My Major

For this post I will be explaining the disciplines and current discussions associated with my major, Art History. Given that it's not a very common major, I tend to receive a lot of questions on what it entails or I plan to "do" with my major. Below are 5 general questions addressing this topic (and one of my favorite paintings by Pieter Bruegel the Elder.)

Bruegel, Pieter. Netherlandish Proverbs,. 1559. Berlin State Museums, Berlin, Germany.
 Accessed via: Netherlandish Proverbs. Wikipedia. Web. 31 Aug. 2015. Public Domain.

1. What do students in your program learn how to do?

Art History students study art in a cultural context. They look at evolving artistic traditions and link them to interactions with culture by look at extraneous factors such as religion, society, and popular iconography. It forces students to have deep critical thinking skills, grapple with the nature of creativity, and have a deeper understand of world cultures.

2.What do people who get degrees in this field usually go on to do for work?

An Art History degree can open up quite a range of job opportunities, mainly working with museums, galleries, or teaching. There isn't really one basic job that is flocked to, though one of the more highly coveted jobs is a curator for a museum,  and is very competitive. I would like to work in the field of conservation, restoring and preserving books, paintings, frescos, and so much more. 

3. What drew you to this field?

I've always had a fondness for history (it's consistently been a favorite subject of mine) and have been drawing on and off since I was a little. I've always been told I should look into Art History as a field of study, and my senior year decided to take AP Art History. Within the first couple classes I had fallen in love. To me, it was a perfect combination of my interests and I loved how much historical depth you could glean from a piece of art. 

4. Who are the leaders/most exciting people involved in your field right now? Why? 

Art History is a funny field in that most of the revolutionary historians are dead. The leaders in Art History right now are mainly art critics (namely Rosalind Krauss and Michael Fried). The reason for this is that art criticism often plays directly into art history itself. Krauss, for example, tends to look at modern art and try to understand it in historical dimensions. Art critics can shape the way the art world moves, encouraging and destroying artists, controlling the kind of art available on the market, and much more. 

5. What are the leading academic/scholarly journals in your field? Where are they published? 

Two of the most important academic journals are the peer-reviewed academic journal "Art History" published by the Association of Art Historians, the "Oxford Art Journal" published by the Oxford University Press. They create ongoing content on a timely basis, while most journals are independent publishings by historians. 

EDIT:
After reading other blog posts, I felt a bit better about my field. Since I discovered my field I've felt a strong passion for it, despite not always having an idea about what career I'd like to pursue. It's comforting seeing other people (like Evan) who have a clear idea about what direction they'd like to g o in. Even if I didn't necessarily understand the field, he seems to know what he wants and how to get there. However, William's blog made me feel better because he and I feel similarly. We both love our fields but aren't sure where exactly to jump in. It reassured me that I wasn't behind because I'm still not entirely sure of where I want to go with my future degree. It's interesting that both sides of the coin soothed me a little. It made me feel like just because I haven't decided yet doesn't mean that I won't ever, and people find out what they want to do at their own pace. 

My Thoughts on Comments (The Credible, Non-Credible, and the Ugly)

All the comments below can be found here.

This was sort of a tough one. Religion is a polarizing topic, so many comments had an emotional appeal that made it difficult to find a credible comment. Some are somewhat risque, and others are ridiculous. We'll begin with the most crass comment I found.

The Non-Credible and the Ugly

Screen shot from my computer, August 27th 2015.

This commenter doesn't seem to be expressing any rational thought. They're making a silly joke, designed to offend and provoke others, as is fairly evident. It seems as though they enjoy provoking others. I think they have no real standing on the issue, and are feeding off comments that question "well, what if it was the prophet Mohammed??" They have no serious thought to add to the argument, and pretty obviously have no true intention behind what they say. They're unreliable for sure. 

Screen shot from my computer, August 27th 2015.

 This bit took some deciphering to understand. In essence they are arguing that publicly funded art should not be provocative or have any form of social criticism. I believe they side against "Eggs Benedict" and against the Milwaukee County Supervisors themselves. They value "uncontroversial" topics and believe strongly in themselves over others, and wish the piece would be removed. Clearly they harbor some form of resentment against the piece further than the piece itself. It's wholly unreliable, lacked with (self-blanked) expletives and silly insults (i.e. "Lame-duck-duck-duck") The writing style is erratic and the main argument is hard to follow, making it more laughable than effective.

The Credible

Screen shot from my computer, August 27th 2015.

Albigensian is responding to another commenter, willing to begin an actual discussion on the piece.  They seem to side against the museum and value art differently than the museum does, though they don't express any direct desire for the art to be taken down. Their style of writing is clear and concise, quoting directly from the previous comment to build their own argument. They also seem to have some understanding of art, if not a cynical view, and acknowledge the argument of the "danger" of political Islamic art. They seem somewhat knowledgeable and calm, unlike many other arguments in the comments.

Screen shot from my computer, August 27th 2015.

