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9 pages, 2312 KiB

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A Son of Nikon or Nikon Victorious: A New Inscription on a Fragment of a Pseudo Panathenaic Amphora

by Thomas Mannack

Arts 2022, 11(4), 69; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11040069 - 5 Jul 2022

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Abstract

Recently, an inscribed fragment of a closed vase made of buff pinkish clay, covered with a red-orange wash, 11.8 cm wide and 8.4 cm high, and decorated with black, lustrous clay-paint surfaced briefly on the Swiss art market. It preserves a small section [...] Read more.

Recently, an inscribed fragment of a closed vase made of buff pinkish clay, covered with a red-orange wash, 11.8 cm wide and 8.4 cm high, and decorated with black, lustrous clay-paint surfaced briefly on the Swiss art market. It preserves a small section of the black tongue pattern on the shoulder and a wide black strip separating ornament and a panel with a straight glossy black line angled upwards; and the incomplete inscription TONIKONO[… . This paper endeavours to place the inscription and the name Nikon in a wider context and to examine the use of Pseudo-Panathenaic Amphorae. Full article

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14 pages, 4316 KiB

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Visual Art and Propaganda Ecologies in the Basque Country: A Sample of Guernica Motifs from the Benedictine Sticker Archives (1978–1989)

by Iker Arranz Otaegui and Kevin C. Moore

Arts 2022, 11(3), 62; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11030062 - 8 Jun 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 4432

Abstract

The Benedictine Archives at Lazkao contain a multitude of propaganda stickers and related visual media that provide a snapshot of the Basque region’s artful political culture in the 1970s and 1980s. Some of the most compelling examples include several items that remix Pablo [...] Read more.

The Benedictine Archives at Lazkao contain a multitude of propaganda stickers and related visual media that provide a snapshot of the Basque region’s artful political culture in the 1970s and 1980s. Some of the most compelling examples include several items that remix Pablo Picasso’s Guernica, referencing the famous antiwar painting to become a form of mass-circulated pastiche. This move was somewhat unusual amid the strong nationalist bent of public discourse and art in the Basque Country during this period. Almost entirely unknown outside the region, these materials capture political performance during the decade-long period between the instauration of Spanish democracy (1978) and the fall of the Berlin Wall (1989), when separatist sentiment reached a peak in the Basque Country. This artful visual platform, rendered in the small, focused format of stickers, constitutes a useful index of rhetorical currents within the Basque Country and Spain, as well as an interesting analogue prototype of what we might call, in the twenty-first century, meme culture. Circulated in bars and other public places across the Basque region, and frequently worn upon clothing, the stickers demonstrate a propaganda principle described by Jonathan Auerbach and Russ Castronovo, whereby participants in movements of mass persuasion actively partake in the dissemination and consumption of propaganda. The stickers normally refer to very concrete events (for instance, a one-day celebration, a protest for a concrete situation, etc.). When organized on topics and themes, they create a nonlinear visual account of post-Franco Basque history, providing propaganda narratives that invite performative acts from the audience. This account documents the significance of the vast Benedictine collection for future scholars, analyzing, in detail, four stickers that employ Guernica in their design. It also considers several other representative items from the collections that play on other art forms, as well as pop culture, in their attempt to influence public opinion, politics, and media consumption. Full article

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18 pages, 3699 KiB

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Body and Mind, and Vice-Versa, or the Continuing Performative Sexual Revolution in Portuguese Arts

by Claudia Madeira

Arts 2022, 11(3), 60; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11030060 - 27 May 2022

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Abstract

In Everyday Life in the Modern World, first published in 1968, Henri Lefebvre presents the sexual revolution as the first instance of the cultural revolution. This aspect has remained one of the central themes of contemporary activism, often reflecting the relationship between [...] Read more.

In Everyday Life in the Modern World, first published in 1968, Henri Lefebvre presents the sexual revolution as the first instance of the cultural revolution. This aspect has remained one of the central themes of contemporary activism, often reflecting the relationship between social and artistic performance, between art and life or even presenting life as art. Hinged on this relationship, we will discuss some Portuguese art works produced between the 1960s and the present: from dictatorship into democracy. These works build a continuing thematic thread related to what has been termed the “intensification of bodies” but also, as we intend to explore in this article, to a necessary “intensification of minds”, concerning eroticism, sexuality and love. Full article

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24 pages, 8724 KiB

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The Art and Architecture of Victor Bohm (1900–1981)

by Éva Lovra

Arts 2022, 11(3), 58; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11030058 - 19 May 2022

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Abstract

The art and architecture of modernist architect and architectural theorist Victor Bohm (Bőhm Viktor, Böhm Viktor) are rare examples of modernism. At the same time, they were unusual for a provincial city—Miskolc (Hungary)—far from the modernist hub Budapest. Bohm worked in Miskolc during [...] Read more.

The art and architecture of modernist architect and architectural theorist Victor Bohm (Bőhm Viktor, Böhm Viktor) are rare examples of modernism. At the same time, they were unusual for a provincial city—Miskolc (Hungary)—far from the modernist hub Budapest. Bohm worked in Miskolc during the 1930s, created numerous extraordinary buildings and shaped the skyline of this industrial town. He emigrated to the United States in 1939. The architectural language of his Hungarian designs followed modernist trends, a tendency less evident in his American projects. His buildings received architectural awards, and he has become known as a designer of medical and commercial buildings. He was a pioneer in the study of the relationship between architecture and psychology and sought to understand how an architectural design affects people and how the architect’s identity is manifested in their works. None of Bohm’s Hungarian buildings are protected; most of his buildings in Miskolc were demolished. The present study attempts to preserve his modernist, Hungarian legacy. Full article

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15 pages, 5999 KiB

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From Lugano to Krakow: The Career of Giovanni Battista Trevano as a Royal Architect at the Vasa Court in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth

by Piotr Józef Janowski

Arts 2022, 11(3), 56; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11030056 - 11 May 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 4609

Abstract

Throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, many builders, artists, and architects living on the shores of Italian lakes decided to settle in Poland. Upon arrival, they pursued brilliant careers in various areas of life. Over time, they became Polonized. This was also the [...] Read more.

Throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, many builders, artists, and architects living on the shores of Italian lakes decided to settle in Poland. Upon arrival, they pursued brilliant careers in various areas of life. Over time, they became Polonized. This was also the case for Giovanni Battista Trevano, who was active in Krakow in the first half of the 17th century and whose lifetime achievement was to become the royal architect of the Vasa kings. This article presents Trevano’s artistic oeuvre and provides insight into his social, economic, and intellectual status in the new community, including the architect’s offspring, who pursued successful careers in army, church, and state offices throughout the 17th and 18th centuries. These new findings are based on manuscripts that have recently been discovered by the author of the article in both Polish and Swiss archives. They allow for expanding the knowledge of the Trevano family’s genealogy and biography, and correcting some unjustified views in the discourse. On the basis of research on new archival sources, one can conclude that Giovanni Battista Trevano was a prominent architect, who is credited with introducing in Poland the early Baroque style, which soon became dominant in northern European art. Full article

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20 pages, 9096 KiB

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A Tale of Three Domes: The Un-Realized cupola of St Ignatius of Loyola in Roma

by Marco Spada

Arts 2022, 11(2), 51; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11020051 - 7 Apr 2022

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Abstract

The church of St Ignatius of Loyola in Rome, together with the Church of the Gesù, represents the most significant artistic contribution of the Jesuits in the Eternal City. Incorporated in the broader context of the Roman College, and built between 1626 and [...] Read more.

The church of St Ignatius of Loyola in Rome, together with the Church of the Gesù, represents the most significant artistic contribution of the Jesuits in the Eternal City. Incorporated in the broader context of the Roman College, and built between 1626 and 1650 following a project by Padre (Father) Orazio Grassi S.J., it is the only one of the great Roman churches without a dome. The projects for the helioscopic dome by Orazio Grassi, the Cortonesque dome by Armando Brasini and the perspective dome by Andrea Pozzo represent the difficult attempt to create a perfectly rational layout for Rome, an ideal scientific and theological city. These projects tell the story of three different ways of conceiving architectural space affecting the city: political manifesto, imaginative introspection and colossal scenography. This paper describes the history of an “impossible” dome, analysing the historical evolution of the project and its three potential authors, three magnificent and idealist designers. Full article

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18 pages, 314 KiB

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The Hands of Fortune: Margaret Bourke-White’s Magazine Photographs of Manual Work in the Early Years of the Depression

by Barnaby Haran

Arts 2022, 11(2), 45; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11020045 - 22 Mar 2022

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Abstract

In 1931, Fortune published an article entitled ‘American Workingman’, a survey of labor in the midst of the worsening Depression, with an emblematic composite image of hands at work to indicate the manual character and the diverse jobs of industrial work. The picture [...] Read more.

In 1931, Fortune published an article entitled ‘American Workingman’, a survey of labor in the midst of the worsening Depression, with an emblematic composite image of hands at work to indicate the manual character and the diverse jobs of industrial work. The picture conveys the polysemy of hands as a synecdoche of labor, and witnesses the prevalence of close-up depictions of hands at work in other Fortune features on specific industries, from which these fragments derived. This article explores the implications of Fortune’s representation of the ‘hands of labor’ at a time of escalating industrial conflict, defined by redundancies, strikes, and protests. If Fortune was a self-styled ‘super-class’ publication for a corporate elite, conceived for the ‘heads’ of industry, then to what extent do these othered hands operate ideologically to represent labor’s compliance at a time of crisis? If abstracted hands were ubiquitous in modernist photography, then Bourke-White’s images also equated a putative subgenre of Communist iconography, in which the hand, or fist, connoted proletarian solidarity and strength. Yet leftist militant agitation provoked antipathy in Fortune, and so I examine the representation of labor in the article and the magazine more broadly as industrial relations intensified in the 1930s. I consider further the extent these automatic hands allude to the narrative of ‘technological displacement’, or workerless factories, as a response to strikes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

19 pages, 7922 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Antonio Gisbert’s Monument to Spanish Liberty: The Production of the Execution of Torrijos and his Companions on the Beach at Málaga (1888)

by Ann Murray

Arts 2022, 11(2), 44; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11020044 - 10 Mar 2022

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Abstract

The monumental state-commissioned Execution of Torrijos and his Companions on the Beach at Málaga by Antonio Gisbert Pérez has only recently begun to receive earnest scholarly attention in Spanish-language literature after decades of relative obscurity, with no known lengthy discussion in English. [...] Read more.

