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November 12, 2005
Ansel Adams Assignment
I have been to the Museum of Fine Arts many times and each time I go I feel something different. However, the general aura that the museum gives off is the same each time. The museum, for me, is something sacred, something special, something beautiful. The reason for this is because the artwork is so elegant and so cultural. Yet, at the same time, the work in the museum is within my reach, it is touchable and understandable. When I went to the museum a few weeks ago for a French project, I was able to sit on the floor for as long as I wanted to study the painting I was writing a report on. This has made the museum feel, to me, like a good friend. Friends are touchable, but they always possess that quality of uncertainty. This is exactly what the museum is for me. I will always be able to access the MFA, both physically and emotionally, but there will always be more to explore, more to see, and more to enjoy.
I think that this quotation by Berger is very interesting because it is something that we usually don’t think about. Most of society, including myself, presumes that the art work in a museum is perfect, flawless, and influential. It is difficult to be critical of art displayed in a museum because we presume that if it is hung there, it must be good. Most of the time, this work is wonderful, but I think it’s important that we develop our own opinions about artwork instead of just accepting those of society. For example, if we do not like a certain piece of work in the Museum of Fine Arts, of if we do not feel that it deserves to be there, we should not be afraid to express our emotions and criticisms. As far as Ansel Adams’ photographs, I think that they truly deserve the display space that they have in the Museum of Fine Arts. Adams was truly an artist and his work expresses so many sentiments that cannot be described with words.
For an Ansel Adams landscape, I chose Merced River, Cliffs of Cathedral Rocks, 1939. The thing that initially drew me to this image is the sheer size of the objects that are depicted. This picture shows a river that splits to go around a huge cliff. The long, wide river is flanked by enormous, vibrant trees, yet the trees are positively miniscule in comparison to the enormous cliff behind them. I think that this is one of the reasons that Adams chose to capture this scene. I am sure that he was, as I am, enthralled by the power and charm that nature, in particular this scene, holds. I think by taking this picture he was hoping to share this view of nature with the rest of the world. Adams certainly utilizes the three levels of visual data in this photograph. He uses representation because the picture clearly depicts the scene. However, he also uses symbolism because the trees, rivers, and other aspects of nature are used to symbolize other things. In my mind, these are used to symbolize the power nature has over the world. (This point is well exemplified by the recent natural disasters in the world.) Lastly, Adams uses abstraction because he places a lot of focus on the shapes and textures of these objects. Thus, through this photograph he is able to reach a simpler concept as well as a more complex one.
For an Ansel Adams portrait, I chose Georgia O'Keefe and Orville Cox, Canyon de Chelly National Monument, Arizona, 1937. This picture shows Georgia O’Keefe and Orville Cox friends of Adams’, on vacation in Arizona. The picture is stunning because Adams is able to capture so much through a seemingly simple image. I think that what was most important to Adams in this image was conveying the mood, emotions, and personalities of these two friends. Through this photograph, he is able to capture their expressive and extremely revealing facial expressions and body language. The jovial, youthful nature of their relationship shines through. This portrait relates to the many landscapes by Adams in the Museum of Fine Arts because he expresses many of the same sentiments. He accurately describes the mood of both his landscapes and portraits and uses great detail. He also uses the three levels of visual data. Of course, there is representation which accurately physically describes the scene. However, there are also symbolic and abstract aspects which bring the photograph to another level. Through the use of these aspects Adams is able to categorize this photograph as a typical relationship between two friends in the midst of a beautiful scene.
A painting by Ansel Adams that I would describe as abstract is Dunes, Oceana, California, 1950. The thing that makes this photograph so amazing is the fact that Adams took the picture very close-up. Since the picture was taken so close-up, it is difficult to tell that these shapes and textures are actually sand dunes. By using this technique Adams is able to bring a seemingly simple photograph into the abstract and use the details of the sand dunes to create even more images. I think that this is exactly what was important to Adams in this image. He hoped to create an image that would reach beyond its immediate identity into something new. He has certainly done this through the three levels of visual data. Of course, there is the visual representation of the sand dunes. Second, there is the symbolic nature of the photograph, with which Adams is able to use this scene to emit feelings of the power of nature and a greater sense of the world. Lastly, there is the abstract quality of Adams’ photograph, which simplifies the image into mere lines and shapes. This photograph relates to Adams’ work as a landscape artist because, once again, he is able to create an entire mood through his photographs. We not only see the sand dunes, but we also glimpse the entire scene and what is happening throughout it.
The Ansel Adams photograph that really caught my attention was Houses in Rain, Mineral King, California, 1936. This photograph shows a small, quaint, clean, and very original home. However, surrounding the house is acres and acres of fields and mountains. Wildflowers run rampant around the house, but the house is extremely neat and clean. This is what truly appealed to me about this painting: the sharp contrast between the natural world and the manmade world. The well-cared for house is planted in the middle of nature’s greatest wonders and while the house can be “tamed”, nature certainly cannot. Another reason I chose this photograph is because I think it echoes the sentiments of many of Adams’ photos. Personally, I find that the majority of his work comments on the powerful, untamable aspect of nature. This is certainly true in this particular photograph because nature is so wild and uncontrolled in comparison to the neat, tidy home. Of course, I also chose this photograph because I really enjoyed the visual juxtaposition of the house planted in the middle of such vast nature. I think this photograph is a “work of art” because encapsulates the conflict between manmade products and nature. In this photograph, Adams is able to capture nature’s overwhelming power over anything manmade.
Posted by lciscotis at November 12, 2005 02:03 AM