Visit to the MFA

 

Fracois Boucher, French

Return from Market 1767

Paul Gauguin, French. Where Do We Come From? What Are We? Where Are We Going? 1897-1898

Peter Paul Rubens

Head of Cyrus Brought to Queen Tomyris 1622-23

Our visit to the MFA was a huge timeline from Egyptian tombs through modern painting. The Egyptians had their own language written on their drawings. They were into magic and animals. The Romans on the other hand focused on proportions of the human body, virtue & reason. Then we saw some Catalonian art from Gothic times. I really didn't like these paintings, the people were painted strange colors, like grey or greenish and had un-human like body parts (ex. fingers or eyes). They were a little creepy from what is acceptable in my mind. I wouldn't want a painting like that just because it doesn't seem like something I would want to see or remember everyday. I really enjoyed the Rubens paintings in the large hall. I remember studying his work in high school drawing class and imitating his portraits. His way to deal with light and shadow upon facial expressions is exceptional. The painting about the Head of Cyrus Brought to Queen Tomyris surprised me. I'm not used to these types of scenes by Rubens telling a story. The painting is really exquisite in detail. It is not from the time, it is a myth from the past telling a story. Then the Return from Market painting is much different in that it is supposed to be propaganda for the times. With the French Revolution just a few years away the citizens are poor, not happy and full like they seem to be in the painting. Gauguin's painting asking life questions from the modern era is a different subject matter. It is also telling a story but not attempting to gloss over details or "glam up the scene". It is a more primitive subject with simple ideas of how humans live and survive.