Masterpieces of the Metropolitan Museum of Art - Personal Statement Example

Go to the Metropolitan Museum of Art and choose a painting from the Song period. Describe it. What is the philosophy behind the painting? What are the style characteristics of Song painting? How does this reflect the culture and politics of China at this time?             The picture that I chose was of two birds on a branch. It’s called “Finches and Bamboo,” and it was created in the Northern Song dynasty by Emperor Huizong. According to the Metropolitan Museum of Art History’s website1, the Emperor in question was both a great collector of art and a very talented painter and calligrapher. The painting represented the spirit of the birds, as opposed to rendering the birds in perfect realistic detail. The painting is on silk, and the medium is ink and color. The background is a muted brown, and there are Chinese calligraphy letters on the side panel. The panel itself is divided into three parts – the side panel with the calligraphy, the middle painting with the girds, and a yellow panel on the right of the painting that has blocks of orange. This painting was typical of paintings during the Song Dynasty. According to Gombrich2, artists during the Song period reflected the religion of Buddha by rendering paintings of nature. The artists would meditate on nature – about how we can learn from nature, how humble nature is, and the cool, clear and soothing aspects of natural occurrences. This was reflective of Buddha, because meditation is one of the central tenets of the Buddhist religion. The Chinese artist was, during the Song Dynasty, on the level of an inspired poet. He was not merely a painter who was painting a portrait of a bird. The birds represented a kind of holy truth to these individuals.3 So the style characteristics of this painting and other paintings during the Song Dynasty was that they were sparsely painted, and captured the spirit of nature. What is the importance of the Dome of the Rock? Explain which architecture style it is modeled on. What architectural elements are created to make this an “Islamic” building? How do these elements reflect the religion? b. Go to the Islamic wing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Choose an object or architectural element that is connected to Islam. Explain how religion is reflected in the design/imagery of the object.  The Dome of the Rock is a shrine which is on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem.4 The style of the Dome of the Rock is basilica, and the pattern for the shrine is that of the Christian Church of the Holy Supulcher.5 This was considered to be the first work of Islamic architecture, as it was completed in 691 CE during the Second Fitna.6 The architecture of this structure featured vaulted spaces, a circular dome and the use of repeating patterns which were stylized and arabesque. These are distinctly Islamic, as are the horseshoe arches which are featured in this building and many other Islamic buildings. The horseshoe arches were borrowed from the Byzantine era, which influenced the Dome of the Rock, as the Dome was considered to be modeled after Byzantine architectural structures. These are all architectural elements which make the Dome distinctly Islamic, as many architectural buildings of Islam featured the domes, the arches, the vaulted spaces, and the repeating patterns.7 The elements reflect the religion of Islam in that these same elements were used during the Byzantine period for its religious architecture – these Byzantine structures featured domes throughout the prayer halls, and a centralized dome as well. 8 The object that I chose was simply called “Bottle.” It dates from the late 13th Century, and it is greenish glass which is enameled and guilded. There are scenes of mounted warriors with maces, swords and bows, participating in a horsemanship exercise. Religion is depicted in this scene, as the men are fighting and on horses. This would represent the fighting that men did to keep the Islamic heritage from being encroached by others. It might also represent the desire to spread the Islamic religion throughout the world, by using such force. Choose and identify one Romanesque church and one Gothic Church. Compare and contrast the two churches, explaining what is Romanesque and what is Gothic. What are the major similarities and the major differences in the two styles? How does each church reflect the message Christianity wanted to convey to the people of the time.  The Romanesque churches preceded the Gothic period, and eventually evolved into the Gothic period.9 The Romanesque churches are characterized by stout columns; towers; piers; groin vaulting; arches; rounded arcades, windows and doors; massive walls; portals with moulding and sculpture; spiral ornaments; and murals. The Romanesque churches reflected the Basilica plans and hearkened back to Ancient Rome. There are many classical elements because of this connection.10 Many of the buildings reflected the message, because of the ornateness and general massiveness of the structures, that God is great and that they were to worship to him in an arena that fit this message. Additionally, because the structures were modeled after classical Roman architecture, the message was that the people should worship as their Roman counterparts worshiped, and might have been a subtle reminder of the grandeur of the Catholic religion. Gothic architecture was different from Romanesque. The Gothic architecture is not as rounded as the Romanesque architecture – the arches are pointed, the vaults are ribbed and they also had flying buttresses.11 It also had pinnacles, tower, and tall spires. These were the largest buildings of the day, and are the equivalent to todays skyscrapers. The emphasis in these churches were on verticality and light. They are also marked by a long nave making the church body, which is flanked by single of double aisles.12 Because these structures were enormous, and much larger than any other buildings in Europe during the time,13 the apparent message was that the Church would be the dominant force in the lives of the people. The buildings were both enormous and ornate, and this reflects how the people were to look at religion – as something that should be central to their lives, as these churches were dominant and central in these early cities. Go to the Metropolitan Museum India galleries. Choose an image of Buddha and an image of a Hindu god. How does each image reflect the concept of the religion? Are there visual aspects that are similar? If so what are they and why do you think this occurred? What is unique stylistically to the Buddhist image and the Hindu image? (I think you will find this easier to do if you use sculpture). Each of these statues reflect how each of the religions think about religion – for both of the statues have a meditative quality to them. The gods have a peaceful look, and each are in a position that would be considered to be meditative, in that they are each sitting with their legs crossed. This would emphasize the importance of meditation in each of these religions, as meditation is important, because it is a way to become more close to god.14 They are similar, in that they are both ornate – they are in gold, and have very detailed facial features and their robes are very detailed as well. The Buddha image tends to be much more heavy-set and rotund, as this apparently is how Buddha himself looked, so this is a unique stylistic point of this sculpture. The Islamic sculpture is unique from the Buddha sculpture, in that the Islamic god was wearing a pointed hat, and the Buddha sculpture had a bare head. References Heilbrunn Timelines of Art History. “Finches and Bamboo.” Available at: www.metmuseum.org Gombrich, E. (1989) The Story of Art. Ann Arbor, MI: Lowe & B. Hold. Creswell, K. (1924) The Origin of the Plan of the Dome of the Rock. Jerusalem, British School of Archaeology. Cruikshank, D. (1996) Sir Banister Fletchers A History of Architecture on the Comparative Method. London: Architectural Press. Read More