Alderwood and applewood.

Last weekend we celebrated my Grandma Lula's 95th birthday. We gathered at the ranch, where Grandma and Grandpa lived when I was a child. The house is gone, Grandpa is gone, and Grandma now lives a few miles down the highway from the old ranch. The view hasn't changed much, and the air smells the same, but still, I didn't think there was much left to really remind me of those childhood days. We had a great afternoon watching Grandma open her birthday cards and blow out the candles on her cake. We ate chili and roasted hotdogs and marshmallows over the fire. Throughout the day some of the men were making elk jerky on a large metal grate over a fire made from alder and apple wood. I ate a few pieces of it at the ranch that day. It was delicious, but it wasn't until I got home and tried it again that I appreciated it the most. It tastes like the ranch. I never knew you could put a place into the food you eat, but now I know you can. As I bring it to my mouth, I can both smell and taste all the things I had forgotten. It is those Sunday mornings, arriving early at the ranch, a fire in the fireplace. It is playing outside under the trees. It is getting rides on the horses and playing on the saddles in the tack shed. I remember eating jerky out of a cardboard box at Grandma's when I was little. I had forgotten that, and I don't know if it was beef, elk or deer. All I know is that I am grateful for being able to have the day with Grandma and the rest of my family. I am grateful for that little taste of jerky that brought back so many memories.

Artist essay

Leonardo da Vinci

I know this is not the Mona Lisa ~ I like this one more.

Are you warm, are you real, Monalisa? Or just a cold and lonely, lovely work of art? Do you smile to tempt a lover, Monalisa? Or is this your way to hide a broken heart? The popular song made famous by the crooning of Nat King Cole is only one of the many things inspired by Leonardo da Vinci’s painting, the Mona Lisa. It is one of the most famous paintings of all time. It has inspired poetry, books, and a hit movie. People can buy everything from coffee cups to action figures that bear the likeness of the Mona Lisa. I have known about Leonardo da Vinci since I was a child, primarily because of the popularity of his most famous painting, the Mona Lisa.

Leonardo da Vinci was born in 1452, the illegitimate son of a landowner and a peasant girl. He started studying art with Verrocchio when he was only 16 years old and became a master artist.  The Mona Lisa is what most people remember him for, but Leonardo did much more than paint one mysterious woman. He was a true Renaissance man, accomplished in all of the following areas: painting, sculpting, architecture, music, science, math, engineering, inventing, and writing. In addition to the Mona Lisa, da Vinci’s painting ‘The Last Supper’ is one of the most reproduced works of art and the most recognizable depiction of Jesus and the disciples.

I became more interested in Leonardo when I was shown a video in my Accounting class last year. The video was about Luca Pacioli, the father of accounting. Leonardo’s contributions to Pacioli’s book, ‘The Divine Proportion’ are representative of his use of art in science and math. This is how da Vinci’s work differed from that of most scientists of his time, he saw no divide between science and art. Being able to think of accounting as art actually helped me appreciate the class that I otherwise did not enjoy.  

The more I have read about Leonardo, the more I admire him and his work. Although he detested war, he was in an inventor ahead of his time. While his paintings are what he is most remembered for, he was actually a much better draftsman than painter. He drew many inventions, among them; a flying machine, armored car, machine gun, parachute, helicopter, and a robotic knight. It is said that Leonardo epitomizes the term ‘polymath,’ which is a person of superhuman intellect, intelligence and talent.  All that Leonardo da Vinci accomplished in one lifetime is amazing and makes me reflect on how much more I can do with the time that I have. I found in Leonardo, an inspiration. While the lyrics to the popular song, Monalisa, are catchy, they are not meaningful compared to the quotes of the master himself. His insight gives me something to ponder.

“Obstacles cannot crush me. Every obstacle yields to stern resolve. He who is fixed to a star does not change his mind.”

