Art and Identity: The Museum of Art

     Art has a long list of things which are considered when looking at it. For example, when one looks at an art work they take in the colors, the emotions or memories it may bring which are usually subject to interpretation. They also define many things in different ways. Here we’ll be focusing on the following: individual, cultural, and historical identity.

   “Girl before a Mirror” by Pablo Picasso shows a woman staring at her reflection in the mirror. On one side she is young, vibrant and somewhat angelic, in her reflection she seems to be older. The younger side shows her to be content almost perfect whilst the reflection shows her face a bit distorted and woeful. This shows individual identity by the woman looking into the mirror trying to find herself. She sees an older version of herself in the mirror like many of us try to depict the many aspects of our future lives.    

   “Study of Perspective - White House” by Ai Weiwei, is a photograph of a person sticking out is middle finger at the White House. Looking at this photo, one may conclude that the person was quite upset with either the president or just the government as a whole. This here shows cultural identity for the reason that the person is feels discontent with which in this case seems to be the White House making him the minority. In many cultures the feeling is relatively the same. Many feel that their government is ruining their way of life and obliterating everything they worked so hard for.

  Bill Brandt’s “In the Public Bar at Charlie Brown’s, Limehouse” shows historical identity because it displays the well known bar scene seen throughout time. Movies, TV, and even music make the bar a place which one uses as a getaway from their problems or just to have a good time with friends. One example of this is the 1980’s sitcom “Cheers”. The most memorized lyrics of the theme song are, “Sometimes you wanna go, where everybody knows your name, and they’re always glad you came…” makes this very clear.

   In conclusion, this marks the end of our educational journey through time. Cultural, individual, and historical identities go hand-in-hand due to the fact that all individuals are part of a culture which at one time or another went through a historical event. 

Information on Artworks ( In order of appearance)

Artist: Pablo Picasso 
Name: " Girl before a Mirror"
Medium: Painting
Year: 1932

Artist: Ai Weiwei

Name: Study of Perspective - White House
Medium: Photograph
Year: 1995 - 2003

Artist: Bill Brandt
Name:In the Public Bar at Charlie Brown's, Limehouse
Medium: Photograph
Year: 1992