Wednesday, December 4, 2013

i chose this painting of Caravaggio because i really like how he did this painting as a peace offering after he had committed murder and he offered his head through a painting.

Edward Hopper Hotel Lobby

This is a painting done by Edward Hopper in 1943.  It is titled Hotel Lobby and is an oil on canvas.  The light of this painting exemplifies the unsettling mood of this painting.  This painting depicts a young woman in the corner reading and minding her own business.  Then there are two older people across from her, maybe a couple.  The couple looks alienated and the man looks ready to leave but the women does not.  What I found interesting is that there is a clerk barely visible watching them.  This painting is held in the Indianapolis Museum of Art.

"Girl With A Pearl Earring" Johannes Vermeer


This is a painting by Johannes Vermeer entitled "Girl With A Pearl Earring" which is an oil on canvas completed circa 1665. The painting depicts a portrait of a girl who has a rather confused look on her face as if she has just seen something that has stunned her. As the name of the painting implies, Vermeer uses the pearl earring as the focal point of the painting. I chose this painting because I loved how simple the colors were, the browns and blues give the painting a very relaxed feeling which matches the expression of the girl. I also loved how the background is completely black which helps the audience to focus more on the small details in the painting such as the pearl earring. 

Andy Warhol: Supermarket of Styles

"Supermarket of Style"
Andy Warhol
1962

The artist used an object widely known and added bright colors. Each colors are organized in a manner where each color compliments each other. The colors are bright and appealing to the eye. It makes an object that is so simple turn into art. I also like he incorporated the original Campbell's soup can in the top right region. 

Vase with Red Poppies


I chose the painting Vase with Red Poppies.  It is a still life done by Vincent Van Gogh.  The medium is oil on canvas.  The size is 56 by 46.5 centimeters.   The painting was created in 1886.  I like how vivid the red flower petals are.  They contrast well with the green stems and buds.  The dark background and foreground highlight the flowers and vase.  I also like how the background is painted in a circular motion around the flowers.

The Bar at the Folies Bergere by Manet

The Bar at the Folies Bergere by Manet
This painting is an oil on canvas done in 1881-1882. I really enjoyed this painting because of the amount of detail put into it. My favorite part is how much detail is in the background. I like how the background is the mirror and the man in the background that is talking to the bartender is supposed to be the viewer. I like the use of brushstrokes and the designs put into each aspect of the painting.
Riley, "Current," MoMA, NY

Developed in the 60's. Painting like these used various colors and patterns to create an illusion of movement in the image. I choose this picture because i like how it plays on the senses.

Cezanne's "Mont Sainte-Victoire"

Cezanne, "Mont Sainte-Victoire," 1902-04, Oil on Canvas

Cezanne used the genre of Impressionism to capture the "truth" of reality, and for him, the truth of landscape consisted of geometric shapes piled atop one another, each comprised of different hues and values. His "Mount Sainte-Victoire" captures this motif. In the foreground, we see darker trees (though consisting of varied shades of forest green) and what appears to be a small village. Light hits the middle ground of the image as tones lighten and hints of yellow, orange, and beige peek through the greenery. In the background he represents a sky in competing values of light blues, periwinkle, greens, and greys. I appreciate the warms tones in the middle ground contrasting the cooler tones of the background, but am much more intrigued by his thick and blatant brush strokes, the background consisting of horizontal strokes and the middle ground of vertical strokes. The piece seems to capture some subconscious perspective of Cezanne--that the world is made up of small geometric units that, from far away, seamlessly create the world as perceived by humans.

Human Condition

Painting by Rene Magritte called Human Condition. His paintings are all unique in that they all possess things that arent real and that have illusions as well. In this specific painting, it shows an easel in front of a window, and the easel portrays the image that is seen in the window. it gives you the illusion that the easel isnt even there, or that its translucent. the painting is also realistic, with the colors, and it very detailed as well.

card players

The Card Players
Cezanne
1895
oil on canvas

The card players is actually a series of paintings with a varying number of players in each picture. This piece in particular was sold for $250-300 million dollars, making it the most expensive piece of art ever sold. I enjoy the colors the most in the painting. However, I don't like how the card players' heads are so small in comparison to their bodies.