The monumental state-commissioned Execution of Torrijos and his Companions on the Beach at Málaga by Antonio Gisbert Pérez has only recently begun to receive earnest scholarly attention in Spanish-language literature after decades of relative obscurity, with no known lengthy discussion in English. Yet, it is a major Spanish history painting, commissioned as a monument to Spanish nation building in the wake of despotic monarchism. It is remarkable for its innovative composition and sensitive portrayal of liberal General José María Torrijos and his men, executed without trial on a Málaga beach in December 1831 for rallying against the absolutist monarch Ferdinand VII. In addition to Torrijos, among the dead were liberal politician Manuel Flores Calderón and the Byronic, Northern Irish-born Robert Boyd, active in the final years (1830–1831) of the Greek War of Independence and who was inspired by Torrijos’ cause. Introducing new material that builds on existing research, this essay offers a detailed analysis of the painting’s content and composition within its historical context. It carefully explores its production as a pivotal example of the Spanish visual culture of war and as a sensitively crafted memorial both to the men portrayed and the struggles of Spanish liberalism during the nineteenth century, a context that links it closely to Goya’s Third of May 1808, against which it is often compared, but which is at odds with the remarkably original composition of Gisbert’s work. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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14 pages, 1832 KiB

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Camille Bryen Avant-Gardist/Abhumanist: A Reappraisal of an Artist Who Called Himself the “Best-Known of the Unknown”

by Iveta Slavkova

Arts 2022, 11(2), 43; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11020043 - 8 Mar 2022

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Abstract

French artist and poet Camille Bryen (1907–1977) is usually, and always very briefly, cited as a member of the post-Second World War (1939–1945) lyrical abstraction trend in Paris, often designated as Ecole de Paris or Nouvelle Ecole de Paris, Tachisme, or Informel. Bryen [...] Read more.

French artist and poet Camille Bryen (1907–1977) is usually, and always very briefly, cited as a member of the post-Second World War (1939–1945) lyrical abstraction trend in Paris, often designated as Ecole de Paris or Nouvelle Ecole de Paris, Tachisme, or Informel. Bryen painted hybrids of plants, animals, rocks, and humans, mixing the organic with the inorganic, evoking cellular agglomerations, geological structures, or prehistorical drawings. He emphasized the materiality and the process through thick impasto, visible brushstrokes, and automatic drawing. Along with other abstract painters in post-war Paris, Bryen’s work is usually associated with vague humanist interpretations and oversimplified existentialism. If the above statement is true for a number of his peers, it does not correspond to the way he envisaged his art, and art in general. His views are reflected in his intense theoretical reflection revolving around the term of “Abhumanism”, too often completely ignored in the critical literature. Coined by his close friend, the playwright and writer Jacques Audiberti, Abhumanism claimed the inconsistency of a fallacious and pretentious humanism faced with the rawness and cruelty of recent history, and called for a revision of the humanist subject, including anthropocentrism. Both men considered art, namely painting, as a salvatory vitalist “abhumanist” act. In this paper, which is the first consistent publication on Bryen in English, I will argue that Abhumanism is essential for the understanding of the artist’s work because, separating him from the School of Paris, it is, first, harmonious with his artistic production—paintings and writings; second, it clarifies Bryen’s place in the history of the avant-garde, in the wake of Dada and Surrealism. This essay will contribute to the re-evaluation not only of Bryen’s still underestimated œuvre, but more largely to the reappraisal of the artistic life in Paris after the Second World War. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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33 pages, 16431 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Grain Architecture in Bourbon New Spain: On the Design of Guadalajara and Querétaro’s Alhóndigas

by Luis Gordo Peláez

Arts 2022, 11(2), 42; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11020042 - 7 Mar 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 5429

Abstract

During the late colonial period, numerous Novohispanic cities embarked on an unprecedented number of projects aimed at reshaping their urban spaces and improving infrastructures, including new facilities for grain storage and supply. The construction of alhóndigas (public granaries), along with other public works [...] Read more.

During the late colonial period, numerous Novohispanic cities embarked on an unprecedented number of projects aimed at reshaping their urban spaces and improving infrastructures, including new facilities for grain storage and supply. The construction of alhóndigas (public granaries), along with other public works and infrastructures, was further propelled by the implementation of Bourbon reforms in Spanish America and the 1780s reorganization of the colonies into intendencias (provinces), as part of the monarchy’s efforts to improve the colonial administration and economy and centralize royal power. The newly appointed royal officials (intendentes) were instrumental in the implementation of these reforms, overseeing tax collection, promoting economic growth and agricultural production, improving mining, and developing a program of public works to embellish and modernize the urban environments and ameliorate the living conditions of their residents in sanitation, public health, water infrastructure, and food supply. This essay explores the projected alhóndigas for two late colonial Mexican cities and how they engaged with contemporary discussions about the efficacy of public works, the circulation of ideals promoted by enlightened reformers on good governance and civic order, issues of artistic and architectural production, and the transmission of a reformist aesthetic agenda from the center to the provinces of New Spain. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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17 pages, 5352 KiB

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The Edge of Heaven: Revelations 12:7-9 and the Fall of the Rebel Angels in Anglo-Norman Apocalypse Illustration

by Edina Eszenyi

Arts 2022, 11(2), 41; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11020041 - 4 Mar 2022

Viewed by 6476

Abstract

The article examines the War in Heaven scene depicting the Fall of the Rebel Angels in the 1200s Anglo-Norman group of illustrated Apocalypse manuscripts, key in the development of Apocalypse illustration as far as quality, quantity, and art historical heritage are concerned. The [...] Read more.

