Color Chips Rule

I always felt guilty walking out from the paint department of a home improvement store with a handful of color chips. I loved shuffling through them, comparing them, wondering at their subtle shades, juxtaposing them, again and again. As a child I always had a love of color, thinking that my Crayola colors looked delicious enough to eat, and now and then I bit into them, never tasting lime, only wax. More appealing than just the single color swatches in the store were the strips with bars of different values, swinging my eyes back and forth from light to dark. Seeing them brought the dawn of understanding that my professor in two-dimensional design class didn't seem to get through to me.

How to use them in my art was the challenge. Just gluing them onto paper or canvas wouldn't be good enough. The challenge was integrating them into the composition, making them emerge, or reveal a little surprise to the viewer.

Not long ago while visiting a Robert Rauschenberg exhibit, I couldn't help but step close to explore one of his collaged paintings. It was utterly sensuous, a feast for hand and eye, and rewarded me with an "aha" moment--there it was--the paint chip--embedded into the thick paint along with scraps of cloth and used coffee filters. It was a masterwork of color, texture, and value, the chips nestled in the luscious goo of paint, their subtle values meek but visible.

Naturally I went home and got out my paint swatches, intent on giving them a place in one of my artworks, an homage to my Crayola days, to Rauschenberg's daring use of the banal details of life, and that "aha" moment I hope someone else might have. Paint chip A183 became part of my collage painting , a touch of my world within rememberances of the Minoan past. A priestess brings an offering to the Goddess, amidst a background of frescoed walls, one of which is the color of A183.

Now I see that the paint chip has taken a spotlight all on its own! What better way for Sherwin-Williams Paint to market its wares than through these deliciously colored paper bits. When I first saw their commercial, I was entranced. Their ad agency, McKinney, used clever animations, precise lighting, and ingenious folds, stacks, rolls and wraps to make the paint chips into an alternative reality that appeals to everyone, especially a color-freak like me. I'm sure you'll enjoy them too.

Stonehenge In the News

There's been more proof that we haven't learned all there is about Stonehenge. What a surprise to find that there's yet another henge (that is, a circular Prehistoric structure) not far away from the famous stone circle with which we are all so familiar. Stonehenge's "long-lost" twin was made of wooden poles instead of monumental stones. The two structures are similar in that they are both oriented toward the sunrise on the summer solstice. It confirms the importance of the solstices to the Neolithic agricultural people of the area, and suggests that there may even more "satellite" henges. Other known wooden henges, one called Woodhenge, found in 1925 consisting of 168 post holes, and another further away called Durrington Walls, point to the possibility of more henge discoveries.

But wait....there's more! There's evidence that Stonehenge was surrounded by a barrier of hedge plantings that may have been meant to screen the rites within the ceremonial circle from prying eyes of those outside. The clue came from shallow mounds that scientists concluded were too low for fortifications, yet resembled mounds around fields that were "fenced" off by hedges.

And then there's the mound...
Last year advanced survey equipment with lasers revealed a forgotten flattened mound in the center of Stonehenge. It may have been a 5,000 year old burial around which Stonehenge was built. What's next for Stonehenge?

New Discoveries May Change Everything

Teaching Pre-Columbian Art this Fall will be very challenging and exciting, that's for sure. There have been significant discoveries in Mesoamerica and South America that will require some revamping of current lecture notes and excite the imagination of students new to the subject. The changes affect sites well known, like Teotihuacan, and sites not yet widely known, like the one just discovered in northern Peru.

Not that many years ago the spectacular discovery of the intact tombs of a great lord, a high priest and priestess on the northern coast of Peru stunned the world with its richness. No one could have imagined finding the intact tomb of a ruler who pre-dated them, yet that indeed has just occurred at a site called Bosque de Pomac. Even more exciting is the possibility of yet more untouched tombs in the nearby riverbed.
.http://enperublog.com/2010/07/18/new-royal-sican-tomb-discovered-in-bosque-de-pomac/

