This was an essay done for my humanities class where I had to visit a museum, find a painting, and critique and evaluate it. I am told that I ventured off from the topic requested slightly but I still received a perfect score of 200/200 points she liked it that much. Below on the left is the painting by Charles Philippe Larivière and the right is Sandow Birk.
Three years ago I walked into the MOMA in San Francisco for the first time. It was the first art museum I had ever visited and the majority of its contents instantly repulsed me. I left with my nose turned to the sky telling everyone I had wasted my money. Since then I have become more self-conscious towards art and not only learned to understand it, but to appreciate it as well. The amount of mental maturity I have acquired towards art in such a short time surprises even myself.
Walking into the Crocker Art Museum in Sacramento, I was disappointed at first when all I could see was historical artifacts primarily from Africa. Then it occurred to me that perhaps my mental maturity wasn’t quite as mature as I previously thought. Art is a form of expression, emotions, and a way of sharing our own thoughts with others, although it doesn’t have to be limited to something defined. Art can be art, just because it’s art. It’s easy to argue that Jackson Pollock is a hack because all he ever did was get drunk and literally throw paint on the floor. Anyone can create their own Pollock styled painting, except only Pollock did it first. The idea of being first carries a lot of weight in our society; those who copy are often ridiculed and occasionally sued.
At the Crocker Art Museum, I discovered one piece that stood out to me as being both original, and yet a copy of a famous painting done in 1865 regarding the Battle of Mons-en-Pévèle by Charles Philippe Larivière. Sandow Birk created his own parodied recreation of a more modern situation with a series of events that were similar to those in the original. The piece is titled “The Battle of Stonewall – 1969” and depicts the riots which took place in 1969 at the Stonewall Inn in New York City. Since it was illegal at the time to engage in any homosexual activities these riots gave headway to the entire movement of gay rights in their fight for equality. They have credited these riots as the first instance of backlash against any government-sponsored organization that supported and/or enforced the homosexuality laws. Exactly one year later a protest march took place to commemorate the riots and remind people of the oppression they were still trying to overcome. This march became so successful it has been repeated every year since and is now known as the Gay Pride Parade.
The original painting by Larivière depicts the Battle of Mons-en-Pévèle, which took place in France in 1304. This was a significant battle at the time between the Flemish and French. The French had decided to attack the Flemish out of revenge for a previous battle and after a long day of fighting the two sides engaged in talks, which left the French to believe the fighting was over for the day. Unknowing to them the Flemish launched a surprise attack nearly killing their king. After several other minor battles the Flemish were finally able to claim their freedom.
Similarities between Stonewall and the Battle of Mons-en-Pévèle vary only in the aspect of the era in which they occurred. In both cases the side thought to be physically superior attacked those who were weaker, and instead the underdogs not only won the battle, but also won their freedom. This reminds us that even though we have come a long way in the last 700 years, oppression still exists.
The variations of the two paintings are based on identical layouts with different compositions. People holding flags, riding horses, or yielding a weapon are doing so in both paintings. The older painting people carried flags to communicate with troops over a long distance, while the modern version shows people in the same positions holding protest banners. Instead of a warrior with a sword, the modern version shows a New York City police officer striking people down with his baton. Police hold riot shields in the same manner as soldiers from the original Larivière who were also holding 14th century battle shields.
Birk has several variations that set his painting apart from Larivière’s. The overall setting is likely the most obvious although given the context they are a reflection of how history repeats itself. Small variations such as a man pulling on a parking meter resemble no similar actions or body placement in Larivière’s work. Birk included this not to set his painting apart from Larivière’s, but to include the significance of the parking meter in the Stonewall riots. In 1969 six police officers made there way into the Stonewall Inn and preceded to arrest people for engaging in homosexual acts such as cross-dressing. After being beaten and abused those under arrest decided to fight back. This revolt forced the police to retreat into the bar which they had just emptied and barricaded themselves in. Outside a riot began to form and a parking meter was uprooted and used as a battering ram. Birk saw this as a key component in the riots and incorporated it into his painting so casually it could easily be overlooked as a variation.
The looks on the faces of the police are almost expressionless while the victims on the ground are withered with fear. Several hold their hands over their heads for protection; few appear to be fighting back. The police give this sense of feeling that what they are doing is no different than taking out the garbage. This is also from a time when homosexuality was considered a disease and occasionally treated with measures as extreme as giving the patient a lobotomy.
Beer and liquor bottles pollute the ground and some fly through the air. I do not believe there were people drinking in the streets during a riot such as this one, and doubt Birk chose to represent it that way. Including the alcohol in the painting helped remind the viewer that this all started in a bar.
Overall the amount of detail of historical facts regarding the riots that Birk included in his painting are overwhelming. The description posted off to the side in the museum gives him credit to fully researching the event by saying he properly portrayed the clothing and hairstyles of the people, however he did so much more than making the people fit the specific era. Birk selected a historical painting from 1865 then related it almost perfectly to the events at Stonewall. Even though it is considered “cartoon-like” the message is still clear.
I am a heterosexual male who has very few friends that call themselves “gay”. Walking through the Crocker Art Museum I knew nothing about the events that took place at Stonewall in 1969. This painting appealed to me solely based on being a parody of a more popular work of art. Now with a better understanding of what Birk has portrayed I more impressed than I originally thought, yet disturbed that this event took place less than 10 years before I was born. I never knew it was illegal, and persecuted so strongly in a time so close to present day. This horrified me to learn of the actions that took place in an attempt to “cure” homosexual behavior.
To say a piece of art ‘changed my life’ sounds like a misconstrued exaggeration. I hear others say it and I think that they are being over-emotional. The truth is, art does change our lives. It’s around us everywhere, from the design of the cars we drive to the shoes we wear. Millions of people paint their face with makeup every morning before they leave the house. Art is life and I am still just beginning to realize this. My so-called mental maturity, which I originally held so high just a few months ago, is still as immature as a young child. Birk’s painting has changed my life, primarily my thinking about gay rights and why they are so important, but also it has shown me how far we have come in just 40 years. In only a single lifetime, we have gone from complete oppression of any homosexual behavior to including in our lives openly and fight for their right to marriage.
