American Gothic painted by Grant Wood; our photo with permission from the Stone City Web Site.
| American Gothic painted by Grant Wood; our photo with permission from the Stone City Web Site. |
"Many theories on the origins and meaning of
this painting exist. The most widely accepted is that
which emphasizes life on a rural Iowa farm as 'not a
happy portrait, nor is it "pretty." Their
clothing is emmaculately clean but drab. In his Sunday
best, he is a worry figure and she is not elegant'"
(Goldstein 5), George
said." Look at what it says here: 'Like the society
of their time, the man dominates his space: he overlaps
the woman, the house, the trees. If the woman is his
wife, she is shown as one of his possessions; related to
his property. This painting also tackles religious
values. The pitchfork that the man is holding represents
satanistic ideas, while the man's collar represents the
collar of a minister,' " Annie added. |
Guernica painted by Pablo Picasso. (This image from the WebMuseum)
"I've heard about this painting. The plaque next to it says 'An ancient town in the Basque region of Spain was destroyed by surgent air raid, which dumped thousands of pounds of explosives on top of Guernica,' " Annie said.
George added, "Spanish painter Pablo Picasso used the bombardment of this town during the Spanish Civil War (1936-39) for a mural to be shown at the Paris World Fair. 'Like many other painters, Picasso took up the theme of this century - war - and painted a "war picture" that has often been called the most important picture of this century. In point of fact, it is the most important anti-war picture in the history of art' (Fisch 22). Guernica portrays a negative side to war, suffering. Society and their actions were the basis of his painting. The strong imagery was Spanish; its symbols are the bull, horse, woman and Minotaur."
Created by Janelle Krueger