Michelangelo Caravaggio - David with the head of Goliath

I liked this piece done by Michelangelo Caravaggio mainly because of his use of detail, primary with the contrasting lights and darks of the painting. While I do not know much about the painting itself, it is thought to have been created around 1605 - 1610. Though I am not fond of this style of painting, Caravaggio is able to create a piece of art that has contrast, detail and that shows a unique style. It is because of its traits that I liked 'David with the head of Goliath'.

Michelangelo Caravaggio- Still Life with Fruit

  This is an oil on canvas painting. There is no exact date for its creation, but many have dated it between 1601 and 1605. I chose this painting because the fruit and squash remind me of the Fall season. I really like the way light is captured in the image. It's like there is one beam of light coming down that reaches all the produce. I think there is a greater meaning to why some of the squash and fruit is cut open other than giving the painting more body and visual appeal. The painting has definitely more of a 3D than a 2D appearance to me, again because of the way each object is perfectly illuminated and shadowed.

Michelangelo Caravaggio

Michelangelo Caravaggio beautifully done still-life painting of a Basket of Fruit was painted in 1599, using oil on canvas. It is mind blowing how Caravaggio captures all the organic imperfect fruit and leaves by orchestrating signs of decomposition in this oil painting. The background of this oil painting really compliments the dimension of the fruit giving it an eyeopening glow. It makes my mouth water just looking at it. 

Conversion on the Way to Damascus

In 1600, Michelangelo Caravaggio was commissioned to paint a picture of both Saint Paul and Saint Peter for the Santa Maria del Popolo. This painting depicts a scene from the bible of saint Paul had. In the Acts of the Apostles, when Saul the Pharisee was on the way to Damascus, he fell to the ground when he the voice of Christ say to him, "Saul, Saul,why do you persecute me?" which made him temporarily blind. Many assume that he fell off a horse. I well much liked this picture. Its absolutely beautiful and has a strong meaning behind it. The contrast in the picture gives an even even stronger meaning as it lightens the front as if we were in the eye of god looking in on what is going on.

Michelangelo Caravaggio | David with the Head of Goliath

I initially liked this painting by Michelangelo Caravaggio because of his ability to portray power justice on the face of David and his ability to capture such a lifeless appearance in the severed head. However, I liked this painting even more after reading up on the history of how it was created. In May of 1606, Caravaggio was accused of murder and fled from Rome to escape his potential penalties. In 1610, he created this painting which depicts David the executioner holding Caravaggio's own severed head in place of Goliath's head. This painting was sent to the papal court as a petition for pardon, and pardon was eventually granted to Caravaggio, but he was dead before it reached him.

Michelangelo Caravaggio: Still Life with Flowers and Fruit

I chose this painting because most of the work on his foundation's website is very biblical and since I do not have a strong religious background and do not know much about the biblical stories, I did not like those paintings much. This one is different from his normal work and is just a still life of a lot of different types of flowers and fruit but it shows the focus of the light coming into the center of the picture which I like. Overall, I enjoy the detail and how the things in the darkness almost look dead and the things in the light look full of life.

Michelangelo Caravaggio

The Michelangelo Caravaggio piece I chose was Narcissus 1579-99 located in the gallery of Nazinoale D'Arte Antica, Rome, Italy. I chose this portrait because the reflection is so incredible. The contrast between the light shirt and the black background makes the man stand out to the audience better. The reflection is realistic in that it isn't crystal clear but slightly darker because of the black background.

Michelangelo Caravaggio- Medusa

I chose the painting Medusa, painted on a leather jousting shield by Michelangelo Caravaggio because everyone has learned about the mythology of Medusa at some point in their education, and it is a beautiful painting to bring life to the mythological idea. I also chose this painting because I traveled to Florence, Italy this summer and recalled seeing this painting in Hall 90 of the Uffizi Gallery and remember it sticking out to me for it's detail and the use of color. The green tint within the whole painting brings attention to the snakes that make up Medusa's hair and the facial expression captures the beheading that happened in the myth.

