Botticelli Essays (589 words) - Spring, Nude Art, Roman Goddesses

Botticelli McGaharan 1 Jon McGaharan AP Art History Mrs. Johnston 1 December 1999 Botticelli, Sandro. Primavera. Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence. Mark Harden's Artchive. By Mark Harden. Available http://www.artchive.com/ftp_site.html. Botticelli's masterpiece, Primavera, depicts a scene of slow moving grace in what appears to be a mythical garden. The actual subject of this masterpiece is unknown, but there are volumes of ideas concerning the purposes and meanings the painting could have. Despite the confusion the painting is widely admired and revered as Botticelli's finest works. The scene appears to be a spring morning, with a pale light penetrating the straight vertical trees in the background. The trees appear to bear golden apples, a possible reference to the myth of Venus and the golden apple which seems feasible considering Venus appears in the center of the painting underneath the great canopy provided by the trees. Golden apples are also the attribute of the Three Graces, the handmaidens of Venus, also shown in this work. Chloris, the ancient Greek goddess of flowers, is fleeing from Zephyr, the west wind of springtime whom begets flowers, on the right side of the painting. When Zephyr catches her in his embrace flowers spill from her lips and she transforms into Flora the Roman goddess of flowers. Flora is depicted separately from Chloris and is dressed in blossoms as she scatters flowers over the ground. In the center is a dignified Venus with a promise of joy. Above Venus is the infant Cupid, blindfolded and aiming his arrows of love. To the left the Three Graces dance in silent daydream of grace. They are separated from the other figures in time as indicated by their hair blowing in the opposite direction from Zephyr's gusts. The figure on the extreme left is that of Mercury, messenger of the gods. He provides a male counterpart to Zephyr. Zephyr is breathing love and warmth into McGaharan 2 a wintry world while Mercury is diverting this expression to a more culturally acceptable form, considering the context of the time period, by opening the scene to the gods. The scene has a dream like quality. The subject seems to be ambivalent, the gentle yet strong colors give the figures presence and weight, but the figures also seem insubstantial or dreamlike. The light figures of the painting heavily contrast with the dark background of the woods. The ground does not seem to be present but flowers are scattered on top of it adding to the dreamlike state of the work. The picture is harmonized by the equal distribution of figures over the picture plane. There is a slow moving rhythm to the way the figures move added to by the various gestures of their arms, graceful and elegant. It is interesting to note that the hand of the fleeing Chloris as it overlaps, and appears to blend into, the arm of Flora. Botticelli lived from 1445 to 1510 in Florence. Despite his individuality as a Renaissance painter, he remained little known for centuries after his death until his work was rediscovered late in the 19th century. Botticelli was a pupil of the painter Fra Filippo Lippi. He was commissioned to do this work after enjoying success over his work Venus and Mars, an allegory of War and Love, for the Medici families. Lorenzo di Piefrancesco de'Medici enjoyed Mars and Venus so much he commissioned Botticelli for two works, Primavera and The Birth of Venus. These works are considered his best works. I chose this piece because I reviewed Mars and Venus and found the elegance of Botticelli style captivating. The mystery of this particular painting interested me. The fact that scholars cannot understand the exact subject of the work adds an element of mystery to the work. Bibliography on paper Art Essays

