Precursors to modernism

       If pre-modern artists contain hints of actual modernism if means that it was a slow transition, but proto-modern artists should be the first modern artists instead of precursors. Why aren’t proto-modern artists the beggining of modernism intead of precursors?

•        Charles-Valentin Alkan 

       The song doesn’t seem appropriate soundtrack for a funeral and it doesn’t inspire weeping and tragedy in the beginning. Listening to this I think of parrots celebrating another one’s death instead of mourning him. But about half way it changes to a complete tragical tone and set of voices, at some point it even gets scary because of the tone, strength and frequency the lady uses.

The name ‘Absurdism’ for one of the major modern tones sound a little derogatory. Although ‘mock’ versions sound fun and interesting, especially the mockumentarys. So far, modernism sounds only like jokes which then caught so much interest that they became a genre.

               

•  William Blake

         For other modern artists to consider him mad, considering that they weren’t so far from that themselves, means he must’ve been careless about people’s opinion about him. 

              His painting are very abstract in ideas and don’t make a lot of sense but they depict very deeply his ideas and how he was against rationality. Although the visions might’ve been caused by the use of drugs, they were product of many great works. 

              I like the idea that he thought that what was on his head was just as important and relevant as the material world, that ideology must’ve taken almost every barrier of his imagination and let him get ahead of his time.

             It’s a shame few people recognized the greatness of his works when he was alive. His paintings remind me of Francisco de Goya's "Saturno devorando a su hijo".

           Tyger seems to be very aggressive, almost like if he was daring God because it sound like he is saying that where could he have gotten everything to create the Tyger and it is illogical that God actually did.

             The illustrated books depict and show how his imagination had none or almost no boundaries and that he could go from one thing completely off his time to problems he had from one page to another, this is also related to the juxtaposition he used, the ability of looking at two different ways of something, both as valid. His mind must’ve been a very hectic place to be.

            Also, it is interesting how he tried to balance the good and evil and violence in his works, just as in “Songs of experience” between “The Divine image” and “A Divine image”.

                

•     Emily Dickinson:

          In my opinion, poetry can’t be felt physically like she said she knew what poetry was and wasn’t, it is the structure and meaning of the text which makes something poetry. She seems like a girl from a horror film.

        It is a shame that almost 2000 poems written in a style never seen before were ruined because of “orthodoxy” and people’s interest of keeping most of the people “in chains”.

               

•   The uncanny/Caspar David Friedrich

        At first, “familiar, but strange” seems a bit meaningless but it does make sense, I’ve even felt like that before. Now, depicting something like that, in my opinion, is very difficult but he does it quite good, at least it works for me.

           It feels like something is missing or something is strange and unrealistic but you just can’t find anything wrong in his paintings. Seems like they are fiction but everything in the paintings could exist.

               

•    The uncanny/Luminists

       The brightness is depicted very realistically. Paintings like this give you a sense of joy and happiness since the light tends to be related with those feelings and also because the scenery is very beautiful.

        Blakelock’s painting, to me, looks like an overload of paint brushes and details and if you were to look at it very closely it would look like a bunch of stains but it sort of takes form when looked at completely. On the other hand, Ryder’s paintings look a bit messy and the paint brush must’ve been very wide but it gives it a sort of faded or blurry fantasy-like look.

               

• British landscapes

            Constable’s paintings of landscapes have excessive clouds and it makes me feel like he wanted you to feel that it was a good day in a beautiful place about to get bad or rainy. Also somehow they don’t look all that realistic, they do but not completely.

           Bonington’s paintings, rather than abstract, to me, they seem like if he painted them on a rush, but quite cheerful or relaxed.

            JMW Turner’s on the other hand seem very violent. Looking at the sea in his paintings makes you feel like the people there are in a lot of pain and desperation of getting out, especially on “Slaveship”.

• Laurence Sterne

          I wonder what he could’ve written about for three volumes without even introducing the main character, but then again Cervantes was a great great author and if he influences him he must me very nearly just as good. I personally find bawdy humor very amusing. He was lucky he could get samples from great authors in fiction like Cervantes and Rabelais.

•  The uncanny/Edgar Allan Poe

             I personally like Poe’s works very much. Gothic and dark arts are my very favorites.

          The raven is one of the greatest poems and to that we add Vincent Price’s voice. He makes a really good job in making it sound mysterious and scary.

I’m not surprised that awards for mystery writers are call the Edgars.

• Walt Whitman

             Even though, when it reaches certain point, it can be a bit too much and a bit annoying, I believe that being a rebel and causing controversy is very important and also because once someone does it people feel more confident and they can change for good.

• Gerard Manley Hopkins

          In my opinion, not the most interesting poet we’ve reviewed so far. Although the metric structure of his poems is actually quite impressive because it is very difficult to ‘play’ with it in English and he does it very nicely.

           Also, it does make you think contextually because it is hard to decipher what he really is trying to say, he used many symbols and metaphors making it more interesting than if he didn’t.

• Ukiyo-e

These pictures are very colorful and they look like computer-made drawing. It is amazing how they managed to get that effect using wooden blocks.