Formal Elements of Birds of Paradise

Formal Elements of Birds of Paradise
Assignment Objective:
Before we can try to interpret or understand an artwork, we need to know some basic information about it, including how it was visually put together. Your task is to acquire (analyze) and provide (describe) this basic information, NOT to interpret the work. Any interpretation that does not start and end with the material facts of the work itself is typically not worth reading. There are two parts to this assignment: The first part is analysis, where you will break the work down into its component factual and visual parts while viewing and taking notes. The second part isdescription, where you reassemble those components from your notes and observations to create a cogent narrative
organized to support your overall observations or conclusions about the work. For the most part, you should NOT
seek answers on the Internet. If you do, you MUST cite your source correctly.
Part I Analysis
A) Objective Analysis
1) Start by stating the basic facts about the work:
While not all of this information is known, you should make an effort to find out whatever you can. If you
dont have an answer, you should state that too. Some information may be the subject of debate by art
historians. Indeed, almost any one of these questions could be the subject of a book. Trust what a museum
says about an artwork before you trust an Internet source!
Where did you get the factual information? You will need to cite the title card where the work is displayed
(and include any accession number on the card). Museums (starting with the website, then an email to the
curator if you still have questions) are great sources of information.
You may need to consider the works physical condition: Is it damaged? Dirty? Unfinished? How do you
know? (Cite any sources.)
NOTE: Take care with the following list of questions; some of this material may be better discussed under
the proper element or principle (e.g. the application of the medium might belong under texture or line or
color). Thats something youll decide when you begin writing your description.
a) What is the works title?
Do you understand the title? Does the title describe the subject or object? Is the title, perhaps, a pun or a
word or phrase with multiple levels of meaning? You may wish to look up the words or the phrases just to
be sure youre not missing something (cite all research!). How do you correctly format the title of an art
work?
b) Who made it or to whom is the work attributed?
How do you spell the artists name? Please make sure you spell it correctly and refer to her/him correctly
throughout your essay (e.g. we say Leonardo not da Vinci but Picasso, not Pablo). Follow the
examples in your textbook.
You do NOT need biographical information about the artist to analyze a work visually. (Do you need to
know the history of the calculator to use one for a math test?) You can do this assignment without knowing
anything about an artist other than how to spell his/her name.
c) When was it made?
Be as specific as possible; if the exact date is known, provide it (and cite your source).
d) What material(s) and medium/media were used?
If there is a support (e.g. canvas, wood, paper) what is it? Dont guess, find out (and cite your source).
What are the dimensions?
What factors (if any) might have influenced the artists choice of materials and media? How does the
choice of material/media help (or hinder) the overall effect of the work? What are the limitations of the
medium? Has the artist made any attempt to breach the limitations of the medium (e.g. to make painting
look like sculpture or to make the surface look like a window)?
e) Where was it / is it?
Was the work originally intended to be located somewhere specific or was it made for someone in
particular? How do you know? Cite your source.
Where is the work now and how did it come to be there? You should also describe the artworks present
context (e.g. a museum or church): the external lighting, framing, etc. since these can affect your reading of
certain elements (e.g. color can be altered by artificial lighting).
f) Why was it made (for what reason or function)?
This can be a difficult question that takes some research. If you cant find out easily, just state that you
werent able to find out. It took lots of research to find out why Michelangelo was commissioned to paint
the Sistine Chapel vault. Other works, however, were simply made for the market.
2) Begin your visual analysis moving from general observations to specific observations. Take lots of notes.
a) What is the general historical style or period style / aesthetic?
E.g. if it isHigh Renaissance, is it more characteristic of disegno or colore?
It may help to compare it to known artworks from lecture or your textbook, just be sure to cite this.
b) Can you classify the work as representational, objective abstraction or non-objective abstraction?
If it is abstract, to what degree does the artist abstract the subject/object? Describe the type/s of
abstraction used.
If representational, to what degree is it mimetic? Naturalistic? Idealistic? Veristic? Hyperrealistic?
If representational, what is the content / subject? Can you identify what the artist has re-presented? Is the
re-presentation successful (regardless of any abstraction)
If representational, does the subject correspond to a genre (i.e. history, low-life, portraiture, still life,
landscape, or animal)? Is it didactic? Meta-art? How do you know? (Cite your source.)
Is it narrative or non-narrative (iconic, poesia, etc.). If narrative, what is the text? Find, read, and cite it.
Can the subject or object be read in more than one way? Explain how (e.g. Oldenburgs Giant
Clothespin).
3) Consider each of the formal elements, moving from the general to the specific.
Assess the work as a whole. Which is/are the most important element/s that define your experience of the work? Is
the artwork an exposition (at least in part) about one or more formal elements?
a) Texture (Please do NOT touch works of art!)
If possible, look closely at the surface treatment: Describe the actual and visual texture. Does the work
deny or call attention to the materiality of its surface? How? Does the texture interact with the ambient
lighting/environment?
How does texture affect the viewing experience?
b) Line
How important is line in this work? Are the lines organized? If so, how? How do lines move your eyes
around the work?
Characterize the lines: are they classical / analytic or are the romantic / expressive? Why?
Do the lines describe 2-D forms, 3-D shapes or both? Do the lines create or destroy illusion?
Describe the qualities of at least the dominant types of line: are the lines primarily rectilinear or
curvilinear? Are the lines, thick or thin? Dark or light? Solid or broken? Heavy or soft? Implied? Can you
see the brush strokes?
How do the qualities of line relate to the subject or content of the work?
How do the lines influence your experience of the work?
c) Space & Perspective
Are any perspective techniques used to create an illusion of internal or external space? Which ones? Are
there any distinct registers or planes that function to organize space (e.g. top to bottom and front to back)?
How does this organization (or lack) of space affect the viewing experience? You made need to stop
thinking and resist your minds natural tendency to force an organization of illusionistic space.
Do the figures/motifs appear to violate the frame or the surface? Has the artist made an attempt to create
an illusion that suggests it is not just a two-dimensional object? Does it deny or embrace its status as a twodimensional
work? How does a three-dimensional object define the space in, around and/or outside of it?
How does a four-dimensional work (e.g. time-based art such as film, video, performance, & digital art) deal
with the limitations of two and/or three dimensions?
Describe the background / mid-ground / foreground. Does the background influence the view