The article examines the War in Heaven scene depicting the Fall of the Rebel Angels in the 1200s Anglo-Norman group of illustrated Apocalypse manuscripts, key in the development of Apocalypse illustration as far as quality, quantity, and art historical heritage are concerned. The iconography of the crucial War in Heaven scene shows a variety in the manuscript group; the compositions, divided into three well-defined groups at Satan’s pivotal moment of defeat, are depicted in three principal compositional types: one manuscript group focuses on the narrative of the battle, the second fuses the battle and its victorious result, and the third type focuses on the victory itself. The article establishes further subgroups on the basis of compositional similarities, and results occasionally strengthen or weaken existing theories about the traditional grouping of the manuscripts. The highlighted iconographical similarities provide new material for the reconsideration of the manuscripts’ artistic relations and dating. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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8 pages, 3056 KiB

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Between Queen Esther and Marie-Antoinette: Courtly Influence on an Esther Scroll in the Braginsky Collection

by Sara Offenberg

Arts 2022, 11(2), 40; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11020040 - 4 Mar 2022

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Abstract

There is an Esther scroll in the Braginsky manuscript collection (Braginsky Collection Megillah 7) that was produced in Alsace in the second half of the eighteenth century. The manuscript has not yet caught the attention of scholars, and I would like to shed [...] Read more.

There is an Esther scroll in the Braginsky manuscript collection (Braginsky Collection Megillah 7) that was produced in Alsace in the second half of the eighteenth century. The manuscript has not yet caught the attention of scholars, and I would like to shed some light on its artistic design in the context of French noble society. Although its illustrations appear naïve, they are typical of other Esther scrolls of that time and place. Based on contemporary art and textual evidence, I focus on the depiction of women in the megillah, and I argue that the scroll portrays an intimate understanding of the cultural ambience and the decorum of Parisian high society and bourgeoisie during Marie-Antoinette’s lifetime. Full article

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12 pages, 3055 KiB

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Channelling the Unknown: Noise in Art Ecosystems

by Paul Goodfellow

Arts 2022, 11(2), 39; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11020039 - 1 Mar 2022

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Abstract

At both the individual and societal levels, we are entangled within environmental, social, and technological systems that shape our material and emotional states. Contemporary art needs to integrate and challenge the information circulating within these interacting systems to address our increasingly complex lifeworld. [...] Read more.

At both the individual and societal levels, we are entangled within environmental, social, and technological systems that shape our material and emotional states. Contemporary art needs to integrate and challenge the information circulating within these interacting systems to address our increasingly complex lifeworld. This systemic understanding emerged in the 1960s as part of a broader growth in relational thinking within the natural and social sciences, which extended the conceptual boundaries of the artwork. The ecosystem, a model originally developed within ecology, is an example of a systems model as it describes the flow of matter, energy, and information through the physical world. This model has evolved into a powerful analogical tool to describe contemporary culture’s entanglement with nature and technology. The ecosystem model is invoked here to describe how information flows through the artwork. The paper suggests that art is a vital form of communication as it can channel noise or unknown information. This channelling is demonstrated with the artwork, The Creation Myth (1998), by Jason Rhoades. This work anticipated the convergence of natural and technological systems, and it demonstrates the ability of the arts to channel unknown messages or noise, thereby disrupting the dominant signals of contemporary culture. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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21 pages, 14530 KiB

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Global Art Collectives and Exhibition Making

by John Zarobell

Arts 2022, 11(2), 38; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11020038 - 1 Mar 2022

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Abstract

Art collectives come into existence for many reasons, whether to collaborate on art making or to generate a space for contemporary art outside of the established channels of exhibition and the art market. These efforts have been captured in recent exhibitions such as [...] Read more.

Art collectives come into existence for many reasons, whether to collaborate on art making or to generate a space for contemporary art outside of the established channels of exhibition and the art market. These efforts have been captured in recent exhibitions such as The Ungovernables, organized by the New Museum in 2012; Six Lines of Flight, which was launched at SFMOMA in 2013; and Cosmopolis I, organized by the Centre Pompidou in 2017. Artist collectives have received some scholarly attention, primarily as producers of artworks, but their exhibition-making practices have not been explored. Some of the collectives included in these exhibitions have also been very involved in exhibition making themselves. The Indonesian art collective ruangrupa was selected to curate the 2022 edition of documenta. This selection emerges not only from their participation in international biennials and their own exhibition practice in Jakarta—including the organization of regular exhibitions, workshops and film screenings at their compound—but also more ambitions events such as Jakarta 32 °C, a festival of contemporary art and media (2004–2014), or O.K. Video (2006–2018). Another group, the Raqs Media Collective, based in Delhi, curated the Shanghai Bienniale in 2016 and the Yokohama Trienniale in 2020. This paper will connect the local and the global through an examination of art collectives’ community-based work in their own cities, and the way it translates into global art events. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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24 pages, 18895 KiB

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“Alpha Females”: Feminist Transgressions in Industrial Music

by Nicolas Ballet

Arts 2022, 11(2), 37; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11020037 - 24 Feb 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 12554

Abstract

Recycled, re-engineered and transformed pornography has often been appropriated by many of the industrial music movement’s female personalities who are invested in an anti-censorship discourse. This contrasts with the dominant form of feminism in the 1970s, which railed against the depiction of all [...] Read more.

Recycled, re-engineered and transformed pornography has often been appropriated by many of the industrial music movement’s female personalities who are invested in an anti-censorship discourse. This contrasts with the dominant form of feminism in the 1970s, which railed against the depiction of all aspects of sexuality. Artists Cosey Fanni Tutti, Lisa Carver, Diamanda Galás, Mïrka Lugosi, Antal Nemeth, Diana Rogerson and Jill Westwood challenged the codes of male domination by reconfiguring gender and overturning the violence perpetrated by men within the industrial movement. Following the artistic and cultural context of the 1970s and 1980s, such issues gave rise to the radical performances that are discussed throughout this article. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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11 pages, 1771 KiB

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Art and Place: Crossing Borders in the Work of Perejaume

by Deborah Schultz

Arts 2022, 11(1), 35; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11010035 - 15 Feb 2022

Viewed by 3054

Abstract

In a sequence of drawings from the mid-1990s, the Catalan artist Perejaume (b. 1957) visualizes the migration of art movements across geographical and political borders. In doing so, the artist offers visual forms for intangible journeys through time and space. In sharp contrast [...] Read more.

