Woodblock printing

Woodblock printing is a technique for printing images originated in China and later spread throughout East Asia. The technique uses a wooden block that is carefully prepared with a knife, chisel or sandpaper. The white areas are cut off while the actual images will be at the surface. The block would then be dipped in ink and press against paper or fabric to create woodblock printing. To use different colors, multiple blocks are prepared, one for each color. There are three methods for woodblock printing, stamping, rubbing and printing in a press. All of these methods were used 400-500 years ago when the movable type hasn't been invented yet. Imagine the amount of patience needed just to create one painting, and the amount of work that one has to put in. It is amazing how woodblock artists make these highly detailed pictures with just a wooden block and knife.

The art of glassblowing

Glassblowing is a technique that transforms molten glass into a bubble, which is then worked into a desired shape. Many glass artists use this technique to create wonderful pieces of artworks using glass. Surprisingly this technique has been around for a long time, it was first invented by Phoenicians at around 50 BC, and until today people are still using this method to form glassware. Although there are newer methods to form glass today, the glass blowing method is still in use by many glass artist. In fact this old-fashion method of creating glass could have been used to make one of the glassware you are using right now!

Here is a video of how the entire process works.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bErxv6Wl7wY

Land art, nature's form of art

Land art is a form of art that is done on a landscape by using materials that is created in nature. Some of these materials include soil, rock, branches, leaves and water. This type of art exist in the open, far away from civilization. The picture above is called the Spiral Jetty, created by Robert Smithson, it is 1500 ft long and is located in northern Utah, it is one of the most famous pieces of land art up to date. One negative aspect of this form of art is that they are not preserved, the artworks are left to erode and change under natural conditions. So in the next few decades, the Spiral Jetty may look completely different, or worse, it might not even be there anymore.

Grass Sculptures

Imagine having this on your front yard, how cool would that be! I always thought that sculptures were made with marble, wood or clay, but not after I saw this picture. These sculptures are truly a work of art, it must have taken the artist a long time to trim the bush into the figure of an elephant. Not only do these sculptures look awesome, they also provide a way for us to combine nature and art. Using grass as a medium for sculptures can be beneficial for the environment, and it is also very cheap. Instead of purchasing a block of marble for sculpting, these sculptures can be made in your very own backyard, with no cost at all! Although it might require some creativity and many hours in the sun, but the end result is definitely worth it.

The Titian exhibit at the High

Yesterday I went to the Titian exhibit at the High museum and saw the famous paintings from the Venetian Renaissance. Overall I thought the Titian exhibit was pretty interesting, I was amazed at how big some of these paintings were and how detailed they were. The Titian exhibit takes up a small section of two different floors, the 2nd floor of the exhibit had  sketches of Titian and a few paintings, the 3nd floor of the exhibition contain the The Dianas. I really liked how they organized the exhibition in the 3rd floor, they gave each of the paintings a golden frame and each of them had their own wall, the space was very opened and there were a lot of free space to view these paintings. I spend most of my time at the contemporary art section however, because there were a lot more art work over there, I especially like the furniture designs, all the design chairs looked amazing and I really wished that I have one of those in my dorm! Anyway, the Titian exhibit was interesting, I didn't spend that much time on it though, since I am more into three dimensional art than paintings.

Fireworks as a form of art

Fireworks were invented in ancient China in the 12th century to scare away evil spirits, and now fireworks are pretty much everywhere. From the opening ceremony of the Olympics to Independence Day, fireworks have been a sign of celebration. Fireworks can have so many different colors and effects, including the ring, willow, peony, cake, roman candle and many more. Fireworks are so popular because they are a form of art and it can be very entertaining if organized well.

Cairo Museum

So since we were talking about museums in class yesterday, I thought I make a blog post about one of my favorite museum, the Cairo Museum. The Cairo Museum contains over 120,000 ancient Egyptian antiquities and has 9 mummies on display, including the recently found Queen Hatsheput. The Cairo Museum contains the most Egyptian artifacts in the world! The most interesting part of this museum is that it has the mummified remains of many famous Pharaohs, including Ramses and Tutankhamun!