The Renaissance Painting by Andy Warhol Viewed at the Arkansas Art Centre
Overview
This type of paper is referred to as Formal Analysis or Visual Analysis. It is a description and analysis of the “form” of a work of art, especially how the visual elements and design principles contribute to its visual power and meaning. In a visual analysis, you will not consider issues such as the artist’s biography, or what was happening historically when the work was made. You will focus only on what is visually evident.
Your Assignment
You will write a concise 500 600 word short essay based on a work of art that you actually view and not a reproduction. This is not a research paper, but is a paper based on your own observations and original thought. I expect you to use and integrate key concepts and terminology from class.
For this Reflection, you will visit a local museum or gallery and write a short paper in which you apply the Visual Elements and Design Principles to describe a work of art. As usual, I’m looking forward to reading your original ideas and insights.
This Reflection is worth 160 points. Please read the Grading Rubric before you begin.
Due Date
This Final Reflection is due by Monday, May 27, at 11:59 p.m. Your work will not be accepted after that date. No exceptions.
The Submission Link to submit this Final Reflection will be available beginning on May 20.
Requirements for Organizing and Writing the Paper
Your essay must include three distinct parts, described below.
This paper is not about length, but about quality. Please review the sample student essays that are posted on Canvas and take note of the concise, descriptive language that was used. Model your paper after these examples and follow the same format in the paper that you submit on Canvas. Try to present an interesting or fresh way of seeing and understanding the work of art. Here are some examples:
Sample Student Essays
Part 1 Opening Description
Describe the overall work as you would to someone who hasn’t seen it.
Paint a detailed picture with words. Your description should be so clear and specific that the reader can imagine the work of art in their mind as they read. Do not simply list what you see, but thoroughly describe the different areas of the work. Use lots of adjectives and avoid naming. Move from general to specific observations. If human figures are represented, describe their most dominant characteristics, including expressions, poses, gestures and how they are placed in relation to one another. If the work is non-representational, describe the most dominant elements, such as color, texture, light, etc. For example, if you describe a work of art with a clear arrangement of vertical or horizontal lines, you might refer to it as “calm” or “reserved”. This section should be a paragraph in length.
Part 2 Topic Sentence
Write one clear and concise sentence.
Write a concise topic sentence that clearly states how a specific visual element or design principle is used, generally, to reinforce the power, meaning, emotion, or mood in the work of art that you select. This topic sentence will be the controlling argument for the final section, the Formal Analysis (see Part 3, below). For example, your topic sentence might begin as:
“The artist’s unique use of textural elements enhances”¦”, or
“The artist’s expressive use of complementary colors evokes”¦”, or
“The artist uses dramatic shifts of scale to draw our attention to”¦”
Part 3 Formal Analysis
Thoroughly describe the use of a visual element or design principle.
As with Part 1, this section should be a paragraph in length, but it could be two paragraphs. In this part, you will describe, in rich detail, how the artist used the visual element or design principle in different areas within the artwork. Use this part to illustrate and support your topic sentence and convey the significance of what you have observed. You must include between three and five specific supporting observations from your chosen art object. Each sentence in this part must be clear and descriptive. Please read the following examples.
Examples of Sentences
“The artist uses atmospheric perspective to evoke a convincing sense of spatial depth. For example, a soft horizontal band of translucent blue seems to float across the upper third of the composition, like a distant sea on the edge of dry land.
Or”¦
“In the upper left of the painting, the artist used strong color intensity to draw attention to the subject. The bright red on the lady’s hat seems to catch the light of the bright sun and stands out against the cool hues of the landscape in the distance.”
Closing Sentence
End this paragraph with a concluding sentence that relates the visual element or design principle to broader insight about the work of art. For example:
“Although the composition is abstract, the colors seem to be those we might actually observe in nature, evoking a sen