Television Uses and Abuses Essays

Television Uses and Abuses Essays Television Uses and Abuses Essay Television Uses and Abuses Essay Television Uses And Abuses Television is the most impressive , useful and powerful invention of 20th century. It was invented by John Logie Baird in 1928. Approximately 80-90% of the areas of the world have T. V coverage. T. V leaves better and everlasting impression on the viewers. It is a good source of entertainment. .We are able to know about the happenings of the world through T. V telecast. Moreover, it is better than radio and newspapers. We can listen ,watch as well as read news on T. V whereas radio and newspapers dont provide us such facilities. Various live programs are shown on T. V like cricket , football , hockey matches etc. It also shows all religious functions/festivals and regular preachings of saints and religious gurus. Many channels are there on T. V which adds to our knowledge like business, tourism , discovery channels etc. Historical movies are good for everyone to know about the history. One of the best use of Television is that there are open educational channels which help students to learn and earn while sitting at there homes. In case of emergency/urgency, one can alert/warn the citizens through T. V. Yoga programs shown on T. V have helped millions of people. Live operations are shown on T. V like when Hotel Taj (Mumbai) was attacked by Pakistani terrorists or when Laden was killed by American Navy. These all had a great impact on people. Polling during elections or counting of votes or election results are shown live on T. V. T. V has many disadvantages also. Vulgar and violent programs or fashion shows or western movies shown on T. V are not good for children. They become violent by watching these movies. They watch these movies till late night. Children perform stunts done by professionals and some of them have lost their lives also due to this. They want products shown in T. V whether they are good or bad for them. Children become couch potatoes because they do not play outdoor games and eat continuously while watching T. V and it affect their eyes and studies . T. V propagates violence,indiscipline and there is adverse impact of western programs. A lot of time and energy gets wasted, watching T. V. It has some big disadvantages also-like 26/11 attack was shown live worldwide which helped the Pakistani terrorists to help their partners who were in Mumbai . The terrorists in Mumbai (Hotel Taj) knew everything what was happening outside. Still,in my views advantages of T. V are more than its disadvantages. The only need is to have self-control. Parents shouldnt allow their children to sit before T. V for a long time and watch western movies,as these have corrupting influence on youth . Bad commercials or serials should be restricted. Due to T. V social connections between people have also reduced. Television should be a Servant and not a Master. However,T. V is a useful invention but its viewing should be for possible minimum duration and viewers should be choosy/selective in watching only useful programs.

Changing of Pop Music Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Changing of Pop Music - Research Paper Example Chorus should be repeated uphold verse-chorus  structure  posses a  sound  which is melodic and have hooks which are  catchy. Numerous changes have taken place over the years (Simpson & Weiner, 1989). One group that changed pop culture is The Beatles. How the Beatles changed pop music The Beatles came into limelight by changing the whole idea of pop music in the world. This was after they overwhelmed the world with their creativity in sound making, which showed their  integrity  with what  was referred  to as â€Å"fab four’s success† (Frith, et al, 1990). The group comprises of George Harrison, Ringo Starr, John Lennon and Paul McCartney. This new  mix  sound, which  was developed  by Beatles, was a mixture of rock and roll with black rhythm and blues. Their unique sound comprised of sounds, which were easy to sing along with the lyrics. Their music made  youths  be interested to listening to music again as they had influenced individuals in both America and Britain. They were the first British  group  to become  successful  and popular in America (Gillet, 1970). The popularity and revolutionizing of music by the Beatles  was encouraged  by their mainstreaming into success globally. Before they came into limelight, most musicians who were  famous  always sang solo and their bands  were never given  consideration. ... They had  energetic  lyrics that  were accompanied  by funky beats, which had youths all over the world singing along to them (Frith, 2004). They did not only  influence  people into their new dress code and singing, as they  were involved  in  political  affairs by preaching peace while hallucinogenic of drugs. Moreover, they also borrowed the Indian mysticism of  meditation  to the society. Their lead singer John Lennon started singing when he was 17, and he had already started his own band in the name of Black Jacks. His  band  was comprised  of members from his class who studied in Liverpool’s Quarry Bank Grammar School (Frith, et al, 1990). When they were representing their school, they  were known  as Quarry Men. Paul McCartney  was introduced  to the  band  in 1957 during a  preparation  of their performance in the church hall. He officially joined the  band  in October same year after auditioning. In 1958, the band chan ged their music from  normal  sniffle and jazz where they ventured into rock and roll. Their banjo player who decided to leave the band took this  badly, and George Harrison took his  part. The Quarry Men could not  establish  itself, and early 1959 witnessed their break up (Denisoff & William, 1986). The three managed to  attain  a  contract  of playing at Casbah Coffee Club found in Liverpool. Shortly, the club owner’s son called Pete Best who was a drummer joined them. They tried out some names before settling for The Beatles. In June 1962, the band went for an audition at Parlophone Records situated at Abbey Road Studios, which  was owned  by George Martins. He loved the band and their songs. However, he was not  comfortable  with Best who had