STS9, Hollywood Palladium: March 2013

Song: “III. Scene Aux Champs: Adagio”

Composer: Hector Berlioz

Slow beginning with tones that just seem to effortlessly draw out emotion. As if I am sitting in suspense like I am about to witness a murder in a movie, the composition of the sound blends together staccato, or quick touches of sound. He does this with mostly string instruments. The music begins to lure me with a trance-like riff that repeats then crescendos, taking over any and all sound that was there before. It reminds me of someone trying to find something or remember a lost memory, but then, the music draws to a more intense loudness. The loudness is pleasant in the actual intonation, but it makes my soul feel like it may be pulled apart in any direction at any moment. Suddenly, the music goes back to a varied version of the original rhythm and repeating verses that Berlioz showcased earlier in the song. It makes the listener come back to their mind’s home of reality. As I listen to this, years of going to the ballet with my mom as a child come to mind. I always fell asleep, and I would be suddenly awakened when the orchestra came to a moment of loudness; later, I adapted and could sleep straight through. Maybe, this explains my ability to sleep through my alarm clock, an earthquake, or practically any noise now. In my defense, I was young and could not comprehend the appreciation ballet actually deserves. As I listen now alone during nighttime, anytime the volume draws into a section of immense volume and harsh key or pace, I feel literally terrified- imagining all sorts of possible scenarios. It’s a bit exhausting listening to an epic, for lack of a better word, race and cluster and crash of emotions evoked from the reality of seeing a whole life, a whole story go from point A to point B in my mind. My imagination is way too imaginative to listen to these epic, classical pieces with my eyes closed, but instead of being frightened by where my mind was going as I listened, I decided to use Berlioz to recharge my imagination. My creativity felt like it was finally brought back to life, like a “writer’s block” finally ending. This musical piece seems much more horrifying than any horror movie I have seen, but the composition is structured in such a way that if I step back from a moment, I picture a picturesque composition of a simple daily routine, such as two people walking in a garden. However simple though, there is still emotion; possibly a slight exaggeration of the day’s heat is the topic of the friends’ conversation. While listening, the concentration I held on the music faded in and out, because I, too, got lost in an ideal daydream. This musical piece reinforces the ideals of the Romantic Era through its intense emotion that brings about a simple and real essence of beauty, but it is just that. It is an essence of beauty. The music is composed in such a way that these beautiful verses of music radiate passion and drama that is filled with a sense of hope, yet ends in tragic circumstances. I imagine- as the music get more hectic… It reminds me of the social discontent of the time period and the confusion felt by the people throughout the continent. Through this piece, I feel as if Hector Berlioz is taking me on a merry-go-round of my life, memories here and there. I feel like the musical pieces created now and back during the Romantic era may reflect more on the listener or the culture of the time, rather than the actual artists themselves.

I keep closing my eyes, and I keep them closed.

I lie awake under lids of flesh.

Lay my head down to sleep,

My eyes’ mind is tired,

and my maid still needs to sweep.

I pace round and round.

I circle around your bed.

You’re bones linger in my memory and taunt the suppressions within my head.

I told you to leave me be, and let me live alone….

But now I am all alone, with no one to save….

You creep amongst my nightmares, keeping me in my place…

You commanded me to remain in

the exact location that you anointed to me and decided to a title it gave,

I will circle around your block just once more.

I will be the naughty pig within the pin to be slaughtered…

You present yourself in the fashion of a cultured martyr,

I am nodding of to sleep, and I am thinking of you.

Your ribs are but a mistake

DAOISM IN CHINA:

ZHANG LU AND THE EIGHT IMMORTALS

张璐

Following the Chinese Warring States Period, circa 475- 221 B.C.,

feelings of political upheaval, social discontentment, and general unrest began to surface within the minds of China’s populace. A hunger, for not only external social peace, but also for internal self-cultivation

led to an emergence of more philosophical questioning and a desire for further religious exploration. This search for a more natural and balanced approach to daily-life arose around 500 B.C., when a secular school of thought with a strong metaphysical foundation arose called Daoism.

This spiritual practice, rooted in the reality of moral existence, proves to be both complex and incomplex.

