An Analysis Of Edgar Degas Four Dancers - 1731 Words

Edgar Degas’ Four Dancers (1899) on a canvas, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. The composition accentuates the shapes and arms of the dancers with bold dark lines in dramatic lighting on the dancers through green and orange tones. The reflection of color on the dancers’ backs is juxtaposed with that of the set design’s painted background. Notably, the dancer nearest to the front of the painting makes a â€Å"trapezoid† shape with her lifted arms. The two dancers next to her are perfecting other versions of the same angle of the arms. Oddly, each dancer is drawn in an almost perfectly symmetrical manner as if they are permutation of the same person. They all appear to be of the same size as well. The dancer behind them has an extended arm, which helps to frame the other dancers by creating a rectangular frame, encasing the dancers in the painting and bringing together all the elements of the painting as a whole. A puzzling aspect of the work is the repetitive nature of the three ballet dancers in the foreground; their standing side by side in a line underscores their similarity of pose and gesture. What are the consequences of the defining and prevalent differences created for each dancer? To answer this question, it will be important to consider the appearance of each dancer and each action, especially the meaning of their ballet performance. This analysis is important to consider because Degas’ painting is an important work for classical impressionism and it can help

Essay The Laramie Project Critique - 673 Words

The Laramie Project Critique *No Works Cited The Laramie project captured the audiences attention by utilizing different design methods on stage. This included sound, stage and hand properties, light, and music. With an ensemble of 10 actors playing over 30 roles, this proved to be an amazing play to experience. The playwright was constructed in a clear manner, which eliminated the confusion of who is who. Through the usage of the stage elements as well as the dynamics of each character, this brought about an effective plot. The first element that made the play dramatic was the sound effects. The sound of the Wyoming wind was constant throughout the whole play, but as emotional scenes and climaxes occurred, the sound of wind†¦show more content†¦The set was designed in a way that was very versatile and yet, still convey a serious message. By versatile, I am implying that the open-stage with two ramps crossing each other in the background was plain and simple but served a purpose of several scenes -- such as a bar, church, and even a funeral. A set prop that were a key pieces in the play were the wooden benches, these made it possible for the actors to switch scenes. Some examples on the usage of the benches were when they stacked two benches one on top of another and turned it into a bar, they turned the bench in a vertical position and created a podiums to express different religions, or setting the benches in a close and aligned design to create a church. Other props that influenced the scenes were snow, umbrellas, then using the umbrellas as angel wings, and of course lighting. Instead of building entire sets, or making the audience use their imagination with no props included in the play, the set designers and directors created visuals that were ordinary objects and interacted the audience to use their imagination and build the appropriate set for the scene in their minds. I believe by keeping a low budget, the designers of The Laramie Project accomplished a bigger impact on the audience with a simple-low-budget set rather than an expensive-big-fancy set. Props and sound effects were not the only major influences for this greatly constructed play, but also theShow MoreRelated Destry Rides Again, Mr Smith Goes to Washington, and the Fall of the Hollywood Studio System3533 Words   |  15 PagesThe balance of power was thus tipped in favor of the individual filmmakers. These films also served to launch James Stewart’s career as a successful leading man (usually next to a star leading lady), particularly in the western genre (The Man From Laramie, The Naked Spur, Winchester 73), as a patriotic all-American (It’s a Wonderful Life, again with Capra), and working with and as an independent (his infamous contract with Universal and his work with Alfred Hitchcock, both in the 1950’s). Destry RidesRead MoreHuman Resources Management150900 Words   |  604 Pages2—5 indicates, other managers must provide data for the HR spe cialists to analyze. In turn, those managers need to receive data from the HR unit. Because top managers are responsible for overall strategic planning, they usually ask the HR unit to project the human resources needed to implement overall organizational goals. HR Planning in Evolving Small and Entrepreneurial Organizations HR management and ultimately HR planning are critical in small and entrepreneurial organizations. â€Å"People problems†

