Art

The Renaissance was a movement that marked the end of the Middle Ages, ushering the coming of the modern period.  The word itself essentially meant a rebirth in the sense that the period was actually a revival and a resurgence, particularly of the classical culture and influences of the ancient Greeks and Romans. In Italy, where the movement started, the people were constantly surrounded by the ancient ruins which served as a constant reminder of what they were and what they had.  This further gained momentum following the Black Death that decimated half the population of Europe.  Because the established institutions at the time, notably the church, could not address the crises, people sought answers elsewhere, thus giving birth to the humanist movement which tended to put greater emphasis on the individual.  Whenever the word Renaissance is invoked, what would immediately come into mind would be art, and to a certain extent, architecture  the styles, the works, as well as the individuals behind it. They used the works of the ancient Greeks and Romans as their model, putting emphasis on the characteristics of proportion and symmetry.  In the case of the arts, a lot of emphasis was put into depicting subjects as realistically as possible without exaggerating nor skimping on the details to achieve the desired realism, which the artists felt were the right and proper thing to do and they did this by going against the norms at the time which was relatively medieval.

When speaks of the Renaissance, one particular Italian city would stand out  Florence. During those times, Italy was divided and organized along the lines of city-states which enjoyed a great degree of autonomy from one another.  It was one of the prosperous city-states at the time and it proved to be fertile ground for the development artistic and intellectual freedom, sparking movements that would make an impact to at least two specific fields  arts and architecture.   Culturally and intellectually, Greek scholars fled to Italy following the fall of Constantinople, bringing with them classical texts which would prove to be a valuable contribution to the development of the Renaissance.  Its economic prosperity had somewhat given its people a considerable degree of empowerment to better their lives, expressed either in the acquisition of wealth or to seek perfection in what they did and this was entirely on their own initiative without the need of a moral arbiter in the church, whose credibility as a moral arbiter was somewhat compromised during the Black Death.  Politically, Florence was governed by the Medici family who were very influential and served as sponsors for several artists and artisans and in doing so, gave them a free hand and were not disappointed in investing with them.

Artists such as Donatello (art) and Filippo Brunalleschi (architecture) represented a new breed of artists that were influenced by these factors.  They went to Rome and elsewhere to study ancient ruins and art and these had a profound influence on their works.  In the case of architecture, as demonstrated by Brunalleschi, emphasis was put in the use of columns patterned in the classic style, Ionic, Doric and Corinthian styles, for the arcades he designed as well as creating symmetry and harmonious proportions (Fitzpatrick, 2005, pp.11-12) which would rival the styles of the High Middle Ages seen in the majestic churches and cathedrals which were the only architectural wonders then.  Yet, Bruschellis patrons also included the church and helped design such as the Foundling Hospital and the Old Sacristy which was financed by the Medicis (Brucker, 1983, pp.33-34).  Donatello carved free-standing statues instead of bas reliefs and gave them life-like features such as his version of David, depicted as the slayer of Goliath.  It was also very classical in the sense that David is depicted in the nude as well, another trademark of humanistRenaissance art (Fitzpatrick, 2005, pp.11-12).

Besides Donatello, discussing the Renaissance would not be complete without discussing the three other titans of the period such as Raphael, Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci.  Raphael was a painter and most of his subjects are religious in themes such as the Madonna.  His style reflected the vision of humanists in bringing together all belief systems into a grand unifying synthesis of natural and revealed truth (Graham-Dixon, 1999, p.221).

Michelangelo and Da Vinci were perhaps the most prolific artists of the period as they churned out one masterpiece after the other as they had an ongoing rivalry as painters.  But before taking to painting, Michelangelo was a sculptor and had produced impressive works such as the Pieta, Moses and his version of David which differed from Donatellos.  His works also followed the classical lines and he was very masterful in even adding the appropriate expressions on the faces of his subjects, especially the Pieta where the sorrowful Mary cradled the dead Christ in her arms  but he was perhaps more known for his immense murals that adorn the Vatican depicting scenes from the Bible, his most laborious work (Graham-Dixon, 1999, p.200, 213).  Da Vinci was Michelangelos rival and he also created equally great works.  What is perhaps his most notable one is the Mona Lisa where he was able to capture that alluring smile nobody could duplicate ((Graham-Dixon, 1999, p.150-152).
The Reformation, as well as the Counter Reformation, caught up with the Renaissance and it had also influenced other artists such as Bernini whose subjects were a mix of Greek mythological figures as well as Christian personages.  Besides his sculptures, he was famous for helping design St. Peters Basilica to what it is to this day.  Despite the humanistic approach of the Renaissance, it wanted to prove, contrary to what most people assumed, that its ideas did not contradict nor go against the teachings of the Church nor was it anti-Catholic, that it signaled a return to paganism (Graham-Dixon, 1999, p.321).

Neoclassicism is defined as any work that has achieved canonic status but the basis would still be the classical styles of the Renaissance. This was represented in the works of Jacques-Louis David, a painter.  His works make use of the classical style but in doing so, uphold the spirit of the French Revolution.  This was evident in his work, depicting the Tennis Court Oath by members of the Middle Class in an act of defiance from the bloc voting of the Estates-General.  David, showed the requisite proportionality and humanity in the subjects depicted here and at the same time, gave it some spirit or elan to accentuate the sense of superiority of these people in opposing what appeared to be an unjust system (Graham-Dixon, 1999, p.322).

One can conclude that the Renaissance changed the world, not only in art but in the way people think though art was also used to convey that way of thinking as well and it would persist to the present day.

The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) stands out in its location with its huge, layered rectangular layered contemporary faade.  Its walls reflect the sunny climate of the place with its beige paint and behind this faade is a lower wide building housing the extensive collection of the museum.

The museum is actually separate building fused into one and some areas are still currently under construction.  Inside, the museum is divided into various wings and levels each housing a different collection.  The old wing appropriately houses older pieces of art such as those from the Renaissance period.  A new wing which is currently in the final stages of construction, the Robert Anderson building is where contemporary art can be found.  The lower levels of the museum are reserved for temporary exhibits such as the ones featured currently, the American Stories Paintings of Everyday Life, 17651915, Myths, Legends, and Cultural Renewal Wagners Sources, In the Service of The Buddha Tibetan Furniture from the Hayward Family Collection, and Contemporary Projects 12 Robin Rhode.  The LACMA is located at 5905 Wilshire Boulevard.

The piece I chose is titled, The Raising of Lazarus by Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn from Holland, Amsterdam.  The painting is a 37 1516 X 32 in. (96.36 X 81.28 cm) oil on panel piece created some time in the 1630s.

The painting portrays Jesus with his right hand raised standing over the tomb of Lazarus while Lazarus emerges from his tomb.  Surrounding Jesus are other personages who are assumedly Mary with three other bearded men.  To the viewers right are weapons seemingly hanging from the wall of the tomb.

I chose this work because I am fascinated with the work of Rembrandt as well as with painting that have religious themes.  I am also interested in paintings coming from the early 1600s.  Other than just this inherent interest in these particular kinds of paintings, I also felt some kind of emotional attachment to the painting because it portrays one of the wonders of Jesus during His lifetime.  I find the painting very appealing because of the particular biblical incident that it portrays and the visual impact the painting had on me.

Perhaps the artist is expressing his own faith convictions in this painting, such as confidence in the Divine in overcoming death.  On the other hand, the artist may just have created the painting under the commission of some catholic patrons during his time.  Nevertheless, the painting, while focusing on a particular subject expresses the emotions and perceptions of the artist in the way it is done.  Looking at the painting I feel that it conveys and expresses the dark and enigmatic phenomenon of death.  However, the expression of the face of Jesus in the painting seems to convey a feeling of hope despite the gruesome and almost scary expression on the face of Lazarus.  The expression on the faces of the other spectators reflect the same awe that I feel for the painting while the subjects express an awe at the wonder that Jesus performed, I am awed at how detailed and visually stimulating the painting still is centuries after it was created.

The painting features dark and subdued colors such as blacks, brows, and deep reds, perhaps to effectively convey the atmosphere within the tomb.  What is noticeable in the painting is the stark and painstaking attention to detail of the subjects set against the blurred background.  This works to effectively give the subjects dimension like they were popping out of the panel.  Light is used sparingly in this painting, as shown in the minimal light filtering in through the opening of the tomb, to express the encroachment of this element into the darkness of the tomb.  The lines between the subjects and the background are blurred giving the illusion that everything bleeds into one another and concealing the distinctive boundaries between each element.  The painting, by blurring some of the elements, also give the illusion of depth and how the darkness is able to embrace some of the subjects such as the little boy directly in front of Jesus.  The arrangement of the subjects in the painting are done in such that the painting is heavier on the viewers left where there are more elements that in the viewers right where the only subject featured is the rising Lazarus.  Perhaps the artist intended it to be this way to focus attention on Lazarus, who is, after all, the main event in the painting.  Putting Jesus in an area where there are other people also diminishes the focus on this particular element because if this was not done, the Jesus element would probably grab the attention that was intended for Lazarus.  The interesting aspect of this painting is the weapons hanging in the tomb in the viewers upper right.  While it was normal during this period to bury the possessions of the dead with them, these implements contain some kind of symbolism, perhaps related to mans struggle against death, or mans struggle with the darkness of despair.  In was drawn to this painting in particular because of the contrast offered between light and dark, not only in the colors and the style of the painting, but in how the artist was able to translate these artistic elements into the substantial contrast of the theme light and dark, life and death.  In effect, the artist was able to express the subject effectively because of artistic technique and the use of artistic elements that worked together to convey the emotions of the theme.

Considered as the most eminent building and a model of canonical Doric architecture (Robertson 80), the Temple of Zeus stands at the very centre of the Altis in Olympia, Peloponnese Greece. It was built by the Eleans from the rewards of the Triphylian war (Elean conquest of the Pisatans, 470BC).  This temple was dedicated to the god of the sky and ruler of Gods, Zeus, who was immemorially worshipped in the Altis (Robertson, 79). It was constructed between 470BC to 456BC by architect Libon of Elis and was the first great monument of classical art and architecture at Olympia, site of the Olympic Games (Kleiner, 119).
   