Daoist beliefs focus on the simple and lucid facets of life, despite the muted voices of uncertainty that many felt upon “the return of native rule over all of china” by the Ming Dynasty in 1368.

Concerning Daoist influences on the art and artists of the time: Zhang Lu, who supported the search for longevity and immortality in life and is known for his mastery of creating and maintaining balance in his composition and subject matter, manages to allow viewers of his art to draw their own conclusions on the people of his time period, their feelings, their actions, and how the moral of these narratives remain to ring true in contemporary terms.

Zhang Lu, born in a northern-city called Kaifeng in the Henan Province, China, lived from approximately 1464-1538. He was a famous professional master of Chinese painting and original, meaning that he worked independently; he did not rely on patronage for employment, nor was he particularly interested in works he had not imagined for himself. Although Zhang Lu was “born into an Aristocratic family and educated with imperial princes”

, Zhang chose to take the road less traveled and began painting albums informing Daoist mythology through pictorial narratives. A risky move for someone born into an Aristocratic family. Also, a risky move for someone who created art for their own purposes, instead of patronized purposes.

In Zhang Lu’s, “Album of Daoist Paintings”, it is evident that Lu enjoyed learning new methods of paintings through practice and experimentation. In this Album, Zhang’s style of brushwork could be described as “free and spontaneous”.

This particular piece by Zhang Lu is from China and was created around 1464-1538. He worked on and completed this eighteen leaf album during the reign of the Ming Dynasty, during the early sixteenth century. This piece is out for exhibition, but its real home is in the Shanghai Museum.

Zhang Lu created this extensive work on the medium of album leaves with the use of ink and light colors. He also used gold-flecked paper, and in each scene of every leaf in the album, Lu has placed a title that is inscribed in gold at the upper right corner of each leaf.

Each leaf in the album is approximately, 12 3/8 x 23 3/8 inches.

In his work, “Album of Daoist Paintings”, Zhang Lu depicts a wide range of Daoist subjects. This piece is considered significant due to the presence of the famous Eight Immortals. Zhang Lu’s album “begins with a mysterious seascape”

with a “veiled full moon” that peeks out of the clouds and hovers over the ocean waves.

In the next leaf, mountains are illustrated with a rising sun coming up over the mountains in the distance. These two first leaves of his album can be interpreted in a broader sense as a Daoist symbol within a Daoist painting.

The two pieces are meant to complement yet contrast one another by representing the cosmic forces of Yin and Yang. The moon and the sun have been considered symbols of the cosmic Ying-Yang forces for many years. When the two forces, Ying and Yang, prove to be working together and are interacting with a mutual balance of energy, it results in “qi”

. “Qi” can be described as the vital energy or life-source to which all living things are regulated by. With “qi” in order, patterns of daily life may seem predictable. An example of the “qi” between Yin and Yang would be the pattern of the four seasons.

Another piece that I would like to focus on is the leaf of this album titled, “The god of Longevity”. This god of longevity can also be referenced under the names Shou Xing or Shoulao. In this illustration, there is a man whose cranium is quite enlarged. His domed cranium suggests that he is very wise and has had many years within this universe. In fact, the large domed cranium figure can be traced back over 2000 years.

From this, it can be concluded that this figure is not just strictly a Daoist figure, but later on, beginning in the early dynasty of Ming (1368-1644).

Contextually, Zhang Lu’s “Album of Daoist Paintings” presents itself proudly along with ten other masterpieces in the traveling exhibition from the Shanghai Museum in China. Within the outlines of the other pieces present at the exhibition, Zhang Lu’s album helps the viewer piece together “the roles of imperial patronage of Ming Dynasty painters, the uses of paintings as political propaganda, and Daoist themes of transendence.”