Information Systems - Case Study

Question: Read the case study Success to Succession. Identify the importance of wetware costs. Identify an organisation implementing an Accounting Information System. Discuss the relevance of wetware costs to the implementation in the organisation you have identified. Draw some conclusions. Answer: Importance of Wetware Costs The increased awareness and importance is being given to the wetware costs and the basically provided priority is meant by the exploration of the solutions. These solutions are essential in order to identify, diminish and conquer the chilling effects that can be observed on the IT markets. From an early example, many of the problems related to the software issues were solved by the way of hardwiring solutions into the CPU. Also, it is acknowledged that many of the wetware solutions have been designed by the way of the changes made to the hardware and software. In this case, an instance can be given by relating the aspect of plug-and-play. It helps to reduce the different compliances involved in the setup and installation of new hardware even in the tough conditions (Gelinas and Dull, 2008). Apart from the software and hardware, the contradictory term is known as wetware which similarly affects the success or failure of the entire IT system. The term that wetware came from the fact that human brain is filled with 75% of water. Therefore, wetware refers to the human capital or personnel who can be considered as the developers, programmers, IT experts, system administrators and other employees. The contribution of them in the overall IT systems of the organization cannot be ignored. Based on this reason, every organization should need to give importance on the wetware costs in order to invest effectively into this portion as the different projects of the organization cannot be completed without the intervention of human activities and needs. Organisation Implementing an Accounting Information System An accounting information system is known as the system for collecting, storing and assessing the different types of accounting as well as financial data from the specific company, for the purpose of helping the management and business to take the effective decisions. With the conjunction of information technology resources, the computerized systems are used by the accounting information system in order progress the systematic activities and functions under the process (Gelinas, et al., 2004). Different types of accounting functions and their information from the business are tracked by that particular system in order to create the effective and statistical reports of the business. These reports are used by the internal parties like the management and also the external parties interested with the organization, like shareholders, creditors, investors, etc. The basic fact is the involvement of the physical devices and systems which are responsible for the operations of AIS. Based on the importance of the AIS, the implementation of the entire system is considered as of major importance for the organization. Some of the major organizations like Tycon International, Worldcom and Enron have been identified as they implemented the AIS and also have to face different scandals during the process of implementation. The implementation process of AIS should need to comply with the strong internal controls into their transaction-based systems (Laudon and Laudon, 2001). In this particular context, in 2002, the designing of Sarbanes-Oxley Act is being done. According to the act, the implemented organizations should need to produce the internal control report which will be responsible for the internal control structure of the organization and also outlines the effectiveness of those controls. Relevance of Wetware Costs to the Implementation All of the processes of the organization is being operated and function properly on the basis of the involvement of human capital and the effective contribution from the wetware. Therefore, the organization need to the make the effective valuation of the wetware resources involved with the particular process of the organization as, the relevant information related to that should need to be delivered to the management, investors, etc. Also, the relevant statistics and information should need to portray on the financial statements of the organization. In the process of implementing the AIS into the organizational structure of Enron, the effective contribution from the wetware is essential and based on that context an appropriate accounting system was utilized by the organization in order to acquire the proper estimation of the wetware costs in the overall implementation process (Romney and Steinbart, 2006). The relevance of wetware costs can be established by recognizing the level of i mportance given to the human assets. In order to build the shareholder values, the effective contribution of wetware is important. Thus, the intellectual power of the employees is given the utmost priority and considered as the important input in the process implementing the AIS to the company as identified. The whole process of implementation is based on the usage of technology and thus it is considered as the knowledge-related process. Considering this particular fact, the critical success of the entire procedure depends on the aspect of wetware and wetware costs. Moreover, the necessity of the wetware is observed during the maintenance and handling of the AIS and its effective outcomes (Simkin, et al., 2013). Therefore, the company should always need to make the proper allocation and measurement of the costs and values involved with the wetware. Conclusions The contributions, benefits and advantages of accounting information systems and wetware can be idolised from the effective portions portrayed in the above sections. In order to set up an effective accounting information system in a specific organization, it is important for the management and leaders of the organization to dedicate time to give priority and attention to the entire implementation and outcomes of the system in order to make it sustainable in terms of the particular business (Ward and Peppard, 2002). The implementation and functionality of the entire system vary by the nature and business operations of the organizations. In this case, the business must take the help of the consultant to make the process fast, safe and ensuring the successful results. In this case, the effective contribution from the wetware is considered as the significant aspect and the intending the primary preparation relating to its cost is also the major part of the whole implementation plan. Changing of workflow, cost allocation of the wetware, work habits, etc. is considered as the factors of huge importance when the organization switches to accounting information systems (Romney and Steinbart, 2006). Also, the compatibility and sustainability of the entire system is facilitated by the way of effective solution derived not only from the software or hardware, but also from the wetware. References Gelinas, U. and Dull, R. (2008).Accounting information systems. Mason, Ohio: Thomson/South-Western. Gelinas, U., Sutton, S. and Hunton, J. (2004).Acquiring, developing, and implementing accounting information systems. Mason, Ohio: Thomson//South-Western. Laudon, K. and Laudon, J. (2001).Essentials of management information systems. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall. Romney, M. and Steinbart, P. (2006).Accounting information systems. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Pearson Prentice Hall. Simkin, M., Rose, J. and Norman, C. (2013).Accounting information systems. Singapore: Wiley. Ward, J. and Peppard, J. (2002).Strategic planning for information systems. Chichester, West Sussex, England: J. Wiley.