This hexastyle temple was constructed with limestone and white stucco with a wooden ceiling. It also comprised of thirteen columns (10.43mtrs high, 2.25mtrs in diameter-base) at the sides with an east-west orientation. The roof tiles and lions head water spouts were made of Parian marble. The temple had three rooms-the pronaos, naos and opisthodomos. The pronaos constituted of the throne of Arimnestos and a statue of Iphitos. At the centre of the naos (at the centre of the aisle) stood the chryselephantine statue of Zeus, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World built by sculptor Phidias in 435BC. The statue was carved with ivory and covered in gold plating. The throne was made of cedar wood, emblazoned with ivory, gold and precious stones. A small statue of Nike in the right hand and an eagle perched on the left hand of the sculpture. The opisthodomos was a place for the public to assemble. The east pediment of the temple depicts the Olympic games-chariot race between Oinomaos and Pelops. At the centre of the pediment was the judge, Zeus. To his right stood Oinomaos and Sterope and to his left were Pelops and Hippodamia. They were followed by the racers chariots, horses, servants and the river gods Kladeos and Alpheios. The west pediment of the temple depicts the wedding feast of Peirithoos, King of Lapith. At the centre of this pediment was Apollo with statues of Peirithoos and Theseus on either side fighting to save the guests from centaurs.
   
According to Martin Robertson, the decorated metopes of the temple of Zeus stand above the front and rear porches depicting the twelve labours of Herakles. Figure sculptures consisted in twelve metopes and in two gables (80). The metopes were carved in Perian marble between 470 and 457BC. Six metopes (1.6mtrs high and 1.5mtrs across) stood on either side of the temple over the porches of pronaos and opisthodomos. The temple was burnt on the orders of Theodosius II in 426AD and was finally destroyed in 5th century AD in an earthquake. As Kleiner describes, today the structure is in ruins, its picturesque tumbled column drums an eloquent reminder of the effect of the passage of time on even the grandest monuments humans have built (119).
   
Herakles (or Hercules-the glory of Hera) was the greatest and the most popular hero of ancient Greece. His deeds of bravery are notable in tales, sculptures and paintings of the primordial world. Born in Thebes, Herakles (born out an illicit affair) was the son of Zeus and Alcmene. Though Zeus wished to have Herakles as the King of Mycenae, Hera (Zeus wife) delayed his birth so that his cousin Eurystheus could be born earlier and crowned as king. As Heras hatred for Herakles grew, she sent two serpents to his cot when he was a baby. At the first display of his power, Herakles strangled both the snakes. When Herakles grew, he saved Thebes from an attack by a lion in Mt. Kithairon. In return, he was given King Kreons daughter Megara in marriage. Herakles was living happily with his family. But as Heras hatred grew for Herakles, she sent him into a fit of madness due to which Herakles killed his wife and children. When he recovered, he went to the oracle of Apollo at Delphi to rid him of the crime. God Apollo sent him to work for King Eurystheus and perform the 12 heroic labours the king would set for him which would cleanse the evil from his spirit. As Cohen states, it was Eurystheus, King of Mycenae for whom Herakles performed his labours wherein Eurystheus gained power and control over Herakles only because of Goddess Hera (90-91).
   
The metopes of the Temple of Zeus depict the 12 labors of Herakles. West Side of the Temple, over the opisthodomos

The Nemean Lion (1st) The ferocious king of beasts had impenetrable skin and was thus invulnerable to weapons. Herakles mustered all his courage and killed the lion using his own hands. On the metope, divine protector Athena and the messenger God Hermes stand by the victorious Herakles.
The Lernaean Hydra (2nd) The hydra was a vicious sea creature with a monstrous body and 9 heads (8 mortal, 1 immortal). It had ruined a swamp near Lerna and was destroying the cattle and countryside in the plains. Herkales was constantly attacked by a crab while trying to kill the serpent. Hence with the help of his nephew Iolaos, he cut the necks of the snake and Iolaos seared them with fire, finally burying the immortal head. The metope depicts Herakles and the hydra.

The Keryneian Hind (3rd) Herakles chased the hind for a year finally capturing it by firing an arrow on its leg. It was sacred to Artmeis and hence brought back live to Mycenae. Athena assisted Herakles in this endeavour. The metope depicts Herakles holding the hind.

The Stymphalion Birds (6th) Herakles was asked to remove the man-eating birds which had infested Lake Stymphalis in Arcadia. He first scared them by clashing bronze castanets on a mountain. As the birds flew, he killed them with his slingshot. The metope depicts Herakles showing off his prowess to Athena.

The Cretan Bull (7th) Herakles was sent to Crete to catch a notorious bull called Minotaur who roamed around wild and caused great havoc. Herakles captured the bull unaided and brought it to Eurystheus in Mycenae who set it free again. The metope depicts Herakles with the notorious bull.
The girdle of Hippolyte (9th) Admete, daughter of King Eurystheus desired the belt of Ares (God of war) which Hippolyte, Queen of the Amazons, possessed as a mark of superiority above women. Herakles was sent to acquire the belt which he did by killing Hippolyte in a battle (though Hippolyte agreed to give the belt, Hera tricked Herakles by telling everyone that he was kidnapping Hippolyte due to which a battle took place). The metope depicts Herakles killing Hippolyte.

East Side of the Temple, over the pronaos
The Erymanthain Boar (4th) The boar was causing havoc at Mt. Erymanthos and was ordered to be bought back live by King Eurystheus. Herakles captured the boar and carried it over his head to a king who himself hid in a jar. The metope depicts the heroism of Herakles.

The stables of Augeias (5th) Augeias, the King of Elis, ordered Herakles to clear the stables off the dung which had collected over time from a huge herd of cattle. The metope depicts Athena standing behind Herakles while he is cleaning the stables.

The mares of Diomedes (8th) Herakles was sent to Bistones, Thrace to capture the mares of King Diomedes. Once captured, Diomedes attacked Herakles to retrieve them. As Herakles fought with the Thracians, he asked his friend Abderos to take care of the mares. The mares were man-eaters and killed Abderos. In anger, Herakles killed Diomedes and fed him to his own horses. The mares henceforth went calmly to Mycenae and were later killed by wild beasts. The metope depicts Herakles and the mares.

The cattle of Geryon (10th) Geryon was a man joined by three bodies at the hip who possessed a herd of famous cattle on an island in the west Mediterranean. King Eurystheus sent Herakles to capture the herd which Herakles brought back to Mycenae after numerous difficulties and killing Geryon. The metope depicts Herakles killing Geryon.

Apples of the Hesperides (11th) Herakles was asked to fetch golden apples which were given to Zeus and Hera by their grandmother Gaia. The apples were kept in the Atlantic and guarded by a dragon and the daughters of Atlas and Hesperis. Herakles tricked Atlas, took the apples and handed them to Eurystheus. Eurystheus in return gave the apples back to Athena who returned them to their proper place. The metope depicts Atlas giving the apples to Herakles who is supporting the universe (with Athena standing behind).

The taming of Kerberos, the Hound of Hell (12th) Kerberos was the guard dog of Hades with three heads and a biting tail. Hades allowed Herakles to take the dog but without using any weapons. Using only his arms, with the help of Hermes, Herakles captured the ferocious dog and brought it to Eurystheus, who finally returned it to Hades. The metope depicts Hermes with Herakles dragging the leash of the tamed dog.      
         
After the 12 Labors, Hercules rescued the princess of Troy from a hungry sea-monster and helped Zeus in winning a battle for the rule of Olympus.
   
Herakles then married Dei Aniera, the daughter of Dionysos. Due to some reasons they had to escape. During this journey Herakles shot Nessos, a centaur who was trying to ravish Dei Aniera. While dying, Nessos gave some of his blood to Dei Aniera to smear upon Herakles if he lost interest in her. As time passed, Herakles fell in love with Iole. When Des Aniera found out she smeared the blood of Nessos on Herakles clothes which burned Herakles terribly. Herakles, in great pain went to Mt. Oite, sat on a pyre and asked the passers by to light it. Once lighted, it began to burn Herakles alive. Zeus, seeing Herakles in pain, sent Athena who brought him back to Olympus on her chariot. Hera ended her anger and married her daughter Hebe to Herakles, who gave him everlasting youth.

Having one of the oldest histories of art, culture and civilization, China has come through a long journey to discover the true essence of nature and how to preserve it in their famous Landscape paintings. The art of landscape painting evolved in the late Tang dynasty. I will hereby discuss what made the artists twist their paint brushes in such a way that that their paintings became a dialogue with nature. What thought and intention lay behind these famous Chinese Landscape paintings.

A Brief history of China
Chinese art has a history of 7000 years. The vast land of China has developed a wide range of colors of various cultures and civilizations over these years. The art and culture of China changed with the different ruling dynasties over the time. The Chinese art took different forms by the influence of new religions, great philosophers and men, even political figures. As early as the Neolithic Period 6000 BC, the Chinese art forms were made from pottery, whereas the last Neolithic age brought the Jade culture along the Yangtze River which flourished for 1300 years, before the Bronze Age. Various forms of Chinese art are silk, calligraphy, paintings, folk art, paper cuts, sculpture and metal art.

From early times China was controlled by a strong centralized government with an emperor at the head, supported by a highly educated civil service. Although ancestor worship was important and the Chinese ruling class commissioned craftsmen to make superb bronze vessels and glazed terracotta figures for the graves of their dead, they did not consider that these were the highest art forms. What they really valued, and practiced themselves, was calligraphy (hand writing) and the associated art of painting scenes on silk or paper scrolls, which were unrolled and contemplated at leisure. Later on, Buddhist monks were to make their contribution to this tradition which involved a sensitive response to nature as well as skill with pen and brush.

