The Spark of Life

The Spark of Life, a painting immortalized by Michelangelo Buonarroti, resides in the Sistine Chapel in the Vatican City of Italy. Michelangelo was a Renaissance artist who is famous for his work in 1508 in the Sistine Chapel. Pope Julius II commissioned Michelangelo to decorate the ceiling of the chapel with the twelve apostles. Michelangelo originally thought of himself as only a sculptor and a job for painting was considered nearly a demotion in his art. However, he took the job and was successful in displaying the apostles and the story of Genesis on the ceiling of the chapel. Michelangelo used a fresco style of painting (pigment upon wet plaster) to depict over 300 characters. One of the most famous of his fresco works is the Spark of Life. This image shows god giving Adam life, or the creation of the first human. I like to believe that Michelangelo designed this portion of his work as the hand of god and the hand of Adam meeting because many during the age believed the touch of god to be a blessing, and perhaps Michelangelo thought that god should have a part in everyone's life. Michelangelo's art does not change the message of the story except that it makes it a little more personal and seems like it should bring god a little closer to people other than just in prayer.

Noah's Ark, in the shower.

This is a bar of soap.

This piece of visual art was hand crafted by Shari Brown. After being inspired by god, Shari came up with the idea of Pure Heart Soaps to spread a “pure heart and a steadfast spirit.” These soaps are all natural, made of vegetable glycerin and natural colors- even the 3 layers of art underneath. Pure Heart Soaps even last longer than most bar soaps; one bar lasts about two months. Shari currently sells her soaps on her website www.pureheartsoaps.com, and a regular bar averages between 7-10$ each.

The thing that stood out to me the most about this bar of soap is that it is more or less directed towards children. Of course, a small child could not order the bar of soap itself online; it would recieve it as a present from a religous aunt or grandmother. As I’ve mentioned before, it still really irks me that the Noah’s Ark story is told as a children’s story. Really, none of the stories in Genesis seem like stories that innocent little Christian and Jewish children should read so mainstream. I mean, this is such a widely known story now, that it has even made it’s way on to a bar of enviormentally friendly soap. I think the artist wanted a way to display her love and gratitude towards god through something kind of innovative, something unique that could both represent her ove for god and make her money. Of course, since it’s a bar of soap, she can’t go into great detail on the pictures; she has to get her message across through cute, simple images made of glycerin that will appeal to both children and adults. (A lot of her other soaps feature ponies and flowers and autumn leaves.)

It seems that the image of the dove coming back to Noah in the ark is the most widely used because it is the part of the rather grotesque story that symbolizes new life and hope. I don’t think that Shari would ever put drowned bodies in a massive flood of the earth on a cutesy little bar of soap.

Cain and Abel Depicted

Maurice Heerdink was born in 1955 in the Netherlands. Originally he began themed works in the Maya culture before moving on and giving into his fascination with movies and show biz. But the pay checks weren’t long enough and Heerdink began doing commercial work and eventually moved onto male nudes. Next he got interested in ancient mythology before returning to portrait work. This piece is very detailed but several things tend to stand out to me more specifically. One thing that stands out is the dark barren back round. This seems pretty fitting though considering it is the first murder committed in history. But under Abel, and the feet of Cain, there is more light which maybe is used to highlight the vibrancy of life that is about to be taken away; I never really thought of it in that way. Another thing that sticks out to me is the fact that you can’t see either of their faces. Maybe this is used to show how inhumane the taking of another life is. I believe he chose to depict the story as dark, faceless and primal (use of an animal jaw as murder weapon), to separate the murder from Christian religion. I think he is trying to emphasize the dark, evil nature of murder. His depiction differs from mine only in that he uses an animal jaw as a murder weapon. When I imagined the story I imagined Abel using a knife sheared from rock. I don’t think he changes what is supposed to be the intended message; the message that murder is wrong and evil and it is never right to take another life. The author is not so much limited in his medium than he is in his artistic back round. His artistic back round suggests that he is more interested in beautifully defining the human body in his paintings than anything else. He has a history of human portraits and that is evident in this painting. He spent more time defining the body of the two characters than he did in depicting the backround.

Genesis... on Acid?

This is definitely an accurate depiction of man's fall in the Garden of Eden ... if reality was constructed from Lego blocks or if God had intended reality to be a bad 1980's music video. Thanks to technology, this is now considered art. This is art. That statement is usually followed by the question, "Who is the artist?". If by that question one is trying to infer who was behind the computer when this pixelated revelation came to fruition, then my good friend Metin Seven is the answer.

Metin was born in Brussels, Belgium. Raised in the Netherlands during the 1970's and 80's, Metin began his relationship with graphic design in the 90's with the new found accessibility individuals had to the internet. He has quite the resume delving into many forms of graphic art, and even doing some graphic design for some video games. He has not however achieved his own Wikipedia page yet, but I guess we all need a goal to strive for.

Well now that you know Metin, lets begin to dissect this particular... umm... piece? Start by noticing the umm... technique he used to umm... make the ehhh... tree with the... snake or..... What is art anymore? How do we judge this... piece? By it's accuracy? Perhaps it is accurate because all the main characters from the story are present (Adam, Eve, Snake) or because the setting is correct (Grass, Tree, Fruit), but honestly I do not think it is accurate at all because although I am no Biblical scholar, I do not think Adam and Eve were square, blockish, digital, etc. They barely look like people. Hell, even the fruit is square. We either evolved from some kid's mega block play set or this artist's depiction of humanity is horribly misconstrued. Nothing is added to the story through this piece of "art". No new window to look through, nothing people have never seen before. Only "art" for the sake of "art".