John Cage Essays - Piano, Fluxus, John Cage, Mystics, Indeterminacy

John Cage John Milton Cage Jr. John Cage became famous for his unorthodox theories and very experimental compositions. He was an American composer born in Los Angeles on September 5, 1912. Neither of his parents went to college, and John himself dropped out after a mere two years in college. His father earned a living being an inventor. Cage credits his father, being an inventor, as very influential to the way in which he wrote music. John also considered himself as an innovator and discoverer in the field of music. John Cage took traditional classical music and turned it into a futuristic collection of sounds totally different from what everyone was used to. He has expanded the idea of what sounds constituted music, and was the influential impetus behind indeterminacy in music. He is credited with enhancing the thinking of many other modern composers, Philip Glass being one of them. By as early as 1937 Cage was introducing the use of intentional and unintentional noise and electrically produced sounds in music. He did this by using your everyday household items such as pots and pans even brake drums to produce sounds and turn them into music. He was the first composer to give noise equal status to musical tone. He is said to have created an early piece Imaginary Landscapes No. 1 by using muted piano, cymbal, and frequency test recordings. As if this doesnt sound weird enough the frequency test recordings were played on variable speed turntables. This was John Cages style. He later went on to use the sounds of percussion on household furniture, he used various items such as the human body, conch shells, and kitchen sounds like chopping vegetables. He was also known for using amplified sounds like a crumpling paper, even a chess game being played. He incorporated the sounds of toys and toy pianos into his works also. Cage, in 1938, once conquered the challenge of creating percussion instruments for a dance in a theatre that had no wings or orchestra pit, there was just barely enough room for a small grand piano built into the front left of the audience. Being so limited on space and not being able to neither find, nor fit an African twelve tone row, he invented the prepared piano. The prepared piano he created by adding screws, bolts, rubber, wood and weather striping between the strings of the grand piano. The piano was transformed into a percussion orchestra, with the loudness of that of a harpsichord. Cage later went on to earn awards for Sonatas and Interludes which was one of his most important works for the prepared piano in 1946 to 1948. Cage later went on to say My favorite music is the music that I havent yet heard. I dont here the music I write: I write in order to hear the music I have [not] yet heard. This quote summarizes his philosophy on indeterminacy. This belief led to the creation of 433, his recording of the sounds around you. The only thing specified is the length of the piece. It is said that he used 4.33 minutes which equals 273 seconds. And 273 centigrade = zero degrees where everything would be completely silent and atoms quite moving. What do you think about this theory? Later John went on studying Zen Buddhism and the I Ching which is what steered him more so in the direction of indeterminacy. With this style he would orchestrate what was going on, but leave the conditions open to the performer. A good example is the piece he created by using 12 radios each and having 24 different people, two at each radio, one controlled the volume and the other the tuning. He would then randomly select which radios were playing when he told them. The undetermined condition here would be that he never knew what was playing on each station as he selected them to play, or the volume. And pieces were always overlapping each other with a variety of unknown music at different times. This piece was titled Imaginary Lanscapes No. 4. Cage went all through life pushing the boundaries of traditional music. Opening people and other composers minds to all avenues of new music through sounds