In a sequence of drawings from the mid-1990s, the Catalan artist Perejaume (b. 1957) visualizes the migration of art movements across geographical and political borders. In doing so, the artist offers visual forms for intangible journeys through time and space. In sharp contrast to earlier concepts of the development of art, from Vasari’s cyclical model of rise and fall to Alfred H. Barr’s linear ‘Development of Cubism and Abstract Art’, Perejaume’s drawings offer a less definitive, more suggestive, visualization of the migration of art movements. By locating his drawings in specific landscapes, the artist gives a sense of the complex spatial relations between art and place. Within his wider practice, Perejaume crosses many borders. Artist, poet, writer and performer, he works in an extensive range of styles and mediums. This paper explores Perejaume’s representations of the migration of art movements, proposing them as alternative visual and conceptual models for the shape of art history. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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50 pages, 692 KiB

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The Embodiment of Artistic Objects in Pablo Picasso’s Cubism

by Enrique Mallen

Arts 2022, 11(1), 32; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11010032 - 9 Feb 2022

Viewed by 16306

Abstract

According to Michael Tucker, the breakdown of consciousness in modern art, a breakdown that carries the modern artist backwards to an all-embracing participation with the world, leads to a return to archaic qualities of participation mystique that involves constructive, creative elements of a [...] Read more.

According to Michael Tucker, the breakdown of consciousness in modern art, a breakdown that carries the modern artist backwards to an all-embracing participation with the world, leads to a return to archaic qualities of participation mystique that involves constructive, creative elements of a new vision of reality. This may be observed in Pablo Picasso, who wanted with the help of primitive vision to cleanse painting of the stale and paralyzing conventions that he viewed as a sham compared to the profound truth of art. For the Spaniard, painting at its origins was capable of an expressive force so powerful that even the great classic masters were unable to match it, much less strengthen it. The new art he defended was an art of creation, not imitation. It should follow its own generative principles. I examine the three major periods of Cubism (Cézannian, analytic and synthetic) from this perspective as a process of creativity in which Picasso struggled to find the true real and in the process opened up the possibility for new creations including his own persona. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

16 pages, 260 KiB

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Hong Kong as a Global Art Hub: Art Ecology and Sustainability of Asia’s Art Market Centre

by Zoran Poposki and Isaac Hok Bun Leung

Arts 2022, 11(1), 29; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11010029 - 7 Feb 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 9058

Abstract

Over the past decade, Hong Kong’s art market has experienced unprecedented growth, emerging as the second largest in the world in 2020 in terms of contemporary art auctions. Factors such as the city’s free-market economy and well-developed infrastructure, as well as its unique [...] Read more.

Over the past decade, Hong Kong’s art market has experienced unprecedented growth, emerging as the second largest in the world in 2020 in terms of contemporary art auctions. Factors such as the city’s free-market economy and well-developed infrastructure, as well as its unique position as a gateway to the large and growing Chinese art market, have led to major global art fairs and galleries establishing their presence in the city, in addition to the already present international auction houses. Moreover, the recent opening of M+, Hong Kong’s new museum of visual culture, as part of the West Kowloon Cultural District, is designed to further seal Hong Kong’s position and contribute to the continued growth of its art market. This paper explores the Hong Kong art ecosystem and its sustainability by focusing on leading art market institutions, anchor cultural organizations, and other key actors driving the development of the Hong Kong art system, on both the commercial and the nonprofit side; the effects of the expanding art market on the city’s art scene; the dynamics of the relationship between the Hong Kong art market and the broader Chinese art market; and the key emerging opportunities and challenges to Hong Kong’s future development as Asia’s premier art hub. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

13 pages, 3421 KiB

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Architecture and Contemporary Visual Culture, the Image of Realism and the Realism of Image

by Iñaki Bergera and Javier de Esteban

Arts 2022, 11(1), 26; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11010026 - 3 Feb 2022

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Abstract

The rise of visual culture and the role of images in shaping contemporary thought and global society has been a constant since the end of the last century. Called “Iconic turn” in the field of philosophy of perception and image theory, this process [...] Read more.

The rise of visual culture and the role of images in shaping contemporary thought and global society has been a constant since the end of the last century. Called “Iconic turn” in the field of philosophy of perception and image theory, this process has captured increasing attention in diverse academic fields, even in disciplines such as architecture where the role of images has not always been well considered. There is no doubt, however, that the visual nature of architecture makes the image essential in its conception, representation or perception. Within this relationship between architecture and image can be noted a recent change: a progressive attention toward realism as an alternative to an arbitrariness of form whose main consequence has been an uncritical use of images by architects and their consumption by society. The visual nature of some of the most influential works of the British architects Sergison Bates and Tony Fretton are exemplary for this purpose, aware of the importance of images in the shaping of everyday life and in the architectural narratives of the real. These works, in turn, allow us to explore the reciprocal strengthening that this realism as an attitude in being (architecture) and in looking (photography) has for an architectural practice that feeds on images and engenders them. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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17 pages, 323 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Our Cherished Moments of Involuntary Realism: Charles Harrison, Modernism, and Art Writing

by Stephen Moonie

Arts 2022, 11(1), 23; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11010023 - 21 Jan 2022

Viewed by 3468

Abstract

In May 1969, Charles Harrison reviewed Morris Louis’ exhibition at the Waddington Galleries in London. Months later, he helped to install the exhibition When Attitudes Become Form at the Institute of Contemporary Arts. Harrison also wrote the catalogue text, published in Studio International [...] Read more.

