William Kentridge at SF MoMA

So I traveled into the city earlier in the week and boy am I glad I did! This was the first time I had ever checked out SF MoMA, and I have to admit, that I was not disappointed in the slightest!
The main exhibit they were hosting was William Kentridge's works- quite a few of them actually!
His films are very interesting-

erotic in some ways, grotesque in others- provocative in many! Casualties in war and torture seem to be his focus for certain. The musical pieces attached to his animations and play are very interesting- VERY striking! They add an emotion that might very well not be there otherwise.
He makes something that could feel so silly and ridiculous feel serious, extreme, captivating. There seems to be a great deal of pain and sorrow and ANGER represented in his pieces. They're almost a rebuke.
The Black Box!- This was moving to say the least.

He adds a lot of gears and anamotronics to his pieces... especially this one. It is an interesting addition. I've had some time to mull over this for a little while, and I somewhat wonder if he is making a point by personifying metal gears and non-living things. I'm sure titling his little "play" The Black Box is a point in it of itself- referencing television, but what of the "puppets?" Perhaps you all can give me a slight insight?
His sculpture work is fascinating. Grotesque and disturbing in some ways, but simplistic and awesome.
There is a defined uniformity within his chaos.
His drawings are very intriguing-


using multiple mediums to achieve something that could not otherwise be communicated with just one, but all mediums he utilizes are very simple. He rarely uses paint, relying mostly upon charcoal. He achieves in charcoal what some painters only HOPE they could convey!
The fleshy tones mixed with red and black inks makes me think of tanned, worn skin caked with mud, paint (perhaps war paint?), and blood. The faces etched with pain and turmoil, but the bodies so free and charismatic. An air of apathy- perhaps a body that is trapped- connected to a heart and soul so full of pain and turmoil, so broken.
Drawing for II Sole 24 Ore- This piece in particular is inspiring and remarkable!

CONFIDENT strokes, an intensity exists within this piece I wish I could define!
Something is almost Boschesque about some of it- or Duchamp, Dali, even some Millet!
Sometimes he draws almost as if photographing- such a simple subject that exudes a statement so powerful.

It's Been Awhile...

I went and visited a museum in my area not too many days ago, and I figured here was as good a place as any to mention some highlights! There were quite a few pieces that I found literally breathtaking, but I won't bore you with ALL of the details ;P

Those of you familiar with the San Francisco Bay area... this was all seen at the Legion of Honor!
First on the list... REMBRANDT! OH MY GOSH!!! I nearly died when I saw it. I am very near-sighted, so I can't see the little plaques on the wall until I get pretty close to the painting, but I was instantly drawn to this portrait. It stuck out from the rest of the paintings in a way I cannot describe. You just FEEL the energy and the life when you look at one of his portraits! The eyes alone are so expressive, and he really does capture the essence of a SPECIFIC person in paint. Portraits were always rather droll to me, but there is a DEFINITE reason why Rembrandt is considered a master! His colors, his details, and the flesh... it gives you chills look at that skin!!! Because you could just feel like if you reached out and touched it, it would FEEL like real skin!! It is truly brilliant and incredible!

DAUMIER'S Third Class Carriage was there! I had seen it many times in Art History books, but it was even more amazing in person! Wow... I AM IN LOVE with his lines!! He has really thick black outlines, and his brush strokes are so confident! It's tiny, but incredible to see in person!

There was an INCREDIBLE! Engraving called "The Finding of the Savior in the Temple" by Blanchard III after William Holman Hunt-- I can't find any pictures of it online, so you'll just have to take my word for it when I say it was unbelievable!

... and then I nearly died of happiness... because there was Cezanne's Forest Interior! My gosh! that man can paint landscapes!! I even started tearing up over that one... it was just so awesome! His brush strokes and color in that one... A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!!!!! I didn't want to leave after I saw it... I just wanted to stand there and stare at it forever! If you have ANY love for Cezanne whatsoever I really encourage you to see his works in person. To see the way he brushes color onto that canvas. It almost appears as if he dabs his brush into every color on his palette at the same time and smears all of them on in one brush stroke, while still achieving color distinction. I have been a long-time Cezanne fan, but to see this in person is just remarkable!

Then there was a first for me. An artist by the name of Pittoni painted a Descent from the Cross with oils on canvas... but it was entirely black and white 0.o Totally funk-tastic! The contrast was actually pretty high, and the overall tone was very crisp and cool.

AND ... AND... AND... you ready for this?!?!
EL GRECO'S St. John the Baptist!!!!!! I nearly had an orgasm right then and there... not even trying to be funny... it was SO incredible!
I have had a serious affair with El Greco for a while now, but had not had an opportunity to see any of his paintings in person, to get that chance so unexpectedly really made my day! His elongated forms, the high contrast of his colors, the method of application... EVERYTHING! It was ... utterly fabulous!

I hope you didn't mind the rambling all too much!
Have a blissfully blustery fall weekend!! =)

Observations

I'm realizing that flexibility is something an art historian MUST have. When I studied Prehistoric and Near Eastern art for the first time two years ago, many art pieces had different names. Two of such examples would be:
1. The Venus of Willendorf... which is now referred to as the Woman of Willendorf.


2. Face of Inanna, Goddess of Love and War... which is now referred to as the Face of a Woman, Known as the Warka Head



I cannot believe that I would be the only one that gets attached to particular labels. It's hard for me to think of that first little figurine as anything other than the Venus of Willendorf, but clearly, I have to re-format my thinking, as history is being rewritten constantly as new facts and artifacts are found, especially for these two periods! So, it is here that I discover how flexible to learning NEW things I must be in order to really get the most out of this subject. I can't be too attached to any one theory, name, etc... as it may later be proved false or too vague (or not vague enough in context to these two women...). It's actually one of the really neat things about the subject when I really think about it. Where else will you be confronted with new little details in reference to not only the addition of future pieces, but also information about past pieces! I love it!
Fact is, we know very little about the pieces above as well as any other piece from prehistoric times, but it's oh so fun to speculate. But we do need to be cautious of how connotative we label each piece, as we don't want to infer too much. Everyone should have a fair chance to speculate what they might think the piece might have been used or meant for, considering that we flat out have no clue as to what's it's true purpose was. Perhaps we'll never know, but it's always fun to take a guess!!