Non-Western Art of Africa, Oceana, South America and Asia

Visual Art II 2013

Western vs. Non-western

• Both images depict a portrait of a Maori chieftain, one by the chieftain himself (left) and one by a European artist (right).

• Both show his facial tattoos, however the European artist, John Sylvester, shows the head and shoulders and downplays the graphic elements of the tattoos. He also portrays the king as an English gentleman with western style clothes and hair style. The chieftain, Te Pehi Kupe, chose to highlight the stark shapes and design of the tattoos while undermining the human features. In his self-portrait, the King portrays himself in a more basic form and less linked to the westernized culture.

Western vs. Non-western

Western Regions• Europe

– England– France– Germany– Spain

• North America– United States– Canada

Non-western Regions• Middle East

– Isreal– Iraq– Afghanistan

• Africa• Australia (aboriginal),

New Zealand• South America• Asia

African Art

African Art: Kente• Kente is one of many original fabric designs created by

African artists.• Fabric is an important part of African culture because

clothing can express social status, ethnic identity. Colors are also used to tell stories and represent spiritual symbols.

• Kente originated in Ghana in the twelfth century, and was worn by kinds queens and important figures during ceremonial events.

• Today Kente is often worn in the US to represent African-American heritage and it is printed worldwide.

African Art: Kente

Ashanti king in Kente cloth

One of many unique Kente cloth designs

African Art: Adire• Adire fabric was originally made by the Yoruba

women in Nigeria.• Adire patterns are characterized by squared

grids, with solid, flat, organic shapes.

African Art: Mud Cloth

• Unlike royal Kente cloth mud cloth designs were originally created by poor, rural craftsmen in Mali.

• Mud cloth is now considered a symbol of national identity for Mali.

• The fabric is called mud cloth because patterns were originally made by painting cloth with iron rich mud.

African Art: Mud Cloth

African Art: Bamileke• The Bamileke people immortalize images of

Africa’s past through their ceremonial art and masks.

• In traditional ceremonies a dancer wears an elephant mask to symbolize strength and energy.

• Beaded Bamileke animal masks are stylized but maintain organic natural forms.

African Art: Bamileke

African Influence• Faith Ringgold is an

African-American artist who’s art is heavily influenced by African art and fabrics. They share as stylized form and medium. Like a lot of African art, her quits tell stories through images.

Aboriginal Art

Aboriginal Art• Aborigines are the native people of Australia.• Their art is characterized by interlocking

shapes and stylized images. • Aboriginal art is very different from western

art styles. It involves different perspectives, shapes, and methods.

• Despite European settlement in the region, Aboriginal art has survived into modern times.

Aboriginal Art: Natural MediumsNatural pigments used to dye and paint natural surfaces

Aboriginal Art: Patterns

• Aboriginal art of ten is characterized by earth tones, images shown from above or in profile, and simple organic shapes.

• They also often involve repeated patterns, with concentric circles and horizontal lines. These patterns represent different symbols of the aboriginal culture and history.

• Images are often hidden within the seemingly simple shapes.

Aboriginal Art: Patterns

Aboriginal Art: X-Ray Style• X-Ray style of Aboriginal art was developed to

show the every aspect of the artist subject. In addition to outlining the basic shape inner parts of animals and people may also be included in the image.

Aboriginal Art: Journeys• Aboriginal Art often depicts a journey or acts as a sort of map. • Multiple focal points, and overhead point of view are used to

act as a guide.

Aboriginal Influence

• Keith Haring is an American artist that was heavily influenced by Aboriginal art. His work uses similar shapes and repeated patterns to create symbolic images.

Chinese Art

Chinese Art• Chinese art is one of the oldest and most unique

types of non-western art. Its influence has been shown throughout many centuries around the world.

• Sculpture was the earliest of the Chinese art forms, however, during the Han dynasty when paper was invented paining became more prominent.

• During the early Tang dynasty paintings were mostly lifelike, realistic, detailed figures depicting royal life in what was called court style

Chinese Art: Court Style

Chinese Portraits during the Court Style period in art – Ching Dynasty

Only the members of the court were In this manner, Emphasis was on Attempting to create a likeness so The people viewing the image would Know it was the emporer

Althoug the emporer sat in front ofThe artist – Artists did not yet know how to usePerspective, anatomy, foreshortening,Chiaroscuro, The figure is seen here as all importantAs the background is a flat gold colorArtist unknownDateMiddle Ages in Europe

Western Portaiture1504-1912

Mona Lisa by Da Vinci- 1503- 1506

Drawn from lifeAtmostpheric or aerial perspectiveChiaroscuroKnowledge of AnatomySfumato- blurring of edges so that the eyes, nose, mouthAnd hands are in focus but as you go Back in space the figure is softer – hence furtherAwayThe background is imaginary and does not Match from the left to right sideOil on Panel

Western Portraiture

Hans HolbeinHenry the VIII Oil on PanelBaroque pd in Art – What are at least four characterics that follow The traditions of Western Art ?

Chinese Art: Subject Matter• By the end of the Tang Dynasty the subject

matter of most Chinese paintings had been narrowed to three main groups: figure, landscape, and bird/flower paintings.

