Is Art Alive?
Alright, first things first: a disclaimer. I keep getting 89s on these things, so I'm going all in for this one (granted, I've gone all-in for each of my previous blog posts, but... optimism for the win?) Regardless, I'm legitimately attempting to get down to the nitty-gritty of this gold weight, and I'm doing so on the rage-fuel that is the cyclical 25/28 comment that appears tauntingly at the bottom of the page each week after I publish. Let's begin.
First of all: the piece.
First of all: the piece.
The Original: Beautiful & Elegant
The Mimicry: Gross & Disgusting
The piece above, whose specific artist and title are unknown, was done by the Akan people of Ghana, Africa sometime during the 16th or 17th century. Because it's a weight, it's pretty small: specifically, 2.2 x 3.2 x 1.6 centimeters (about the size of a walnut). The entire thing is melded from brass.
BTW, when I say weight, I don't mean some heavy object you place on your papers to keep them from flying away when you're studying outside. At the time this piece was created, weights were placed on scales in order to measure gold dust in the context of trade, bartering, or payment.
Up front, the weight looks pretty simple; it's just a brass bar with an abstract aesthetic engraved into it. Honestly, I wasn't able to discern what the jive was, even after a few minutes of devoted squinting and racking my brain of any lingering WHAP knowledge. Consequently, I headed back to the description, which gently explained that the weight's image is a ram's horn, or Dwanimen. I did a bit more digging around on what Dwanimen is and found that it's a bit more complex than the mere African equivalent of a ram. Dwanimen was a symbol within a part of West African culture called Adinkra, and Adinkra was essentially a stylistic alphabet that featured 15 different symbols, often located in clothing or integrated into architecture. Dwanimen specifically was indicative of humility, strength, wisdom, and learning- characteristics that the weight itself is also representative of.
Again, as far as style and technique goes, it's pretty simple. There isn't any sort of particular manipulation involved regarding the texture, light, color, etc, though this makes sense. The weight is utilitarian, intended to serve those who are arriving in Ghana with an equitable and defined system of measurement. Why, then, is it considered art?
That's where shape and size come in. The Dwanimen pictured on the weight is tiny, and was probably dismissible when utilized as a means of quantification. In fact, the Met Museum points out that there's a fair amount of wear and tear to evidence that the weight was handled pretty casually. As the viewer in the contemporaneous time period, you'd have to be pretty friggin' attentive in order to evaluate this little guy, especially considering that you were probably waiting for a statement about the gold dust you'd previously put forward on the other side of the scale. The microscopic Dwanimen, then, serves to enunciate its inherent symbolic meanings: humility, strength, wisdom, and learning. Pause and be mindful: stop focusing so much on the palpable finances and just breathe. Money isn't everything. Allow yourself to be reminded that what is intangible may be just as important as what's getting bought and sold.
Considering that the weight is both practical and beautiful, it's packed with significance. Let's contextualize first, though. During the 16th and 17th centuries, Ghana's gold mines and natural wealth became highly attractive to European countries who sought influence in trade and community amongst the Akan people. Eager to stake out a business relationship with Western nations, Ghana completely submitted to European endeavors. Unfortunately, this included compliance in the European interest in Akan indentured servitude, which Ghanaian governments facilitated through contractual alliances and agreements. As a result, the Akan people lost much of their culture to the pursuit of urbanization and Westernization, and much of Ghana's gold was eventually exploited by foreign manipulation. (Yay, we got something from the selectively eroding WHAP knowledge!) The weight, therefore, has an additional message: in featuring the Dwanimen and remaining a subtly active facet of transitional Westernization in Ghana, the weight speaks to the attempted resilience of a culture and its identity. In the midst of social abuse for material gains, the weight is indicative of the values of the Akan people and their resistance to being brainwashed by avarice and luxuria. In its role as an heuristic object, the weight is a soft act of protest.
I checked out the man who donated the piece to the Met Museum, an economist named Ernst Anspach, and he's pretty intense. In the interview I read about him, he says that he can "feel" the art that he acquires- that there are certain "vibrations" to each piece. He mentions that sometimes he simply stares head-on at a piece until he reaches catharsis. I don't know that I felt any sort of vibrating aura from this piece, despite the fact that I drew it. But I think that I do feel the beauty of its message around me, especially within people. There are some individuals whose touch, whose laugh, whose eyes are enough to make you slow down and marvel at all the goodness in the world. Ultimately, I think that's what this piece is a reminder of: that no matter what the heck is going on, there's always beauty in the world.
Citations:
Carraway, Tom. February 1984. Profile: Ernst Anspach. African Art. http://www.randafricanart.com/Ernst_Anspach_interview.html. Accessed 18 November 2018.
N.a., n.d. Art and Life in Africa: Akan. The University of Iowa. https://africa.uima.uiowa.edu/peoples/show/akan. Accessed 18 November 2018.
N.a., n.d. Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. The Metropolitan Museum. https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/1994.312.4/. Accessed 18 November 2018.
