Themes and Purposes of Art
.... This power is represented by the sheer bulk of the structures: the tallest of them was nearly fifty stories high, the base covering thirteen acres, and is comprised of two million blocks of stone weighing two tons each. Aside from representing power, the Pyramids also represented the respect the Egyptian people showed for their Pharaoh. The Pyramids were built as tombs for Pharaohs, and the citizenry would stop at nothing to make sure that the Pharaoh was built the best tomb possible to facilitate a safe passage to the afterlife. Storytelling is another important purpose of art. In Europe during the early 15th century, stories of Saints' lives was a common theme. Often, the story would be told by dividing the painting into parts, each covering a different part of the subject's life. These parts are called space cells. In addition to the aforementioned culture-specific themes, there are also themes in art that cover more universal human experiences. Identity of one's self is an especially notable theme, used to great effect by Rembrandt. Rembrandt painted about fifty self-portraits, and at different ages, so, in a way, he is telling his autobiography through a series of portraits, each at a different stage of his life. The artist Christian Schumann takes a much more stylized approach in his interpretation of identity. In his work entitled "Edible", he uses a grid of small pictures, each representing a feeling, word, or idea. Da...