Olana By Frederic Church: Painting Analysis

The illustration in #7.16, Trestle Work, Promontory Point, Salt Lake Valley by Andrew J.Russell is an image of a railroad track connecting two paths with men working on the site. Russell believed that the west was a great location to conduct his work because of the openness and freedom that was out there. Also to observe the natural scenery that it has to offer, which many have traveled to obtain such freedom and visual aspects of nature. As for #7.17, El Eaches or Three Brothers by Carleton E. Watkins is a description of a landscape winter forest by a lake, his purpose for this image was to capture the viewer's attention with the richness and the detail of the forest. For an individual to absorb the composition of the mountains in the picture

In the essay, “A Literature of Place”, Barry Lopez expresses the importance of nature as it applies to human life. Through this he states that humans’ imagination are inspired by the scenery around them. Lopez revolves around a central perspective; Ancient american literature has always been rooted in nature. By acknowledging that modern human identity has been interpreted by nature, Lopez describes how the landscape of an area can shape the structure of the communities and how it can help with spiritual collapse. Nature writing has often been summarised by being one of the oldest threads in american literature. With our nation's aging one needs to reflect on their literary past; therefore, Lopez insists that we find our path to nature that

The purpose of this paper is to give a detailed art analysis of the oil on canvass painting, Light of the Incarnation (Lux Incarnationis),1888, signed and dated: lower right. This analysis will also include background of its artist, Carl Gutherz (1844-1907).

Every painter has a certain style of painting, whether it's intentional to paint abstract or unintentional to paint as a modernist. I analyzed Abigail Kuchar’s artwork. She is an artist at Western Washington University. Currently, she is enrolled as a student and working on her Bachelor of Fine Arts. Recently, she exhibited her work in a Symbiotic Qualia, Western Gallery (group BFA Thesis Exhibition). Her ideas on visuals are very unique as compare to another artist. Her work is heavily influenced by reoccurring natural forms and patterns, representing, the specific shapes that have been successful in a variety of different applications. For example, the formation of bubbles, lichen, barnacles, anemones, spores, pollen, and seed pods, all have similar compositions. By creating work that includes these forms, the viewer is presented with something unusual, but vaguely familiar. Her material used in the artwork is environment-friendly.

When Stephen visits Sachi’s garden for the first time, he finds that “There were no trees, flowers, or water, only a landscape made of sand, stones, rocks, and some pale green moss . . . Sachi had created mountains from arranged rocks, surrounded by gravel and elongated stones flowing down like a rocky stream leading to a lake or the sea” (40). Unlike Matsu’s very green and tree-filled garden, Sachi’s garden is very dry, and simplistic, yet has a peculiarly admirable feeling when one is able to see the subtle details. Although it is very different from a typical garden, its components harmonize to create a new and beautiful pattern. At first, Stephen is overwhelmed by the unfamiliar concept of a dry landscape, but after taking it in, he says it is beautiful. This garden is has a fresh taste to it, leaving Stephen to decide the effect it has on him, whether it be positive or negative. When creating the garden, Sachi insisted that it should not have flowers. However, eventually, “between two large rocks grew a neat cluster of blooming flowers, startlingly beautiful, a splash of blue-purple . . . thriving among the muted, gray stones.” The way that the bright colors contrast against the dull gray shows that something unfamiliar and novel can appear beautiful in its own way. Since Sachi’s garden is filled with pebbles and stones, the dainty flowers stand out comely, and to

This painting is so realistic and painted with such precision and detail that he must’ve wanted us to see this place exactly how he did, with great beauty and light. The local colors are vibrant and cool yet still make you smile because it reminds you of a warm summer day. The use of two contrasting colors, the blue of the water and sky and the tan of the cliffs and couds, make the tan color stand out creating such a visually pleasing and dynamic effect. The organic fluffy clouds and the ripples in the water convey a peaceful sense to the scene. The pompous cliffs stand solidly contributing to the historical importance of this location. The artist captures the illusion of depth through atmospheric perspective; as the object gets farther it encompasses less detailed contributing to the descriptive nature of it. Since the left side of the painting is much heavier than the right this painting is asymmetrical. Your eye tends to gravitate towards the cliffs on the left because of their size and bright color which emphasize the cliffs. This emphasis creates a focal point that the viewer is immediately compelled to look at.

