User:Toby Decker

Saint-Séverin No. 3, now housed in the Guggenheim Museum in New York City, marks a time for Delaunay that he described himself as "a period of transition from Cézanne to Cubism." This is apparent in the heavily emphasized geometry of the piece.  According to the Guggenheim's website, "Robert Delaunay chose the view into the ambulatory of the Parisian Gothic church Saint-Séverin...in which he charted the modulations of light streaming through the stained-glass windows and the resulting perceptual distortion of the architecture." Although colors play an important part in distinguishing the lines and shapes expressed in the painting, readers of the Dial would not have been afforded the opportunity to reference the nuance added to the painting's patina by the varying shades of brown, red, blue and green.  Because the Dial was printed in black and white, the reader would have been delivered into the world of Delaunay's piece from a distorted perspective of distortion--though this is somewhat unfortunate, it seems to be somewhat fitting considering the layers of decay and blanch reality employed by Eliot in creating "The Waste Land."  

Saint-Séverin No. 3, now housed in the Guggenheim Museum in New York City, marks a time for Delaunay that he described himself as "a period of transition from Cézanne to Cubism." This is apparent in the heavily emphasized geometry of the piece.  According to the Guggenheim's website, "Robert Delaunay chose the view into the ambulatory of the Parisian Gothic church Saint-Séverin...in which he charted the modulations of light streaming through the stained-glass windows and the resulting perceptual distortion of the architecture." Although colors play an important part in distinguishing the lines and shapes expressed in the painting, readers of the Dial would not have been afforded the opportunity to reference the nuance added to the painting's patina by the varying shades of brown, red, blue and green.  Because the Dial was printed in black and white, the reader would have been delivered into the world of Delaunay's piece from a distorted perspective of distortion--though this is somewhat unfortunate, it seems to be somewhat fitting considering the layers of decay and blanch reality employed by Eliot in creating "The Waste Land."  

In contrast to the cubist/modernist approach, which renders truth from varying yet stark perspectives, the cover image of Penguin Classic's reprinting of "The Waste Land" incorporates Pieter Bruegel's "The Triumph of Death" on its book cover.  The differences between Delaunay's and Bruegel's paintings are remarkably different, though Bruegel's work does not inherently controvert textual content.  The editor's choice to use Bruegel's painting to market "The Waste Land" is obviously influenced by themes consistent with the poem.  However, when comparing the work of Delaunay and Bruegel it becomes apparent that the editorial choice concerning which image to use reflects strongly on the editor's perception of the poem.  For instance, though Delaunay's work is not "true to life," it does maintain sufficient pragmatism to assure a level of certainty for the viewer regarding the painting's content.  In "The Triumph of Death" the image is so absurd, filled with ambiguous yet disturbing symbology, as to disorient and perhaps disenchant the viewer before he or she has considered the text within.   

In contrast to the cubist/modernist approach, which renders truth from varying yet stark perspectives, the cover image of Penguin Classic's reprinting of "The Waste Land" incorporates Pieter Bruegel's "The Triumph of Death" on its book cover.  The differences between Delaunay's and Bruegel's paintings are remarkably different, though Bruegel's work does not inherently controvert textual content.  The editor's choice to use Bruegel's painting to market "The Waste Land" is obviously influenced by themes consistent with the poem.  However, when comparing the work of Delaunay and Bruegel it becomes apparent that the editorial choice concerning which image to use reflects strongly on the editor's perception of the poem.  For instance, though Delaunay's work is not "true to life," it does maintain sufficient pragmatism to assure a level of certainty for the viewer regarding the painting's content.  In "The Triumph of Death" the image is so absurd, filled with ambiguous yet disturbing symbology, as to disorient and perhaps disenchant the viewer before he or she has considered the text within.