Woman From Willendorf, image credit: Art History (6th Edition) by Marilyn Stockstad and Michael W. Cothren As I type away, I look out the window to the cold, dreary, and rain-soaked Seattle sky and think to myself: Ah, Fall! It’s fall, which means pumpkin spice, the song This is Halloween serving as audio for every single Instagram reel, cold rain for Seattleites, and a fresh school year! For my senior year, my curriculum has sent me all the way back…
Looking up, down, and all around, I saw so many frescos. Nestled up in the ceiling, set between two pillars, encapsulating a domed niche, they were practically everywhere, each waiting to be discovered. The still air in the vaulted rooms was cool and the crowd I had seen earlier amassing at the door to the museum was all but seemingly absent. They must have all gone to a different wing. Alone, I sat on a bench gazing up at the…
I looked at the triptych and thought to myself, “why is that baby so ugly?” I can’t believe how quickly this year has gone by so far. Is it already mid-April? As I soon embark on an art history-focused trip to Europe, I’ve had some time to reflect upon the last quarter of Running Start. Fortunately, both classes I took involved no finals! Instead for my art history class, I was assigned a visual analysis essay. The mission, which I…
Image Credit: Wikipedia Commons via ThoughCo. Combining many differing sources into a single curriculum is one of the many benefits of homeschooling. So far this school year, I have been attending classes at my local community college through dual enrollment (named Running Start in Washington State). While last quarter was a lab credit (chemistry), this quarter I am having a blast studying Medieval and Renaissance art history! So far the class has been genuinely enjoyable! I’ve been studying a plethora…
My journey with art history, stemming from an afterthought to a definite educational and career focus, began with a single quote: “You don’t know what you like; you like what you know.” These words both introduced and concluded the Great Courses lecture series How to Look at and Understand Great Art, which helped shape my perception of both art and the world immensely. It has been over a year since I’ve concluded those lectures (which I highly recommend) and my…
It’s been a while! Overall, I’d say that 2023 went well for my family and me. What could be a better way to celebrate the new year than by visiting the local Seattle Art Museum? Originally, my family and I wanted to go see the comparative Renegade Edo and Paris exhibit, which equated the works of late 19th century French artist Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec to the woodblock prints of Edo-period Japan. However, this exhibit turned out to be at the…
I must admit that I love visiting art museums. In my opinion, art is one of the best ways to analyze the evolution of human culture. It has evolved from simple cave paintings depicting the day’s hunt to visual guides of significant religious moments to becoming a complex analysis of the emotions running through an artist’s head while splattering paint on sheet of canvas. Art is the embodiment of humanity’s mission to evolve and express itself. Fortunately for me, my…
Although the world has moved on from the political-military tensions of the 20th century, the Cold War still remains on people’s minds. Even those born after the fall of the USSR, such as myself, have heard the nearly mythical stories of the government doomsday bunkers. During the Cold War, Americans were told that if WWIII began, the government would survive within a network of underground bunkers. This isn’t just some myth, there were in fact multiple bunkers designed for humanity’s…
Currently for social studies I am studying the complete history of China, all the way from the earliest formation stories to the Terracotta Warriors. Currently, one of the most interesting parts of this curriculum has been the origin story of China’s First dynastic power, the Xia Dynasty. Legends tell the story of a man named Yu the Great establishing this dynasty after saving his land from a massive flood. Although much of The West has never heard of…
Prologue: Some context on how the government of Canadian provinces work… In case you were unaware, the nation of Canada is sub-divided into ten provinces and three territories. United, these provinces and territories comprise the second-largest country on Earth. These provinces are linked together via the Constitution of Canada and the Canadian federal government. Being part of the British Commonwealth, Queen Elizabeth II serves as Head of State for Canada. In addition to serving as the Head of State for…