Social Trauma caused by World War 1, Elias

         Hello my name is Elias Castro and I am a junior at Sac High. I am applying for this scholarship because I am highly interesting in  France, Paris and traveling the world. I want to photograph what i see in France and observe the culture and how it differs from here in America.

         I am highly interested in the effects of war on soldiers and society. In Europe the social trauma caused by World War 1 effected many people. During the time PTSD was not in existence and soldiers had been diagnosed with shell shock. This was believed to be caused by time at war. PTSD not recognized until 1980 which surprises me. I can not fathom why PTSD or similar illness's had not been discovered before 1980. I believe shell shock was an underdeveloped idea created by doctors who did not have the technology that exists now. It was a way for the doctors to explain the mental and physical problems soldiers had when they came back from war or the problems that developed after their return. Soldiers would return from war with mental and physical disabilities and many of them would receive little to no help. How can a soldier who recently served in one of the most brutal wars ever be expected to rehabilitate themselves and function in society with major health problems. Now that PTSD is recognized problem the most important thing is helping those who suffer from its effects. I do not understand why veterans of war come home and struggle in life after serving their country. Today veterans still do not receive proper help from the government. I believe that is not okay and needs to be changed.

The Lost Generation, David

            I applied to the scholarship for the benefit of my community and myself. South Sacramento is my community, it is largely known as "South Sac Iraq" referring to its high homicide rate which is highest in Sacramento, but if I win this scholarship, it will cause a domino effect. My accomplishments will inspire others in my community which will then change the look of South Sacramento to a capital of knowledge and not homicide. Also, I am a dedicated and appreciative student of art with a small advantage of opportunities to travel, learn, and becoming successful. It does not matter if it's music, photography, or fine arts, I am naturally connected to the art around me. The position where my family lies in is really complicated but simple in words. I am a child of two set of "minority" parents, elder sibling of 3 children from my primary home, and formerly eldest of my sister whom is at peace now. My family struggles to provide clothes, and education. However, I've stayed grateful since my first brother because I knew the position of my family, and how they sacrificed their lives for food, a home, health care, and teaching my to maintain a family. I always hated putting pressure on my parents, so by applying to this scholarship, it will not worry my parents about me not being able to reach my goals. Lastly, my participation in this program is currently making my biological father very proud of me. Since he came from a terrible life in the past - living in poverty, dysfunctional families, and spending half of my life in prison - he never had the opportunity to experience education, and have aspirations, his only thought of his future was his death. So seeing me, the only child in the family to be able to attend a college at 16 and show that I am not afraid of failure, lets my father know that there is something to live for, he motivates me. So, If I can just get more information from Paris in person, I will be able to return home with inspiration. A man or woman with explicit inferiority would be absolutely surprised by hearing that I went to Paris, and I returned with new information not many people know of.

            The lost generation was a time after the World War I. This was a time where the people of Paris felt as if they had nothing to live for anymore. This resulted into endless partying, or recklessness. This is also the time where Jazz really played a big part in the music of Paris. People like Duke Ellington, and Josephine Baker were really big in Paris Jazz. The Lost Generation really caught my attention because of the diversity.

            After World War I, many African American artist moved to Paris. The way Paris invited the artist was not as racist as the way of life in America at that time. This caught the attention of the artist which created a love of Paris. Musical Geniuses, and Popular Icons spent most of their lives in Paris, blending in with the Parisian life. However, this integration caused some people of Parisian descent to feel hatred and the want to separate from the Americans. Still, there was a benefit from the introduction of African Americans in Paris which was Jazz music. I really liked how the Jazz was interpreted in Paris, even though it was seen as unholy, it was a symbol of partying.

David 

The Lost Generation, Nyeri

            I am Nyeri Simone Mallory. I am a Senior at Sacramento Charter High School, however, even though I am a senior this is my first year at Sac High and I am really enjoying it. I am a pretty normal seventeen year old girl. I absolutely love to read and write. I also love singing, dancing, and acting. I hope to take all of these things and channel them into my career goals. I plan to become a successful actress and author so I want to act in movies, but also I want to write movies. I have been told that my goals are little unrealistic, but this has been something I have always wanted to do and even though it is not a traditional career path it is what I will do regardless of what the statistics say. I am very determined person if you didn't already notice. That’s just a little about me. Oh, I also prefer cats to dogs and my favorite food is lasagna. I can’t believe I almost forgot that part. That was a close one.

