Read Baskin

Leonard Baskin（1922-2000) is the famous American sculptor and printmakerafter the World War II in the twentieth century. Widely recognized as a major figurein twentieth-century American art, Leonard Baskin embodied the essence of theartifex (Latin for “creator”) in blending the roles of master craftsman, artisan, andartist. His sculptures, prints, books, and drawings can be found in the collections ofnearly every major research library and art museum. His woodcut works of main formis to the line. The most of the works involve each, injury, grotesque and minddecadent topics. After the World War II, the American Academy of Arts was underthe to focus on impact of abstract art concepts, why Baskin from the trend of theeffect and continue research the Figurative Graphic Art; between his works f ull ofmonster phantom, the suffering of struggle, the negative emotions behind the icons,what hidden in a state of mind. Through reading a large number of foreign documentsand information, I analyzed and summarized about the Baskin’s family, socialbackground, as well as to analyze the importance of the woodcut works, tryingto restore a three-dimensional artistic portrayal of Baskin.Chapter I of this article, referred Baskin profile of life and achievements ofawards. Divided into two parts:(a) Baskin Biography: At the Baskin’s childhood hadgenerated interest in prints as a starting point, give examples of their representativeworks (b) of Baskin’s artistic achievements: Summary Baskin winning a numberof areas, as well as established as the United States after World WarII figurative printmaking huge prints of position as a pioneer.Chapter II of this article, according to the identity background about Baskin,dialysis his inner world, and analyzes the reasons for Baskin Art. This chapter isdivided into six parts.(a) the reasons of the identity of the sculptorbegan making prints: be roughly divided into two aspects aboutof the Baskin preferences of printing in the college, and the social current situation, prompted Baskin to begin with making prints.(b) the Jewishidentity background: the subject matter of Baskin’s prints are About the birds,angels, demons, fairy tale characters, half strange, dying of struggling state,such as full of suffering and illusion subject matter. retrospective Baskin identitybackground and religious influence, in order to fully understand and explorethe the Baskin depicted behind the subject matter of these phantom, hiddenpsychological depth and emotional world.(c) Religious Mysticism: To analysethe emotional element is the inner bridge of religion and art interlinked, explainedthat the penetration of the Baskin mysticism emotional works.(d) of humanity,nature, the real concern: Baskin with a keen eye to capture the underlying people’ssufferings ituation, such a lack of suffering, struggle with his unique perspective andperformance practices of the very tension mood into black and white minimalist formof catharsis, to express their compassion and placed the yearning for a peaceful andbetter life.(e) Baskin and the Gehenna Press: Baskin ’s artistic career and his privatePress is indivisible, and created a lot of shock the world works and bookpublications in the Gehenna Press.(f) Baskin and poet Hughes: Since1953,Baskin and Hughes conclude deep friendship, inspired by the poetry of Hughes,Baskin to create a lot of illusion prints and book illustrations. This chapter to analyzethe causes of the unique art of Baskin social, family and other back ground factors,resolve Baskin laying the groundwork for the post.Chapter Ⅲ of this article, about mainly analyzes the Baskin’swoodcut languages exploration and artistic features. This chapter is divided into twoparts:(a) woodcut language formation process: longitudinal analysis from the trialperiod, turning point period and the mature period about three timeperiods, Baskin woodcut language formation process, to analysis an importantrepresentative of each period the specific works.(b) the art of wood engravingcharacteristics: Oriental paper cutting elements, sculptural and visual tension to sumup the characteristics of Baskin’s woodcut art.Chapter Ⅳ of this article, the mainly analysis Baskin’s figurative graphicart. This chapter is divided into two parts:(a) free from the influence of the artistictrends, abide by the traditional arts: the background of the artistic trends of the UnitedStates, Baskin free from the trend, still adhere to their own figurative art position.(b) Baskin with abstract elements and performance elements figurative graphic art:the first described with the relationship between figurative and abstract analysis of a concrete manifestation of the abstract elements in the transformationprocess in printmaking and abstract elements Baskin works. Secondly, thecharacters described in Baskin works capture the human emotionalstate and performance analysis with the performance of the color figurative graphicart.The concluding section of this article: through comprehensive descript andanalysis Baskin’s life, family, work detailed,to summed up the Baskin’s woodcut artof language and unique charm, Recognizing behind the visual works embodied as atrue artist concerned about the language of drawing with real content.And theimportance of the produced prints creators awareness and artistic creation, theformation of the artist’s unique artistic language is associated notonly with the screen in the techniques of language, but also is related to the artist’sown personal charm and artistic accomplishment.