For this term paper I visited the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA).
Many of the drawings and prints on display would have been great pieces to write about but there were two that demands the attention of its viewers. The Woman with Hat in an Armchair by Pablo Picasso was one of many pieces on display in the Picasso exhibit, and to me the most interesting drawing on display at LACMA at the time. The Liberated Ones is print 23 of 27 in Hugo Steiner-Prags exhibit of The Golem and from this selection it was very difficult to figure out which one to focus on. I believe that the art pieces I chose to write about are the best that were on display to represent the artist as well as being the most interesting to write about.
Pablo Picassos’ Woman with Hat in an Armchair is a 7 1/16 x 3 ¾ in. pencil on paper drawing created in 1915. Picassos signature abstracted style is perfectly displayed in this piece. The main reason why viewers are drawn to this drawing is because people get a sense of familiarity in something that they cannot clearly understand. The use of line carries the viewers eyes throughout the entire piece while breaking them up with abstracts curves and organic shapes which are not clearly identifiable. Even though the lines creating the box shapes are all mostly straight, Picasso differentiates them by have them all go in different angles which in return makes them all different and doesn’t bore the viewer. This drawing contains no color and I believe that it would be more effective if it contained at least a little color to help draw the viewers in and give their eyes more to see. Space in this drawing is very 2 dimensional but the use of the shading on the right side of the woman’s figure gives the drawing a sense of depth as well as loaction because it seems as if something is behind her in the room that she is placed in. The use of the dark block shapes within the womans form also creates a sense of space, giving the woman depth within her own figure and keeping the focus on her. The use of value, as well as the dark block and curved shapes that are placed within the women create s sense of direction starting from the bottom of the woman and ending in face of the woman; the use of value will lead the viewer to the womans face no matter where on the drawing they may look. The placement of the woman is in the center of the page and this composition resembles that of a full figure portrait. This makes me believe that this drawing was that of a real person that was done in Picassos abstracted style instead of the traditional realistic styles.
Hugo Steiner-Prags illustrated prints of Gustav Meyrinks’ narrative The Golem are a set of 27 lithographs on handmade paper. Portraying scenes from the story of the Golem, The Liberated Ones is scene 23 of the 27 prints that were all created from 1915-1916 and are 7 3/16 x 4 7/8 in. in size. It was a challenge to choose which print out of the selection to write about due to them all being so interesting in their own right, but The Liberated Ones stood out from the rest. The use of perspective as well as the closeness of the couple figures creates an intimate setting and the viewer can sense that. Perspective gives this print an amazing sense of depth that gives the viewer not only a spatial realm to look off into, but also a glimpse of the faint landscape that the couple call home. The composition of this print places the viewers right into the print behind the couple, letting us view the landscape of the city as well as letting the viewer witness the intimacy between these two figures in this moment of passion and vulnerability. The use of space as well as value helps direct the viewers’ eyes throughout the piece, and giving the viewers eyes more to see than just the couple themselves, but also an atmosphere and portion of the inside of the building which adds a lot more to the prints story. The viewers eyes cannot help but to first see the couple standing on the balcony because the two columns on each side frame them while the hanging foliage points downward upon them, then leading the eyes towards the detailed yet ghostly image of the city.
Both art pieces are amazing images, but of the two, my favorite is The Liberated Ones. The Liberated Ones is an image that can have so many narratives and I enjoy seeing the image and being able to create my own story or meaning behind it. The Liberated Ones is print that after viewing it the viewer wants to know more about it, and I believe that is something all art pieces should be able to do, they should make a viewer want to know more about the story behind it as well as the artist that created it. Even though I chose this piece as my favorite, the Woman with Hat in an Armchair is still important to me to the point I risked to take a photo after being told not to take any. Both images execute great artistic elements that show that they were masters of their time.

Bibliography

Davis, Bruce. German Expressionist Prints and Drawings: The Robert Gore Rifkind Center for German Expressionist Studies. Los Angeles, Calif.: Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Munich, Federal Republic of Germany: Prestel, 1989.

Picasso, Pablo. Los Angeles, Calif.: Los Angeles County Museum of Art; Spain.