Art as a Culture

a. What were the cave artists trying to say?

The caves are sending many different messages. It’s hard to be sure what the caves actually mean because they were created so many years ago. I believe that the caves represent how important animals were to the Paleolithic people. These people were defiantly hunter gathers and lived for and by the animals. The paintings show that they had respect for their surroundings and the animals that they ate and followed. The paintings might also represent rituals that the Paleolithic people would perform or their worship to come sort of animal gods. I also think that the artist of the cave drawings were also trying to show the different types of animals that were living in their area and it showed the animals migrations.The painting could also represent a religious stand point and maybe that the animals in the paintings are very important to the Paleolithic people who painted them.

b. Why do you think that there were so many animals and not as many people in the paintings?

I think there were more animals than people in the paintings because in the culture of hunting and gathering people aren’t able to settle in one place and build homes to start a family. Before agriculture people weren’t able to settle in one place because their food was always migrating and people always had to follow the animals in order to have food to eat all year round. Hunter gathers would be able to live off the land and have food more accessible but they were never able to stay in one place for very long. The pictures show that there were probably more animals than people living in the migrating groups.The paintings could have also only been painted by one person and maybe that's why their was only one drawing of one man. 

c. What can the paintings tell us about other aspects of the life of cave dwellers or Paleolithic people?

The painting on the cave walls show that the cave dwellers had a lot of respect of animals and spent a lot of time in the caves because there were so many different paintings. The caves also show that maybe protected the Paleolithic people from the outside elements such as weather and any other dangers such as animals, floods and the heat or cold. There were many different openings to the caves which show that the people probably spent a lot of time outside. Some areas of the caves seemed hard to move around it which might show that the Paleolithic people might have been thin or shorter than we are today.

d. What difficulties did these early humans navigate in order to paint these pictures?

There were a lot of small areas in the cave and the ceilings of the caves were extremely uneven. It looks like at times that many of the people would have had to crawl or paint upside down in order to create their drawings. The people would have also had a hard time getting to some of the areas of the caves because some openings were extremely high up off the valley floor.

e. Speculate as to three (3) possible functions of this art to early humans.

The cave painting could have been created as a sacred tribute to the animal gods or they could have been created in order to honor the animals in the paintings. Because there were so many different animal painting and not very many people it also shows that maybe the Paleolithic people cared more about animals then they did about their own race. Any form of art is an expression and since we don’t know how long the drawings took to create they could have also been created to show the emotion the Paleolithic people had towards animals.

Compare the possible functions of the art from the Lascaux Caves to modern art, in all of its various forms.  What are some commonalities in function you can find in how the art of early humans and modern humans?

Art is a form of expression people create art because of a feeling they have weather that feeling is sad, desperate, happy ect. There are some many different kinds of art and there have been so many art movements throughout the centuries. The art from the caves seemed thought out and the hall with the painting of the bulls almost seem to tell a story. Some of my favorite pieces of art have an untold story or they make you wonder what the artist was thinking when they created it.

One of my favorite artists was Thomas Kinkaid. I have always loved his painting because you makes you feel like you want to jump into the painting and be there. His paintings have always expressed peace to me and everyone one of his paintings have be me want to visit one of his painted cottages or lay by one of the rivers in his beautiful settings.

For those who practice this form of artistic expression, what function does it serve?  What are they trying to communicate? (5 pts)

Art is always a way to communicate with others one way or another. Weather the artist is trying to tell a story or make a certain point art is all created different. Thomas Kinkade called himself the warrior of light and most of his paintings depicted tranquil scenes with lush landscapes and streams running near by. Many of his paintings also contained bible passages. Communicating has always been what humans do and I think paintings are a very unique way of communication. You could be telling a story through art weather you know it or not. I also believe for many people that art is an outlet and a way of expressing who they really are or who they want to be.

B. is there a complete culture surrounding this art form, i.e., a language, a set of behaviors, form of dress, etc.?  Describe and identify the features of this culture. (10 pts)

Kinkade always seemed to channel a certain kind of American vision and found a perfect way to convey it through each one of his paintings. Art does always have to comment on the things that are painted and he showed that in his work. Kinkades painting were all about a certain style and they never changed or strayed away from a certain idea. His paintings represent what Americans want to have and where they want to be. His paintings were all about the culture of beauty and peace. It always seemed like there was an underlying meaning or story to each painting and the names of each painting always seemed to fit perfectly.

c. How does this art form (and its culture) benefit society?  Are there any detrimental affects? (5 pts)

I believe that Thomas Kinkade’s art has touched many people. He claimed to be the nation;s most collected living artist and his paintings were said to be sold for around $100 million a year in sales and is said to be in over 10 million homes in the United states. Kinkade was loved by many and didn't cause any damaging affect with his paintings. His business was struggling in recent years before his death but he will always be remembered for painting beautiful cottages, rives, landscapes and being the master for light with his paint brush.