Dates: Tuesday, July 15th OR Thursday, July 17th

Location:  See your e-mail for the Zoom link!

Website: https://americanart.si.edu/

Humans, since the dawn of civilization, have created works of art. Sculpture might be one of the oldest forms of art, as evidence suggests that people carved before they even painted the walls of caves. Most often, early sculptures were less about making a beautiful object and more about providing spiritual support or aiding in a ritual. Many sculptures were worshiped as good or evil figures, often to seek favor for survival, food, or good fortune.

Over time, art became more central to developing culture, and was expressed in thousands of ways. Ancient Egypt erected huge pyramids and made statues, sculptures, and paintings to praise their deities and assist their dead in transitioning beyond this life and into the next. Aegean cultures created scenes on pottery to tell of great deeds and every day life. And the ancient Greeks, starting in the late 7th century B.C. endeavored to more perfectly represent the human figure in stone.  The list could go on and on (and on) of civilizations and cultures that developed their own unique art forms and styles. In almost every corner of the globe, one can find both ancient and modern examples of art out of thousands of mediums.

But what makes art special? Why does it exist? The answers to those questions are almost as varied and extensive as the art forms themselves. But it is important to note that it is almost exclusively humans that produce art, for art’s sake. There are some examples of elephants and gorillas who might paint and make pictures, but many of them have been trained and only do so with human intervention/assistance. Many plants and animals are their own forms of art (think of peacocks or beautiful flowers), but their art is largely about reproduction and survival. It seems to be a uniquely human experience to produce art as a creative expression. With that said, art is important for a number of reasons:

·   Art evokes emotion. It can be any sort of emotion: joy, love, excitement, nostalgia, even anger. But art often makes the artist and the viewer feel something.

·   Art relies on shared memory and experience. Art often relies on our shared memories to impart its importance. For example, Andy Warhol’s Campbell’s Soup can paintings are likely not meaningful to a tribe of African bushmen, but they are meaningful to many who grew up in the United States.

·   Art preserves our memory – even before language, humans recorded their stories and events through art, creating a shared culture and a collective means of memory.

·   Art helps us teach. We use art to show someone else a concept, as a way of helping them to understand. We use art to communicate feelings and history in a way that words and stories can’t quite capture.

American Symbols Overview

Courtesy of the National Park Service, read on for a brief overview of some of our major American symbols; we’ll see how many of them the Smithsonian docents talk about this week!

U.S. Flag

The flag’s 13 alternating red and white stripes represent the 13 original colonies. Its 50 white stars on a blue field represent the 50 states. The colors on the flag represent; Red: valor and bravery; White: purity and innocence; Blue: vigilance, perseverance, and justice. Flag Resolution of June 14, 1777, stated, "Resolved: that the flag of the United States be made of thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new Constellation." Executive Order of President Eisenhower dated August 21, 1959, provided for the arrangement of the stars in nine rows of stars staggered horizontally and eleven rows of stars staggered vertically.

Statue of Liberty 

“Frenchman Edouardo de Laboulaye had the original idea for the statue around 1865. He recognized the United States as a nation that honored freedom, liberty, and democracy. De Laboulaye saw the symbolic gift as a way to honor the United States and to reflect his wish for a democracy in France. De Laboulaye commissioned a young sculptor, Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi, to design the sculpture. Years later, Bartholdi completed a design for a colossal statue in the shape of a goddess upholding the torch of liberty, which he entitled, “Liberty Enlightening the World.” The design was accepted and the Franco-American Union was created in order to raise money for this joint project of two nations: the French were to design and assemble the statue while the Americans were responsible for the statue’s pedestal. Gustave Eiffel designed the statue’s internal framework in 1879. Constructed in France between 1875 and 1884, the copper statue “Liberty Enlightening the World” arrived in New York on June 17, 1885 in 214 specially built wooden cases.; Liberty’s image and symbolic meanings have continually changed since her dedication on October 28, 1886. During the late 19th century, one of the largest periods of immigration in American history, Liberty stood as a “Mother of Exiles,” and provided thousands of immigrants with their first visual representation of America, liberty, and freedom. Throughout the 19th century, political instability, religious persecution, unstable economies, and vast unemployment prompted many Europeans to leave their homelands to take their chances on a better life in the United States. On the final stretch of their journey, as immigrants made their way into New York Harbor and to Ellis Island, the Statue of Liberty served as a colossal symbol of freedom and opportunity for all newcomers to the United States.” (New York: Statue of Liberty National Monument (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov)). “The torch is a symbol of enlightenment. The Statue of Liberty's torch lights the way to freedom showing us the path to Liberty. Even the Statue's official name represents her most important symbol "Liberty Enlightening the World". The Statue's current replacement torch, added in 1986, is a copper flame covered in 24K gold. It is reflective of the sun's rays in daytime and lighted by 16 floodlights at night. The original torch was removed in 1984 and is currently inside the Statue of Liberty Museum. The tablet of law, held in the Statue's left hand, has the date of American Independence July 4, 1776, written on it in Roman numerals (July IV, MDCCLXXVI). The rays represent a radiant halo, also called an ‘aureole.’”

