APAH unit 1 notes

Jean-Michel Basquiat and The Horn Players (#226)

Jean-Michel Basquiat was recognized as a unique-looking person whose personal appeal significantly drove the interest in his art. Much of his cult status stems from his look and his tragic death at the young age of 27. During his lifetime, he did not produce a vast quantity of art, which contributed to his popularity spiking after his death. Basquiat struggled with addiction to heroin and cocaine, and it is noted that he was properly high while painting his works. The Horn Players serves as a prominent example of his style and legacy within the art world.

The Gates (#224)

The Gates consisted of orange panels installed in Central Park. The artist chose the color orange so the installation would stand out against the environment, creating a specific juxtaposition with the park's surroundings. The project required numerous permits and took a significant amount of time to come to fruition. It was located in a high-traffic area to maximize visibility. The installation was temporary and ephemeral, lasting for only two weeks before the panels went away. This brevity was intentional, as the artists believed that people would want the work more if they knew it would eventually disappear. The work is considered site-specific, meaning its total meaning depended on its location in Central Park and its relation to the local environment, rather than appearing as a natural part of the park.

Vietnam War Memorial (#225)

The Vietnam War Memorial was designed by Maya Lin, a 21-year-old Asian American woman who won the Commission through an anonymous contest. At the time, there were concerns that she might not fully understand the weight of the war due to her age and background, and she faced attacks initially because of who she was. The memorial is constructed of black granite sourced from the USA. The material is highly reflective, allowing visitors to see their own faces in the stone, which creates a sense of seeing loved ones within themselves. The wall physically descends into the ground, symbolizing a journey with those who were lost. Rather than depicting specific individuals or glorifying the war, the memorial features only names, making it more meaningful and focused on honoring veterans. The two sides of the wall point toward different major monuments in Washington, specifically the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument.

Summer Trees (#227)

Summer Trees is a work by Song Su-nam that utilizes an old Korean art form involving ink on paper. The piece explores the limitations of ink, as it is monochromatic, relying entirely on black. To create different shades, such as gray, the ink is diluted. The work reflects cultural diffusion and Korean abstract expressionism. The viewer can perceive a sense of kinetic movement as the ink appears to be going down the canvas. Although the trees are abstract, one can identify stubs at the bottom and stocks representing trunks. The piece is not polychromatic, focusing instead on the varying values of light and dark within the single hue. The technique involved pouring paint on the canvas and squelching it on the floor.

Androgyne III (#228)

Created by a Polish artist during the era of World War II, Androgyne III reflects the trauma of the Russian threat and the invasion of Poland. The figure is hollow, symbolizing how everything was being taken from the Polish people during this time. The sculpture lacks a face, features, or gender, effectively stripping it of any individual identity. It is described as an abstract realistic human body that conveys profound realistic emotion, specifically the sadness experienced in Poland under communist rule. The piece deliberately avoids the classical sense of beauty, focusing instead on representing raw, communist-era sorrow.

A Book from the Sky (#229)

A Book from the Sky by Xu Bing is an immersive and interactive installation that was not displayed in China due to government censorship; instead, it was shown in New York. The work involves woodblock printing, a stamp-based method used to create and disseminate information rapidly. The installation is filled with thousands of fake characters that were made up by the artist. By creating these fake characters, the artist attacks the communist Chinese government and its use of propaganda, suggesting that the government's information and language no longer have any real meaning.

Pink Panther (#230)

Jeff Koons' Pink Panther is a sculpture that depicts Jayne Mansfield, a prominent sex symbol (compared in modern terms to Sydney Sweeney). The work portrays the Pink Panther cartoon character in a sexualized context, held by a woman. This reverses traditional gender dynamics by showing the woman bringing the panther in. The piece is characterized by artificiality, featuring fake blonde hair, heavy makeup, and a specific outfit. Koons references the concept of banality, using unoriginal things to create art. The work was produced in a factory through mass production, emphasizing its status as a high-value commodity.

Dancing at the Louvre (#232)

Dancing at the Louvre by Faith Ringgold is part of a series that mixes cultures, specifically African American and Western cultures. The work features a central canvas with a tie-dye quilt border, blending folk art with fine art. It depicts Black women confidently placing themselves in the Western cultural space of the Louvre museum. By showing the characters playing in a space where one is expected to be orderly, Ringgold demonstrates that she and the women she depicts can break established rules. The use of quilts is a direct reference to Black women’s history and folk traditions.

Trade (Gifts for Trading Land with White People) (#233)

Trade is a work by Jaune Quick-to-See Smith that serves as a violent reference to the arrival of Christopher Columbus and the subsequent theft of Native American land by white settlers. The painting features sports team names on strings, many of which use Native American names that the artist considers offensive and stereotypical, as established by Hollywood. An exception noted is Florida State University (FSU), which has a different relationship due to its connection with the Seminoles. The work includes Native American propaganda and features red paint dripping down the canvas like blood, creating kinetic energy. An empty canoe in the piece implies death.

