Final Post

Art has great significance and beauty; from other places in other kinds of ways, art was formed to be fascinating. Art has dated back to prehistoric times to the paleolithic period to cave paintings, wall sculpting, little figures etc. Paleolithic cave art began around 30,000BCE to 10,000BCE. Homo sapiens were originally the first peoples to roam the earth and were also the first artists and writers. During that time, Homo sapiens began to start using their minds to be creative, making tools for survival or creating images in cave walls for entertainment. There are over two hundred caves throughout Europe, some are famous for its art and research like in south-west France or northern Spain. When the Homo sapiens started doing the paintings, its theme was based on animals that lived around that period. There are three different categories that were drawn: Humans, Animals and Signs for communication or symbolism. Some of the creations on the wall are evidence of what use to live during the Paleolithic period, every drawing of an animal that looks very different from the animals today are the generations from the past animals that were here before our time. Researchers would study the symbols that the Homo sapiens used to figure out what they mean.

Cave painting is great evidence for researchers to study of what was here before our time, with different styles of animals and maybe studying what was used to make the paint.This art is important because this shows us the creation of humans making art for the first time in history. Cave paintings is one of the oldest art in the world, its the birth of painting and sculpting. Scientists work to study these paintings and these artifacts to study our stone age ancestors and what they used and what the painted. Showing these different species of animals gives scientists to study more and finding information of these old creatures. This is also important to people that want to become artists or story book illustrators, these prints and figures on the walls are made from minds of people who were here over 45,000 BCE. Till present day, people visit the caves in Europe to look at the artwork from the Paleolithic period to study or to be fascinated. Till present day artists are bringing back the style of cave paintings but onto canvas paper instead of the cave walls.

Cave paintings were one of the first art to actually have image that lend to another image like a movie with different scenes. During the paleolithic era, Homo sapiens didn't have a language to speak but they used their art to communicate with other members of their groups. Cave paintings were not only used for communication, it was also used for educating the young children at the time. The elders would explain the paintings to children depicting a story of what happened in the painting. Cave paintings are a form of story telling, and would have shown a hunt, or an event from years before the younger generations were born. They would then be told to them as a part of oral history. The Homo sapiens didn't have much to do for entertainment, but they would use the paintings to create stories to make others interested in listening. By looking at it, you can see the depiction of what was going on inside the painting,the elder would then explain or tell the story of the ceremony or event. Cave paintings were like comics, each one of the figures drawn is in a action form and the little prints on the paintings is the word bubbles. Legends were also told through the paintings our ancestors done in order to show others the things they seen. There were different species of mammals that have existed that we did not see, but thanks to our ancestors we can look and research on the different animals that died long ago. In the picture of the Rainbow-serpent rock, originates from the country of Australia and has been in rituals and in legends of the creations of human beings. It has has a part for the weather as in the generation of rain, storms, floods and the reproductive system.

Dating back to 30,000 years ago (BCE), they didn't have the modern tools have artists have to paint. The homo sapiens would use their ingers, sticks, and pads of fur or moss to make the cave walls more nature based and with help of their tools. They would make dotes and do sketching with the coloured materials, charcoal, and coming up with the first spray paint technique using a hollow bone or their mouths and spraying it on the walls to make the spray art. How the homo sapiens made paint from dirt or charcoal mixed with spit or animal fat.

This man demonstrates the way of making a hand print with getting the palm full of paint using the spray paint technique. He is holding a bone in his mouth which he blows through that is spreading the paint every where on top of his hand. On the right, it shows the result of his hand, in the paleolithic period, hand prints were mainly the signatures of the homo sapiens to show others that a human was there. There is this artist named Alison Deerborn, she is currently living in Colorado, but was born and raised in Vermont. Her art is inspired by the cave paintings of Chauvet and Lascaux, France and Altamira, Spain and also African rock art. Her art is originally based off of Paleolithic art that was dated to 30,000-40,000 year ago. With thick layers of acrylic medium, she first carves her images into the canvas, then once dry, adds colour to the texture using vibrant earth tones. Homo sapiens in some parts of Europe would develop a way on how to make the paintings on the cave walls more realistic, they would carve out some pieces then would paint over the carved areas on the walls to make it look like the animals, humans or symbols were coming out. As Alison carves hers on canvas, it gives off that same method but only on canvas instead of rocks.

