Biography of Georges Braque, Pioneer Cubist Painter

Georges Braque (May 13, 1882 - August 31, 1963) was a French artist best known for his cubist paintings and the development of collage techniques. He worked closely with Pablo Picasso as they broke down traditional rules of the use of perspective in painting. Fast Facts: Georges Braque Occupation: Painter and collage artistBorn: May 13, 1882 in Argenteuil, FranceDied: August 31, 1963 in Paris, FranceSelected Works: Houses at lEstaque (1908), Bottle and Fishes (1912), Violin and Pipe (1913)Notable Quote: Truth exists; only lies are invented. Early Life and Training Growing up in the port city of Le Havre, France, young Georges Braque trained to be a house painter and decorator like his father and grandfather. In addition to working on his vocation, Braque studied in the evenings at Le Havres Ecole des Beaux-Arts as a teenager. After apprenticing with a decorator, he earned a certificate to practice the craft in 1902. In 1903, Braque enrolled in the Academie Humbert in Paris. He painted there for two years and met avant-garde painters Marie Laurencin and Francis Picabia. The earliest Braque paintings are in the classic impressionist style. That changed in 1905 when he began to associate with Henri Matisse. Public domain Fauvist Matisse was at the forefront of the group of painters known as the Fauves (beasts in English). They are noted for the use of vibrant colors and simpler lines designed to make a bold, emotional statement to the viewer. Georges Braques first exhibit of his Fauvist paintings took place at the Salon des Independants show Paris in 1907. Braques Fauvist works are slightly more subdued in color than those of some of the other leaders of the style. He worked closely with Raoul Dufy and fellow Le Havre artist Othon Friesz. After viewing a massive retrospective show of the work of Paul Cezanne in Paris in late 1907, Braques work began to shift again. He also visited Pablo Picassos studio for the first time in 1907 to view the legendary painting Les Demoiselles dAvignon. The association with Picasso had a powerful impact on Braques evolving technique. The Olive Tree Near lEstaque (1906). Public domain Work With Pablo Picasso Georges Braque began to work closely with Picasso as they both developed a new style that was soon dubbed cubism. Many researchers dispute the specific origins of the term, but while organizing a salon show in 1908, Matisse reportedly said Braque has just sent in a painting made of little cubes. Picasso and Braque were not the only artists developing the new approach to painting, but they were the most prominent. Both artists exhibited influences of Paul Cezannes experiments with painting objects from multiple perspectives. While some believed that Picasso led the way and Braque merely followed in his wake, a close examination by art historians has revealed that Picasso focused on the animation of objects while Braque explored a more contemplative approach. In 1911, Braque and Picasso spent the summer together in the French Pyrenees mountains painting side by side. They produced works that are virtually impossible to distinguish from each other in terms of style. In 1912, they expanded their approach to include collage techniques. Braque invented what came to be known as papier colle, or paper cutouts, a method of incorporating paper with paint to create the collage. Braques piece Violin and Pipe (1913) illustrates how the pieces of paper allowed him to literally take the shapes present in the objects apart and rearrange them to create art. Man with a Guitar (1911). Corbis Historical / Getty Images The extended collaboration came to an end in 1914 when Georges Braque enlisted in the French Army to fight in World War I. He suffered a severe head injury in May 1915 in the battle at Carency. Braque experienced temporary blindness and required a long period of recuperating. He did not begin painting again until late 1916. Cubist Style The style of cubism is an expansion of the experiments by painter Paul Cezanne in depicting three-dimensional form on a two-dimensional canvas. Cezanne died in 1906, and, following significant retrospectives of his work in 1907, Pablo Picasso painted Les Demoiselles dAvignon, a piece that many believe is an example of proto-Cubism. At the same time as Picasso exhibited his new style through abstracted images of people, Braque was at work on extending Cezannes vision of landscapes with reductive, geometric forms. Soon, the pair became leaders of a new style of painting that attempted to represent multiple viewpoints on an object or person simultaneously. Some observers likened the works to a diagram of how the objects worked and moved in real life. Gjon Mili / Getty Images In the period between 1909 and 1912, Braque and Picasso focused on a style now known as analytic cubism. They painted mostly in neutral colors like brown and beige while taking apart objects and analyzing their shapes on the canvas. It is difficult to tell the work of the two artists apart in this period. One of Braques key works during this time is Bottle and Fishes (1912). He broke the object into so many discreet shapes that the whole became nearly unrecognizable. Cubists challenged the conventional view of perspective in painting that ruled the establishment since the Renaissance. It was perhaps the most important legacy of Braques art. Breaking down the rigid notion of perspective paved the way for multiple developments in the painting of the 20th century that ultimately led to pure abstraction. Later Work After he began painting again in 1916, Georges Braque worked alone. He began to develop a more idiosyncratic style that included brighter colors while relaxing the harsh nature of his earlier cubist work. He became close friends with Spanish artist Juan Gris. New subject matter entered Braques work in the 1930s. He began to focus on Greek heroes and gods. He explained that he wanted to show them in a pure form stripped of symbolic gestures. The bright colors and emotional intensity of these paintings depict the emotional anxiety felt by Europeans as a second world war approached. Painter and Model (1939). Corbis Historical / Getty Images After World War II, Braque painted ordinary objects like flowers and garden chairs. He created his final series of eight works between 1948 and 1955. They were all titled Atelier, the French word for the studio. At the time Georges Braque died in 1963, many considered him one of the fathers of modern art. Legacy While his painting ranged across multiple styles during his lifetime, Georges Braque is primarily remembered for his cubist work. His focus on still life and landscapes influenced later artists who returned to the traditional subject matter. Braques most distinctive legacy is his development of collage techniques involving cut paper that he focused on for only a few short years of his career. Source Danchev, Alex. Georges Braque: A Life. Arcade, 2012.