Untitled #228 (#231)

Cindy Sherman’s Untitled #228 references Old Renaissance art terms and depicts a woman who resembles the Virgin Mary, though the context is ironic because she has killed someone. The background features curtains to a tent. The woman holds a pale, gray mask, and her own face suggests that something bad has just happened, conveying a "you're next" message to the viewer. The composition utilizes a triangle, referencing the Holy Trinity. Sherman’s work goes against the traditional male gaze; instead of being a passive subject, the woman is in a dominant position, gazing back at the viewer.

Rebellious Silence (#235)

Rebellious Silence is part of the Women of Allah series by Shirin Neshat, an artist from Iran who grew up during the Iranian Revolution. The work references Renaissance and Baroque styles but focuses on an Iranian woman wearing a chador. The chador is used to desexualize the woman, while the calligraphy on her face asserts her faith to Iran. The image contains phallic imagery in the form of a gun, which represents male power and aggression. The woman's intense gaze suggests she could kill, representing women taking back power. The piece is filled with potential energy, suggesting that something significant might happen, while also commenting on the Western tendency to sexualize Eastern women.

Pure Land (#241)

Pure Land by Mariko Mori is an immersive work that references Buddhism and traditional Japanese art using modern technology like CGI and genie-like editing. The artist places herself at the center of the image, appearing like a woman reaching for Buddhahood. The work features a lotus, a central symbol of Buddhism, representing the hope to end life's suffering. Small creatures known as bodhisattvas are depicted, which are figures meant to help others survive and reach enlightenment. The piece uses hierarchical scale, making the Buddha figure bigger because it is more important. It bridges the gap between old religious terms and new artistic mediums.

Earth's Creation (#234)

Earth's Creation was painted by Emily Kame Kngwarreye, an Australian Aboriginal artist. The work is 20 feet wide, representing the vast expanse of the Australian outback. It utilizes earth tones and a dot technique to represent the "green time" after rain, showing where puddles form and flowers bloom. The painting is rough and bumpy to provide a feeling of nature. The technique is impasto, gestural, and painterly, similar to some European artists, and was painted on the floor to connect with the piece. This work was sold for $1 million, marking a significant instance of a non-white artist gaining major financial recognition.

En la Barberia no se Llora (No Crying Allowed in the Barbershop) (#236)

Pepon Osorio’s installation is an interactive, temporary work that uses ready-made found objects. Osorio is Nuyorican (living in New York but from Puerto Rico) and uses this piece to explore the concept of machismo—the Latino expectation that men must be strong and not show emotion. The title, No Crying Allowed in the Barbershop, refers to the idea that a boy starts becoming a man when he goes to the barber. The installation features a juxtaposition of masculine and feminine symbols, such as a rose (feminine) decorated with bullets (masculine phallic imagery). The barbershop and surgery tools are compared as instruments used to "cut down" the male. It addresses the diaspora experience and the pressure of cultural expectations.

Corned Beef 2000 (#237)

Michel Tuffery's Corned Beef 2000 is a sculpture of a cow made entirely from processed meat cans. The work is "trash art" made from found objects. It comments on food waste, the health risks of over-processed foods, and the environmental impact of factory farming, specifically how cows contribute to pollution. In the Pacific Islands, canned meats are a complex symbol; they are good because they don't perish easily but bad for health and obesity. The work is a critique of global capitalism, mass production, and white colonial influence on food systems.

Electronic Superhighway (#238)

Nam June Paik, an artist from Korea who moved to the USA in the 1960s, created Electronic Superhighway in the 1990s as a tribute to the World Wide Web. The installation features a map of the United States outlined in neon signs, which are used to draw attention. Every state contains video screens playing loops of old movies and clips specific to that region. Currently housed in the Smithsonian (Mason Museum) in D.C., the installation is interactive, featuring a camera that watches the viewer. Paik was a pioneer of Fluxus art and the TV movement, blending his Korean perspective with Western culture.

The Crossing (#239)

Bill Viola’s The Crossing is an immersive video installation presented on two screens. On one side, a figure is slowly consumed by fire (using new technology to create fake fire), and on the other, the figure is inundated with water. The figure stands with arms outstretched, referencing the crucifixion and the Holy Trinity. The work provides a sensory overload, using Christian imagery like baptism and the crucifixion to represent rebirth. It also draws on Eastern religions, referencing Hindu and Buddhist concepts of reincarnation and Nirvana, which is characterized as self-annihilation at the end of the reincarnation cycle.

Lying with the Wolf (#242)

Lying with the Wolf by Kiki Smith depicts a woman in a power position, taming and hugging a wolf. The wolf is shown with anthropomorphic characteristics, though it remains an animal. The work reverses the narrative of Little Red Riding Hood, showing the woman in control of the beast rather than being its victim. The piece is drawn on wrinkled paper intended to resemble a bedsheet, further exploring themes of intimacy and domestic gender dynamics.