Cave paintings had made many changes in modern things that took place in the palaeolithic era, but the paintings of animals were the main creations on the cave walls. Different animals were painted differently from the body shape and skin colour from what the homo sapiens see them. Homo sapiens and artists in the present day create paintings of what they viewed, Modern artists visually looked at nature/animals to create a master piece because they practise at painting and drawing a lot. Animal paintings are fascinating to glance at; they are so realistic and the background in what the artist puts in there (usually) looks beautiful. In palaeolithic art, the homo sapiens draw what they have seen like animals or any kind of creatures that crossed their paths in life. For making humans on the wall of a cave was only lines and a round head but for animals, the homo sapiens went further into details on the animals. Nature was mostly painted in the caves, with animals fighting, running, eating, or even aggressively chasing after other animals. Cave paintings influence modern nature art because of the beauty of nature, the innocence of the animals and the creation of what our minds see in front of us to paint. It gives artists the patience and ability to create a master piece of what we view and our homo sapien ancestors had a good memory of what the animals looked like. Nature was the main topic that the homo sapiens painted because it is the first nature art that was made over 30,000 years ago (BCE), it was the master pieces of what they drew inside of themselves, drawing animals that have extinct with their fat is an interesting fact on how they can gather what they can use to make these paintings.

References

Infoplease: Encyclopedia, Almanac, Atlas, Biographies, Dictionary, Thesaurus. Free online reference,     research& homework help. | Infoplease.com. http://www.infoplease.com/encyclopedia/entertainment/paleolithic-art.html.

Dearborn, Alison. "About Sacred Cave." Alison Dearborn. http://sacredcave.com/about-the-artist-2/.

Webexhibits. "Pigments through the Ages - Prehistory."

http://www.webexhibits.org/pigments/intro/early.html.

How Cave Paintings Influenced Modern Nature Art

Modern bison painting with paleolithic bison cave art

 Cave paintings have influenced many modern things that took place in the palaeolithic era, but the paintings of animals were the main creations on the cave walls. Different animals were painted differently from the body shape and skin colour from the what the homo sapiens see them. Homo sapiens and artists in the present day create paintings of what they viewed Modern artists viewed nature/animals can paint a master piece because they practise at painting and drawing a lot. Animal paintings are fascinating to glance at and imagine it moving; they are so realistic and the background in what the artist puts in there (usually) looks beautiful. In palaeolithic art, the homo sapiens draw what they have seen like animals or any kind of creatures that crossed their paths in life. For making humans on the wall of a cave was only lines and a round head but for animals, the homo sapiens went further into details on the animals. Nature was mostly painted in the caves, with animals fighting, running, eating, or even aggressively chasing after other animals. Cave paintings influence modern nature art because of the beauty of nature, the innocence of the animals and the creation of what our minds see in front of us to paint. It gives artists the patience and ability to create a master piece of what we view and our homo sapien ancestors had a good memory of what the animals looked like. Nature was the main topic that the homo sapiens painted because it is the first nature art that was made over 30,000 years ago (BCE), it was the master pieces of what they drew inside of themselves, drawing animals that have extinct with their fat is an interesting fact on how they can gather what they can use to make these paintings.

Reigning Call by Alison Dearborn

In Alison Dearborn's painting "Reigning Call" she uses a very lifelike depiction of elk and the antlers are very proportionate and realistic. Unlike the cave paintings, there is more details in the structure and form of the animal, as if the painting itself were a shadow. This shows how far art has come, from vague shapes and forms to detailed depictions of animals.


reigning call image found here

modern bison painting image found here

Symbolism in Cave Paintings

By examining the paleolithic paintings, we intend to find some symbols or shapes spotted around the animals figures or inside the figures but not knowing what they actually mean. The zig zag lines, the hand prints, dots, ladder shapes, spirals and triangles all have a meaning. Researchers believed that the symbols were a form of communication, like a language to read about the cave art. Symbols can be signatures from the artists of the palaeolithic era, or it can explain a story that the painting has to offer from the artist. Scholars believed that cave paintings were products of rituals that would strengthen bonds between clans, and also enhance the fertitlity of animals they used for foods.

paleolithic alphabet 

image and info found here

Techniques and Materials

Historical 

In the art of the cave paintings that were made by the Homo sapiens, they created objects with different styles of shapes and figures. According to (www.infoplease.com) “In most Paleolithic caves animal figures (mainly horses, bison, cattle, and hinds) predominate, suggesting that the art may have had ritual significance related to hunting; there are few group or hunting scenes, however, and human figures are extremely rare. Drawn with vitality and the elegance of great simplicity, the animals are the masterworks of prehistoric art and are of an accuracy that provides invaluable evidence to paleozoologists. The Lascaux cave was closed when the paintings began to deteriorate. Some of Lascaux's painted rooms show no signs of human habitation and may have been used for ritual. Engravings on soft stone, bone, and ivory, as well as low reliefs and a few freestanding sculptures, have been found in or near many of these caves.” The animal art in the cave paintings are the main master pieces of the paleolithic artwork. The paint was made from dirt or charcoal mixed with spit or animal fat. They would use their fingers, sticks, and pads of fur or moss; daubing; dotting; sketching with coloured materials and charcoal; and spray painting through hollow bone or by mouth to make the art.