Proponents of modern art would probably look down on me and say, "You're missing the big picture of what the artist intended" or "There is a lot of underlying symbolism the artist is trying to convey you just wouldn't understand". Perhaps they are right. But I would argue there is no human artist for this picture. Only a computer programer typing keys. The closest thing to an artist here is the medium itself, i.e. the computer. And as far as I am concerned computers cannot create something with inherent symbolic meaning. It just does what it's told.

Gone are the days of tireless brushstroke techniques and unwavering dedication to the perfection of human variables. Now the computer is our artist and we just commission the pieces. This piece does affirm one truth that should never be forgotten though, especially in the ever progressing world we live in, "Just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should." I would like some oppinions on this topic because I am not all that intelligent and I am certainly not an expert in modern art by any means. Unless someone changes my mind however I stand by the statement, "Art is dead. And Steve Jobs Killed It."

P.S. Is this sketch of a Leprechaun art?

Michelangelo's Sistine Chapel

The Sistine Chapel, home to the pope, posseses one of Michelangelo's greatest works of art. The ceiling depicts the entire book of Genesis. Five of them are the creation stories. I chose my favorite, The Creation of Adam, to post in the blog. Michelangelo's organization is considered the most complex composition in Western art. The Creation of Adam is the most sublime scene, in which humanity obtains picture form. Supposedly, Michelangelo experiences the stages of creation within himself through religion and art. The hand and fingers of God gingerly touch Adam's, creating a sense of love. The "cosmic egg" represents the eternal, and Adam is an incomplete ellipse. Through the extended arms, love radiates throughout the picture. God intends Adam to be no less than himself. The spirits holding God on their wings confirm this. The beatific picture does not contain Eve.

What struck me most about this picture, was the very plain, human form of God. Nonetheless, he is clothed and Adam is not. Obviously, this is before Adam eats the forbidden fruit. So, although God considers Adam no less than himself, Adam has not gained all knowledge and angered God yet. This is why God looks tenderly at Adam still. I also noticed the angels wings are not present. They are there in theory. Lastly, the bodies are somewhat unrealistic. Adam's arms are close to the lenth of his legs. His head is very small, and his body is very muscular. All things aside, I found this picture inspiring, that the colors are so soft, but the message is still strongly present.

Cain and Abel

Born in Sicily, Italy in May 1660, Alessandro Scarlatti emerged a brilliant baroque composer. Evolving after the renaissance period, baroque music made a bold and sweeping movement in European territories from 1600 to 1750. The genre encompassed a detailed musical composition emphasizing both the instrumental and orchestral pieces wherein ornamentation was used to “dress up” the music. It is from this era that the performing art of operas and oratorios made their first appearance. Oratorios, like the dramatic works of operas, include the musical ensemble sporting both the voice and orchestra but without the general picturesque view of a theater set.

Scarlatti, commonly known as the father of Domenico (a gifted composer of the generation to come), was recognized for his exceptional ability to create pieces for his singers and instrumentalists fostering depth and intellectual expansion. His career really gained momentum in the early sixteenth century. Along his way of becoming an international sensation, Scarlatti composed an oratorio based on the biblical story of Genesis. He titled it “Il Primo Omicidio” otherwise known as “The First Homicide.” The photo above is “a detail from the ‘Ghent Altarpiece’ and the pivotal moment between Cain and Abel” wherein Cain is the world’s first known murderer and Abel is the first known to be murdered.

As the story goes, Eve first gives birth to Cain, and later gives birth to Abel. Abel became a shepherd. Cain became a farmer. Abel offered God a lamb. Cain offered God crops. Abel was favored in Gods eyes. Envious of his brother’s distinctiveness and importance in the eyes of God, Cain led his brother out to the fields and slayed him. Scarlatti’s oratorio is described as being equipped with “accompaniments to capture temperaments that ranged from fierce hostility to heartbreaking pain.” And this “Ghent altarpiece”, or panel painting, used in the performance is an artwork depicting exactly that. Clearly, as Cain is shown towering over Abel with one hand clenching a weapon raised above his head and the other hand compressing the neck of the brother the weapon will surely come down upon, he represents malevolent impulses, enmity, deep-seated bitterness, and ill will. And Abel, his face filled with distress and suffering as he is forcefully confined to the ground at the hands of his belligerent brother, represents sorrow, anguish, despair.

In my opinion, the artist captured the story in all its meaning fairly well. If I had to produce for you the artists’ limitations I would surely have to make one up because I believe the photo depicts Genesis’ Abel and Cain accurately to the core and gave inspiring significance and meaning to it.

The Flood

The piece of art I chose was The Flood by Michelangelo Buonarroti. This was actually a fresco painted on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. All of the frescos on the ceiling took him four years to complete. Michelangelo (1475-1564) was an Italian painter, sculptor, architect, poet, and engineer during the Renaissance period. His best known works are Pietà, David and his frescos in the Sistine Chapel. He and Leonardo da Vinci are said to be contenders for the title of model Renaissance Man.

One minor detail that stands out for me in the painting is in the background on Noah’s Ark. It seems that there is actually a person swinging an ax at a straggler attempting to climb aboard. I believe at the man right above the ax wielder is Noah motioning him to not harm the straggler. Also on the smaller boat in the center of the painting there is a person being bludgeoned and pushed off. I was particularly surprised by the graphic violence depicted in the fresco. When I think of the story of Noah’s Ark do not automatically think of the actual scramble and chaos which must have been present at the time. I guess it is in our nature to block out the bad aspects of things and think of only the good, which I why I found the fresco to be a truly realistic depiction of the story. I believe Michelangelo intended for his portrayal to be as realistic as possible and in my opinion he was successful in doing so. He is showing mankind being punished for all of its bad deeds which is what the intended message of the story is. I do not think Michelangelo had many limitations when creating this art in terms of his supplies or medium. However, he was limited in terms of what stories from the Book of Genesis he could paint considering the Pope chose them.