a. What were the cave artists trying to say? The paintings on the Lascaux Caves were the artists’ interpretations of their everyday lives. It documented their way of living, showed characteristics (animal life) of their environment, and depicted their experiences.
b. Why do you think that there were so many animals and not as many people in the paintings?
I think that animals dominated the themes of the paintings since they played a significant role in hunter gatherer society. I believe it was a way for the painters to illustrate the kinds of animals that they considered to be sacred. The paintings served as a conspicuous display of the animals they hunted or as a ritualistic practice to bring them good fortune for the hunt.
c. What can the paintings tell us about other aspects of the life of cave dwellers or Paleolithic people?
The cave paintings provide a glimpse into the nomadic lifestyle of the Paleolithic people. For example, referred to as the “old stone age,” the Paleolithic era was a time period that was characterized by the early use of stone tools. Stone was one of the materials used for engraving. The paintings also tell us about other their aspects of their culture, such as their propensity for sharing. Although hunter gatherers are known to share their resources, this is not limited to just food, but also their knowledge, history, and experiences.
d. What difficulties did these early humans navigate in order to paint these pictures?
Some of the difficulties the cave painters encountered included obtaining a light source, using various techniques to accommodate depending on the rock support (characteristics/composition of the wall space), accessing the walls with respect to the limitation of height, and finding/obtaining raw materials/minerals for pigment/color as they lacked choice.
e. Speculate as to three (3) possible functions of this art to early humans.
1) Communication to cave visitors: Art could be used as a preservation of history, record-keeping of important events, and a representation of their lifestyle.
2) Expression: Art can be a form of cathartic activity in which the painters engaged in as their hobby/recreation/leisure. For example, perhaps they could utilize different techniques and certain parts of their painting can be distinguished by color to express emotion.
3) Ritualistic practice in regards to hunting: Art could function as illustrations of successful hunts or perhaps as a custom in hopes for future victories.
2. Commonalities in Function: Compare the possible functions of the art from the Lascaux Caves to modern art, in all of its various forms. What are some commonalities in function you can find in how the art of early humans and modern humans?
Art for early and modern humans share common functionalities in its abilities to communicate and express. Art provides information about people and places of that time. In both eras, humans have been able to transmit messages perhaps sometimes in a way that words themselves cannot express. It functions to convey certain emotions and opinions from the artist’s point of view, yet the multidimensional aspect of art allows a two-way street in which half of the communication channel opens up for the viewer/audience to interpret it and assign meaning.
3. Introduce Us to Your Favorite Art
a. For those who practice this form of artistic expression, what function does it serve? What
are they trying to communicate?
Photography functions to record and preserve personal and collective memories of different aspects of life - people, places, events, etc. Pictures communicate/share experiences and are visual reflections of the past. For example, the image included below is an Ansel Adams piece. His collections are largely composed of landscape photographs of Yosemite National Park because it holds significant memories as it was the location where he took his first pictures. While attempting to communicate the beauty of the environment, his photographs also function as reminders of his childhood and family.
b. Is there a complete culture surrounding this art form, i.e., a language, a set of behaviors, form of dress, etc.? Describe and identify the features of this culture.
Although photography does not employ actual words, it still has a language, which is expressed through the different techniques utilized. For example, the use of different angles communicate power relationships - high-angle shots looking down at the subject indicate inferiority. Moreover, a closed composition creates a feeling of entrapment.
c. How does this art form (and its culture) benefit society? Are there any detrimental affects?
Photography attempts to capture real moments in real time. Therefore, pictures are often thought to produce an accurate depiction of reality. However, this is not necessarily true - with the emergence of increasing technology, it is easy to manipulate these images and alter meaning, for example, through photoshop. Pictures of celebrities can be transformed in a way to make them appear slimmer than they really are, and this has devastating consequences on those that accept these images to be true and are influenced by a certain standard regarding body image.
References:
The Ansel Adams Gallery
"Although hunter gatherers are known to share their resources, this is not limited to just food, but also their knowledge, history, and experiences."
ReplyDeleteThat was a beautiful way to demonstrate the value of sharing within this culture on a larger scale. Nicely done.
Great discussion throughout. Good insight and logically argued.
My parents are huge Ansel Adams fans and I grew up surrounded by his work. Thank you for highlighting that piece. Great discussion on photography as art. Your idea of the negative impact of photography is an interesting one. It's always difficult to separate the art for those who use it in a negative fashion, but I think I agree with you regarding the issues of celebrities. What about the issue of paparazzi?
Good post.
"the use of different angles communicate power relationships - high-angle shots looking down at the subject indicate inferiority" this is a very interesting perspective on photographs, I never thought far enough into a picture to think that I could be communicated a sense of power through a photo; I must have previously been influenced by a photograph's level of power, but never even noticed I was being influenced.
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