This man on the left is Spraying red ocher and water mixture through a hollow fox leg bone to create a negative handprint on a stone outcropping above camp at the 2002 Rattlesnake Rendezvous. On the right is the result after he sprayed his left hand.

Contemporary

Alison Dearborn is an artist that is living in Colorado, but was born and raised in Vermont. Her art is inspired by the cave paintings of Chauvet and Lascaux, France and Altamira, Spain and also African rock art. Her art is originally based off of Paleolithic art that was dated to 30,000-40,000 year ago. With thick layers of acrylic medium, she first carves her images into the canvas, then once dry, adds colour to the texture using vibrant earth tones. Other artists tend to use this method of creating art but Alison Deerborn's art is based off the paleolithic style.

Mystic Passage by Alison Dearborn

mystic passage image here

dearborn info here

paleolithic info here and here

cave technique image here

Storytelling Through Cave Paintings

Rainbow serpent rock

During the paleolithic era, Homo sapiens didn't have a language to speak but they used their art to communicate with other members of their groups. Cave paintings were not only used for communication, it was also used for educating the young children at the time. The elders would explain the paintings to children depicting a story of what happened in the painting. Cave paintings are a form of story telling, and would have shown a hunt, or an event from years before the younger generations were born. They would then be told to them as a part of oral history. The Homo sapiens didn't have much to do for entertainment, but they would use the paintings to create stories to make others interested in listening. By looking at it, you can see the depiction of what was going on inside the painting,the elder would then explain or tell the story of the ceremony or event. Legends were also told through the paintings our ancestors done in order to show others the things they seen. There were different species of mammals that have existed that we did not see, but thanks to our ancestors we can look and research on the different animals that died long ago. The picture above is known as the Rainbow-serpent-rock. Its origins is from the country of Australia and has played a role in history. The Rainbow-serpent has been in rituals and in legends of the creations of human beings. It has has a part for the weather as in the generation of rain, storms, floods and the reproductive system.

A good example of an existing painting inside the Lascaux Cave is the "Bird-Headed Man With Bison (15,000 BCE)" on a shaft scene below. For “Bird-headed man with bison” painting, there is a male hunter wearing a bird mask that is laying on the ground, a bison stands over him with his baton and spear thrower under his feet. There seems to be a spear inside the bison looming over the hunter and is about to die soon and a few feet away on the left side is a woolly Rhinoceros running away from the hunter and dying bison. This story can be spoken of a man that was hunting and tried to hunt a bison, but was to strong for it to go down to quickly and the hunter was facing it while he was laying on the ground, yet scared off the woolly rhinoceros. Researchers these days have seen story paintings in the caves in europe, they are still trying to figure out what some of them mean but they would have to go deeper into their history. 

Bird-headed Man with Bison 15, 000 BCE

image of rainbow serpent here

image of bison here

 

Introduction to Paleolithic Art

Origin And Background:

Paleolithic cave art began around 30,000BCE to 10,000BCE. Homo sapiens were originally the first peoples to roam the earth and were also the first artists and writers. During that time, Homo sapiens began to start using their minds to be creative, making tools for survival or creating images in cave walls for entertainment. There are over two hundred caves throughout Europe, some are famous for its art and research like in south-west France or northern Spain. When the Homo sapiens started doing the paintings, its theme was based on animals that lived around that period. There are three different categories that were drawn: Humans, Animals and Signs for communication or symbolism. Some of the creations on the wall are evidence of what use to live during the Paleolithic period, every drawing of an animal that looks very different from the animals today are the generations from the past animals that were here before our time. Researchers would study the symbols that the Homo sapiens used to figure out what they mean.

Wall Paintings of horses, rhinos and aurochs in Chauvet cave (32000-30000 BCE)

Why is it important?

This art is important because this shows us the creation of humans making art for the first time in history. Cave paintings is one of the oldest art in the world, its the birth of painting and sculpting. Scientists work to study these paintings and these artifacts to study our stone age ancestors and what they used and what the painted. Showing these different species of animals gives scientists to study more and finding information of these old creatures. This is also important to people that want to become artists or story book illustrators, these prints and figures on the walls are made from minds of people who were here over 45,000 BCE. Till present day, people visit the caves in Europe to look at the artwork from the Paleolithic period to study or to be fascinated. Till present day artists  are bringing back the style of cave paintings but onto canvas paper instead of the cave walls. 

image found here 

information found here and here