            Now on to the seminar. The most interesting part to me by far was the music aspect of Paris, France. Paris is really big on Jazz and that is one of my favorite styles of music. It is really comforting to just sit down and listen to the soothing sounds of Jazz style music. I learned that Jazz was one of the most popular types of music in Paris and still has a large impact on today’s society in France. Jazz is the type of music that instantly calms you down or makes you think about your life and since I am a senior in highschool I do a lot of that. The music just adds to my excitement about possibly going to France because I might get to experience this music firsthand. I have never seen or heard Jazz music being played in person and if I am awarded the opportunity to go to Paris I might finally get that opportunity. Now, the biggest question I think we all have is where can we hear some of this wonderful, soulful music. Guess who has the answer? You guessed it! I did my research and found that based on multiple sources the best place to go and listen to smooth jazz is Le Duc des Lombards. I really hope I am given the opportunity to visit France and see this huge part of its culture.

Written by: Nyeri Mallory

The Paris Endeavor

         Art is such a hard topic to talk about with others.  Art is so controversial because it cannot be viewed with one perspective. Art in a metaphorical sense is more than just a physical thing but a conceptual thing that we paint on the world surrounding us. To me art is a large component of my life that I cannot live without. Art is the thing that sets my imagination free and helps me express myself to others. In return I like to experience others views on art to understand their perspectives. One of my personal goals is to be witness to many foreign concepts of art to make them not so foreign anymore; I will do this through travel. There are limitations to this goal that I could not overcome such as: finances, age, language, etc. One place that is at the top of the list of places I wanted to travel to is Paris, France. Known as the hub of the art world; the perfect place for an art fiend like me. I cannot put in words how ecstatic I was to receive a flyer of the CONTEXT travel scholarship for Paris. It was the ticket I was waiting for that would help me side step all those limitations that kept me from traveling; it is not a free ticket however. There are a set of challenging trials and steps that I must overcome to obtain my trip to Paris. I was not intimidated by this however, so I applied to the scholarship and nicknamed the task of accomplishing my goal of getting this opportunity the Paris endeavor.

“River of Paris” by Leonid Arfemov (http://afremov.com/CAFE-IN-PARIS-PALETTE-KNIFE-Oil-Painting-On-Canvas-By-Leonid-Afremov-Size-30-x40-SKU18957.html) Fun fact: This art piece follows the post-impressionist theme that came to be in response to the impressionist movement that originated in Paris during the 1860’s. This style is known for purposefully using unrealistic qualities to symbolize the realistic.

Paris was and still is the birthplace of several types of art such as paintings, music, architecture, fashion, and much more. Paris is the sole origin to several iconic fashion businesses, famous artwork, and it even nurtured the amazing genre of music jazz when it was young and still budding. I’m glad Paris took jazz under its wing because it is a genre of music I grew up with and love. I was very interested when the seminar began to go onto the topic of jazz. During Paris’ period of modernism (in the late 19^th – 20^th century) jazz was thriving due to its unique characteristics. The theme of jazz had several concepts like its erratic rhythm and informal style (compared to classical) that coincided with the modernistic view that humans aren’t rational creatures by nature. I hope to listen to smooth jazz and many other creative styles of music like it in Paris.

   (http://www.allposters.com/-sp/La-Revue-Negre-c-1925-Posters_i2646818_.htm)Fun fact: Revue Negre was a famous jazz group in Paris during 1925 that started their own jazz night club called Champs-Elysee. They were a big factor to jazz’s success in Paris and even the world. To answer your question: no I don’t know why their lips are so big. It looks funny to me too.

The Modernistic ideology didn’t stop its influence at jazz. Numerous artists began finding new styles of art that went against the norm of previous art pieces during this time. Many artists began using abstract art where the viewer saw what he wanted to see from the art. This went with the modernistic view that people will act whatever way they so choose. Abstract art wasn’t as popular during the time and it was just beginning to grow; most artists would struggle in Paris.  One of these struggling artists was young Pablo Picasso who lived in an apartment with a friend named Max Jacob. The two would go through times of poverty, depression, and starvation together(he even had to burn some art pieces for warmth). He eventually gained some fame after illustrating for news articles in the 1910’s. His work went on to accumulate even more fame after this and especially after his death where they were fully appreciated. For me personally his art has always had a special spot near my heart because of their authenticity. By authenticity I mean how well they fully represent the Picasso’s views through simple shapes that when put together mean something different entirely. I want to see one of his amazing paintings in person in Paris.

“Marie Therese Walter” by Pablo Picasso Fun fact: this is a painting made during Picasso’s blue period. During his life Picasso had periods that each had a specific theme for the art he painted during them.

Art means something to everyone on this earth: especially to the whole city of Paris. Art is stitched into the fabric of its history and I just want to see it for myself. I just want to see it for myself because who exactly Pablo Picasso who lived in Paris for a portion of his life? Where is the famous night club Champs-Elysees anyway? These are questions I wouldn’t have even known the answers to before I applied to this scholarship and I still want gain more knowledge about them by:  going to Paris and seeing the apartment  Picasso stayed in, hear the jazz music in Champs-Elyees, and look at one of Picasso’ paintings with my own eyes. I want to feel the art of Paris with my own senses and not through a computer screen or book.

