American And European Artists - Essay Example

Number] American and European Artists The Native Americans had a deep connection with their MotherNature and spirituality which was conveyed through their artworks. The expressive art can be traced back to thousands of years ago when Native Americans were inspired by their mother land and conveyed it through cave paintings, earthenware, and stonework. They used materials that were inspired by their landscapes such as rocks, feathers, and others (Porter 32). The art history of Native Americans is full of symbols linked with nature such as the sun, moon, or people.

Symbolizing nature and expressing it spiritually was the way in which they produced art. An example is the tall wooden sculptures called the totem poles which represented the generations of a family and their spiritual story as well as characteristics of their land and animals as Native American heritage (Velie 54). On the other hand, European American artists from ancient civilizations used their landscapes to make carvings, sculptures, decorated artifacts, and stone art (Giorgi 35). They also conveyed their connection of land and spirituality through their paintings.

An example is the paintings of Richard Wilson who was also known as the father of European landscape paintings. He reshaped the art in Europe by his depiction of the land and spirituality around him and conveying it through its originality. This was different than the Native Americans as they used the materials and symbols of nature in their art (Simon 21). Work CitedGiorgi, Rosa. European Art of the Seventeenth Century. USA: Getty Publications, 2008. Print. Porter, Joy. Land and Spirit in Native America.

USA: ABC-CLIO, 2012. Print. Simon, Robin. Richard Wilson and the Transformation of European Landscape Painting. USA: Yale University Press, 2014. Print. Velie, Alan. Native American Studies. USA: University of Nebraska Press, 2005. Print.