Journal of Art

Paul Klee: “Art does not reproduce the visible: rather it makes visible.”

Picasso: “Ideas and emotion will in the end be prisoners in the work.”

Art is a form of communication. The viewer experiences an artwork’s content when he/she becomes literate in visual languages.

The historical context, personality of the artist, subject matter, content and the form of the artwork are some meaningful aspects to be considered.

The following questions are for consideration when writing about art:

1. Who made the work of art?

2. What is the title of the artwork?

3. When and where was the work completed?

4. Where would the work originally have been seen?

5. Describe the important world events or cultural movements surrounding the work of art.

6. What purpose did the work serve at the time of creation?

7. What is your first response to the artwork?

8. Describe what you see. What is the subject (portrait, still-life or landscape)? What is happening?

9. What medium was used and why?

10. Describe the artist’s personal style and how it relates to the period style.

11. How big or small is the work and why?

12. In what condition has the work survived?

13. Do you “like” the work of art? Why? Or why not?

14. Describe the colors, lines, forms, textures, shapes, or values within the artwork.

15. How does the artwork make you feel or what does it make you consider?

16. What do you think is the meaning of the artwork?

Some particulars to media follow:

Two-dimensional arts (painting, drawing, printmaking)-color, line, light, space, composition, depth, overlapping, foreshortening, contours, hatch marks, modeling, relative position, perspective, scale and shape.

Three-dimensional (sculptures)-purpose, pose, volumes, techniques, color, site, base.

Architecture-purpose material, function, color, daylight, night.

Photography-“decisive moment”, angle of vision, light, focus, size.