The Arts in New York City

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After watching American Gangster, probably the best movie of the year, I could not help but compared it with another classic gangster movie –the Godfather. Both movies depict the criminal underworld. That there can be respect, and organization within criminal activity is a truly fascinating phenomenon. And we love seeing the oxymoron play out before us because it’s both frightening and seductive. However, this movie presents an interesting parallel; the parallel stories of Frank Lucas and Richie Roberts who, while on opposing sides of the law, draw equal appeal from the audience. Should we care about a gentlemanly gangster who is as likely to blow an enemy’s head off as he is to sip fine cognac and tip his hat to the presence of a woman? Should we feel disdain for a slovenly police officer who cheats on his wife, yet refuses to fall into the corrupt ways of his fellow officers? This chilling irony is at the heart of the story that plays out as both a police procedural and a gangster drama.

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The trip to the Guggenheim museum certainly enriches my experience of the exploration of modern art. I have a chance to observe many paintings painted by great artists in person rather than reading from books; it helps me to appreciate and understand these paintings better. There is one painting called composition 8, by Vasily Kandinsky, struck me and lasted in my mind for a longer time than many others paintings did. I actually learned about this painting in my art class in China several years ago, and it was a bit exciting to finally see it in person. Kandinsky emphasizes on geometric forms in this painting to establish a universal aesthetic language and to expand his own pictorial vocabulary. His belief in the expressive content of abstract forms is clearly indicated in Composition 8. The colorful, interactive geometric forms create a pulsating surface that is alternately dynamic and calm, aggressive and quiet. The importance of circles in this painting is the synthesis of the greatest oppositions. It combines the concentric and the eccentric in a single form and in equilibrium. Kandinsky suggests that everything in the world exists in balance and harmony.

Being Chinese, I have always been interested in the art of nearby countries, such as Japan. I decided to learn more about Japanese art, one that I thought to be heavily influenced by Chinese art, for the third report, and see how it had been influenced by my culture. The best place I could have thought of is the Metropolitan Museum, since I learned so much about Spanish art during Renaissance period in it. Unsurprisingly, I did see a lot of similarities between Chinese art and Japanese art; interestingly enough, I even found a Chinese emperor appearing in one of the Japanese paintings. Nevertheless, I did find distinctiveness in Japanese art, deserving of attention for its uniqueness and delicacy, despite its Chinese’s influences. The trip enriched my understanding of Japanese art as well as my own culture. (more…)

It was an amazing and new experience for me to see a Hispanic fable, Blind Mouth Singing, to be performed on stage by Asian Americans. Surprisingly, it went well. The professional acting kept the originality of the text, and enhanced the theme behind the fable. The play pulled me into the world of a rural Latino village in Cuba, where a series of struggle for personal identity and self-worthiness were presented. The conservative “Mother of the Late Afternoon” rejects to changes, and rules her family with strictness, designed to thwart her boy’s hopes and dreams. Her two sons, Gordi, an irrational and rebellious rough rouge, and Reiderico, a sensitive, gentle, caring gay boy who is too logical and ends up retreating into his own world by talking to his alter-ego who lives at the bottom of the well, attempt to survive in the stifling boredom of the house. It is interestingly enough to see different personalities direct each character to go onto different life paths at the end. Blind Mouth Singing provides the audiences with a rich atmosphere and an open space in which one relates to his or her own experiences and starts to explore the inner self.

Gallery Talk: Across the Mediterranean: Renaissance Sculpture in Spain
Location: Metropolitan Museum

I went to Metropolitan Museum of Art for a gallery talk on Renaissance sculpture in Spain on September 21, 2007. I learned a lot about Spanish sculpture during the Renaissance period from Vivian Gordon, my tour leader. There was lots of information to be absorbed in a gallery talk that only lasted for less an hour. We covered many Spanish art works, such as Orpheus, Saint John The Baptist, and The Holy Family with Saints Anne and Joachim. The Spanish sculpture was a microscope of European’s art history. Sculptors from Italy, Netherlands and other European countries all had come to Spain to work, and had influenced the Spanish sculpture’s style more or less. I noticed trace of the Italian style in several Spanish sculptures as Gordon indicated. Just as I expected and noticed in the title of this gallery talk, Renaissance sculpture in Spain resembles characteristics of art works across the Mediterranean. (more…)

Is it alright to write about a gallery talk in a museum for the art review?

My trip to the Wax Museum in Times Square was definitely memorable and fun. It was my first-hand experience to see Hollywood celebrities and recognizable political figures so closely. The wax figures looked so realistic that I sometimes cannot differentiate between a tourist and a wax figure. The highlight of my visit was the experience at the VIP room. I experienced to be a part of the hottest party scene in New York, and took pictures with Jessica Simpson, Madonna, and Usher. The pictures came out so real that they fooled many of my friends. A section called the “American Idol” allows tourists to get invovled. I went up to the stage and auditioned for the show’s toughest judge, Simon. I also made his signature eye roll pose beside him. I would say it is worthwhile to visit there for once, getting a close look at your idol’s wax figure while it might be awkward and impossible to do so to the real people. I did not know Angelina Jolie has a tattoo on her back until this time I had the chance to take a real close look at her. I appreciate the work and energy artists put into their jobs in order to recreate the a real person.