In today's blog, I will be focusing on Postmodern Art, our generation of art. While I do enjoy modernism more than Postmodern, I wanted to analyze three artists from our era in an attempt to appreciate it more than I currently do. The three I will be observing is Ahmed Mater, a Saudi artist, Han Sai Por, a sculptor from Singapore, and Barbara Kruger, and American Conceptual Artist.
Ahmed Mater
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| "Talisman - X-Ray Blue" by Ahmed Mater, 2009, UAE |
Ahmed Mater was born in 1979 in Saudi Arabia and grew up in an area a little more isolated from the strict religious thoughts on the more populated areas in Saudi Arabia. He is a Doctor and has medical training and you will often see this in the two pieces I bring you today. Both involve an x-ray, however they are both created differently and have a different tone. Talisman - X-Ray Blue is a mixed media piece that includes a chest x ray as well as a thick border that represents something more traditionally Arabic. While I have no clue what it says, I think it is beautiful. I've always enjoyed the cultural arts of the Middle East from my few "trips," to the area. Here the focal point is the x ray in the center, and the primary color used throughout this piece is a tan. Around more of the letters or designs, there is a fade of blue making it look like an ink stain or smudged ink to me. It would resemble the doodles and notes of a doctor, maybe. My wife seems to really enjoy this piece of work, and I think it would look good in our bedroom.
The second piece I will be looking at is Evolution of Man. It is no surprise to me that Ahmed would have at least one piece of work that revolves around gas. The middle East, most notably Saudi Arabia, has a huge economy based around the sale and export of oil, and on top of that, we use it in the manufacture of everything. In this piece we see a blue x ray transform into a gas pump. It appears that the person in the x ray may be holding a gun to his head, further signifying the notion that people are killing themselves for the resource. It's all black and blue in the piece making it fairly simple to look at, however the contrast from the black and blue is beautiful. This would definitely be used as a political/economic gesture.
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| Evolution of Man by Ahmed Mater, 2010, Saudi Arabia Han Sai Por
Han Sai Por is a talented sculptor who does a lot of work for public spaces. While I feel there are many works of art in public that make no sense, I see immense beauty in the work of Por. Art Tree, which resides outside of the Luxe Museum in Singapore is appropriately located. It seems like the kind of piece that would welcome you into a museum or place of learning. The trees resemble something like frog legs to me, which I find interesting, or maybe even an exaggerated version of palm trees. There are perfect lines going around the diameter of the "trunk" area then at the top each sculpture curves and has four fingers reaching out. The granite is smooth, other than the lines, which offers a physical contrast in the texture.
Barbara Kruger
My last analysis is of the artwork of Barbara Kruger, a US born feminist artist. Her artwork is not what I would call normal, even for post modern standards. They look a lot like some kind of newpaper or magazine ad, however they usually have some sort of dark tone. You Are Not Yourself features a broken mirror with a sad reflection in it. I do not know the circumstances that inspired this piece, however it can be said that the person in the photo did not like their reflection, or hated something about themselves. Maybe they had been acting against their personality and beliefs, or a traumatic event changed them. In the Untitled work, we can assume that this has to do with the information consumption of the current era. What is pictured looks like a woman undergoing some sort of treatment with a device pointed at her eye. Perhaps she is being forced to look at some possibly false information. I honestly am not sure how I feel about both of these pieces. They feel to me to be some sort of cover from a mid 2000's young adult novel cover. Some I would probably read. SOURCES: |
Unknown. “Biography.” Ahmed Mater, www.ahmedmater.com/biography.
Unknown. “Artist Profile.” Han Sai Por, 13 July 2018, hansaipor.com/artist_bio/.
"Barbara Kruger Artist Overview and Analysis". [Internet]. 2021. TheArtStory.org
Content compiled and written by Justin Wolf
Edited and published by The Art Story Contributors
Available from: https://www.theartstory.org/artist/kruger-barbara/
First published on 01 Oct 2012. Updated and modified regularly
[Accessed 15 Apr 2021]
I did mine on diversity, and I like how diverse yours are!I also really like the contrast in a lot of the works you chose. I never thought about x rays as art, but hey, they look great. Especilly when they are transformed into a truly unique peice of art.
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