Justinian and his attendance - Georgina Zaloumis

Medieval and Byzantine times:

Summary of the times: 

Romans controlled most of Europe. Theodosius split it into western Roman Empire and eastern Roman Empire. Huns, Goths, Vandals and Francs created chaos by constantly fighting and invading Europe. Known as dark ages as not enough time to do art. Many years later Europe had been split into many empires but controlled by the Roman Catholic Church.

Byzantine empire on the other hand (east)

Iconoclasm sought to removal and destruction of paintings and sculptures. Didn't want people to look at physical beauty but spiritual beauty. Churches had veiled Mary but mostly had geometric patterns on walls. Churches are in control, so art often used religion as subject matter. West was a patron of the art because of the church therefore they had more freedom to do art.

Artist became more realistic in portrayal of the world. ( Giotto was known as father of art, starting to move towards naturalism) Romans would bury you in a catacomb. This would accommodate a large number of bodies. This is where Christians would practice their religion. Constantine first Roman Empire to recognize Christianity. Justinian (in brightest clothing and has a halo as he paid for it and smack bang in the middle) 

Put 'maximianvus' In front as he is more important and has his name but can't make him look better as Justinian paid for it. Maximianvus feet are in front but top half of his body is at the back. Justinian and his wife are facing each other.

Title: Justinian and his attendance.

Medium: Mosaic

Period: Byzantine Art (6th Century AD)

Description: Emperor surrounded by his army and members of the church.

Elements of art and principles of design:

Line: Lots of 'definite' straight line(no curve so not feminine)

         Vertical(creates rhythm and movement)

          Vertical lines make figures more prominent, easier to see as church had no                                                                         electricity.

          Figures have been stretched.

Tone: Justinian(main figure) is in dark tone which creates a focal point.

         * Here tone is not used to make 3D dimension

Colour: Very natural, earthy colours

            Lots of gold has been used as it is symbolic of "God" and wealth.

            Purple outfit symbolizes royalty

Shape: Bodies are repeated which creates a sense of harmony

             Bodies are also out of proportion as they are long and elongated

Texture: Not naturalistic, visually quite flat.

             *TESSERAE - tiles(if you had to run your hands on it, would be rough)

Space: Quite crowded

            Feels claustrophobic 

            Flat 

            Confusing as two main figures:

           1)Justinian- arms are in front of Maximianvus

           2) Maximianvus- feet are in front of Justinian

           Has depth as the figures overlap one another

Louise Jennings- seascape by Lara Rabinowitz

1. Kwazulu natal society of art.

2. Ceramics association of Southern Africa and Interpreting ceramics.

3.  Seascape, louise jennings, clay, R1500.

4.  Coil building. The artist stacks long coils of clay, spiraling upward. The artist will then smooth out the edges to create a smooth cylindrical object.

5.  The piece consists of cylindrical mugs and they are glazed. 

6. The cups are very well sculpted, as the heights vary and this gives them a sense of movement. The colours are tranquil and this caught my eye immediately. The different techniques the artist used to create movement throughout the cups and the contrasting shades of blue draws attention go the piece. 

7. Colour. The colours used in the art piece are blues and greens. The colours are used to create a tranquil feeling throughout the piece. The artist also places the lighter mugs on the outside and the two darker mugs in the middle. This creates a focal point for the viewer.

Line. The lines of the cups create a vertical movement.

Texture. There is implied texture by the way the artist paints vertically using darker/lighter colours then the bass colour. The mugs are also painted wit glaze and thus would be given a smooth texture. Therefore there is infact some sort of smooth texture.

8. Yes the artist is well established. She received a highly commended award from the ceramics south Africa.

9. Yes, the cups are placed in a row directly at eye level, the way they are placed draws your eye directly to the first one and then across all of them. 

10. The piece consists of mugs therefore they are able to be used as a utensil

Georgia Gutteridge Kznsa blog

 Art Knzsa

1) Kwa zulu natal society of art

2) interpreting ceramics, ceramics association of southern Africa Kzn region

3) a tall vase sculpted by Garth Hoets: aprox 60cm 

 R 1435

Description: tall narrow vase with figures stoneware

Medium: Reduction fired clay 

4) I think the artists has used the coil method as the coil method can be used to make long cylindrical objects.

5) The shape of the vase is long and as it reaches the top it narrows then curves, the shape of the vase depicts the women on the vase, as the women's body has long legs and a curved waist. The glazed effect adds to the women's physique. Form would be a sculpture.

6) The art piece I chose is very mysterious, because of the mysteriousness i wanted to look deeper into the meaning of the piece, this revealing that the picture of the women imitates the shape of the vase.

7) colour: the colour of the vase adds emphasis to the meaning, the dark brown colour of the vase makes the silhouette women stand out making the curves of the vase stand out.

Form: the main design of the vase is the women so because the vase is tall it makes        me as a women feel powerful and strong.

Line: this artwork is very curvy enhancing the womanly theme.

8) Yes they do,  http://garthhoets.co.za 

9) yes, the artwork has been displayed in its own space with nothing near it this making it the main focal point.

10)yes you can use it as a utensil.

Untitled-Astrid Dahl

Georgina Zaloumis 

1. KwaZulu-Natal Society of Arts.

2. The name of the group is KZN Ceramics Association and the the title is "Interpreting Ceramics".

3. 

Title:  Untitled.

Name of artist: Astrid Dahl.

Material: Earthenware (Terracotta) 

Size: 60cm

Price: R20 000

Colour: White 

4. I think the artist has sculpted this by hand, using the pinch pot method, as this piece has a very complex design. It would therefore be rather difficult slab or coil building this design as it has a very intricate shape. She would have used sand paper to sand her piece down so it appears smooth and harmonious. 

