"Persistence of Memory" - Salvador Dali

Melting clocks, an unidentifiable creature, and stillness of the background of this piece invite us into a sort of dream world. Upon first glance at Salvador Dali’s painting, “The Persistence of Memory,” melting clocks grab our attention. The next aspect that jumps out is the animal-like creature upon which one of the softening watches rests. In the background, we see a bleak landscape. A sandy beach stretches to a body of absolute still water; the water meets the featureless sky at the horizon line. In the right side of the painting, another lifeless watch drapes over the branch of a dead olive tree. Ants covering a closed pocket watch are the only life forms to be seen. From the dark shadows cast on the scene, we can predict the time is either dawn or dusk. The objects found in this painting are very exact, very recognizable; however, the scene would not be found in real life. This combination of the real and imagined constitutes the art movement of Surrealism, of which Dali is most famous for (Art Beyond Sight). “The Persistence of Memory” portrays a dream-like world where time is irrelevant; a comparison/contrast between the conscious and subconscious convinces us that the idea of time may be ineffective in not only dreams but also reality.

Drooping watches, a symbol of the passing of time, are the focal point of this piece. Quite large in comparison to other objects in the painting, the watches are positioned on lifeless objects: the dead olive tree, an inanimate table, and an apparent unconscious life form. This is the first persuasion in the argument against time. A forth pocket watch, in its original form, lies closed on the table. Ants crawl around the watch, suggesting the watch is organic and edible. This notion presents the idea that the decay of time is as ordinary as ants feeding on organic matter.

The large animal-like creature in the center of the piece appears to be either dead or fast asleep. The extensively long eyelashes and resemblance of a human nose suggests a distorted human profile; the body and lifeless tail of the creature suggest a type of animal. This merging of human and animal forms uses the strategy of anthropomorphism, which is just that: merging human and animal characteristics. The distorted watch atop the lifeless body is perhaps the strongest point of argument in this piece. A “dream world” theme is central to the painting; the sleeping monster suggests that simple action of dreaming. Drooping upon its back, the clock suggests the distortion of time in this dreamland.

Combinations of opposing ideas are contrasted throughout the piece. We can see aspects of an everyday, normal scene: a sandy beach, rocky cliffs in the background, shadows falling across the peaceful land. In these, we see the natural world. On the contrary, melting clocks are not objects we expect to see in everyday life, nor is a morphed animal-human creature. A comparison between nature and technology is made (Salvador Dali Museum). Within the natural surroundings, the clocks are the only mad-made objects in the painting. Even these do not represent technology in reality, as they are distorted and ineffective.

The backdrop offers a beautiful scene like that of a postcard, but it shows absolutely no signs of life. Even the body of water is completely motionless. This idea relates to the contrast between our conscious minds and our subconscious minds. Placed into a scene where the theme of a dream world is consistent, this one form of technology is irrelevant and extraneous. The correlation to be made is the idea that technology, time in particular, is in fact completely irrelevant when it comes to our subconscious minds. In a dream, no sense of time is kept. No measures prevent us from acting upon things we yearn for. Within this comparison, the strategy of example can also be seen. The sleeping creature, while part of a contrast between real and imagined, also acts as an illustration of the correlation between time and the subconscious. Reality would not present us with a creature of this type; only a dream would do so. The distorted clock resting upon this imaginary creature suggests that the sense of time is absolutely irrelevant to the dream world.

The idea of time distortion offers the most emotion-stirring aspect of the painting with the use of pathos. While it is obvious that time is distorted in the land of the subconscious, we begin to wonder of time is distorted and ineffective in even our waking lives. Why are humans so obsessed with the idea of time, when we have absolutely no control over it? In reality, time is irrelevant.

A last comparison to be made of the piece is that of hardness, which is symbolic of certainty, and softness, which represents uncertainty. The “hard” objects in the painting are certain: the jagged cliffs, dead tree, table, even the beach. However, the “soft” objects mark areas of unknown: the melting clocks and the sleeping beast (Salvador Dali Museum). Time, as our clocks measure for us, should be a certainty. But do we have any control of it? Absolutely not. We have control over what we do with the time in our lives, but we cannot stop time or make it go faster; we cannot go backwards or forwards. We have only the here and now, and no one on earth is powerful enough to change that.

As an audience, we must ask ourselves why these distinctions are being made. Why the barren atmosphere? Why a creature of the unknown, rather than a representation of humans in reality? These comparisons are made to show that while the land of the conscious and the land of the subconscious are certainly two different worlds, the sense of time may be similar in both. Though we worry about it in our everyday lives, nothing can be done about it. Subconsciously, time makes no difference.

The melting of clocks can be seen, in reality, as an indication that time and the machine that measures it are ineffective. All things decay in time, as can be seen with the dead olive tree in the left of the painting. Crawling ants also indicate the decay of that which they are surrounding, in this case the one watch that remains sturdy. We can conclude that even those things that appear strong and purposeful will come to a point where their usefulness fades away, and they become useless (Salvador Dali Museum). Even a concept as vital as time is just that: a conception. A conception that we have no control over; a conception that, in reality, is ineffective.

Extra Credit: Joanna Klink

One of the poems Joanna Klink read from her book was entitled “And Having Lost Track.” The poem begins with the line: “And having lost track, I walked toward the open field. Now transparent, now far, the day-moon burned through the waste air.” This clip, standing alone, may have no significant value. However, when looking at the context of the rest of the poem, we can see that Klink often uses nature and the vastness of the outdoors to convey messages of solitude, peace, and serenity. In this particular line, she uses very basic elements (open field, moon, air) to portray a basic scene, to show the calm of the place she turns to when she “loses track.” Though vague, she is able to convey her message. Often, we look for minute details to be able to conjure an image or scene being described, but this is not the case with this poem.