N.a., n.d. Adinkra Symbols. Chicago State University Library. http://library.csu.edu/asc/AdinkraSymbols.pdf. Accessed 18 November 2018.
Sweet pick! Love that you looked beyond the traditional Western/European pieces most students choose for this post.
ReplyDeleteANNE ROSS PENDER you have outdone yourself once again. I really liked the research you did on the object. It was interesting how you explained its use in the society in which it was used. I also liked how you took the time to fully unpack the significance of this object, both in its functional use and its appearance. Your visual analysis of the piece was used well, highlighting the kind of plain Jane appearance of the artwork. When you said it didn't have anything special going on, I got kind of nervous, but when you explained this further, it was really solid application.
ReplyDeleteHi!! I love reading your blog posts. Also, thank you for the elaboration on what you meant by "weight"- I was slightly confused what it was but your explanation made the rest of the post easier to understand. I also liked the posed question of why the piece is considered art. I hadn't thought about this when doing my own analysis of a salt container in my last blog post. The historical context you provided also made it a lot easier to understand what exactly was going on. Furthermore, I just have to say that your concluding sentences made me tear up a little bit- that was beautiful.
ReplyDeleteHey Anne Ross! I was totally infatuated with this post, definitely think you will get that smooth 90! Come on Mrs. G! Anyways, you did a great job analyzing the piece of art and incorporating external knowledge from extra research you completed. Your interpretation was very thorough and explained to the audience the importance and purpose of the weight. I greatly enjoyed reading your blog post- as usual!
ReplyDeleteShe did :)
DeleteHey Anne Ross, I really liked your post... until the end. Disenfranchising those who feel the vibrations of the universe is totally not cool. In fact, everything in the universe is vibrating; by our understanding of the kelvin scale, all matter vibrates... but I digress. I liked how you gave context for the West African slave trade; however, I feel that the language used ("Akan indentured servitude") comes across as euphemism. interesting read though. I'm totally... "infatuated"... with it... (?^)
ReplyDeleteHey Anne Ross! Sophie actually told me to read your posts because they delve beyond the monotony of the typical "research paper" feel of some other blogs. I really enjoyed this post! You made it rather interesting to read about art when the analysis of art is certainly not my strong suit, (ask me again why I used my freebie this week...)
ReplyDeleteAnyway, your analysis of the piece was very strong. I agree with Sophie, THANK YOU for the specific mention as to what the heck this actually was, because I was imagining a paperweight like you said. The amount of effort you put into this topic is very clear in your use of outside information. It was very interesting to then read about the art donor (who doubles as a collector and analyzer...) and the way that he feels about art. Great job! Thank you for making this an enjoyable read. I hope you get that A!
First of all, great piece of art to choose. I think that it is very cool how the weight is practical art, I feel that that's the way to go if you’re making something you might as well make it worth your time. Something to consider is where the weight was used because I can see why someone would spend the time to make it look nice if they were to carry it around and show it off but not if they just kept it in their shop. I also liked how you tied the small details of the piece and the guy who donated it together to make a point about the beauty in the world no matter what.
ReplyDeleteHey Ann Ross, this blog post was an absolute heater. If you don't get an A on it (c'mon Mrs. G) then I will be surprised. I really appreciate the hard work you clearly put into the research behind this piece which is evident in both your explanation of the piece itself and your analysis. I thought it was cool how the weight was, as you said, practical art, I think that this is definitely an indicator of what life was like in that period for many reasons. On a side note, It would be mad cool to know where someone would have used it seeing as it's all ornate and all. Like was this in their living room, or office, or whatever.
ReplyDeleteHey Anne Ross!
ReplyDeleteGreat blog post. I loved how you dove deep into this piece and even used some of your historical knowledge (go whap!!). Your blogs are always fun to read and you made analyzing a gold chunk of metal look like a piece of cake. Keep rocking the blogs girl!
Well done Anne Ross. This is already a cool piece of art, but your analysis really brought it to life for me. I have to admit, your paragraph about the art dealer who bought it was interesting and helped me better understand the piece itself. The history of how it was used rather than you just going into the bits and pieces of what it looks like was awesome. I look forward to reading more of these.
ReplyDeleteHey Anne Ross! While reading this post, your insightful analysis allowed me to make many connections. For example, in art, we are currently talking about the difference between arts and crafts. I believe you captured the essence of the argument by explaining that although it was utilitarian, it had a deeper meaning that elevated the currency to become art. You'd get an A++ as an art student! :) Another connection was tied to the TED Talk I just watched for the most recent blog post. In the beginning of this post, you weaved together a relatable story that engaged me as a reader. As one of many who understands the deterioration of WHAP knowledge and the unfortunate Bs of blog posts, this initial narrative heightens the interest in the post. It is something I have seen you do many times, but I am now making the connection to the impact it has on drawing the reader in to assist you in making your argument. Once you introduced your argument, I was pleased by the obvious research you had put into this. It definitely assisted the credibility of your post, and supported your argument. Keep up the good work!
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