Buitternut also makes a calm and art-based argument. While they don't openly side with the museum, they argue for a broad definition of art and value the provocative nature of "Eggs Benedict." They're reasonable, and manage to reference the contention works of art created by "masters" frequently faced. They make a distinction of where they value art, but still reasonably claim the condom piece is, by artistic free expression, still a work of art.


EDIT:
After looking at blogs like Mike's and Swati's, I felt a little relieved to see that people chose comments in a way similar to me. Profanity, poor grammar, and irrelevant comments seemed to be their basis deciding comments were unreliable and was similar to mine. However I feel that I could have justified my reasons a little bit better under the comment I chose. Swati did an excellent job with her descriptions and made me feel like I could have done a slightly better job. I'll get it right next time!

My Controversy

While scanning controversies to write about, I stumbled across this little gem at Journal Sentential online.

Screen shot from my computer, August 27th

In essence, Nik Johnson (an artist from Shorewood, Wisconsin) created a controversial portrait of Pope Benedict XVI out of 17,000 colored condoms. It was initially a commentary about sexual ethics and the former Pope's controversial comments on AIDS when he visited  Africa in 2009. The artwork, cleverly titled "Eggs Benedict", has been met with a mix of outrage from the Catholic community and argument for free speech. More than 14,000 people (as of July, 2015) have signed a petition against showing the art work calling it "disgusting" and insulting to the Christian faith. The beautifully crafted condom mosaic is a piece meant to force people to have a provocative discussion, and has bloomed into a discussion about the relationship between religion and art and the issue of censorship.

As an Art History major, controversies about the acceptability and definition of "art" interests me greatly. It's more than a silly shock image of the former Pope constructed from condoms (obviously a taboo, since premarital sex is considered a sin), it's call for discussion about sex and the church's view of sexuality. I find the entire piece and the arguments for an against it incredibly interesting.

Calendar Reflection

As I filled out my Calendar Reflection assignment, it really dawned on me: I do not have much free time. Between classes, going to work, and allotting time for homework and sleep, I have a few free hours a day maximum. I'm left asking myself when I'll have time for all the extra activities I want to take on. Exercise and sports are at a risk of falling to the way-side, and I'm a little concerned. I'll have to rearrange things a little bit to make sure I have the twenty-or-so hours needed for homework along with assuring my mental and physical health. I'll be squeezing in naps when I can.

Wicker Paradise. "I am busy beach towel." 6/04/12
Attribution 2.0 Generic License 

As long as I stay on top of my assignments on D2L by checking it every minute I get a chance, I should be able to survive this first semester!


EDIT:
Looking at other's posts and seeing their comments on how much free time they were surprised they had, I took a moment to re-reflect upon my schedule. Having three free hours a day isn't such a bad thing (like Namratha says here), and that having a packed schedule isn't uncommon (Michael and I have the same issue). I think I stressed out my brain just imagining what I MIGHT have to fill every hour with, instead of looking at how much time I'll actually have to fit in everything. I just really need to not procrastinate and understand the value of a free hour. This semester will be key for time management, and I'll either have to sink or swim!

My Writing Process

I consider myself to be most like the "Heavy Reviser". Like the description given,  I often write my work early and then go back in to edit, tweak, and re-write several times. I tend to find my argument during the writing process, so that means the beginnings and occasionally the middle of my essays need to be strengthened.

While I most heavily identify with Heavy Reviser, I am also a procrastinator. My writing process shifts between revising an essay five or six times to writing it the day before it's due and skimming it a couple times for obvious mistakes. I find that I do not thrive under pressure,  so I try to be a Heavy Reviser.

I consider myself to be a fairly good writer, so my process has found some success. A strength is that I often ask for advice from other writers, and the various inputs of critique often improves the quality of my writing. It can also be a weakness too. If there are too many contrasting criticisms or my paper is over-revised, it can often lose the strength of it's argument. Also, it can a be a long and painful process to get my thoughts to work together sometimes. I relate to this little sloth below because of it-he's hanging on, trying to get where he needs to go.

Strniste, Marissa . "Up-Close Sloth." 02/10/12 via Flickr.
Attribution 2.0 Generic License  

I would like to try to be more of a Heavy Planner. Having my writing pre-arranged as opposed to having a general concept I write to find an argument for sounds beneficial. I am used to editing frequently,  so trying to change my process suddenly on an important assignment might not be a good idea, but I would try it out for a shorter essay or assignment.

EDIT:

After reading some other blogs, it sounds like being a heavy planner has some definite costs (like Chloe) and benefits (like William). Everyone has their own process that works best and worst for them. Maybe I've found a style that suits my thought process-maybe I'm the kind of person that needs to tinker with something for a while before it all makes sense. I'd still like to really try to planner approach at some point. It can be frustrating moving like a sloth in my papers, crawling to each idea at the speed of about 2 meters a minute. Following a structured plan would feel like a nice change of pace.