In the conclusion of “And Having Lost Track”, Klink states “that we only exist. That we do not have the means. And are free to take place.” By this, we are shown that we do indeed merely exist in the vastness of our world. As humans, often there is nothing we can do but be as we are, where we are, and exist. Perhaps this is where we ought to be, without attempting to control every aspect of this world, even aspects that we may know very well are uncontrollable. We take place in a world where much is out of our reach, out of our control, and sometimes the best thing to do is sit back and simply exist.

"Snake Arm" - Judy Chicago

This image by Judy Chicago, entitled “Snake Arm”, is from a series of glass works by Chicago, “Chicago in Glass.” Chicago is known for pioneering “Feminist Art”, which conveys messages of women’s equality, rights and strength. This entire series of “Chicago in Glass” expresses the power of the human hand and how gestures can show meaning. In order to understand this piece of art, the rest of the series must be acknowledged: hands are used to express various emotions and mind-sets and also stand as a symbol of vulnerability and mortality. Differences in hand gestures are used to illustrate choices made, such as reaching out or pushing away. Glass is used because of the transparency, which allows us to see through to what is “underneath the skin.”

This particular piece of work combines a raised fist with an encircling golden snake. The raised fist is a sure symbol of unity, power and uprising, while the symbol of the snake may have controversial meaning. Often, a snake symbol is associated with feminism and fertility, and also of medicine. In this perspective, the snake would be presented positively. However, the snake has also been known to suggest negativity, problems and evil. In the case of this art, the snake resembles a bracelet that is a reminder of powerful women, such as fertility goddesses, biblical Eve and the Greek goddess Athena of wisdom and war. Gold is a symbol of beauty and wealth, and giving the snake this color creates the idea of beautiful, powerful women. Upon looking at this peace, and with background information on the artist and the series, we can come to a fairly complete conclusion about the piece. Though it is no hybrid piece of art (it contains no text), we gather the message the artist is conveying: women have a very powerful, righteous place in society and need to rise above inequality and gender stereotypes. Because of the awareness of Chicago’s purposes in art, it is easier to understand in interpret. Feminism, the cultural context of this piece, is represented in the artwork. By putting together separate components of the human hand and the encircling snake, a piece of rhetoric concerning feminism is created.

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www.thespec.com/article/257895

www.judychicago.com

www.brooklynmuseum.org

Winston Cigarette Ad

This Flintstones advertisement for Winston cigarettes conveys the idea that smoking is cool, with absolutely no health precautions, disclaimers or warnings. We can see from the video the drastic changes that have occurred in both technology and attitudes since the time this commercial was aired in 1961.

The ad features Fred and Barney Flintstone enjoying a smoke while they lazily watch their wives hard at work. In attempt to sell their cigarette, Winston uses the cartoon to endorse smoking this particular brand. The characters claim the cigarette has the best taste (“the way a cigarette should be”), a pure filter, and comes from the finest selection and process of tobacco. The advertisers use a popular cartoon to promote their product and reach out to the television audience.

Today, a commercial such as this would raise much controversy and likely be banned from television. It could be argued that this particular commercial was targeting a young audience, since the Flinstones is a program typically viewed by children. In the sixties, this concept was not thought twice about – for one, we were not aware of the dangers of smoking, and secondly, programs aired on television were much more liberal. In some perspectives, we have come a long way since this time: obviously, we know the effects of cigarette smoking and ads such as this are banned. Children are not targeted (at least not up front), and it is mandatory that cigarette ads provide health warnings. Endorsement by such entities would provide a bad reputation, while in the time of this ad it was an effective way of sale. Still, we often come across ads or programs that give the idea that smoking is “cool.” While it may not be as direct as this ad, cigarette companies are still finding ways to promote their deadly product to audiences of every kind.

How I Go - Yellowcard (Big Fish)

Yellowcard’s “How I Go” was written about the movie “Big Fish” after its release in 2003. The hit film tells the story of a young man who feels his father’s life has always been a mystery; the elder (Edward) is known for his extensive tales about his adventures in life. The son, William, is determined to find out who his father really is, and as his dad is dying he begins to finally piece his life together. He asks his father’s help in revealing his true self, only to get the usual response that he has already told of his life through his stories.

In this video, the song is put to clips of the film to depict the story. Though the clip shows only a glimpse of the movie, we get a strong sense of the story through the words that go along with the clips shown. The song takes us through Edward’s adventures while his son attempts to sort fact from fiction. We see scenes from Edward’s experience with giants and circuses, and his endless quest to win over the girl he knows he is supposed to be with.

The line from the chorus of the song, “… this isn’t how I go” stems from Edward’s story of how he once looked into a witch’s glass eye and saw his death. This is another tale he tells his frustrated son; even on his deathbed he is “telling tales.” However, we can gather from the song the true moral behind the story: “Son, I am not everything you thought that I would be… but every story I have told is part of me.” Without watching the movie, we see the story through the combination of the song and clips. Edward may have elaborated his life to make it more interesting, but William soon learns that not all his father told was lies. The clip, and also the movie, ends with Edward’s funeral, where William sees characters from many of his father’s tales come to honor their friend.