Essay HUM FPX 1100 Assessment 1 Cultural Artifact Analysis JJ

HUM FPX 1100 Assessment 1 Cultural Artifact Analysis JJ

HUM FPX 1100 Assessment 1 Cultural Artifact Analysis JJ

HUM FPX 1100 Assessment 1 Cultural Artifact Analysis JJ

Assessment 1: Cultural Artifact Analysis

Describe your reactions to the artifact including the artistic elements, time period, and materials use to create the artifact. How does it make you feel?

The Artifact I choose is “The First Steps, After Millet 1890”. This artifact is produced by Dutch artist Vincent van Gogh. This artifact is rich in artistic elements and the artist considered it to be “a translation” of Millet’s work. Van Gogh was well-known for his artistic elements which included rich painting process on canvas, a technique known as impasto. Impasto, which is an Italian word for “paste” or “mixing,” is a painting method in which paint (typically oil) is applied so thickly that the texture of brush strokes or palette knife is plainly apparent. This depicts the happiness of a father and mother when their child walks for the very first time on his own. He started the work in early 1889 and it was completed in 1890 when van Gogh was in an asylum and he used oil on canvas to create the artifact. 

The artifact gives me a calming effect and I felt all the warmth and happiness by my parents by seeing the picture. This artifact gives a general soothing and calming effect. The colors used in the artifact are mostly cool natured colors and cause a relaxing effect on body. It gives me the memories of my parents love and affection. The artifact gives a refreshing view of village or rural life and tries to rememorize the simplicity of life and gives me the feeling to leave the hassle of the city and live some days at a rural area. 

HUM FPX 1100 Assessment 1 Cultural Artifact Analysis JJ

Describe the historical and artistic contexts of the artifact. What do you need to know about it?

At October 1889, Theo van Gogh sent a set of copies of works by Jean-François Millet to his brother Vincent in Saint-Rémy, including a photograph of the sketch from which this picture was reproduced. Van Gogh squared the photograph before he chose to reproduce it in January 1890, and it is currently housed in the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam. The original Millet drawing is presently on display at the Lauren Rogers Museum of Art in Laurel, Mississippi. Millet created at least two more copies of this composition, one of which is currently in the Cleveland Museum of Art and the other of which was formerly in the collection of Georges Petit in Paris.

Van Gogh got black and white copies or pictures of other artists’ works from his younger brother Theo and utilized the material as his themes. The artist, van Gogh saw his copies of other artists’ works as “interpretations” and “translations,” and he equated his position as an artisan to “that of a pianist performing music created by another composer.” He would use a black-and-white photograph as his inspiration and “improvise color on it” at his improvised studio in a locked cell.

Interpret the meaning of the artifact using the historical and artistic contexts to support the interpretation. What is the meaning of the artifact?

As per historical context, art from the past can provide insight into life at that time. We can understand the culture that created a masterpiece by studying its symbolic meaning, color schemes, and materials. That also applies to this artefact. First Steps, After Millet emphasizes the importance of preserving the health of women and children against contagious diseases, many of which are avoidable and have declined as a result of public health interventions and advances in medicine. During the turn of the twentieth century in the United States—a decade after van Gogh created this artifact—for each livebirth of 1000, roughly 100 newborns died before the age of one year, and 6 to 9 mothers died of pregnancy-related problems.

As per artistic context, Van Gogh stayed mostly true to Millet’s sketch in the painting, including the clothing hanging on the fence, the spades laid out across crop rows as in ground, and the stance and expressions of the man, lady, and kid. He altered the aspect somewhat, showing the sky, including a barrier, and extending the gap between the individuals. Van Gogh ignores face features in order to express the timeless sentiment of a sensitive moment. In contrary to Millet’s lines, which are far more fluid and employ just a monochrome palette, he drew his interpretation with distinctive quick, connected, curving strokes and relied on subdued colors of browns, blues, and greens, as well as wisps of white. First Steps, After Millet highlights the importance of safeguarding women’ and children’s health against contagious disorders, many of which are avoidable and have declined as a result of prevention efforts, vaccination campaigns and medical advancements.

HUM FPX 1100 Assessment 1 Cultural Artifact Analysis JJ

As per the meaning of the artifact, it represents a pivotal point for many families and their children. As the small kid waddles from her mother’s anchoring hands, father and daughter face one another with arms extended.

Connect to the cultural values conveyed through the artifact. How does the artifact relate to you? What similarities or differences are there between your own cultural perspective and those presented in the artifact?

Vincent Willem van Gogh was a Dutch post-impressionist artist who became one of the most renowned and important characters in Western art after his death. He made over two thousand artworks in a decade, including approximately 860 oil paintings, the majority of which came during the last two years of his life. Post-impressionists rejected traditional subjects in favor of modernism, wishing to make to achieving that represented the environment during which they existed. They were united by an emphasis about how sunlight might define a specific moment, with color giving identity rather than black lines. This artifact also depicts this post impressionism and depicts the importance of safeguarding women’ and children’s health against contagious disorders, which was not a thing at that time.  Essay Module 3 Roles and Their Transformations on the Way to Electronic Medical Records

I can completely relate to the cultural perspective depicted in the artifact., As a nurse, I regularly sees the same expressions depicted in the artifact. Indeed, in the era of 1890-1900, there was a huge risk of contagious and epidemic diseases and this image depicts that cultural perspective. But now there is a huge difference due to latest medical breakthroughs and modern health care systems. 

Reflect on what you learned about how culture shapes our perspectives and impacts the decisions you make about the meaning of the cultural artifact. How does your cultural perspective shape your response and connection with the artifact? Did your feelings about the artifact stay the same or change after you engaged with it?

Culture has the potential to manipulate our perception of things. It seemed far too clear to be an argue. Countless research has revealed that people from diverse cultures view and interpret stuff differently, which is most likely owing over how the civilization formed their mindset. Our culture can influence how we spend quality time, and also how we understand us and the others. It has an impact on the value systems we perceive to be good and bad. This is how our society dictates our judgments. However, our decisions can have a consequence upon others, as a result, help form our society.

Mothers and children die at a greater percentage in underdeveloped countries than in affluent countries. Every step I take, contributes to the development of a stronger worldwide culture that promotes the health of moms and their young children. Even tiny measures, such as those figuratively represented by van Gogh, are critical for bolstering public health initiatives to enhance mother and child health.

 I feel that artifact should stay the same and motivate other nurses like me to take steps to make the world a better place for mother and child by doing great work and take inspiration from this great artifact. 

References

Breedlove, B., & Gensheimer, K. (2019). The Power of First Steps. Emerging Infectious Diseases, 25(8), 1620.

Vincent van Gogh | First Steps, after Millet | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. (2013). The Metropolitan Museum of Art. https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/436526

HUM FPX 1100 Assessment 1 Cultural Artifact Analysis JJ