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Title:​ Male Portrait Head

Artist:​ Ife, Nigeria

Medium:​ Photograph (Bronze, height 11 7/16”)

Region:​ Ife, in south-western Nigeria

Date:​ 13th Century

Art Movement (ex. Realism, Impressionism, Abstraction, etc):​ Realism

• ​Describe the work:​ The portrait seems to have scars which could be from either battles or rituals and the
reason I think this is because the face has vertical lines going up and down covering the entire face and
there are bumps surrounding the lips going towards the ears. The neck seems to be very long and I think
the head of the figure does not have any hair or he/she could be wearing something that covered the hair.
The emotion on the portrait seems serious but then again I sense awareness because of how eyes seem to
be. The head shape is also very round and I do not see a sharp jawline so this could probably mean that
this person ate good.

• ​What was happening socially and culturally at the time and place the work was made?​ During this time,
there were people known as the Yorubas and they had established a kingdom. There were also wars
happening which almost caused Ife to be completely destroyed.

• ​What was the artist’s intent/why was this artwork created?​ I think the reason the artist created this
artwork was to show humanity and uniqueness to African art. I could even see the wealth and power in
the piece.
• ​What are the ideas behind the work/what does this artwork communicate?​ Just by looking at the portrait,
it is obvious that the person was very committed to what he/she believed in and would do anything for
their kingdom. It was very clear of what the artist was trying to communicate because as soon as I saw the
portrait I immediately thought of tribals and wars.

• ​Why do you suppose this work is signicant and part of the art historical canon?​ This work is significant
and part of the art history because Ife, Nigeria, where it was discovered, was “known as a spiritual and
holy place by the Yoruba people.” Ife was also known as a place with political and cultural influence and
I personally can see that in the portrait.

• ​Does this artwork reference any other work we’ve discussed so far? If so, name the artwork and describe
how the two relate. ​ This artwork did not remind me of any other pieces that we have talked about so far.
For some reason I had a hard time with this piece because I only think of wars and tribals which I do not
really know much about personally.
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• ​Does this piece relate to your ideas, interests, and practice? If yes, how so?​ Honestly, this piece does not
relate to any of my interests or ideas because I am a religious person and I do not believe in wars and
such. However, I do like how spiritual Ife, Nigeria was because I think it is important to be in tune with
yourself spiritually, mentally, and physically.

• ​List outside source(s) of information (web, publication, text, etc):

1. Artform Textbook
2. http://crafts-art.com/ethnographic-art/
3. http://www.bbc.co.uk/ahistoryoftheworld/objects/Z1CgMudYTJWzpTi-TW1IAA
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Title:​ Passing Through

Artist:​ Saburo Murakami

Medium:​ Performance (Courtesy of the Ashiya City Museum of Art and History)

Region:​ Japan

Date:​ 1956

Art Movement (ex. Realism, Impressionism, Abstraction, etc):​ Symbolism

• ​Describe the work:​ There is a man that seems to be ripping through paper and I can tell because he has
his hands in a fist and I can see the indentions in the ripped paper. It looks like it could be paper clipped
and attached to something or an actual canvas. They are all lined up and I can see how he had ripped
through them all. The room seems to be very small in width but long in length. I am not sure what this
performance represents but it could probably mean how the human body can work if you put your mind to
it.
• ​What was happening socially and culturally at the time and place the work was made?​ A group of
Japanese artists named “Gutai” was formed and different members at the time created paintings with their
feet, or “shot pigment-filled bullets” at a canvas. However, they “decided to pursue the possibilities of
pure and creative activity with great energy.”
• ​What was the artist’s intent/why was this artwork created?​ According to the artforms textbook, “paper is
a treasured material in Japan, traditionally thought to manifest a sacred spirit.” So breaking through these
sheets of paper could possibly mean putting their energy into their own spirits.

