formal analysis tutorial 2 d
TRANSCRIPT
A Short Guide to Formal Analysis2̂-D
Leonardo da Vinci, The Last Supper, 1495-1498
Form Content
Form is the totality of the physical and visual aspects of a work of art.
Form Content
Content is the meaning of a work of art.
Form Content
What is Formal Analysis?
Formal Analysis=
Description+
Analysis
A description relates what you see.
What is Formal Analysis?
Formal Analysis=
Description+
Analysis
An analysis gives meaning or insight to that description.
Physical Properties
Dimensions: 14’5” x 28’¼”
Physical Properties
Medium: Experimental Fresco Technique
Physical Properties
Location: Refectory, Santa Maria della Grazie, Milan, Italy
Representational vs. Non-Representational
Helen Frankenthaler, Nature Abhors a Vacuum, 1973
William Michael Harnett, After the Hunt, 1883.
CompositionShapeMassSpace
Line
ColorLight
Texture
Elements of Design
Principles of Design
Unity/VarietyBalance
Emphasis/Subordination
Scale/ProportionRepetition/Rhythm
What are we looking at?
Picture Frame
What are we looking at?
Picture Plane
CompositionShape Space
CompositionShape Space
an element of art that creates an enclosed space.
Geometric
Organic
Geometric
Organic
CompositionShape Space
the area—implied or actual—in or around shapes.
linear perspective
overlapping
Atmospheric Perspective
Linear PerspectiveOne-Point Perspective
Two-Point Perspective
Horizon Line
Horizon Line
Vanishing Point no. 1
Vanishing Point
Vanishing Point no. 2
Atmospheric Perspective
CompositionShape Space
how shapes are arranged in space.
=+
horizontal axis
CompositionShape Space =+
Symmetrical Balance
CompositionShape Space
Asymmetrical Balance
=+
CompositionShape Space =+
focal point
Useful Questions
• Is the image representational or non-representational?
• Where does your eye travel first when you look at the painting? Is there a focal point? How is that focal point indicated?
• How is the space used? Is there a lot “empty space”? • What types of shapes do you see? How are those
shapes interacting?• Is the composition balanced? If so, how is it
balanced? Symmetrically? Asymmetrically?
MassLine ColorLight Texture
MassLine ColorLight Texture
a continuous mark between two points.
MassLine ColorLight Texture
a line that defines the outermost limits of a shape.
contour line
Contour Line
MassLine ColorLight Texture
a line that does not actually exist but rather is implied by the edges of shapes, gazes, gestures, broken lines, etc.
Implied Line
Qualities of Line
Qualities of Line
Useful Questions
• Is line an important aspect of this composition?• Are the lines contour or implied?• Where do the lines in the composition direct
your eyes?• What is the quality of the lines used? Are they
thick? Thin? Broken? Straight? Jagged?• What “mood” or “feeling” do the lines create?
Do they create a mood?
MassLine ColorLight Texture
MassLine ColorLight Texture
MassLine ColorLight Texture
MassLine ColorLight Texture
MassLine ColorLight Texture
MassLine ColorLight Texture
the effect of light falling on an on the shapes represented in the painting.
How Vision Works
Value
Chiaroscuro
Effects of Light
Effects of Light
Effects of Light
Useful Questions
• Does the image have a light source? If so is the light source on the picture plane or beyond the picture frame?
• Is the light source conventional (i.e. a lamp, the sun, etc.)?
• Is the quality of the light direct or indirect? Is the light harsh or soft? Is there a high contrast between light and dark?
• Could the light have some kind of symbolic component?• What is the overall impact of the light in this
composition?
MassLine ColorLight Texture
MassLine ColorLight Texture
the illusion of 3-dimensional or physical weight on a 2-demensional surface.
Visual Weight
Useful Questions
• Do the shapes in this composition appear to have a three-dimensional quality?
• Do some shapes appear to be “heavier” than others?
• Do areas of the painting attract your attention more than others?
MassLine ColorLight Texture
MassLine ColorLight Texture
The property possessed by an object of producing different sensations on the eye as a result of the way the object reflects or emits light
How Color Works
Hue
How Color Works
How Color Works
How Color Works
Primary
Secondary
Tertiary
Color Schemes: Complement
Color Schemes: Split Complement
Color Schemes: Primary Triad
Color Schemes: Secondary Triad
Color Schemes: Tetrads
Color Schemes: Analogous
Color Schemes: Monochromatic
Talking about Color: Warm vs. Cool
Warm
Cool
Talking about Color: Neutrals
Talking about Color: Value
Talking about Color: Saturation
Talking about Color: Hues, Tints, Shades and TonesH
ue
Useful Questions
• What colors do you see in this image?• Do these colors appear to fit it into a specific color
scheme?• Are the colors light or dark? Dull or bright? Warm or cool? • Does the placement of color group any figures together?
Does it draw your attention to any place on the picture plane?
• What mood do the colors seem to promote? Does this contradict or echo the mood promoted by other elements?
MassLine ColorLight Texture
MassLine ColorLight Texture
the presence of surface—either actual or simulated.
Actual TextureSimulated Texture
Useful Questions
• Does the medium of this work create a distinctive, tactility? Is their actual texture?
• Is there an effort to create the illusion of texture? • What textures to you see? Are the rough?
Smooth? Wet? Dry? Soft? Hard? Hot? Cold? Strong? Fragile?
• How does texture interact with the other elements in this composition?
• What is the overall impact of texture in this image?
MassLine ColorLight Texture
Leonardo da Vinci, The Last Supper, 1495-1498
Final Observations