The Two Sisters

This is the painting "The Two Sisters" by Jean Baptiste Claude Richard in 1770. This is a representational painting and I'm not entirely sure about which kind of paint it is but I think it's oil. It is obviously representational because it shows these two girls much like they would look in the real world. As for the content, it looks like two French, wealthy little girls who are playing with their toys. There is some sort of horse on wheels they are both leaning on and underneath that, there is a doll. The further back one looks like she is telling her sister something but the sister is looking straight at whoever is painting them. There is also light shining on the girls, the front one in particular, making them the focus of the painting. I could see this painting being interpreted as symmetrical because there is some sort of protruding shape on either side with the girls heads in the middle. It has a very innocent and carefree feel to it, possibly reflecting the feelings of the children.

Form and Content in Van Gogh

This Vincent Van Gogh painting is entitled Along the Seine and is located in the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam.  It is an oil painting on canvas that Van Gogh made in 1887.  This is a representational painting that leans more towards the naturalistic end of the spectrum.  It is clear to see what this is a painting of, but it is created with less realistic forms and color combinations than realistic pieces.  It has a very "open" feeling to it because there is only one main figure that is overshadowed by the scenery.  The large amounts of open space in the ground and sky draws the viewers attention to the open space rather then the small, central figure.  The lines in this piece are not very distinct which makes the piece easier to view because the different figures seem to blend into each other rather then being crisp and clean-cut.  On the surface, this is simply a painting of a figure walking along a body of water.  Because of the way the piece flows together, it suggests that the figure is walking in peaceful reflection about something that may have happened; just being thankful to be walking along and enjoying the day.  It shows that even among all the stress that daily lives create, there is always time to get away and reflect.

B. e. a. utiful.

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.  What is beautiful to one person, is dull or even hideous to the next.  You know something is beautiful when a certain feeling comes over you when you look at it.  This feeling could be love, scared, lonely, passion, etc.  The point is that the work of art made you feel something, and therefore makes it beautiful to that particular person.  This image is beautiful to me because it is out of the ordinary; beautiful art to me are things you dont see everyday.

"View of Toledo" by El Greco is an oil painting. This painting is representational, the artist wanted to portray the city/landscape as real as possible for this period of time. If you look closely, the buildings are depicted realistically, and he doesn't ignore small details, such as trees on the back hills and windows in the main building. However, as you look to where the ground meets the sky, some may argue it is abstract. There isn't an exact line between the two, but instead dark, ominous colors and shades that look quite spherical. In my opinion, it looks like this painting was a portraying a scene immediately before a large storm. Metaphorically, this could mean there is chaos in the city, the capital building, or the church for that matter. As the calm daylight tries to fight off the coming storm, it is unstoppable. It actually looks like the coming of an apocalypse, before the beautiful city is drenched or ruined. Whether the artist meant for this to be interpreted metaphorically or literally is up for debate.

--Alexis Swoyer

Form and Style post

This is a Pollock painting but it is not one of his famous drip paintings.  This 2-D oil on canvas painting is an abstract style because color is played with and shapes are recurring throughout the piece. It's composition is not exactly symmetrical but it does have a lot of recurring brushstrokes that make the appearance of  waves in the theme. I believe it is nonrepresentational art because figures are seen in it.  So, he had a purpose in creating the work and it it not without an artistic direction. The content of the piece is what the viewer makes of it. I see flowers, but Pollock named the piece Ocean Greyness and he said that the circular things are eyes. To me the eyes are flowers and the piece says "life is a balance of light and shadow, good and bad, (flowers and water)". To others, the piece may say something else. -AnnMarie Pollock

Girl with the Pearl Earring

I chose one of the more known paintings by Johannes Vermeer. This painting is called Girl with the Pearl Earring. This particular painting is an oil painting by the looks of the visible brush strokes shown on the blue part of the headdress and on the clothes of the painted girl.  I chose this 2D painting because it is well known and shows mystery. The painting is very representational in the sense that it shows a real girl or what a real girl could look like. The girl seems to be a high class girl assuming from the fact that she is wearing a pearl earring and form of headdress. The dark background gives the painting a sort of mysterious sense, and makes the audience think whats behind her and why it is so dark.

This oil painting created by Gustav Klimt, portrays a man and a woman kissing and their close bodies looking like one unit. The form of the art work is 2d and the main focus points, the two people, are centered in the middle. I think the content of the piece shows how close this man and woman are, yet it is their relationship is undetermined; we don't know if they are married, dating, etc. It seems that they are both happy to see one another and the woman looks like she might be taller than the man if she were to stand up. The way they are dressed and painted seems like they might have to do with Greek gods and goddesses because of their flowing robes and the ivory and flowers on each of their heads. The composition is not very rigid, has a lot of space, and the free moving shapes the artist painted with allows the viewer to not take it too seriously. When I look at the painting I don't feel like I have to be quiet because the picture doesn't make the viewer tense up; it allows them to feel happy and carefree almost.
-Rose Migliara

