Galen Barr Art Survival

 Throughout history art has played an important part in influencing both individuals and society. Art can tell us a great deal about past civilizations and historical events. Art can give us important insight and hold immense amounts of influence. This is why we must preserve as much art as possible. Three art pieces that the world is better off having and continuing having for the enlightenment of future generations are Cow’s Skull: Red, White and Blue by Georgia O’Keeffe ,Sunflower Seeds by Ai Weiwei, and The Starry Night by Vincent Van Gogh. These art pieces hold important information about different art movements, political stances, and have influenced a great amount of other artists and artwork. 

Georgia O’Keefe. Cow's Skull: Red, White, and Blue. 1931

Cow's Skull: Red, White, and Blue (1931) by Georgia O'Keeffe consists of a sun bleached cow skull over a background that has a red border, two white and blue cloth looking gradient stripes and a thin black stripe in the middle. This painting is Oil on canvas and measures 101.3 × 91.1 cm. After visiting New Mexico in 1929 O’Keeffe became infatuated with the harsh desert surroundings of the state. Her artistic interest shifted from flowers to the nature of the desert. In this piece she isolates the cow skull to show its jagged edges, worn surfaces, and bleached color (The Met, 1950). The skull represents the beauty and strength of the American spirit which is even further strengthened by the red, white, and blue background (The Met, 1950). 

Ai Weiwei. Sunflower Seeds. 2010

Sunflower Seeds (2010) by Ai Weiwei is a sculpture that consists of millions of accurately sized porcelain sunflower seeds. The dimensions of this artwork change depending on how it is decided for them to be displayed. In the past the seeds have been displayed in a rectangle or a cone like pile. In total the seeds weigh around ten tonnes. Around 1,600 Chinese artists from the town of Jingdezhen, China assisted on the fabrication of the sunflower seeds (Tate, 2010). In the past this town used to make porcelain of the emperor's court. The people who worked on this project did it individually at home instead of in a factory setting. Ai Weiwei worked with the people of this town to develop a way to take the old techniques they used and put them into contemporary art. The tiny porcelain sunflower seeds were created using slip molds and then all glazed with gray glaze to give it the color of a sunflower. It took about three to four strokes per side to cover the sunflower seeds in glaze (Tate, 2010). The strokes are very precise and detailed. The interesting thing about this piece is that the creation of it is so important to the meaning of the piece and is half of the artwork. The meaning of sunflower seeds in Chinese culture is significant. During the cultural revolution Mao Zedong was often called the Sun and the people of China Sunflowers because they would follow him. Sunflower seeds were also a valuable source of food in times of poverty (Higgins, 2010). The seeds in this artwork are not glued down and are quite easy to just pick up and take home. When asked what he thought about this Ai Weiwei stated "They might also want to eat one, and that would be a safety issue for the museum." He added: "If I was in the audience I would definitely want to take a seed. But for the museum, it is a total work, and taking a seed would affect the work. Institutions have their own policies. But I know I would want to take a seed." (Higgins, 2010) This response goes along with Ai Weiwei’s resilience against authority. This piece and many of his other artworks speak out against the Chinese government. This caused him to be exiled from China. That is why this piece is so important and needs to be preserved throughout history. It speaks up against the cruelty of the Chinese government and marks that time in history in which the government was like that. Sunflower Seeds was commissioned for Tate Modern’s Turbine Hall Eleventh Unilever Series. It was purchased with assistance from Tate International Council, the American Patrons of Tate, the Art Fund, and Stephen and Yana Peel 2012 (Tate, 2010).

Vincent van Gogh. The Starry Night. Saint Rémy, June 1889

The Starry Night (1889) by Vincent Van Gogh is a classic and stunning representation of Impressionism. This Oil paint on a 73.7 x 92.1 cm canvas showcases the night sky over a town. The swirl patterns in the night sky and the short paint strokes that all come together to make this scenery are what make this piece so inherently Vincent Van Gogh. In this piece Vincent Van Gogh captures the whimsical nature of the night. The bright glowing moons and stars in the sky of this painting make the night seem friendly over the sleeping town. In this painting Vincent doesn’t try to show the night in a realistic fashion but rather uses his brush to capture emotions the night may make you feel (MOMA, 2023) .The Starry Night is an extremely important piece due to its cultural influence. Like all Of Van Gogh’s artworks, The Starry Night didn’t become popular until after his death. In fact, when this painting was first made most considered it to be bad technique and a mediocre piece of art.  The Starry Night and Van Goghs other works have influenced popular culture like Doctor Who and the first full length feature to be animated entirely in oil paintings Loving Vincent (2017). Van Gogh's art style has also influenced the techniques and style of many other artists.