Interesting Art Stories: 70. The Son of Man, René Magritte, ACJ Art Academy

 

How are you?

Currently, I am introducing the stories about various artists and their paintings with the title “Interesting Art Stories”.

The 70th story is “The Son of Man” by René Magritte.

“The Son of Man” is a 1964 painting by the Belgian surrealist painter René Magritte, which is his most famous work.

René Magritte

This self-portrait by Magritte depicts a man in an overcoat and a bowler hat standing in front of a low wall, beyond which are the sea and a cloudy sky. The man's face is mostly obscured by a green apple floating in the air, but the man's eyes can be seen peeking over the edge of the apple. Another characteristic is that the man's left arm appears bent backwards at the elbow.

Regarding this painting, Magritte said:

“In this painting, you can have the apparent face, the apple, but there is a hidden human face. This is something that happens constantly… We always want to see what is hidden by what we see. There is an interest in that which is hidden and which the visible does not show us... ”

Among the paintings of Magritte, there are paintings similar to “The Son of Man” as follows.

“The Great War” is a variation of “The Son of Man,” showing only the upper torso and head of the bowler hatted man, with the apple completely hiding his face.

The Great War, René Magritte (1964)

“The Taste of the Invisible” is a gouache painting of the same subject.

The Taste of the Invisible, René Magritte
(1964)

"The Great War on Facades" depicts a person standing in front of a wall overlooking the sea, as in “The Son of Man”, but it is a woman with an umbrella whose face is obscured by flowers.

The Great War on Façades, René Magritte
(1964)

"Man in the Bowler Hat" is a similar painting, but a man's face is obscured by a bird rather than an apple.

Man in the Bowler Hat, René Magritte
(1964)

“The Son of Man” has been used in various fields of culture and art as follows.

In 1970, American artist Norman Rockwell paid a playful homage to "The Son of Man" with an oil painting entitled "Mr. Apple".

Mr. Apple, Norman Rockwell (1970)

"The Son of Man" appears in the 1999 film "The Thomas Crown Affair".

The Thomas Crown Affair (1999)

The apple was a continuing theme in Magritte's work. The apple in his 1966 painting "Le Jeu De Morre,"owned by Paul McCartney, inspired the Beatles to name their record company "Apple Corps."

Apple Corps' logo

Le Jeu de Morre (The Game of Mora), René Magritte (1966)

“The Son of Man” is mentioned several times in the 2006 film "Stranger than Fiction."

Stranger than Fiction (2006)

Thank you.

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64. History of Rock Music: 3. The British Invasion, ACJ Music Academy

How are you?

Following the last week, I am going to start my 64th lecture.

The topic for this week is “The British Invasion”, the third theme of “The History of Rock”.

This lecture is a summary of the contents of “64. History of Rock Music: 3. The British Invasion, ACJ Music Academy” introduced on October 15, 2016.

The British Invasion refers to a phenomenon in which British rock and pop artists, along with British culture, gained great popularity in the United States in the mid-1960s. British pop/rock groups such as The Beatles, The Dave Clark Five, The Kinks, The Rolling Stones, Herman's Hermits, The Animals and The Who acted as the leaders of this phenomenon.

The Beatles

The Dave Clark Five

The Kinks

The Rolling Stones

Herman's Hermits

The Animals

The Who

In the late 1950s, the rebellious music and image of American rock and roll and blues musicians became very popular with young British people. While early commercial attempts to imitate American rock and roll in the UK have mostly failed, the popularity of the traditional jazz-inspired skiffle sound and its “do it yourself'' stance became the starting point for some British bands to create songs that entered the US Billboard charts.

In 1962, a "beat boom" began in several regions of the UK, including the movement of Liverpool known as Merseybeat, and by the end of 1962, the beat groups such as The Beatles, Gerry & the Pacemakers, The Searchers, Herman's Hermits and The Hollies began to appear. 

Gerry and the Pacemakers

The Searchers

The Hollies

They initially reinterpreted and performed traditional American music, but soon began to create their own music that mixed American music forms with the beat. Among them, in December 1962, "Telstar", an instrumental song by The Tornados, became the first song to be ranked no.1 by the British group on the American Billboard Hot 100 chart. 

