Painting Interpretation :: essays research papers

Recently at the San Diego Museum of picture showgraphic arts in balboa park, there was an exhibition of Steve McCurrys, the national geographical photographer who took the famous picture Afghan Girl, on his photo tour of Asia. It chronicled in splendid detail everything from India, and the most holy places in the Sikh religion, to Tibet and to the traditions inherent in the daily lives Afghani bakers. The titles and the explanatory schoolbook blobs dotting the w tout ensembles told a story of deep eldritchism and introspection in the bear on of religion. The pieces all reflected on different religions but the theme remained and painted Asia as a place full of devout individuals who shoot found utilization in their respective theologies. Among these somas of brooding eyes, silent prayer and reflection spend a comical image. It showed a young Uzbekistani boy prop a cigarette to the mouth of a statue the statue of a Buddhist spiritual guru.     The image w as funny. A burning Marlboro at the smiling stone lips of a 700 year old priest was funny. scarcely the question I present was why. If humor is the human reaction to the uncomfortable, the awkward or the indecent, what about this image made my friend and I laugh. The answer lied in its comparison. It juxtaposed a devout spiritualism with commercialization and addiction. Both things thought to be in stark contrast with the enlightenment that is supposed to be revealed to all sons and daughters of religion and especially the followers of Buddha. This image struck a consort with me, even though I am not religious, and have taken resentment to the current upswing in the inquisition like militancy that is directly a part of the Christian faith in America, I have grown up in a religious ordination, a Christian society. My morals are based on Christian interpretations of right and price fore we both live in a country founded on such beliefs, and are now immersed in them. This image of comparison stuck with me because, our society is full of such paradoxical situations. Christian doctrine dictates the negative outcomes of addiction, and guffaws at commercialism as an offshoot of sensibleism and greed, which is a mortal sin. But despite these things the world and America in particular are in a struggle hold with peoples desire for material wealth on one side and the planets salutary being and the worlds religious quest for balance in all life on the other.