Compare the way Goldhagen and Browning present the...

The events which have become to be known as The Holocaust have caused much debate and dispute among historians. Central to this varied dispute is the intentions and motives of the perpetrators, with a wide range of theories as to why such horrific events took place. The publication of Jonah Goldhagen’s controversial but bestselling book â€Å"Hitler’s Willing Executioners: Ordinary Germans and the Holocaust† in many ways saw the reigniting of the debate and a flurry of scholarly and public interest. Central to Goldhagen’s disputed argument is the presentation of the perpetrators of the Holocaust as ordinary Germans who largely, willingly took part in the atrocities because of deeply held and violently strong anti-Semitic beliefs. This in many†¦show more content†¦Using such specific examples will help clearly highlight the difference in opinion of the two authors and the way in which Goldhagen tries to show the members of the Police Battalion as à ¢â‚¬Å"Ordinary Germans† who were â€Å"Willing Executioners†, while Browning presents them as â€Å"Ordinary Men† reacting to a certain set of specific circumstances. Goldhagen’s view of the perpetrators of the Holocaust can be seen as super-intentionalist in the way he views the German population to have largely willingly colluded with the Nazi regime because they to held the same eliminationalist anti-Semitic views. To make this point, he uses what he sees as the willingness of ordinary, largely untrained and unindoctrinated Germans in the Reserve Police Battalions to carry out mass killings of Jews (Goldhagen: 1997:206). This means he portrays the perpetrators of the Jozefow massacre as â€Å"willing executioners† and goes at great length to show them to simply be â€Å"ordinary Germans† based on their political, socio-economic and geographical background (Goldhagen: 1997: 213). Central to Goldhagen’s argument that the Policemen massacred Jews willingly, is their reluctance to excuse themselves from the operation when given the opportunity. The main â€Å"opportunity† in which to do this, is the moment before the massacre, when Major Trapp (the officer in charge of the

