Works of Art I Know

Self-Portrait
Chuck Close
American
2004-2005

My first impressions:
The color choices for this painting fascinate me because sometimes the colors are very different than what they appear to be. The small shapes allow Close to use a variety of colors (it appears that he uses just two for each square); but since the details are so small, when we step back we see a mixture of the colors and suddenly we are looking at an entirely new color. For instance he uses some warm reds in the background, however when we are at a distance they disappear among the rich cool blues. I am impressed that he incorporates value into his paintings, which shows careful preparation and planning for which specific colors he wants to use.

What I have learned:
Chuck close begins his portraits with a photo and then marks the photo with a grid. He does this so he can visualize painting the image on a much larger scale. He claims that breaking it down in to small pieces lets the artwork evolve naturally instead of having him speculate what it should look like. The process is much more random that Close makes it look like. After he was paralyzed and started painting again, he used much more color in his artwork that made a writer in New York quote that Chuck Close is, "one of the greatest colorists and brush wielders of his time."

I See The Light Drawing

Morning sparkles

The story I am trying to tell in my collage is in the morning, when the sunlight comes into my room, it shines on this ornament I have with a prism. When the light hits the prism, it shoots small rainbows all over my room.

I used value in my drawing to show shadows and sunlit areas, folds, and 3-d. My favorite area of value was the curtains.

The most challenging aspect of this drawing was the wall. I couldnt get the values dark enough so I kept drawing over it. The ornament was also hard to draw because i had to fit in all the details but it was really small.

The most successful aspect of my drawing was the curtains. Because I like to design fashion, I have had lots of practice with the 3-d effects of fabric.

Story Collage

Same Difference


The story I am trying to tell in my collage is about my first fashion design class at the Rhode Island School of Design. Most of the girls there wore lots of jewelry and expensive outfits, and I was one of the plainer girls. The obvious difference in fashion, however, didn't matter to me because my designs were better than some of the most fashionable girls in the classroom. I am the girl in the middle between two stlylish girls. Our work is posted on the wall behind us, with the grade "A" for the two girls' designs and "A+" for my design to represent the difference in talent.

The most challenging aspect of making this collage was making 3-d objects like the curls for the blue hair and the gold earrings. I also made the sketches on the wall pop out like canvas. This was extremely difficult becuase the paper wouldn't smooth out after a crease had been made, so everytime i changed my mind i would have to cut out another sheet.

The most succesful aspects of my collage are the two fashionable girls on the sides. I had a lot of fun with deciding the hair style and what jewelry they should be wearing. At first I had all the features 2-d, then I went back and wondered which features could stand out more.

Works of Art I Know

The long leg
Edward Hopper
American
1935

My first impressions:
Hopper has many bright colors in this painting and light values which leads me to thinking that the emotion is happiness or excitement. His paintings are really realistic, and i think that he chose this style to best illustrate his stories. By the title, we can tell that the sailboat is going for a long journey. It is not really described where the sailboat is; both where its coming from and where it is going. However it looks like the piece of land in the background is an island or peninsula.

What I have learned:
Hoppers paintings have a still and peaceful aura. The long leg describes the graceful movement of the sailboat along the surface of the water. Hopper loved to sail and this painting reflects his deep love for the sea. The setting of this picture is Stage Harbor in Cape Cod near South Truro where he had a vacation house. His residence was located in New York, which explains his other favorite topic for painting: the city.

Works of Art I Know

"Awaiting his Return"
Charles White
American
1945

My first impressions:
I like how the shading is more random in this picture because it is interesting to look at and ask, "Why did he do that?" I also like the shapes he used instead of drawing everything how they are. I noticed that her face is very detailed too; probably to show her expression. Her body language also speaks for itself as "impatient". The title says, "Awaiting his return" so I suppose that this woman is waiting for her husband to return home from where ever he went.

What I have learned:
In "Awaiting his return" a woman anxiously waits for her loved one from military service during World War II. The message is about the suffering and waiting of women and children who had fathers, husbands, and brothers go to war. White says that the half-covered star portrait in the background stands for the African-American Gold star mothers and wives in WW II.

Works of Art I Know

The Sunflower Quilting Bee at Arles
Faith Ringgold
American
1991

My First Impressions:
This quilt looks like it illustrates slavery, possibly in the 1800's from the style of the houses in the background. 8 African-Americans are sewing a quilt with pictures of sunflowers like those in the field around them. A farmer watches them while holding a bouquet of sunflowers. These slaves look too old for farm work, so I think that their work involves things like quilt making (like in this artwork). The clothing however confuses me, especially with the woman on the far left, because slaves did not tend wear elaborate clothes. It's possible that these people are not slaves.

What I have learned:
This is a quilt showing a group of African-American women who are displaying their sunflower quilt in a field of sunflowers. The man on the right is Van Gogh, who stand holding his sunflowers (paintings of sunflowers like "Obscurity" by Van Gogh show us his love for them). The buildings in the background belong to the village of Arles. Ringgold uses many blues and yellows for this quilt because they were Van Gogh's favorite colors.