Chaos, rich pastel colors, and a story waiting to be told. That is the first thing that comes to mind when one see’s The Judgment of Susannah by Francois Boucher before their eyes. While at first glance, the painting is a beautiful chaos, when looking closer one begins to understand that story that comes along with the magnificent art piece. The painting was started in 1720 and finished production in 1721 and is done in oil on canvas. The painting depicts the story of “Susanna and the Elders” which is located at the end of the Book of David in the Old Testament. The story acts out the events of a young woman-”Susanna” being wrongfully accused of adultery by two Elders. Yet, before she is sentenced to death a young man, Daniel, interrupts and …show more content…
To begin, the obvious focal point of the painting is Susannah herself. Her body is shown, cascaded in the arms of a man who seems to be carrying her out of the court- and to her death. Her arms are spread as if asking for help, and her eyes seem to roll into the back of her head with despair. Making Susannah the focal point, helps the viewer study her physical state, which helps determine her mental state as well. She is filled with obvious despair, which is evident in her posture, as her body is currently in mid-fall, and her eyes are rolled back as if she is going to faint. This displays a woman wrongly convicted of a crime she did not commit. This is important because that is the purpose of the biblical story in which she is present. She has been wrongly accused, so undoubtedly she would be in shock when confronted with her own death. Directly behind Susannah, is an archway with a bright blue sky behind it. This is likely to symbolize the heavens, which is where she would have gone if she was indeed killed, because although she was sentenced to death for adultery, the accusations were false, so she would not have gone to hell in the end. Linear perspective, is also used within the painting, within the staircase under Susannah. To continue, the use of light is also a prominent factor in the painting, in regards to perspective and also alone in its own right. Again, Susannah is the focal point when it comes to light in the painting. Again, directly behind her is an archway, which shines light upon her whole body and Daniels’ face. This presents itself as symbolizing the innocent beings within this photo. This is even more clear, as the viewer notices that as Daniel is running towards Susannah, he is running out of the shadows, as if he is escaping the
Rogier van der Weyden painted his vision of the biblical Deposition before the year 1443, likely between 1435 and 1438. The painting is oil on wood panel and was an altarpiece commissioned by the crossbowmen’s guild in Louvain, Belgium. Jesus’s body is at the center of the scene, being carefully lifted down from his cross. He is surrounded by mourners, his mother, Mary, swooning in her grief as John the Evangelist reaches out to support her and Mary Magdalene wringing her hands, her head bowed in sorrow. The figures in the artwork do not fit completely within the frame of the altarpiece and the only the lower part of the cross is shown in full. In his Deposition, Rogier van der Weyden attempts to capture the extreme grief apparent at Christ’s death and reflect the emotion onto the observer, placing him/her within the narrative.
The Awakening by Kate Chopin is the story of a women that is going through struggles and is trying to break free from her current situations. In this novel, Edna Pontellier releases herself from her deepest cravings, starts a relationship that rekindles her long sexual desires that jump starts her heart, and eventually takes over and Edna can see nothing else. As she goes through many changes Edna gets involved in many activities. One of these activities is painting; painting becomes one of her favorite pastimes and her artwork often reflects important people in her life. Edna’s emotions take charge in her paintings and helps Edna decide when and what she wants to paint, this is why the readers get a sense of strong passion when Edna paints.
Joseph Hirsch’s painting Daniel was painted in 1976-1977. In 1978 during the153rd Annual Exhibition of the National Academy of Design, it won the First Benjamin Altman (Figure) prize. It measures 38 inches by 45 inches (96.52 cm x 114.3 cm) with a five inch gold wood frame surrounding it. The medium is oil on canvas. Everything within the painting is centered to draw your eyes to the action of the turned head and the pointed finger. According to the placard next to the painting this is a modern day version of the biblical story of Belshazzar’s Feast following the sacking of Jesualism from the Book of Daniel. From this point on, each figure within the painting will be addressed as Hirsch intended. The painting depicts a seated king, a dozing courtesan and Daniel. The three figures are the focal point of the composition. Hirsch uses a strong color palette to give the painting a luxurious and wealthy feel. Although the detail is not miniscule, the composition as a whole is easily understood. The use of oil paint allowed Hirsch to play with the composition as it was created.
By the presence of the public in scenes three through eight and by the depiction of a prominent judge in the final scene. Just judgment seems undeniably at the iconographic heart of the Susanna Crystal and the key to it’s message.
My initial thought about this painting is that it seems to be incorrect. The reflection in the mirror shows that the lady is looking in the direction of the man standing in front of her. If the lady is looking at the man their reflections should not be off to the side. The second observation is the lady is sad or disappointed and is looking past the man standing in front of her. My last observation is there are three sections from left to right; bottles and the audience, the lady, and the reflections of the lady and man. The most interesting concept about this artwork is how the reflections seem to be inaccurate. If the bottles and the reflections of the lady and the man standing in front of her are at an angle, then why are the vertical lines perpendicular to each other?
Looking across the entire triptych certain visual elements can be seen. Lighting is carefully used to highlight many important details in the painting; the dramatic facial expressions of many of the people in this scene are clearly lighted and defined to illustrate the emotions felt by the witnesses. In the left panel of The Raising of the Cross, among the mourners appear to be St. John, another man that seems to be consoling St. John, Elizabeth (the mother of John the Baptist), St. Mary (the mother of Jesus) and Mary Magdalene (hoocher.com). One of the mourners is actually looking directly at the viewer with a very distraught expression on her face. The mourner that I suspect is St. John in the back appears to be almost nauseous and his face is surrounded by darkness and is subordinate and his face is being emphasized. Also, the rocky background is subordin...