The American Involvement in the Cold War Free Essays

The role of America at the end of World War II was where the origins of policing the world originate. America had been engaged in a very costly war in terms of dollars as well as lives. But, despite the expense the United States came out of World War II better than any other nation that was involved. We will write a custom essay sample on The American Involvement in the Cold War or any similar topic only for you Order Now The Second World War was a battle between the Allied and Axis Powers. The Allied Powers consisted of the United States, Great Britain, the Soviet Union, China, and France. This war was seen as the fight against Nazi Germany, and therefore resulted in a majority of the battles fought on German and Russian soil. The aftermath left the Soviet Union in bad shape. Close to twenty million Russians had died fighting the war, which accounted for about eight percent of their population. Conversely, none of the fighting was done on American soil, and while the United States suffered in terms of casualties it was nothing compared to the loss Russia had endured. Because the war would not end until the Axis Powers fully surrendered to the Allied Powers, the United States was forced to use the first atomic warfare in history. The atom bomb would later serve as America’s greatest possession. Stalin, the Premier of the Soviet Union had always distrusted the American and English intentions. Because of Stalin’s aggression and attitude pertaining to Soviet influence on Europe, the postwar stance on Russia had turned into a standoff. This became the origin of the Cold War. The Cold War, seen as a battle between communism and capitalism, was â€Å"in reality a more complex struggle over a broad range of ideological, economic, and strategic issues. † Over the next several years the United States would spend more money on military and defense than ever before. Several measures were taken to ensure that the same mistakes at the end of World War I would not be repeated. The first in a series of measures was a postwar conference involving President Truman and the Soviet Foreign Minister, V. M. Molokov, where Truman controlled the entire meeting and basically scolded the Soviet’s for not honoring agreements on Poland. Truman â€Å"told the Russians just where the got off and generally bossed the whole meeting. † This symbolized America’s strong-arm stance against communism and signified the position we would hold throughout the Cold War. The next step in Truman’s agenda was to work with Congress to pass the National Security Act of 1947, which was designed to strengthen defense operations. This act created a single Department of Defense, and created the Central Intelligence Agency, or CIA. These two new agencies acted as the first step in atomic warfare management. Continuing to act as police of the world and leader of capitalism, Truman drafted the Marshall Plan. The Marshall Plan, which complemented the Truman Doctrine, â€Å"was a program of large scale economic and military aid to Europe. Considered by some, this was the most â€Å"innovative piece of foreign policy in American History. Where over the next four years the United States contributed over $12 billion to a highly successful recovery effort. † The Soviet Union stilled commanded a blockade on highway, rail, and river traffic to West Berlin. As a result, the United States responded by entering into a peacetime military alliance; this being the first time since the American Revolution. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) a project costing $1. billion, enabled the basing of all four United States Army divisions into Western Europe. Twelve nations agreed to sign this pact that stated â€Å"an armed attack against one or more of them in Europe or North America shall be considered an attack against them all. † Consequently, a few months later, Stalin â€Å"lifted the blockade which had made the city a symbol of resistance to communism. † Between the creation of NATO, the National Security Act and CIA, and the Marshall Plan, America was dictating their position with Russia and communism. These measures made it possible for Americans to become more comfortable with the Cold War. While all of these governmental policies were being put into action, Americans were settling back into the ideology of family and free enterprise. The post-war period became one of the most exciting in American history. With the rising economy and feeling of consumerism, Americans were rebounding from their efforts in World War II. Capitalism was on the rise and the â€Å"Apple Pie† portrait of middle class suburban families was shaping the country. America was now the wealthiest country in the world and Americans had â€Å"accumulated savings of $140 billion† in 1945. â€Å"Over the next two decades the gross national product more than tripled,† signifying prosperity. Between 1945 and 1960, the gross national product would grow from $213 billion to more than $500 billion, while real income would rise 25 percent. Included in these figures was the percent of American families owning homes, which grew from 43 percent to over 60 percent in this same time period; this created the suburban explosion. This suburban lifestyle was intended to symbolize the superiority of capitalism over communism and imply that the American way of life would win the Cold War. † Americans were again beginning to see the capitalist society they fought for, and the confidence level of the country continued to rise throughout the 1960’s. The people cannot create a great nation themselves; great leaders must direct them. Besides the three Presidents who led America throughout the end of World War II and through the Cold War, there were many influential voices that helped to shape the views of the public. Among these influential people was a man named George F. Kennan. He was a member of the United States embassy to the Soviet Union and author of the â€Å"long telegram† which was sent to the heads of state in Washington D. C. In his telegram, Kennan described the Soviets as insecure, inferior, and less advanced than Americans. â€Å"As Russia came into contact with the economically advanced West, fear of more competent, more powerful, more highly organized societies,† was the general message Kennan was trying to get across. Because he saw the country from the inside Kennan also believed the United Sates should † pursue a policy of firm containment†¦ at every point where the Soviets show signs of encroaching upon the interest of a peaceful and stable world. † This opinion and idea of the relationship between the United States and Russia should have been widely accepted by Americans. They backed this idea of aggressive behavior, rather than a passive approach to the Cold War. Conversely, postwar liberal such as Henry Wallace, â€Å"a Progressive Party leader, continued to seek cooperation with the Soviet Union and defended the participation of Communists in their organizations. † These ideals were quickly silenced. The American majority, being extremely anti-communist, felt relations with the Soviet Union should be harsh and firm. This period introduced American dominance in foreign policy. The ideals of personal freedom and opportunity were the driving forces behind Western philosophy throughout the Cold War. Not only were these principles showcased, they were set as the benchmark of equality for the human race. How to cite The American Involvement in the Cold War, Essay examples

Music has no Language Barrier Essay Example For Students

Music has no Language Barrier Essay Music has no Language Barrier We all now know that Korean pop music is dominating the music industry these days. Many haters says that international fans cant even understand what they are saying, for all they know, they night be cursing the fans without them knowing it. Believe me, I have met many people, in reality or online, who hates Korean Music. But is it wrong to love them without knowing their mother tongue? I think there are only 1/3 people who are open minded and the other 2/3 are all close minded people. I mean, male call the male idols gays. Dont they Just feel insecure because the male idols are too Andromeda and not to mention talented? And when a male like Korean Music people would Judge him as gays, well I think bonbons are the ones who have lots of courage because they dont care what other people thinks, its what they like so no one has the right to Judge them. Sure, I will admit that their are Korean Fans would go crazy and chase their idols around the town of Seoul but it only shows that they love them deeply that they want to make their idols notice them. Just like in one of the anises I have watched. The protagonist would go around saying Sensei, please notice me! I think its like that. From what I have seen people who love Korean music tends to be more picky in picking the people who they want to have a relationship with. Because they want that specific person to have the criteria to be Just like their idol. Music has no language barrier. If you like the music then listen to it. If you want to understand what they are saying learn the language. Idols do learn other language so that they communicate with their fans. So Just like that learn the language and you can communicate with your idol online or in reality. By AsdfghJk1142