This is a painting by Natalia Goncharova called "Picking Apples" (1909). The picture mostly consists of a group of people sitting and standing near an apple tree. Some are relaxing in the grass while others appear to be catching apples as they fall. All of the people are wearing modest clothes of white, pink, or blue. In the background are a couple of hills and a few horses and houses. The scene either takes place at dawn or dusk. It is immediately apparent that this painting was done for a proletariat audience. For example, the emphasis of the painting are the people, who are clearly peasant workers. This can be seen from their simplistic form and color. Their clothes are either one or two solid blocks of color instead of intricately detailed as usually seen in a bourgeois subject. Also, the people are barefoot and their actions involve picking apples or letting their horses graze the land, both of which depict a rural proletariat lifestyle. The emphasis of the painting can also be the close interactions the peasant people have with one another. Goncharova was probably trying to inspire a sense of unity between the people in the proletariat class in the hopes of changing the current social hierarchy of bourgeois power. This can be seen from the relaxed state the subjects are in, from leaning against a tree or lying on their belly in the grass; the comfort they share amongst one another is akin to a family. Furthermore, the ambiguity of the scene taking place either at dawn or dusk, as evidenced by the strokes of pink day merging with the strokes of blue night, creates an idea that these people are not consumed with time. By doing so, Goncharova casts the peasant workers in a positive light, as good, stress-free people who socialize and work on their own time. This was probably Goncharova's idealistic view of how a communist society should be. By painting works such as "Picking Apples," Natalia Goncharova awakened the power and worth of the proletariat people, ideas which in turn certainly helped stir the wheels of the Russian Revolution.
Title: Two HeadsThis is a painting by Hannah Hoch titled Two Heads (1926). It was originally titled Imaginary Bridge when it was first exhibited in Berlin in 1926. The original title is much more descriptive and helpful in interpreting the painting. The figures appear to be wooden; the one on the right represents a man and the other a woman. One source claims that this is a representation of Hoch and Raoul Haussman's stormy relationship. Haussman is known to have created similar wooden mannequin heads placed on square bases before Hoch painted this. The two figures on Haussman's neck are believed to be his wife screaming at him as he leaves her for Hoch. The message of the painting is Hoch's unfulfilled desire to have a child with Haussman. A child would make a true bridge between them.
This is a painting by Mary Cassatt called "The Child's Bath" (1891-1892). The piece contains a woman washing her child's feet. The child is on her mother's lap while the mother rinses the feet in a bowl of water. The setting appears to be in a house, possibly middle-class, as evidenced by the simple clothing and decor. The emphasis of the painting is the mother and child and the close bond they share. This can be seen from the mother's close embrace with the child, with one arm snuggled around the child's body and the other arm gently holding the child's small foot. Cassatt draws such a loving portrait of a mother a child to appease to the popular thought of the 19th century, which valued the "cult of true womanhood," or the idea that a woman's proper place was at home being a nurturing mother/wife. Much like Elisabeth Vigée-Lebrun's "Self-Portrait with her Daughter Julie," this piece resembles much of the Madonna and Child paintings seen in the Middle Ages and Early Renaissance. Also like Vigée-Lebrun, the child is wearing a toga or towel-like material, both of which associate back to simpler times of classical antiquity and conservative traditions . The incorporation of the bowl of water also played into Cassatt parroting the gender expectations of the 19th century. The water symbolizes purity, which was not only a characteristic women were expected to have, but it also enhances the idea of a mother and child's relationship as natural. Cassatt lived during a period where the women's movement was in effect. The ideals of the cult of true womanhood were being threatened and Cassatt's "The Child's Bath" was a way to calm such anxieties of social upheaval.
Artist: Mary Cassatt
Title: A Kiss for Baby Anne
I liked this painting because she is emphasizing motherhood and love. We have talked so much about the importance of maternity and the mother-daughter bond. This painting depicts these bonds we have talked so much about. The ways in which they are so close and the mother is kissing her babies cheek truly shows adoration and love. The colors in this painting are so calm; the thing that draws me in the most are the rosy cheeks of the mother and baby Anne which in turn leads you to look at the way she is kissing her cheek. Motherhood is the highest power a woman has in life. Cassatt believed that motherhood was important to all women, even a woman who has no children or doesn't marry still finds maternity important. This painting reminds me of the painting by Vigee-Lebrun and her daughter. The way they show true love through their body positions.
Title: Spring Morning In the ParkI chose this painting because Whitney Chadwick gives mention to Alice Barber Stephens and her painting The Female Life Class (1879). Unlike her painting in the book, this painting is Impressionistic. One of the main characteristics of Impressionism was capturing light in the moment. The first thing the viewer notices is the light source. It looks as if Barber Stephens captured a moment in time, a freeze-frame of the mother, baby, and nanny(?). It's like she took a picture. The female figure on the right in the background sitting on the bench is kind of cropped, which also makes the painting appear more candid. Perhaps this paiting was a result of the influence of photography.
This is a picture by Edith Hayllar called Feeding the Swans (1889). It is a portrait of a woman and a young girl on a dock feeding two swans. Further back up the dock is a man leaning towards a woman who is sitting down holding a tea cup. The background consists of a house with elderly women sitting and also drinking tea. Lining the outer edges of the painting are numerous trees. The scenic portrait of the people leisurely feeding swans and drinking tea gives off a serene and ordered tone, which acted as a direct response to the atmosphere Hayllar was living in at the time. The 19th century was a time of social unrest. There were many movements fighting for women's rights. Because many social changes were taking place, a higher demand for conservatism resulted, which can be seen in Hayllar's painting. All of the women are situated near the house, which was a symbol of a woman's social expectation to have a domestic lifestyle. The woman feeding the swan is holding hands with a child, which is another traditional symbol associated with women: motherhood. Also, the act of feeding swans itself is a nurturing characteristic, while the colors and composition of the women are light and soft, again emphasizing feminine characteristics. Despite all the numerous symbols depicting a woman's role in society, it can be argued that the emphasis of the painting is the man, who is positioned in the very center. All of the other women are cast off to the side, and most are in a submissive position (sitting down), while the man is standing up in a dominant position. The straight lines on his arms and legs versus the curvy lines of the women also reinforces the idea of strength/power, which is entitled solely to the man. He also seems to slightly hunch over towards the woman, either to help her stand up or to give her something; both of which can be interpreted to emphasize the man as being the dominant support system of a household. This idea combated with the economic changes happening at the time, in which women were fighting for positions in the workplace. Overall, Edith Hayllar's Feeding of the Swans was a reflection of gender expectations in the 19th century and the yearning to keep these traditional ideas alive despite social and economic unrest.
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