Frida Kahlo

Frida Kahlo was a Mexican artist who specialized in portraits. Her work was mostly inspired by nature and artifacts in Mexico while incorporating a sense of realism and fantasy within it. Based on the painting above, Frida incorporated her sense of realism in it by carving 'Viva La Vida' in the heart of the watermelon symbolizing her life. Frida was diagnosed with polio as a little girl and spent her whole coping with the pain and symptoms, but she did not let that deter her from the talented artist she could be. She was also hit by a bus seriously injuring her at the age of 18, but still again, she did not let that stop her from doing what she loved. For the remainder of her life, she created many more meaningful paintings and portraits that would last a life time while enduring the pain and medical problems she experienced growing up as a child. Overall, I connected with this piece the most because it reminded me that there is no reason why I can't do anything I set my mind to. It is mind over matter and anything can be achieved with determination and consistency.

Keith Haring

I found Keith Haring's work to be very interesting.  He first attended college in Pittsburg but shortly dropped out after two semesters because he didn't want to be another commercial graphic artist.  He then moved to New York where he found an alternative art community that were not doing there work in the studios, galleries, or museums.  This new community worked outside these places such as subways and the streets.  He was best known for his subway drawings, where he drew different pictures not he walls of the subway.  All of Haring's work are socially conscience and at some points controversial.  This picture is titled Rebel with many causes.  This picture symbolizes the phrase "hear no evil, see no evil, and speak no evil" which has to do people ignoring different important social aspects and acting like they are not real.

Frida Kahlo

I very much enjoy and appreciate work by Frida Kahlo because I feel as though she has a very unique approach. She uses symbolism to convey messages which I particularly enjoy. This painting, "Viva La Vida, Watermelons" is a symbol of Frida's life. She put the finishing touched on this artwork just eight days before her death (Lebowitz).Being of Mexican heritage, Frida would most likely follow the tradition of celebrating life as opposed to mourning death. This is evident by the phrase she writes in her native language, meaning "Long Live Life".  I believe the watermelons are a symbol of Frida's fruitful life that grew into something beautiful and of substance. I feel as though she made several watermelons in different shapes/ different cut designs in order to convey the various stages in her life, her ups and downs. I believe this to be true especially in the watermelon with very jagged edges, exemplifying hardships. These edges could very well symbolize Frida's early contraction of polio at age six that led to paralysis and eventual amputation of her right leg. Frida also suffered from several miscarriages and a near-death motor vehicle accident. Overall, I thoroughly enjoy her work, especially this last painting of hers.

Francis Bacon

This Francis Bacon painting is very intriguing. I love the use of shadowing and the lighting used in the painting. To me, it looks like a door that is in the middle of a beach and they sky is dark. I am a huge fan how he has a white and dark grey door next to each other. It adds a lot of contrast and it makes me think about the painting in a way I cannot describe.

Frida Kahlo

This painting was inspired by Georgia's O'Keeffe's painting about Magnolias. The difference is in Kahlo's painting the magnolias are only in the bud stage but in Georgia O'Keeffe's version, the flower is in full blossom. In Frida Kahlo's painting, in the center of the bunch of magnolias is a large pear cactus flower. This flower is extremely sensitive and when it bloomed the blossom last only a few hours. 

Marcel Duchamp

Fountain

Fountain, was produced by Marcel Duchamp in 1917. The reason why this piece of art intrigued me is because it is a part of a porcelain urinal, which was signed "R.Mutt". An interesting fact about this piece of art is that it was originally rejected from the Society of Independent Artist in 1917, even though the Society stated that they would take in any artwork as long as the artist paid the fee. It is regarded by art theorists and historians as a major landmark in 20th-century art. In the 1960s, Duchamp commissioned 17 replicas of the Fountain. It intrigues me how everyday items are pieces of art. 

JACKSON POLLOCK

 The Flame was painted by Jackson Pollock in 1938. Pollock was believed to have been inspired by a mural that José Clemente Orozco's had created named The Epic of American Civilization. I chose this painting, because of the colors he used. Most of his painting were similar to each other, but I found this one to be very different from the rest. It's also believed that in the fire, what is vaguely seen is a skeleton, I found that to be an interesting detail. Pollock was successful in making this appear as a fire even if the method was abstract. I personally consider abstract painting to be difficult and challenging, therefore seeing how greatly he was able to depict this fire is inspiring.