Final Essay

The Flat Side of the Knife – Samara Golden

Dilchand Nauth

Professor Harmon

June 5, 2015

Samara Golden’s art installation known as “The Flat Side of the Knife” is difficult to comprehend. While looking at the installation, at the MOMA PS1 museum, it is extremely easy to get confused trying to figure out the meaning behind this installation. This piece offers reflection and suspension through division. It is almost like a dream or illusion, where the physically body of a person is present, yet the mind is wondering, triggering an emotional reaction.

Before looking at the installation, the title alone offers tons of information. The deadliest part of a knife is the blade itself. It can cut or kill in an instant. It is the most essential part of the tool, making it extremely crucial in this piece. The other part of the knife is the flat slide, as referred to in the title. It is unlike the blade, very smooth and causes little to no harm. As opposite as they may be, these two parts meet at the edge of the entire tool. Golden may have chosen the harmless part of the knife as the title, to make her viewers think about a different use for a violent object. Perhaps even to not directly connect the title with the installation, like an unanswerable question.

According to Samara Golden, she is attempting to show and make her viewers feel what she calls “the 6^th dimension”. This dimension is a world of emotions, where what the viewer felt while observing this piece was purely emotions. It is only emotions that could understand and access what this piece means, not words or physical actions.

Objects are specifically placed to let the viewer know that they are not useable although they exist in reality. These objects include stairs, couches, musical instruments, lamps, books, plants and wheelchairs. These objects are around us in our everyday lives and they are objects we use in our everyday lives. They benefit us every day, but cannot be accessible in this piece in anyway. For example, the couch is used to sit on, the stairs are used to step on, the guitars are used to make songs, the lamps are used for us to see, the books are used to educate, the plants provide us oxygen and the wheelchairs are used for assistance. Yet, they are hanging from strings, fragile and suspended from the ceiling; thus they cannot be used. 

Before the eyes enter the other levels of the installation, there is a plane of mirrors which span across the entire piece. In my opinion, this is specifically used to create an illusion of distance. Because of this mirror, the objects that are located on the top level expand beyond their physical location. The mirror plane also creates an illusion of depth and height. Significantly, the hardest part of this installation to comprehend is the mirrors. Based on my judgement, the mirror is related to the knife. Physically, the knife is able to penetrate and separate things into, precisely, two pieces. Reflection of the mirror can make one object into two. In other terms, the knife separates one into two; the mirror makes two from one.

This piece is especially creative because it is divided into three different levels. Each level symbolizes something different. The highest level includes two beds, which could symbolize reality. These beds are objects that are in our everyday lives, something that we go to when we need to rest. In the middle level there is another bed. However, this bed seems like a hospital bed. The same object we go to in reality to rest, is the same object we go to when our life could be at risk. As much as a bed can symbolize reality, it can also symbolize the moment between life (reality) and death. The lowest level, includes large windows and an ocean projection. This level symbolizes a place of peace, a place for thinking, a place for the mind to wonder off and a place to escape reality. However, it could also symbolize what we experience after death.

To break this creativity into more detail, the top level where the beds are located, is where our personal space is. It is where we escape reality and go into unconscious dreaming. The only bedroom that appears instantly, is the one from the ceiling. It is the only bed on the ceiling where the viewers can clearly see it. A bed welcomes warmth, comfort, relaxation; it is what we look forward to after a long day. It is where our bodies and minds become one at the end of the day. On the reflected part of the installation, the two physical bedrooms appear as right side up. They are duplicate in the reflected room to appear normal. On this middle level, there are plants and books along with the bed, suggesting a time period of struggle. Perhaps, these objects were placed here to symbolize things found in a hospital room, a long duration. It is where lives are at risk, where the struggle for life and the avoiding of death occur in reality and every day. The furthest room seems to be the most peaceful. It is the furthest to reach physically; it contains a perfectly made bed, large windows and a projection of calming ocean waves. In my opinion, it suggests a realm or level that is peaceful and happy, that is only accessible after death.  