In May 1969, Charles Harrison reviewed Morris Louis’ exhibition at the Waddington Galleries in London. Months later, he helped to install the exhibition When Attitudes Become Form at the Institute of Contemporary Arts. Harrison also wrote the catalogue text, published in Studio International. Those two texts marked a significant point in Harrison’s career. They were indicative of his disillusionment with modernist criticism, and of his burgeoning interest in the work of post-minimal and conceptual art. In this respect, the two essays mark a transition from modernism to post-modernism in the space between a formalist analysis of the art object and a more dispersed field of artistic practice, where a changed relationship between art practice, criticism, and curating was taking place. However, in the 2000s, Harrison came to reflect upon this cardinal moment. Harrison referred to his recollected experiences of the late 1960s as a ‘cherished moment of involuntary realism’, opening up issues around art writing which remain pertinent to the practice of art history. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

13 pages, 1625 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Art and the City: Contemporary Art Galleries Districts in Paris from the End of the 19th Century until Today

by Alain Quemin

Arts 2022, 11(1), 20; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11010020 - 18 Jan 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3921

Abstract

The space invested by contemporary art galleries is of utmost importance. Not only is it essential to have suitable premises, but they must also be in the right place: The physical address carries a lot of weight. The benefits to galleries of being [...] Read more.

The space invested by contemporary art galleries is of utmost importance. Not only is it essential to have suitable premises, but they must also be in the right place: The physical address carries a lot of weight. The benefits to galleries of being concentrated in the same areas are twofold: They are close to their competitors, which means they are close to the art market, and thus, by their collective presence, can boost the market by encouraging collectors to go to the same places built up as art districts. Moreover, the district’s qualifying function comes about through the collective construction of this grouping of galleries from which it benefits. Today in Paris, it is the Marais neighborhood—a sector that started developing in the 1970s but even more in the 1980s and 1990s—that epitomizes the place to be for contemporary art galleries. The implantation of contemporary galleries in Paris clearly results from a historical process that led them from the 8th arrondissement to the Marais, stopping briefly at Saint-Germain-des-Prés (or the 6th arrondissement) mostly for small avant-garde structures. Studying the implantation—here in Paris—of contemporary art galleries over time illustrates the dynamics that gird the installation choices and also shows how alive the urban fabric is. Galleries enter the transformations of the urban fabric, and when they are numerous enough, they also participate directly in its development. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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14 pages, 8397 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Glass as a Fine Art Medium: Brief History and the Role of Adriano Berengo as a Fine Art Glass Impresario

by Goshka Bialek

Arts 2022, 11(1), 19; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11010019 - 17 Jan 2022

Viewed by 5480

Abstract

This article explores the role of glass as a medium in the fine arts rather than as a craft form. It includes a short history of glass as an art medium, the development of glass technologies and their application in the field of [...] Read more.

This article explores the role of glass as a medium in the fine arts rather than as a craft form. It includes a short history of glass as an art medium, the development of glass technologies and their application in the field of fine art. It reflects the distinctiveness of glass as a sculptural medium due to its optical properties and transparency; glass’s inherent characteristics create the unique possibility of using the space both outside and inside a solid object. This article, furthermore, demonstrates the importance of specific individuals in bringing glass as a fine art medium to the fore, in particular Adriano Berengo. Berengo proves exceptional in promoting glass in the field of fine arts and has been particularly effective in encouraging well-known artists to experiment with it as a medium. The article discusses the impact of his efforts to establish cooperation with great names from all over the world, from Ai Weiwei to Tony Cragg and from Jaume Plensa to César, who have passed through Adriano Berengo’s studio. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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22 pages, 7884 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Sculpture in Socialist Realism—Soviet Patterns and the Polish Reality

by Agnieszka Tomaszewicz

Arts 2022, 11(1), 6; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11010006 - 30 Dec 2021

Viewed by 9327

Abstract

Socialist realism was more than just a trend in art. It was also, and perhaps predominantly, a method of educating the new post-revolutionary society in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. In socialism, the state became the commissioner, consumer, and critic of art, [...] Read more.

Socialist realism was more than just a trend in art. It was also, and perhaps predominantly, a method of educating the new post-revolutionary society in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. In socialism, the state became the commissioner, consumer, and critic of art, treating it as a major propaganda tool. It is thus not surprising that the socialist realism patterns were imposed on artists working in those countries which found themselves in the Soviet sphere of influence after the end of the Second World War. In Poland, which was the Soviet Union’s closest neighbour and one of the larger countries in the post-war “Eastern Bloc”, socialist realism was the only permitted creative method in the years 1949–1956. The ideologists of the new art assigned a special role to sculpture, which, next to posters and murals, was considered the most socially accessible form of artistic expression due to the possibility of placing it in public space. Monuments as material carriers of ideology were used as an expression of power, but they also marked the places of strengthening collective identity. During the period of socialist realism in Poland, sculptural activity followed the main three directions: heroic, portrait, and architectural–decorative. Therefore, this paper aims to present theoretical and ideological assumptions relating to socialist sculpture and their confrontation with realisations in Poland during the period of the Soviet artistic doctrine. The paper also presents the aesthetic paradigms of socialist sculptures and their relationships with the canons of European art, and, for Poland, also with the native art, mainly sacral. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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18 pages, 417 KiB

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From Mulan (1998) to Mulan (2020): Disney Conventions, Cross-Cultural Feminist Intervention, and a Compromised Progress

by Zhuoyi Wang

Arts 2022, 11(1), 5; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11010005 - 26 Dec 2021

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 20389

Abstract

Directed by the feminist filmmaker Niki Caro, Disney’s 2020 live-action remake of Mulan (1998) strove to be a more gender progressive, culturally appropriate, and internationally successful adaptation of the Chinese legend of Mulan than the animated original. Contrary to the film’s intended effect, [...] Read more.

