Renaissance Blog

 

Madonna in The Meadow by Raphael 1505

    Raphael was an Italian Renaissance painter and architect. He is best known for his Madonnas and for his painting The School of Athens. I was drawn to this specific Madonna painting because of the way each figure fits perfectly into the frame. This painting depicts the Virgin Mary with Christ and St. John the Baptist. If you pay attention to the details, it seems Madonna is holding Christ in a sort of motherly way, like she is holding him up as he stands. The placement of her hands shows she is gently holding Christ with her left hand resting on his stomach as support and her right hand on his back for extra support. As well as her posture is relaxed, like she is calmly watching the two boys. Her face can be viewed as either content in the moment or, depending on how you look at it, her face seems to be frowning. It is all a matter of perspective. A rather intriguing element of this painting is that the figures are portrayed in a pyramid-like format; if you look closely, there is a triangular element with the placement of Madonna's foot at the right edge of the painting as well as the placement of St. John the Baptist's left leg at the left corner of the painting. The formation creates a triangular shape. Also, the position of Christ, the staff, and St. John the Baptist create a smaller triangle. So in this painting there are two triangles between the figures. I find this element very interesting because although there are triangles that are associated with sharp edges, the figures in the painting are soft and humanlike and display a sense of softness. 

“The Madonna of the Meadow.” Kunsthistorisches Museum, www.khm.at/en/objectdb/detail/1502/#:~:text=The%20Madonna%20of%20the%20Meadow.%20The%20group%20formed%20into%20a. Accessed 30 Sept. 2024.

“Move to Florence of Raphael.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., 16 Aug. 2024, www.britannica.com/biography/Raphael-Italian-painter-and-architect/Move-to-Florence.

Art Analysis

 

Navajo Mother, 1945, Artwork by Maynard Dixon

    A piece of fine artwork that I would like to share is this oil painting by Maynard Dixon. This piece showcases Maynard's deep personal connection to the American West and his desire to portray the authentic lives of Native Americans. His works often showcase the beauty of the Western landscape and the resilience of those who live in the west. In this piece, "Navajo Mother", he captures the essence of the Southwestern landscape and the resilience of a Navajo woman and her child. This painting is known as a testament for his respect for the Native American culture and his ability to showcase their stories through his art. 

    There are a couple elements that help pull this painting together. The first element that stands out is the narrative that the artist is trying to portray. A key figure to piecing together the story that is trying to be told is way that the horse is positioned shows that the woman, child, and horse are in a type of canyon, but also the slight incline leads the viewer to determine the three figures are on climbing a hill. As well as a woman her child riding a horse, presumably on a trail which in my opinion this painting tells a story of a woman on either a mission with her child or just riding around with her child. The second element that is shown is the different textures. If you pay attention to the skirt that the woman is wearing shows a fold and a distinct outline of where her leg is. As well as the different shades over the horse that shows all the colors of the horse and helps the different anatomical pieces of the horse. Along with the foreground that shows the different materials on the ground such as dirt, rock, and vegetation that helps signify what region this painting is based in. The third element that is shown in this piece is light and shadow. The variation in the ground that the horse is walking on is different from the ground behind the horse, woman, and child. It showcases that the horse, woman, and child, are on an elevated piece of ground which signifies that the three figures are on a hill or incline. Also, the light source that is not specifically added to the painting adds a depth effect to show what looks like the sun is setting and casting shadows on the mountains in the background. As well as showing that although the three figures are on an incline, they are lower than the mountains which leads the viewer to believe that because there are not shows around the horse, woman, or child, are in the shadow of a mountain that is not shown in the painting. 

    "Navajo Mother" by Maynard Dixon is a captivating piece of art that captures the essence of the Southwestern landscape as well as showcasing different art elements that contribute to this painting's impact. This is the main reason why I chose this painting, but I chose this piece for two other reasons. Reason #1: Dixon's paintings are one of my personal favorites due to the atmosphere of where the paintings are depicted in. Alot of Dixon's paintings from 1930-1946 take place in the "Wild West" but many of his wild west paintings, such as the one above take place in Utah or Arizona. Reason #2: I am very interested in the Southwestern art style and this painting depicts everything that feels like home to me. In the past I have used Maynard Dixon's paintings as references for my own paintings as the detail he includes in the mountains in the background. 

Admin, W. (2017) Perspective: Maynard Dixon [1875-1946], Western Art & Architecture. Available at: https://westernartandarchitecture.com/articles/perspective-maynard-dixon-1875-1946  (Accessed: 16 September 2024). 

Maynard Dixon: Biography (no date) Maynard Dixon Museum. Available at: https://www.maynarddixon.org/biography/  (Accessed: 16 September 2024).

Hello There

 Hello, my name is Tracey Abraham, I am 19 years old and a sophomore in college. I am from Slana, Alaska but I recently moved to Fairbanks for school and other opportunities. For those who do not know where Slana is, it is located between Tok and Glennallen. I graduated from Slana School in May 2023; my graduating class was two. Currently I am in college pursuing a Bachelor of Art degree, I am majoring in Art, my plans for after graduating college are to earn my teacher certifications to make a career as an Art Teacher. Growing up in a rural small community has had an impact on my life as well as my mindset when it comes to taking care of and having respect for the land. 

The best way I could describe my relationship with art is it's my version of therapy, a way for me to release my wordless thoughts onto paper or canvas. I come from a very artistic family, whether it be musical, painting, print making, beading, sewing, ceramics, all of it. I paint, sew, and draw. Growing up I was a very anxious kid, and I used painting and drawing as a creative outlet for stress. As I have gotten older, I have found that my paintings come out better when I have a heavy heart or a lot going on inside of my head, compared to when I am bored and choose to sit down and paint. It's one of those I have to be in a certain headspace for my artwork to come out the way I am most proud of. Painting for me is a release of all the emotions weighing my mind and spirit down. The only art that I own is a few gold pan paintings from a friend of the family who specializes in painting old gold pans, and a couple paintings of biblical figures that my late grandmother painted before I was born. 

https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/therapy-types/art-therapy?msockid=009bbfc984556ac909ccacca85e66b93