What I am going to tell you now is about myself, and why I started this blog. First however, you must understand that I have a burning desire to become a teacher and a writer once I'm out of college. I'm currently a senior in high school, but that doesn't prevent me from getting an early start on what I plan to do for the rest of my life, does it? :) So after dabbling around unsuccessfully in the writing world for some time, I decided to gather my thoughts in a blog, and, well, here we are. I figure that the best cure for not knowing how to be a writer is to write, and to have a group of blog readers to back you up and critique you.
So there you have it. This blog is a collection of my thoughts, but it is also an outlet for my various writings. As for me, you can find out everything you'd need to know from my profile, which I will be updating periodically. I won't bore you with all of the details of my life as it is now, because I'm sure you really don't care. What I will do is entertain you, teach you a couple of new things that I've picked up along the way, and, essentially, use you to enhance my own barely existing talents. Now that you know my true intentions, I hope you'll still stick around :)
You all must be wondering why the title of this first post specifies Russia in my greeting. That is because my first post in this blog will be about Russia! (Even though I don't live there) I am dedicating this post to a very good friend of mine, who has some Russian heritage (and is very proud of it). I will take the topic of Russian art, and attempt to make it interesting. First I'd like to start with a picture, an image that most of you have probably seen before:
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This is, of course, a picture of the famous Saint Basil's Cathedral in Moscow. It prominently features these things called onion domes, AKA the multicolored Hershey's Kisses on top of the towers of the Cathedral. You have to admit that this place is pretty cool-looking. When I was a kid, I used to think that this building had some kind of massive circus or carnival inside it, but alas, it is only filled with praying people who wouldn't appreciate my desire to run screaming through the halls in a clown costume.
Believe it or not, Saint Basil's Cathedral was built in the 1500s. And it's not the only one of its kind, either. I, personally, find Russian architecture fascinating. But there are other aspects to art than architecture. Like the Matryoshka doll! Everyone knows about the dolls that open up and have another doll inside, then another inside that one, and another inside that. The Russians invented that, and they are called Matryoshka dolls.
Another thing that Russians do is they paint images on wood, ranging in size from little postcard sized pieces to ones in churches that can be as big as dinner tables. I really have nothing to say about that, except that I have two of these things that they call icon art. My grandpa gave them to me, even though he isn't Russian. One is an image of George Washington on his horse, and the other is of Abraham Lincoln giving a speech to a room full of people. My mom thinks they're really ugly, but I think that she just doesn't appreciate art like I do.
So anyways, when my grandpa gave them to me, I was like "Holy frick grandpa! You painted these?!" And he was like "NO." Okay, so my grandpa isn't some secret artist guru, but apparently he put a lot of work into making these. See, originally both of the images were on a calendar, and he somehow soaked the image and attached it flawlessly to the wood so that it seems like they were painted right on. I think they're really cool.
The last thing I'd like to talk about is modern Russian music, because music is as much art as art is. Russian music today is heavily influenced by Western music. I see that as a late Cold War victory for the good old United States. Actually, I was very excited while I was doing research for this part of the post, because Russian music combines Western rock and roll with Russian folk music and bardic military music. How awesome does that sound?
I'd like to introduce you to a very popular Russian band called Lubeh. They've been around since 1989, and they're still going strong. Pretty much everyone of every age likes them in Russia, and even Vladimir Putin (former Russian President) has gone to a few concerts. I have added a link to a good song of theirs, called "Ne valyai duraka, Amerika!" that humorously chides us for buying Alaska from Russia. Take a listen:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4wuq1EE8ymc&feature=related
Well, that's my first blog post. I hope you liked it, I hope that it kept you entertained (you better have clicked on that link...) and I hope that you'll be back for more soon. Comment with your thoughts. And maybe, if you beg, I'll write a Cold War-era espionage story. Eventually. See you soon :)
P.S. My discussion of Russian art simply wouldn't be complete without this gem. I won't tell you what it is. Just go there.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oCI5JDxEBZU&feature=related
Am I the friend you're talking about? :D
ReplyDeleteGlad you've finally joined the blogging scene. This was quite an interesting first post. I loved the idea for it: Russia. As for the band, they weren't my cup of tea. But Craig showed me the second song not too long ago and I was delighted to see it included in your blog. Keep writing. :)
ReplyDeleteHey, thanks for telling us about your blog (which you never did :)
ReplyDeleteGood first post!!
The only thing I would disagree with is your claim that Russian music uses Western rock and roll influences. Some of it does, but the majority of Russian music is more along the lines of pop and dance music that became infused with the traditional Russian music scene.
There have been some heavier rock bands from Russia, most notably Gorky Park. But the band you linked to would be more like Pop/Dance Rock than traditional rock and roll.
As for the second link you posted, wth and smh :)