Devendran 1
Ivana
Devendran
Student
#: 999719265
Key
Questions in Humanities
Due
date: March 16th, 2013
David Harper’s Fascination with Remembering
In David R. Harper’s art exhibit Entre le chien et le loup, on view at the Doris McCarthy
Gallery located at the University of Toronto Scarborough, feature pieces
displaying taxidermy-based sculptures, embroidered prints and ceramics. The
talented artist has mastered all of these complex art mediums among his other
accomplishments, which is impressive due to his young age. The unusual French
title of the exhibit is translated as “enter [SR2]the dog and
the wolf” expresses the specific time of day just before night. The reference
to the dog and the wolf is that at this time, a dog and a wolf could not even
be told apart because of the great darkness. This title is ambiguous as it also
suggests themes of uncertainty and the unknown. David Harper introduces the
concept of liminality, which is the in-between and seeing things from a
different perspective.
The
intention of Harper was to make you question what you’re viewing through
memorializing and remembering, and this is represented through his artwork. There is a
lot of care and craftsmanship that went into creating these pieces, and with
the gallery as a whole, there is symbolic meaning that differentiates between
memories and the present[SR3].
Devendran 2
Theme is integral in these pieces
because they all have unique qualities from the materials that are used to make
them, as well as the meanings behind them. Theme [SR4]is
attributed in not only the title of Harper’s gallery but also in the titles of
the works which all behold their own respective meanings and significances.
According to Glyn Davis in The Ideology of the Visual
“If an artist decides to devote time to the production of an image, then surely
he or she must desire to make a statement with that picture” (Davis 5).
This statement relates to David Harper’s work since
he exudes great effort and skill to produce his works. He shows a great amount
of craftsmanship in his art as he takes on painstakingly difficult tasks in the
processes of creating his pieces[SR5]. The
thematic elements that are presented in the pieces are intentional of the
artist as he is establishing what is considered as the unknown and the
in-between, as well as memorializing and the idea of memories representing
remembrance. For example through one of his pieces in the gallery called To Remind, or to Warn, there are two taxidermy-style wolf
sculptures: one in black surrounded by black roses and a snake and the other in
white and surrounded by white urns. The theme being conveyed when viewing the
wolves is clear[SR6] as they are
representing a memorial with the urns, which are used to hold the ashes of a
deceased individual, and the black roses as flowers are usually placed over the
dead. Harper was specific as to placing the white urns around the white wolf
because the color white is associated as a symbol of purity and innocence. The
choice of utilizing the colors of black and white were also intentional as with
the theme the artist was trying to convey.
Devendran
3
These
particular colors suggest symbolic meaning of uncertainty within them, and
depict a sense of realism in how they are representing the remembrance of the
dead.
In Harper’s piece called I Tried, and
I Tried, and I Tried, the evident theme is glorification and
celebration. This work consists of a reproduction of the famous painting called
Napoleon crossing the Alps by
Jacques-Louis David, which displays the celebration after Napoleon and his army
successfully cross the Alps. This painting depicts Napoleon posing on top of a
white stallion as if riding it in mid-air. The white stallion can be
representative of something significant which makes sense as this piece is
supposed to be in remembrance of that special day for [SR7]Napoleon. In
David Harper’s reproduction of the piece he has taken Napoleon’s stallion as
the main statement symbol of the piece, and made it seem like it is out of
order. This is due to the black to white gradient in the horse, which has been
embroidered with cotton floss, and makes the horse almost seem like it is
gradually disappearing.[SR8] The
gradient in the horse makes you feel like the piece is missing something. It is
as if the horse is not entirely there and Harper once again uses the black and
white colors to express this uncertainty of things not being in the “right”
manner.
Another work in the gallery is
called A Fear Of Unknown Origins (II), which
consists of a variety of cheap children’s animal masks that have been cast into
ceramic molds. Harper has turned something of cheap value into something more
valuable. The ceramic animal masks have been painted in a gradient of light to
dark blue, which shows how David Harper utilizes gradients to express different
moods.[SR9]
Devendran 4
The masks are randomly assorted and arranged
in stacks on the wall displaying the light to dark blue color pattern, almost
mimicking totem poles. The light blue masks on the left side like the color
white seem to emulate a more innocent feeling, while the dark blue masks on the
right side like the color black seem to symbolize some type of evil. The blue
color could also be linked to the time of day like day or night. Another
reference of the piece is that it reminds you of animal heads that are mounted
onto wooden plaques and hung in the homes of rich men as trophies. The theme
behind this piece is identity because it is unknown to you of who or what is on
the other side of the mask, which goes back to the unknown and uncertainty
themes. The memorial-like arrangements of the masks give them a sense of life
and presence.
The theme or message that is being conveyed by
the gallery as a whole is liminality as it is the true major theme.[SR10] This
concept refers to the in-between, the unknown and the dangerous. Harper’s works
range in scale from sculptures to embroidered prints and in order to portray
these themes, Harper takes different mediums that are uncommon to construct
them. Emotions are evoked through the pieces in their colors, textures and
intricate details. The titles given to the pieces present their own individual
stories that can be drawn from a historical background or an emotional
one. My impressions of David Harper’s
gallery at first glance seemed to be a bit disarrayed as questions swarmed me in [SR11]regards to
comprehending what I was viewing. David Harper should be commended for
mastering his acquired
skills in embroidery work and ceramic-making, and his talents are truly evident
in his work. [SR12]
Dear Ivana,
Some great ideas in here but you need to
definitely focus more. There were some great things that could have been
further unpacked here. As it was the paper still lacks focus and organization.
The conclusion seems at odds with the rest of the paper.
GRADE: 68% Devendran
5
Works
Cited
Peck,
Erin. " Art." Humanities. University of Toronto Scarborough. Doris
McCarthy Gallery, Toronto. 7 Mar. 2013. Class lecture.
Davis, Glyn. "The Ideology of the
Visual." Exploring Visual Culture
N/A (2005): 5. Print.
[SR1]Not
my name!
[SR2]No—it
means “Between the dog and the wolf”
[SR3]Could
be phrased as a more provocative thesis statement: “The major theme of
mediating between a present reality and memories of the past is explored
throughout the exhibition.”
[SR4]What
do you mean by “Theme” here? Unclear.
[SR5]Give
specific examples here—embroidery, taxidermy, ceramic production etc…
[SR6]Really?
What “Clear” theme Is conveyed then? Death? I can think of many others too so
watch out for over-generalizing language.
[SR7]What
special day? Perhaps better stated as “a specfic event”
[SR8]Good
description.
[SR9]Ok—how
is this paragraph or decription related to your thesis?
[SR10]Could/should
cite Erin Peck on this if you heard this from her.
[SR11]confusing
[SR12]is
skill and proficiency really the main message you want to communicate about his
work?
Feedback: Out of all of my papers, this has been my highest grade so there has been some improvement. I have to work on clearly specifying arguments and unpacking quotations thoroughly. Another thing to work on is making sure that points made are somehow always relating back to my thesis statement.
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