Directed by the feminist filmmaker Niki Caro, Disney’s 2020 live-action remake of Mulan (1998) strove to be a more gender progressive, culturally appropriate, and internationally successful adaptation of the Chinese legend of Mulan than the animated original. Contrary to the film’s intended effect, however, it was a critical and financial letdown. The film was criticized for a wide range of issues, including making unpopular changes to the animated original, misrepresenting Chinese culture and history, perpetuating Orientalist stereotypes, and demonizing Inner Asian steppe nomads. In addition, the film also faced boycott calls amid political controversies surrounding China. It received exceptionally low audience ratings in both the US and China, grossing a total well under its estimated budget. This article argues that Mulan (2020) is not, as many believe, just another Disney film suffering from simple artistic inability, cultural insensitivity, or political injustice, but a window into the tension-ridden intersectionality of the gender, sexual, racial, cultural, and political issues that shape the production and reception of today’s cross-cultural films. It discusses three major problems, the Disney problem, the gender problem, and the cultural problem, that Mulan (2020) tackled with respectful efforts in Caro’s feminist filmmaking pattern. The film made significant compromises between its goals of cultural appropriateness, progressive feminism, and monetary success. Although it eventually failed to satisfactorily resolve these at times conflicting missions, it still achieved important progress in addressing some serious gender and cultural problems in Mulan’s contemporary intertextual metamorphosis, especially those introduced by the Disney animation. By revealing Mulan (2020)’s value and defects, this article intends to flesh out some real-world challenges that feminist movements must overcome to effectively transmit messages and bring about changes at the transcultural level in the arts. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

15 pages, 4197 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Performance and Religion: Dancing Bodies in Macedonian Orthodox Fresco Painting

by Sonja Zdravkova Djeparoska

Arts 2021, 10(4), 88; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts10040088 - 20 Dec 2021

Viewed by 5391

Abstract

Although dance as a topic has been explored through various theoretical and thematic discourse, little attention has been paid to the presence of dance motifs in Christian imagery. An examination of Orthodox Macedonian medieval fresco painting provides a fascinating point of entry into [...] Read more.

Although dance as a topic has been explored through various theoretical and thematic discourse, little attention has been paid to the presence of dance motifs in Christian imagery. An examination of Orthodox Macedonian medieval fresco painting provides a fascinating point of entry into this overlooked subject. Analysis reveals the presence of two dominant approaches, conditioned primarily by the position of dancing in the philosophical-ethical discourse present in the Bible and other late antique and medieval theological texts. Some frescoes and icons show the body as a channel through which the Lord is glorified. Others show it as an instrument and reflection of immorality instigated by demonic powers. As in each approach, the bodies have differing semantic qualities, valuable information can be obtained about the performing practices present in this historical period. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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21 pages, 2528 KiB

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Victorian Artists’ Letters: Rhetoric, Networks, and Social Capital

by Julie Codell

Arts 2021, 10(4), 73; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts10040073 - 28 Oct 2021

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3392

Abstract

Victorian artists were remarkably literate; they wrote autobiographies, diaries, and essays and befriended writers and journalists. Writing had become a way to present themselves on the open market and to generate a public image as individuals and collectively within the new professionalism emerging [...] Read more.

Victorian artists were remarkably literate; they wrote autobiographies, diaries, and essays and befriended writers and journalists. Writing had become a way to present themselves on the open market and to generate a public image as individuals and collectively within the new professionalism emerging in the century. Letter writing was purposed to solidify and improve artists’ social capital, and their comments were always embedded in social relationships and practices. Thus, artists’ letters reveal much about the artworld structure; its players; and its overlapping spheres of social, economic, and professional identities. Their letters combined frankness with rhetorical pleading and contained their own press releases, studio invitations, and responses to criticism and were often intended for public consumption if used in critics’ reviews. Through letters, artists and critics revealed their reciprocal authority and agency and did not simply reflect the artworld but shaped that world. In their letters, economic gains were sublimated by artists’ desire for fame, Royal Academy acceptance, and a place in art history, then an emerging university discipline, seeking symbolic investments in their reputations and demonstrating that the market is cultural, not just economic. In their letters artists made clear that commodification does not destroy or pollute subjectivity. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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20 pages, 6258 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Innovative Carpentry and Hybrid Joints in Contemporary Wooden Architecture

by Joanna Ludmiła Arlet

Arts 2021, 10(3), 64; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts10030064 - 7 Sep 2021

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 9875

Abstract

Timber frame structures have a long and rich tradition. In addition to their functional and structural value, they are important elements of the cultural landscape. At the turn of the 21st century, concern for nature, resulting from the threat of environmental degradation, contributed [...] Read more.

