Quiz Four / Final Exam

Choose any three of the following questions -- at least one of which must be on Islamic art and at least one of which must be on Japanese art-- plus the Final Question, and answer each. Use your own words; if you use any outside sources (even those linked to the website) please use MLA format to cite those sources. As always I will be reading your answers for accuracy, clarity, and depth (of  understanding). Answers are due at the final class meeting: 10.15 on Wednesday, May 2.

1. Spirited Away: Explain the concept of aware (beauty and sadness) using examples from Miyazaki's film

2. Zen Art: explain the purposes and meaning of one specific work of art -- either Ryoan-ji, the haboku painting of Toyo Sesshu, or ukiyo-e woodblock prints -- how the work both represents the world & calls attention to its falseness

3. wabi-sabi: explain how this concept can be seen in at least two aspects of the tea ceremony or the objects associated with it

4. Hokusai's "Great Wave:" explain the meaning(s) of this image

5. Islamic Decorative Art: describe the three principal types of decoration used in Islamic art, and what they all have in common.

6. Mosque: describe the essential and most common features of a mosque and the purpose of each.

7. Taj Mahal: who made it, and what is it for? Describe at least three ways of looking at the Taj.

8. Final Question: Our college's General Education program requires all students to complete work in each of ten different areas of competency. Below are descriptions (from the catalog) of two of them. Choose one of these competencies -- either Cultural Literacy or Diversity and Social Consciousness -- and explain how your work in this class fits that description. Use at least two specific examples from the course material to support your answer.

Cultural Literacy: To develop the skills and cultural knowledge base necessary for effective membership in the larger community; to read and comprehend artifacts and texts in their historical and cultural contexts.

Diversity and Social Consciousness: To demonstrate an awareness of the diversity that exists among all human groups, and to develop the necessary skills to understand diverse cultures and traditions.

Islamic Art: Taj Mahal

Taj Mahal Links:

Wikipedia entry

Asian Historical Architecture

Islamic Architecture

MANAS (UCLA)

1001 Wonders 

Photosynth Image

Other Videos

History Channel Construction Description (can't embed)

Overly Dramatic National Geographic Documentary [1/10]

Tourist's Home Video [SLYT]

Bonus Pop Culture Bit: "Taj" scene from  Salaam-e-Ishq. In this film with six interlocking love stories, an American woman comes to India to meet the Indian man who ran away from her. Meanwhile, a taxi driver dreams of meeting the perfect. Because of language confusion, the taxi driver takes her to the Taj Mahal instead of the Taj Hotel. She's upset. He tries to help. Eventually they find her "fiance" -- at his wedding -- but twoo wuv wins the day. It's a Bollywood film with a Bollywood ending. (And it's mostly in Hindi -- deal with it. )

Islamic Art: Mosques: the Shah Mosque, Isfahan, Iran

the Shah (or Imam) Mosque, Isfahan, Iran

Wikipedia

World Heritage Panorama
Asian Historical Architecture
Islamic Arts

Islamic Art: Mosques

The site "Islamic Architecture" offers links to a lot of information about Islamic architecture, including articles on both specific buildings and on general topics.  For example, the article on mosques describes the history, functions, and uses of mosques, and gives links to many specific mosques in different parts of the Islamic world

Particularly important mosques to look at would include:

• the Masjid al-Haram in Mecca, Saudi Arabia
• the Masjid al-Nabawi in Medina, Saudi Arabia
• the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem
• the Great Mosque in Damascus, Syria (7-5)
• the Great Mosque in Kairouan, Tunisia (7-8)
• the Mezquita in Cordoba, Spain (7-11, 12, and 13) and here & here
• the Djenne Mosque in Timbuktu, Mali (10-1 and 10-8) more
• the Mosque of Selim II, Edirne, Turkey (7-20 and 7-21)
• the Great Mosque in Isfahan, Iran (7-2)

The article on Mosques at Wikipedia is also excellent, as is its article on Islamic Architecture

A couple of the most important Islamic buildings that are not mosques:

• the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem (7-2 and 7-3)
• the Taj Mahal in Agra, India (2-6)

MOSQUE FEATURES:

