Analysis Of Woman Reading A Letter By Gabri�l Metsu

The artwork being analyzed is called Nameless and Friendless and it was completed in 1857 by Emily Mary Osborn. The artwork was most likely created in England, where she was from. The media is oil paints on canvas, rather than the wood that was usually used. It is currently on display in Tate, Britain.

The art piece that I selected for my analysis is called The Triumph of Divine Love by Peter Paul Rubens. The artwork is an oil painting on canvas, circa 1625. This piece of art was commission by Isabella Clara Eugenia, Infanta of Spain and Portugal. The Triumph of Divine Love was one of eleven art pieces in a series portraying the Eucharist cycle, an important issue in the Catholic-Protestant strife. Its purpose was to aid in the Catholic Reformation and the artwork was to be displayed at the Convento de las Descalzas Reales in Madrid. (Ringling Museum n.d.)

Texture and pattern are very easy to identify in this painting. The street’s cobblestones show texture and pattern in the way that they are arranged. Texture is also demonstrated through the paint strokes on the buildings, the tree, and even the sky. These thick, uneven strokes add a layer of depth and texture to all elements of the painting.

Thirdly, the texture of the painting I see when viewing the painting is velvety and silky. I feel that the velvety texture is caused by the smoothness of Marilyn’s face. In addition, the silkiness I see is due to the gold paint that surrounds Marilyn’s face. Fourthly, the use of value is present on the painting by the lightness and minimal darkness. For example, the darkest value is seen on Marilyn below her chin on her neck, eyes, her lips, on the right side of her face, and on minimal parts of her hair. I feel that the dark value creates the illusion of shadows. In addition, the golden brown paint that surrounds Marilyn is dominant because it shimmers when light reflects it. Moreover, the lightness is present by the yellow, turquoise, and pink colors. In addition, the lightest value of color is white which is on Marilyn’s teeth. Lastly, the colors viewed on the painting consist of golden brown, black, yellow, pink, turquoise, dark red, and

It is almost a reflection of the man’s trident. That same pitchfork shape also appears in the window of the house that sits in between both figure’s heads. Repetition can also be seen in the dotted pattern of the woman’s outfit, which also appears in the material of the curtain that hangs in the house’s window. The echo of verticals in this painting is also strong. The faces and bodies of the figures seem to be stretched, and narrowed. The pitchfork’s slender prongs and the green stripes on the man’s shirt also add to the elongation of their frame. The copious amounts of vertical wood boards that make up the house and the barn, keep the viewer’s eye moving up and down the picture plane. Wood’s use of verticality in this painting is overwhelming.

The painting depicts a young woman in a pink dress sitting down. The background is very dark but three things can be made out by the viewer. Starting with the ground plane of the painting, an orange carpet can be seen covering the entire floor. It is patterned and contains yellows, greens and blues. The cool toned colours are darker in hue than the warm toned. Secondly, there appears to be a cabinet or a desk lining the wall behind her. The wood of the cabinetry is carved with detailed designs and is made of a dark stained wood. Despite the dark background a single red rose can be seen on top of the cabinetry. The rose looks freshly picked and shows no signs of withering in its petals. It is painted in a muted red colour that allows it to stand out on

One of the aspects I believe unifies this painting is, as I talked about above, the continuation of the blue of the woman’s clothing continuing up into her hair, which gives the piece a sense of wholeness and relativity. There is also balance in this piece, for while the woman’s head is offset, this is balanced out by the elongation of her shoulder and arm in the right side of the image. Variety is also achieved in this piece through the use of a variation of hues and a lot of tonal difference. Emphasis is placed upon the hair with the use of an unnatural hair colour, as well as the face where light colours are used to highlight and pull the attention. Space is not so much of an active principle in this piece, but is still present nonetheless. Beryl is placed in the middle of the painting, with her taking up roughly 50% of the space, and the rest taken up by background.

The Moneylender and his Wife (also called The Money-Changer and His Wife) is a Flemish painting created in 1514 but Quentin Massys. It is Oil on Panel and is located at Musée du Louvre, Paris. This piece of artwork is Massys most famous painting and can be interpreted as a genre painting or a religious allegory. Seated behind the table, is the banker and wife in a tightly frame, focusing all the attention of them. The banker seems to be busy weighing pearls, pieces of gold, and some other jewels. Next to him is his wife who appears be to be distracted from reading her book and I think the book is a work of devotion because you can see an illustration of the Virgin and child.

