Jothe's Blog

My favourite paintings of Ravi varma Sunday, Aug 23 2009

Paintings favourite ravi varma painting jothe 9:29 am

Cave Paintings Sunday, Aug 23 2009

Paintings about cave paintings jothe 9:24 am

Theories About the Cave Paintings:
Humans had not learned to write during the prehistoric time period. They communicated through cave paintings. Why did man find a need to paint on the walls of the caves? We know that most of the paintings were of animals. However, there are a few paintings that have human figures either in etchings or in a painting.

There are three theories that the prehistoric man might have painted animals on the walls of the caves. Perhaps the cave man wanted to decorate the cave and chose animals because they were important to their existence. The second theory could have been that they considered this magic to help the hunters. Perhaps if the artist could capture the image of the animal, they could capture the animal in a hunt. Prehistoric man could have used the painting of animals on the walls of caves to document their hunting expeditions.

Methods of Painting:
Prehistoric people would have used natural objects to paint the walls of the caves. To etch into the rock, they could have used sharp tools or a spear. The paint or color that they probably used was from berries, clay, soot, or charcoal. The tools used to apply the paint could have been made by attaching straw, leaves, moss, or hair to sticks. They might have used hollow bones or reeds to spray the color on, similar to an airbrush technique.

Altamira Cave Paintings:
Located in northern Spain, not far from the village of Antillana del Mar in Cantabria, the Upper Paleolithic cave complex at Altamira is famous for its vivid parietal art, featuring drawings and multi-coloured cave paintings of wild animals and human hands, leading to its nickname as the “Sistine Chapel of Stone Age art”. Altamira was designated a UN World Heritage site in 1985.

Famous Cave Painting Today:

http://www.culture.gouv.fr/culture/arcnat/chauvet/en/index.html

Indian Cave Paintings:

1. http://www.craftsinindia.com/arts-and-crafts/indian-cave-painting.html

2. http://www.ethnicpaintings.com/indian_painting_styles/indian-cave-painting-1.html

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YIN-YANG Saturday, Aug 8 2009

Philosophy YIN YANG jothe 4:58 pm

Yinyang (yin-yang) is one of the dominant concepts shared by different schools throughout the history of Chinese philosophy.

Despite the differences in the interpretation, application, and appropriation of yinyang, three basic themes underlie nearly all deployments of the concept in Chinese philosophy:

(1) yinyang as the coherent fabric of nature and mind, exhibited in all existence.
(2) yinyang as jiao (interaction) between the waxing and waning of the cosmic and human realms.
(3) yinyang as a process of harmonization ensuring a constant, dynamic balance of all things.

Yin in its highest form is freezing while yang in its highest form is boiling. The chilliness comes from heaven while the warmness comes from the earth. The interaction of these two establishes he (harmony), so it gives birth to things.

Yin always contains the potential for yang, and yang for yin. Yin and yang are balanced: yin–yang is a dynamic equilibrium. Because they arise together they are always equal: if one disappears, the other must disappear as well, leaving emptiness. This is rarely immediately apparent, though, because yang elements are clear and obvious while yin elements are hidden and subtle.

Yin–yang is not an actual substance or force[1], the way it might be conceived of in western terms. Instead, it is a universal way of describing the interactions and interrelations of the natural forces that occur in the world.

It applies as well to social constructions – e.g. value judgements like good and evil, rich and poor, honor and dishonor – yet it is often used in those contexts as a warning, since by its principles extreme good will turn to evil, extreme wealth to poverty, extreme honor to dishonor.

Yin is receptive, yielding, negative, and nurturing. It is associated with night, valleys, rivers, streams, water, metal, and earth. Yang is active, dominating, positive, and initiating/creating. Yang is associated with day, mountains, hills, fire, wood, and air. The concept of “unity in duality”.

yinyang