Timber frame structures have a long and rich tradition. In addition to their functional and structural value, they are important elements of the cultural landscape. At the turn of the 21st century, concern for nature, resulting from the threat of environmental degradation, contributed to a growing interest in wooden constructions. For these reasons, we have observed the erection of buildings with wooden frame structures in many countries around the world. This trend contributed to the rapid development of wooden structures, new technologies, and innovative architectural solutions. The conducted research mainly focused on the joints used in their construction, as well as their perception. From among many examples, some original and innovative solutions were selected and analyzed. Their creators are famous architects: Renzo Piano, Imre Makovecz, Jürgen Meyer, Kengo Kuma, and Shigeru Ban. The objects presented in this article are distinguished by the originality of their form and by the fact that they are clearly inspired by vernacular architecture. Crucial elements of these objects, such as wooden, steel, and hybrid connections, are analyzed in this article. Because they are intentionally exposed, they play an important aesthetic role in addition to a structural one. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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12 pages, 5430 KiB

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The Threshold between the Material and Immaterial Light. Notes on Luminescence and Dark Environments

by Ana Margarida Rocha, Teresa Almeida and Graciela Machado

Arts 2021, 10(3), 56; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts10030056 - 20 Aug 2021

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3145

Abstract

This article discusses the phenomenon of luminescence in the production and visualization of images from an art-practice standpoint. The theoretical argument is developed through an analysis of artistic work that explores, inserts, expands, articulates, and interrogates the internal contradictions of UV light and [...] Read more.

This article discusses the phenomenon of luminescence in the production and visualization of images from an art-practice standpoint. The theoretical argument is developed through an analysis of artistic work that explores, inserts, expands, articulates, and interrogates the internal contradictions of UV light and the transitivity of light-sensitive materials in installation contexts. This investigation explores complexities in the encounter of antagonistic concepts: the threshold phenomena between materiality and immateriality, visibility and invisibility, light and darkness, disclosure and concealment. It aims to articulate a new perspective on contemporary debates on physiological, psychological, and environmental effects of light and darkness, articulated through aesthetic experience and artistic practice. Methods for engaging in the sensation of light and darkness will be introduced and how it unfolds as experiential qualities within installation projects will be considered. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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32 pages, 38826 KiB

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A ‘Lost’ Panel and a Missing Link: Angelos Bitzamanos and the Case of the Scottivoli Altarpiece for the Church of San Francesco Delle Scale in Ancona

by Margarita Voulgaropoulou

Arts 2021, 10(3), 44; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts10030044 - 1 Jul 2021

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 4318

Abstract

In his will, dating from 1490, the nobleman Francesco Scottivoli from Ancona ordered his heirs to erect a chapel in his memory at the church of San Francesco delle Scale, and have it adorned with a painted altarpiece, executed in 1508 by a [...] Read more.

In his will, dating from 1490, the nobleman Francesco Scottivoli from Ancona ordered his heirs to erect a chapel in his memory at the church of San Francesco delle Scale, and have it adorned with a painted altarpiece, executed in 1508 by a painter of Greek origin residing in Ancona. In the late 18th-century a full-scale renovation of the church resulted to the dissolution of the Scottivoli chapel and the removal of the painted altarpiece, which was subsequently lost and has been considered missing ever since. This article aims to identify the long-missing Scottivoli altarpiece and determine the identity of its creator based on the re-evaluation of previously published sources and the discovery of unpublished archival and visual material. In light of this new information, this study interprets the Scottivoli altarpiece within the context of the intense cross-cultural transfer that took place in the multicultural contact zone of the early modern Eastern Mediterranean and Adriatic Seas. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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18 pages, 925 KiB

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From Novels to Video Games: Romantic Love and Narrative Form in Japanese Visual Novels and Romance Adventure Games

by Kumiko Saito

Arts 2021, 10(3), 42; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts10030042 - 25 Jun 2021

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 14609

Abstract

Video games are powerful narrative media that continue to evolve. Romance games in Japan, which began as text-based adventure games and are today known as bishōjo games and otome games, form a powerful textual corpus for literary and media studies. They adopt conventional [...] Read more.

Video games are powerful narrative media that continue to evolve. Romance games in Japan, which began as text-based adventure games and are today known as bishōjo games and otome games, form a powerful textual corpus for literary and media studies. They adopt conventional literary narrative strategies and explore new narrative forms formulated by an interface with computer-generated texts and audiovisual fetishism, thereby challenging the assumptions about the modern textual values of storytelling. The article first examines differences between visual novels that feature female characters for a male audience and romance adventure games that feature male characters for a female audience. Through the comparison, the article investigates how notions of romantic love and relationship have transformed from the modern identity politics based on freedom and the autonomous self to the decentered model of mediation and interaction in the contemporary era. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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20 pages, 3478 KiB

Open AccessEssay

What Is It about Art? A Discussion on Art.Intelligence.Machine.

by Frederic Fol Leymarie and Seymour Simmons III

Arts 2022, 11(5), 100; https://doi.org/10.3390/arts11050100 - 5 Oct 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 5672

Abstract

The interrelationship among art, intelligence, and machine has important implications for the visual arts as part of a general education. Here, Frederic Fol Leymarie (FFL), a computer scientist and engineer at Goldsmiths College, and Seymour Simmons III (SS3), an artist and art educator [...] Read more.

The interrelationship among art, intelligence, and machine has important implications for the visual arts as part of a general education. Here, Frederic Fol Leymarie (FFL), a computer scientist and engineer at Goldsmiths College, and Seymour Simmons III (SS3), an artist and art educator from Winthrop University, South Carolina, discuss these issues and the value of sustained cross-disciplinary conversations in addressing challenges in the 21st century. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue A 10-Year Journey of Arts)

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