Kai Jones

History and Art Intertwined

Hello, my name is Ana Martin, I am currently a senior at Sacramento Charter High School. I am applying to the Transforming Youth Through Travel Scholarship due to wanting to experience another city and learn about a culture outside of my own. In Paris, I am looking forward to the walking seminars related to the culinary, art, and history aspects. In the first seminar there was a large emphasis on historical events tying into art and other parts of the culture. To be more specific, the WWI social trauma influenced many writers and artists such as Wilfred Owen and Pablo Picasso. Reading a poem called “Dulce Et Decorum Est” by Wilfred Owen really caught my attention. The poem was straightforward with strong imagery of a man in war. I have taken AP classes in both literature and history, it is amazing when the two humanities collide in a single piece of art.  One of the walking seminars I am excited about taking in Paris is related to history and literature, discussing the life and influences of the writer Ernest Hemmingway. Learning about the war’s influence over culture gave a whole new perspective beside the battles, loss, and victory. Also learning about artists and their different styles such as Picasso’s sharp and geometric art or Sidney Bechet’s non-traditional, rebellious and soulful jazz music was an eye-opener. In summary, the seminar was both informative and interesting, it was like learning the history of Paris through the artists and writers interpretations. If given the chance to travel to Paris, one should really pay attention to the connections and influence of events occurring in a time period and how it is reflected or interpreted in art.

Posted by Mike Licht on NotionsCapital.com

https://www.flickr.com/photos/notionscapital/2791307544

Title:Ernest Hemingway in London at Dorchester Hotel 1944

Photographer: Unknown

Location: John F. Kennedy Library (NLJFK), Columbia Point, Boston, MA, 02125-3398.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ernest_Hemingway_in_London_at_Dorchester_Hotel_1944_-_NARA_-_192672.jpg

Me & Changing Art

My name is Ferrick Moore. I currently attend Sacramento Charter High School as junior. Almost everyone can agree that I'm a busy student. It's quite rare to see me in the same place for more than a second. This is because I'm in so many leadership positions like Student Government, School Site Council and other clubs, that once I step out the car from getting dropped off from school, I hit the ground running. Some may say I'm crazy to take on a tremendous amount of extracurriculars but hey, somebody has to do it.

I usually don't stop working when my eyes are set on something but the context travel opportunity totally made me stop and realize what an amazing opportunity it is. Not only is traveling my passion but also learning its magnificent history, culture, fashion and context is something am absolutely looking forward to.

During a seminar I attended about Paris; I've found that change is quite a funny thing. Relatively speaking about traditional Paris to modern age Paris art. In the beginning, around the 12th century, Paris started off very religious and detailed with an obvious direct meaning when it came to art. But as times changed; the passing of WW1 and the break of the industrial revolution, art became much less detailed and religious with an unnoticeable indirect meaning behind it. Take Pierre Mignard’s work for example compared to Pablo Picasso’s. (Pierre Minard: Bottom and Pablo Picasso: Top)

             

          Here's where the funny part comes in. As you can see, the two paintings are definitely different than one another. The one on the left by Minard is extravagant and in my opinion, very sophisticated while the other, well, not so much. Picasso’s painting is mostly made up of shapes and colors and a bit unclear if I would say my self. In fact, by the looks of his painting, it's definitely a huge jump from traditional paintings like Minard. This is a prime example of the change from traditional Paris to modern Paris. Artist went from drawing at a distinct and detailed way to a creative and imaginative level. For the most part, the real change I see is the change in intellect. Yeah, Mignard’s painting looks sophisticated but you can probably guess the meaning completely than Picasso’s. Picasso uses all those shapes and colors to make the viewer have to analyze and interpret the shapes and colors before really realizing what it is. I like this because his paintings make you have to really think, kind of like a puzzle in which you have to reinvented the shapes and colors to make a picture. I would be most excited to see his paintings close up in Paris like, “ The Man With a Guitar “. Which is one of his famous paintings. ( Aren’t they all! )

Pictures Cited:

Pablo Picasso/ The Three Muscians: http://www.pablopicasso.org/three-musicians.jsp#

Pierre Mignard/ Louis XIV of France Riding a Horse: https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0CAcQjRxqFQoTCOLOxqyGwcgCFYqXiAodBCAJbQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fcommons.wikimedia.org%2Fwiki%2FFile%3APierre_Mignard_-_Ludwig_XVI._zu_Pferde_-_hi_res_1200dpi.jpg&bvm=bv.104819420,bs.1,d.cGU&psig=AFQjCNE-5D9eHC6acoTq37Hy2VmF9F8gOg&ust=1444880648907607