David with the Head of Goliath - Caravaggio

Many of Caravaggio's works are inspired by biblical stories. This particular piece focuses on David V. Goliath, as David is seen here holding the head of Goliath. I like this piece because it is very realistic. On David you can see his muscle tone and how his clothing is a little baggy. On Goliath, you can see the different strands of hair on his head. I also like how the background is dark, and by using value, Caravaggio is able to show shadow on David's body and sword. From the shadow, you can tell the light is coming from the front left of David's body.

Michaelangelo Carravagio Painting

This particular painting was very fun and colorful to me because of the time and effort he put into the piece. Since this is a painting we have to remember how every small detail matters, and until a specific color is blended and mixed correctly into a particular shade it can not be used. The boy is knelt down glancing into a pool of water with his reflection looking back at him. Since Michelangelo chose to use dark shades in this painting, it was even harder to be able for the observer to identify the water at the bottom; so he had to make sure it was very visible. This painting is beautiful and truly inspiring if you take the time to look at its importance. Michelangelo is a real artist.

Backdoor pipeline

I chose this sculpture because it looks like a tunnel. Though you probably can't look though it, you can imagine you can. I also like its a different color then the normal brown steel, though that could just be the picture. I don't understand many of his sculptures, but I do like this one. Its so simple its perfect. It reminds me of the saying you never know what you are going to find at the end of tunnel. It's called  Backdoor Pipeline, made in 2010 with weatherproof steel. Its 149 5/8 x 5981/2 x 153 1/2 inches. This sculpture was displayed in the Gagosian Galley in London, England.

Richard Serra

Mammoth, by Richard Serra Is a very interesting piece. As seen from above here this is a 235-ton structure that is is at Stamford University, and was installed in 2006. They say this sculpture was one of his "greatest achievements." This sculpture will move to San Francisco next year and it takes 12 semi trucks to carry this piece across the country!  

Guggenheim Exhibit, Richard Serra (Oct. 8th 2011)

I enjoyed this piece in particular, because of the simplicity of the objects used, as well as uniformity of the shapes, yet still appeals to the eye. It is different from many of his works in that it contains a closed shape, (octagon), much unlike his others which we seem to be left with either open curves or inorganic figures.

Richard Serra

Equal-Parallel: Guernica-Bengasi

Equal-Parallel: Guernica-Bengasi was specifically created for the Museo Reina Sofía as part of the exhibitionReferencias. The title is unique among the artist’s body of work, Serra having clearly stated that his works do not refer to the memory of any person, place or event; yet while Equal-Parallel: Guernica-Bengasi evokes a spatial experience of the work, it also refers to the temporal parallel between two historical events, on the premise that they are equal: the civilian bombing in Guernica by the Condor Legion on April 26th 1937 and an event that took place at the same time as the sculpture was being made, the American Air Force’s attack on the Libyan city of Bengasi on April 15th, 1986. The attack, which caused civilian casualties, was a reprisal for a bomb attack on a Berlin discotheque attributed to Libyan agents, in which one woman and two American soldiers were killed. Weaving these two references together, Serra makes an allusion to the debate around the role of history: whether it begins and ends with the individual corporeal experience, or whether its retelling can function as a construction of the world.
                                 

Richard Serra

I found this to be very eye catching and interesting. This stood out to me out of all the images I saw of Richard Serras works. I love how each panel is angled differently. I think it is really cool how some are curved in and look as though they are going to fall and knock another panel over. You can tell a lot of work and thought went into making this captivating piece of work.

Richard Serra "to lift"

One of Richards early works when he began to experiment with different materials such as fiberglass, neon, and rubber. This piece is made of rubber recovered from a warehouse in lower Manhattan. Serras' influence for this piece was allowing the piece to take a unique response to the action verb " to lift". Serra wondered what if you just enacted the verbs he compiled in relation to a material and didn't worry about the results.

Richard Serra Inside Out

This sculpture named "Inside Out" created by Richard Serra is one that was recently made in 2013. This sculpture stood out to me because it is a sculpture shaped like it could be a maze when really it is very simple. I think the name "Inside Out" was an appropriate title for it because it looks as if something was turned inside out. It is a huge structure that was made out of metal which fascinates me also.

