symbolism of photograph that showed the significant of the background. Therefore, it was a greatest design which made the photograph became the different visual effects.

Furthermore, I very interested in Lisa Reihana’s works, looked through her series of her compositions, she had introduced the cultural design the way of her family background, it was strong and powerful subject matter that she represented in all the photographs. I like one of her photograph called “mahuika” the strong image that attract me a lot, the old woman setting on the highest chair, textile custom ling on the ground, and the charcoal gray sky in the background. I felt anxious when I saw the photograph, but the color used was very great and can attract people’s vision. Meanwhile, Tessa has let us watched the video “Wog Features” which was made by Lisa Reihana as well. She performed the one of actress in the video, and she used many objects like her own hand crafts which was made by pieces of fabrics, or clay, or other materials to made this feature’s film. She also used “repetition” work to make the object walking , dancing just like the real people. However, it was an artistic film work to present the other funny scene.

In conclusion, after done all the research, I realized that art is not only the frame work and the surface, but also the annotation of the art work and the meaning that what does artist want to present in he/her work.

Research- Billy Apple/ NZ USA

Billy Apple is one of a handful of New Zealanders who have had an impact on the international art scene. He has been at the forefront of two art movements, first in London (pop art) then in New York (pop and conceptual art). His work is held across the USA in public collections such as the Guggenheim Museum, New York; Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit; The Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, Virginia; Pasadena Museum of Modern Art, California; Boise Art Museum, Idaho; and the Corning Museum of Glass, New York. He is widely represented in New Zealander’s major institutions and art collections.
Billy Apple was born Barrie Bates in Auckland in 1935. In 1959 he left New Zealand on a National Art Gallery scholarship. He studied at the Royal College of Art, London, from 1959 until 1962. In 1962 he changed his name to Billy Apple and moved to New York in 1964. In 1969 he established “Apple,” one of the first alternative spaces in New York. In the 1970s, he returned to New Zealand twice, with support from the Queen Elizabeth II Arts Council, each time exhibiting in spaces throughout the country. He returned to New Zealand, permanently in 1990. He lives in Auckland.

research from http://www.google.com/

The Lecture7

01/05/09

About today’s lecture, Tessa talked about “the capitalism, commodification, and culture jamming.” In my point of view, I thought three of different words have similar meaning and these definitions are influences each other. For example, the artist Andy Warhol and Billy Apple were used their art work such as print making of “Cans”, and logo with signature “Billy Apple”. Both of them presented their work to be them own advertisement, also to introduce their greatest compositions in front of the audience. Therefore, it make me felt the artist both are enthusiastic to interpretation their concept of idea of their work just like the business man promote the products in the public places. They also break through some entrepreneurs and sponsors to support their work process. So, both artists will become well-known in the world wide and now they be famous and popular in the 20th century.

Overall, this commercialize idea was being use in all around the world, no matter the North America or Europe country, we can see many people using the same idea in society like design the magazine cover, poster, or new product, and so on.

Therefore, in tutorial class, we watched the film called “They Live,” and we just watched one part of the film and it showed whole concept of idea in this part. The actor has found a sunglasses with some unusual installation, when he wore the sunglasses every vision which he saw has changed to like different world, and the funny thing is every texts in this film has changed into the huge word “obey”, very strong and powerful, I felt impressed about the director just used the little object then changed the usual into unusual, it’s a fascinated part of scene that made the viewers felt more interested want to watch this film.

About Bob Dylan

addition

Bob Dylan who was famous singer in New York, he is one of audience who has participated in this an exhibition. When he saw John's works, he was impressed about his done an amazing job jut just used marker pen with canvas.

The lecture 6 -->

03/04/09

Today’s lecture is talked about “semiotics and language.”The artist has using the particular symbols, pictures, words, or many kind of materials to represent the art work, or the warning sign to attract the people’s view. However, I like John Reynolds the most, it was one of his exhibition in Auckland Art Gallery(4 Walls, 3 Layers, 2 Marks, 1 Light) . “A twilight sense of roll call of contemporary art of performance of the last 40-50 years of the gallery,” Bob Dylan said, he was very impressed about his work showed in front of the audiences. And look through his composition, his work has reminding us the date pass, he use marker pen to write down on the wall, or the canvas, some of the word and sentence we might say, but some of words we might not be saying in front of people. Nobody can image and figure out what is the meaning that he wanted to present, and the crazy thing is that he used the same way such as “repeated art” copy his work on 7000 canvases.

In my point of view, the whole body looks quite simple and it is not an elegant art work, I thought everyone can do the same way like Reynolds did, do the line painting by using oil paint marker on the white canvas. Overall, his conceptual design and whole the frame work were quite nice, too. No matter what he present, the whole body is tidy and not complex, or mess around on his work.

*pictures are from http://www.google.com/