The selection of these images at first does not bear any clear similarities to each other as one is made from aluminum and the others use the medium of oil to depict their images. Although no clear similarities are visible, after reading each image's respective description, they all had a common theme to them, which was the factor of time and patience as the title of the gallery suggests.
Image #1
The first image that I choose is by the surrealist artist Wolfgang Lettl and is an oil painting on canvas. The painting is called "Die Philosopen", which translates from German to English as "The Philosophers". Furthermore, the painting is depicted in such a way as to make the viewer seem as if they are looking in through a little box to see these men, 'philosophers', pulling upon a rope, which seems to be attached to a hook, outside of their dimension. There is a light bulb painted on the edge of the frame of the box that the artist rendered. The colours used to illustrate this painting were all subtle colours and dark hues; in addition, no vegetation is shown in the picture, nothing but dark skies, rocks and dirt. The figures in this painting are men presumably as gender identifying aspects of a male are represented within this painting.
Moreover on how the image relates to the concepts of the course material. When viewing this painting, the artist makes use of Flippo Brunelleschi's linear perspective, which can be see within the painting, as the use of depth would suggest its use. Consequently, the use of depicting a box around the structure would make use of giving the viewer a varied form of perspective to the image. The window that the viewer is allowed to gaze through allows objects that are presented to be viewed in a different manner otherwise (pg.151).
Image # 2
The second image is from the same collection as the first image but under a different creator, who seems have the same last name as the first image's creator. This artist is also a surrealist named Florian Lettl. Both this image and the first image are under the Lettl Collection which depicts more paintings that make use of the box method, although this one is different in the sense that it is not a painting but a sculpture. The sculpture is of men, only clothed with a loincloth on their bodies. Both men in this sculpture are made to look as if they are relatively strong as they can hold the burden of the sphere in which they carry on their backs. The entire sculpture is made of aluminum casting, which is also extremely detailed in regards to the piece of clothing on the men, their muscles and the stress that their hands put onto the sphere itself.
Furthermore more on the sculpture, the artist attempts to depict the struggle of two people aiming to complete their own agendas with only looking at their feet and never lifting their head to see what is around them. In module 5, we learn that the goal of realism is to reproduce reality as it is and the sculpture that Florian Lettl has created showcases that aspect of life quite subtly (pg. 146). Although it is a depiction of reality, our textbook makes reference to the idea that the reality one person views may not be entirely the same as another person's reality, thus the idea of the viewer gives the meaning to the image is prevalent within this sculpture (pg. 49).
Image # 3
The third image is by the famous artist Vincent van Gogh. The painting was created with the use of oil paints on a canvas and is called Starry Night. The painting is an illustration of a night sky, over a bay in Arles, France. It is pained in an impressionist's view of reality. Vincent uses a variety of blues such as Prussian, ultramarine and cobalt to bring to life what he saw that night while looking out over the bay. The street lights within the city are bright enough to reflect upon the water in the bay and Vincent captures the reflection perfectly. There is more detail in the sky compared to the city to show the difference upon where the moon's light is cutting through the clouds in the sky and where it is not.
As for the painting and how concepts relate to it, the first one that clear is Flippo Brunelleschi's linear perspective as the cityscape in the picture is shown to be larger in the foreground and continues to shrink as the picture ventures closer to the vanishing point (pg. 152). The image is one of a kind, as much as artists of today's age attempt to copy Vincent's techniques, his work as our textbook references, retains and gives off its own personal aura (pg. 196).
Image #4
The fourth is a painting done with oil paints on a canvas of still life and the painting was done by the artist Henri Fanitin-Latour. The painting depicts a table with a bowl containing 4 fruits, a white cylindrical vase containing an assortment of flowers, 4 bunches of grapes and a knife on the table. The use of large brush strokes on the flowers is to show to the viewer the different textures that every flower possesses. With the addition of the knife to the painting, it gives the painting a traditional accessory, allowing the painting to increase in the perspective in which it delivers to the viewer.
The artist achieves a sense of realism from the use of colours, shading and perspective. Through the use of various colours, the artist is able to deliver a sense of realism to some viewers as they may share the same perspective as the artist. With the fruits shimmering from the light that is cast upon them and the knife reflecting that same light, it adds a 'life-like' aspect to the picture. Although these points are for the basis for realism, the image does not convey realism in which the artist attempted to deliver across to all viewers as the meaning to pictures changes based on who views them (pg. 49). The depth that linear perspective brings with its use in paintings, allows for the picture to again, gain a sense of realism in the sense that the vase is behind the bowl of fruits and that the grapes are placed in between the bowl and vase (pg. 152). With the idea of representation that was expressed in module 1, the textbook explains how the painting is a representation of an idea and has more value than the actual objects in which the painting is based off of because it offers more value to the viewer such as a new meaningful perspective (pg. 15).
Image # 5
The fifth image is by an impressionist by the name of Camille Pissarro. He uses the style of pointillism on a canvas to illustrate the image of a peasants' house. The image has two houses side by side which are separated by a fence made of hedges to show the dividing line between the two properties. There is a person in the foreground of the image, carrying what looks like a rucksack. One can deduce by the persons clothing and body structure to be a female.
As this image is characterized under the category of impressionism, it was under a lot or scrutiny at the time of its emergence. With people both enjoying this new take on art and others disliking it, our textbook makes reference to this as people were developing either a 'good' taste or a 'bad' one (pg. 56-57). In regards to the painting style used which was pointillist, this style of painting offered the viewer a different perspective that was never offered prior to the advent of pointillism. As the viewer distanced themselves from the image, the colours will begin to blend and start to form shapes that we recognize such as the trees, hedges and a house. In turn, when the viewer would begin to come closer to the image, the images that your mind was able to put together begin blur more and more until you reach the painting in which one can only see dots of varying colour and size.