But this level seems to say more than just an unreachable realm. It seems to be impossible to experience true happiness and peace while living in reality. None of the wheelchairs are able to reach this final level, even though they are reflected. There is very little furniture. The most shocking part of this display is the fact that you cannot see yourself on the mirror plane. It is extremely difficult. This could suggest, in my opinion, the inability to reach this final level, even though it seems real, yet reflected. The worlds of real and reflected seem to be one, even if they are separated by levels, making this installation unique.

Samara Golden is a very difficult artist to comprehend. Her work is nearly impossible to figure out in my opinion. As this is her biggest installation yet, it makes it that more difficult. It contains a lot of activity; hours need to be spend to figure out each objects unique purpose. This installation makes me look at the world as a place that seems to be the most difficult to live and comprehend. Reality and life seems to be where all the hardships of life and struggles of life exist. From this piece, I can see that the best feelings of life exist after death. Eventually we all will reach their, we just have to go through life, the struggle to stay alive and the acceptance of a happier life after death.  

HUA Assignment #9

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Kara Walker is an African-American artist who was born of November 26, 1969. Her artwork symbolizes gender, sexuality, race and identity. Inspired by her father's artwork at the age of 3, she became best known for her black cut-paper silhouettes. Most of her artwork are installations that circulate around the concept of race and stereotypes. Her cut-paper silhouettes are unique because they reduce the complexity of the human form to such simplicity. These silhouettes and some of her installations involve viewers, making them part of the art. Today, she is best known for her room-size tableaux of black cut-paper silhouettes, however, also works in other areas such as text, light projection and animation.

Sources

1) http://scholarworks.gsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1012&context=art_design_theses 

2) http://www.art21.org/texts/kara-walker/interview-kara-walker-the-melodrama-of-gone-with-the-wind 

3) http://learn.walkerart.org/karawalker/Main/TechniquesAndMedia

4) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meSWqY_vMo0

OUTLINE

1)  “Gone, An Historical Romance of a Civil War as It Occurred between the Dusky Thighs of One Young Negress and Her Heart”. This is Kara Walker’s first large scale cut out paper silhouette mural. 

2) "Letter from a Black Girl (1998)". This is one of Kara Walker’s purely text-based pieces.

3) "Darkytown Rebellion". This shows her talent in using light projection to involve her viewers.

4) "Testimony: Narrative of a Negress Burdened by Good Intentions". Kara Walker uses text and animation to tell a story.

5) "Rise Up Ye Mighty Race!" One of Kara Walker’s latest pieces involving her famous silhouettes. 

HUA Assignment #8

Dilchand Nauth

Professor Harmon

Assignment #8

Bill Viola/His Videos

Bill Viola was born on January 25^th, 1951. In today’s world he is globally recognized for his videotapes, architectural video installations, television broadcasts, electronic music performances and flat panel video pieces. Bill Viola has converted video into a vital form of contemporary art; by doing this he had expanded its scope in terms of historical reach and content. Famous for his video installations, he is able to capture his viewers into a world dominated by sound and image. His videos are simplistic and very precise, incorporating the latest advances in art technologies. Viola uses video as a way of exploring sense perception as a link to self-knowledge. Most of his works focuses on natural human experiences, whether it be birth, death or the mysteries of the conscious mind. His videos communicate to a wide variety of audiences, where viewers uniquely connect to what they are experiencing. Today, his videotapes are broadcast worldwide and presented cinematically.

One of Viola’s contemporary digital pieces include “The Reflecting Pool”. In this piece, we can see Bill Viola emerging from an extremely dense forest where he happens upon a pool. As time passes, the noise of an airplane passes and fades; during this occurrence, Viola approaches the edge of the pool. He continues on to remove his shoes, where he squats, yells and progresses to jump into the water. Oddly, as he leaps his entire body freezes in mid-air above the surface of water. The water reacts as it would when dropping a rock into it; it continues to ripple. Towards the end of the video, water drips from the figure who then dissolves into the colors of the background (forest).

As human beings, it is not entirely possible for us to tell the difference between what is an illusion and what is reality. Who we are and what we stand for is only identified and perceived when it is visible (reflected) in the real world. “The Reflecting Pool” symbolizes an individual’s rebirth (as reflected by the water). The frozen figure disappears from mid-air, reappearing as a shadow in the pool, hence re-emerging ready to jump again. From this, it is depicted that this symbolizes the cycle of life and the changes that we experience in our everyday lives.  

