Theme Artworks

Front 1

Prehistoric,
Jericho Skull,
c. 7,000 BCE

Back 1

1. like ashes on a mantle
2. Skulls are an ancient traditional form of art
3. religious importance; healing, keeps family safe

Front 2

Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec,
La Goulue at the Moulin Rouge,
1891

Back 2

1. The audience is reduced to silhouettes in order to focus attention on the performers and evoke the Japanese art then in vogue.
2. Depicts the cancan dancer La Goulue, advertising Moulin Rouge
3. The triple repetition of the club's name draws the focus down to the central figure of the poster, La Goulue herself.

Front 3

Edo, Court of Benin,
Plaque: Warrior and Attendants,
16th–17th century

Back 3

1. African king in the middle has hierarchical proportions
2. the Warriors shear, helmet, and shield dominate the composition
3. armor and weapons were protection for not only the body but the spirit as well

Front 4

Yoko Ono,
Cut Piece performance,
1964

Back 4

1. the traditional male sexual prerogative over the female body
2. the display of the body for consuming gaze
3. violation and control

Front 5

Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres,
Napoleon Enthroned,
1806

Back 5

1. On his head is a golden laurel wreath, similar to one wore by Caesar, and uses this to relate his power to Caesar.
2. Wear costume to show power and authority
3. Red similar to the color of blood, which Napoleon was known for shedding from his enemies

Front 6

Prehistoric Art,
Lascaux Cave
Hall of Running Bulls,
c. 15,000-13,000 BCE

Back 6

1. naturally occurring materials, such as tar and charcoal for black, yellow for earth, and rust for red
2. ritual purpose linked to nature and the human food supply
3. painting done by memory, but still looked naturalistic

Front 7

Anasazi,
Cliff Palace at Mesa Verde,
600-1300

Back 7

1. Constructed primarily out of sandstone, mortar and wooden beams.
2. Located in a cliff for defensive purposes
3. Easy defended due to long highway up to the dwelling

Front 8

Jan van Eyke,
Arnolfini Portrait,
1434

Back 8

1. the couple removed their shoes, showing they were on holy ground
2. oil painting certifies wedding
3. joining in marriage in the bedroom instead of church, joining in marriage where it will be consummated

Front 9

Mende,
Mask for the Sande Society,
First half of the 20th century

Back 9

1. worn at initiation ceremonies celebrating a successful transition into womanhood.
2. The masked dancer whose polished black anthropomorphic helmet mask and black raphia-covered body the spirit invests with its presence and power.
3. the mask's eyes should be slightly oversized (indicating knowledge and wisdom), while the mask's nose and mouth should be slightly smaller than human-sized for a discussion of Mende feminine beauty

Front 10

Sumerian,
Votive Figures,
c.2900-2600 BCE

Back 10

1. Votive figures were made as an act of worship to the gods and placed in a shrine before the image of the god.
2. Wide open eyes represent better contact with the god.
3. Large head and shoulders are an elaboration of where they believed the soul resides.

Front 11

Ancient, Egypt,
Sarcophagus of Tutankhamon,
c. 1327 BCE

Back 11

1. The wings of the god Horus protectively encircle the coffin, and Tutankhamen holds insignia of his rank.
2. Coffin shares the likeness of Tutankhamon, including his eye makeup and false beard (a symbol for power)
3. Tomb was filled with funerary treasure much like most powerful pharaohs

Front 12

Hagia Sophia,
532-37

Back 12

1. Decorative marble columns were taken from ancient buildings and reused to support the interior arcades
2. Served as the Cathedral for the city
3. The interior was paneled with costly colored marbles and ornamental stone inlays.

Front 13

Shiva as Lord of Dance (Nataraja),
880-1279

Back 13

1. primary avatar in Hindu religion
2. stands in perfect balance
3. multiple arms tell his power, and divine wisdom is shown by the third eye in the middle

Front 14

Great Stupa at Sanchi,
Founded 3rd century BCE

Back 14

1. A sign of Sakaymuni's death and attainment of Nirvana
2. Sakakaymuni only shown by images , as well as other nature deities
3. the square enclosure on the top of the dome symbolizes the heavens

Front 15

Cycladic,
Marble Female Figure,
c. 2600-2400 BCE

Back 15

1. a reclining figure
2. slender and delicate, emphasize that mean you
3. found in burials

Front 16

Ancient Egypt,
Palette of Narmer,
c. 3100 BCE

Back 16

1. used for mixing black eye makeup worn by ancient Egyptian men and women
2. depicts the unification of upper and lower classes
3. commemorates the glory of it's victorious Pharaoh

Front 17

Assyrian,
Lamassu from gateway,
c. 720 BCE

Back 17

1. palace Art, used to terrify and intimidate all who entered
2. five legs to show movement instability at the same time
3. horned crown symbolizes the Kings divine power

Front 18

Ai Weiwei,
S.A.C.R.E.D.,
2011-13

Back 18

1. Made after Ai Weiwei's 81 day incarceration
2. Are meant to provoke viewers into thinking about the contradictions of contemporary China.

Front 19

Dogon of Mali,
Kanaga Masked Dancers,
20th Century

Back 19

1. These masks are characterized by a wooden superstructure in the form of a double-barred cross with short vertical elements projecting from the tips of each horizontal bar.
2. When the mask is worn, the back of the dancer's head is covered with a hood of plaited fiber fringe at the bottom edge
3.Masks may be used at funeral ceremonies to honor and commemorate the dead as they enter the ancestral realm.

Front 20

Honore Daumier,
Rue Transnonian, April 15,1834,
1834

Back 20

1. French political caricature
2. Black and white to give sense of tragedy
3. Painting setting in bedroom to convey that even the a safe place like a bedroom was hit by the massacres

Front 21

Mayan,
Palace and Ball court at Palenque,
514-784

Back 21

1. features 4 courta, each surrounded with rooms and galleries, likely to be used for administrative purposes
2. interior decorated by parallel rows of corbel vaults and arches
3. tower use for both astronomical and defensive purposes

Front 22

Frida Kahlo,
Self-portrait (with monkey and cat),
1940

Back 22

1. Kahlo's face is the central, studying us as we study her
2. hair braided in traditional Mexican style, to show her identification with peasant culture
3. the monkey it represents her alter ego

Front 23

Andrea Mantegna,
Dead Christ,
c. 1480

Back 23

1. Perspective of feet changed to give more attention to Jesus
2. The sharply drawn drapery over the corpse gives the artwork a more dramatic tone.
3. The realism and tragedy of the scene are enhanced by the violent perspective

Front 24

Dorothea Lange,
Migrant Mother,
1936

Back 24

1. documentary photograph
2. displays class of living at migrant camps
3. black-and-white to express poor conditions of living

Front 25

Robert Smithson,
Spiral Jetty,
1970

Back 25

1. Earthworks, are large scale environmental pieces
2. takes art outside the gallery and into nature
3. required heavy earth moving equipment, engineering skills, and many workers