A Day of Rest

Display Explanation:

You walk in to art exhibit room that has a soft glow from lights. Small lights hang from the ceiling, emitting the soft glow. Clear paths to access the artwork are noticeable as you step closer into the room. It is a square room, with one painting each on the left, right, and center wall. The walls are cream colored, eventually fading into a light green color as it gets closer to the center wall. To the left and right walls, the ground is tiled white and along the walk way there are white silk sheets. They are spread and tumbled over the ground, creating what can be described as an ocean of silk and comfort, almost as if the ground around the walk way were a bed. There are two reclining white chairs with velvet pillows and a single white couch with throw pillows as well; each chair placed at the start of either the left or right walkway and the couch is in the middle, facing the middle walkway. These are placed so that people can relax and get a unique photo opportunity experience in the art gallery. To the left walkway you see the painting, The Tepidarium. Leading up to the painting there are a total of six pillars; three white pillars on each side of the path with different furs placed on each, resembling the fur the model is lying on. There is a red rope preventing you from getting too close to the artwork, but you are still able to get close enough to admire it in detail. You go to the right walkway and see that the painting on the right wall is Woman With a Parrot. Leading up to the painting are six white pillars; three on each side of the walkway. Each pillar holds a display of feathers. A red rope prevents you from getting too close to the artwork. Finally, you make your way down to the middle pathway, where the white tiles fade into a light green. On the center wall, you see the painting, Reclining Nude. Three light green pillars are on each side of the pathway leading up to the painting, flowers and ferns in pots on each pillar. Again, a red rope prevents you from getting too close to the painting. In front of the painting is a wooden stand with a poem on a plaque called A Day of Rest. The poem reads as follows: Oh, how she makes it look so perfect/ How she holds the world in the gentle curvature of her arms/ Her smile, bright as the sun, shining down on us/ Helping us grow to reach our full potential/ Protector and creator of life/ Keeper of secrets and wistful wishes/ Doing so much for so little in return/ So, let her enjoy her quiet moments, for she has earned it tenfold/ A day of rest

Installation Note:

In my installation titled, "A Day of Rest," I have the three paintings titled The Tepidarium, Woman With a Parrot, and Reclining Nude. I decided on this title because all of the women in these photos are resting. They are enjoying themselves, just relaxing and being completely vulnerable. On the side walls of the exhibit, I put The Tepidarium and Woman With a Parrot and on the center wall I put Reclining Nude. I did this for two reasons: it was the most different out of the paintings in terms of the pose and also because of the colors used. While the other two are lying with their bodies facing forward but their faces facing away, Reclining Nude has the woman’s face facing away and her body facing the opposite direction, which is why I thought it would make a unique centerpiece due to the difference in poses. As for the colors, Reclining Nude has the brightest color scheme of them all. There is a deep feeling of peace and relaxation in the painting. The Tepidarium has a slightly darker color scheme, while Woman With a Parrot had the darkest color scheme of them all. Each photo emits relaxation and comfort. While the women in Woman With a Parrot and The Tepidarium are pictured inside relaxing on silks and furs, the woman in Reclining Nude is relaxing on very soft foliage. A common element in each three paintings is the idea of being nude. None of the women are clothed, except for coverings of cloth or in The Tepidarium, a placing of a held feather. Though some may see this as immodest, in all actuality, it is not. These women in these paintings are relaxing and enjoying themselves. Being nude is incredibly vulnerable and is a natural state of being. The women in these paintings are just being themselves, relaxing without the weight of the world on their shoulders. 

Alma-Tadema, Lawrence. “The Tepidarium”1881.   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lawrence_Alma-Tadema#/media/File:Tepidarium_Lawrence_Alma-Tadema_(1836-1912).jpg  Accessed 5 February, 2022

Courbet, Gustave. “Woman With A Parrot.” 1864, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woman_with_a_Parrot  Accessed 5 Feb. 2022.

Renoir, Pierre-Auguste. "Reclining Nude" 1890. https://www.wikiart.org/en/pierre-auguste-renoir/reclining-nude. Accessed 14 Feb. 2022