5. Dahl's work is an unglazed sculpture made of earthenware(Terracotta). It has an organic shape which is expressive and powerful. From a side glance this piece appears to look abstract and mysterious but from a birds eye view it depicts a delicate flower. 

6. I love the harmony in this piece as it gives it an uncomplicated look to it. Close up the line draws your eye into the piece and makes it look mysterious but from far away you see it for what it really it is, a delicate flower. I chose this piece to study because it was one of the few pieces that really stood out and didn't disappear amongst all the other ceramic pieces as it's at first 'complex design' made it unique.

7. The organic lines as an element of art lead the viewer's eyes towards the focal point and into the intricate design, creating movement. The curves of the line make it feminine and expressive. 

The texture of the piece is smooth(real tactile as it is a sculpture). This makes you imagine how the flower petals would feel. This balances the piece as no particular side overbalance the other.

The geometric space of this piece creates a sense of harmony. This gives the piece an uncomplicated and elegant look as the pattern is repeated.

8. Astrid Dahl is a well established artist as she has own her website which you can view and purchase her work from (http://www.astriddahl.co.za) and she is currently exhibiting her art at the KZNSA.

9. The piece is displayed on a white wooden box in the middle of the room. This enhances the viewing as the piece is a 3D sculpture and this box allows you to have a 360' view of the piece. From a side glance it looks abstract and powerful but when you view it from above it looks delicate. This allows you to see the organic lines that make up the flower.

10. Purely for display.

Visit to KZNSA - Chia Chi Chen

1. KwaZulu Natal Society of Art

2. The exhibition is called 'Interpreting Ceramics' and it was organized by the Ceramics Association of Southern Africa KZN Region.

3. Title: Counting Clouds

Name of Artist: Carol Hayward Fell

Material: stoneware and porcelain

Size: approximately 30 x 20cm

Price: R4170

4. The artist used the slab building method to create this sculpture.  This involves rolling out slabs of wet clay then moulding and cutting it to the desired shape.  The texture for the horse's mane, tail, and the bird's feathers were carved in, while the clouds around the horse were added on.

5. The sculpture depicts a horse with a bird on it's back.  The horse has a pattern of cloud-like shapes around it's body while the bird has feathers. The piece is white and has not been glazed.

6. I really like this sculpture as it is very unique, yet still elegant. I chose this piece to study as the pattern on the horse's body was very interesting and it caught my eye.

7. Colour: The entire sculpture is white.  This creates a sense of harmony in this piece.

Texture: There is real texture around the horse's body (cloud shapes), the horse's mane and tail and on the bird (feathers). These different textures create contrast in the sculpture.

Shape: There are organic cloud-like shapes around the horse's body. The repetition of these shapes creates rythm.

8. The artist is well established, she has a Facebook page ( https://www.facebook.com/pages/Carol-Hayward-Fells-Carolart-Studio-her-Ceramics/123707121009712?fref=photo )

9. The piece was placed on a fairly tall stand that I was able to walk around. This enhanced my viewing of the piece as I was able to see all around the sculpture and I could see the details very clearly.

10. The piece is purely for display

Rebecca Campbell

Visit to KZN ceramic exhibition
Rebecca Campbell 10B

1) KwaZulu Natal society of art

2) Interpreting ceramics-ceramics association of Southern Africa KZN region

3) 15Tb. VICTORIA VERBAAN
   Cat with gold leaf
   R5000
   LORRINE DE RICHELIEU4) This piece is most likely coil built. Coil Building is when you take a pliable material (usually clay) then roll it until it forms a long roll. Then, by placing one coil on top of another, different shapes can be formed.

5) This piece is three dimensional and depicts a cats head with a human body. The piece is glazed but there is a texture under the glaze.

6) I find this piece very interesting, the golden cat head drew me to the piece. The pop of gold on the top and paleness on the bottom makes this piece very different.

7) Colour- the colours used are gold and white, the gold head instantly attracts the viewers to the top of the sculpture.
Form- the sculpture is three dimensional. The sculptures length is much longer than the width.
Space- the background is white and clean drawing more attention to the foreground which is  the sculpture.

8) No, the artist does not have a website

9) No, the sculpture is framed and hanging on the wall meaning you cannot walk around and see the back of the sculpture.

10) this piece is for display

KZNSA Gallery - Khevna Rajput

Ceramics exhibition

1). Kwa-Zulu Natal Society of Art

2). Interpreting ceramics

     Ceramics Association of Southern Africa KZN Region

3). Title: Large Plates

     Artist: Rayson Hiyani

     Material: Plates, paints, pencils

     Size: 30cm diameter

     Price: R850

4). The artist had used a method from Kamel Potteries. Some of these included using a pottery wheel. Throwing clay on a spinning wheel is a process where you start off with wet clay and mold it using your hands applying gentle pressure into the shape of a plate.

5). The colours used in this artwork are very natural (browns, shades of black and white).  Value is also used as contrast and enhances the depth of the cows face. The artwork is glazed.

6). This piece captured my attention because the artist had used different techniques by using both pencil and paint to create an unusual effect. The piece showed a sense of harmony and simplicity. I felt that the artwork represented unity. 

7). Colour: the colours were very natural with tints and shades included. A brownish red was used. This is effective because the artist tried to keep it realistic by using brown but he also added some naturalistic effects by adding value and a gloss in their eyes.

     Space: there's some space in the background which creates an illusion of depth.

     Texture: the texture used on the cows look quite smooth and it's glazed hence it feels smooth at the same time. This emphasizes the smooth texture.

8). No, the artist is not very well established and he doesn't have a website.

9). The piece is viewed from a wall which enhances the viewing because it is seen as an artwork for display rather than a utensil.

10). I think it would be reasonable to use it for display purposes but it could also be used as piece of utensil.