Buddhism was to gain enthusiastic support from all over the east. Chinese architectural form, the rectangular hall with heavy tiled roof was formed one on top of another to create a pagoda. Statues of the Buddha, his attendants and disciples were made from gilded and painted wood, terracotta, lacquer or bronze. By the 14th century, however, this sort of public display had given way to simplicity in the exquisite art of flower arrangement, and the dry rock and gravel gardens, or the streams flowing peacefully, which were all viewed like a picture.

In 100 AD, Buddhism came to China, but it did not start flourishing until the 4th century. Indian artistic ideas were carried by traders into the South  East Asia where they inspired temples and sculptures based on Indian models, notably the Angkor Vat in Cambodia. (The Hamlyn Encyclopedia, 452).

The Tang Dynasty (618-906 AD) openly took influences of Buddhist style of art and architecture. By now the art of painting figures had also reached the height of excellence. Until the late Tang dynasty, Taoism arose directing many towards the message of harmony with nature. Until now Chinese were more portraying people in their art works. They had been painting their life styles, illustrating the bravery of their kings and great people, and notifying them as the absolute power, as made in the Buddhist paintings. But now, they had started observing nature, the same mountains and rivers were observed with a very different eye, even the animals were painted with such vigor and energy that could make one feel them alive. This was advent of the art of landscape painting.

Taoism
While the Confucius concentrated on conduct and behavior within Chinese religion, the Taoist schools of teachers were more concerned with the philosophical thought. Taoist belief has been explained in a book called The Classic of the Way Tao and its Power Tao Te Ching written by Lao Tzu. Little is known about him, but that he resigned from an official post to live a simple life. Dao is untranslatable but it best described as the Way or way of the method of living, philosophically meaning the changeless reality of Nature. The ideal man learns to live in harmony with this reality. He becomes passive and receptive, so that Tao is able to influence all his thoughts and actions. The supreme virtue is wu-wei (do nothing) which means no action, not interfering, not apposing things, but living in harmony with nature, and all men.(the Encyclopedia of living faiths, 376) There is no supreme God in Taoism, but in fact it is itself denoted as the Great Void, meaning complete nothingness. Tao or Dao has been described as the basic way or method, being the source of everything. According to the Zhuangzi and the Daode jing, that Tao cannot be named or described as it is beyond anything that can be captured or encircled, but it keeps the space of personal experience. It is the absolute source of energy that has no form. Having no form, because it exists before anything has taken form, the Dao can take all forms it is both formless and multiform, and transforms according to circumstances. No one can claim or know it. As the source of everything, it is infinite and endless (de) its Virtue or Efficacy is power and light, and encompasses all life. The concept of Daode jing and the Zhuangzi is about the necessity of following the natural order of the Dao and of Nourishing Life (yangsheng), sustaining that this is adequate for ones own well-being.
Tao is the fundamental basis of everything. Its emptiness and oneness is all universal, all pervading, all embracing all indestructible, this is the power of Tao, and Te is the virtue.

According to Little, the Tao symbolizes the fundamental Taoist view of the structure of reality, namely that beyond the duality of phenomenal existence, created through the interaction of yin and yang, is the unity of the Tao, which exists beyond time and space.

The symbol of Yin Yang can be clearly seen in this diagram of the Supreme Ultimate, called Zhang Huang, from the Ming dynasty, 17th century.

Everything HYPERLINK httpwww.artnet.commagazinefeaturescassidycassidy1-10-4.asp  in Nature is linked to each other. The Taoists submits to the power Tao and so grows in simplicity of generosity and contentment to acquire balance in life. Taoist art is based on the basic principle of Qi, the famous herbal medicine of China. It has been described as life force, vital force, matter energy, breaths and many other expressions. Qi is simply that which makes us alive. At our death it will return to the Great Void. Yin and Yang are not substances but expression of two poles of fundamental duality that exists in nature.

Wang Chong (AD 27-97) describes that Qi produces the human body just as water becomes ice. He further elaborates that as water freezes into ice, Qi coagulates to form the human body. When ice melts, it becomes water. When a person dies, he or she becomes spirit again. It is called spirit, just as melted ice changes its name to water.

The oneness and the wholeness of nature that cannot be described in words, was later more expressed in their paintings. Eventually, it encouraged the artists to paint the essence of nature in the landscape paintings. They also painted Zodiac animals, figures, opera faces, mountains and cranes, which were a symbol for long life. These were the popular subjects for their paintings. The great Emperors and their courts was another important subject for painting.

Chinese Landscape paintings
Night-Shining White (1977), this horse has been painted by Han Gan, a leading horse painter from the Tang dynasty (618906), he was known for portraying not only the physical likeness of a horse but also its spirit.

By the 8th century the artists had also started painting animals, as Han Kan famous for painting horses. Taoism eventually gave way to the rise of the most beautiful form of Chinese art the landscape painting. Landscape literally means mountains and rivers.

Chinese art has been influenced by many religions Confucianism, Buddhism and Taoism, but most of all it has been influenced by Nature. They painted birds, animals, flowers, ladies, emperors and mainly landscapes and other forms of nature, because they believed that nature gave us energy, and so they had to capture the energy and feelings of nature into their painting. By the later years of tang dynasty the artists of China got a chance to escape from their worldly spaces and be able to communicate directly with nature. As the tang dynasty came towards a downfall the poets and painters found themselves more attracted towards natural world to attain peace and tranquility. The learned men found more stability and reality in the mountains and rivers as compared to the political chaos.

These men in response to political disappointments, claimed their identity as literati through calligraphy and poetry, and developed a new trend of painting that engaged calligraphic brushwork of self-expression. The monochrome imagery of old trees, rocks, and bamboo created by these artists became symbol of their spirit and character. Towering and craggy peaks were illustrated with rivers, waterfalls, streams, rocks, and trees carefully painted in radiant mineral pigments of green and blue. These paintings were usually carried out as brush drawings amid colour washes. Famous masters are Yen Li-pen, Wu Tao-tzu, Wang Wei, and Tung Yuan of the Five Dynasties. The landscape painting was further as the mind landscape which depicted both learned references to the techniques of earlier masters and, through calligraphic brushwork, the artist painted the inner spirit. More than representation, now these scholar-artists permeated their paintings with personal feelings. By inducing antique styles, they could also relate themselves to the values of the old masters. Painting was now no longer about the description of the physical world it became a means of illustrating the landscape in the artists heart and mind.

INCLUDEPICTURE httpwww.metmuseum.orgtoahimagesh2h2_1973.120.1.jpg MERGEFORMATINET

Summer Mountains, Northern Song dynasty (9601127), 11th century, Attributed to Qu Ding (Chinese, active ca. 1023ca. 1056) Hand scroll ink and pale colour on silk.
Images of nature have stayed a powerful source of inspiration for artists up to this day. While the Chinese landscapes have deep expressions of the natural world. Upon viewing Chinese landscape paintings, it is obvious that Chinese portrayal of nature is seldom mere representations of the visible world. Rather, they are beautiful expressions of the heart and mind of the artists, keeping the essence of their masters style.

Twin Pines, Level Distance, Yuan dynasty (12791368), ca. 1300, Zhao Mengfu (Chinese, 12541322, Hand scroll ink on paper.

Chinese landscape paintings have ever since been depicted as an intimate expression of nature and as a way of expressing insightful emotions. Landscape paintings of China have always been very poetic in nature. The artist tries to depict the nature of nature in the landscape painting. So, it is not just a picture of a mountain but a combination of various spirits of nature that makes your imagination wander through the landscape. In Chinese landscape literally mean mountain and water. Almost all Chinese landscape paintings portray mountains and water, generally a river or a waterfall.
 
INCLUDEPICTURE httpwww.metmuseum.orgtoahimagesh2h2_L.1997.24.8.jpg MERGEFORMATINET

The Simple Retreat, Yuan dynasty (12791368), ca. 1370, Wang Meng (Chinese, ca. 13081385) Hanging scroll ink and colour on paper.

The artist has efficiently captured the energy of the tremendous mountains and swaying trees to the humble hut. The painting has been done on a scroll taken height wise, giving the viewer an uprising feeling, a sense of involvement which takes the viewer into a journey of eternal beauty and captivating power of the Nature. Whereas the Chinese elaborate on the characteristics of Nature and its elements depicted in a painting carry some strong characters of their own.

The mountains symbolize a long life, and water is like a sea of happiness. The mountains and water in harmony together symbolize a long happy life. Mostly the Chinese landscape paintings show mist or clouds which are a sign of good fortune and happiness and are identified with the two main principles of yin and yang. Clouds and rain can also refer to sexual union, the sky and the earth, and the rain, the climax of the union.

Chinese landscape paintings for the Taoists, signify the eternal Tao, the ultimate source of energy, the reality that pervades all life. Its in these Chinese landscape paintings where the overpowering experience of the wholeness, absoluteness and one-ness of nature and soul can be felt. In prehistoric times mountains were special objects of worship that were thought to ensure cosmic order and stability, and nearly every mountain was believed to have its own mountain god.

Conclusion
The evolution of landscape painting in China helped explain and understand their religions and cultures more clearly. It was the ultimate and absolute direction for the mind and soul, because I believe that we creatures have evolved from Nature, we are part of it and it is within us. Hence, it becomes a necessity to seek guidance from nature, which can only be done if you completely surrender yourself to it, let yourself indulge and involve in it, so that it can consciously respond to your inner self. It is the food for our soul. We may only acquire it by feeding ourselves with it through our all senses. The landscape artists and poets painted the energies flowing through nature, for example the water depicts will, our drive, the activeness and in the positive direction the happiness. The earth shows stability and one which gives nourishment to mind, body and spirit. The wood or a tree denotes spring, dynamic growth and activity. Amazing poets came into the scene, the vision changed from the physical world to a spiritual, emotional, and more sensitive in thought. These Chinese landscape paintings became the favorite around the world.