Mary Cassatt- Girl With a Bango
This is a painting done by Mary Cassatt in the late 19th century. I love the colors she used in this art work it gives the image movement and a calming feeling. I also liked the way you can see the lines she used when  drawing this. The girl looks young and is playing the bango. I liked most of her artwork because it has a femenine and elegant feel to it.
I picked this portrait because it was  an awsome example of realism. I think the dudes hair is cool and if I could grow faceial hair I would emulate this!  I really didn't get much feedback on Facebook.  That might be because I put up a lot of different things so few people notice.

"Three Dancers in an Exercise Hall"


This is an oil on canvas painting by Edgar Degas entitled "Three Dancers in an Exercise Hall". Degas painted this is 1886. He is known for his fascination with ballet and ballet dancers in his artwork. This painting has an intriguing use of light and shading and I like how his paintings look so realistic. It features three ballerinas as the subjects. I find it interesting that none of the balerinas  are looking at the artist/viewer. The painting has the feeling of being unposed for. The soft colors of the painting really set the scene of the girls being so young an innocent. I liked this painting because it reminded me of when I was a dancer.

Gun, 1981- Andy Warhol

For some reason this work really jumped out at me. I was looking through a lot of Andy Warhol's work and I've come to the conclusion that pop art is really cool. I'm really intrigued by it. I think I like this work a lot because I find it interesting that one can make such a simple object so different and noticeable. It really stood out to me because it is a really simple object but the way it was painted makes it stand out. I think red was also an appropriate color for this.

Breakfast in Bed

Mary Cassatt
Breakfast in Bed

I chose this painting because I think that the expression on the face of the mother really make you feel emotion. I also like all the white that is used and how it contrasts to the warmness of the faces. The shading on the pillows and bed creates a realistic image. I like Cassatts work and think she portrays realistic images.

Alexander Sheversky

Oil on Canvas
I chose this painting by Alexander Sheversky mainly because I like the use of light and shadows. The use of light really brings the painting to life. I also like the ballet dancers bright red costume. This vibrant color draws a lot of attention to the character in the painting. My favorite aspect of the painting is how real the painting actually looks. It almost looks like a photograph.


"The Circus"

George Serat's painting "the Circus" has many element in this picture that captures the viewer while showing the traditional style of the famous painter. The lively colors help the audience make the connection of what is important in this painting. This feature also help the viewer know the setting. The way the dancer is on the horse gives the painting motion and if someone was looking long enough they might feel as though they were leaning over the innocent looking horse.

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Goya- Saturn Devouring His Sons

I picked this painting because although it is gruesome especially by Goya's use of dark colors, but because it reminds me of the story in Greek mythology of Kronus or Cronus devouring his children. As the youngest of the first generation of Titans Kronus overthrew his father only to be overthrown by Zeus and imprisoned in Tartarus.
Goya uses a lot of black and brown to give a few of shadowing that shows how dark of a person the creature eating his son is. The eyes are wild while the body of the son being eaten is mutilated. There isn't any head, only a body looking like a slab of meat just cut.

da Vinci's "The Head of the Virgin in Three-Quarter View Facing Right"

This is Leonardo da Vinci's "The Head of the Virgin in Three-Quarter View Facing Right" and can be seen at the Met. The medium is black chalk, charcoal, and red chalk. It was completed from about 1508 to 1512. The reason I chose this portrait was because I have never seen this work by da Vinci before. I rather look at his works done in charcoal and chalk rather than paintings. He really enforces the use of light, which came very good and detailed. 

Wednesday, November 20, 2013


Hofmann, "The Gate,"
This painting entitled The gate by Hofman, created in 1960 in guggenheim, NY. This art depicts how he was an early advocate for freely splashed paint.

The Dinner Table, 1897 - Henri Matisse


The Dinner Table, 1897 - Henri Matisse 

Oil on Canvas 
This painting by Henri Matisse caught my attention mainly because of the detail on the table. Theres a lot going on in the painting yet its very simple. I like the use of colors because of how vibrant they are. 

Three Flags

Three flags a 1958 painting by American artist Jasper Johns.  However, this flag has 48 stars instead of 50 which represented the U.S. states then.  I like how this painting even tells history.  I also really like how it looks three dimensional as if the painting is coming out of the paper.  He took something as simple as the American flag and made a painting of it into something so eye-catching.  The painting was acquired by the  Whitney Museum of American Art in New York City for $1 million in 1980, to celebrate its 50th anniversary.  This is a type of painting that will never go out of style and shows extreme patriotism.