Scholar painting in Chinese Art during the Yuan to Ming Dynasty

• Time frame is Yuan-1279-1368• Ming Dynasty- 1368-1644

A Horse and Groom in Red Coat – Yuan Dynasty

These are sectionsFrom handscrollsAssymetrical Ink and ColorNo reference to Background- flatLack of proportion

Chinese Landscape Yuan and Tang Dynasties

Lotus Pond and WaterfowlLotus represents hope and purityCranes symbolize good luck and long life

This painting is stylized ( abstracted ) and the backgroundIs flatHanging scroll ink and color

Chinese painting Ching dynasty

Chinese painters prefer to capture The ESSENCE of a subject so many Details are left out

They work from memory and Enjoy the concept of uncluttered Space

A well ordered garden symbolizesHarmony in the universeCertain plants symbolize virtues

Western Images of Nature: What are the characteristics that make this a Western work of Art?

Albrecht Durer The Great Piece of Turf

Watercolor Northern Renaissance

ObservationRealismLighting

1503

Western VS Non Western

Spring Morning in the Han PalaceMing Dynasty-1494- 1552

What is important to the artist? What is meant by hierarchical perspective?Is there a light source, use of proportion, anatomy, or one point perspective?This is painted on a scroll that unrolls to show each scene. What is the story Behind this painting? Court life and every day activities .

Interior Northern Renaissance

Northern Renaissance Interior Painting

• http://www.chinaonlinemuseum.com/painting-qiu-ying-han-palace.php

• Spring Morning in the Han Palace- Ming Dynasty

• - 1494-1552• ( Same time frame and the Italian

Renaissance)

Chinese Art: Natural Influence• Later, Chinese Art was more centrally focused on landscape

as a subject matter.• The popularity of vast landscapes came about after the Tang

Dynasty with the rise of Daoism. Daoism considers humans to be a small part in the workings of a complex and interactive natural world.

• These Dao influenced paintings are characterized by intricate and large elements of nature, small figures, open negative space, and flowing movement.

• Figures are often still a part of these paintings but are fairly small and insignificant to highlight that humans are a small part of a vast and ever-changing universe;

Chinese Art: Natural Influence

Chinese Art: Trends• Chinese painting is fairly stylized in that most

paintings include vertical format, negative space, repeated curves, eye-level point of view, few lines and limited color schemes.

• These similarities give Chinese art a unique look that has survived through ancient times into the modern art world and characterized a staple in Chinese culture.

Chinese Influence• Huang Yan paints

faces in the style of ancient Chinese paintings. The work contains the traditional linear landscape elements in a contemporary medium.

Stop -End of Study Part I for test

• The test for VA II will Part I on April 26 B day and April 29 A day

• Africa• Aborigine• China• Western Culture- Characteristics of vs non

Western culture of the above

Islamic Art

Islamic Art• Islam is not only a religion, but a way of life. Nearly

one in every four people in the world is Muslim. Almost every work of a traditional Muslim artist is an example of Islamic beliefs.

• Most Islamic art contains some sort of calligraphy. Calligraphy is considered an are form in itself since it expressed the word of Allah(Arabic word for God).

• Islamic art is characterized by abstracted patterns, flat geometric shapes contrasted by organic curves, repetition and variation of patters and a focal point.

Islamic Art: Architecture“Decoration transforms the material from which the

mosque is constructed in the same way that religion transforms the base matter of mankind.”-Sheikh Lotfallah Mosque

• Since all Islamic life is based around Allah, much of their art is found in and around religious structures and mosques (Islamic places of worship)

• Muslim architecture incorporates all elements of Islamic art, including geometric patterns and calligraphy

Islamic Art: Architecture

Islamic Art: Architecture

Islamic Art: Patterns• Almost all Islamic art is made up of complex abstract

patterns that create a sense of unending repetition, another reminder that Allah’s world is infinite.

• There are three main types of Islamic patterns: geometric patterns, plaint-like patterns, and calligraphy.

• The massage of Islam is spread through Arabic writing making calligraphy one of the most important types of patterns in Islamic art and culture

Islamic Art: Patterns and Calligraphy

Modern Islamic Art and Influence• Many contemporary Muslim artist reinvent traditional patterns

and styles, such as (left to right) Shirin Neshat, Ali Omar Salaam, and Shahzia Sikander

Mexican MuralistsDiego Rivera, David Siqueiros, and

Jose Clemente Orozco

Diego Rivera• Diego Rivera was a prominent Mexican painter and husband

of Frida Kahlo (1929–39 and 1940–54). His large wall works in fresco helped establish the Mexican Mural Movement in Mexican art. Between 1922 and 1953, Rivera painted murals among others in Mexico City, Chapingo, Cuernavaca, San Francisco, Detroit, and New York City. In 1931, a retrospective exhibition of his works was held at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.

• Rivera’s murals were used as a way of storytelling and depicting Mexican life. His art often incorporated framing and symmetrical composition to highlight a focal point. Usually set up horizontally his murals included foreground, middle ground, and background.

Diego Rivera“I want my murals to reflect the life of the Mexican people, as it was and is now.”

-Diego Rivera