maggie+WHII+13-14



The Chess Game, Sofonisba Anguissola, 1555

Elements with Examples


 * 1) 1.Emotion: The girl in the middle looks very animated, like she’s happy about something (childish glee). The oldest girl (on the far left) is smiling to herself like she’s satisfied about something. Could it be her excellent chess move?
 * 2) 2.Contrast: In the girl on the right, we see pretty extreme contrast between the dark colors of her overgown and the bold golden color of her sleeves. We see an interesting contrast between the light blue shawl/vest of the girl on the far left and the tree trunk behind her.
 * 3) 3.Perspective: The chessboard is painted in perfect perspective. The chess pieces further away from the viewer are a lot smaller than the pieces closer to the viewer. The lines are drawn slanted. If you extended them to the horizon, they would all meet in the same vanishing point.
 * 4) 4.Detail: The detailing in these girls’ attire is singularly fabulous. I can see the weave in the girl on the far left’s vest, you can actually see the creases in the fabric, and you can see the shine of the delicate prints on their expensive dresses. On the girl on the right’s pearl necklace, I can actually see individual pearls.
 * 5) 5.Texture: The texturing is exquisite. You can see the fine embroidery common to ladies’ gowns of the time, you can see the roughness of the tree bark, and the lace collars actually look itchy.

Reasons for liking it:

I’ve always liked Anguissola’s works. She overcame incredible challenges to follow her dreams. Most women in that day didn’t learn how to paint, and if they did they stopped by marriage. Sofonisba did no such thing. Her work is simply exquisite. The people look absolutely real, not overwrought like in other paintings of the time. Sofonisba portrayed her sisters honestly, without erasing any flaws or idealizing any emotions. It’s also very beautiful, what with all the rich colors, texturing, emotions, and the mountain vista in the background.



Judith Beheading Holofernes, Artemisia Gentileschi

Elements


 * 1) 1.contrast: there’s seriously dramatic contrast between the people in the picture and the pitch black background,
 * 2) 2.emotion: you can see from the expressions of the two woman, Judith and her maidservant, that they both mean business. They won’t listen to Holofernes trying to persuade Judith to spare his life. One can easily see that Judith’s strong enough to have zero trouble cutting off Holofernes’ head. As for the man in question? He just looks like he doesn’t want to die.
 * 3) 3.Detail: there’s some pretty incredible attention to detail here: The light and shadows on their bodies are perfect down to the last millimeter. Artemisia also pulled no punches with the blood squirting everywhere. It’s not just dripping into the mattress and down the blade of the sword. Judith’s cutting through carotid arteries here, so it’s getting all over the place.
 * 4) 4.Texturing: Holofernes’ sheets. They actually look rumpled, and they look very soft to the touch, not hard canvas.
 * 5) 5.Light and shadow: there’s only a light coming from a little to the side and the front of Holofernes. Other than that, there’s no light in the room. This makes the painting very dramatic. Where the light doesn’t hit, there’s almost complete darkness. The lighting affects the viewer, making it clear the assassination took place at night.

Reasons for Liking It

Where most Renaissance artwork portrays women as very submissive, timid, and sensitive, Artemisia Gentileschi’s ladies are courageous, strong, and a little sexy. I think that’s more of a realistic estimation of women. I also like the sheer drama in this painting. If this were a movie (and it’s realistic enough to be one) I’d be on the edge of my seat waiting to see what happens next.