FOUNDATION ART
Art Analysis
KEY DISCUSSION POINTS
In the exam you will probably be asked to respond to
art work using at least two key points. These include;
 A discussion of the aesthetic qualities
 An interpretation of subject matter and the
communication of ideas and meanings
 The use of materials and techniques used by the
artist/designer
 The influence of new technology
 The development of a distinctive style by the artist
 The influences on an artist including other artists and
historical or cultural influences
Art Movements
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Western art is arranged into a number of stylistic
periods, which, historically, overlap each other as
different styles flourished in different areas.
Broadly the periods are, Classical, Byzantine,
Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, Modern. Each of
these is further subdivided.
Ancient Classical art
Bust of Antinous, c. 130 AD
Medieval Art - 7th century
Most surviving art from the Medieval period was religious in focus, often funded by the
Church, powerful ecclesiastical individuals such as bishops, communal groups such as
abbeys, or wealthy secular patrons. Many had specific liturgical functions —
processional crosses and altarpieces, for example.
One of the central questions about Medieval art concerns its lack of realism.
Renaissance – 14th – 15th Century
The Renaissance is characterized by a focus on the arts of Ancient Greece and
Rome, which led to many changes in both the technical aspects of painting and
sculpture, as well as to their subject matter.
The Arnolfini Portrait
Jan van Eyck
van Eyck, Jan (1387–1441)
High Renaissance
High Renaissance artists include such figures as Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo Buonarroti, and Raffaello
Santi.
The 15th-century artistic developments in Italy (for example, the interest in perspectival systems, in depicting
anatomy, and in classical cultures) matured during the 16th century, accounting for the designations “Early
Renaissance” for the 15th century and “High Renaissance” for the 16th century. Although
Mannerism & Baroque
Time Period:
Mannerism — 16th century
Baroque — 17th century to 18th century
Artist: Manet, Edouard
Title Deutsch: Haus in Rueil
Year 1882
Neoclassicism, Romanticism & Realism
Neoclassicism — 18th century to 19th century
Romanticism — Late 18th century to 19th century
Realism — 19th century
Modern Art
Impressionism, Post Impressionism, Fauvism, Cubism, Modern art, and Modernism
Time Period: First half of the 20th century
Contemporary / Post-Modern Art
Renaissance Art
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14th/15th century
Renaissance painting bridges the period of
European art history between the art of the Middle
Ages and Baroque art. Painting of this era is
connected to the "rebirth" (renaissance in French) of
classical antiquity, the impact of humanism on artists
and their patrons, new artistic sensibilities and
techniques, and, in general, the transition from the
Medieval period to the Early modern age.
Techniques
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The use of perspective: The first major treatment of the painting as a window into space
appeared in the work of Giotto di Bondone, at the beginning of the 14th century. True linear
perspective was formalized later, by Filippo Brunelleschi and Leon Battista Alberti. In addition
to giving a more realistic presentation of art, it moved Renaissance painters into painting more
paintings.
foreshortening - The term foreshortening refers to the artistic effect of shortening lines in a
drawing so as to create an illusion of depth.
sfumato - The term sfumato was coined by Italian Renaissance artist, Leonardo da Vinci, and
refers to a fine art painting technique of blurring or softening of sharp outlines by subtle and
gradual blending of one tone into another through the use of thin glazes to give the illusion of
depth or three-dimensionality. This stems from the Italian word sfumare meaning to evaporate
or to fade out. The Latin origin is fumare, to smoke. The opposite of sfumato is chiaroscuro.
chiaroscuro - The term chiaroscuro refers to the fine art painting modeling effect of using a
strong contrast between light and dark to give the illusion of depth or three-dimensionality.
This comes from the Italian words meaning light (chiaro) and dark (scuro), a technique which
came into wide use in the Baroque Period.; Sfumato is the opposite of chiaroscuro.
Balance and Proportion: proper sizes and the use of airy, bright colors. The human anatomy
wasn't as idealized as during the ancient times.
1. Description of Aesthetics
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What do you see?
Describe all the defining elements that you see
including the colours, textures, shapes.
Describe where these elements are positioned and
perhaps why?
Jan van Eyck
The Arnolfini Portrait
Year: 1434(1434)
Technique : Oil on panel
Dimensions: 82 × 59,5 cm
2- Interpretation Of Subject Matter
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Subject matter is simply the subject, object of thing
which the art work focuses on. There are formal are
terms used to describe subject matter such as figurative
art, portraiture, landscape, seascape or still life but not
all subject matter can be described by using one of
these terms.
Once you have stated the subject matter you then use
descriptive words to interpret and describe the subject
in more detail and discuss what ideas or meaning the
artist is trying to convey
2- Interpretation of Subject Matter
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It is difficult to identify the subject matter of an
abstract painting if the viewer has no knowledge of
the artists’ intentions or past work.
Abstract could be described as having no subject
matter as such but simply be an experiment or play
on Formal Elements.
When a student is writing about the subject matter
in an art work they would use descriptive words to
interpret and describe the subject in more detail.
1- Interpretation Aesthetics and of
Subject Matter
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You would start the discussion with sentences like;
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The subject matter in this work is a portrait of Kylie Minogue
following the recent Olympic Games
The Swedish winter landscape is the main subject matter in this work
on paper
The interpretation of subject matter means how you
describe the ideas or meaning behind the subject. For
example;
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Bill Hensen’s young female subjects appear to generate a sense of
vulnerability of youthful beauty.
The subjects in Tracey Moffat’s “Something More #3”, photograph
are set against as Australian landscape and question our ideas
about identify.