Bald Eagle 

The bald eagle’s role as a national symbol is linked to its 1782 landing on the Great Seal of the United States. Shortly after the Declaration of Independence was signed on July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress gave Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson and John Adams the job of designing an official seal for the new nation. However, the three Founding Fathers failed to come up with a design that won Congress’ approval, as did two later committees that were given the task. In mid-June 1782, the work of all three committees was handed over to Charles Thomson, the secretary of Congress. Thomson chose what he thought were the best elements of the various designs and made the eagle—which had been introduced by artistically inclined Pennsylvania lawyer William Barton in a design submitted by the third committee—more prominent. (Since ancient times, the eagle has been considered a sign of strength; Roman legions used the animal as their standard, or symbol.) Thomson also recommended that the small, white eagle used in Barton’s design be replaced with an American bald eagle, and Congress adopted this design on June 20, 1782. (Contrary to legend, there’s no evidence Ben Franklin protested to Congress about the choice of the bald eagle and lobbied for the turkey, although in a 1784 letter to his daughter he did label the bald eagle “a bird of bad moral character.”) As the design went on to appear on official documents, currency, flags, public buildings and other government- related items, the bald eagle became an American icon.

Liberty Bell 

The Liberty Bell bears a timeless message: "Proclaim Liberty Throughout All the Land Unto All the Inhabitants thereof". From Signal to Symbol: The State House bell, now known as the Liberty Bell, rang in the tower of the Pennsylvania State House. Today, we call that building Independence Hall. Speaker of the Pennsylvania Assembly Isaac Norris first ordered a bell for the bell tower in 1751 from the Whitechapel Foundry in London. That bell cracked on the first test ring. Local metalworkers John Pass and John Stow melted down that bell and cast a new one right here in Philadelphia. It's this bell that would ring to call lawmakers to their meetings and the townspeople together to hear the reading of the news. Benjamin Franklin wrote to Catherine Ray in 1755, "Adieu, the Bell rings, and I must go among the Grave ones and talk Politicks." It's not until the 1830's that the old State House bell would begin to take on significance as a symbol of liberty. The Crack: No one recorded when or why the Liberty Bell first cracked, but the most likely explanation is that a narrow split developed in the early 1840's after nearly 90 years of hard use. In 1846, when the city decided to repair the bell prior to George Washington's birthday holiday (February 23), metal workers widened the thin crack to prevent its farther spread and restore the tone of the bell using a technique called "stop drilling". The wide "crack" in the Liberty Bell is actually the repair job! Look carefully and you'll see over 40 drill bit marks in that wide "crack". But, the repair was not successful. The Public Ledger newspaper reported that the repair failed when another fissure developed. This second crack, running from the abbreviation for "Philadelphia" up through the word "Liberty", silenced the bell forever. No one living today has heard the bell ring freely with its clapper, but computer modeling provides some clues into the sound of the Liberty Bell. The Inscription: The Liberty Bell's inscription is from the Bible (King James version): "Proclaim Liberty Throughout All the Land Unto All the Inhabitants thereof." This verse refers to the "Jubilee", or the instructions to the Israelites to return property and free slaves every 50 years. Speaker of the Pennsylvania Assembly Isaac Norris chose this inscription for the State House bell in 1751, possibly to commemorate the 50th anniversary of William Penn's 1701 Charter of Privileges which granted religious liberties and political self-government to the people of Pennsylvania. The inscription of liberty on the State House bell (now known as the Liberty Bell) went unnoticed during the Revolutionary War. After the war, abolitionists seeking to end slavery in America were inspired by the bell's message. The Meaning: The State House bell became a herald of liberty in the 19th century. "Proclaim Liberty Throughout All the Land Unto All the Inhabitants thereof," the bell's inscription, provided a rallying cry for abolitionists wishing to end slavery. The Anti-Slavery Record, an abolitionist publication, first referred to the bell as the Liberty Bell in 1835, but that name was not widely adopted until years later. Millions of Americans became familiar with the bell in popular culture through George Lippard's 1847 fictional story "Ring, Grandfather, Ring", when the bell came to symbolize pride in a new nation. Beginning in the late 1800s, the Liberty Bell traveled across the country for display at expositions and fairs, stopping in towns small and large along the way. For a nation recovering from wounds of the Civil War, the bell served to remind Americans of a time when they fought together for independence. Movements from Women's Suffrage to Civil Rights embraced the Liberty Bell for both protest and celebration. Pennsylvania suffragists commissioned a replica of the Liberty Bell. Their "Justice Bell" traveled across Pennsylvania in 1915 to encourage support for women's voting rights legislation. It then sat chained in silence until the passage of the 19th Amendment in 1920. Now a worldwide symbol, the bell's message of liberty remains just as relevant and powerful today: "Proclaim Liberty Throughout All the Land Unto All the Inhabitants thereof" (The Liberty Bell - Independence National Historical Park (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov)).

