Relating Art to English

I chose to base my blog off of my AP Art concentration to help build my portfolio. My blog has helped both in Art and in English because I am able to use what I learn in both classes. I can write about what facial expressions mean in society and in the art world. I can also connect the meanings of colors that are represented in paintings. Not only because a color wheel says that purple and orange are complementary colors, but also because of the meaning of understanding that red represent anger, passion, and love. Colors are based off of feelings. Feelings that are shown through facial expressions. Also, discovering the human brain and its connections to emotions has helped me improve on my drawings skills. Learning of the importance of someone's glare or how our eyebrows make a V shape when we are angry, has helped me concentrate more on the little details in the human face when drawing a portrait.  

Facial expressions in Geishas and Nohs

The majority of my posts have been mainly focused on how emotions can be read through facial expressions.  Although, there are other ways to unfold and demonstrate our emotions, for example, masks and face paintings. In the Japanese and Chinese cultures geishas are a very unique and traditional way of expressing who we are and what we feel. Geishas are entertainers that are trained to portrait great art, excellent dancing, and music. The Geisha came to life when long ago Japanese men traveled to Europe and came back speaking about “white beauties”. This was interoperated as having an actual white face. Many women who are Geishas serviced many American soldiers during times of war. A Geisha consists of having an extremely white face to represent kindness, loyalty and purification.  They must also have a lick layer of eye liner to show their elegance and formality. Lastly, they must wear deep red lipstick. Their red lip stick represents their power, passion, desire, and love.  Although Geishas are entertainers, they can sometimes be seen as prostitutes or call girls.   

A very traditional type of mask in the Japanese culture is a Noh. These very special masks are used in theaters and when performing a cultural dance. This mask gives the actor a certain power to every performer. They are mainly used in religious conditions and are highly valuable. Most of the masks have been in a family for many generations. There are six types of masks: Okina (old man’s mask), Jo (elders mask), Onna-men (woman masks), Kishin(demons), Onryo(gosts and spirits). When a person wears a Noh, they transform into a different spirit and spiritually leave the human world. They are sucked in to a new world where they are communicating with their ancestors. Each mask represents feelings and emotions without showing a single part of their faces.

Facial expressions might be much easier to understand and interoperate, but masks and face painting are much more meaning full than any smile or frown.            

                                    

Kinsly's facial expressions in just seconds!

Happiness

Happiness is a universal facial expression and are easily recognized. They are interpreted as messages of feeling excitement, enjoyment, pleasure or simply just feeling content with yourself. Although, not all smiles are what they appear. There are times when a smile can be used to hide other emotions that the person wants to hide. For example, celebrities and political figures can use a happy and satisfied faces to manipulate their public into thinking they are they are feeling fine only to maintain a professional look.    

How do babies learn facial expressions?

Before babies learn how to talk, they learn how to absorb emotions and understand what you are trying to say because of your tone of voice. Babies learn from what they see others do. They love to see their parents facial expressions and will use them as their role models. They go from only absorbing the different vibes around them to actually interpenetrating what they feel through facial expressions. Apart from learning from their parents, babies are born with a natural instinct that tells them to smile when they are happy and frown when they are sad. For the most part, humans are born with common sense to let our emotions be read through our facial expressions.