The empire state part 2

For this entry I want to touch on a lot of random things I thought about while in NYC. It was great to have my mind spinning with creativity. But I could not ignore some things that seemed to either frustrate me or strike a never of anger.

On saturday I visited the MoMA. This was not my first trip to this museum but I seemed to realize why I don't enjoy much of the art I see in that building. The thought struck me that art cannot rely on a few elements and principles, in fact in order for someone to be a true master of art the must be able to successfully incorporate all of these factors into their artwork. Now, this does not mean that I hate almost every piece of art I have ever seen. What this thought made me realize was why I held so much doubt in my own talent. I'm not some great artist but I do have the ability to become something great and I often wonder if I will ever master all of the elements and principles of art, and in my mind be a "true" artist.

Sunday morning the group I was with took a stroll up fifth ave into central park and visited the Guggenheim Museum. If you haven't visited this museum then I should explain the the floor is a continuous slope forming a spiral. While looking at some art from the early 1900's from German, France, and Italy, I wondered, "In a building with crooked floors how do you hang a painting 'straight'?" Either you hang it strictly vertical, ignoring the floor an have it look crooked in relation to the floor, or you hang it perpendicular with the floor and have it appear to slanted with respect to the viewer who is standing vertical due to gravity.

The final thought I want to touch on was brought up by my adviser. I noticed how the cathedrals of NYC are dwarfed by the skyscrapers. He pointed out that the point of a cathedral is to stand above all other buildings and be viewable from around the city. Now these majestic temples are hidden in the shadows of penthouses and office buildings. This is the perfect illustration of how the culture of America has changed over the past century.


PS- The sketch above was done in my hotel room after leaving the MoMA. I do like very few pieces in that museum.