There's lots of buzz about the discovery of a royal Maya king's tomb found by noted Pre-Columbianist Stephen Houston at the site of El Zotz in Guatemala. For the first time in some 1700 years, members of the archaeological team saw the the beautiful treasures within. They estimate that because of the tomb's richness and excellent preservation, they will be studying its contents for years to come.
http://news.softpedia.com/news/Archaeologists-Discover-Mayan-Royal-Tomb-147962.shtml

A tunnel with branching chambers may lead directly to the tomb of a ruler of Teotihuacan, city of legend not far from Mexico City. Nearly 50,000 articles of precious materials were found in the tunnel so far, and it will be months before they reach what may be a burial chamber. Since no images or tombs of rulers of Teotihuacan have been found, the discovery will cast welcome light on the social structure of this enigmatic civilization that once numbered about 100,000 people and declined around 750 c.e. During 800 years Teotihuacan developed into the greatest city of its time in Mesoamerica.
http://www.palmbeachpost.com/accent/travel/mexico-finds-tunnel-possible-tombs-under-ruins-839771.html

Last but not least is the discovery of a 4000 year old site in Peru which may upset long-held ideas of a peaceful early Pre-Ceramic period along the northern coast. Sixty miles north of Lima at Bandurria, thought to be one of the oldest settlements in the New World, human remains were discovered that might attest to the start of a religious tradition of human sacrifice that continued throughout Pre-Columbian history there. Some authorities caution, however, that the finds might be secondary burials, so much more work must be done to accurately interpret what has been found.
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/06/080604-human-sacrifice_2.html

These recent discoveries show how vibrant the study of Pre-Columbian art and archaeology is at this time, and interest will continue to grow in the Los Angeles area as the L.A. County Museum prepares for the opening of its spectacular Olmec show, Olmec: Colossal Masterworks of Ancient Mexico, coming in October. To make the event even more interesting the New World Archaeology Council has joined forces with LACMA to co-sponsor a two-day symposium on ancient Olmec culture. Save the dates October 22 - 23, 2010 on your calendars.

Please visit the websites provided to see exciting images of all these finds.

Sculpture Podcast

Happy holidays to all my visitors. Please be sure to visit the new StudioCodex.com podcast for tips on how to view sculpture.

A directory of videos

Studio Codex Expands
We promised you more ways to learn about art and get your creative juices going, and we hope you find that the learning materials we've developed do just that. In this blog we send you links to learning materials that build your art knowledge. Here are brief introductions to the podcasts and videos we've uploaded so far.

This video focuses on one work by Vincent vanGogh--his Bedroom at Arles. It uses techniques that help you understand and appreciate the painting, and also gives you a useful format for applying to all other artworks. This approach is termed Form and Content, which breaks artworks into their basic art components, and shows how to derive meanings and messages from them. It also gives useful background information that helps you see what things in the artist may have shaped his intentions.




It's always useful to understand the cultural context during which an art object was made, since the artist who created it was a product of his or her culture. That's why knowing something about the time's important religious, philosophical, political, and historical figures and values often helps us understand what the artist was communicating. This video is about ancient Rome and one of her great leaders Julius Caesar.



Why Go to a Museum is a basic introduction to visiting museums and galleries. It's useful to anyone who wants to learn how to enjoy the many wonderful experiences art museums have to offer.


This video focuses on one work by Leonardo da Vinci--the only one to be found in America--The Portrait of Ginevra deBenci at the National Gallery in Washington D.C. To practice developing your discerning eye, first look at the questions asked about the video. Then view the video to find the answers. This can be the same technique you use in amy museum or gallery, and sharpens your looking and helping you to engage more fully with any work of art.


An audio version of these videos will be available on iTunes soon. If you would like to download a copy of these videos for your iPod or Sony PSP, please visit video.google.com Keyword: StudioCodex.com

Changes at StudioCodex

Exciting things are happening at Studio Codex.com! We're in the process of broadcasting podcasts on topics that you're sure to be interested in. Look for podcasts that give you helpful information that helps you build your art knowledge, or are meant to get your creative juices flowing. Sometimes the programs will tell you about historical figures who played an important role in art's cultural context, or give you insights into the ideas, meanings, and messages of great works of art, or show you techniques artists use to create their artwork. There will also be special podcasts about actual art projects you can do yourself.