• qibla wall
• mihrab

• minbar
• maqsura
• courtyard w/ fountain
• minarets
• hypostyle hall
• iwans

Also very good is this video 

Pattern in Islamic Art

Qur'an fragment (Timurid Samarkand) attributed to Umar Aqta

Please wander through this amazing website, created by David Wade:
PATTERN in ISLAMIC ART

especially the page on the Religious Origins & Significance of the Decorative Arts in Islam

also good are the TOAH essays on

Calligraphy in Islamic Art
Geometric Patterns in Islamic Art

and

Vegetal Patterns in Islamic Art

Also very good is this page on Arts of the Islamic World at the Freer / Sackler website

Mosque Lamp of Sayf al Din (7-29) British Museum 

Carpet Fragment (Mughal Kashmir or Lahore)

Also on ArtStor 

Tile from the Alcazar in Seville, Spain

scores

In case you're inclined to worry, or are curious, here is a general set of score-to-grade equivalents.

15, 14 = A
13 = A-
12 = B+
11, 10 = B
9 = B-
8 = C+
7, 6 = C
5 = D
4 & below = F

This is total quiz score, not individual elements. Final grades will reflect an average across the quizzes and the final, adjusted by overall class performance and by individual attendance & participation. If you have any questions, let me know.

Understanding Islam (background)

PBS TV series Islam: Empire of Faith 

TV series The Prophet Muhammad [MLYT] 

History Channel Biography of Muhammad

Browse the newly reopened Islamic Art galleries at the Met (NY)

Browse the Islamic art collection at LACMA

Browse the Islamic Middle East gallery at the Ashmolean Museum (Oxford) 

Thematic Essays on Islamic Art (TOAH)

The Nature of Islamic Art (TOAH)

contemporary Japanese art

Photo of Takashi Murakami by ~FacelessRebel at deviantart

Naturally there are many, many contemporary Japanese artists worthy of attention.  Here are some links to a few of them.

To start with, there was a famous exhibition at the Asia Society in NYC called "Little Boy" in 2005; a 2007 exhibition at the same place called "Making a Home" was also very interesting.

Probably the most famous contemporary Japanese artist is Takashi Murakami. There's a Wikipedia entry with some useful links.  His page at Kaikai Kiki, the art company he founded is also useful, as is this page from an exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art (MOCA) in Los Angeles.  (There are tons of YouTube videos featuring Murakami as well.  Here's one where he's interviewed by  designer Mark Jacobs about Murakami's work for  Louis Vuitton.)

And he shows in galleries and other museums too.

Besides Murakami, Kaikai Kiki handles a number of artists
Yamamoto Gendai is a Japanese gallery handling many contemporary artists.

Other artists to look at:

• Tsuchiya Kimio
• Yoshitomo Nara
• Kohei Nawa  
• Motohiko Odani
• Chiharu Shiota
• Markio Mori
• Chinatsu Ban
• Yayoi Kusuma 

And then there's the *real* pop stuff.

• Leekspin
• Leekspin (Hatsune Miku 1) [SLYT]
• Leekspin (Hatsune Miku 2) [SLYT]
• Leekspin (Megarine Luka) [SLYT]
• no kotowari shimasu -- "No Thank You" -- (Hatsune Miku) [SLYT]
• who is Hatsune Miku?

Hokusai's "The Great Wave"

"Under The Great Wave at Kanagawa"

by Hokusai

from the series "Thirty-Six Views of Mt. Fuji"

Freer / Sackler (Smithsonian) 

Metropolitan Museum of Art

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

British Museum

The BBC's "History of the World in 100 Objects" (no. 93)

"Hokusai: A Man Before His Time" (Freer / Sackler)

"Hokusai: Mad About Painting" (Freer / Sackler)

Wikimedia Gallery of works by Hokusai

ukiyo-e

ukiyo-e resources:

Wikipedia article

"Art of the Edo Period" (toah)

"Woodblock Prints in the Ukiyo-E Style" (toah)

"Art of the Pleasure Quarters and the Ukiyo-E Style" (toah)

The Production of Japanese Woodblock Prints

"The Floating World of Ukiyo-E" (Library of Congress)

Lots of Good Examples (mia)

"The Floating World" (ashmo)

wabi-sabi

Shino ware water jar "Kogan"

wabi-sabi

wabi-sabi Aesthetics

"In Search of Wabi-Sabi"

from about 6.00 on = tea ceremony

30 Translations of (and notes on) Basho's most famous haiku