Month: March 2014

After finishing up one of my finals on Thursday and needing a place to come down for a little bit I decided to take some time and head to the knight library to visit the development of the arts and sciences murals to help clear my mind. I first went to the west stairwell and viewed the Development of the sciences. Now for a majority of my life I have had really no appreciation for public art because I personally had no use for it. It never struck me as intriguing. However, I was able to connect with this piece and eventually developed fascination for it. I found this piece so intriguing because of the simple yet amazing way it walked you through the world’s science history and pictorially portrayed a conversation. Doss has a quote in her article that states “the dynamics surrounding public art reveal an ongoing American commitment to meaningful conversations, which are the cornerstones of an active democratic culture”(1). Now even though this piece didn’t verbally speak to me it spoke to me in other ways and allowed me to make connections to some of our course work topics. It starts from the bottom in the stone age with the discovery of fire and goes all the way through the modern period with Albert Einstein and the modern control of power. Seeing this progression through time gave me some good perspective into how far we have actually come in the world of sciences and ultimately allowed me to make the connection between this and our week 8 topic of technology. The development of the sciences opened the door for the development of technology because without one we wouldn’t have the other. For example, without science we would have never had electricity which gave power to phones which, through technology, then led to smart phones. Now entire countries are connected by these hand held devices and its only going to keep expanding as technology and science continue their advances. Seems kind of strange looking back at where we started with the building of fire and now talking to a different part of the world with a little device in the palm of your hand.

After viewing the development of the sciences for quite some time I then ventured over to the east stairwell to look at the development of the arts. This one was quite interesting as well because it also provided the viewer with a visual timeline. This one start off in the earliest primitive period with the first cave painting and shaping of earthenware. The viewer can then track the progression all the way to the modern arts which are represented by Shaw, Bernhardt, and others. This piece touched me on a more personal level because I was able to relate this progression of the arts with the topic that we discussed in week 3 which was finding the true meaning of art. The example that I used during that discussion was my father and the American flag that he built all out of wood. At the time I didn’t view this as a piece of public art because I thought the term “art” strictly meant the weird sculptures and paintings you see outside of museums. Now, after going through this class and reading this article I am in shock as to how blind I was. Doss states that, “traditional forms of American public art include figurative sculptures displayed in public spaces…often these are erected as monuments or memorials to important national figures and moments” (2). This describes to the T the purpose of my dads flag carving. He wants to present this piece to the freedom tower in NYC as a tribute to those that lost their lives in 9/11. His traditional piece of public art was a calling that he felt that he must do as a patriot of this country. He needed closure and upon completion of his piece he was provided with it.

Looking back at my original views of public art makes me sick wish that I hadn’t have been so blind. Public art is the key essence that portrays what America is, freedom and the ability to express our views without being prosecuted. Doss’s article goes on to talk about the controversy that public art brings to the table but I say let it be. As Doss says earlier, it reveals an ongoing American commitment to meaningful conversations, which are the cornerstones of an active democratic culture. If we want to remain an active democratic culture then we must not infringe on one of the very cores that keeps this together, the freedom of public art.

Purpose, Feeling, Values, Beauty, Free

Lessig brings up an amazing point in his article Comparing Cultures. Remix: Making Art and Commerce Thrive in the Hybrid Economy that I can refer to first hand in a majority of the classes that I’ve taken here at U of O. Lessig states that, “most students come from an essentially RO education(fueled by professsionals). For four years, they’ve sat in large lecture halls, with a professor at the front essentially reading the same lecture she’s given year after year…the class is a forum within which that argument happens. Students don’t listen to lectures. They help make the lecture”(85-86). A majority of the classes that I’ve had here during my stint at the University of Oregon have been organized in this fashion. The teacher gets up there, reads off his slides, tells us what we need to know, then ends class. There were no discussions of any sorts simply him talking in front of the class. Naturally kids start tuning out, getting on their phones, and opening up laptops etc. This is simply just not an effective way to teach anymore. In order for students like me to learn the material we need to be engaged.  The classes that I’ve learned the most in have been structured with more of an RW style of teaching where the teacher starts the conversation then encourages students to chime in and state their opinion of the topic and what they think it means. This leads to one thing which leads to another and before you know it the entire class is getting involved and everyone is learning. I feel that more of an emphasis needs to be placed on this style of teaching as opposed to the old RO style because this is simply the way that our generation learns. Times are changing and in order for universities to continue to provide the best educational value for their students they must evolve teaching styles to meet the ever changing learning styles of its students.