We'd be happy to get your input about our new adventure, and should you try one of our art projects, be sure to send us a digital copy that we can post (with your permission).

We'll be adding a link to this blog, so keep coming back and checking out art info your can make mobile.

studiocodex.com

What is Truth? Some Thoughts on the Inca Child Sacrifices

A few days ago I noticed an article about Inca child sacrifices. The lengths people go to interact with forces beyond their comprehension always fascinate me. Compared to these Pre-Columbian peoples’ practices, our society’s contacts with the supernatural appear feeble, confused and insincere. This is perhaps because a lot of natural phenomena isn’t beyond our comprehension at all—we have science. Science explains these things to us, and then we put that knowledge into practice controlling our environment with technology. Science and technology have combined to strip us of our pathways to wonder about the mysteries of the world. Add materialism to the mix, that obsession with wealth and possessions, and we see why we have lost our mystical direction. Instead, we drift into neo-paganism, become born-again Celts, and sects set up meeting houses in strip malls.

The article reported that researchers used samples of the sacrificed children’s hair to show they had been ritually “fattened up” for one year before the final Capacocha ceremony. Evidence from archaeology and Spanish chronicles tell us these children were part of the Inca worship of their powerful mountain gods, usually after some disastrous event like an earthquake, drought or epidemic. The chosen child was considered a deity and was forever immortalized. After meeting with the Inca emperor, a procession of priests, chiefs and family members would accompany the holy child on a trek up a sacred mountain, as close to the heavens as the Inca could get. At a shrine on the summit the final rituals would take place, including wrapping the child in ceremonial clothing, placing offerings of gold and silver, and feeding the child chicha to ease their death by strangulation or extreme exposure to the elements. This was sacred activity, done with deep homage, intense faith, and utmost reverence. It was the most sacred of all Inca rituals.

Of course we are repulsed by such sacrifices. Infanticide is not a practice in America, but at least once a week we hear about a child dying because of some mentally ill lunatic, violent criminal, or a deviant child predator. Indeed infanticide is a form of population control or economic necessity in places like China and India.

Our confused thinking about this story comes from cultural relativism, that is, our tendency to view the practices of others in terms of our OWN culture, not theirs. It is a remnant of ethnocentrism, the belief that our culture is superior to anybody else’s. This cocktail of narrow-minded cultural relativism, ethnocentrism, and materialism is a brew that’s bound to distort. Proof can be found in the Physorg.com site’s article. After the article’s title, Inca Sacrifices Were “Fattened Up” First, come the sponsored links of ads from Google. The Google bots grabbed some key words on the web page and offered viewers

Low GI Diet Information
I Lost 41 lbs in 60 Days
10 Rules of Fat Loss

For a small amount I can “lose 9 lbs. every 11 Days” if I “learn these 10 Rules.” Materialism at its best. I can pay money to lose the weight I gained by spending money on junk food that I was enticed to eat by watching commercials on late-night TV.

The Pre-Columbian people struggled to make sense of their world, and deal with the harsh vicissitudes of life. To appease powerful forces they could not control, they offered to those forces the most precious things they had—their beautiful children.

The final proof that cultural relativism is solidly entrenched in our discourse comes at the end of the article where readers could leave a comment. This one was posted by “Truth.”

Mayan and Inca priests of those days were simply child predators and serial killers who were given a predators dream come true, namely power, authority and an endless supply of victims by a people who didn’t know any better. Thank God the Spanish wiped them out. Think about your child being given to the predator next door for a “religious sacrifice.”

Sounds like “Truth” learned his/her Pre-Columbian history by going to the movie Apocalypto, that Hollywood mishmash filled with enough gratuitous violence to appeal to today’s American culture. We might as well substitute the Inca for the Maya as mere thugs living a brutish existence. But what really got me was Truth’s comment, “Thank God the Spanish wiped them out.”

Thatta’ way, Truth, send in the Spanish, those most prolific serial killers who had an almost endless supply of victims. Through murder and disease, they indiscriminately killed an estimated 54 million people, or 80% of the Pre-Columbian population. And that’s the truth, Truth.