Perhaps one of the most celebrated artists in history, the French post-Impressionist Paul Gauguín is widely known for his innovative techniques in a wide variety of artistic mediums, including painting and woodcarving. Feeling very much out of place in Europe, he spent much of his life abroad. He came to love the French colony of Tahiti and spent many of his later years living there. Despite this sense of sympathy, however, his work is representative of a problematic colonial visuality which exoticises and eroticises indigenous peoples while at the same time dehumanizing them, reducing them from thinking, feeling human beings to little more than flesh. As a result, the same people that Gauguín felt more at home with than other Europeans were …show more content…
Take, for example, the woman painted in Spirit of the Dead Watching (1892). Gauguín portrayed her lying upon her stomach on a bed, with the spirit of the dead seated behind her. Her pose is suggestive, and she appears to be ignorant of the spirit behind her. In Gauguín’s portrayal, she lost all semblance of personhood and became simply a body to be studied. The suggestive and erotic nature of her position, which conveys vulnerability as well as something of an invitation, is emblematic of the trope of the dusky maiden. Portraying young indigenous women as promiscuous and naïve, this trope was emphasized by European colonial powers as a justification for their oppression of native peoples. They lack common decency, it suggests, and require the guidance of “civilized” Europeans in order to be rescued from the error of their ways. Gauguín’s portrayal of the woman in Spirit of the Dead Watching typifies this generalization, perpetuating it and enhancing it for his audience. In his article, “Gauguin,” for The Burlington Magazine, Roger Cardinal speaks of how much of Gauguín’s work heavily eroticises young indigenous women. In his words, “With Gauguin, aesthetic pleasure can hardly be dissociated from sensual pleasure...Central to Gauguin’s Tahitian narrative was the persona of the European adventurer who had ‘gone native’ and made a string of dusky conquests.” With this romanticisation of life among the native …show more content…
In his essay, “Cultural Identity and Diaspora,” Stuart Hall describes two possible meanings of the phrase “cultural identity.” The first, he explains, is rather simplistic, and focuses on the commonalities that all members of these broad cultural groups share. Cultural identity is, by this definition, immutable, since the key descriptors of these identities reside in the past. The other definition of cultural identity, Hall states, is one that is constantly changing and evolving, focusing not solely upon shared historical experiences and culture, but upon the distinctions between these individuals of the group as well. In his essay, Hall describes the difference between these two definitions as akin to the difference between “where we come from” and “who we have become.” It is this second, more nuanced definition which Gauguín’s work has influenced. Through his depictions of the indigenous Tahitians, he played a significant role in changing the people of Oceania into how they are perceived today. Although he did love the Tahitian islands and people, based on his work it is clear that it was not love between equal partners, but instead between a superior and inferior race. His damaging portrayals of the indigenous peoples of Tahiti served to influence the visuality surrounding them in a way that harmed them, turning them into a group which today is all too
Expounds on the connection between Gericault's depiction of severed heads and limbs and the call of romantic modernists for artistic and political renewal. Gericault's contempt
Over the course, Caring for Country, I have learnt that there are a number of contrasting ways individuals’ believe is the key aspect to an Aboriginal persons’ identity. For example Trigger (1995) believes it is the group language or language name that is key aspect to an Aboriginal persons’ identity, while Rosalie Kunoth-Monks from the video ‘I am my Homelands’ (Amnesty International Australia 2011) believes that the participation in the day-to-day management of their own community is what underpins an Aboriginal person’s identity. Fabienne (1994) follows a similar ideology on Aborignal identity to Kunoth-Monks (2011) and believes
In the Renaissance period women are almost invariably shown as completely passive and as an object for contemplation. The reclining female nude in the Renaissance raises questions of the male gaze more often than any other artistic stereotype. Female nudes were only an open acknowledgement of not only male desire but also the right males had to express that desire. A woman’s feelings when looking at such images of members of their own gender were never discussed or asked until recently.
would situate ourselves in history.” (100) in the essay led me to start the analysis of Gauguin’s
Culture can shape a person’s identity because it is something that directly affects all people. People who grow up in a culture that is quite different from that experienced in the home or local community may feel isolated and may struggle to forge an identity. At times it is necessary to make some concessions in order to belong. Very often new arrivals to Australia find themselves struggling with the demands that their original culture places upon them as well as the pressures of Australian culture.
At first glance, the similarities between Vincent van Gogh and Georgia O’Keeffe appear minimal at best. A young van Gogh died penniless and largely unknown in a remote backwater in the south of France, while O’Keeffe lived out a long and illustrious life as one of the most famous artists of the early twentieth century. Where O’Keeffe was the object of admiration and fascination, van Gogh was the object of pity and derision. Where O’Keeffe was heralded in her lifetime for capturing the spirit of the desert landscapes of her beloved New Mexico, van Gogh was a was a man without a country, driven by destitution and illness to wander Europe in search of peace and some measure of stability. Despite their differences, however, O’Keeffe and van Gogh share vital similarities. Both van Gogh and O’Keeffe used art to advocate for the inclusion of the disenfranchised and the forgotten (namely, the poor and the ill in van Gogh’s oeuvre and women in O’Keeffe’s); both revolutionized how the natural world is seen; both are characterized by aesthetic styles which are highly sensory and sensual, representing psychological and physical states in such groundbreaking ways that they change the modern world’s understanding of what it means to be human.
Stuart Hall defines identity as an ‘already accomplished fact, which the new cultural practices then represent’. We should think instead of ‘identity as a ‘production’ which is never complete, always in process, and always constituted within, not outside, representation’ (Hall 1994 p.392). An individual’s sense of belonging to a particular group, thinking, feelings and behaviour can also be referred to as identity. One’s cultural image can construct identity; such features as hair, skin tone and height. History shapes our identity.