Richard Serra "Open Ended"

This is named 'Open Ended' from the Gagosian Gallery. It is made of weatherproof steel and measures 149 1/2 x 717 1/2 x 290 5/8 inches. It is very big, especially compared to the people standing inside. This sculpture is really interesting and somewhat different to Serra's other work. I can see that there are two pieces in this sculpture. They both have a convex form that comes to a point, proceeds in the other direction and then repeats. When fit together it creates and open ended piece. I like that from an aerial view the sculpture looks like an eye and has other interesting qualities.

Richard Serra Inside Out

I liked this sculpture by Richard Serra because of the simplicity but the conflicting complexity it creates. Being formed out of steel it creates a clean cut and simple structure but with the curves that form the maze-like idea it seems complex. I like this view of the sculpture because it shows the size in comparison to the person beside it.

Richard Serra | Junction/Cycle

These pieces by Richard Serra are currently on display at the Gagosian Gallery. The medium used to create these sculptures was waterproof steel. The steel has been oxidized, making the pieces a bright orange color. I like these sculptures because even though they are considered to be two pieces, they complement each other and work together to create one unified piece. Collectively, the Junction/Cycle looks like a triskelion, which is a symbol with three branches, legs, or angles that are positioned in such a way so that the symbol looks like it is in constant forward motion.

Richard Serra

This Richard Serra sculpture is located at Gibbs Farm in New Zealand.  I chose this because I really like the location. It is a beautiful farm that the huge piece of steal actually works at because it mimics the shape of the land. Serra said that the work is a hallmark of the strong relationships formed between collector and artist.

Richard Serra

I chose this sheet metal sculpture by Richard Serra placed in the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, because it reminds me of life. If you put yourself out into the world, and decide to do better things for yourself you will see the world in a entirely new perspective. You may close certain doors, but bigger ones will be opening. If you were to live in fear and stay in your comfort zone, you will not grow as a person and will be limited to a certain amount of space. Instead of doors opening they will be closing.

Richard Serra

I chose Belts (1966-67) by Richard Serra mostly because I don't fully understand his larger scale steel works. I liked this piece because it's different than most of his other work and I can wrap my head around it better. After experiencing Arte Povera in Italy, which is poor or impoverished art, he used non-traditional materials to make a statement that he connected to the limp human figure.

Richard Serra / Junction Cycle

2 new large scale works by Richard Serra are currently on display at the Gagosian Gallery and well worth an hour or so of your time if you happen to be anywhere close by. Junction / Cycle are both sculptures created in the artists preferred medium of waterproof steel, and in this case the oxidization of the material has turned the sculptures a striking bright orange colour, which offers plenty to those passing through the maze of the pieces themselves. Serra says the sculptures were designed as much with the space between them in mind, as with the form and materials used: "I consider space to be a material. The articulation of space has come to take precedence over other concerns. I attempt to use sculptural form to make space distinct."

—Richard Serra Junction / Cycle

Richard Serra - "Vortex"

"Vortex" is my favorite work by Richard Serra. "Vortex" has gradual curves, sharp edges, and is able to blend multiple pieces steel to create a unique form. Another aspect I like about "Vortex" is the unfinished steel. Without finish, the steel is subjected to the elements and is allowed to oxidize. This oxidation is what creates the rust on the surface of the steel, but it happens unevenly. This uneven distribution of rust gives the structure character, emphasizes its form, and in my opinion, shows the raw beauty of steel.

Richard Serra

This is a steel sculpture that was created by Richard Serra being displayed in the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao, Spain. I think this is very different as to what artists usually do which makes his work stand out. I think the shapes of these steel sculptures and the different colors that reflect off of them make them very beautiful.

Richard Serra: Gravity

Richard Serra's "Gravity" is located in the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, as a memoriam to those who lost their life in the genocide. The twelve foot slab of steel weighs thirty tons and cuts through the stairs in which people use, forcing them to diverge from their path. I think this may represent the separation of families during the genocide. However, even though they could not see one another, as the visitors on each side cannot see each other, they always knew that their family and friends were there.

Richard Serra- Inside Out

Richard Serra's Inside Out sculpture is located in the Gagosian Gallery in New York City. I thought this sculpture was cool because with just two long pieces of steel curved into a unique design, Serra created a maze. The sculpture is so simple yet the shapes and curves placed where they are make it an interesting piece of art. This sculpture would be cool to actually see in person and be able to walk through.

