The artwork that I have chosen to visually analyze is Town of Harrisonburg, VA by Emma Lyon Bryan. It was created in 1867 and is an oil on canvas painting. This artwork is located in the Duke Hall Gallery of Fine Art at James Madison University and is around 36” long and 24” high. This piece is a depiction of what Harrisonburg looked like in 1867. Bryan’s artwork is held in a wooden glass frame with a gold border and displays the buildings of the town, dirt roads, open land, mountains, and many other small details.
This image is a representation of the individual as it is of two people, however this painting could be a precursor of the enlightenment
The figure of the woman seems to be backed up by no background but a white void. This sense of emptiness distantly resemble oriental Chinese painting. The figure seems to dissolve into the void. The composition is integrated and the painting seems harmonious and dynamic due to the curvilinear lines formed by the edges of flat color blocks. There seems to be musical rhythm to the painting.
There was a focus point which is Saint Francis. Although the painting mainly consist of black and tan colors, the slight bright colors to balance of the black. This help bring out the details, such as the blessing on hands and the kneeling of people. Yet, the details were not too big that it would be too much to handle. This helps get the message across to the audience, like myself.
The painting’s size alone does wonders to draw viewers
Chuck Close uses extreme details to make the painting seem as if it were a photograph taken by a camera. The painting is done in black white and gray. For this painting, Close used acrylic on a canvas. Close takes a photograph and creates a grid on both the
The person in the Crucible, other than the Salem girls, that I believe caused the trials is Mrs. Putnam, Thomas Putnam 's wife. There are 3 reasons why I suspect of this, the first, is about her beloved seven children who unfortunately passed away. Mrs. Putnam blames a witch for causing the untimely death of her children, which leads to disastrous effects. The second reason is that she starts a witch hunt and creates the atmosphere of mistrust and doubt in Salem when she spreads rumors of witches. This causes the whole town to go wild and start pointing fingers at neighbors, enemies, and friends.
Viewing the painting, brightens the light in the artwork. There is a sense of reality as the light seems to move through the clouds. The faces of the characters are shown by light and there is an effect of light moving by walking in front of the scene. Emotions are evoked when one looks at this scene. There is a state of protection and safety.
In addition to that, on the wall shows a portrait of his grandmother's former slave family member. Allowing to show his ability to demonstrate different brush styles in one piece of painting. Not to mention, leaving the painting in the left corner blurry and dim and his grandmother detailed and realistic. Portraying that his grandmother's past is left in the past and she is the life of the
The appealing factor of this paintings comes from its message and juxtaposition of colours and stroke
The painting has a light and smooth finish to finish to it, and at the same time the bold outlines of the male figures appear like a sketching. Little detail compared to the woman in the center of the canvas. The clouds are dark and made with
The painting depicts what seems to be a panoramic view from afar but looking closely each aperture and objects make up the impressions of faces. From the left side there seems to be an aperture looking over a big cliff with branches of trees. This cliff and branches make up the face of an old person. The rock exposures within the cliff form the illusions of wrinkles, wrinkly lips and a long and untreated mustache. The branches give the effect of baldness, contributing to the overall appearance of an old man’s face.
There is no source of natural light in the picture, and the direction of the artificial light is indiscernible. When a viewer first looks at the painting, they see the cow and man observing each other. Then, a viewer will notice the finer details of the smaller cow being milked, the man with a scythe in the town, and the sapling being held by gentle hands. The colors in the foreground are whites and greens, while in the background there are darker tones of green and black. The lines are curved and overlapping, suggesting wrinkles and folds in the cow and the
Even the woman’s frame and posture seem to follow the lines created by the railings of the viewing box. The railings are also implied lines, the first thing our eyes go to is the woman, and then we follow the railings to the man who has his gaze set on the woman. The man’s gaze gives us implied lines that lead us back to the main focus of the painting, the woman. The artist also uses light and dark to guide our eyes to the important parts of the artwork. Most of the artwork is dark, while the woman and the man looking at her are in the light.
The portrait represents the beauty of the time period. It holds simplistic colors with detailed shading. The artwork is very intriguing to me. I love the detail in the background, there are tiny brushstrokes that makes up the mountains and sky. Also, I find the shading of the mouth and eyes very interesting.
