Now I understand the reason for modern art. In case your not familiar with Jackson Pollack, here's one of his paintings.
Posted on 10/30/2005 10:03:14 AM PST by neverdem
SITTING the other day in front of Picasso's rapturous "Girl Before a Mirror" at the Museum of Modern Art, Rueben Rosen wore the dyspeptic look of a man with little love for modern art. But the reason he gave for disliking the painting was not one you might expect to hear from an 88-year-old former real estate broker.
"It's like he's trying to tell a story using words that don't exist," Mr. Rosen said finally of Picasso, fixing the painter's work with a critic's stare. "He knows what he means, but we don't."
This chasm of understanding is one that Mr. Rosen himself stares into every day. He has midstage Alzheimer's disease, as did the rest of the men and women who were sitting alongside him in a small semicircle at the museum, all of them staring up at the Picasso.
It was a Tuesday, and the museum was closed, but if it had been open other visitors could have easily mistaken the group for any guided tour. Mr. Rosen and his friends did not wear the anxious, confused looks they had worn when they first arrived at the museum. They did not quarrel in the way that those suffering from Alzheimer's sometimes do. And when they talked about the paintings, they did not repeat themselves or lose the thread of the discussion, as they often do at the long-term care home where most of them live in Palisades, N.Y.
At one point, a member of the tour, Sheila Barnes, 82, a quick-witted former newspaper editor who suffers from acute short-term memory loss...
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
Now I understand the reason for modern art. In case your not familiar with Jackson Pollack, here's one of his paintings.
What does Jackson Pollack have to do with this story?
Well, that isn't really one of his paintings. It's a postage-stamp sized thumbnail digital photo of the painting. Can't see much there.
Have you seen the actual painting? I have. I was quite impressed by it. Different tastes, I guess.
"What does Jackson Pollack have to do with this story?"
I wondered that, myself. The group did not view a Pollack, as far as I could tell.
Nobody's ugly after 2 am.
I wondered that, myself. The group did not view a Pollack, as far as I could tell.
(For now, the tours focus on representational art, on the theory that it's an easier touchstone for narratives and memories. There are no Pollocks, for example.)
Modern art includes Pollock's abstract stuff. I showed a typical work of Pollock in case someone isn't familiar with him.
I love abstract painting and modern art in general (specific pieces, of course, not all), but I can't for the life of me explain why (even to myself).
Les Demoiselles d'Avignon, 1907.
I enjoy the moderns, too, both the semi-representational stuff like Picasso's and the non-representational art of Pollack and others.
I suspect that the original poster does not share that appreciation. Thank goodness there's room for varied tastes in art.
Richard E. Smalley, 62, Dies; Chemistry Nobel Winner
FReepmail me if you want on or off my health and science ping list. Anyone can post any unrelated link as they see fit.
This is fascinating.
IIRC, my art teacher, for a core requirement course I needed to take in college, would say Paul Cezanne got that ball rolling.
The Bay
You're correct about my appreciation of modern art. I think that it is entirely too subjective in interpretation, excellent for bloviating.
But if helps those suffering from dementia, I'm all for it. I'm not making insults. I've worked in nursing homes. I don't like drugging folks.
it certainly is.
I don't know if you ever saw the segment on 60 minutes (yeah, I know) with lesley stahl and the young, blind musical savants, but it's another amazing piece on how the brain works. Seemingly damaged in one area, but other areas flourish.
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2005/10/20/60minutes/main957718.shtml
Your teacher probably has it right. I am just a fan. I think I remember reading that Picasso and Braque's cubism was heavily influenced by Cezanne.
You can actually see the Cezanne influence in Braque's Viaduct at L'Estaque...
Ping list, here we go.
Art Ping. Let Sam Cree or me know if you want on or off this list.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1419876/posts on Cezanne and van Gogh
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1427099/posts on the development of Cubism
You are right, all of this began in the nineteenth century, although some might even say that the flattening process (which ultimately led to Picasso and Pollock) began with Manet and his Picnic.
I did just see Pollock's One at the Museum of Modern Art, and the power in his large, great pieces never ceases to amaze me. Not all of them are great, but when he strikes it right, it is wonderful.
When I was there, a German couple were also sitting on the bench, studying it and discussing it in German. I wished I'd understood what they were saying.
Thanks for the links!
I just finished reading your post on Cezanne and Van Gogh. It is remarkable. I look forward to reading the others.
Thanks for the ping, prof. Very interesting regarding both art and the workings of the mind.
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