The article by Brenson spoke of the different language curators use when trying to communicate to the audience the message of an art piece. A standard language only hinders in conveying the exact messages of pieces. Thus, the issue that was at hand was the language in which curators may speak and relay to the audience not only the information of the painting as well as the different probable interpretations it may convey. The article points that not only the artists struggle to make their works express what they truly want to say. The curators who are responsible in showing the works to the world are also burdened to work hard and perfect the language in order to convey meaning not only to one classification of audience and works but to various categories as well.

The article by Tim Griffin, also tackles the same theme, the need to make the art world global and and not confined within the standards of typical European art works.  The trend that is being pushed these days is having artworks understood not only within one language or culture. This is how it is in the past and now all people involved in the art world are making efforts to fix the standard that was imposed. The text further stipulates that the people with the greatest influence on this desired change are the curators. Thus, it is in the curators hands to find a way to bridge that gap that has already been established by the old process. The curators are expected to exert effort in finding ways and means to make each artwork speak as the maker wants it, not merely by the rules and standards set by the old world. They are to convey the meanings across cultures and peoples of the world.

For this assignment, I will be considering Funerary Stele of Tembu from ancient Egypt. My primary reason for this choice is because of the enjoyment I find in the art of Tembu. The reign of ancient Egypt lasted approximately 3000 years, during which time many fine works of art were created, including great architectural structures and  sculptures. The Egyptian civilization started near the river Nile, eventually the Egyptians achieved the greatest empire of the era. The great Egyptian art works include many symbolic images representative of their great kingdom. For this paper, I will discuss the  iconic Egyptian work, Funerary Stele of Tembu.

Funerary Stele of Tembu is a low relief sculpture. Stele is defined as an upright stone slab or a gravestone. (Stockstad, 36) The sculpture was discovered in Western Thebes, Egypt, created by an unknown Egyptian artist. The period during which the stele was made is estimated to be between 1500 and 1470 BC. The Stele is carved in limestone and painted with colors. (Walters Museum of Art)

The figures sculpted in this stele are realistic renderings indicative of the naturalistic style. This style was seen in many Egyptian objects, such as tables, jars, bowls and offerings. They are very much recognizable as realistic points of view. Even though the depicted movement of the human figures are not as natural,  the human figures are rendered with more naturalistic than abstract style.

The posture of the human figures shows twisted perspective, and is also indicative of Egyptian art. The legs and heads are turned sideways with upper body in frontal view, a posture that is impossible in reality. In the Funerary Stele of Tembu, the Egyptian figures are depicted with larger than normal eyes. This seems to suggest the sadness that the figures have in losing their family members.

There are two registers in the Funerary Stele of Tembu, an upper and lower. The upper register shows a girl offering goods to the household. The eyes seen in the upper most part of the stele seems to be watching or guarding the people below. Each object is carefully carved, and shows good color choices. The color seems to fade out a bit, but it is clear that the male s skin is darker than the female s. The color differences of skin depending on their gender also reflect the view of ancient Egypt people toward their gender roles. The bottom register depicts Tembu s sons and daughters holding flowers (Walters Museum of Art). In the bottom of the stele, there could be considered to be a third register depicting hieroglyphic writing of ancient Egypt.

The first time I looked at the Funerary Stele of Tembu, I immediately thought of two images that were discussed in class. First was the Narmer Palette, because of the symbolic image that both pieces have. Even though the stories that both pieces contain are different, some of the same Egyptian symbols are used in both works. One of the symbols that stood out in my mind from both Narmer Palette and the Funerary Stele of Tembu is the lotus flower, symbolizing Upper Egypt.

The eyes in the upper most part of the stele are called wedjat, or eye of Horus, King of the Earth (Stockstad, 52). The other image that was discussed in class is the Stele of Amenemhat I from Middle Kingdom. Stele of Amenemhat I was created centuries earlier than Stele of Tembu, but both steles have many identical features. According to our textbook, these funerary steles represents the deceased s use of offerings through eternity. (Stockstad, 65)

The Funerary stele of Tembu itself reveals a lot about the life of ancient Egyptians.  It depicts Egyptian family life, and the importance of devoted children to their parents. The stele includes a monkey underneath a chair in the house, suggesting Egyptians kept pets. Clothing and food choices are also revealed,  a family wearing white garments and food offerings of meat and plants.

Other images of the Funerary Stele of Tembu suggest the ancient Egyptian beliefs. The eyes of Horus as mentioned above, as well as the offering to the god Osiris signify their religion. The furniture such as the long chair, table and jars, are highly decorative and stylistic. I think the piece is less successful in bringing to light the ancient Egyptian culture than pieces made for the rulers of the time. These art pieces of rulers used the finest materials and were created by top artists, giving a glimpse of the high culture of the time. The Funerary Stele of Tembu is more successful at providing a view of middle-class ancient Egyptians, depicting ordinary lives at home.

I consider traveling as an important part of my creative process. Whenever I go to new places, revisit favorite destinations, see new sights, and indulge in different cultures, I believe that I am enhancing my creativity and improving my talent in the arts. Traveling is an activity that expands a persons horizons and allows him to have more sources of inspiration. When I reach those moments that I feel deprived of idea of what to create or stuck in limited inspiration, I go out and travel. Through traveling, I feel that I am spreading out my boundaries and welcoming new insights that may or may not be helpful in my creative process.

Whenever I travel, I make sure that I also take photographs. Capturing moments in the camera not only documents the places I have visited but also allows me to see sights in different perspectives and appreciate every little detail in the environment more. I also write down insights and notes on what I observe and what I feel while traveling. By doing this, I feel more inspired and enthusiastic to create. I am also very observant when I travel. I dont have to remember everything but I make sure to pick out significant things from my experience and use these moments I picked as inspiration for enhancing my creativity.

One of most important travel experience was touring in the City of Chicago. The lively state of Chicago is really a fun place to visit because of the amazing attractions it has in store for all types of tourists. Chicago has a lot of spots to relax, do sight-seeing, dine, shop, or have cultural immersion. Navy pier, a home to old and new kinds of entertainment, is a delightful place to visit because it offers a myriad of activities for people of all ages. I also took time to visit the Art Institute of Chicago where the museum boasts a collection of art in different mediums. It has recently added a Modern Wing that features contemporary arts. Traveling to places like Chicago is a helpful creative process because it helps me get more inspiration from the culture, sights, and artistry that the state possesses. Based on my experience in Chicago, I felt that aside from the leisure and relaxation I derive from traveling, I also gain the opportunity to expand my perspectives and have more sources of ideas when I want to create for my art.

One of my creative interests is to make furniture. I have even taken a furniture class to pursue this interest and create an outlet for my artistic ideas. Traveling to Chicago was also rewarding because the state has a lot of craft stores and furniture shops so I made sure that I would get to see some of its local furniture shops. Each shop has its own specialty and I marveled with the different kinds of furniture I have seen. One of the best shops Ive visited was the Luminaire, an amazing store located in Central Chicago. This shop offers contemporary fixtures created by some of the most prominent and top quality designers. Touring the store was really an exciting and visually nourishing experience.

Although, Luminaire is a  bit pricey and its products may be too modern for some clients. Nevertheless, the travel was really rewarding for me because I was educated with the new possibilities for the furniture industry.

The whole experience in Chicago cements the importance of traveling as a personal creative process. More than recreation, traveling is also an educational activity that could definitely spark inspiration for creative purposes. Also, traveling is not limited to going to very far places or visiting famous tourist spots. What is important is for a person to get out of his comfort zone every now and then and see the world from different perspectives in order to become more inspired and keep your sense of creativity healthy.

Editorial
Despite our report of the 30th November regarding her majestys speech to the House of Commons in which she stated she would act only for the good of her people, it has to be admitted that there is still an air of disquiet in the country regarding the future of the monarchy. The queen, although still in good health in body and mind, is now in her 68th year and the length of her reign is unprecedented. The future of a Protestant monarchy must be assured for the sake of the country, its stability and role in Europe. .

Around the World
It is reported by our correspondent in Utrecht that a burgher of that city, one Oliver Van Noort, a former inn keeper, has recently completed a three year voyage in which he claims to have sailed completely around the world. His voyage, which he reported in a letter to the authorities in the Netherlands caused much excitement.

Theatre News, by J.Q. Adams
Mr William Shakespeare, author of such entertainments as Julius Caesar which was well received, has this year come up with two new plays in contrast. The Merry Wives of Windsor is a light hearted comedy to lift the dullest spirits. It features that lovable rogue, Falstaff., known of course from earlier works. This can be seen for the price of one penny every Monday and Tuesday at the Globe Theatre, Southwark. As this is such a popular play there will be extra boat men around to ferry passengers. For those of a more serious turn of mind the tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, the title role  being played by Mr Richard Burbage and the Lord Chamberlains Men,  will be performed  on Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

Fashion K.Emerson
Spain continues to be a major influence upon English fashions. The work of Mistress Dinghen Vanderplasse with her knowledge of starching methods continues to be important, especially as ruffs remain in fashion, though they tend to be on smaller scale than on previous years. Silk, hand knitted, stockings were a popular present for many ladies this Christmas past, including her majesty, despite the cold weather. The majority though still prefer stockings of cloth or wool for both durability and warmth. The farthingale, so popular at court, as can be seen in her majestys recent portrait, has been estimated to have reached a width of 48 inches in some cases.  Will this impractical garment continue to be fashionable in the new century

Recent Legislation by E. Cubberley
The recently enacted, and much needed, Poor Law is already bringing changes in our society. It says much for the legislature that they have taken such care to ensure the care of unfortunates. Poor children will be properly apprenticed and trained in a trade as well as in their letters.. The richer member of society will fulfill their social obligations by providing supplies for the poorer folk in difficult times.  No more should we have to report upon poor waifs being found starved to death in harsh weather s happened last winter when the harvest was so poor. And think of the benefit to the country of so many young people properly equipped for a trade  This, together with the stopping of the monopolies which favored only a few, will benefit all of her majestys subjects.

