WHO? WHAT? WHY?
AND HOW?
WHAT ART IS SAYING
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Where and
when was the art work produced? What was the prevailing social political,
economic atmosphere or lifestyle of the time? (Do not
be too vague or too brief.) What were some recent contemporary
events occurring around that time? Times change peoples attitudes.
Were there prevailing technologies that might have affected the artistic
interpretation or methods?
Form and Design Features of
the Work
Use visual art
terms to describe the content. <visual
elements: shape, surface, size, mass,
color, tone, texture, line, movement, space, light/shadow; or design
elements e.g.: balance, contrast, rhythm, harmony, emphasis, figure/field,
repetition, tension, movement, etc.>
Form in Space Does
the art suggest 2 dimensional or 3 dimensional space?
Hint: 2 dimension space
has a flat and cut out look such as a silhouette. 3 dimensional art
has modeling, roundness, and depth.
Some
pictures show great distance or depth others are “shallower”
and do not go back very far into the distance.
Design Features
Design introduces the idea of composition
or organization. Design generally attempts to achieve variety, harmony,
contrast, etc. within the work. Design is
about relationships of parts to each other. Visual Elements
in art use terms like "shape" or "color". But
in design we get into the EFFECTS of the interplay between elements,
like "rhythm." Rhythm is an effect caused by repeating
shapes or lines; Another effect is "contrast" caused by comparing
two elements like the colors black and red.
Describe a contrast feature; Describe a rhythm feature; Describe variety
features; How is unity achieved in the work? Is repetition used by
the artist to achieve harmony? What forms or elements are repeated.
See “visual elements” named above.
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RETURN
TO INDEX TO ART LESSONS
First Reactions:
Consider first impressions. What strikes
you as interesting? Unusual? What attracts you to the work. What technology
or methodology may have influenced the work ?
Meanings:
What does this picture seem to be about?
Does the work appear to have a theme? Does the art work tell a story?
Or express a feeling or mood? Explain what you actually see in the
work that makes you say this. What do you think the intention of
the artist was in selecting the forms, colors and style that you
see?
Visual
and Pictorial Content:
List the content of the picture, name
as many things as you can. Naming things is the usual way we describe
pictures. This may work on realistic kinds of art. But how do you
describe art that is not normal in appearance or abstract? An abstract
or unrealistic picture is still full of visual material but it must
be identified in a different way.
Visual
Art Vocabulary
Use visual terms to describe the content.
<visual elements: shape, surface, size, mass, color, tone, texture,
line, movement, space, light/shadow; or design elements e.g.: balance,
contrast, rhythm, harmony, emphasis, figure/field, repetition, tension,
movement, etc.
Looking
at "performance"
skills and methods
Consider the
technique the artist used. What can you point to that seems to indicate
a good application of skills. (Each art form has its own set of
skills.) Can you see a place where "performance" is at a high level.
Consider for example, musicians who play with skill or figure skaters
who skate with skill.
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2023
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