Richard Serra Artwork

Richard Serra is a very different artist. I enjoy his work because he has stories behind every sculpture that he makes. His sculptures look like are very simple but if you read into his work, you will see that he takes a lot of time and effort into making his sculpture the best that it can be. Therefore, I really enjoy this photo. If you notice directly in the center is a sculpture designed by Richard, its because in so many way; but the one that I like most is its background. Richard make a sketch of the next sculpture he wanted to make and looked in several different locations on the perfect area to place it. This sculpture fits in perfectly with its surroundings making the piece look even more beautiful.

Willem de Kooning

I chose the piece called "Valentine" by Kooning because I thought it was really interesting considering when people usually think of valentines, they imagine dark red and vibrant colors. This oil and enamel from 1947 contrasts the 'normal' expectation of valentine with the use of a lot of black and a smaller amount of light pink in somewhat of a heart shape.

Police Gazette (William de Kooning)

This Painting by William de Kooning, called "Police Gazette" is very interesting to me for a few reasons. First of all our assignment was to illustrate something from different perspectives and although it is unclear to tell exactly what your looking at in this picture, you can see possibly many different perspectives and shapes that come together and make a composition. Also some people say that this piece resembles the tray an artist uses to wipe off excess paint but extraordinarily enough the sold for a whopping 63 MILLION DOLLARS!

Willem De Kooning

I chose this painting because it shows how Kooning used a figure as a reference in his paintings as opposed to another very important abstract impressionist, Jackson Pollock. The figure is present in the painting although it is not the most identifiable and realistic looking figure. The use of colors and broad brush strokes are part of the reason that Kooning became well known.

-Aimee Caron

William De Kooning

I picked this painting by William De Kooning because I found it to be very neat how he used multiple colors. You can tell that he used different strokes to make different designs in the photograph. It is very colorful and fun.

Willem De Kooning

I chose this painting by Willem De Kooning because it caught my eye right away when I was looking through all of his past work. I really like all of these colors together and think that they complement each other. This painting is very abstract but at the same time you are able to clearly make out a woman sitting at a table.

Willem de Kooning began working on Two Women with Still Life in Southampton, New York, where he was staying for the summer. During the previous two years, he was consumed with the creation of a large painting of a woman, Woman I (1950–52). Although away from his New York City studio, he was likely still grappling with that painting. His expressive use of pastels ran counter to the traditional technique of applying the darkest pigments first, then layering lighter pigments to build forms and create highlights. Here, he applied dark and light colors exuberantly, with no attention to hierarchy of tone. When shown in a 1953 exhibition in New York, this work and related paintings and drawings were considered sensational for their rendering of women in garish colors and aggressive frenetic lines.

William de Kooning

In this piece of work I like the simplicity that Kooning uses while remaining abstract, one idea or emotion expressed by him can be perceived differently through the eyes of the viewer. Also I appreciate how he incorporates the human figure  while expressing emotions, figure and space.

Willem De Kooning Drawing

As I was looking through all of Willem's artwork, this drawing really caught my attention. As you can see this drawing is not a normal piece of art, it really looks like a blob of lines going one way to another. Although, if you look closely at the image, you will see that this drawing is actually a collage of all different drawings. Willem really inspires me with his work because he is proof to show that anything can be art if the artist says that it is. All the drawings that he brought together in this piece are important images that describe Willem as an artist.

Portrait of Renée by Willem de Kooning

I chose this work of art, the Portrait of Renée which was created in 1924 by Willem de Kooning. It is an oil, charcoal, and conté crayon on canvas. It is from a private collection. I couldn't find any background on the work, itself. I chose it because it shows a level of innocence. He was able to capture the essence of the child, even with a toy. Its very detailed and colorful. 

oil, charcoal, and conté crayon on canvas, 22 1/4 x 18 1/4 inches

Private collection

William de Kooning: Untitled XII

I chose this by William de Kooning because it is one of his more simple pieces. Many of his paintings have a lot of things going on that make it not as easy on the eyes but this one has beauty in it's simplicity especially because you can still see a good amount of the white background. Even though they are not complementary colors, I think they go well together. He did this with oil on canvas in 1983.

