Intro to Art History!!

Okay, so I know that I haven't posted anything for quite some time but I have been busy! I am now adjusting to living in Tallahassee, Florida and attending the Florida State University (Go Noles!!). Anyhoo, I decided that I need to keep this blog going just in case I ever get the opportunity to live abroad again! Haha, no, really I want to just keep this going because it has been a great way for me to let people know what I have been up to. And since I'm not visiting any ancient ruins in Mexico (for the moment!), I've decided to try to post something every two weeks that let's my friends and family know exactly what I'm studying. So here is the painting called "Manao Tupapau" or also "Spirit of the Dead Watching" by Paul Gauguin. Gauguin lived from 1848-1903. I've been learning a lot about this particular painting because I have to write a paper solely about this piece. I don't know everything about it, but here it goes! Gauguin left France in 1891 because he wanted to leave civilization and he believed that Tahiti, in French Polynesia, would be the perfect place for this. He wanted to make "simple art" which he basically developed into the art movement known as "primitivism" (he was truly known as being a Symbolist, moving beyond Post-Impressionism into modernity). So the naked girl is reportedly one of Gauguin's "teen-brides" in Tahiti (I know, some of these artists!) named Tehamana. The indigenous peoples of Tahiti believed in these spirits called "tupapau", and they would dwell among the living. Gauguin supposedly came back to his little hut one evening to find Tehamana frightened in the bedroom. He decided to create this painting, envisaging the "tupapau" as an old woman dressed in all black. Some anthropologists have said that the indigenous people would have never seen the "tupapau" as capable of taking human form. But Gauguin believed the opposite. Also, some scholars have stated that this painting is an assault on the contemporaneous European depiction of the nude and how it was always a woman and she was always depicted in a sexual manner. Perhaps this is a response to Manet's "Olympia" as some scholars have posited: Gauguin inverts the position of the nude, hiding her frontside. Anyways, I just wanted to post an entry and show one thing that I have been learning about, so I will next post something about my Islamic Art and Architecture class.

Merida: My Last Excursion in Mexico (for now!)

So I know that I haven't posted anything for quite some time but I have been really busy with other things. Anyways, my last trip in Mexico was to Merida (yes, back in December!) so I wanted to go ahead and do this final entry on Merida so I can start doing other posts. I loved a lot of the cultural aspects of Merida but I would never live there! It is too hot! However, I did experience the genuine hospitality of many people in Merida (although I still have to say that Oaxaca is my favorite for friendly people in Mexico!). I've included a few pics from the centro of Merida, a very colonial city in the state of Yucatan. My friend Paloma and I had a lot of fun traveling to different places in and around Merida (so I included the pic of me on a bus-we spent a lot of time on buses!). I also wanted to show the big cathedral that overlooks the zocalo of Merida. This huge church (and I mean HUGE) houses the Cristo de las Ampollas (Christ of the Blisters-which is shown in one of these pics). This statue is famous because it is a black christ and he has survived not one, but two fires and he came out completely unscathed (which is quite fascinating) so I had to take a picture of him (he's now obviously enclosed with special protection and no one can actually touch him). Merida was a lot of fun despite the hot, hot, hot...and humid weather. I am so thankful that I was able to go there and comingle with the descendents of the ancient Maya and be welcomed by so many Meridianos.

These are more pictures from around Merida. The one of Paloma is from right after we landed and got to our hotel. We were both sooooo hungry and decided to hit the streets of Merida and find a vegetarian restaurant (even though Paloma isn't a vegetarian, she was always pleasantly willing to accompany me to a veggie restaurant). We were both really excited to be in Merida but when we stepped off of the plane, WOW! That heat, even in December, was almost unbearable! I cannot imagine what it's like there during May, which all the locals told us was the hottest month (but I'm sure it's still hot in June, July, and August). I included a picture of Hotel Aragon, the place where we stayed. I also wanted to include a picture from La Noche Mexicana which is a weekly event in Merida. Every Saturday night in el centro de Merida, dancers and singers perform regional dances and songs from around Mexico. We just had to check it out! We had to sit quite far back from the stage and I wasn't willing to push my way up to the front to get some better pics so many of the ones I took are very grainy and unfocused. But it was very entertaining and we didn't know what else to do on a Saturday night (since neither Paloma nor I go to the "antros" or danceclub/bars. Also, the first day we were there, an exhibit with colorful sculpted cats was just in plain sight in the alley between some buildings. It was pretty cool (because I love cats!) so I included a picture of my favorite cat!

These are photos from the Anthropology Museum in Merida. I have so many pictures but not enough time or patience to put all of them up in one entry. I just wanted to show a few of these and sum up my week-long trip to Merida. Also, I've included a few of the pics from Progreso, the beach and local "hotspot" which is like 20 minutes north of Merida. There were quite a few Americans having lunch at the same place that Paloma and I went to (and by having lunch I mean an all-liquid lunch! They were so rowdy and loud!).

