Art 101 - Essay 1
The Two Faces of Dance: Improvisation and Performance
My first piece from the National Gallery of Art is "The Dance Lesson", circa 1879, by Edgar Degas. Degas lived between the period of 1834-1917. The medium is oil on canvas. The movement is Impressionist. I saw a photo of this piece and initially thought the texture of the flooring was done by hatchmark. I saw the original and realized that the texture is from the canvas itself. The fibers appear like hatchmarks. The use of light and dark values on the floor imply texture. Directional lines and one-point linear perspective orthogonals show aging in the floor and put the focus on the teacher and student in the center, respectively. Contour lines in the tutus illustrate fullness. There is implied light reflected on the floor with the use of light and dark values which also indicates time and motion -- that it is during the early part of the day. The colors or hues, soft earth tones portray an old studio, and pastels indicate the youth of the dancers.
My second piece is "The Dancing Couple" from 1663, by Jan Steen. The period is 1625/1626-1679. The medium is oil on canvas. The movement is Baroque. The contour lines emphasize the costumes and ample bellies of the couple. Directional lines show the broadness of the vined canopy. Movement lines appear in the pants and dress of the dancers. The 2-dimensional shape of the lined barrel and weaved baskets denote texture. A pattern is found in the fence. Light and dark values around the dancer's feet and hands and around the clouds denote motion and time of day, respectively. The colors, warm earth tones, give the feeling of commoners, brown and dingy faced, and likely poor.
My first piece from the National Gallery of Art is "The Dance Lesson", circa 1879, by Edgar Degas. Degas lived between the period of 1834-1917. The medium is oil on canvas. The movement is Impressionist. I saw a photo of this piece and initially thought the texture of the flooring was done by hatchmark. I saw the original and realized that the texture is from the canvas itself. The fibers appear like hatchmarks. The use of light and dark values on the floor imply texture. Directional lines and one-point linear perspective orthogonals show aging in the floor and put the focus on the teacher and student in the center, respectively. Contour lines in the tutus illustrate fullness. There is implied light reflected on the floor with the use of light and dark values which also indicates time and motion -- that it is during the early part of the day. The colors or hues, soft earth tones portray an old studio, and pastels indicate the youth of the dancers.
My second piece is "The Dancing Couple" from 1663, by Jan Steen. The period is 1625/1626-1679. The medium is oil on canvas. The movement is Baroque. The contour lines emphasize the costumes and ample bellies of the couple. Directional lines show the broadness of the vined canopy. Movement lines appear in the pants and dress of the dancers. The 2-dimensional shape of the lined barrel and weaved baskets denote texture. A pattern is found in the fence. Light and dark values around the dancer's feet and hands and around the clouds denote motion and time of day, respectively. The colors, warm earth tones, give the feeling of commoners, brown and dingy faced, and likely poor.
posted by Wendy Thompson | 4:18 AM
1 Comments:
What can I say? WOW!!!! I hope you don't mind but I am going to direct everyone in the classes to your blogspot to take a look at these beautifully organized, worded, and descriptive essays. Good job.
brew
Post a Comment
<< Home