Nam June Paik, a Korean-American artist, died in Miami, Florida, in January 2006 aged 74 years. As word about his death spread far and wide, many artists were affected by the loss of a man who has not only been hailed as the founder of video art, but is also remembered as a great artist who invented new ways of creating art that have been adopted by and become popular among the younger generation of artists (Norie Sato). Paik was not only a remarkable innovator but also stood out as a fitting icon of the 1960s. His works influenced the media, assembling of performance or pop art, multiple-channel video and installation art among other types of inputs. He created a new madness in contemporary art whose influence continues to be felt today (Habler). To commemorate the good works of this pioneer of video art as well as his noble ideas, many exhibitions have been opened in different locations worldwide in such places as New York, California, Germany and the place of his birth, South Korea. The popular eagerness among contemporary artists to remember Paiks works comes from the profound impression that his works have created in those who have watched them. One artist who has been especially impressed by the works of Nam June Paik is the artist Norie Sato who was also his co-worker and who had the following to report to The International Examiner, He was gentle, charming, ironic, witty. He was afraid of mice, very aware of his Asian and creative roots, generous, and very aware of American (and world) culture. In many ways, he was the father of all of us who make art with new media. The whole idea of video art was born and in many ways died with him because we are now in digital image making, which is not specifically video any more (Sato).

Nam June Paik was born in Seoul, South Korea in 1932. At a very tender age, he started his piano and composition lessons, but had to abandon them when during the Korean War, his family moved to Japan. In Japan, Paik attended University of Tokyo where he studied the History of Art. In the course of his studies at the university, Paik wrote a thesis on Arnold Schoenberg, an early twentieth century music composer who is also hailed as the key-bridge between classical and contemporary music. Paik was aware that the contemporary art world was steadily changing and he developed an interest in the new types of art. After his graduation from the University of Tokyo, Paik visited a number of European countries. It was during one such visit that Paik happened to attended one of the music festivals in Germany where he met John Cage. Many of Paiks works reflect the influence of Cage, who is perhaps the most substantial artist of the contemporary music world. One of Paiks compositions, Hommage a John Cage, is an example of Paiks attempt to adapt Cages technique and performance. Paik also became one of the first members of the Fluxus, a group of artists who challenged the established concepts of what constituted art and who were also highly influenced by Cage. Paik decided to stay in Germany and study the History of Music at Munich University. During his stay in Germany and also in the years that followed, Nam June Paik met and interacted with many great artists of the time and whose circles he maintained thereafter. Some of these artists included John Cage, Merce Cunningham, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Shuya Abe and other members of the Fluxus who had already made great names with their genres. Nam June Paiks works reflect the influence that these artists had on his artistic life, as well the international background which resulted in his interactive art (Ligget).

The significance of Paiks contribution to contemporary arts cannot however be understood without a clear understanding of contemporary art as well as its meaning. Art critics have defined contemporary art as a form of art that is created in the present and this includes every form of art created since the end of the nineteen-sixties (9visionart.com).  All forms of art on display after this period have displayed considerable differences from the traditional forms of art both in terms of components and presentation. Contemporary arts are made up various forms of art which include but are not limited to video art, installation, and digital art. Although many artists still produce works of art through traditional mediums such as sculpturing, drawing and painting, few boundaries exist between the traditional and contemporary forms of art. Artists have developed the tendency to combine every possible technique and object in one work in the attempt to present their ideas clearly as possible. One form of art that has become popular among contemporary artists is video art. This simply refers to moving pictures that are accompanied by audio data and also video installation and which are somehow different from television shows or theatrical films (movies). The video has become a favorite tool among artists today, a trend that began during the nineteen-sixties and nineteen-seventies and continues to grow more popular with the rapid development of media and video recording technology. Artists have become very fond of recorded (or live) videos as one of the many tools that help to enhance the production of their works.  According to the Encyclopedia of Irish and World Art, contemporary artists are fond of video art because, In visual art, Video art differs from film (including avant garde cinema) in its disregard for the conventions of traditional movie-making. While film producers juggle with storyline, screenplay, actors and dialogue - the basic elements of entertainment movies - the video artist is concerned with exploring the medium itself, or to use it to challenge the viewers ideas of space, time and form(Encyclopedia of Irish and World Art).

Although Nam June Paik and Andy Warhol are referred to as the founder of video art genre, Paiks works stand out for the various ways in which he experimented with the medium to produce fascinating artistic objects he is also remembered for the unique way in which he transformed the TV set from its place in the homes and used this object to bring a transformation to the gallerys and museums. Paiks innovative TV monitor productions into such artistic objects as the fish-tank, Buddha, robot figures, garden environments and three-quarter moon certainly influenced museum and art-gallery goers to develop a new love for what they liked because the art was becoming more interesting.  Paik combined mass media and art to create a new attraction to art lovers and TV viewers alike. In the month that Paik died, the Loren Cultural Service honored him by placing him together with other contemporary artists an indication of how influential his type of art has been in the world of contemporary art (Habler Encyclopedia of Irish and World Art). By introducing the TV set into the world of sculpturing, Paik made giant robots from old TV sets to represent friends, famous people and as part of ceremonies such as the bicentenary celebrations of the French Revolution in Paris, France. Nam June Paik taught others that old objects can be recycled and turned into attractive objects instead of destroying them. Paik has influenced many artists to turn broken objects into attractive sculptures (Baigorri).

Nam June Paiks TV has also exerted great influence on media art in the way that the artist used TV images to open a new forum of experimentation. Paik rejected traditional western art or traditional eastern art in terms of ideas and materials. In conjunction with engineer Shuya Abe and scientist Hido Uchida, Paik used magnets wave generators, amplifiers and microphones to create relatively new signs by manipulating TV controls. He understood the functions of the television in a very unique way and from such kind of understanding, he developed a special ability to alter its properties and produce gripping components of video. Paik introduced television monitors into the world of art by using them as sculptural objects in a way that no artist or scientist had done before him. In the TV clock for example, Paik used a collection of eighteen television sets to reflect different hours of the day. On each television set, he put clock hands to show the face of the clock divided into twelve daytime and nighttime hours respectively. Since time is a naturally occurring phenomenon, this ability to measure it using the TV became very unique to Paik as his own originally developed way of letting the world know that measuring of time was a science that could still be explored (Nam June Paik Studios). Previous artists had used electronically manipulated film but Paik combined TV sets and other ordinary objects and put them together as video installation to create such canonical works as the TV Garden. Paik discovered that the TV and video had artistic potentials that were capable of influencing the imagination of the audience. He influenced other young artists to develop an interest in and explore video art and many emerging artists have eagerly been adopting Paiks cinematic and narrative focus as well as putting them into brilliant use (Ribas).

Diversity was no doubt one of Nam June Paiks themes in the production of his artistic works. In 1986, Paik produced a TV project which he gave the title, Bye Bye Kipling (Figure 1), in which he linked New York with the eastern cities of Seoul and Tokyo. Paik had lived in different cultures in the course of his lifetime and this attempt o create a network of global communication became a sensation because the artist was able to bring out the computer as an important means of communication before even scientists could handle this function of the computer. By turning the various functions of a computer into art, Paik was able to create an ideal example of the internet. The internet has gradually changed the way people communicate globally. Global communication is capable of bringing into union, different nations and this will create a positive effect on the whole world at large. From Paks artistic creations, the TV is not always evil but can bring together different worlds (Electronic Arts Intermix Nam June Paik Studios).

Nam June Paiks works have not only been recognized as inter-media but are considerably interactive. Through his works, Paik combined various sculptural objects, screen images, music and performance to bring mixed genres and mediums into desirable works of art. Inter-media was an idea or concept that was used by Fluxus artists, and referred to mixed genres or mediums. Paik used combinations of each type of works to question our beliefs and cultures to the nature of television. For instance, His TV Buddha (Figure 1) was displayed in the Museum of Modern Art in New York and became the first video exhibition at a major New York museum. The Buddha became a combination of mediation and technology. Paiks television installations are a mixture of painting and sculpture and brought together the TV itself as an object and the screen images which were combined as the artistic elements of the art piece. The moving images contain the flow of both time and space. In 1971, Paik created a work of art that was an icon of curiosity and humor. In TV Bra, Cellist Charlotte Moorman, who Paiks performance partner is, displayed standing before the audience to present the TV Cello (Figure 2) dressed in a very strange bra which Paik designed from three mini-TV sets. This use of technology in performance was undoubtedly very imaginative (Nam June Paik Studios) As Moorman drew the bow across the television sets, images of her playing video collages from other cellists, and live images from the performance are combined. In this work, Paik tried to show the nature of television as a communication tool and inform the world that video uses the medium of communication for specific purposes and does not stop at mere documentation of reality. Nam June Paik preferred to be non-commercial. In one of Paiks interview with Joao Ribas he said, Our life is half natural and half technological. Half-and-half is good. You cannot deny that high-tech is progress. We need it for jobs. Yet if you make only high-tech, you make war. So we must have a strong human element to keep modesty and natural life (Ribas).

Video art has been acting as a commentary on media preoccupation on our lives ever since it was born in the early nineteen-sixties. Through his vide art productions, Pak influenced public television stations such as WGBH (Boston), the KQED (San Francisco), and WNET (New York) to open their doors to artists who displayed an experimental interest in the TV as a medium of entertainment. Artists and technicians would now work together by using all available technological equipment to bring a new experience of the TV. Paik frequently worked with residential artists at WGBH, to organize some important works such as the 60 minute broadcast program about John Cage (Baigorri).

Conclusion
The artist Nam June Paik has exerted immeasurable influence in the field of contemporary art and all media artists as well as those working in performance and installation have something that they have inherited from Paik.  Paik has had greater influence than any other artist through his imaginations and subsequent realization that video and television have a great artistic potential. Through his videotapes, installations, performances and other form of art productions, Paik helped to re-shape the artistic perception of moving image in contemporary art (Hanhard). Since video art was derived from media and continues to hold a dominant position in communication, its criticism over the position has been compelling. This is because through Paiks development of electronic techniques in which he combined video images and sculptural objects the viewers perception of reality and televised events and his experience are provoked to review the role of television on contemporary. In all his works, Paik also showed that there was the possibility of future technology in art. Paiks true legacy is indeed embedded in his ability to further the link between visual art and modern technology (Baigorri Ribas ).