William de Kooning,
Painting, 1948

One of the displays in his earliest gallery, still exercises his signature abstract style, yet without the color seen in many of his later works. I really enjoyed the fact that he was able to use oil on canvas yet give the appearance of almost a chalk texture on blackboard. The painting was created by recycling several of his scrapped earlier works. Much unlike alot of his later work, the sharp outlines really bring life to the organic shapes and let the imagination go to work.

Self Portrait by Willem De Kooning

I liked this piece of art by Willem De Kooning because of the choices of color he chose. They are very light colors that work together to make a bold statement that is pleasing to the eye. I also enjoyed this piece because of his use of shading with black to offset the colors and to make the shape of his own face. When you look at other paintings of his the colors don't flow into a shape quite as easily, whereas this one you automatically know you are looking at someone's face.

William De Kooning

The reasoning why I chose this Painting by William De Kooning, is because I likes the religious message it is bring out. In my perspective, shown in the left upper left side looks like the star of Bethlehem. Looking closely  draping from her neck looks like rosery beads, her hands look as if they are placed in a praying position, and she's looking up to the "Gods" for answers. It also looks like someone is grabbing her by the shoulder showing her in the right direction. This is the reasoning why I admire this paining by William De Kooning.

Seated Woman- Willem de Kooning

I like this particular painting by Willem de Kooning because of his use of complimentary colors. The blue walls in the background really make the red hair of the woman pop out at you. Also, I like how it is more abstract. Even though it does not look realistic at all, the viewer is able to tell it is a woman through her features and shape.

Willem de Kooning: Villa Borghese

I admire this piece of art by de Kooning, done in 1960 with oil pastels. I like how the artist chose to use analogous colors to represent Villa Borghese. The varying shades of greens, blues, and yellows in this piece go very well together. He also uses minimal detail to create the image of the villa. This use of minimal detail gives the image of a very abstract landscape.

William De Kooning ( Woman I)

Although at first glance it does not look like much I enjoyed how long De Kooning took to create Woman, I, making numerous preliminary studies and repainting the work repeatedly. The hulking, wild–eyed subject draws upon an amalgam of female archetypes, from Paleolithic fertility goddesses to contemporary pin–up girls. Her threatening stare and ferocious grin are heightened by de Kooning's aggressive brushwork and frantic paint application. Combining voluptuousness and menace, Woman, I reflects the age–old cultural ambivalence between reverence for and fear of the power of the feminine.

Gansevoort Street - 1949 - Willem de Kooning

After looking through the artwork of Willem de Kooning, I found his painting "Gansevoort Street" from 1949 to be my favorite piece. I really like the colors, the warmth of the painting, and his use of contrast and lines. Not only do I like the abstract style of "Gansevoort Street", but I like his use of his various techniques to bring it all together. Through his use of colors, lines, volume and texture, this painting has become a piece of art that I would want to put in my home or work place.

William de Kooning: pencil drawing of Elaine de Kooning

I found this drawing interesting because it contrasts from de Kooning's typical abstract style and replaces it with a classical representation of the subject. In this drawing, the model happened to be de Kooning's wife, Elaine de Kooning, who was also a prominent abstract expressionist. I though that it was interesting that he chose to abandon his trademark style for the representation of his wife. However, some of his other work did appear to depict her in his famous painting style.

Willem de Koonong

When looking up art by Willem De Kooning, it was very difficult for me to pick out  piece that he did that i found interesting. I do not really like his work all that much, but if i had to pick one that stands out even a little bit, I guess this piece did a little. This piece is Untitled V oil on canvas. It was painted in 1980 and is now in Pace Gallery, New York. Its color was the only thing that stood out to me honestly because I don't show much interest in this artist.

Self Portriat (1924) Kathe Kollwitz

I find this Kollwitz piece particularly interesting considering the topics we have been looking at in class with simple line drawings. She Makes this self portrait using charcoal lines especially in the arms that up close look so simple but seem to really complete the drawing as a whole, and give it a personal touch that sets it apart from those alike.