Another one of Bill Viola’s contemporary digital pieces include “The Emergence”. In this piece, two women are sitting either side of a water tank. As they wait, time becomes suspended and indeterminate; the exact purpose of their actions are unknown to the viewer. Suddenly, the calm, collected scenario is interrupted as the younger women turns in disbelief, as a young, pale man emerges from the water; spilling the water over the sides of the cistern onto the floor. The overflowing water disturbs the attention of the older women, as she turns to witness the ongoing situation. The younger women grasps the left arm of the man, perhaps symbolizing the return of a lost lover, whilst the older women stands up, intrigued by the young man’s presence. As the young man finally reaches max emergence, he collapses. The older woman catches him in her arms, as both the younger woman and older women gently lift him onto the floor. Appearing lifeless, he is covered by a cloth. The older women breaks down into tears, as the younger women embraces his body.

It is difficult to comprehend at first, but “The Emergence” is a video resembling a painting. It is related to a painting because it is silent and frame. The narration occurs in extreme slow motion. The man emerging from the water symbolizes birth; perhaps the birth of a new child. His collapse towards the end of the video symbolizes death; eventually that child will experiencing the end of his life. The video symbolizes the reality that every human being will experience some point in their life. Every human is born, fulfills his or her purpose on Earth and then dies.

As a growing individual, Bill Viola had developed an interest in moving forward; exploring the future. He neglected past events in the world and wanted to look to the future for new inspirations. The tragic death of his mother, give him an experience of fright and shock. It was extremely disturbing to him, as experiences such as these made him acknowledge the significance of life. Perhaps inspired to represent experiences of life, death and the conscious mind, Bill Viola is a video artist who is trying to connect several different worlds. Whether it be birth and death, or old art and new art, there is always a connection that can be made.  

HUA Assignment #7

Abstract Expressionism

Artist: Jackson Pollock                     

Style: Abstract Expressionism    

Title: Full Fathom Five               

Size: 129 x 76.5 cm (50 7/8 x 30 1/8 in)                                 Completed: 1947

Abstract Expressionism also known as “action painting” is when the artist is directly using the canvas as a way of expressing him or herself. It portrays the artist’s personality and gives the viewers a sense of character from the artist whilst he was painting. In other terms, Pollock expressed his mind of the canvas. The canvas is a reflection of his feelings and emotions at that given time. The colors which are used represents the perception of feeling and what the artist is thinking. There are numerous possibilities of how this painting could have been painted in terms of stroke or direction. What is clear, however, is that Pollock approached the canvas to let out his feelings and portray his character at that given point in time.

‘Full Fathom Five’ is a representation of abstract expressionism; abstract paintings have more of a physical approach and are applied with more energy by their respected painters and artists. In this painting, the viewers are given the feeling that there is motion in the entirety of the work. The rapid movements and different directions results in the painting appearing infinite. There are multiple layers of splatters in Pollock’s painting; this results in the creation of depth. Even though the canvas is a limited space, the viewer is able to picture the painting in a wider and broader view. This specific piece includes solid items such as nails, cigarettes, coins, keys and buttons. These items do not stand out or draw attention to themselves, but attempt to display the expressions of the artist’s emotions. The painting consists of black (mainly), specks of orange, white and blue. It is discovering oneself that gives defiance towards the standard of art.          

Popular-Art

Artist: Claes Oldenburg 

Style: Pop-Art

Title: Giant Soft Fan

Size: 10 feet tall
Completed: 1966-1967

Pop-Art, short for popular-art became known around the 1960s. Artists such as Oldenburg are one of few who started to look at objects around their everyday lives. Also known as pop-artists, they turned household items or items on the street into com-positional sources of their own individual art. In particular, Oldenburg had a unique sense of scale and manipulated unique materials to make his artwork; because of this his artwork, like the “Giant Soft Fan” appeared to be droopy and soft.

