04/10/2019
Andy Warhol,Ana Mendieta & Jean Michael Basquiat
Ana Mendieta, Andy Warhol and Jean Michael Basquiat had both similarities and differences between their artwork. One prominent distinction were the themes they addressed and their methods. Some of Ana Mendieta's, Andy Warhol's and Jean Micheal Basquiat's work were tangible or had become present through a process that required the artist to use the environment to leave a mark.Each artist had both similarities and differences about their
upbringings. All three had developed and found a form of expression away
from home.  |
| Untitled(Image from Yagul)1973 |
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| Untitled(Siluetas Series)1976 |
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| Untitled(Self-Portrait with Blood)1973 |
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| Untitled (Facial Hair Transplant) 1972 |
Ana Mendieta
Ana Mendieta was brought to the United States, at a very young age, from Cuba. Her feelings on how she feels nature and homeland were a part of her identity was seen in her works done with mud, water, leaves,etc. Mendieta's work with the mud and with blood, provide evidence that she was trying to make a statement of how strong she felt about her roots as she was creating her art. Ana Mendieta, however, had different themes in her work."Identity is continuously re-styled and invented to suit the circumstances but, at the same time, it supposedly emanates from an inner quality that universalizes the human condition. " This quote by Finkelstein resonates with Ana's work, as she used to make many artworks based on what used to identify her. The mud pieces dealt with cultural background and the connection between origin and identity. She also used photography to address violence and abuse. Using herself as the model,which only made her statement stronger. Her work on violence and abuse was inspired by events she went through. Making her work a method to describe how it feels to be a victim of abuse,using her art,again as an expression of identity. The circumstances under which her creative mind was directed to work, show why her style was, as some might consider, gruesome. She used real blood and distorted her own image.Mendieta wasn't know for being attracted to popularity, yet she was starting to become recognized around the time of her death. Just like Basquiat, Mendieta died at an early age(36 years old)but it is still unknown how exactly it happened. The only facts know is that, at the time, she was living with her husband and was found dead, having fallen from the 33rd floor, through a window. His husband has always been suspected by some of Ana's friends and family.
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| Rebel Boxer(1982) |
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| Charles the First(1982-2005) |
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| Rome Pays Off(2004) |
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| Flexible(2016) |
Jean Michael Basquiat
Jean Micheal grew up visiting art museums and ran away from home at a young age(17).At first he had a more outspoken approach to his ideas. He started off with street art using a slogan "SAMO" which stood for "same old shit". He would sign off quotes that would sometimes address politics and everyday culture. After some time he finished working with graffiti and started painting. He admitted that his father wasn't appreciative of his work and he was sometimes demeaned by his style. This however, didn't stop him from creating his art. Jean Micheal's would sometimes use doors, tires, windows, and other objects instead of a canvas. This showed that art doesn't necessarily mean taking a photograph or doing an oil painting. That the simplest objects can become part of an historical masterpiece and things have as much value as you grant them.This reminds me of John Berger's quote:"Freed from the boundaries of time and space, I coordinate any and all points of the universe, wherever
I want them to be. My way leads toward the creation of a fresh perception of the world.Thus I explain in a new
way the world known to you." Spectators used to describe his work as an original remake of an already existing image. He would make his own interpretation of the world and simple concepts. Yet his form of expression made it unique. Also, some of his pieces were about him and his childhood or sometimes events he imagined. Such as a boxing match, he said he would have with another fellow artist. Even in these pieces, which can be considered as self portraits, he didn't change his style. Showing that maybe he considered himself as much as a part of society as everything else he painted. He also used to base some of his paintings on people that influenced him,which can be considered another representation of identity.At the end of his career his life had completely change from where he started. He had become popular, even friends with Andy Warhol, had money and involved with substance abuse. The use of drugs would later cause is death at an early age(27 years old).
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| Campbell Soup Cans(1962) |
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| Jackie Kennedy III(1966) |
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| Liz as Cleopatra(1962) |
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| Liz(1965) |
Andy Warhol
Warhol's silk screening process made popular a new technique in the art world. Also, his use of every day products, provides a definition on what mundane objects that we tend to overlook really mean. Andy Warhol had a different childhood from what we see everyday. He was often considered as an "eccentric person" and this went on even after his popularity. However, his past made him ambitious about who he wanted to be. He was intrigued by the idea of stardom and popularity. He would use celebrities in his artwork such as Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor, Elvis Presley, etc. With this in mind, he would also try to make very image, the best one possible.One of the themes in Andy Warhol's art was mass media culture and the effects of advertisement. As Finkelstein states:"In every aspect of ordinary life there is evidence of the controlling capacity of remote economic and political interests." To portray this he would use commercial products such as cans of soup, brillo pad or Coca-Cola bottles. He would also use repetition in his work, using the same image over and over, to create one piece. This can be correlated with the politics and economical approach of commercials in our modern society. However, some of his pieces were also directed at the events that were occurring during the time he was alive. Such as the Jacqueline Kennedy prints after John f Kennedy's assassination and Che Guevara's Piece. Finkelstein quote on Manners: "Even though we cannot know how the other sees us,nonetheless,we are consumed with trying to control it. Andy was a well figure in society and his studio " The Factory" had its own reputation. It can be said that he had reached the social status he was so captivated by. At the end, Andy Warhol died out of illness at the age of 58.
Cited Sources & References:
Ana Mendieta Art, Bio, Ideas. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.theartstory.org/artist-mendieta-ana.htm
Basquiat
Street Art Masterpieces - Street Art Legends Series. (n.d.). Retrieved
from https://www.widewalls.ch/street-art-legends-best-of-basquiat-art/
Elizabeth
Taylor:. (2011, March 24). Retrieved from
http://www.artnet.com/magazineus/features/saltz/andy-warhols-portraits-of-liz3-24-11.asp
Gopnik,
B. (2017, February 21). Andy Warhol's Death: Not So Simple, After All.
Retrieved from
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/21/arts/design/andy-warhols-death-not-so-routine-after-all.html
Jackie Kennedy III by Andy Warhol. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://guyhepner.com/product/jackie-kennedy-iii-by-andy-warhol/
Jean-Michel Basquiat. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.artnet.com/artists/jean-michel-basquiat/
MoMA Learning. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.moma.org/learn/moma_learning/andy-warhol-campbells-soup-cans-1962/
Tate. (n.d.). Ana Mendieta 1948-1985. Retrieved from https://www.tate.org.uk/art/artists/ana-mendieta-11167
Warhol, A. (n.d.). Andy Warhol. Campbell's Soup Cans. 1962 | MoMA. Retrieved from https://www.moma.org/collection/works/79809
White,
K. (2019, January 31). 21 Facts About Jean-Michel Basquiat. Retrieved
from
https://www.sothebys.com/en/articles/21-facts-about-jean-michel-basquiat
Documentaries shown in class
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