The Two Works by Jasper Johns in the Category of American Art - Research Paper Example

?Running Head: ART COMPARISON Jasper Johns Jasper Johns at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, Georgia Jasper Johns at the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, Georgia During a visit to the High Museum of Art in Atlanta, Georgia there came an opportunity to view to pieces of art by American artist Jasper Johns. The first piece is titled “Map” and was created in 1961 with oil on canvas. The work is large against the wall, the viewer almost overwhelmed by its size. The painting is an example of the irony with which Jasper paints, his works placing a common concept deep within the recesses of his paint which lays thick on top of it. According to Lanchner and Johns (2009), the two words that Johns uses to describe this work are readymade, referring to the map, and unexpected. Michael Criton located Johns “between Duchamp and Pollack, between the found object and the created abstraction” (Lanchner and Johns, 2009, p. 19). The second work of art is a collection of prints by Johns in which the numbers 0-9 have been created through the methodology of lithography. Lithography is a process where a smooth surface is treated in some areas so that it will retain ink, but leaving others so that the ink will not be retained. The surface is then used as a printing object from which to press an image onto another surface, most often a paper. The works were created between 1960 and 1963 and are simply titled “0-9”. The two pieces can be compared from a number of elemental concepts in order to further explore the nature of Jasper John’s work. The painting “Map” was created in the earlier part of his career when the exploration of the ideologies of America were being combined with the explorations of their meanings through the use of ‘readymade’ objects. The blurring of borders speaks of unity while the bursts of color are in motion, commenting on the wide diversity of the nation. The lines of the distinct object of the map are muddled by the use of the paint overtop of them. The colors are vibrant and primary, using red, yellow, and blue in bursts across the work, the colors blending at some points, distinctive at others. The oil paints are thick with the texture of the work dense and mountainous on top of the map. There is a repetition that creates balance within the chaos and while there is no use of perspective, there is a sense of density that is felt that about the object of the map as the colors burst forth across the entirety of the work. Although there seems to be no design to the work, there is a definite balance to the way in which the colors are utilized. They erupt across the painting in light and darkness, yellow splicing through the red and darker blue to provide movement and to justify the transitions. The proportion of the work is large, conveying the immensity of the message that it holds about the concept of the nation, its diversity and its uniformity. The feeling of the painting is electric as the viewer is engaged with the use of color throughout the work. The piece also pulls the viewer in to a contemplation of the idea of America. The work is abstract, even though it utilizes a readymade object in order to create a foundation. The work conveys its meaning as a message rather than a narrative, the expressive use of color defining the parameters in which the viewer is to understand something of the intention. Because of its theme and the rising sense of social revolution that was felt during the late 1950s, it is likely that as the new decade blossomed before Johns he had the inspiration to create a discourse on the nature of the American ideology in context with the movements towards change that was beginning to erupt all around him. The collection or portfolio of ten numbers is presented in two rows of four with the two remaining on the third row. The work is created through the technique of lithography and is therefore smudged representations of the original plates from which they were printed. In viewing the piece as a whole, it is clear that the papers and the formation of the rows is done with a distinct connection to uniformity, each individual piece lining up exactly in relationship with the other pieces. It might be that a viewer will look at the individual pieces and forget that the arrangement and the continuity that is created by the entire work is relevant to the composition of the piece. The individually inked pages are uniform, but with a sense of the chaotic as the inks meander well outside of their defined lines. The colors or the pieces are deep and vibrant, but also dark and flat, which creates little to no dimension. The piece is flat, the texture created in the almost scribbled over aesthetic that is within a defined space. The whole work is contained in a square, with each of the individual pieces rectangular and vertical. Space is crucial as the organization of the work is defined within a specific frame. The composition of the work is, as stated, defined by the shapes of the angular square and rectangle, while the printings are uniform to one another. The color moves without a specific identifiable relationship, but creates as sense of loss as color moves to grayscale in the lower pieces. The ink appears to be flat, although there is a textural quality that emerges from the physically raised edges of the pooled inks. The overall imagery of the work creates an impact that evokes curiosity and contemplation. The work has an emotional value, but that value is blurred as the meaning is not completely obvious to the viewer. The numbers, placed mostly in order with some diversions, suggest that there is a disruption in continuity. The work suggests something of the liberty bell, which is only a personal observation, but this connects back to other works by Johns. The two works are very different, but are clearly by the same artist. The piece “Map” is a representation of specific ideologies, although it can be interpreted from a wide number of perspectives. The work “0-9” does not seem to have a specific message, but can be considered through meanderings of thoughts that light on related and unrelated ideas that may or may not be relevant to the work. Where “Map” is thick and appears to have a density, “0-9” is mostly flat with only the hint of depth, but a wild, sketchy quality that resides within the printed space. “Map” represents work that is done in oil, while “0-9” is a work of lithography. Both have a decidedly American feel, the colors chosen to be simple and without too much complexity. The composition of both suggests that there is rigidity behind the chaos of Johns’ work. The work of Jasper Johns can be described as representational of the post-war period of art in the United States. These two pieces are suggestive of the work that was topical and relevant to the idea of America. According to Weitman and Moorhead (1999) the work of Johns has a “focus on issues of perception through the depiction of commonplace, flat objects such as flags, targets, numbers and maps, in painterly style” (p. 118). These two paintings fit effortlessly into this description. The works appear to have a sense of irony, the compositional solutions used by Johns suggesting that there is an ‘all over the map’ essence, which is ironic to the subject matter of the “Map” piece of art. The works were highly commercialized by Johns who managed to get very high prices on a consistent basis for his works. This was due to his personal charisma and his ability to navigate the art world. Some have suggested his works were overpriced more often than not, but there is something about that sense of consumerism that connects to the works, suggesting even more about the nature of American life (Lanchner & Jons, 2009). The two works by Jasper Johns lay squarely in the category of American art from the later 20th century, both pieces emerging just as a new world was being formed. The idea of America was being challenged in the social context and these two works provided some artistic reflection on those changes that were taking place. As the numbers of the lithography swerved out of order, this can be considered as a part of an understanding the status quo was about to change. The nature of the works seems to reflect something of the new landscape of America that was in the process of being changed. The beauty of the color suggests the volatility that was emerging, the bright but sparking color creating a sense of something exciting that was to come. It is possible that this is seen in retrospect, but it is more exciting to think it was intention. References Lanchner, C. & Johns, J. (2009). Jasper Johns. New York: Museum of Modern Art. Weitman, W., & Moorhead, J. (1999). Pop impressions Europe/USA: Prints and multiples from the Museum of Modern Art. New York: Museum of Modern Art. Read More