Fine Art - Monday Metaphors

Fine Art Theory began by looking at metaphors: initially what they are, the different components (e.g. the tennor and vehicle of the metaphor and the semantics, sensation and structure of them) and how they are used to convey a certain message or image without directly expressing it. To illustrate this we looked at the Pirelli advert featuring Carl Lewis.

Pirelli & C, Young and Rubicam, Nov 2005

Image from http://www.advertolog.com

Without the solid grip of Pirelli tyres, you can't get the most from your car and other tyres can't compete.

What I find really interesting is how people seem to react better to metaphors, that they engage your imagination better than a straightforward image and that we can imagine a situation better if you compare it in surreal terms to another sensation or object.

I also like that there are 'Dead' metaphors - metaphors that are in common use as we've forgotten that they are metaphors, e.g. falling in love. To me these phrases shouldn't perhaps make sense in an everyday context (in theory), but everyone understands them, maybe even better than an actual description.

Next, we looked at metaphors in fine art. Our group took Rinzen by Antoni Tapies.

Rinzen Antoni Tapies, 1993. Mixed media

Image and information from http://www.wikipedia.org

We thought that it could be about the act of sleeping and waking, of feeling weightless and unconnected in sleep and the haze of waking up. Showing the chaos of waking, but also the peacefulness of this. I really like the piece as it creates these contradicting sensations and on finding out that it is connected with Buddhism, an 'awakening' makes sense.

We then moved onto song lyrics, finding metaphors in songs and thinking about what they may be about. I chose White Winter Hymnal by Fleet Foxes:

"I was following the pack
all swallowed in their coats
with scarves of red tied 'round their throats
to keep their little heads
from fallin' in the snow
And I turned round and there you go.
And, Michael, you would fall,
and turn the white snow red as strawberries 
in the summertime."

Lyrics from http://www.lyrics007.com

I love the imagery and the ambiguity of it - it seems a good choice to work from later in the week.