Brooklyn Museum Reaction

Walking through the “Youth and Beauty: Art of the American Twenties” exhibit, there was only one peice in particular that caught my attention, Nickolas Murray's "Gloria Swanson" photograph. Although I admit I have seen this photograph before I have never seen it on display. I admit I am quite obsessed with the 1920's era, its fashion, dancing, Jazz and not to mention the level of elegance and sophistication many women of that time seemed to posses. From the placement of her hands, to the sultry way she gazes at the camera lens, to her choice of attire and even the black and white print. I believe this photograph of Gloria did a phenominal job of capturing the cultural identity of the mid 1920's.


Sanford Biggers is quite notorious for exhibiting works of art that relate to his African American ancestry. As I am myself an African American there are many of his works I feel immediately connect with. Biggers "Lotus" sculpture is by far his best work in my opinion. However the sculpture that demanded everyone’s (including mine) attention was "Blossom". A bodhi tree growing up and through a piano, in my opinion symbolizes how music is meant to be so much more than just a source of entertainment. Music is one of the very very few things that everyone has in common, no matter what genre you prefer. music has the ability to bring us together, to enlighten us. This particular sculpture defined both personal and a variety of cultural identities. While the piano may be an instrument widely used in Jazz (originating in the U.S), the bodhi tree can only be found in India and is sacred.


The "Timothy Greenfield Sanders: The Latino List" was a very interesting exhibition. The surrounding white cloths brought the notion that the artists wanted the viewer to be completely focused on the photographs alone. In them, were a wide range of celebrities who were of Latino descent. In my opinion the exhibits display of cultural and personal identity was fairly obvious. However, what I did notice was that the artist was not particular about whom he photographed there were actors, actresses, entertainers, businessman and educators, all whom seemed to be very successful in their chosen careers.

Sculpture Center Reaction

The Sculpture Center in Long island City, is unlike any museum I've ever been to. Standing just on the corner of the block the museum is located, i didn't feel as though I was in a place that would house anything of my interest. However to my surprise, when entering through The Sculpture Centers front doors, i admit I was surprised. There just goes to show you should never judge a book by its cover. The sculpture center with its very spacious opening allowed myself and other viewers the ability to really appreciate each exhibit with out being distracted by others.
Upon walking through the Sculpture Center's front door you can't help but to notice the rather large red sculpture across the room. "A Joia Do Orixa" which looks like a giant red doll with a grass skirt, hidden behind a colorful Vail was in my opinion the most visually attention grabbing sculpture in the entire museum. The height of the ceiling and the wide open area allowed me to view the sculpture from all different angles. The audio from a near-by work complimented the work rather well, giving us a deeper insight to the vision the artist was trying to create. Whether or not this particular sculpture would have had the same effect in a different type of space would depend. I believe that it would have done just as well if not better in a more colorful and festive atmosphere, but as far as the amount of space i believe where it currently resides is the best place for it.

Another visually attention grabbing work were the reflection of star shaped broken glass mirrors called "Constellation 6.0". Although I'm not exactly sure that the artist was trying to portray much, it does mean something to me. I'm not very good at analyzing art, but I believe star shapes represent "stars" as in famous people. The glass being shattered represents the fact that these "stars" for whatever reason are broken, whether that means that they are no longer able to do the things that made them stars in the first place or if it means that they have broken spirits. The reflection on the walls are there to remind us that those"stars" are what inspired the "stars" of today.

The third and last instillation "Backend Trick" was actually my least favorite. Of all the other attention drawing works this particular work failed to do so. I understand that it would only make sense to have a trapeze swinging overhead, but I believe more could have been done to incorporate this instillation with the others in the exhibit. It wasn't until I was on my way to the downstairs exhibit that I heard a drum roll and noticed the spotlight placed on the swinging ropes. However the high ceilings and spacious room that the Sculpture Center provides, serves the instillation well. It also compliments the theme of the exhibit, but this work (in my opinion) did not add nor did it take away from the exhibit making it rather useless.

Sanford Biggers
"A Jóia Do Orixá"
2011

Sanford Biggers
"Constellation 6.0"
2011

Sanford Biggers
"Backend Trick"
2011