Tuesday, November 18, 2008

Introduction






Venetian mask carnival

As its name suggests, this prestigious event takes place every two years and has attracted a long list of talented musicians, artists, thespians, architects and much more for centuries. Events at the Biennale include the International Film Festival, the International Art Exhibition, the Festival of Contemporary Music, the Festival of Contemporary Dance and much more. Events take place throughout various venues in the city.Materials and Instructions for making your mask

Water soluble markers, Scissors Plaster Gauze, cut into strips Vaseline Bowl of warm water Newspaper, Paper towels Acrylic paintsOptional: Metallic paint markers - puffy paints/ glitter and or pearlescent paints (small squeeze bottles) - Sergeant Glitter GlazeOptional: mesh aluminum screen, wire - aluminum foilAlternate: Plastic face form molds.Objectives:Students will learn about sculpture by making a stylized mask using plaster gauze the festival known as Carnival occurs throughout much of the Roman Catholic world. Many Americans, Catholic or not, have attended the festivities in New Orleans. But in Venice, Carnival traditions go all the way back to the Renaissance. For a 10-day period before Lent, from the day after Christmas until Shrove Tuesday, the ancient city comes alive with masked revelers enjoying pageants, commedia dell'arte, concerts and balls. Carnival (originally "carnevale"), comes from the Latin for "farewell to meat." This boisterous festival marks the beginning of Lent, the time before Easter when Catholics refrain from eating meat. As Christianity spread throughout Europe, simple, pre-Lenten celebrations evolved into what we know as Carnival. But the tradition of masquerading, for which Carnival has become known, is much older than that. It has its roots in a Roman fertility festival where masks were worn by citizens and slaves alike. The 1700s were the glory days of the Venetian Carnival. In those times, mask-wearing and other unofficial activities continued past Lent, well into the spring. Carnival was a time of nonstop partying, gambling and general irresponsibility for people of all social classes. Jugglers, mimes, acrobats and magicians entertained the crowds. And noblemen held sumptuous feasts and masked balls like the one where Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet first met. But Carnival had its darker side, too. Masks provided anonymity for aspiring criminals, and drunken revelers made easy targets. Behind a mask, a respectable citizen could flaunt conventional rules of behavior and freely explore hidden desires. The most common Carnival costume (the "baùtta") consisted of a black silk hood, a lace cape and a voluminous cloak. A three-cornered hat and a white mask completely covered the wearer's face. Other masqueraders dressed as historical figures such as Alexander the Great and Cleopatra. The elaborate Carnival masks, some of which were gilded, were made in a dizzying variety of shapes including grotesque or fanciful faces and the sun and moon. Today, people come from all over the world to attend Venice's private and public masked balls. The music and dancing go on day and night, and there are theatrical performances and an array of ancient games. The Venetian Carnival is a perfect marriage of culture, tradition and wild celebration. This is copied from cast a mask of their face, referring to the style of Venetian Carnival Masks.

FESTIVALS AROUND THE WORL






FESTIVALS AROUND THE WORLD

FESTIVAL ABOUT MASKS
VENICE INFORMATION
This festival was recorded in 1268, masks have always been a central feature of Venetian festival; traditionally people were allowed to wear between the festival of Santo Stefano on December 26. As masks they were also allowed during ascension and from October 5 to Christmas, people could spend a large proportion of the year in disguise. Mask makers enjoyed a special position in society, with their own laws for making their own masks.
In 1797, Austrians took control of the city on January 18, 1798 and it fell into a decline which also effectively brought carnival celebration to a half for almost two centuries.
It starts around two weeks before, ash Wednesday and ends on shrove Tuesday.

Venetian masks can be made in leather or with the original papier-mâché technique. The original masks were rather simple in disguising and decoration and often had a symbolic and practical function. Nowadays, most of them are made with the application of gesso and gold leaf and are all hand painted using natural feathers and gems to decorate.

What we are going to do?We are going to disguise and to report some oral information about Venice, the history of the festivals; and show you some pictures of the mask festival on Venice, Italy.

Some of the traditionally masks :

larva or volto mask
moretta mask

bauta mask