Formal analysis, when discussing works of art, seems to represent the visual and physical aspects of the work of art, what the viewer explicitly “sees” when viewing a piece of art. The “answers” you are looking for in formal analysis come from the work of art itself, usually without referring to outside sources. It asks, what did the artist want to accomplish in visual terms with their art.

Specifically formal analysis looks into color, line, shape, mass, scale, and composition. What colors did the artist use, are they dark, light, saturated, unsaturated? How are the lines painted or drawn or sculpted, are they soft, infrequent lines that let the viewers eyes flow from section to section, or are they heavy handed lines that are meant to draw the viewers’ eyes into specific sections? Are the lines 2D or 3D, is it presented with a flatness or depth?

How does the artist manipulate the space of their work? Is it cluttered to show static motion or is it minimal to depict a quiet stillness to the work? What is the scale of the work? How are the images presented in comparison to one another, what is big, what is small, what is important or stressed?

For composition, how does the artist put all these elements together and how do they work in relation to each other? In formal analysis you will ask how line, shape, color, space, scale all contribute to overall composition and visual effect.