Vanity.

As much as I want to deny the fact that women live to be desired, I can’t. I plead myself guilty of this statement. Being a woman is no joke. I want to look good most of the time and this entails a lot of effort. Dressing up, for instance, is one way to make myself feel good. I wear clothes that will compliment my body maybe to impress my boyfriend. Sometimes I wear makeup to emphasize my features. Although they say natural beauty is better, its undeniable that make up helps to emphasize your beauty. Furthermore, to keep me updated on the latest fashion trend, I read women’s magazines like cosmopolitan, mega, vogue etc. These magazines feature women that are close to perfect in terms of physical beauty. The models have everything you wish for like long legs, glowing skin, voluptuous body and more. Sometimes I question myself for reading these kinds of magazines. The more I fantasize about how perfect they are, the more I feel ugly, the more I feel imperfect. But what makes me subscribe to these materials? As of now, my only hypothesis is that I don’t want to lose track of the latest trends or in simply, I don’t want to be out of fashion ( which only shows how I am concern on how I look and how might judge me for my physical aspect) . Certainly, being a woman entails a lot of effort though most of the time we deny it.

Do you see what I see?

The entire week was devoted to Mona Lisa. At first, it was pretty interesting but then it became tiring. Mona Lisa this and that… Only to find out that there is no single explanation of the real identity of Mona Lisa. Despite of my disappointment, I came to realize that I appreciate it better if Mona Lisa’s mysteriousness won’t be revealed. It’s what keeps it special.

Anyhow, what amazes me is that how we have different interpretation of Mona Lisa despite the fact that we get the same lecture. We were tasked to choose any object that will describe our “re-interpretation of Mona Lisa”. Different groups produced different outputs. It struck me how wild my classmates’ imagination can be! I did not expect that anyone from our class can think of putting Mona Lisa’s face on boxer shorts! Or even to advertise a medicine brand that relieves upset stomach! It’s mind-blowing how they can connect these objects to Mona Lisa and being able to present a valid explanation. This only proves the fact that though we see the same object, we perceive it differently. And these differences in our interpretation may be accounted from our unique personalities that were shaped by diverse environments.

Mona Lisa

Everyone knows Mona Lisa UNLESS you’re living under a rock! This art piece by Leonardo Da Vinci is everywhere. From book cover to lamp shade to flashlight! Anything that you can imagine! She has also been made into a movie portrayed by Julia Roberts. It gets me thinking why this painting is famous? What’s the fuzz all about? Who is the girl behind the controversial smile? I know that most of us throw the same questions but do we search out for answers?

Personally, I never even bothered to find out the answer for Mona Lisa’s fame. All I just see is a girl with a weird smile but nothing beyond that. Not until, we had a discussion about this famous painting. I suddenly became curious of Mon Lisa’s identity. I was really keen in knowing the truth behind this painting. A lot of possible theory was discussed in class only to find out that there is no single explanation that can prove the identity of Mona Lisa. I was disappointed at first but then I realized that my appreciation for this painting might change if the mystery of this painting would unravel. I think it’s better to leave the questions unanswered because these questions are what make the painting special. The more we question this art piece, the more we get attached to for the reason that our life is also full of questions that cannot be answered and these questions give meaning to our existence!

MTV

Not so long ago, I was one of those couch potatoes who can’t stop themselves from watching MTV. I even came to a point where I would answer “watching MTV” when asked what my hobby is. But what is it in an MTV that puts us under spell and we watch it over and over again? This question have been boggling my mind for some time already. What I am certain of is that I admire makers of MTV for the reason that they can make a story out of song, which runs for only a short period of time (only minutes to be exact). Not only do they make an MTV per se, but they can make the viewers remember the song more because of the MTV they created. Since mtv had become part of our everyday life, the mtv makers can easily send out important messages that either serve us an eye-opener for us or maybe a personal message or whatever they wish to convey. One example of this is the mtv of “Where is the love?” by Black Eyed Peas. In this video, the central theme is war, particularly the conflict between Iraq and America. The film maker used footages of battles/wars that were happening at that time. I think that this video was created partly because of what had happened in the September 11 attack. This video became a hit and had captured the attention of many viewers. The makers of this video were wise enough to bestow the main message behind their creation which is Stop the war and spread the love.

Of course this blog wouldn’t be complete without mentioning my favorite MTV. Well, maybe not my favorite but the one that struck me the most- the video of “Hand in my pocket” by Alanis Morissette. Whenever I hear the word MTV, this video automatically enters my mind. I can never forget this video because it was the first video I've seen that deviated from the conventional form of mtv. The usual mtv that we see are those that act out whatever the message of the song is. Like for example, a song about falling in love, more often than not the subject of the video will be about lovers. Anyhow, going back to my favorite video, Alanis Morissette’s video stood out and became a hit. On the first part of the video, Alanis was still seriously singing the song but on the latter part, she started laughing and obviosly, the lip sync was ruined. The video was one-of-a-kind!

On a last note, I'm glad that our teacher asked us to make an mtv so that we too, could experience the gruelsome process of making a video. But sadly, due to other academic demands, there was not enought time to make a real video instead we ended up making a storyboard. Nevertheless it was fun playing the role of a director! ;p

Dance Dance!

A dance workshop was prepared by the La Salle dance company for the Art appreciation classes to watch. I’m glad that it was held in William Shaw Theater because I get to have a better view of the performance. The show started off with lectures about different dances around the world. The host/lecturer was very lively and so, listening to his lecture was not taxing at all. Along with his lecture, members of the dance company executed the dances that were being explained. These include the northern cordillera dance, ballet, flamenco and last but not the least, the Indian dance. I must say that the dancers have done a good job in their performance. But of course, one must be above all and I chose the Indian dance. This dance is limited to head and feet movements and so I think its pretty challenging for an amateur to execute. In spite of this challenge, the dancer was able to pull it off. Oh and also, I love the outfit! I think it facilitated the superb performance!

I have to say that I appreciate the dance workshop more than the last week’s workshop. Not because of the performance but for the reason that I can relate most to dance than any other form of art. As everyone knows, art is something that human beings can relate to. Dance is my form of art. I love dancing! But don’t be mislead, I’m not a professional dancer. No not at all! Dancing is my way of expressing my feelings. I dance when I’m happy and same goes when my day is gloomy. Plus, it’s one way for me to bond with my loved ones. When we I go gimik with my friends, dancing is one thing we can’t miss doing!