Formal Critique
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Step 1: Artist About the Artist
Use each step to form your paragraphs. DO NOT label your
paragraphs.
To understand an artwork you need to know who the artist is. when
and where they lived and worked, what influenced the artist, the
style, medium and technique associated with the artist
Name the artist.
Life span years.
Location of where the majority of their work was created.
What influenced the artist; another artist, events during the artist’s
life, other artistic works, or inventions?
Identify and describe the style associated with the artist.
Identify and describe the medium and the techniques of that medium
the artist worked in.
What life experiences contributed to the artist’s style and technique.
Step 2: Describe What You See
When you describe a work of art, you identify the things about the
work you can see, name, and describe with certainty. Do not
include your opinions, evaluation, or possible meaning here. Do not
use the word “I”
o
Identify the title of work (underline or italicize), category of art
(oil painting, acrylic painting, watercolor painting, pencil drawing,
charcoal drawing, ink drawing, pastel drawing, wood sculpture, etc.)
and the date the work was created.
o
Describe everything you see in the work and where it is; the
background, the mid-ground, the foreground, the objects or figures,
etc.
o
Be specific about the colors, textures, spatial arrangement,
shapes and lines of the objects you describe.
A Critique Of Mary Cassatt's Painting, The Bath
Step One, Description (What do you see in the
artwork? Literal (Subject) Qualities and Elements?):
This is a painting showing a woman bathing a small
child. They are in a bedroom with a patterned carpet
(green squares on a red background with a flower in the
center of each square), flowered wallpaper and a chestof-drawers that has a painted flower design on it. There
is a washbasin on the floor in which the woman is
bathing the child's feet and next to it is a water pitcher
with a flower design. The chest-of-drawers, washbasin
and pitcher all have shiny, gold-trimmed edges. The
woman is wearing a long dress with bold green, white
and pinkish stripes that covers all but her head and
hands. The child has a white towel wrapped around her
waist. Both people have black hair and light, cream
colors and bright pinks in their skin color. The woman
and the child are looking down at the child's feet in the
basin; the woman has her right hand around the child's
right foot. The room behind them is a much darker value
than are the people and there are fewer details in the
background objects. Even the flower decorations are
painted quickly with very simple shapes.
Step 3: Analyze the Way It’s
Organized
When you analyze an artwork, you tell how the subject matter and elements
of the work (line, shape, form, value, color, texture, and spatial techniques)
have been organized (principles of design) by the artist. You tell how they
work together. Once again make statements without using your opinions,
evaluation, or possible meaning here. Do not use the word “I”
What is the first thing you notice in the artwork? (Emphasis) How did the
artist use the elements to get you to notice this first?
Describe the movement of your eyes through the artwork? How did the
artist use the elements to get your eyes to move around the artwork?
(Movement and Rhythm)
Describe the objects that create variety in the artwork. (Variety)
Describe how the artwork is arranged. (Balance)
Describe the patterns in the work? (Pattern)
Are the objects and/or elements proportional? Is there anything that is
exaggerated? (Proportion)
What elements, subject, or artistic style unifies the work? (Unity)
A Critique Of Mary Cassatt's Painting, The Bath
Step Two, Analysis (How is the artwork organized? Principles?)
The artist has used value to emphasize the child and the woman's
face by making the faces and the child's body and towel much lighter
in value than the rest of the painting and by placing this lightest area
against the dark values of the room for greatest contrast. The very
light value of the skin next to the very dark value of the hair also
strengthens this area of emphasis. There are light values that run
from the top left to the bottom right of the painting. The light pitcher in
the bottom right is balanced by the light value of the wallpaper in the
upper left. The dark values of the painting are also balanced with
about equal areas of very dark value on either side of the painting.
The artist has created a path of movement for the viewer's eyes that
begins with the faces, (lightest area) and continues down the
woman's arm to the basin. The basin becomes a second area of
emphasis because of its large, round, simple shape. Since both the
woman and child are directing their attention to that area, that also
gives it added importance in the picture. The path of movement
continues from the basin to the pitcher that has colors and textures
that are very similar to the basin. The vertical shape of the pitcher
acts like an arrow that directs the viewer's attention back toward the
top of the picture. The curves made by the top of the pitcher, the
woman's knees and the child's bent elbow create a rhythmic
movement that brings us back to the faces of the people. The picture
is given unity (harmony) by the repetition of flower shapes on the
floor, pitcher, walls and chest; the repetition of gold lines in the trim of
the basin, pitcher and chest; and by the repetition of the reds, greens
and bluish whites throughout the picture. Variety is created by using
many different shapes to represent flowers and by the difference
between the flower patterns, the striped pattern on the woman's
dress and the geometric block pattern of the floor.
