Drift

Today I went roaming downtown Reno for my Drift project. I found a few things to take pictures of. I discovered a plaza that had a Starbucks, Sushi restaurant, and a Quiznos that appeared to be shut down. Through this I have gained more knowledge of my surroundings.

"Cowboys and Indians"

Chapter 2 ?'s from text. Comparison and response to John taylor(figure. 42) and Howling Wolf(figure. 43) drawings of the peace treaty at medicine creek.

1) Definitely figure. 42(Taylor) It looks more like a picture than it does an actual drawing.

2) I would think figure 43 is by far more abstract. The picture seems somewhat confusing.

3) Their forms are different in that fig. 43 is used with color and way more abstract. Fig.42 is black and white, but appears way more sophisticated.

4)  Their landscapes differ in a way that Howling Wolf is using tipis and Medicine Creek running through with indians and tipis sitting along the side of the creek.

5) I don't feel it creates a great cultural difference because they are telling the same story. They are essentially drawing the same picture. It's merely just a different way of interpretation or imagination of what took place.

6) It does in the fact that the signing and discussion is going on right there, it's kind of the heart of the picture.

7) The natives in the Taylor's work are portrayed in a sort of wild sense. The way anybody would imagine an indian. They are portrayed in a somewhat stereotypical way.
      It is ethnocentric in the sense that the indians are "Indians" and not the civilized people the Americans are in the art work.

8) The women are important as far as reproduction and the upbringing of the children. They cook and keep the tipi tidy. They are respected in the way that they take care of the little things so the men don't have to and so the men can also go hunting for their family and the rest of the tribe.

"Thy Will Be Done"-Chester Arnold 06'

"Our father which art in heaven,

Hallowed by thy name.

Thy kingdom come,

Thy will be done.

In earth as it is in heaven. Give

us this day our daily bread. And

forgive us our debts, as we 

forgive our debtors. And

lead us not into temptation, but deliver

us from evil. For thine is the kingdom,

and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen."

    Thy Will Be Done

In Chester Arnold's art work "Thy Will Be Done," a beautiful and somewhat disturbing image is cast.

        Depicted on this oil on canvas masterpiece are people: dead people, drunk people, a few normal people and those in uniform. The people in uniform are talking to each other as if they were in a controlling manner; looking around and pointing to things like the ground and other by standers. The men in uniform   While this seems normal the surroundings don’t speak the same. Complete havoc is array and appears as if no enforcement of any kind is into effect. People are laying in the dirt and appear dead. Body bags are being lifted out of the ground while others club their neighbor in the head. A truck in the background is backed up to a hole with what looks like body bags falling out of it. The whole picture just seems wrong and strange.

The title of the art work is a phrase from a very familiar prayer; one of which almost all of us have heard. Some people may even recite this prayer daily. Chester Arnold may have chose this as the title because of his religious background. Why would he use this as his title? “Thy will be done,” could mean a lot of things. It could mean the world is coming to an end. It could mean the people are acting in the state of god. It could also mean that they are just religious. I am not sure why Chester Arnold would choose such a phrase for his title of art work but it has some sort of meaning to him as an artist.

So why would Chester Arnold want to make such a painting? If he wanted the world to know how he was feeling about something couldn’t he just write it in a poem or something? In this case the only way to express this type of feeling would be to paint it; with a meaning. I feel that his message is the result of a chaotic event; one that man created. It’s like things started going to hell and so did everyone else. The people with authority are the ones in control of the situation. In the painting there are a few people carrying bodies and others who look like they are doing something with a purpose; almost like they are being told to do so. It is hard to grasp what they are doing and why? Will they live if they follow commands and protocol?

While observing the art work I noticed a concrete structure being built in the ground. It’s hard to tell exactly what the structure is but looks similar to the foundation of a house. The structure also looks like it is made out of cinder blocks. Did a house use to be there? Is a house being built? What would it be used for? My first thought is that it could be built for the dead bodies in the art work. My other thought is that it used to be a home that was destroyed for whatever reason.

This piece of art work clearly has an underlying meaning that can be described in several different ways. To pick it apart is to have a mind and imagination of your own.