This album was an important piece of work for Zhang Lu, for it showed his mastery of painting and his confidence in his own work. Through “Album of Daoist Paintings”, Lu showcases his capability to successfully portray important and sacred Daoist figures in a tasteful and informative way. He uses this album as a means to connect with others who are not familiar with Daoism. He strips down each leaf to just the basic messages and symbols he wants to express towards his audience. When seeing the exhibition of this album at Los Angeles County Museum of Art, I was captivated not only by the exact and precise markings of each part of each

album leaf, but I was also taken back by the overarching sense of the supernatural being present. The colors that Zhang Lu uses are very light and opaque at the same time. Also, many of the figures facial expressions look solemn as well. There seems to be a lot of knowledge being held by each of the characters, yet the titles of the leaves within the album are not somber. For instance, when looking at leaf, “The god of Good Fortune”, I wonder exactly what the god is contemplating. He seems to have a blank expression, but since he is surrounded by clouds in the piece, I assume he has reached some sort of Enlightenment or heavenly state. In Daoism, to reach this state means to forsake material possessions for intangible possessions. It makes me wonder if the god of Good Fortune regrets leaving superficial objects behind.

Zhang Lu’s “Album of Daoist Paintings” reassures his skillful understanding of how to execute “pentiment, [which can be described as] changes in design and brush-work”.

Ultimately, Zhang Lu reveals the lives of fifteenth and sixteenth century commoners, professional painters, and those considered sacred. He does this through his individuality as an artist and his confidence in the nature of his own reality. In addition to connecting the nature of reality to the nature of recreating a realistic version of life on an album leaf, Zhang Lu also bridges the gap between artists feeling the need to be patronized in order to work. He focuses on the aesthetic purposes of art and not the economical aspect of his work. In this regard, he meets his own Daoist beliefs by not focusing on the material aspects of life but rather what figure and moment is directly in front of your sight. In terms of nature and transcendence, Zhang Lu’s art rings true to many other artists, writers, and poets.

8.3 The God of Good Fortune

8.4 The God of Longevity

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Augustin, Birgitta. “Daoism and Daoist Art | Thematic Essay | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art.” The Metropolitan Museum of Art – Home. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/daoi/hd_daoi.htm (accessed April 11, 2013).

Gardner, Helen, Fred S. Kleiner, and Christin J. Mamiya. “China and Korea to 1279.” In Gardner’s Art Through The Ages: Non-Western Perspectives. 12th ed. Australia: Thomson Wadsworth, 2006. 52.

Little, Stephen. Ming Masterpieces from the Shanghai Museum. Los Angeles, CA: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 2013.

Littlejohn, Ronnie. ” Daoist Philosophy.” Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy. http://www.iep.utm.edu/daoism/ (accessed April 11, 2013).

“Ming Masterpieces from the Shanghai Museum | LACMA.” Los Angeles County Museum of Art | LACMA. http://www.lacma.org/art/exhibition/ming-masterpieces-shanghai-museum (accessed April 11, 2013).

The Metropolitan Museum of Art. “China, 1400–1600 A.D. | Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art.” The Metropolitan Museum of Art – Home. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/ht/?period=08®ion=eac#/Overview (accessed April 11, 2013).

For the benefit of Mr. KiteThere will be a show tonight on trampolineThe Hendersons will all be thereLate of Pablo Fanques’ fair, what a scene
Over men and horses hoops and gartersLastly through a hogshead of real fireIn this way Mr. K will challenge the world
The celebrated Mr. KPerforms his feats on Saturday at BishopsgateThe Hendersons will dance and singAs Mr. Kite flies through the ring, don’t be late
Messrs K. and H. assure the publicTheir production will be second to noneAnd of course Henry the Horse dances the waltz
The band begins at ten to sixWhen Mr. K performs his tricks without a soundAnd Mr. H will demonstrateTen somersets he’ll undertake on solid ground
Having been some days in preparationA splendid time is guaranteed for allAnd tonight Mr. Kite is topping the bill

-Da Beatles

http://freeonlinesurveys.com/s.asp?sid=o21o7m61y5f1xjn223496

I appreciate it oodles and oodles

and his awareness of distance has become obstruct——-

but what is desire in a world full of the compulsion to approach?

On the grounds of reciprocating, he is filling bunnies full of hope,

Loathing under trees that deserve nothing but those who know to loafe,

She is full of intentions but still keeps rebuilding past ghosts.

and  my intentions were good

I begged and I pleaded

but I was not to be stood

under I went to my own little tunnel

where I climbed and I climbed

til I was caught, and put back in my kennel

to be taught a lesson

that I already knew

was shameful and blameless

because I do what I do