From the fourth century until the mid-thirteenth century, Constantinople was the epicenter of a new Roman Empire that gave full recognition to the burgeoning Christian religion, which remained at a constant collision with its evidently pagan past. Founded by the great Christianized emperor Constantine, the city was to be a platform of this newly established belief system, as can be seen at the multitude of notable artworks and architectures found all throughout this massive city. Reflecting the a newfound fascination with known figures of Christian mythology, these religious artworks became central to the Byzantine way of life as it became critical to how the people viewed this new religion. According to art scholar Robin Cormack (2000), these works did not just have an aesthetic purpose but also served as a revered icons or props in the face of joy and sorrow, happiness and pain (Cormack 2000, pg. 2), much like how we view modern Christian art works today. For this paper, we shall look at some of the art and architecture of that era and how it has served its purpose during this significant period in our history.

The most notable and epitomizing edifice of the Byzantine Empire, the Hagia Sophia is a marvel of architecture, its beauty and importance permeating until this modern age. Once the largest Church, it was the symbolic center of the city (Cormack 2000, pg. 39). It stood as an imposing structure, with a domed main structure and four towering spindles that called for the peoples devotion and worship. Inside, the walls are covered with gold filigree amidst images of crosses and intricately conceived flowers that seem to go on in the ceiling of the main buildings nave. And, though, it was unlike popularized iconoclasm, the mosaic of figures still denote the undeniable dominion of God and religion over the people.  For the people of Constantinople, this was Gods house and the center of the city and of their lives (pg. 40). It stood above them, evidence of the breadth of Gods power and dominion. It was the peoples source of inspiration and an icon of the triumph of Orthodox Christianity. At the same time, as an object of the religious machinery, it united the people under one Church as they are reeled into the religion by the churchs indiscrete magnificence.

In the tradition of iconoclasm, mosaics found inside the Hagia Sophia depicted the many figures and events in Christian tradition. One particular mosaic found by the doorway to the main section of the church is the depiction Christ Pantrocrator as he is flanked by portraits of the Virgin and Archangel Gabriel. Like many portrayals of Christ in Byzantine art, he is shown with a serene look on his face, a halo around his head, and a book, presumably an early version of the Bible, on his arm. Also part of the picture, an emperor is shown kneeling before Christ, as if receiving his blessing. By associating the emperor with Christ and portraying the immense power and responsibility placed upon him, the emperor is then portrayed as a messenger of God, his actions and decisions sanctioned by the Heavens. Showing this also creates a way for the people to understand how religion is incorporated in their lives.

The artworks and architecture in the Byzantine Era, as we can see, not merely represents a certain aesthetic but also shows how a people saw their culture. The Hagia Sophia and the Christ Pantrocrator, as religious emblems, also showed the power and lasting quality of the culture from which they come from that until now they still serve amongst the Christian people the same purpose as they did in antiquity.

Pulp art and mid-century art are two consecutive art movements that may have even overlapped sometime between 1945 to 1950. This paper examines the qualities of each genre and in the process, identifies its differences and similarities. The main differences of both are the materials used the themes are somewhat similar but one can observe that pulp art has a wider range of themes than mid-century art due to the influence of the sentiments of its consumers. As a graphic illustrator, it is important to learn how art genres evolve to be able to cater to the needs of the consumers better.

Pulp Art
Pulp Art refers to the artworks found in the pulp magazines that were very popular during the 1930s until 1945, otherwise known as the Pulp Era. Pulp magazines were first published in the 1900s, when there was scarcity in entertainment and when the cheapest form of it was reading (Robinson  Davidson, 1998, p.14).  Pulp magazines were initially intended for family reading and its emphasis was on fiction.  Pulp magazines had a wide following from women who were enthralled with happy endings to teenage boys who smuggled magazines to read about the Wild West or the mountains of Mars (p.16).  Pulp magazines grew increasingly popular in the 1920s, when the Depression hit almost all parts of the world. Its popularity slowly declined in 1945, around the end of World War II, and finally died in the 1950s (p.17).

Pulp fiction can be considered as the first industrial level of recombitant culture in American popular art (Lopes, 2009, p.6). The themes of pulp art adhered to the basic elements of popular culture and covered a wide range of genres from aristocratic costume romances, detective tales, working-girl stories, tales of the American Revolution, mysteries of the city, outlaw stories  tastes that owe much to the myths and ideologies of the western in the twentieth century (Cullen, 2001, p.87). Because pulp magazines were mass-produced for the mass consumers, artists had to take into consideration all the diversities of their market (Bogart, 1995, p.156).  The comic strip type of advertisement was popular during that time movements of the subjects were very lively, almost exaggerated and the colors normally utilized were vivid. Also, the material used was pulp, the cheapest, most disposable grade of wood-pulp paper and was very rough therefore, attention to heavy details and fine lines were normally not paid attention to (McCann, 2000, p.48). The conventions of pulp magazine art were the following sketchy penwork, matted cross-hatching, labored shading, and stiff and theatrical poses (Harvey, 1994, p.124).

One of the most prominent Pulp artists was Virgil Finlay, whose drawings were mostly printed on cheap pulp and the scratchboard, with black being the ink and white being the scratchboard (Been Publishing, Im Back, 2010). His popular works were published in the Weird Tales in 1935. They showcased his talent in stippling and the fine dots that appeared on cheap pulp paper proved to be a rare experience of artistic genius. Because of this, Finlay gained a following.  The texture and depth of his images were due to a combination of stippling, fine hatching and the pebble board (Been Publishing, Im Back, 2010).

A more well-known pulp artist is Walter Baumhofer, also known as the King of Pulp (Illustration House, 2010). He had done numerous covers for several magazines such as Adventure, Doc Savage, Ace-High and Dime Detective. He was one of the first artists to introduce color to pulp art, which is normally done in black and white. Robert Sampson explained the artists popular this way Baumhofer brought to pulp magazine covers the resources of fine art. He created covers of unified design, focused and balanced, done in a transparent richness of color and swimming with clear light (Illustration House, 2010). Versatility was the edge of Baumhofer he had painted 750 covers and illustrations on general interest magazines alone.

Mid-Century Art
Mid-century art started to develop in 1945, around the time World War 2 ended and flourished during the 1950s. Around this time, people were aspiring for the American Dream, which meant so many things to so many Americans religious freedom, college education, homeownership, etc (Cullen, 2001, p.204). But more specifically, the American Dream was usually equated to stardom and to a good life, such as the possibility of a poor girl from a small town becoming transformed into a Hollywood princess on a silver screen (p.204).  Hence, illustrations were more popular than photographs because illustrations were highly idealized compared to the latter. During this time, magazines were still very popular.

To clearly illustrate the Mid-century art, it would be notable to mention an artist who was dubbed as the Dean of Illustrators during his time because he largely influenced his contemporaries back then.  Al Parker was one of the most popular mid-century illustrators of his time. It was Al Parker who defined the progressive look of illustration from the 1940s through the 1960s (Illustration House, 2010.). Al Parker illustrated for various womens magazines and his illustrations often depicted attractive love interests, happy stay-at-home moms, mothers and daughters pursuing recreational activities, girls and women baking in matching outfits, glamorous seductresses and betrayed heroines (Plunkett, 2007).  Al Parker majorly influenced not only the styles of art his illustrations appealed to the mass-consumers, particularly the women, and helped shaped the cultural perception of what it means to be beautiful (Plunkett, 2007). Parkers illustrations were sought after for their contemporary look and feel. Al Parkers pieces were characterized by bold, flat, and vivid colors he was also known for his modernist deployment of line and patterning (Plunkett, 2007).

Pulp Art vs. Mid-Century Art
The biggest different of both genres was obviously the medium.  Pulp artists utilized paper during the 1920s because that was the time when the whole world from suffering from the Depression. That made a big difference because illustrations on pulp tend to come out grainy and rough because of the pulps coarse texture.  In addition to that, most pulp art pieces were in black and white. On the other hand, Mid-century artists took advantage of the better technology and economic conditions by utilizing bold and vivid colors and glossy paper to produce more rich and vibrant results. Mid-century pieces were clearer than pulp art pieces mainly because of the pulp.

Pulp art depicted a wider range of themes than mid-century art because pulp art mainly catered to fiction from superheroes, to the Wild West, to the sexy damsels-in-distress. Pulp artists had to take into consideration the diversity of their consumers because pulp magazines were the cheapest form of entertainment during the trying times of the Depression.  Mid-century art, on the other hand, focused on the more realistic but idealized life that Americans aspired for the ideal household and stardom were some of the favorite themes.

Conclusion
American Illustration in the 20th century has been a dynamic, perpetually evolving field.  The introduction of new technologies, the political and economic situations, and of course, the creative minds of various artists can be attributed to its constant evolution. For instance, artists had to make do with pulp because it was the cheapest material available. This all changed in the 1950s when the United States recovered from the war better materials were available and of course, the peoples aspirations had changed.  Artists depicted the kind of life the Americans wanted during that time.  As a graphic illustrator, it is important to be aware of the various technologies and peoples interests and sentiments to be able to produce artworks that can be appreciated by more people. After all, the artists mentioned became popular because they echoed the peoples sentiments.

We live in a world were physical appearance is the measurement of our self-worth. Media advertisements more often than not show how people can improve their appearance and why it is important. From job interviews to social events, how people look and dress determine other peoples impression. In this age of increased self-consciousness, fashion and appearance play a crucial role in establishing the social identity of a person.

Fashion, as defined by many books and other resources, can be defined as the prevalent style and custom at a certain point in time and the word may also mean the study of this certain fashion trends. Even though there are many things that can be considered prevalent at a certain time, fashion more often than not points more to clothing or clothing style. Different periods of time have different fashion. There is no other applied art which affects the everyday lives of the people other than fashion. Fashion design is responsible for the clothing that we wear since the ancient times. Clothing does not only help us keep warm but it also shapes us in the psychological and social aspect. Basically, clothing forms a basis of a persons social identity.

Fashion has become a part of the culture since the early times. Different ethnic groups have different clothes which reflect their culture. Fashion based on some researches done by cultural scientists played a role in social and cultural structure, social differentiation and social integration (Davis, 1994, p. 16).

Social identity is the way people are categorized or label themselves. This can be in forms of their race or ethnicity. This can also be defined as how people associate or identify themselves into certain groups which serve to heighten their self esteem because they have the same social identities. Since people are social animals, sociologists deemed that social identity is an important aspect of a person. People want to be assured that they belong to one group or they positively compare with other group of people.

When talking about social identity in terms of fashion, it is more than how majority of sociologist in the world restrict the concept as mere social class or status. Social identity includes how people communicate with others through symbolic means such as the way they dress or through clothing. It is also the configuration of attributes and attitudes which people seek to attain and discuss about themselves.

Fashion contributes to the redefinition and reconstruction of a certain social identity by continually adding something new to cultural artifacts. Everything undergoes evolution and perhaps fashion is one thing that changes fast it is fashion. People change the way they dress when the weather changes. People change the way they carry their clothes when something in their environment shifts.

Studies and researchers which were geared towards understanding the culture of a certain society more often than not focus on artifacts which are evidences of the past and present culture of a place. The woven pieces of clothing are often considered as indicators of social customs and social hierarchies. Anthropologists consider clothing as less prone to changes done by the capitalist market and are therefore richer or more stable indicators of sociological and cultural truths. Because of this, anthropologists invested far more energy and resources in investigating and examining the significance of the structure, form, and pattern of clothing than other cultural artifacts. For an instance, the way American Indians wear their clothes which were originally made from animal skin is still the same as before. Emergence of new ways of clothing did not change their original culture (Breward, 2003, p.64).

Fashion and its effect on nineteenth century
Attempts to reform the way people dress first appeared during the nineteenth century. The people were starting to get tired of the constricting features of clothing and the too elaborate features of dresses. Women who were fighting for their rights such as Elizabeth Stanton, Elizabeth Miller and Amelia Bloomer were the women who designed the then very famous bloomer dress which was consisted of an uncorseted mid-calf dress which was set over pantaloons (Stearns, 1994, p.212).

Many improvements were made since then to peoples clothing. Different eras reflected different styles of clothing and are more often than not also reflective of the prevalent social identity. For example, during the Victorian era it can be said that the clothing of the people were like straitjackets which aimed to constrict the movements and manners of people. Women during the Victorian era were expected by the society to move and behave only when instructed by their male counterpart.

Another example of how clothing or fashion plays a role in the construction of social identity is the wearing of uniforms of the military, police or religious personas. The wearing of uniforms based on social researches done impose an aura of confidence and authority so that they can make the people around them follow their orders either willingly or unwillingly (Crane, 2001, p.3).

Clothing also affected the way people measure their social status or whether they were rich or poor during the early nineteenth century. Clothes were generally considered as one of the most valuable possessions during this time. During the Industrial Revolution, clothes were started to be manufactured by machines or in factories and these clothes cost more than average. Newly made clothes were not available to the poor because of the cost and they were left to use hand-me-downs or used clothing. Clothes were very expensive that it was even considered a form of currency by the rich and often replaced gold as means of payment.

Fashion and clothing are also means in which people differentiate themselves from others. Rare fashion finds such as antique clothes are used by people who want to express their uniqueness from others. They may wear it as everyday clothing or on special occasion. Regardless of when they will wear it, these kinds of clothing are worn by people to establish an identity which is different from others (Barnard, 2002, p.61).

Another example of how clothing constructs social identities was when large immigrants arrived in the United States during the second half of the nineteenth century. The immigrants who arrived immediately disposed their new clothing and used the new clothes available in the country. Through this method, anthropologists were able to deduce that the people wanted to start a new social identity so they immediately dropped their old ways of clothing.

Hats were also famous article of clothing during the nineteenth century and it played the most important role in distinguishing the social status of a person. The bowler hat which was designed in England in 1850 was originally made as an occupational hat but was soon adopted by the people from the upper class for sports. It was not too long until people from all social strata adopted the bowler hat for everyday use. Another example, the cap with visor which was mainly used by military officers, was also adopted by the working class by the middle of the nineteenth century. The visor cap, then known as the peaked cap was considered to be the most common head covering for the working man.

Fashion and its effect on the twenty-first century
In the recent years, especially the twenty-first century, clothes were not deemed with the same economic importance unlike in the previous centuries. Because of the cheap ready-made clothes that were made available to all social classes, clothes were not used as replacement for gold unlike before. Even though the economic value of clothes was not as significant as before, their symbolic value remained as important as before. The availability of clothes to all social classes made it possible for those who are not so very affluent to still express their individualities and own cultures.

Another example of how clothes changed the way people perceive their social identities is if before women were not allowed to wear tight clothes or those which confine their body. Today women can wear tight clothes such as leotards and spandex whenever they like because of their liberalization. Women of today are not expected to conform much to how the society expects them to behave or to act. They are also not forced to stay at home anymore but women are now doing what the men do. Indeed, the gender equality experienced in this century is reflected in the way women dress.

Cross-dressing or the wearing of clothing that is associated with a different gender, is also another way of how fashion reconstructed the social identity of people (Bullough, 1993, p.3). Homosexuals before were forced to follow the prescribed way of dressing for their gender. Unlike today where in homosexuals are free to dress the way they want, without being afraid of other people and punishments. They can wear womens clothing and express their identities freely unlike before.
Teenagers or adolescents also use fashion to set their own social identity from their parents or those from an older generation. If we turn on the television or visit a high school, we can see teenagers strutting outrageous clothes such as those with bright colors or elaborate designs. If people from an older generation prefer simpler designs of clothes, teenagers prefer those with dramatic effects to highlight the generation difference (Sloan, 2009). Perhaps this is how the youth of todays generation set their social identity. If ever we see an old person dressing up the way the teenagers do, these persons are often considered out of the ordinary. This social identity is somehow embedded in the minds of the people and teenagers are now remembered this way.

People who prefer work than leisure or vice versa can also be determined by the way they dress. During they first years of the twentieth century, the three-piece business suit was considered by many to be the epitome of the high social class and are often worn during important events. Though some wear the business suit as everyday apparel, others still consider it as a social class distinction. There were also strict regulations as to how a business should be worn and made. There were exact measurements for the lapels, collars and sleeves. The strict regulations about business suits were deemed as a factor in how people will achieve success.

The use of the popular T-Shirt was associated with leisure. Because of its availability and cheap cost, majority of the public during the early twentieth century prefer shirts over the business suits. As time passed, t-shirts were used by people to set off political agendas such as imprinting political statements on t-shirts or other humorous statements. No matter what social class people belong in, rich or poor, t-shirts are favored by these people.

Fashion transmitted by popular culture or music come and go very rapidly. Clothes designed because of the effect of the popular culture and the entertainment media are often highly androgynous. There are people who call themselves gothic and they are identified socially by their gloomy appearance and wearing of black colored clothes. Established rock groups also affect the fashion scene by popularizing leather clothes. Rap musicians like rock groups popularized the baggy clothes worn by some teenagers today. Indeed fashion drew a line between different genres of music and avid fans of the different music genres also follow this fashion therefore setting a social identity for them.

Fashion undoubtedly constructs and affects the social identity of a person in more ways than one. Fashion and all the attributes it entails are a vast reservoir of meanings and culture of a certain society. From fashion magazines to television advertisements, fashion is a way of introducing something new to the public. Because of what they see in these popular advertisements, the peoples way of thinking is affected. People also depend on clothes and trend of fashion to express themselves and their uniqueness. Without this part of our culture, people will have lesser chances of expressing themselves and their individuality.

Paul Gauguin was a French painter and at the same time a sculptor, who used to look for exotic environments for his work. He could go as far as France and Tahiti to look for this kind of environment. Mostly, he used objects and people in his art work especially the painting one, bringing out a mysterious world into the mind (Gates and Galls, 2010). He always wanted to express spirituality and states of emotion in his work. He has been associated with post-impressionist, symbolist and synthetist periods of art (AE Television Networks, 2010). This essay seeks to explore the life of this artist right from his childhood to his work and how he has influenced the modern art.

His family back ground
His family had a history of violence, especially the sexual one, and a lot of cruelty. It may be said that he could have inherited some of these character traits which had so much impact in his life. He had so many Peruvian characteristics and it was estimated that he was 18 Peruvian. The great grandfather, Don Mariano de Tristan Moscoso, belonged to an old Spanish family as a scion and they lived in Lima from 1600s (Mathews, 2001). He later married a woman who had a French descent called Ann-Pierre Laisnay and they had two children. Don did not live for long because he met pre mature death in the year 1807. Their daughter and Gauguins grand mother, Flora Celestine, became of age and brought up her own daughter, Aline, who later became Gauguins mother. However, Gauguin always claimed to be coming from the Incas bloodline but this cannot be substantiated (Mathews, 2001).

It does not matter whether he was an Inca or not but one thing for sure is that, his Peruvian descent had so much effect on his artwork. Since his grand father was an artist, he really shaped the views of Gauguin in respect to art and this drew him closer to the career. His personality traits are said to have come from his artistic grand father. His grandparents had so many problems in their marriage which culminated in a divorce after only four years of marriage (Mathews, 2001). They fought for the custody of the children but the grandfather succeeded in taking two children only including Gauguins mother, ending up abusing her sexually. The grandmother took back her children but the hostility never subsided between them and at the end, the grandfather shot the grand mother. She survived but the former was sentenced to life imprisonment. This nature of violence in Gauguins family also shaped his marital status in future. This did not mean he tried to kill his wife but he often abused her with so much hostility. It is quite unfortunate that, just like his grandfather, he was so much attracted to young girls and the probability of him being attracted to his own daughter was high (Mathews, 2001).

