Critical analysis of Mordor, he wrote: How the Black Country inspired Tolkein’s badlands by Stuart Jeffries, The Guardian, 19th September, 2014.

Tolkien’s iron fortress in Mordor, as seen in Lord of the Rings.

Sarehole Mill, near the hamlet of Sarehole, Birmingham, where Tolkien grew up. Photograph: David Mansell

Chrystine Jones.
FDA Three Dimension Design.
November 2014.
Critical analysis of Mordor, he wrote: How the Black Country inspired Tolkein’s badlands by Stuart Jeffries, The Guardian, 19th September, 2014.
Stuart Jeffries’ review, The Guardian, 19th, September, 2014, of the Making of Mordor exhibition at Wolverhampton Art Gallery inspires his readers with romanticised images of industrialisation in the Black Country, contrasting with the greenlands it was prior to the industrial revolution and is now.
This review offers a brief history of the district along with an insight into J. R. R. Tolkein’s early life in a nearby suburb and his feelings on the changes he witnessed to the area.
Jefferies states that the exhibition shows that the industrial Black Country influenced Tolkein’s vision of Mordor in his book, The Lord of the Rings. His use of descriptive language captures the readers interest with statements such as, “you’re quickly on an intriguing journey” (Jefferies. S. The Guardian.19/09/2014) and when referring to an artist’s work, “unflinching photographs” (ibid). This implies that viewers may be shocked and is another way of igniting the readers’ interest.
The overall feeling gained from this text takes the reader to scenes of Hell, “the fires never went out – it looks like Hell “(ibid), coupled with scenes of beauty and tranquillity, “it was a place of fields and watermills” (ibid). This is supported with images from the exhibition, scene of the iron fortress and photograph of Sarehole Mill.
Jeffries, who is Black Country born, imparts his pride in his heritage to his readers with phrases such as “terrible, intoxicating beauty” (ibid) and “has what has made the Black Country special gone for good?”(ibid). I can relate to this as I was born and spent most of my life in Wolverhampton in the Black Country. I know the townsfolk have a pride in what was a major cog in the greatness of the country at that time.
Today, nature and beauty can be seen instead of fire and blackness but there is feeling of desolation in a place that has little of import. Despite this, Jeffries ends his article with the motto of Wolverhampton, Out of Darkness Cometh Light. This positive ending leaves his readers with a feeling of optimism.

This review makes the exhibition attractive, unfortunately, having seen the exhibition, I found it disappointing in comparison. The entrance room to the actual exhibition was full branches giving the illusion of walking though a forest. This made you feel you were entering into the realms of Lord of the Rings. Unfortunately it led into a stark room with a few paintings on walls and a glass cabinet housing first editions of Tolkeins books.

References.
http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/sep/19/how-the-west-midlands-black-country-inspired-tolkien-lord-of-the-rings accessed 29/11/2014.

Front cover of textiles sketchbook.

I made a front cover for a textiles sketchbook. I found an unused photo album in a charity shop and thought it would make a good sketchbook. I made a cover out of various textile surface areas as this is my current assignment.
The cover is loosely inspired by Gastav Klimt.

The Making of Mordor – Wolverhampton Arts and Museums

I saw this exhibition in SEptember.
20 September 2014 – 17 January 2015
Mordor’ conjures images of a charred wasteland exploited for its resources. This exhibition explores the links between J.R.R. Tolkien’s depictions of this fantasy region in The Lord of the Rings and the Black Country of the 1900s, which lay a few miles from his childhood home.

Alongside images from Tolkien’s sketchbooks, signed first editions of his novels and iconic illustrations by concept artist Ted Nasmith, The Making of Mordor features works by other 20th century writers and artists who have been influenced by the industrial powerhouse of the West Midlands. Contemporary responses to the post-industrial Black Country will also be on show, including works by Turner Prize nominee Richard Billingham, photographer Brian Griffin and artist Euripides Altintzoglou, along with an indoor forest by internationally-acclaimed installation artist Olafur Eliasson

glass kaleidoscope bought in charity shop – took photos through viewer

Beautiful raku Tim Andrews vase – bought in charity shop

I bought this this vase in a local charity shop. I love Raku pottery and also collect locally made pottery.

photos of my kids first shoes, framed into picture and other pictures

Interesting table designs

Précis on African Art: Where The Hand Has Ears. Amadou Hampâté Bâ. (1976) In The Craft Reader. Edited by Glenn Adamson. (2010) for Bruce Chivers, Contextual Studies.

Tags

DRP Criteria 1, DRP Criteria 2

Chrystine Jones.
FDA Three Dimension Design.
Contextual Studies: Style and Meaning.
The Craft Reader. Amadou Hampâté Bâ. ‘African Art: Where the Hand Has Ears’.

