Quarter 4 Museum/Gallery Visit

This summer I visited a gallery of one of Russian art colleges. Some of the things I took away from it were...

1) I walked in there thinking that it wouldn’t be that great. I mean, this was just an art college and these artists were just students. After my experience with Tate Modern where even a mirror was considered art, I didn’t expect much from people who just graduated from high school. To my surprise, I was wrong. “Don’t judge a book by its cover” proved to be right once again. I realized that even though such a famous place like Tate Modern was disappointing, it didn’t mean that a less famous place would be even worse. 

2) I walked out of there so incredibly proud of Russian artists, even though they were just students. What I saw at the gallery shocked me to the point of not believing that the displayed art was actually created by 19 and 20 year old students. This was one of the strongest moments of patriotism I think I’ve ever experienced. After visiting a number of galleries in different countries of the world, I realized that this was the most exciting experience. I was surrounded by such talented people and I was lucky enough to be the same nationality as them. 

3) I’ve never thought much of reproductions of famous paintings. After all, they were just copies that didn’t require any creative process. However, I saw how much these students were able to learn from copying famous paintings. The amount of skill needed to copy impressionist, romantic, and baroque works is incredible. And frankly, if I saw these copies at any other museum, I would think that these were originals, that’s how good they were. Copying great art does teach young students a lot; plus, after trying so many styles, it is easy for these students to discover themselves as artists. After working with different art, all these talented kids will be able to find a style that suits them and work in that style for years to come. 

4) Another thing that turned out to be different about making modern art was its predictability. One of the students said that sometimes, he thinks that what he is making will never become a good painting when suddenly, he realizes that the piece is done and it’s beautiful. For me, it’s never like that. If I think that my piece is bad quality, it will most likely be bad quality when I finish it. This says a lot about how unpredictable modern art is. You have no plan, no photograph to work from, no idea what’s going to happen next. I love this concept of spontaneity. 

AP 2D Design PowerPoint Anna Sorokina

Citizen Kane - the greatest of the great?

The reason Citizen Kane is considered the greatest movie ever made might be because of its incredible techinal achievements. Indeed, its use of deep focus, "prismatic" non-linear narrative structure, as well as the novelty of camera angles all contribute to the movie's "greatness". However, should a film without a central plot or an antagonist still receive so much praise? Perhaps, back in the 1940s, the level of professionality with which Citizen Kane was created, overcasted the lack of story and the audience's emphathy for the character. Nowadays, most movie-goers are spoiled by everything from The Godfather to Starwars, where compelling stories are combined with mindblowing special effects and thought-through angles. It is not so easy to impress one with a humble film from the 40s that cannot be easily understood by an average person. The reason it is "the greatest movie", however, is because it is rated as such by critics who have the seen the way this film changed world cinematography at the time. For those of us who aren't film buffs this fact would be rather unknown and therefore, underappreciated.

The Godfather: A man's word is often more valuable than money.

For me, the most important theme in The Godfather comes from the issue of loyalty: a man's word is often more valuable than money. 

The importance of this theme becomes obvious in the very first scene, where Bonasera asks Don Corleone to help him get revenge for his daughter's rape. The favor, however, is worth much more than money; it costs Bonasera his loyalty. This means that now, if Vito asks something of Bonasera, he will have to comply. 

The opening scene isn’t the only case when loyalty acts like currency in Coppola's film. When Salvatore Tessio betrays the Corleone family, his move being “simply business”, he asks Tom Hagen to get him off the hook. However, since loyalty can’t be bought, Hagen refuses and orders to assassinate Tessio. 

Literary Elements in the Godfather

“The Godfather” is truly an incredible movie. 

The constant switches between low and high key lighting create a tense atmosphere. Although the film opens with a man talking to Vito, it is made clear that Don Corleone is the main character of the film through the use of lighting, over the shoulder shots, as well as zoom outs. Moreover, everyone is facing Don Corleone, presenting him as the center of attention.

The contrast between light and dark as well as public and private appears throughout the film. Outside, Don Corleone's family celebrates Connie's wedding, while behind closed doors, her father deals with "business".
In this scene, Vito is not just a gangster, but is also a proud father, who is dancing with his daughter on her wedding day. This scene therefore reveals his other side. At this point in the movie, it seems like "the public" and "the private" aspects of the family are capable of co-existing. However, as we find out later in the film, the two sides end up clashing. 

The Godfather's message goes beyond the idea of gangsters, power, and violence. Essentially, it is the Corleones' struggle with choosing family over business that's at the center of the movie. The final scene makes it clear that unfortunately for the family, business will always triumph. We know this for a fact when Kay asks Michael if he killed his own brother-in-law. "No," he lies. As Kay leaves the room, the camera's focus does not leave Michael, even though Kay is in the immediate foreground. In a second, the door closes Kay out, symbolizing the final victory of business over family. 

Arturo Correa-inspired piece

Unfortunately, I didn't get to talk to Arturo Correa about my piece since I was in Manila for Forensics and Debate competition. However, I did ask Jessica Allen what she thought Arturo would tell me about my work. Jessica said that my piece looks like pop art and she also said that it looked similar to one of Arturo's pieces.


I'm very happy with how this piece turned out because collage is not my strength. I've only done it once before and hated the result. However, this time, I finally decided to tackle my fear of failure and try collage again. Through trial and error, I discovered a technique that I've never tried before. I used clear plastic sheets to make sure that the collage paper was properly layered. This technique allowed my piece to look less messy than my first collage, which I'm extremely happy about because messiness was my main concern in the beginning of this journey.

On top of this, I simply enjoyed creating this piece which was quite a surprise for me as someone who is more of a drawing rather than 2D person. This artwork makes me want to create more collages and just experiment with other styles of art in general.

Hitchcock, "The Master of Suspence"

In Alfred Hitchcock's Rear Window, point of view editing allows us to view the world through Jeff Jefferies's eyes. A lot of the shots are cause-effect, showing the photographer's reaction to what he sees outside the window. This technique makes the movie more interesting as we switch from something expected and ordinary (Jefferies in the wheelchair) and something more intriguing (his neighbors' lives). The use of jump cuts and parallel editing also add to this effect. For example, Hitchcock likes to jump back and forth between the close-up of Jeff's face and his neighbor's undressing just to show us his reaction.