Step 4: Interpretation: What it’s
Saying
Use the information from description and
analysis to help you identify the meaning of the
work – what it tells you about the human
experience. This is your opinion use fact the
work to back you opinion.
What is the mood or feeling the artwork
portrays? Describe what elements establish the
mood or feeling?
What do you think the artwork is about?
Describe the things that make you think that.
A Critique Of Mary Cassatt's
Painting, The Bath
Step Three, Interpretation (What is
the artist saying? What does the
painting mean?)
This painting is a representation of a
quiet, personal moment between a
mother and child. Both mother and
child seem very calm as they turn their
attention to a very intimate, day-to-day
activity. They are sharing a time to
relax and talk-maybe about things that
have happened during the day or about
things that are going to happen. They
may be sharing a routine to get ready
for an afternoon nap. The colors give a
warm, soothing glow to a little snapshot
of daily life. It's almost as if the artist
invites us to share in this warm, tender
moment.
Step 5: Evaluation/Judgment It’s
Success:
Using the analysis in the first four steps, how would you
judge the quality or success of the artwork. You may
choose more than one way to evaluate it.
o
How successful is the arrangement of the elements
and forms in achieving compositional unity?
How successful is the interrelation of the subject,
purpose, and technique?
How successful is the artwork in communicating a
significant idea?
What is the relationship of the success of the artist to the
success of the artwork?
A Critique Of Mary Cassatt's Painting, The Bath
Step Four, Judgment (Is the artwork successful?
Why or why not?)
This is a very successful painting in terms of any one of
the theories of art. The artist's main concern is in
presenting a mood (emotionalism) that she does through
her choice of subject and through her choice of colors for
the painting. The artist is obviously skilled in using the
elements and principles as the painting is very well
organized. The painting is arranged so that it points the
viewer to those things that the artist considers to be
most important to her message. She uses the visual
qualities to help make a stronger emotional statement.
The painting also shows much skill in painting a realistic
subject. The figures are very well proportioned and many
realistic details have been painted into the face and
hands of the people. Yet, the background of the painting
shows little concern for exactness and detail. The artist
uses her ability to paint figures realistically in a very
formalist way to help point the viewer's attention to the
expressive quality of the work. This painting satisfies
each of the three theories of art: Imitationalism,
Formalism, Emotionalism.
RUBRIC
Composition (20 points)
____2pts. Cover Page:
Centered
Name of Artist
Name of Artwork
Students Name
Course and Class Hour
.
____2 pts. Typed, Double Spaced, no larger than 12-point font.
____4 pts. Correct Spelling of elements, principles, artist, and artwork.
____4 pts. Complete sentences.
____5 pts. Paraphrased or quoted sentences properly noted. (See
agenda book)
____3 pts. Paragraphs read smoothly together and are not labeled.
Content (80 points)
____15 pts. Step 1 - Artist: Includes name of artist, life span dates, place where
they worked, style associated with artist, description of the style of artwork,
information on what influenced the artist..
____15 pts. Step 2 - A complete description of the things that make up the
work.
____15 pts. Step 3 – A description of how the elements in the artwork are
organized. Mentions specific elements and principles.
____15 pts. Step 4 - Your interpretation of the meaning with specific examples
from the artwork.
____15 pts. Step 5: Your judgment of the artwork. (Closing Paragraph)
____5 pts. Works cited page and in text citations.
Note: You are free to use any and all resources such as books, websites or
periodicals. A paper without citations will be given a “0”, it will be considered
plagiarized.
ART WEBSITES!
ARTCYCLOPEDIA.COM
NCMUSEUM.ORG
MOMA.ORG
ART.COM
ARTCHIVE.COM
ENCARTA.MSN.COM
WWAR.COM
SANFORD-ARTEDVENTURES.COM
ARTLEX.COM
GEOCITIES.COM
IBLIO.ORG
THE-ARTFILE.COM
GME.GROLIERS.COM
METMUSEUM.ORG