And here I am at Dzibilchaltun, another Maya site that flourished in the Classic period (around 200 0r 250CE through 850 or 900CE). It is a relatively small site but this building (the one where I'm in the "window") is called the Temple of the Dolls because of several (I think they found seven) "dolls" that were found here during one excavation. It is surrounded by the dense and plush forests and jungles typical of the Yucatan peninsula. Dzibilchaltun also had one of the earliest sweat baths (in the 6th century CE) of the Maya lowlands. This unique building was definitely the highlight of Dzibilchaltun.

And lastly, here are a few more pictures from around Dzibilchaltun. It was a rather small site but I did enjoy visiting yet another Maya site. I just had to include a picture of another iguana because I always think about my friend Vicki's iguana Charlie. This particular iguana in the photo let me come pretty close to take her picture. But anyways, as I try and remember all of the experiences I had in Merida, I really do begin to miss Mexico. What an adventure! I sure am glad that Paloma was there to be my friend and traveling buddy. It would have been much more difficult (or not as much fun) if I did not have a friend to share with in these adventures.

Valladolid and Ek Balam

I was excited to come here to Valladolid and enjoy the rich history of this very Maya city and region. Valladolid was given its name in 1543 from the then capital of Spain. It was founded by Francisco de Montejo's nephew (although the present-day city of Valladolid was not the original location of the city-that was not too far away from what is now known as Valladolid; present-day Valladolid was actually built on top of a Maya town called "zaci"). Just 12km south of Valladolid lies Xocen, the site of the beginning of the famous Caste War between the Maya and the ruling Spanish (in 1848-after the independence of Mexico from Spain-but those of Spanish blood were still controlling much of the state of affairs within the city and the surrounding region). I have included a picture of the Catedral de San Gervasio which sits on the main square or zocalo of Valladolid. I have also included a picture of the Convent of San Bernadino (where a couple of kids started asking Paloma and I if we spoke English-they were asking us a few questions in English but I spoke to them in Spanish-it was pretty funny). I really liked Valladolid and the people here were friendly. I'm glad that I was able to come here and spend the day.

Ek Balam (or "Black Jaguar" in Yucatec Maya) was my absolutely favorite site that I visited in Yucatan. It's a small site but truly interesting. There is not a lot of information about this site because only recently have archaeologists and other scholars begun to show interest in this place. So here are a few of the photos that I took from around Ek Balam. I wish that I could show all of them but these blog entries can take a bit of time so I am forced to pick and choose. I believe that this site reached its apogee around 700ce-1000ce (but those dates could be a little off). It is gaining in popularity (in terms of being visited by tourists) but when Paloma and I were here, there were not a lot of other people (hardly any, really). I have included a few pictures of the rounded structure, which is quite rare for the Maya, the archway that one encounters at the entrance to the site, and one picture of me "claiming" the site as my own!! What an amazing place to be able to visit!!

The great pyramid/temple found at Ek Balam is huge! And I love how it's tucked away into the surrounding jungle at the site. But the view from the top is cool and this structure speaks to the relative wealth of the royal family (or families) who ruled here. Ek Balam is a pretty small site but a very interesting one. I was fascinated by all of the sculpted glyphs found on the stairways of the pyramid, as well as on the facades of inaccessible rooms of the pyramid. I truly loved this site (I just can't say that enough)!

And here is the amazing stucco frieze for which Ek Balam is gaining notoriety among not only archaeologists, but also among the general public. In 2004, a group of archaeologists and workers were clearing and cleaning off the surface of the great pyramid. One of the workers was trying to pull a small tree out from the surface of the pyramid and mistakenly pulled out a few of the stones of the pyramid!! But his mistake would reveal this amazing piece of artistry!! And usually stucco cannot be preserved for centuries upon centuries (especially with a climate like the one found in Yucatan) unless it has been covered up like this frieze was for a millenia!! As I look over these pictures even now, I cannot believe that I was able to stand in front of this structure! I am amazed by the precision, the artistry, the iconography, and the pulchritude of these sculpted Maya images. Even though it was extremely hot and humid, I did not mind one bit because I was able to see this structure!! Amazing, amazing, amazing!!!

Here are a few more images of this great frieze found at Ek Balam. Paloma was laughing at me because I didn't want to leave this place! I was just awe-struck by these images; the precision, artistry, and Maya iconography. The lower jawbone of the earth monster is shown in one of these images. The Maya believed that one could enter the "underworld" through the earth monster's jaws (also caves were believed to be sacred entrances-and exits-of the underworld). I believe that these winged-figures are the only ones to be found within the Maya area. Some say that they are warriors but others claim that they are priests. Either way, these winged-personages are simply fascinating. I just loved being here and standing in front of this monument erected by the artists and sculptors of the Maya.

And here are some of the images of the surrounding area of Ek Balam as well as one picture that shows how steep the climb is up the stairs of this great pyramid/temple. The structure is actually enormous! It's over 500ft long and over 200ft wide! Evidence here suggests that perhaps bloodletting rituals were performed here, but archaeologists have only been studying this site for a short period of time so not much information is available about Ek Balam. But I absolutely loved the views from the zenith of the great pyramid and I was obviously sweating from the climb and the hot, humid climate. However, Paloma and I agree: this is our favorite site that we visited on our trip to Merida. Even though it isn't a very well known place (there were like four other people-tourists-here when we were), it is soooooo fascinating and definitely the highlight of our trip to Valladolid.