The History of Art, Literature, Music and Philosophy

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The History of Art, Literature, Music and Philosophy Question: Examine Steenwyck's Still Life: An Allegory of the Vanities of Human Life, 1621, (Illustration Book, Colour Plate 10) Write an account of this painting, paying attention to the organisation of the pictorial space and how the artist has created a three-dimensional effect through the use of perspective and modelling. Consider, also, how tone, colour, lighting and brushwork are used to portray the objects in the picture. In the painting, An Allegory of the Vanities of Human Life, the artist has created a three-dimensional effect through the use of perspective and modeling. He uses different colours, a wide tonal range, lighting and intricate brushwork to portray the objects in the picture. The artist makes use of one half of the pictorial space as the foreground and the other half as background. On the foreground, there is a table and some objects are grouped on the table on the viewer's right. The objects are arranged on the pictorial space such that we see some objects as nearer to us. The first thing we take note of is the skull. The other objects are placed behind or beside the skull. The viewpoint of the viewer is slightly above, so he looks at the objects at a slight downward angle. This makes us look into the picture. The artist uses a variety of colours. This includes a yellow skull, a brown vessel, pink satin, a black and gold sword and a green piece of cloth. These objects are placed on a dark table and together with a dark background, the objects capture the viewer's attention. The tonal range in this picture is wide. The artist uses tone to portr... ... middle of paper ... ...e all the people are given equal rights. People are the ones who decide on who rules and the people who rules will be given authority to make decisions. In democracy, the belief is that the people get to vote and decide. The majority rules and the minority will be given respect. This provides a system that is fair and just. Everyone gets to give a vote. Nobody can say that they are unaccounted for. In democracy, there is freedom. People are allowed to choose and make a decision without any repercussion. Even though the minority did not vote in favour of the system, they will still be given the same rights. There will be no discrimination to anyone. This makes everyone equal and there is no reason to fight. This will make the society a peaceful one. Therefore, in democracy, there is justice, freedom and peace.

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