Sp22 de la Cruz - HISTORY 230 - Occult Internationalism: The Global Spread of Secret Knowledge
(Click on any image below to reach a larger image and the object record). Don't be nervous if you are not sure where to start in "reading" a work of art! If it's a helpful place to start, try starting with identifying the Elements of Art:
Some other things to consider when looking at these images and answering the questions:Symbols—things that have a specific meaning or that represent something else—are a powerful part of how we understand the visual world. We recognize symbols by using personal knowledge gained through memory and lived experience.
Context: Culture and history influence how and what we see. Much of our reaction to an image depends on the context we see it in. What was the artist trying to convey and how does this relate to the time and place in which the work was created? Similarly, how do the values and beliefs of our own society shape our understanding of an image?
Meaning: What is the artist's meaning or purpose for this work? We begin to understand the purpose of the artwork, discover the artist's intended meaning, and expand on the number of other interpretations based on the composition, memory, life experiences, history, culture, etc.
Looking to deep dive into one work in particular? Check out this image below at this link
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Ann McCoy
Underworld
hand colored lithograph on paper
42 in x 30 1/16 in (106.68 cm x 76.36 cm)
Gift of Professor and Mrs. Edward J. Mitchell
Ann McCoy
The Underworld
hand colored lithograph on paper
42 in x 30 in (106.68 cm x 76.2 cm)
Gift of Professor and Mrs. Edward J. Mitchell
Kuba
Friction Oracle
wood, metal, glass beads, and cowrie shells
2 15/16 in x 13 3/4 in x 2 1/2 in (7.5 cm x 35 cm x 6.4 cm)
Gift of Dr. James and Vivian Curtis
Songye
Power Figure
wood, civet and monkey skin, woven vegetable fiber, feathers, seed pods, animal teeth, antelope horns, glass beads, metal
24 7/16 in x 11 13/16 in x 9 13/16 in (62 cm x 30 cm x 25 cm)
Gift of Candis and Helmut Stern
Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes
The sleep of reason produces mosters (El sueño de la razon produce monstruos)
etching and burnished aquatint on paper
12 in x 8 in (30.48 cm x 20.32 cm);7 7/16 in x 4 11/16 in (18.89 cm x 11.91 cm);8 1/2 in x 5 7/8 in (21.59 cm x 14.92 cm)
Gift of Kurt Delbanco in honor of Nicholas Delbanco, and partial purchase with the funds from the W. Hawkins Ferry Fund
Vili (Kongo)
Power Figure
wood, woven cotton fiber, glass, split cane, elephant hair, metal, and resin
9 3/16 in x 3 7/8 in x 3 5/8 in (23.3 cm x 9.8 cm x 9.2 cm)
Gift of Candis and Helmut Stern
Paul Gauguin
Maruru (Offering to the Gods)
woodcut on paper
10 in. x 16 in. ( 25.4 cm x 40.64 cm )
Museum Purchase
Garin Horner
Detail From: A Secret that Brings Prosperity and Wealth
archival pigment print on paper
18 ½ in x 17 in (46.99 cm x 43.18 cm);15 ½ in x 14 in (39.37 cm x 35.56 cm)
Gift of the artist
Bill Jacobson
Song of Sentient Beings #1612
gelatin silver print on paper
36 in x 28 in (91.4 cm x 71.1 cm);36 in x 28 in (91.4 cm x 71.1 cm)
Museum purchase made possible by the W. Hawkins Ferry Fund
Garin Horner
Drive Deep the Magic Nail
archival pigment print on paper
17 in x 22 in (43.18 cm x 55.88 cm);12 ¼ in x 18 ¾ in (31.12 cm x 47.63 cm)
Gift of the artist
Albrecht Dürer
Melencolia I
engraving on paper
9 11/16 in x 7 9/16 in (24.61 cm x 19.21 cm);22 ⅛ in x 18 ⅛ in (56.2 cm x 46.04 cm)
Museum Purchase
Garin Horner
Saint Michael's African Warrior Altar
archival pigment print on paper
17 in x 22 in (43.18 cm x 55.88 cm);13 in x 19 in (33.02 cm x 48.26 cm)
Gift of the artist