I must admit, at first I was a bit skeptical

I must admit, at first I was a bit skeptical 1 Justin Dargan HH 355, Section 6001 Art and Ideas in America Bourke-White, Justin Dargan, Art Galleries, and The Burrito Brothers Restaurant I must admit, at first I was a bit skeptical. Some lady goes around taking pictures of various objects, and in doing so becomes a world-renowned artist. She has books of her works published and entire art exhibits dedicated to her persona. Before I was educated regarding Margaret Bourke-White and her work, all this seemed a bit much to me. I thought to myself, “hmm… picture taking ey? I take pictures all the time. Just a few days ago during spring break I took some. Maybe I should have an art exhibit dedicated to my tremendous works.” However, as I began to learn about Bourke-White, I found out that, surprisingly, her accomplishments in the field of photography were actually far greater than my own. In my head I formed a so called, “Justin Dargan VS Margaret Bourke-White O-Meter,” which I have been generous enough to include here: 2 Justin Dargan VS Margaret Bourke-White O-Meter Margaret Justin 1. Girl 1. Guy 2. Dead 2. Alive 3. Professional 3. Amateur 4. Had her own camera, and was quite 4. Has never actually owned or operated a adept at using it to photograph things. Camera that “belonged to him” 5. Used a less colorful form of 5. Uses new age, color photography brought photography (which many times gave her to you by Kodak. pictures a cool “black and white” or “artsy” motif). 6. Became famous throughout the world 6. Specializes in drunkenly taking snap for her well-developed and intricate shots of his crazy friends making weird photography of images ranging from faces and beating each other up. th“enchanted steel mills” to 20 century Communist Russia. 7. First and arguably greatest female 7. Just another dude taking pictures. photographer, at a time where the field had previously been dominated by men. 8. Hired by life magazine to photograph 8. Often asked by friends and passers by to cover pages. “please take a picture of us” 9. Used her photography as median to 9. Likes to drink beer. alert the public to controversial social and political issues (i.e. holocaust survivors, World War II, economic depression) Basically, after looking through a book of her photography and going to the Bourke-White exhibit at Philips Art Museum, I came to realize that she was indeed a much better and more accomplished photographer than myself. In fact, the only reasonable comparison that I could draw between Bourke-White and myself was that neither of us was afraid of heights (although, she probably had the upper hand on me in this area too… I probably would have climbed out on to that ledge to take a photograph, but never if I was wearing high heels). Bourke-White’s legacy can most simply be summed up in the words of the late, great Jaw Quin Chi, an East Indian, Chinese, Eskimo philosopher and medicine man, “qua quitty quitty koo, mok chi wookie lookie.” To paraphrase, this amounts to: “Bourke-White was a courageous and noble artist, who rose 3 above the stereotypes placed on women in society to become one of the most influential thand awe inspiring artists/photographers of the 20 century.” Bourke-White’s legacy was well represented at the exhibit, which featured photographs taken throughout all the different stages of her career. I enjoyed the section dedicated to her photographs of industry and machinery, which were very nifty and pleasurable to the eye. Here, it seemed, subject matter took a back seat to the image itself and Bourke-White’s artistic representation. Another part of the exhibit I really enjoyed was the section dedicated to her work in Russia during Stalin’s communist regime. Within this section were to be found some of the coolest pictures ever known to man. Most notable to me in this exhibit were a picture of poor people walking on the street and window-shopping upon a view of a well dressed, high society mannequin. Also noteworthy, was a photograph of a really cool looking old grizzly dude. This type of photography focusing around humans rather than objects or machines appealed to me for a totally different reason than Bourke-White’s photography of the “enchanted steel mills.” This reason was the raw human aspect that was to be seen in these photographs, as well as my deep affinity for grizzled old Russian dudes. The sharp contrast between Bourke-White’s photos of landscapes and steel mills, as compared to these human-based photographs, helps to show her great versatility as a photographer and artist. She could grab your attention and inspire you with many different forms of art. After touring the Bourke-White exhibit, myself and my two cohorts, Jake and Austin, decided to venture into the modern art exhibit on the ground floor. Here were to be seen some of my favorite works of art that I have seen thus far. Unfortunately, not included in this exhibit, were a pen and paper with which to take notes. Hence, this essay 4 lacks details describing these fine works of art. However, I can tell you this much: that one Picasso painting was really cool, I liked that modernistic painting of a city that was hung on the stairway leading up to the Bourke-White exhibit, and that one 3-D looking painting (which was called “Woman Standing Up” or something) was very very rad. Also, I’m told that one of the paintings was called “Fugue,” but I’m not sure which one it 1was. I was extremely impressed and moved by both the Bourke-White exhibit and the modern art exhibit on the ground floor. Possibly my favorite exhibit of the Philips Art Museum though, was the Burrito Brothers Restaurant exhibit, which was stationed a few blocks away from the rest of the art, and which myself and my comrades in arms, Austin and Jake, had the pleasure of visiting. This exhibit featured some very intriguing and thcool paintings on the wall that were reminiscent of the 19 century agrarian art movement in Argentina (temas como gauchos, escenas campestres, la vida del pueblo, y mas). There was also writing painted on the walls, displaying the words: Number One Burritos in D.C. The exhibit also had a special section dedicated to burritos, a beautiful art form which has only recently begun to gain recognition from art critics across the nation. I observed this firsthand when I ordered this one burrito with beef, rice, black beans, and sautéed peppers and onions. I’ve gotta admit, while it may not have been worthy of a Time Magazine cover (unless the cover was dedicated to burritos and burrito selling establishments) this burrito was way excellent, and reminded me of one of life’s great truths: burritos are awesome. At the end of the day, when I had had my fill of art, burritos, and good times I was able to look back and reflect upon the day. I had, myself, learned some valuable lessons. 1 Consulted 2/C Ringelstein (27March2003, 0100 Zulu time), and was told of a painting called “Fugue.” 5 I now knew that Margaret Bourke-White was a much better photographer than myself, and that if I wanted to excel to her standards I would need more than a disposable Kodak and a few beers. Also, I realized that I was a big fan of modern art, even if I had forgotten the artists’ names and the titles they painted. Finally, I had concluded that the Burrito Brother’s Restaurant in D.C. was definitely worthy of the title, #1 Burritos in DC. The End.