His childhood life
He was born on June 7 in the year 1848, in Paris, France. His father was a journalist coming from Orleans and a Spanish Mum of Peruvian descent. After Louis Napoleons victory, his parents decided to sail to go to Lima, Peru and at this time he was only three years old but unfortunately, the father died during this trip. The two, that is Paul and his mother, continued to stay in Lima for the next four years. As young as he was, he had no problems because he led a comfortable life but later he went back to New Orleans (AE television networks, 2010). Here, he did not stay for long for he found his way to Paris. He got a chance to go to school and thus he joined a seminary for religious studies. When he clocked the age of seventeen, he decided to join other workers on ships involved in commercial activities. In 1867, his mother past away, leaving him under the guardianship of Gustave Arosa. This is the man who introduced Paul to stock broking as a career. Rosa was so significant to his artistic life in that, he is the one who aroused the interest of art in him (AE television networks, 2010).

When Gauguin recounted his memories of his childhood especially between the ages 6-17, the stories on Lima were more colorful. He was always frustrating teachers with his indifference and he always made remarks that did not go down well with them. For him, he was a typical French student and no one could tell of his inclination to art for he never showed any potential of becoming one of the greatest artists who ever lived (Mathews, 2001).

Around 1870, Paul became a stock broker, a career which lasted for 12 years. He later married a lady Mette Sophia Gad, who was Danish and he seemed comfortable with his middle class life (Gates and Galls, 2010).

How did he begin his artistic work
Arosa had so many collections of art from famous artists for example, Camille Corot, and from one of the stock brokers who was also an artist. The latter was called Emile Schuffenecker with whom Gauguin started to paint with. Gauguin began getting instructions concerning art and he mostly frequented the studio where he was able to draw using a model. In the year 1876, his painting, called Landscape at Viroflay was recognized in an annual exhibition which took place in France. He started to develop an interest in an impressionist movement called avant-garde movement and around the year 1881, he had come up with his personal painting collection (AE Television Networks, 2010).
Gauguin always loved painting and for him, it was a hobby. In the year 1875, he found Pissaro, an artist also and since he was older, Gauguin decided to work under him. At this time, he was trying to get acquainted to the painting and drawing techniques. So far, his struggles paid, for in the year1880, his paintings found their way into the fifth exhibition of the impressionist movement and the same happened in the subsequent years of 1881 and 1882. Most of his holidays, he used to paint with his mentors Pissaro and Cezanne and from this point, little progress could be observed (A E Television Networks, 2010).

The impressionist movement is mainly concerned with  paying  attention to the impression produced generally in  a piece of work .They used mostly the primary colors in their work and these colors were not to be mixed. They also emphasized on the use of small strokes in painting. When he clocked the age of 35, this was in the year 1883, he made up his mind to leave the business world and focus on his painting career. When this happened, his wife decided to leave with Gauguins five children to go to stay with her parents in Denmark, Copenhagen. However, he decided to go after her but he only managed to return with their eldest son, Clovis. After all these happened, he could support himself and the son by pasting adverts on walls (Gates and Galls, 2010).

Around 1886, the son was admitted in a school which was a boarding one and Gauguin managed to stay in the Pont Aven village for only a few months. This village was found in the North West of France. Later, he arrived on the Martinique Island to work as a laborer. In 1888, he went back to the village and here, he managed to bring together a group of artists (Gates and Galls, 2010). He started to teach about a particular style of art called synthetics. This style entails using patterns of pure colors on flat surfaces with expressive outlines. Some characteristics in the village used to attract painters so much. For example, the people there used to lead simple lives and had strong religious faith. For the artists, these manifested a quality of truth found in the human nature which could not be found in Paris because of its sophistication (Gates and Galls, 2010).

Later, Vincent Van Gogh had a heart to call Gauguin so that they could always be together at Arles but since the latter was so proud, arrogant, and full of sarcasm and to some extent sophisticated, he could not cope with the former because Vincent was somehow laid back and who desperately needed a human figure as a companion. At the end of the day, both of them could not tolerate each other and thus they had to part. They could not part well and as a result, Vincent ended up threatening Gauguin using a razor and the latter could not take the threats and he quickly vacated to Paris. While there, he continued with his bohemian life style upto1891 when his life in France came to an end (Encyclopedia of World Biography, 2006).

Before all these, his style had improved so much to the point of developing what then came to be known as his trade mark style. This entailed using bold colors that were unrealistic on flat areas which were large with mystic subjects. The yellow Christ is a painting that is typical of this style. It can also be seen in this style that there is a Japanese influence of two- dimensional art which was mostly identified with the Japanese (Wanczura, 2009)

Pre-Tahitian paintings
Two of the masterpieces of this period are called Vision after the sermon and The yellow Christ which he painted in the year 1889. He used Peasants of Brittany as strong features in the paintings. In both paintings, he has used colors which are bright and flat silhouettes from shapes that were simplified. Another style that emerges in both paintings is his use of symbolisms where one thing is used to signify another (Gates and Galls, 2010).

In the painting, vision after the sermon, it can be observed that, there are some Briton women who are looking at a fight between Jacob and a stranger who later appears to be an angel. This story is found in the book of Genesis in the Bible. Here, Gauguin is talking about faith. He said that, their faith made it possible for them to see clearly miraculous events which took place in the past, in a way as if they were taking place at that time. The painting The yellow Christ, was characterized by a yellow statue that was made of wood and this he borrowed from a church just close to the village of Pont-Aven. He tries to show through the painting that the Breton women were actually at the scene of crucifixion (Gates and Galls, 2010).

Life in Tahiti
In the year 1891, he was at a position to sell 30 of his paintings and one of his clients was called Edgar Degas. The money that he got enabled him to leave for Tahiti (Wanczura, 2009).
The first time Paul arrived in Tahiti, he decided not to stay inside the capital which went by the name Papeete. This capital was inhabited by Europeans who resided with the natives. Gauguin married a girl who was a native in the place and they had one son. Since he was still poor, he decided to go back to France in 1893 only to find that, an uncle of his had left a small fortune for him. While in Paris, he was always accompanied by a girl who went by the name Annah. She was a Javanese. One day Annah, decided to run away but not empty handed. She carried with her some things from the studio and this was a blow to Gauguin. In November the same year, the artist tried to hold an exhibition in Tahiti but it was not to his expectation due to some financial constraints. In the following year, he decided to go to Denmark and later to Brittany (Encyclopedia of World Biography, 2006).

In the year 1895, an auction was held of his paintings much to his dismay. He made up his mind to go back to Tahiti the same spring and settle once more among the natives but this time, he started deteriorating health wise. While in Brittany, he had broken an ankle but even after going to Tahiti, it did not heal well. This was coupled with syphilis infection and stroke. Problems did not end there. He also had problems with the authority because he found himself flouting rules all the time but despite of this, he continued to rely on them for manual jobs (Encyclopedia of World Biography, 2006). His financial situation was going from bad to worse pushing him to try to commit suicide in 1897 though he did not succeed (Wanczura, 2009)

While still in Tahiti, he decided to give a friend a word of knowledge that he should choose the Persian, a little of Egyptian and some Cambodians styles in his art and to verily avoid the Greek. He however achieved so much when he made up his mind to leave the culture of the West (Encyclopedia of World Biography, 2006). His art appeared to be running away from Western civilization and in search of a new life which was primitive and more sincere. His choice of leaving the world of the middle class, leaving behind his jobs, wife and children, not allowing glory and gain to come that easily, were some of the positive characteristics of his personality (Pioch, 2002).

Tahitian paintings
These paintings were characterized by beauty and lushness of the Tahitian environment but they did not reflect the exact Tahitian life. The persons and the objects which were used were taken out and placed in a setting which was not the normal one. One of the Tahitian paintings called La Orana Maria was about a woman in Tahiti in the company of her young son and two other women posed just near them, depicting the picture of Mary the mother of Jesus, with the son, that is Christ and some angels attending them while worshipping. Other paintings during this time are the ones that read, where do we come from Where are we going And what are we All these he painted in the year1898.Gauguin used natives in the paintings being portrayed in meditative poses (Gates and Galls, 2010).

Another such Tahitian painting is the one of two women on the beach. This reflected his like for the primitive life. The use of flat forms and colors which were some how violent reflected untamed nature in his primitive art he later moved them into canvas (Pioch, 2002).

For Gauguins paints, they somehow reflected the 20th century style of modernism such that, he used juxtapositions and anachronisms. His style ,life and art work were instrumental in shaping the world of art and it made people to have positive attitude towards objects of primitive art and be accepted especially by expressionists from German  and the artists in the 1900s (Encyclopedia of world Biography, 2006).

He is regarded as one of the most high-ranking artists in the world and the modern art owes so much to him. He used to pay so much attention to line and color which did magic in his work. His style of mixing both objects and human beings in his work at the same was unusual thing and this can be said that it inspired surrealist movement where they emphasized the use of fantastic imagery. This movement was active in the years 1920s and above (Gates  Galls, 2010).

During his life time, he found out that woodcuts can be used as printmaking technique. He really wanted to release a book called Noa Noa which talked about his life and experience in Tahiti unfortunately, he could not publish it. This did not deter him, for he went ahead to make woodcuts, ten color ones for that matter, for illustrations. After all these, he came up with a very huge  wood block which he gave the name Manao Tupapau , and while still in Tahiti, he continued to make the wood cuts until they reached 30  (Wanczura,2009).

His life was characterized with great poverty until his death in the year 1903.However, a show was held of his works three years after his death. This is when the people recognized his art works and importance of them in inspiring the modern art unfortunately, this was somehow late (Wanczura, 2009).

In conclusion, it is quite sad that his work was actually recognized in his death and that he could not enjoy the successes of his work. The legacy that he left will continue to inspire this period of art history and even the coming ones.