The Tornados

In 1963, Beatles-led beat groups began to achieve success in England and soon began to enter music charts dominated by the rhythm and blues genre. The Beatles' "I Want to Hold Your Hand" was the first of their songs to be no.1 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts in the United States, which ranked no. 1 for 7 weeks and stayed on the charts for 15 weeks. On February 9, 1964, 73 million people watched TV to see The Beatles, which first appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show. The Beatles became the most record-selling rock band of all time, and many British bands following The Beatles entered the American music charts.

The Beatles arriving at John F. Kennedy International Airport (7 February 1964)

Beatles on Ed Sullivan Show

The British Invasion helped the globalization of rock and roll, opening the door to global success for later British musicians. In the United States, the popularity of surf music, girl groups and teen idol music that dominated the American charts in the late 1950s and 1960s ended, and the popularity of R&B musicians such as Fats Domino and Chubby Checker was declined, and it temporarily destroyed the resurgence of rock and roll singers like Elvis Presley. 

The British Invasion played an important role in making rock music an independent genre based on making their own music and laid the foundation for solidifying the popularity of rock groups.

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Next week, I will lecture 4th topic “Birth of Hard Rock/Metal”.

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63. History of Rock Music: 2. The Beatles Era, ACJ Music Academy

How are you?

Following the last week, I am going to start my 63rd lecture.

The topic for this week is “The Beatles Era”, the second theme of “The History of Rock”.

This lecture is a summary of the contents of “63. History of Rock Music: 2. The Beatles Era, ACJ Music Academy” introduced on October 8, 2016.

The late 1950s to early 1960s was a period that rock and roll era ended, which became the basis of rock, and the previous period of the British Invasion, which British bands attacked the United States. Some music critics emphasize that without the innovative musical elements that were formed during this period, subsequent musical development would have been impossible. 

Rock and Roll didn't completely disappear in the late 1950s, and its influence led to the twist craze in the early 1960s, which made Chubby Checker a big star. Cliff Richard, a British singer, effectively promoted British rock sound and made the first British rock and roll hit with the song "Move It" released in 1958.

Chubby Checker

Cliff Richard

The Beatles is a rock band formed in Liverpool, UK in 1960. The members of the band are John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr, and they are considered the most important and influential band in rock history. 

Fans and media swarm the Beatles at Schiphol Airport (1964)

Their manager Brian Epstein made the Beatles as a professional band, and the producer George Martin led their recordings to create their first hit song “Love Me Do” in late 1962, which became a big hit in the UK. The Beatles became a worldwide star by leading the “British Invasion” in the American pop market in early 1964. 

The Beatles arriving at John F. Kennedy International Airport (7 February 1964)

The Beatles with Ed Sullivan (February 1964)

Since 1965, they successively released influential albums such as “Rubber Soul (1965)”, “Revolver (1966)”, “Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)”, “The Beatles (1968)” and “Abbey Road (1969)”.

Rubber Soul (1965)

Revolver (1966)

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)

The Beatles (1968)

Abbey Road (1969)

Final studio album "Let It Be" (1970)

After the band was disbanded in 1970, each member acted as solo musician and made success. Among the members, John Lennon was shot and killed by a bully in December 1980, George Harrison died of lung cancer in November 2001, and the currently surviving Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr continue their musical career. 

The Beatles Monument, Almaty, Kazakhstan

According to the “Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA)”, The Beatles is the most sold artist in the United States, with sales of 178 million albums, and has the most number one albums and singles in the UK. The Beatles ranked No.1 among “The 100 most successful artists of all time” by U.S. Billboard Chart in 2008, and was included in “The 100 most influential people of the 20th century” by Time Magazine. 

The Beatles statue, Liverpool

The Beatles also sold over 600 million albums worldwide, making them the most album-selling artist of all time. The Beatles was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1988, and all the members were inducted individually between 1994 and 2015.

The Beatles Exhibit, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

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Next week, I will lecture 3rd topic “British Invasion”.

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