• ​What are the ideas behind the work/what does this artwork communicate?​ The performance
communicates either rebellion or putting their full energy into something they strongly believe in.
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• ​Why do you suppose this work is signicant and part of the art historical canon?​ I think this is
significant to history because this was different compared to what others were doing. This was a full on
performance and people were actually able to watch this and decide for themselves of what it could
possibly mean.
• ​Does this artwork reference any other work we’ve discussed so far? If so, name the artwork and describe
how the two relate. ​ This performance did not remind me of anything that we have talked about so far.
• ​Does this piece relate to your ideas, interests, and practice? If yes, how so?​ Yes, I think it is really
awesome to do a full on performance of something. I have actually thought about doing that at an actual
museum and I know there have been people who have already done this but it would be a really neat thing
to do and have people capture the pure moments.
• ​List outside source(s) of information (web, publication, text, etc):
1. Artform Textbook
2. http://www.artcourtgallery.com/eng/exhibitions/4966/
3. http://japanartincontemporary.altervista.org/saburo-murakami/
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Title:​ Mask from Mummy Case

Artist:​ Tomb of Tutankhamen

Medium:​ Photograph (Gold inlaid with enamel and semi precious stones. Height 21 1/4”)

Region:​ Valley of the Kings

Date:​ 1340 B.C.E.

Art Movement (ex. Realism, Impressionism, Abstraction, etc):​ Naturalism and abstract idealism

• ​Describe the work:​ The mask has a gold and black with horizontal/vertical line headdress and it seems to
be very smooth. I also think there is a rattle snake emblem on top of the headdress above the eyes which
could possibly represent how the pharaoh either liked them or he/she was easily able to strike at someone
if needed to. The eyebrows seem to be detailed as if they had drawn them on and the eyes have top and
bottom black eyeliner with a wing beside the eye. The nose, ears, and lips are bigger than the other facial
features and the cheeks seem to be puffy. Below the chin, there is a blue strip that goes down toward the
neck to the chest. At the bottom of the mask, the design has changed to circular lines that have different
designs such as circles and lines going straight up and down that are red and blue. The color scheme is
mostly gold, black, red, and light blue and I am sure they used those colors to represent certain aspects in
life. At the shoulders, it looks like there is writing on the gold area but I can not really tell.
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• ​What was happening socially and culturally at the time and place the work was made?​ During this time
all of Egypt was united under a single government and Pharaoh. Writing and literature developed for the
first time in Ancient Egyptian history and writing was used for entertainment such as stories and
recording religious philosophy.

• ​What was the artist’s intent/why was this artwork created?​ The artist’s intent for this piece was to show
how much value Tutankhamun (“King Tut”) had. He was known as the “best-known Egyptian ruler” and
this is why people were always trying to find his tomb because of the different artifacts that it contained.

• ​What are the ideas behind the work/what does this artwork communicate?​ The artist did a good job at
showing royalty and god-like features on the mask. It was clear that the pharaoh was respected
tremendously especially if there was other artifacts that were “extraordinary”. Even the details were easily
understood besides the writings on the shoulders.

• ​Why do you suppose this work is signicant and part of the art historical canon?​ This work is significant
and part of the art history canon because this is the time that is known for the big pyramids and
underground tombs that held pharaohs, which were rulers that were considered as gods for the egyptians,
after they had passed away. Not to mention, egyptian art influenced the Greeks which later developed one
of the most important styles in Western art.

• ​Does this artwork reference any other work we’ve discussed so far? If so, name the artwork and describe
how the two relate.​ This piece reminds of the ​Standing Sculpture: King Menkaure and Queen
Kha-Merer-Nebu II. ​The head of the king is very similar to the ​Mask from Mummy Case w
​ hich probably
meant that many leaders or pharaohs wore similar headdresses. The symmetry seems almost exact but the
only difference is that one has many designs and more value while the other one is more dull with no
designs.
• ​Does this piece relate to your ideas, interests, and practice? If yes, how so?​ This piece relates to my
interests and practice because any piece from ancient egypt reminds me of tutting, which I love to do
while dancing, and this is known to come from egyptians.
• ​List outside source(s) of information (web, publication, text, etc):
1. Artform Textbook
2. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Tutankhamun
3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mask_of_Tutankhamun