Chapter 1, Assignment 2
Artist have assumed various roles in society over the history of mankind. As the textbook puts it, this list answers the question. “What Do Artists Do? (see text, page 7)
Tip: The descriptive essay you are to write for this assignment will take into account how viewers are thought to have understood Shiva in the tenth century and how viewers today might interpret the Shiva figure. You must include discussion of two items from the list below in your discussion.
Summarized below are ways of thinking about art when a creative work was first made, and that with similar recreative consideration today leads to appreciating art.
Notably, artists design and ornament special places for some human purpose.
Secondly, artists create extraordinary versions of ordinary objects.
Another contribution of artists is to record and commemorate events, support grand narratives, or to give voice to alternative explanations and narratives,
Artists convey in tangible form what is unknown in a physical form–for example, beliefs and powerful human emotions.
Artists create a physical form for feelings and ideas important personally and thought to be universally shared.
Artists refresh society’s vision and help participants to view the world in new ways.
Procedure: Elaborate descriptively on two of the “ways that art-makers fulfill similar roles” (p. 7) from the list summarized above. Prepare a short essay that explains how categories might overlap for viewers when a piece of art was first made and then for people today considering the art as a historical object.
Take your example to write about from the textbook, The Shiva figure on page 10 of the text, which presents a god character well known to the people of India. Shiva was first depicted in the 10th century by a sculptor in India who was familiar with attributes or characteristics associated with the Hindu god. Attributes are the objects or symbols that identify a particular figure in a cultural context, like a saint in a church alterpiece. A characteristic, in contrast, is s physical or formal property (such as size difference, color association, and textural feature) that cues the viewer to the meaning of the image and helps explain the intended visual communication.
Today, in reconsidering the Hindu god that in your text is depicted as the Lord of the Dance, and the text writer writes about the original meaning of Shiva’s dance in the Hindu religious narrative about a cycle of destruction and rebirth in the world. Do viewers today understand the references to attributes and symbols in the same way, or differently?
You as a viewer today might grasp the idea of a “cosmic moment” as one cycle ends and another begins. In one hand is the flame of destruction, in another hand the drum whose beat calls forth creation. Shiva’s third hand gestures toward Shiva’s foot which is prepared to shelter worshipers who seek refuge. A fourth hand, palm up, gestures to “fear not”. The Lord of the Dance easily is understood in most art texts as giving form to intangible religious ideas in the 10th century. These represent examples of visual information that is accurate historically and today in India.
Think about how a Hindu believer in the 10th century might have responded to seeing his or her god personified. As a student investigating this image on the internet you might describe the impact of encountering the Shiva art work as currently exhibited in a museum in the Netherlands. interpreting a purpose from the list above of what art-makers do. With the assignment below you will want to continue with the Shiva example by describing two ways from the list to consider the image as a message to people today. You might want to start by thinking about what is the point of studying a 10th century Shiva figure for you as a college student today?
Assignment: in a 200 word essay present your understanding right now as we begin the course where we investigate together powerful connections among roles/purposes associated with art making. Using the Shiva Notaraja sculpture as your example, share your own ideas in the essay, as a viewer in the United States with perhaps little formal knowledge of Hinduism. Examine the the Shiva image on the internet and read about its history in your text or from internet sources. Write a response to the image and turn it in to me.
As professor I will work with you to help you further refine those initial ideas in your essay. Your edited essay when turned back in a second time be subject to review under Turn itin so continue to write the assignment in your own words. Expect timely feedback on your submission for the assignment.
You will be graded on maintaining the discussion of the two artistic intents from the list above, while using Shiva as the visual reference or example. Your essay should introduce the focus of your discussion, talk about two items from the list using the Shiva image, and inform your conclusions a