“‘Art’ was not something separate from life. It not only covered all forms of human activity, but also gave them a meaning. Ancient Africa’s view of the universe was an all-embracing and religious one, and acts, particularly acts of creation, were seldom, if ever, and carried out without a reason, an intention, or appropriate ritual preparations “ (Adamson 2010 379). This extract is the basis of the essay, African Art: Where the Hand Has Ears’, Amadou Hampâté Bâ. Published UNESCO Courier (February 1976).
The ancient African way of thinking about art is very different to how it is thought of today in modern society where art is often created for purely aesthetic reasons.
The traditional belief of Africans was that our world was a shadow of a higher world where the souls and thoughts of men linked to our world and through this link found expression through men’s hands but it was perceived in this higher place where knowledge was handed down by ancestors.
In this essay, Hampâté Bâ, points out that traditional Africa “had no division between the sacred and the profane” (ibid 379). They believed that all things depended on each other and were interconnected. They believed that through their acts and gestures, the unseen forces of life would come into play and therefore performed rituals whilst creating things. These rituals were thought to be paramount to avoid upsetting the balance of these forces that they believed they were guardians of. When craftsmen performed a ritual they would often go into a trance and on emerging from this trance, they would create. The objects created were not considered to be a creation of the craftsman as they saw themselves only as the instrument that the knowledge was transmitted though.
Africans believed objects to be the “repositories of power” (ibid 382). They gave form to the impressions they drew from the cosmos. Nothing was made by chance. They had no belief in fantasy, everything had to have a purpose. The rituals they performed brought them to a state of harmony that they believed entered the aura of the object. The object would then be empowered to move all who saw it. “A thing that has not kindled beauty in you”, an old adage says,” cannot kindle beauty in others who look upon it” (ibid383). Africans believed the object produced was an outward manifestation of an inner beauty that was a reflection of the beauty of the cosmos (ibid 383). Therefore the whole creative process was not something that could be bought. This is not to say that all of their art was lovely but that they had the ability to move the viewer. They could be instilled with an ability to attract or repel.
Many of the symbols and patterns present on the objects created by Africans had precise meanings, these were regarded as necessary for the transmission of ancient knowledge. Hampâté Bâ concludes that traditional African art was not produced arbitrary. Objects had sacred meanings – religious, educational or entertaining and these objects ‘spoke’ on many levels. He states the importance of viewing them on several levels as well as listening to the stories and teachings of these people. “Everything which is, teaches through mute speech. Form is language. Being is language. Everything is language” (ibid 384).
Although rare, secular art differed from religious art, it was not seen as ‘consecrated’ and not ‘loaded’ with spiritual power (ibid 383). Hampâté Bâ asserts that these secular artworks do not have the same impact on the viewer as religious artworks do. Secular art has advanced since the colonial era. Authentic, spiritually ‘loaded’ items are extremely rare to find. Some objects, like religious wooden masks, are considered so hallowed that they are hidden from sight, taken out only for great ceremonies. Some masks are only taken out every sixty years for the great Sigui ceremony (ibid 384).

The sacred African art has almost disappeared and has been replaced by art at a ‘folklore’ level. There are still some traditional custodians of the skills, arts and sciences. Amadou Hampate Ba states that these could be retrieved and rescued if we were willing to listen to what these custodians tell us. He asks young African artists to consider the meaning of their heritage and hopes they will be more receptive to the silent message of ancient African art so that it does not become lost forever.
“The old African saying goes: Listen! Everything speaks. Everything is speech. Everything seeks to inform us, to give us knowledge or an indefinable, mysteriously enriching and constructive state of being” (ibid 385).
On reading this essay I was initially sceptical but after researching sub-consciousness I realised that what these ancient Africans were doing could be explained by quantum physics. To explain further… The brain or the ‘mind’ controls the physical functions while the sub-conscious mind is an area where everything that the conscious mind receives is stored and where thought processes are started. Thoughts are actually an electrochemical, physical process. It is unseen energy. When this unseen energy is transmuted to the brain, the unseen or non-physics becomes real. There is then a super-conscious mind which is a unified field. These three aspects of the mind are collectively joined. Chuck Danes, author of The Power of The Sub-conscious mind, states “ALL of these seemingly separate means of discover are intricately interconnected…EVERYTHING at its core consists of pure energy and EVERYTHING, both the seen (physical) and the unseen (metaphysical) is intricately interconnected with EVERYTHING else at this level of causation which is a continuously vibrating mass of pure energy” (Danes. 2005-2012. The power of the subconscious mind. http://www.abundance-and-happiness.com/quantum-physics.html. 16/11/2014.).
Anyone can develop, through learning, a heightened awareness and can utilize skills to consciously control the sub-conscious. By relinquishing control of the conscious mind they can tap into the sub-conscious and through this then access the super-consciousness or universal consciousness.
By entering trance-like states, Africans entered their sub-conscious which allowed them to tune in to the universal consciousness where they perceived ideas which they could then give form to. They may have had a primitive understanding of the power of the unconscious.
To add to this I also feel that African art has a lot to offer to the modern aesthetics of the western world.