Mount Rushmore 

Carved 1927 – 1941. The initial idea behind Mount Rushmore was to encourage tourists to visit South Dakota. Artist Gutzon Borglum expanded it beyond that idea, wanting to create a memorial to celebrate the first 150 years of American history. Each of the presidents on the mountain are symbols of an element of American history: George Washington represents the birth of the nation, Thomas Jefferson represents the expansion of the nation (Louisiana Purchase during his presidency), Abraham Lincoln represents the preservation of the nation through the Civil War, and Theodore Roosevelt represents the development of the nation (growing as a world power and the construction of the Panama Canal).

In 1923, the words, "the Flag of the United States of America" were added. At this time it read: "I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." In 1954, in response to the Communist threat of the times, President Eisenhower encouraged Congress to add the words "under God," creating the 31-word pledge we say today. Bellamy's daughter objected to this alteration. Today it reads: "I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." Section 4 of the Flag Code states: The Pledge of Allegiance to the Flag: "I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America, and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.", should be rendered by standing at attention facing the flag with the right hand over the heart. When not in uniform men should remove any non-religious headdress with their right hand and hold it at the left shoulder, the hand being over the heart. Persons in uniform should remain silent, face the flag, and render the military salute." The original Bellamy salute, first described in 1892 by Francis Bellamy, who authored the original Pledge, began with a military salute, and after reciting the words "to the flag," the arm was extended toward the flag. Shortly thereafter, the pledge was begun with the right hand over the heart, and after reciting "to the Flag," the arm was extended toward the Flag, palm-down. In World War II, the salute too much resembled the Nazi salute, so it was changed to keep the right hand over the heart throughout. (The Pledge of Allegiance (ushistory.org))

Last up, just a quick quiz to get the creative art thoughts flowing! Read on to test your art knowledge and see how well you do!

This week we’re talking about American art and symbols. Of course, all art is subjective, as is what makes something ‘famous’. But here are some well-known American  art pieces; see how many you recognize!

https://www.nps.gov/common/uploads/teachers/lessonplans/Symbols%20of%20America%20Lesson%20Plan.pdf

https://www.culturefrontier.com/american-paintings/

Jo Marchant. “A Journey to the Oldest Cave Paintings in the World”. Smithsonian Magazine. January 2016. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/journey-oldest-cave-paintings-world-180957685/

Nathan H. Lents. “Why do Humans Make Art?”. Psychology Today. September 5, 2017. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/beastly-behavior/201709/why-do-humans-make-art