Art Appreciation extra credit assignment

EDGAR DEGAS

HE LOVED GREATLY TO DRAW

My sister wanted to be a ballerina. For her 10^th birthday, my mother painstakingly copied one of the ballerina paintings by Edgar Degas to use as the card in which she told my sister she was going to get the coveted dance lessons. She used colored pencil on light gray paper, of which I like to think Degas would have approved. My sister might have loved the dance lessons, but the way I see it, the best gift was the drawing.  I still have the book of masterpieces mom copied it from. The small town I grew up in didn’t have any galleries, so that book was as close as I got to fine arts.

Edgar Degas was born July 19, 1834 in Paris, France. His father, Augustin, was a wealthy banker, and his mother was a Creole from New Orleans. Degas wanted to be a painter from a very young age, but his father wanted him to be a lawyer. He went to law school for a short time, but his father eventually gave in and sent him to art school. Degas also had a baccalaureate in literature, but painting was his passion.

In 1856 Degas traveled to Italy where he drew and painted copies of works by Raphael, Michaelangelo, Titian and the other Renaissance artists of that time. Copying paintings was the accepted method of learning to paint, and Degas was very good at it. While in Italy he studied and became proficient in the techniques of high, academic and classical art.

Degas returned to Paris and in 1865 he showed for the first time at the Salon. He had done a series of horse paintings. It was the painting called “Scene of War in the Middle Ages” that was shown, and didn’t get much attention. After that, Degas changed his style and never painted about history again. During that time, while copying paintings in the Louvre, Degas met Edourd Manet, who was a great influence on him.

Degas had problems with his sight. One account suggests that he ‘caught cold’ in his eyes. The problem was first diagnosed when he was in rifle training for the National Guard. In 1870 Degas fought in the Franco-Prussian war. When the war was over he traveled to New Orleans and stayed with relatives. While there, he painted ‘The Cotton Exchange at New Orleans’ which was the only painting sold to a museum during his lifetime.

Degas took care to protect his eyesight and did most of his paintings from memory or preliminary drawings. He didn’t subject himself to the sunlight or inclement weather, so most of his work was done in a studio. He is usually called an Impressionist, but it is said that Degas thought of himself as a ‘Realist.’ He preferred to paint contemporary subject matter, or, people doing every day tasks. He said of himself, "I am a colorist of lines.” Degas’ works covered a broad scope of subject matter, including portraits. His preferred method for painting was pastels, although he also worked with oil. Known as the master of movement, nearly every work by Degas depicts action and movement.  He showed the effect of light, rather than the source of light.  This skill is apparent, especially in his theater paintings that show the effect of “artificial light”, which at that time was gaslight. Degas possessed a desire to show motion from every angle, which was one motivation for his sculpting.

During his life, Degas only exhibited one wax sculpture – “Little Dancer, Aged 14.”  Historians aren’t sure why he never exhibited sculptures again, but speculate that he was averse to the attention it brought him. He never meant for his sculptures to last, having done them in wax, he intended for them to be destroyed by time. After his death, his family made the decision to cast the best-preserved works in bronze.

Although Degas had a close friendship with artist Mary Cassatt, he remained a bachelor all of his life. Degas did devote a lot of his time to painting women, as one third of his works are related to ballet. He also painted laundresses, and over fifty monotypes of ladies of the night. He said that “among common people you find grace.”

As his eyesight got worse, he took up the art of black and white photography. He was a man of many gifts who wrote sonnets about his work. His artist function was to ‘refresh vision and help people see the world in new ways’, as illustrated by his own words; "After seeing my work, a person will never look at the world the same.” With all of his talents, it is clear that Degas loved drawing the most. When he died in 1917 at the age of 83 the only thing he wanted said at his gravesite was this: “He greatly loved drawing.”

I never saw my sister in a tutu, but I remember that drawing mom made for her. Each artist we study is special for different reasons, but learning about Degas has brought back a cherished memory of my mom, and how she copied a masterpiece to present a gift. As I learn about each artist I realize that while the paintings had themes and functions, the most important ‘gift’ is that they remain for us to enjoy.