With this soft, over sized sculpture of a regular fan, Oldenburg brings a sense of humor and irreverence to his work and anything else in a room. Rendering a hard object into a soft material (saggy, droopy and inflated) transforms it. There is humor in transforming a hard machine into something that appears to be funny and useless. 

HUA Assignment #6

Artist - Kara Walker

Kara Walker is an African-American artist whose artwork symbolizes gender, sexuality, race and identity. Inspired by her father's artwork at the age of 3, she became best known for her black cut-paper silhouettes. Most of her artwork circulates around the concept of race. She often uses body shapes, facial features and a unique line and form to show how race is intertwined with our lives. Her work is extremely precise reflecting the ethnicity of her subjects and significance of her artwork. Walker uses images that are pure black on her wall murals, eliminating the need for skin tones. The racial status of her characters in her wall murals, drawings and watercolors are visible through stereotypes. She applies different techniques in her paintings and drawings, videos and performances, light projection and cut-paper silhouettes. According to Walker, making artwork about race translates into issues about identity.

Her best known work is her cut-paper silhouettes. This imagery which reduced human beings to their physical appearance gave her something to use, with other characterizations of racial representation. Representing humans in the form of black cut-outs made her work seem simply and cartoonish. From this emerged racial stereotypes, which like cut-paper silhouettes, reduces the complexity of human beings. Her first large scale cut-paper silhouette mural was displayed in 1994 in New York. It was known as "Gone, An Historical Romance of a Civil War as It Occurred Between the Dusky Thighs of One Young Negress and Her Heart".

Before she is became famous for her cut-outs, she was previously a painter. She worked with oils and recently returned to painting with watercolors. She used her talents in painting to layer her black silhouettes over colorful backgrounds and landscapes. Also related to her silhouettes and painting, is her drawing skills. She constantly draws images to cut into silhouettes and sketches ideas on paper.
Kara Walker also uses texts in several of her drawings, however only a portion of her work is purely text-based. These texts are expressions that the artist writes to herself, as well as thoughts voiced directly to the viewer. A piece known as "Letter from a Black Girl (1998)" is one of Walker's more larger scale wall texts. It addresses the power dynamics between the relationship of two lovers, master and slave, and artist and art world.

Walker also uses light projection to cast shadows and create a unique environment for those who view her artwork. For example in her piece "Darkytown Rebellion", she uses cut-silhouettes with vibrant light from color transparencies to involve her viewers into the artwork. Viewers are more involved in this piece as their shadows cast onto the wall as they walk around. Because of this effect, viewers own silhouettes are part of the artwork and history. In other work such as film and video, Walker begins to animate the characters in her narratives. In such animations like "Testimony: Narrative of a Negress Burdened by Good Intentions", she is able to tell a story through texts and moving subjects.

Kara Walker's Work

"Gone, An Historical Romance of a Civil War as It Occurred Between the Dusky Thighs of One Young Negress and Her Heart"

Letter from a Black Girl (1998)" 

"Darkytown Rebellion"

"Testimony: Narrative of a Negress Burdened by Good Intentions"

HUA Assignment #5

HUA Assignment #4

Impressionism

Impressionism was a past art movement which occurred in the 19th century. According to the YouTube video HarmonIntroImpressionismPostImpressionism, these types of paintings were more visual (what the eye sees), and not what the mind knows. These artists would paint ordinary scenes and landscapes; they would also paint them rapidly because of changing conditions that took place outside. Artists painted by observation, using light (which changed) extremely accurately to help give paintings more realism. Dashes of different colors and thin brushstrokes were also used to give the viewer more enthusiasm. Impressionism paintings used art styles which expressed emotion and values of symbolism. Cropping an impressionist painting was a regular practice which provided paintings a place in the world of reality. For example:

Post-Impressionism

Post-Impressionism painters believed a free interpretation of nature. According to the video, it was not about how things were visualized, but rather it was how one saw through something that gave it a significance in reality. Van Gogh described painters of this period as "beings of extraordinary insight, mysterious, visionary and fantastic". Post-Impressionism painters used vivid passionate varieties of colors, abstract shapes and distinct brushstrokes. More noticeably however, their paintings show the importance of unnatural colors. For example: