Real estate bubbles and bursts have happened all over the world with the most prominent happening in Japan in the late 80’s. These bubbles are caused by many factors and builds up over years of wrong economic decisions and policies. Real estate bubbles happen when the cost of the property is speculated to be higher than the real cost. This overestimation of the price of real estate makes the houses bought unaffordable to the people who bought them in the inflated price.
An example closer to home is the San Diego housing market. The price of real estate in San Diego has more than doubled its cost in a span of a decade from 1995 to 2005. This speculated cost that made the prices of real estate more expensive than they actually are is called the bubble. When the real price of estate came up and pushed the real cost of the houses lower than how much the homeowners initially agreed to pay for, many opted to voluntarily default in their payments because they feel that their property is not worth is anymore, while others were forced out of their homes for lack of personal financing.
There are many reasons why this happened compounded over the years. Factors which include sub prime loans, ARM loans, fraud, speculation, mortgage and investment bankers, and monetary policies were executed under bad judgments due to the lack of moral and ethical standards and preemptive regulation from the federal government. With the only principle that these institutions respect being the unregulated gain of profits, coupled with the wave of consumerism that prompted people to live and buy things beyond their means, the bubble was inflated to the point of bursting. The threshold of the bubble was met when the government gave out tax and mortgage interest deductions that prompted people to buy homes and banks to hand cash on a silver platter, giving way to the real estate burst.
This vicious cycle of greed is borne from purchasing more than what people can afford and banks wanting to acquire more wealth no matter what. In this case, monetary and banking policy reforms are not enough. Attitude adjustments from the people from consumerism to becoming more frugal is also necessary.
Canadian Art History: The Human Figure
Paintings of the past represent different levels of human existence. Still images are captured by the use of different mediums to emphasize a certain viewpoint that is aesthetically interesting. Pablo Picasso once stated that artists paint subjects as they think them and not as they see them. Such perspective from a world renowned painter reassures the creativity of artists who frame their idea of reality onto an empty canvas. Artworks generally depict the realm of the subconscious mind, which is concretized through the image imprinted by the artist.
Canadian art of the past distinctly features tones of subtle neutrality and serenity that reflects European traits. Techniques used on such artworks gradually integrate diversity of origin as well as a spiritual outlook on life. Spirituality was essential in most artworks of the past since the Catholic Church was a prime mover of the arts in early Canada, especially in Quebec, which has led to the promotion of nationalism. The combination of European methods and Asian influences comprises Canadian modern art.
For this paper, the chosen Canadian artworks to be examined are Soeur Sainte-Anne from Antoine Plamondon and Endymion and Selene from Ozias Leduc. It will focus on the elements that are composed in each painting and the various themes presented in the images.
Plamondon’s painting of Soeur Sainte-Anne was said to be a well-constructed work of art. It maintained a presence of classic purity and freshness which is not usually seen in most paintings of nuns back in the day. It was the in the subtle contrasts that played with light and variations of color such as red, black and white, that gave the painting a human-like quality which balanced the relative austerity found in nunnery life (Porte, 1994).
Plamondon’s technique in emphasizing the fine contours of Sister Anne’s skin, the sweep of the fabric of her veil, the ways she was positioned in the armchair, and the slight seductiveness imprinted on her face, signifies intense feelings and expressions that convey a zest for life. Albeit the solemn nature of the portrait, it offered a refreshing perspective into the personality of Sister Anne that seemed to be lacking in the paintings of the other Sisters (Porte, 1994).
According to the text, Sister Anne was a great nun. She was described as an open, humble, attentive and intelligent individual with a passion for drawing. Based on the mentioned traits, Plamondon was able to craft a masterpiece that illustrated Sister Anne’s being as whole rather than an isolated part of the subject’s life (Porte, 1994).
Sister Anne’s painting would not have materialized if it were not for the nature of her family background. In the text, Sister Anne was said to have come from a well-off family. At that time, having a stable income ensures a place or position in the society, which was exactly the case with Sister Anne’s father who was a known butcher in their community. Sister Anne’s father was the one who commissioned Plamondon to create portraits of his daughters, to the delight of Plamondon. Since most artists lived off from whatever artworks that they were able to sell, most of them would only create artworks for the affluent families (Porte, 1994).
