Formal analysis is one of the main ways of discussing and critiquing a piece of art. Formal analysis consists of examining how the artists uses color, patterns, shape, tone, and the lines in their artwork. In addition, subsections of these main concepts such as contrast, size, scale, primary/ secondary colors, position, composition, material and depth are also used in analyzing artwork. Using these components to compose a formal analysis answers many questions such as why the artist positioned his model a certain way It is the first step into really understanding why the artist decided to create this piece, who was the intended audience, etc. with formal analysis we also take into account the era that the artwork was created as well as the origin and what influences might be included in the piece.
Category: 9:30 AM Class
Blog 4 – Formal Analysis
Formal analysis is a way of examining and evaluating the aspects of a work of art. Through this, the observer tries to understand the underlying meaning that the artist may have intended for the work of art to have. When formally analyzing a work of art, you must pay attention to components such as color, size and scale, lines, and symbolism. When looking at color, you must pay attention to the types of color schemes and the range used. You must identify whether they are light or dark colors, whether they are primary or secondary colors, and whether the colors contrast with one other depending on their position in the work. When looking at size and scale, you must observe where any subjects or objects in the work are positioned. You also need to note the size of the objects. For example, noting whether the main subject is the largest thing in the work, or if there are things larger than the subject. Lines are a way of identifying the techniques an artist used in a painting. Some parts of a painting may have been painted using stronger strokes or different types of strokes than other parts of a painting. This can perhaps tell how the artist felt about the specific object he was painting. Finally, moving away from the physical aspects, symbolism is a strong component of formal analysis because it allows the observer to understand what the artist intended on saying, without actually saying it. By inserting specific colors, shapes, or objects, the artist can convey a certain emotion, reaction, or thought without having to write or say anything.
Formal Analysis
A Formal analysis is a method that we use to describe a person’s art. For example we observed the artwork from our point of view and not from the artist. A formal analysis uses color, patterns, shape, tone and the lines in the artists artwork. The color in a formal analysis is like the artworks shading. Chiaroscuro (light and dark), bright colors to show the tone of the setting in the scenery. We the person looking at a piece of artwork should try to analyze what the message that the artist tries to display. We all have our opinions because we can see the artwork differently from person to person. We use our judgement to understand what the artwork is trying give out to us. For example, the video that we watched in class explain how to do a formal analysis on one of Goya artwork. The person describing the artwork shows each step of how he/she sees the work and giving their opinions and judgement.
Pedagogy and Power
To Friere, the banking model is described as a knowledge holder sharing knowledge to a knowledge receiver without any feedback from the receiver. This is known as the standard classroom model in which a teacher shares his or her knowledge with students as they feed off that given information. This allows the teachers (knowledge holders) to be empowered because they hold the knowledge that is being given or distributed to the knowledge receivers.
I have had experience with this banking model. When I was younger I used to take karate lessons and when displayed the right techniques my teacher would go forward with the lessons and teach me new moves. By making sure I knew each of these moves before teaching me new ones the teacher allowed me to memorize all of these techniques. Which ultimately lead to me receiving a black belt. The positive aspects of this model of teaching through this experience were that I learned and memorized different moves. However, the negative aspects of this model were that I had to please my teacher through the depiction of the techniques I have learned giving him the power to choose whether or not I could move forward and lean new routines.
Formal Concept Analysis (FCA)
Formal analysis is a convenient catalog of the methodology used to analyze and define art solely based on a work’s inherent qualities. ‘Inherent qualities’ meaning: the creator’s intentions aside, what can be determined about some work of art (primarily visual pieces) from that work. Among the catalog of methodology are–in no particular order–the use (and absence) of color; the solidity of the lines and framework; the conveyance of three-dimensional space or lack thereof; the scale of the visuals.
Formal Analysis
Formal Analysis is a way to specifically describe a piece of art work. It is a representation of how a piece of art is viewed. The viewer evaluates the piece of art through a series of questions such as how the piece came to be, who or what it portrays, when the piece was created, and etc. There are multiple characteristics used when the viewer uses formal analysis to describe and explain a piece of art. Characteristics such as contrast, size/scale, line, color, position, composition, material, illusionism, mimesis, modelling, chiaro/scuro, and depth. The main reason formal analysis is used when evaluating and describing a piece of art is to show the central focus, what is most important about a piece of work, and for the artist to express the painting, drawing or etc. by showing the viewer instead of telling the viewer what goes on in the piece of work. When we say formal analysis it basically means evaluating what the artist left us to view and how this work came to be, historically and physically throughout time. With formal analysis we can conclude what the artist has done based on their piece of work and how that brush stroke or whatever it may be represents what we see and not what we know.
