Kimberly Bowling
Critical Analysis One
Relativity
I decided to do my paper on Relativity by an artist called M.C. Escher. The date that it was created was in 1953 and it was done by woodblock print. The size of the original print was 11x12inches or 28x29cm. M.C. Escher’s full name is Maurits Cornelis Escher. He was born in 1898. He spent most of his life in Rome and he died in 1972. He was one of the worlds most famous graphic artists. During his lifetime he also designed murals, pictures for books, and postage stamps. My gut reaction to this piece was “What is going on here” So what is going on here?
When you first look at it, it just looks like a bit of a mess. The first thing I noticed was the stairs, there are stairs everywhere and they are not only going in one direction there in all directions and there is a set of steps on both sides of the staircases. Where every there is a set of stairs there is also a banister just like all staircases have. There are also arches everywhere there are some big ones that might be like windows and there are small ones like doors. There is also the occasional plant around. There are a lot of what look like, wooden people with no face going up and down the stairs, there is one looking over a banister, and there is one sitting on a bench, and there is even one sitting outside at a table. Some are also carrying what looks like jars up and down the stairs. There is also trees through the big arches. The artwork is also in black and white, there is no color. The main aspects I seem to focus on when I am looking at it is there is one person coming out of stairs that are built into the wall that suggests to me that this maze has a whole other level maybe its endless?
When I look at this artwork I see some sort of a maze and these statues carrying out normal stuff like sitting at a table of carrying objects around and talking to one another and I think that maybe it means that through everyday activities people sometimes get lose their path and get lost in what they are trying to accomplish in life.
When I first looked at the artwork I was intrigued that is why I chose it in the first place but, the more I look at it, the more I get confused but, I still believe the work is good because it really made me want to look at it in the beginning. However it is not something I would want to look at all the time. So, out of a ten I would give it an eight. I would love to see it in real life because it is a woodblock print so I think it may have a bit more texture then it shows on the internet. I think it does communicate a message but not the same for everyone. When my dad looked at it and I asked him what he thought he said “No matter how we try not everyone will reach the top” I think this type of artwork would have the greatest impact on younger adults because its just different from your everyday portraits and landscapes. Therefore, it would grab their attention more and make them think about what is going on. If I was to sell the artwork for the artist I would price it around two hundred dollars because it looks like the artist put work into it and it is something everyone can look at and come up with a different interpretation. I also think it is a unique because like I have already said most artists do portraits and landscapes so this one really sticks out. So what is going on with this artwork? I looked up the title in the dictionary and got a couple of responses the one that stuck out was “dependence of a mental state or process upon the nature of the human mind” So I think the artist was saying it could mean what ever your mind makes up.