Master vs. Pupil

When there is something great it is usually imitated. In the master vs. pupil comparison there is a Da Vinci and a work by another artist.



The drawing on the left is far better than the one on the right. There is more fluidity to it and there is far more expression in the eyes. The shading in the one on the left makes the face see more realistic while the one on the right looks like a cartoon. There seems to be more ease to the left one also.

Yo Yo Ma vs. Rostropovich

Yo Yo Ma Vs. Rostropovich





Musical compositions are always up to the interpretation of the person playing the song. When it comes to Beethoven’s Sonata #4 it is the same. It is up to the listener to decide which one is better. This opinion can be affected by the amount of musical background that a person has.



In my opinion, both versions are good but in different ways. The Yo Yo Ma version has more balance between the piano and the cello. The song seems to go more smoothly and is softer and more delicate. The piano and cello seem to be having a pleasant conversation with each other. The Rostropovich is harsher. It is almost like the two instruments are arguing and trying to battle each other out. Both instruments seem like they are trying to outdo the other. I still like it though because it tells a different story.

Romeo and Juliet

Romeo and Juliet

Romeo and Juliet is a tragedy written by Shakespeare. The story tells the tale of two star crossed lovers. At the Globe, they are currently showing a production of the play. The interpretation of this play is very lively and happy. It was almost too happy. Everything was cheerful, the fights, the death scene, and the ending. I found the sword fighting entertaining though. The character of Juliet was very annoying to me. I found her to be whiny. However, I found the comedic parts to be very good.



Overall, I found this version of the play to be better than most versions. I thought that it was a humorous tragedy more than anything and although I did not enjoy standing the whole time, I found it more enjoyable than most versions of Romeo and Juliet.

British Museum

British Museum

The British Museum is a gigantic place. The great court itself is an interesting piece of the place. It not only holds pieces of art but it is also the center of the museum. The room itself is a magnificent area with it’s large spiral staircase that leads up to the second floor. The great court is the anchor for the whole museum.
One great display in the museum is of the Elgin Marbles. The Elgin Marbles are a set of marbles that originally belonged to the Parthenon. The marbles include plaques that tell the story of a Lapith and a centaur fighting to sculptures of horses. The marbles were removed from the Parthenon in 1801 and the Greek government is still trying to get the marbles back from the British Museum.

Bloomsbury Group

The Bloomsbury Group was a group of people who influenced many aspects of life in London. They lived in Bloomsbury. The members of the Bloomsbury Group were: Virginia Woolf, Leonard Woolf, Vanessa Bell, Lytton Strachey, Maynard Keynes, Wyndham Lewis, Mary Hutchinson, Duncan Grant, David “Bunny” Garnett, Angelica Garnett, Roger Fry, Frederick and Jesse Etchells, Quentin Bell, Julian Bell, Clive Bell, and Helen Anrep.
I visited the homes of two of the members of the Bloomsbury Group, Maynard Keynes, and Lytton Strachey.




http://www.panoramio.com/photo/22312727
http://www.panoramio.com/photo/22312708
Sources: Wikipedia, Tate Archives, and http://bloomsbury.denise-randle.co.uk/

The photographers' gallery

At the photographer’s gallery there were various types of photographs. The photograph I liked enjoyed the most was Priscilla by Maurizio Anzeri. I enjoyed the needlework that was used over the portraits. They brought a new life to the pictures that took them to the next level from being old pictures of people.

I also enjoyed Rattachement (Lightning) which was an interesting piece because there were bursts of color amongst shots of lightning. The way the colors and the lightning go together is very striking.

Another thing I enjoyed was the photographs with the paint on them. Some of the photos had a little too much paint on them though. However, when the photos had the right balance of paint and picture combined they were quite lovely.

Victorian Undreclass

The Victorian underclass was also known as the Submerged Class. It was made up of those people who were in poverty stricken areas including prostitutes and homeless people. The underclass was also made up of immigrants and refugees and “were much more susceptible to exploitation, and were therefore exploited.”(Victoria Web)
In 1888, Jack the Ripper preyed on members of the Victorian Underclass by murdering six prostitutes in the Whitechapel area of London. According to Wikipedia, there were 1,200 prostitutes "of very low class" resident in Whitechapel.

My Aesthetic

There are various aesthetics in art. I enjoy many different aesthetics. My favorite aesthetic is similar to one of Baz Luhrmann. I am a surrealist. I enjoy heavily saturated colors and shiny things more than anything. The flashy images really capture my attention the quickest. I have always liked surrealism as well. I enjoy the work of Salvador Dali a lot.


At the Tate Britain, there was a very nice gallery featuring Rothko and Turner. I enjoyed Turner’s work more than Rothko’s. Rothko’s work was not interesting to me at all. I thought it was quite boring. The Turner works however were very beautiful. Although they were not in my aesthetic, I found them very captivating. I had to look closely to see what actually was in the picture and I thoroughly enjoyed it.