As a formal analysis, this artwork has a figure in the center of the page, which can be assumed to be the focal point due to its positioning in the center of the picture plane. Also, this artwork is monochromatic, and the only color used is the hue green. Towards the top left-hand corner, there are darker shades of green, which make this part seem to be in front of the rest of the picture by using overlapping to convey depth. Also, towards the right side of the picture, the people seem lighter and appear farther away than the dark shaded buildings Additionally, since the figure in the center of the work is larger and more detailed than the other figures, it appears that the center figure is closer to the viewer.

The artwork is a realistic portrait of a women. It is abstracted with asymmetrical balance with exotic and vibrant colors. As if the women is sitting in the corner with two

Concerning color, there is a stark contrast between the figure on the painting and the background. More specifically, the figure of the woman is predominantly delineated in white color, especially pale, ashen white, as far her apparel and facial complexion are concerned, while there are also various hues of grey, with respect to her hair and accessory feather. These white and grey shades are vividly contrasted with the prevailing red and crimson hues of the background (viz. the drape, armchair, and table). Moreover, one can detect colors of dark green (jewelry), some beige on the left (pillar), and darker or lighter shades of blue on the right side of the canvas (sky), which all in concert and in addition to the subtle purple hue forming the sun or moon exude a certain dramatic sentiment. Also, there is brown, which often easily segues into gold (viz. books and attire details respectively). The main contrast of colors between white and red would be interpreted as serving the purpose of rendering the figure of the woman, and especially her face, the focal point of the work, despite, paradoxically enough, the lush red shades at the background. Bearing that in mind, the significance of the woman’s face will be enlarged upon later, when discussing aspects of her identity.

The background has areas of dark and light that may be representing a dark part of this woman's life and the light area showing awakening in this woman's soul. To me the woman in the painting is staring out into the world and realizing that there is so much out there for her. That she can walk out of there and not be lost any more. Mrs. Mallard felt the same way. In the room she realized that she can now live her life on her own the way she wants to. She walked out of the room with a sense of

The portrait is displayed horizontally with a gold trimmed frame. The subject is a female that looks to be in her early 20’s sitting upright on a large brown chair. If the viewer travels up the painting the first indication of the woman’s class is her satin, blue dress. The saturated blue shines and falls in the light like water. Paired with the dress are her exceptionally detailed endings to her sleeves. The lace is even painted as though it is translucent, allowing a little of the blue dress to show through the sleeve. Flowers throughout history have symbolized innocence of a woman and her virginity. The repeating theme of flowers, in the sleeve cuffs and ribbon) in the woman’s attired suggests her purity or innocent nature. Another very details section of the painting includes the corset/torso details. The sewing suggests texture in the torso with small beading in between. Towards the top of the chest in the center, the female seems to bear an extravagant, ribbon piece with a tear drop bead in the center. The light pink

The shapes of the figures are sharply defined and the objects such as the table, book, and string instruments. There are diagonal rhythms throughout the painting in which it creates movement. The light source in the upper left allows the source light to have a more natural appearance throughout the painting. The shadows at the right-hand corner and the men wearing green in the middle contrast the main object with the most sources of lighting. The objects shadows and lighting create dimension and a vivid sense of more contrast. There are areas in the making with more contrast and the sharp contrast that creates movement in the painting. The shadows and the lighting throughout the painting show gradations and the highlights create more depth. Staring from the upper-left hand corner with the first figure of a gentleman wearing a hue of blue and yellow, the left side of his face and garment shows the source light in right above him. The source light above the

This painting is divided into three equal parts by the arches in the background and the characters correspond to each of these arches (TV12). The father is in the middle portion of the painting. The lines of perspective created by the tiled floor, draws our attention to the swords that the father is holding and the vanishing point lies just behind the handles of the sword. Our angle of vision is such that we are looking directly at the main figures groups, particularly the father. A single light source from the left of the picture illuminates the characters and also focuses our attention to the father holding the sword. This creates a ‘theatrical’ effect. The background is simple and stark so our attention is focussed on the figure groups in the painting. The painting has a wide tonal range that makes the composition logical and balanced. The colours used in this