The painting is a large painting it is almost five feet tall and four feet wide. It is an oil painting on traditional canvass. The color choice is very dark and gloomy. It serves the purpose of putting the viewer in a somber mood. From the first glance you can tell that this is a sad setting. To some viewers Ida might bring a feeling of disgust, however, after closer inspection of the painting, the inner beauty seeps out. The black backdrop works to bring Ida out to the viewer. The fact that Albright was able to take a young and pretty model, transform her into an almost “Walking Dead” type creation from his own mind, shows that Albright had a very creative mind. The patterns of the carpet, along with a tear in the fabric beneath the chair she sits on give the carpet a life of its own, distinct, yet worn from time and abuse, much like Ida herself. The texture of the vanity behind her is duller. He gives no real definition to the outline of the lower drawers, there was nothing in there of any significance, but it works as a great background for Ida's leg.
Since she could not own, much less lose a realm, the speaker seems to be
The painting express creative drive that they give form to immaterial ideas and feelings (this is relevant to abstract art). Since the author had mental health issues during the creative process of the painting I believe, he didn’t just used art and beauty themes to express his paintings, he wanted to show the world what he was feeling inside. Although, many people can view this painting’s major theme as Art and Beauty, I also viewed it as Art and Spiritual Belief. The reason why is because according to Sayre, Gogh wrote a letter to his brother by saying: “My paintings are almost a cry of anguish.” Gogh utilized a variety of colors on the spectrum, giving his paintings life. He often used the art style of Impressionists in that his paintings are depicted as he sees fit, and not how they are naturally viewed. His heavy brushstrokes and vivid colors portray the night sky as crazy and chaotic and the village below as peaceful and
The theme can be generally recognized in this piece through color, space, and especially through use of light. The colors used in this piece are mostly calm toned, whereas the robes and shawls worn are pale blues, corals, and beiges. There are however, some harsh colored objects such as Mary’s navy blue shaul and deep coral gown, as well as Christ’s coral necklace that stand out from the rest of the colors. Mary’s veil and the angel on the lefts’ hair are translucent in certain streams of light coming from the windows throughout the room. The artists suggests that the light is dedicated not to represent the divine but to rather represent a more natural juxtaposition on the piece. The space that the characters stand in is fully used by the subjects but also has a very interesting doorway with heightened perspecti...
I chose “The Martyrdom of St. Matthew” as the painting that best illustrates the baroque period. The reasons surrounding my decision are clear in Caravaggio’s painting. Here Caravaggio uses the entire canvas to illustrate complexity, flow, and chiaroscuro. The painting depicts the source of lighting to be coming from the left side of the plane. The brightest light focuses directly on Matthew’s executioner who intends to strike Matthew with an old balcanic hand weapon. Caravaggio masterfully illustrates the use of lighting by casting believable shadows. As an example, the shadow of the handle on balcanic hand weapon reflects on the executioner’s left thigh and knee. Another shadow appears on the executioner’s right inner thigh. The lighting source to the left of the executioner, the executioner, St. Matthews, the boy, the 2 observer’s bottom, right, and the fainter lighting upper left of the canvas illustrates the technique of visual movement. The lighting is placed strategically, causing visual movement within the piece. For example, the illumination of the executioner’s forearm directs my attention to the angel who appears to be handing St. Matthew a palm leaf. As a result, my eyes then focuses on the body of St. Matthew, lying on the bottom of the altar, then my eyes shifts up toward the Angle’s arm. The lighting on the angel's arm contrasted with the darkness of the palm leaf forces the viewer to look at the hand to see what St. Matthew is reaching for. The boy fleeing the scene further draws in the viewer. The two adult observers at the bottom right of the painting are illuminated but not as bright as the two main characters. Next, my attention is drawn to the man lying on the bottom steps, left side of the canv...
One Art by Elizabeth Bishop is a poem that explores loss in comparison to an art; however, this art is not one to be envied or sought after to succeed at. Everyone has experienced loss as the art of losing is presented as inevitably simple to master. The speaker’s attitude toward loss becomes gradually more serious as the poem progresses.
In the poem “One Art” the thesis statement declared in the first stanza, on the first line as “The art of losing isn’t hard to master” also repeating it again in line 6 and 12. The statement is better interpreted as “The skill of losing is not hard to attain”. Bishop speaks in the poem as if she has successfully mastered the skill of losing. She also goes around in circles admitting that the art of losing is not hard to master as if that is what she is making herself believe is true. She is also helping the reader create a habit as the reader reads and repeats the refrain of “The art of losing isn’t hard to master” not to mention the line 4 where she tells the reader to make it a habit to, “Lose something every day”.
The immediate background consists of natural mounds of dirt and a brick wall that enclose the Virgin, Child, and St. John, amplifying the protective effect that Mary’s figure has. The dirt mounds roll inward with a brick wall bordering them on the right, drawing the viewer’s attention towards the three figures. The background is painted in broad terms, with a simple, uniform depiction of tree leaves and smooth rock faces on the horizon. This contrasts with the fine-lined detail and texture of Mary’s hair, facial features, and veil, which further contribute to her elegance and highlight her
The ability to create a picture of The Annunciation in one’s mind is a key factor in understanding the analysis of the work. Francisco de Zurbaran approaches the painting with a naturalistic style. The painting features a room in which a woman – like angel is seen at the left kneeling on the ground before the Virgin Mary. The figure of Mary is placed between a chair and a small wooden table draped with a green cloth. Mary disregards an open Bible on the table, as she appears solemn while staring at the floor. Floating above the two main figures in the upper left side of the painting are cherubs resting on a bed of clouds. They happily gaze down at Mary with eyes from Heaven.