I have chosen Romanticism/ Post Impressionism, Olive Trees with yellow sky and sun, by Vincent Van Gogh; The Oxbow, by Thomas Cole, comparing it to the “Spirit Rising, by Christophe Vacher”.

(2005). In D. Bjelajac, American Art: A Cultural History (pp. 37-129). Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, Inc.

In the Heart of the Andes’ painting by Robert Seldon Duncanson, an immensely deceptive illusion is cultivated. This 1871 naturalistic landscape entices the viewer’s senses and lends itself to being part of the “beautiful” which is _____. This painting is a rendition of an earlier work done by Frederic Church in 1859. The formal qualities present in Heart of the Andes appear to fabricate an amicable symbiotic relationship between man and nature with motifs of God acting to legitimize human fallibility.

On Painting by Leon Alberti is, in essence, a book of guidelines for novice painters. Alberti explains that since paintings are meant to represent things that are seen, they need also be approached this way. In his theory, he breaks up the way of painting into three important components circumscription, composition, and the reception of light. Within these three are guidelines for the portrayal of subjects, spaces and emotion.

While perusing the paintings in the Legion of Honor Museum, Allegory of Geometry instantly captured my attention. Painted in 1649, this oil on canvas by Laurent De La Hire is very different from other paintings one might see traditionally. At first look, the eye is immediately drawn to the pop of red in the shawl of the only figure in the painting. Since, typical to Baroque paintings, the rest of the painting is earthy tones, the red in her shawl really commands the attention. However, if we take a closer look at the sculpture to the back left of the maiden, we see that featured in it is a calf. The calf was one of the most prominent holy symbols of the Baroque period. Additionally, we see a more pronounced religious symbol, the snake, suggesting

The use of geometric shapes in this painting allows the subject to be viewed in both a recognizable and unrecognizable state at the same time. Overall, geometric shapes and patterns play an essential role in what the viewer sees, which is further supported by a powerful color palate.

One of Vincent Van Gogh’s most world renowned paintings is his landscape oil painting Starry Night. The painting displays a small town underneath an unusual yet still extremely beautiful night sky. In this night sky, Van Gogh utilizes an array of colors that blend well together in order to enhance the sky as a whole. The town is clearly a small one due to the amount of buildings that are present in the painting itself. In this small town most of the buildings have lights on which symbolize life in a community. Another visual in Starry Night is the mountain like figures that appear in the background of the illustrious painting. Several things contribute to the beauty of Van Gogh’s painting which are the painting’s function, context, style, and design. Van Gogh’s utilization of these elements help bring further emphasis to his work in Starry Night.

Vincent Van Gogh is a well-known artist to people because of one of his paintings, The Starry Night. Van Gogh has painted many other pieces during his lifetime including one that is currently on display at the Minnesota Institute of Art, Olive Trees. This painting is part of a series of olive tree paintings consisting of a total 18 pieces of art. The one at the Minnesota Institute of Art was painted November of 1889 and is known as “Olive Trees with Yellow Sky and Sun”. Through a contextual analysis of this piece a lot can be discovered about its meaning. When this piece is compared to other artwork by Van Gogh even more fascinating details emerge about this piece of art.

"A picture can paint a thousand words." I found the one picture in my mind that does paint a thousand words and more. It was a couple of weeks ago when I saw this picture in the writing center; the writing center is part of State College. The beautiful colors caught my eye. I was so enchanted by the painting, I lost the group I was with. When I heard about the observation essay, where we have to write about a person or thing in the city that catches your eye. I knew right away that I wanted to write about the painting. I don’t know why, but I felt that the painting was describing the way I felt at that moment.