What is Formal Analysis?
Formal Analysis is describing visually and emphasizing the formal elements of an art piece and it’s important to note that every little detail has a reason as to why it’s there. Formal analysis affects what the art piece represents. The ‘how’ and the ‘why’ when it comes to art include interpretations on visual evidence which come from formal analysis. Formal analysis is a RE/presentation when it comes to analyzing the formal elements of the art piece.
The properties of formal analysis include:
- Line composition- lines can be horizontal, vertical, straight, curved, thick or thin. This leads our eyes around the composition and show character and direction.
- Texture- (ex. let’s say an art piece has a picture of a man wearing a shirt and you are able to tell the material of the shirt he is wearing)
- Color- neutral or bright colors which can show dullness
- Size/scale
- Modelling- chiaro/scuro (illisionism)
- Material- the tools used
- Contrast
- Position -> composition
- Mimesis, which means realistic
All of these elements bring out the meaning and evaluation of the art work. These components are the artist’s choices, everything is intentional & no detail is insignificant or not worth mentioning ! The bottom line is that the question that formal analysis answers is “What do you see in this piece of art?“
What is formal analysis?
Formal analysis is the way how viewers interpret the art, and not how the artist wants us to see it through their point of view. During the 17th century, a French academician named Roger de Piles wrote a book called The Principles of Painting and was basically a how art is broken down into different compositions such as drawing, color, and expression.
A famous art critic named Roger Fry also broke down the compositions in a more detailed way. He broke down colors with lines, dark and light, shadows, and volumes, which gives art more depth. Fry believed the greater the work, the less it can be explained by writing.
Blog Post 4: Formal analysis
Formal analysis is basically to look at a work of art and trying to understand what the artist wishes to convey visually. And even after analyzing it, it will most likely not what the artist wants to convey because the viewer would interpret it based on who they are. As a person living in a certain place and time with their own experiences. Formal analysis looks at certain basic traits in an artwork. They are color, line, space, mass and scale.
To analyze color, you first look at the particular colors of the piece. You also look at the characteristics of each color used, like the saturation or the shade. Maybe the specific colors are referring to a event, action, or concept. Some examples are if a piece is predominantly white, it can stand for purity, or it could also mean the blinding light of a rising sun. When looking at lines, we are looking for how a the lines are formed. Are they emphasizing light and dark, is the line contour strong and continuous, fuzzy and soft. Are they broken up into many pieces to give you a lack of shape? How complex or simple is the silhouette?
Space indicates whether an image conveys a sense of three dimensional space. Is the artwork create a sense of depth it’s landscape or setting, like you can walk inside of it? Or is it lacking in depth, like a brick wall? Mass is the space created by the artwork. Meaning the artwork conveys a sense of weight or volume. For example, the work may be showing an extreme close up of an eye, making it seem like an giant is looking right through. Scale is also important. You consider the presentation of size portrayed in the work or in relation to the viewer. Does the size mean anything. Some examples are large statues representation their importance, or a large paintings to make it feel like you are in the work. The term composition is how an artist puts all of these elements together in their piece.
You may never understand what the artist wants to convey fully, and you may have the completely wrong idea even after formal analysis. But it help you understand that an art piece is deeper than it really looks and it is beyond just a thing someone made. And one of arts main purpose is for you to interpret and ponder what the art is really trying to get at.
What is Formal Analysis?
Formal Analysis is a method of evaluating a piece of work. The work can be literally anything. The formal analysis of an art piece for example can be a way to evaluate the piece’s central theme or focus. Through formal analysis of an art piece, we can describe multiple characteristics of the art work such as the colors used, the type of canvas used, contrast, the historical context of the art work, and also the scale and size of the art piece. Another important feature of formal analysis is that we are supposed to ask ourselves important questions. For example, “what was the artist going through at time of painting this piece?” Another question might be: “Is this painting for another person at the time or was it painted by the artist to convey a certain message or theme?” You can also dive deep into the historical context of the painting and learn about the politics, culture, religion, or the economics during the time of the artist’s life. The Formal Properties of art work as discusses in class and the text include the lines used in work. The motive behind the size and scale of the work. The type of material of the canvas as mentioned before is another formal property. Other formal properties can be the illusions used (Mimesis). And lastly, the historical overview of the piece of work as mentioned before. For example, the formal properties of the featured art work, “The Starry Night,” by Vincent van Gogh would involve: Colors are mostly blue, black, and yellow, it is an oil on canvas, the time of drawing is 1889 which inspired him to pursue a post-Impressionism-type painting.