Bibliography.

Adamson, G (2010) The Craft Reader. Oxford UK, Bierq.
Danes, C. The power of the subconscious mind (2005-2012). http://www.abundance-and-happiness.com/quantum-physics.html (16/11/2014).

African Art: Where the hand has ears. Amadou Hampate Ba. The Craft Reader – Glenn Adamson.

Ancient Africans believed that anything created had to have a reason, an intention or ritual properties. The objects they created were purely functional, they did not create art for aesthetic reasons. Everything was art, they believed, provided it had been created with some kind of knowledge. They believed art was the work of the hand. The African belief was that our world was a shadow of a higher world where the souls and thoughts of men linked to our world and through this link art found expression through man’s hands but it was perceived in this higher place where knowledge was handed down by ancestors. The Africans performed rituals to accompany they work. This concept links to the work of Jackson Pollock.
Jackson Pollock painted ‘Guardians of the secret’ in 1943. It has been suggested that what is being guarded is the secret meanings or unconscious, the repository of secret meanings and the generator of the forms which will be assumed by these meanings.
Guardians of the Secret, 1943 by Jackson Pollock

In 1950, Pollock stated “The modern artist, it seems to me, is working and expressing an inner world – in other words – expressing the energy, the motion and other inner forces. Pollock created his art with rituals. These rituals and Pollock’s beliefs mirror the ways of the ancient Africans.

The craftsmen of ancient Africa passed their knowledge down through generations. This was not purely a knowledge of the practice but the knowledge of the cosmic forces that they held sacred. When carrying out their tasks these people were very careful not to upset these forces. They had to approach everything in the right way. Woodworkers, who made ritual objects (mainly masks), began by cutting the wood from the trees themselves. Their initiation was linked to the secrets of the African bush. These masks became a forerunner of cubism.

Africans believed objects to be the repositories of power. They gave form to the impressions they drew from the cosmos. Nothing was made by chance. They had no belief in fantasy, everything had to have a purpose. The rituals they performed brought them to a state of harmony that they believed entered the aura of the object. The object would then be empowered to move all who saw it. An old adage says “A thing that has not kindled beauty in you cannot kindle beauty in others who look upon it” Africans believed the object produced was an outward manifestation of an inner beauty that was a reflection of the beauty of the cosmos. Therefore the whole creative process was not something that could be bought. This is not to say that all of their art was lovely but they had the ability to move the viewer. They could be infused with an ability to attract or repel.

In the early 1900’s, Picasso became deeply influenced by African art. This was sparked by an African mask showed to him by Henri Matisse. Picasso saw an exhibition at the Trocadero Museum on African art and later said that he had been changed forever. At the Trocadero exhibition, Picasso described his inability to turn away from the objects inventive and elegant figural compositions. He said the sculptures had helped him to understand his purpose as a painter, which was not to entertain but to mediate between perceived reality and the creativity of the human mind – to be freed or ‘exorcised’ from the fear of the unknown by giving birth to it. Stein (1913)
Although African art had a massive effect on Picasso’s future work he never gave it the credit it deserved, in fact, later in life he denied being inspired by it at all. The effect it had can be seen by the change in Picasso’s style. This became known as Picasso’s Black or Negro period, 1907-1909.
‘Les Demoiselles d’ Avignon’ was painted in 1907. It became one of the cornerstones of Picasso’s fame and is seen as his first cubism painting.
Les Demoiselles d’ Avignon. Pablo Picasso. 1907.

The African influences can also clearly be seen in ‘Head of a Woman’, 1907. The painting bears a striking resemblance to the ‘Dan Mask’ shown to him by Henri Matisse.

LEFT: Pablo Picasso, ‘Head of a Woman’, 1907 (oil on canvas)
RIGHT: Dan Mask from West Africa
The sacred African art has almost disappeared and has been replaced by art at a ‘folklore’ level. There are still some traditional custodians of the skills, arts and sciences. Amadou Hampate Ba states that these could be retrieved and rescued if we were willing to listen to what these custodians tell us.
An old African saying goes: Listen! Everything speaks. Everything is speech. Everything seeks to inform us, to give us knowledge or an indefinable, mysteriously enriching and constructive state of being.
Although I am sceptical about the spiritual connotations of the African approach to craft/art it could be a primitive understanding of the power of the unconscious and its presence in our ability to make. To add to this I do feel that African art has a lot to offer to the modern aesthetics of the western world.