Module 11: Video Reviews

I chose the videos “Matisse and Picasso” and “The Mystical North: Spanish Art from the 19th Century to the Present”. I selected these videos because I am interested in learning more modern art and how it developed through times that were challenging in history.

The video “Matisse and Picasso” is about the interesting relationship that Matisse and Picasso have, where they paid homage and admire each other’s work while also competing against each other. Their relationship was brought together by the Stein family who were avid art lovers who collected both of their arts. The video also shows how different Matisse and Picasso were as people, such as how Matisse loved to travel around while Picasso mostly stayed in his studio. Also, their inspiration for art was similar. For Picasso and Matisse, inspiration comes from women. However, Matisse needed a model right in front of him while painting portraits, but for Picasso he did not need any models.

The video “The Mystical North: Spanish Art from the 19th Century to the Present” is about the contributions of Northern Spain to art including producing famous artists such as Goya, Gaudi, Picasso and Giro.Modern art in Spain flourished with the contributions of these artists despite the difference in styles. Goya’s art was dark and strayed away from religion while Gaudi’s was bright and was inspired by religion. Gaudi’s art inspired artists such as Picasso, while Picasso inspired Giro’s works.

The videos are related to the readings on modern art. Modern art has flourished around the world and many artists renewed the people’s taste on art with their different approach on art and architecture through artists’ different experiences and inspirations in life.

The videos add more in-depth information on how modern art developed at the beginning of the 19^th century, especially when different events in society influenced what artists did. In the videos, artists such as Goya was influenced greatly by the events of what was happening in Spain, and so his art were mostly about death and hardships that people faced. Another example is in Picasso’s art, where his childhood memories of growing up in Barcelona and having his first sexual experience still influence his art.