With regard to Leduc’s version of the story Endymion and Selene, his work captured the essence of human desire in a distinctly androgynous way. While Plamondon was concerned with the spiritual connection of his subject as a representative of the Catholic Church, Leduc was interested in elevating the spiritual presence of his subjects through the complexities of the human consciousness. The story of the shepherd boy Endymion and the goddess Selene is a tale of forbidden love that stresses on the need for connection and interaction between the two characters despite the differences preceding them. It is a desire that is conveyed through the longing gaze of Selene toward the slumber state of Endymion (Lanthier, 1996).
The painting was said to be highly symbolical of human nature, characterized by the undertones of sexual ambiguity and gentleness. Splashes of pastel colors peppered with asymmetrical constructions of lines and movements imply feminine sexual symbols which convey an idea of perfection and eroticism. The presence of figs and flowers such as laurel, ivy and rose illustrate a desire toward immortality and the cyclical nature of death and rebirth (Lanthier, 1996).
Based on the given descriptions of the two chosen paintings, both artists demonstrated a style that presented the spiritual nature of humanity centered upon two different levels: Religion and Desire. Both paintings expressed the need for spirituality in both moral and social aspects of life.
The differences lie in the techniques applied by the artist and the layers of themes that have been exposed. While Plamondon’s painting was a bit more refined and meticulously composed, Leduc’s work was sketchy and stiff in the delivery of symbolic images and lines, which was also noticed by some critics of his work. Soeur Sainte-Anne depicted the life of a nun that also laid bare the other side of the subject’s human character. Meanwhile, Endymion and Selene exemplified the desire for companionship that moved human frailty on a spiritual level, maintaining a desire to connect just as it was for Sister Anne to connect with the world outside the convent. In essence, both paintings reflect the influence of religion in the furtherance of Canadian art.
References:
Porte, J. R. (1994). Soeur Sainte-Anne 1841 Mano Beland. Antoine Plamondon: Painting in Quebec, 1820-1850. Quebec: Musee du Quebec, 433-435.
Lanthier, M. (1996). Endymion and Selene in Launer Lacroix. Ozias Leduc: an Art of Love and Revene [Quebec] Musee du Quebec, 160-161
The Hurricane Directed By Norman Jewison
I should first congratulate you for your profound insight in deciphering the emotional manipulation that Norman Jewison intends to achieve through his The Hurricane film. This is because, just as you have said, the movie really has deep emotional connotations owing to the extremely hard life that Rubin Carter faces. You are also right in identifying the deep racial undertones that underlies this film. Specifically, your fury towards Detective Della’s overt racism is justified because Della’s injustice really dehumanizes Carter.
The fact that you felt happy when Carter is assisted by Lesra to institute legal proceedings to defend himself further proves that the director has succeeded in manipulating viewers’ emotions. Apart from this, I would however ask for clarification on how Lesra and Rubin have Biblical names. Otherwise, your post is very insightful and detailed and is thus worthy of praise.
Your discernment regarding the various emotions that Jewison’s The Hurricane film evokes demonstrates that the movie is successful in triggering off emotional manipulation. Moreover, this observation demonstrates that you are a sensitive and perceptive individual. It is thus factual that the movie’s depiction of the various emotional dispositions that Carter demonstrates arouses audiences’ feelings.
Moreover, your explanation that Jewison aims to show that love transcends all boundaries through the movie is praiseworthy. You are also right in asserting that hatred symbolically ties persons to their past. This is because after Carter allows love to come into his life, he reacquires his past humanity.
I should thus congratulate you for having the hindsight to detect the directors theme a sis evident through Carter’s experiences and actions. By relating this theme to real-life events, you demonstrate the wider application of the movie – a commendable undertaking. Once, again, congrats for delivering a very educative and well thought out post.