While the painters after the Impressionism period were collectively called the “Post-Impressionists,” the label is quite reductive. Each artist had their own unique style, from Seurat’s pointillism to Signac’s mosaic-like divisionism, Cezanne, Émile Bernard, and others. These artists were all connected in that they were reacting to the aesthetics of Impressionism. Two of the more influential painters from this movement were Vincent van Gogh and Paul Gauguin, who aimed to connect with viewers on a deeper level by access Nature’s mystery and meaning beyond its superficial, observable level. However, each artist’s approach to achieving this goal was different. In close examination of Vincent van Gogh’s Self-Portrait (Dedicated to Paul Gauguin) and Paul Gauguin’s Self-Portrait with Portrait of Émile Bernard (Les misérables), one may clearly see the two artists’ contrasting styles on display.
Artist and people viewing the art work have always had a fascination with the female nude. Even when I was a child my attention was captured by the nude art not because I was a kid and I saw a nude lady , but it forced me to wonder more about why the female nude was so amazing as a tool for art and why this is repeated so many times throughout the centuries. One female nude painting in particular was the subject of controversy and exposed the syncretism and or the power of the female nude painting.
When reading The School Days of an Indian Girl by Zitkala-sa, it shows us a view of ethnic identity. By telling us how a little girl is in a home, away from her mother, while learning how to adapt to the new culture she’s in. In Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison, it shows us a different view of a man in another form of an ethnic identity. It shows us that the man is seen as a different person then who he really is, instead of a black man who isn’t seen as what he actually is. In Why I am A Pagan by Zitkala-sa, it used cultural identity by focusing on how the world lost the connection it was given thousands of years ago. How the world is not as one with nature as it should be. It’s as if the world is a person itself, who
“Primitivism” was a cultural attitude that arose in Europe during the late 19th and 20th century in opposition to the increasingly decadent and materialistic European culture. Rather than an artistic movement, “primitivism” is a European conception of foreign civilizations and lands as “simple”, less developed, and naive. This is an important distinction to make, because “primitivism” was defined in the eyes of the Europeans who saw foreign civilizations as unsophisticated, indicating that the concept of “primitivism” is heavily biased in the view of the Europeans. Paul Gauguin and Henri Matisse were two artists that were highly influenced by the concept of “primitivism,” and some similarity can be depicted in their works such as the use of female nudes, vivid colors, and artistic techniques. However, their definition and methods of achieving “primitivism” differ heavily, due to the fact that the vagueness of “primitivism” allows it to be a self-defined concept. These similarities and differences can be seen through the two works of art The Spirit of the Dead Watching by Paul Gauguin, and The Blue Nude by Henri Matisse, and the way they depict women in each of the pieces.
It is not easy to find what make people’s identity. The causes are sometimes visible and are sometimes invisible. People often say features of appearance can be identity such as skin colour, hair colour, eyes, and body frame. Other people, however, might say languages, lifestyles, beliefs, and families make identity. In the world, the differences of these things such as appearance and beliefs have been discriminated. Especially, Indigenous people often have been invaded their cultures and lands in the world and because of this, the number of Indigenous people have decreased. The main focus of this essay is Australian Aboriginal people’s identity. Dudgeon, Wright, Paradies, Garvey, and Walker (2010, p. 6) stated: ‘Aboriginality is about descent, culture, upbringing and life experiences. Thus there are many elements which impact on forming Indigenous identity. This essay will discuss that Indigenous Identity is influenced by various surroundings including government, family and cultures. Firstly, it will introduce the author and the book details and background. Secondly, this essay will explain family member impact on identity development. Thirdly, it will also describe the connection between identity and kinship ties. Then, it will explain the connection between identity and Cultural Interface. Finally, it will define the impact of land right on identity.
Stuart Hall’s Cultural Identity and Diaspora focuses on the current issues of identity, cultural practices and cultural representations. He analyses the visual representations of Afro-Caribbean’s and challenges the notions of identity from African and European places. Hall then goes on to explain how Caribbean cinema has chosen to both, refute and embrace European influence. He presents two different forms of thinking about cultural identity. In the first position, Hall defines ‘cultural identity’ in terms of one, shared culture, which people with a shared history and ancestry hold in common. The first model uses “stable, unchanging and continuous frames of reference and meanings’ to present the idea of shared culture, history, and ancestry rooted beneath ‘more superficial imposed ‘selves’” (Hall, 223).
Going Native by Abigail Solomon-Godeau deals primarily with Paul Gauguin, a late nineteenth century artist generally known for pioneering the expressionist movement, and the extent to which his works, both conceptually and literally, fetishize the indigenous peoples of Tahiti. One excerpt in particular that clearly expresses this notion would be Solomon-Godeau’s reference to La Jeune Nee by Helene Cixous, in which she [Cixous] states “the body of strangeness must not disappear, but its strength must be tamed, it must be returned to the master”; through this line, the parallel that Solomon-Godeau establishes becomes quite apparent, that there exists a commonality between Gauguin's perception as well as the characteristic form in which women and natives were depicted during the time period. Solomon-Godeau goes on to explain
In chapter three maalouf states, “Identity isn’t given once and for all: it is build up and changes throughout a person’s lifetime.” The essence of Maalouf’s argument is our identity changes over time and different components are added everyday, changing our identity as a whole. He gives a great example of an African baby born in New York, compared to if it was born in Lagos,