First Viewed Audrey Flack example essay topic

Audrey Flack Audrey Flack, born in 1931 in New York City, grew up knowing as a child she wanted to be an artist. Although Flack's family did not share her enthusiasm for her dream, she attended the HighSchool of Music and Art in New York. Here her promising future a san artist was beginning to unfold, and she received the St. Gardens medal. Upon graduating from Cooper Union as the top student, Josef Albers lobbied and persuaded her to attend Yaleuniversity's fine arts program. In 1952 from Yale she received her BFA. After leaving Yale, Flack attempted to place herself into the Abstract Expressionism movement that so dominated her student career.

After, a seemingly sexual harassing encounter from one of her most revered and idolized Abstract Expressionist, Jackson Pollock, and the continuing desire to achieve the realness of her subjects she became a realist. She is quoted assaying " people have a deep need to understand their world and that art clarifies reality for them. ' And with that statements he explains sheer drive to paint realistically. In the 1960 she became a married mother of two daughters, and balanced her career at the same time. Remarkably some of her most significant work came from the sixties, one of which was "Kennedy Motorcade,' which capture the final moments before President Kennedy was assassinated. Her work in the 1970's was dominated by monumental still lifes loaded with personal iconography.

In these still lifes the portrayal of many her subjects took on feminine characteristics. Flacks Photorealism was much more than irrelevant as her peers might would claim of their own work, but was communicating many sociopolitical points of view. In the 1980's Flack changed from painting to sculpture. Because of whats he described to be a need for "something solid, real, tangible -something to hold on to. ' her sculptures depicted strong, heroic, fierce, and athletic women which was a dearly needed breaking down of stereotyped images of femininity.

Flack described her work as "real yet idealized the goddess of every woman,' which must have inspired many women, artist or not, to achieve and break down barriers that women previously accepted or even sub-consciously placing on themselves. Throughout AudreyFlack's career she had consistently pushed and opened closed doors and eyes through her self-assertive mode of female and politically incorrect images. In comparison to Judy Chicago, Audrey Flack's work is as equally interesting and successful at raising issues of femininity. Though both are addressing the same issues I believeth at they are on opposite ends of the spectrum at portraying their subject matter. Judy Chicago's artwork is very blunt and truthful, and the bluntness of her work speaks for the piece. for example, a vagina figure meshes with a floral image inChicago's dinner party pieces, and this image of a floral vagina served as dinner ware speaks loudly, maybe more loudly than the beauty of the artwork.

When it is first viewed Audrey Flack " work speaks loudly as Photorealism and the beauty of the artwork is noticed first. Then with further observation her sociopolitical views begin to become evident. Both artist we reinventive thinkers as children and although they faced resistance they overcame and succeeded. Flack challenged ideas by more traditional standards.

She presents ideas in ways that are accepted and are easily taken in, although maybe some times witha grain of salt they are accepted. Chicago's work, such as her play the "Cock and Cunt,' shoves her ideas in your face and the reis no escaping it. In all I would say the same goal that is to educate and open the viewer's eyes to new perceptions. While Chicago was radical, Flack chose more appealing methods to arouse questions in the viewer.

Audrey Flack was quoted as saying, "Art makes life moreliveable. ' It is my opinion that Flack is simply stating that art gives mankind a way to cope with itself. Through art one can step back and view life from other points of view. Art helps men and women and all lifestyles understand one another. Whether i tbe a sobering experience or a humorous one, art definitely does make life more live able. Judy Chicago stated, "Together, we women can shape the society to meet our needs, but only if we can put aside the social conditioning that tells us we have to be ' nice, personable, and friendly.

' ' I believe what she is trying to persuade other women to believe is that real change only comes from those who intelligently challenge and fear not theiradvisary. Sometimes only by standing up and proclaiming what you believe to be truths, will your points be heard and considered. For if you are always congenial, respectful, and you are not demanding and persistent you will be pushed to the side and buried by others who are more aggressive. Audrey Flack's painting, "Grand Rose' is an excellent example of Imitationalism. Her use of line helps to capture her images realistically.

Most of her lines are not noticed, but contour throughout the composition. This is most evident in the overlapping of subjects with high contrast. Texture ly the painting is filled with a variety of surfaces. Smooth polishedinaniment objects are randomly placed among brittle crackers, plump juicy fruit, and elegant flowing cloth. All shapes are self-enclosing, with a variety of some rounded and more concise boundaries. The painting has a warm toasty feel which is achieved through the use of warm reds, oranges, yellows, andsiennas with slight touches of warm yellow-greens and a cool blue.

The subject matter is a still life collection filled with typical objects, but are presented in a way that some sort of personal iconography surely underlines the painting. Repetition is found throughout the piece. Repeating the us eof curved circular objects and shapes with the use warm colors found in the piece helps to unify the painting. There is a tremendous amount of overlapping that is a key component to the design, and helps to relate the subjects in the piece.

The subjects are placed in a very shallow space. Depth is not important to this painting, but seeing what is in front of you and asking why these objects are placed so tightly together in a shallow space is. The painting has an asymmetrical balance. The balance is achieved by having equal activity taking place on both sides. Focal point is the white fruit dish holding the grapes and pears.

From this point the eye flows diagonally down to the brown cracker jar. Tracing the individual crackers off the bottom of the composition almost like a waterfall haphazardly flowing down rocks. The lightest area of the composition is found just off-center on the right side. Lying just above the focal point to the right top corner is the darkest area.

I originally classified "Grand Rose' as Imitationalism andI have not change my opinion. The primary purpose is to imitate the real, but also to give meaning and a new definition to what an object might mean. Iconography is a key element to thispainting. Complexity in design and subject ironically brings action to the still life. The meaning of this painting is an attempt to tell a story about the artist. For example, her temptations represented by the wine, her sadness found in the over-turned crackers, and her loneliness displayed by the single key.

The painting is an excellent example of Imitationalism. I appreciate and enjoy uncovering the hidden meanings of the objects in the composition. But, no matter how nice of the technique or the eye for detail, I do not particularly like thispainting. Imitationalism is a technique I do not prefer.

It slack of visible brush work and the absence of the human element makes the painting less enjoyable to me.