This is a 2D, oil on canvas paiting by Matisse entitled The Goldfish Bowl. I would consider the painting to be naturalistic because you can identify that it is a goldfish bowl on a table or dresser alongside some fruit, and what appears to be a bottle. I would consider it naturalistic because though the subject of the painting is identifiable, other elements, such as the newspaper(?) are not as clear. Also, it is not an exact representation. Matisse experiments with the form and color of the fish, the other subjects on the table, and the picture in the background. The style of the painting is similar to other Matisse paintings in that details are not clearly defined. The content of the work is a goldfish bowl on a dresser with other objects. I interpret this to be a quiet moment depicting everyday items that could be found in almost any home. This painting says that there are commonalities between everyone which can be found in the simple objects that are lying around our homes. The painting is currently in the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

To anyone you question about this painting they will most likely tell you the paining is of clocks which are melting. However, people can interpret this painting in many ways. The painting is obviously a 2D form of art which was painted with oil on a canvas background. This style of painting would be considered abstract because of the way the clocks are painted they seem to alter what we perceive to be normal. The elements of this painting are composed in such a way where it seems as if a lot of the elements are either melting of slowly decomposing. I feel like art work is trying to represent how time can slowly melt away from us. The withering tree branch and carnage are both representations that a lot of time has gone by.

What is Beauty?

When I first asked myself what I thought was beautiful; all these images popped into my mine along with a myriad of others. I think life is beautiful. I think nature is beautiful. Did you ever just sit outside one day on a nice sunny day and look at the world around you; life is everywhere. Nature gives people a sense of life and peace. Nature is life and life is nature, whether it be a baby, an animal, or flowers; beauty is around everyone.
-Tara Alves

(Credit to my grandmother for her garden, my dog when he was a bit younger, and my baby cousin, who is always my favorite subject when I take pictures). [disclaimer: I am not a photographer, nor have nay skills; I just like to capture certain moments and things in my life]

Beauty In Culture

Henna is a big part of my culture. It is usually done on special occasions, such as weddings or special holidays. Henna is a plant, which is crushed and made into a paste. Henna can be used as a temporary tattoo, because it only stains the body. I am a huge fan of henna, it is a big hobby of mine. In this design, the intricate details, the shading, the different designs combined into one make it so beautiful. As they say "beauty is in the eye of the beholder," well this is what I see as beautiful. Its beauty ranges for the most intricate of designs (top image) to the simplest of designs (bottom image).

Beauty Right In Front Of Me

Beauty. It can be different to everyone and is said to be "in the eye of the beholder." I myself find many things to be beautiful, but everything I find to be beautiful have something in common. They all are things that can convey emotions. This doesn't have to mean you are moved to tears when you see these things, but you get a feeling inside that before seeing whatever you are seeing, you we not feeling before. We all look around our world everyday without seeing the true beauty in it. When I walk out of my dorm to see the beautiful campus Monmouth has, I admit I take it for granted. It conveys beauty through its landscape held up to the standards of perfection, and the old buildings that have had thousands of people walk in and out of them. Every spot on this campus has had some sort of special purpose for someone leaving them with an emotion. Whenever I go to walk through the tunnel and see "Carpe Diem" above me, I get a feeling of wanting to be myself, so my best, and live everyday as if it were my last. Sad or happy, emotions are natural and beautiful, because without emotion, I believe art would not exist.

Beauty in Art: Nature

I find beauty in the form of nature. Nature's formal definition is "the phenomena of the physical world collectively, including plants, animals, the landscape, and other features and products of the earth, as opposed to humans or human creations". My personal definition of nature is something that is natural, meaning that no single person can create or make. I believe that nature is true beauty in today's world. Specifically, I have always had a fascination with water and more specifically the beauty of waterfalls. This specific waterfall is called the Huangguoshu Waterfall located in China. I believe that this photo is the definition of true beauty in the world.

Beauty in the Ocean

I believe this is one of the most beautiful things in the entire world. This is a 

picture of a marine reef somewhere in the world and nothing else is quite like it because it is individual and beautiful

in its own way. Each little part of the reef adds to the community and helps it thrive in its own way. Not only is it 

visually beautiful but it is beautiful in the way that so much life comes from one little area. Even what just appears 

to be rock and not have any life is actually currently a living organism. It actually blows my mind a little bit how it 

really functions. But overall pictures and art overall about reefs are really amazing in my opinion just because you 

can look at it a million different times and notice something new every time.

Art & Beauty - What Makes Something Beautiful to You?

For this assignment, I have selected the most spectacular work of art - The Grand Canyon in Arizona. To me, it displays and represents the majestic power of Mother Nature over the course of many, many years. My family and I have visited this national, natural treasure on two separate occasions. At both times,  I have experienced a spiritual serenity; a feeling of calm. Depending on the time of day and the height of the seasonal sun, there is a vast display of colors represented. Pictures do not do it justice, it must be seen to be believed. It is truly a "work in progress". For me, art needs to have an emotional connection. I need to feel it deep inside me. I find these feelings through nature whether it's looking at waterfalls, animals in their habitat,  flowers, mountains, or our vast array of bodies of water.