Guggenheim Museum Bilbao (#240)

Designed by the "starchitecture" practitioner Frank Gehry, the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao is made of titanium because concrete would have been too heavy and likely to crumble. Titanium is both light and strong. The museum was built to revitalize a sad, depressing town through beautification, a phenomenon intended to attract tourists. In front of the building is a famous dog sculpture made of flowers. The museum is immersive, with the architecture itself being as much a part of the art as the pieces held inside.

Shibboleth (#248)

Doris Salcedo’s Shibboleth is an installation in the Turbine Hall at the Tate Modern in London. It consists of a large crack in the concrete floor that begins as a hairline fracture and wide ns to two feet across. The term "shibboleth" refers to a word or custom that divides people and sets them apart. Salcedo, a Colombian artist in London, used the crack to comment on the experience of immigrants and the racism they face. The negative space of the crack represents the unfilled space in art. Although the installation was temporary and later filled in, it left a visible scar in the concrete, which the artist suggests can bring people together through the shared acknowledgment of past divisions. The work is site-specific to London due to its high immigrant population.

MAXXI National Museum of XXI Century Arts (#249)

Designed by Zaha Hadid, the MAXXI Museum in Rome blends old culture with modern design. The structure features concrete curvature that references the nearby Colosseum. The architecture is characterized by a mix of rectilinear geometry and fluid, curving concrete forms, creating a space for 21st-century art.

Sunflower Seeds (#250)

Ai Weiwei’s Sunflower Seeds is a site-specific installation at the Tate Modern in London (sharing the same room location as Shibboleth). The installation consists of 100 million sunflower seeds made completely of porcelain, handcrafted by 1,600 people in Jingdezhen, the porcelain capital of China. The seeds represent the people under communism—all made to look the same. The work is interactive, as visitors were originally allowed to walk on them, creating an overwhelming experience. By hiring local artisans, Ai Weiwei rebuts derogatory implications about Chinese mass production and attacks the Chinese government’s control over the individual.

Darkytown Rebellion (#243)

Kara Walker, a Black woman from Georgia, created Darkytown Rebellion using silhouettes on a white wall. The work is immersive; when viewers step into the light, their own shadows are cast onto the wall, making them part of the scene. The silhouettes represent caricatures where everyone looks the same, stripping away individual identity. The piece references a slave rebellion that never actually happened. Walker’s work is informed by the context of Stone Mountain, a monument to the Confederacy and a founding site for the third wave of the KKK. The juxtaposition of the white wall and the illumination creates a dreamlike yet haunting atmosphere.

The Swing (after Fragonard) (#244)

Yinka Shonibare, a Nigerian artist who moved to Britain, created this 3D installation as a response to the 2D Rococo painting The Swing. While the original painting featured three men in a sexualized scene, Shonibare’s version omits the men, placing the viewer in the role of the male gaze. The artist dresses the figure in traditional African-style colors, but the fabric is actually Dutch wax fabric, commenting on the history of colonization (Britain colonized Nigeria) and the blending of cultures. The work also references "hanging" and "pinching" tropes related to trees.

Old Man's Cloth (#245)

El Anatsui’s Old Man’s Cloth is an assembly of found objects, specifically aluminum liquor bottle caps and labels. These materials are woven together to resemble Ashanti kente cloth or traditional African textiles. The use of yellow references the gold trade in Africa, while the construction references the silk trade with Asians. The work comments on globalization and the negative impacts of colonization, specifically the introduction of alcohol and subsequent drunkenness. It embodies the concept of "subsum," or the spirit trapped within the cloth, showing how everyone and everything is connected in a globalized world.

Preying Mantra (#247)

Wangechi Mutu, an artist who moved from Kenya to the USA in 1996, created Preying Mantra to address how women from other countries are frequently exoticized and sexualized. The title is a play on the preying mantis, an insect where the female kills the male after mating; the figure in the art is depicted with insect-like rectangular legs and a look that suggests she might eat the viewer's head off. The woman is camouflaged against leaves with red and white spots. The bottom of the piece uses geometric patterns reminiscent of kente cloth and Old Man’s Cloth. The figure holds a snake, referencing the Garden of Eden and the influence of Western religion on other cultures.

Stadia II (#246)

Julie Mehretu’s Stadia II uses linear perspective with orthogonal lines leading to a horizon line. The stadium setting is inspired by the Colosseum and represents a space where people come together for events like the World Cup. The work features flags, such as those of South Africa, and horns (vuvuzelas). Created in 2004, three years after the events of 2001, the work reflects a world with increased security and smaller spaces due to technology (referencing Electronic Superhighway). It explores themes of nationalism, globalization, and the way diverse cultures converge in modern arenas.

ID Quizzes

The transcript notes the presence of ID quiz #1.1 following the Vietnam War Memorial and ID quiz #1.2 following Corned Beef 2000.