Design Basics Used to Create Balance

/in /by

Design Basics Used to Create Balance

The Chinese have a theory that you pass through boredom into fascination and I think it’s true. I would never choose a subject for what it means to me or what I think about it. You’ve just got to choose a subject, and what you feel about it, what it means, begins to unfold if you just plain choose a subject and do it enough.
––Diane Arbus

Diane Arbus was a highly original photographer who has greatly influenced the course of contemporary photography. In her Photography: A Cultural History (2002), Mary Warner Marien writes:

Arbus turned normalcy on its head, making the ordinary bizarre and naturalizing the unusual. In her photographs of people, many of them made while she roamed the streets of New York, clothes and cosmetics are futile efforts to camouflage psychic emptiness or damage. When Arbus photographed children, she revealed them as little versions of bad-tempered, mean-spirited adults. […] On the other hand, her photographs of people at the margins of society, such as female impersonators, show them to be more virtuous for having unmasked their subjective inclinations. For Arbus, marginal people were symbols for her own psychological fragility and trauma (p. 352).

The thematic power of Arbus’s work is based on the masterful composition of her subject matter, balancing key elements within a square frame format, which is uniquely identified with her mature style.

To prepare for this Discussion:

  • Review Chapters 2 and 3 in your course text, The Photographer’s Eye.
  • Review Diane Arbus’s photograph, Child with Toy Hand Grenade, 1962.
  • Review the websites from this week’s Learning Resources for more inspiration and examples of photographs.
  • Consider the following questions regarding the Arbus photograph:
    • How does the use of a square frame impact the balance of the photograph?
    • What elements contribute to the balance of the photograph presented here? Would you say this is a balanced photograph? Explain your response.
    • Does this composition draw your eyes more to the center of the frame or more to the edges? Give evidence for your response.
    • How does the photograph demonstrate contrast, tension, rhythm, and/or depth?
    • How does the subject of the photograph relate to the background?
    • How is perspective created in the photograph?
    • Is the photograph more weighted toward information or emotion? Explain your response.
  • While considering the questions above, compare the assigned photograph with Arbus’s 1967 photograph, Identical Twins, Roselle, N.J., 1967. Explain how these photographs differ and how they are similar.

With these thoughts in mind:

Post by Day 3 a response that addresses three of the questions. Analyze how Arbus uses placement to create or disrupt a sense of balance in her composition. (Approximately 250 words).

In your post, be sure to:

  • Refer to one specific example from your course reading.

Be sure to support your ideas by connecting them to the week’s Learning Resources, or something you have read, heard, seen, or experienced.

Read a selection of your colleagues’ postings.

Respond by Day 5 to at least two of your colleagues’ postings that contain a perspective other than yours.

  • Explain how your colleagues’ perspectives can either:
    • Align with or complement your perspective.

      or

    • Contrast with or be in opposition to your perspective.

     

    Resources:

    Required Resources

    Readings
  • Freeman, M. (2013). The photographer’s eye: Graphic guide: Instantly understand composition & design for better digital photos.Burlington, MA: Focal Press.
    • Chapter 2, “Placing” (pp. 30–47)
    • Chapter 3, “Dividing” (pp. 48–61)

      In these chapters, you will learn about different aspects of color photography, including the uses of rich color, pastel hues, muted color, contrast, and accent, and the relationship between color and theme.

  • Expert Photography. (2015). Balance in composition: Everything you need to know. Retrieved from http://expertphotography.com/basic-composition-techniques-balance/
  • Garrison, T. (n.d.). Visual balance—means taking another look. Retrieved from http://www.picturecorrect.com/tips/visual-balance-in-photography/

    On this website, Garrison explains the difference between formal balance and informal balance.

  • Gumport, E. (2011). The long exposure of Francesca Woodman. The New York Review of Books. Retrieved from http://www.nybooks.com/blogs/nyrblog/2011/jan/24/long-exposure-francesca-woodman/

    This resource focuses on the eerie quality to the black and white art of a young photographer on the 30th anniversary of her death.

  • Oppenheimer, D. (n.d.). Diane Arbus. Retrieved from http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/arbus.html

    This website provides a biography of well-known New York photographer Diane Arbus.

The following websites comprise galleries that allow you to experience the fundamental elements of photographic art.

  • Arbus, D. (1962). Child with toy hand grenade, 1962. Retrieved from http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/2001.474
  • Arbus, D. (1967). Identical twins, Roselle, New Jersey, 1967. The photography of Diane Arbus. Retrieved from http://photography-now.net/diane_arbus/index.html
  • Benjamin Krain, photojournalist. (2005). Retrieved from http://www.benjaminkrain.com/
  • Sherman, C. (1997). Cindy Sherman: The complete untitled film stills. Retrieved from http://www.moma.org/interactives/exhibitions/1997/sherman/

***I will provide the online login info for the textbook for the person I select to do the assignment.****

What are some of the various themes and enigmas found in Bosch’s Garden of Earthly Delights? Name at least 3 examples of symbolism used by Bosch. What do you think of Bosch’s work?

/in /by

Choose three of the following questions and write a 150-350 word response to each question (points deducted for not meeting word count requirements).  Include the question at the top of your response. Put all responses into one document – in other words don’t submit the assignment multiple times, once for each response.  Remember – you MUST put information in your own words (this includes information from your text book and online sources) or it is considered plagiarism and you will receive a score of 1 on the assignment.

 

SELECT THREE below

1. What affect did Protestantism have on the Art AND Music of northern Europe? Give at least one specific example for BOTH art and music.

2. Look on the internet and find some words and phrases that Shakespeare added to the English language.  What are some of these words and phrases? Why would these “made-up” words and phrases from over 500 years ago be in our everyday language today?

3. Name at least 3 examples of the heightened realism presented in van Eyck’s Arnolfini portrait?  Name at least 3 examples of symbolism in the picture.

4. What are some of the various themes and enigmas found in Bosch’s Garden of Earthly Delights? Name at least 3 examples of symbolism used by Bosch. What do you think of Bosch’s work?

5. Name at least 3 unique features of Durer’s style?  What did he learn from Italian art?

6. What effect did the printing press have on Renaissance culture?

How does each painting reflect the religious context in which it was created? What is the religious context or influence apparent in each painting? 

/in /by

Religion in Sixteenth- and Seventeenth-Century European Art  Whether artists were working under the patronage of a Catholic Pope, endorsing a Counter-Reformation agenda, or producing art influenced by the Protestant Reformation, religion had an undeniable impact on the creation of art in the High Renaissance and Baroque periods in Europe.  Carefully examine the following works, and read about each one in your textbook, course and video lectures, and through reliable internet resources:

•Michelangelo, Sistine Chapel Ceiling, 1508-12

•Grünewald, Isenheim Altarpiece, 1510-15

•Durer, Four Apostles, 1526

•Caravaggio, The Calling of St. Matthew, 1599-1600

•Rubens, The Raising of the Cross, 1610-11

In an essay of 5-7 well-developed paragraphs, address each of the following questions, making specific references to the five paintings listed above:

1.How does each painting reflect the religious context in which it was created? What is the religious context or influence apparent in each painting?

2.What additional historical events may have influenced the creation of each painting?

3.What, if any, was the influence of the patron of each painting?

4.Explain how the style and specific visual characteristics of each painting contributed to or reflected its overall religious context or meaning, especially for contemporary audiences.

Include specific details about the visual characteristics and content of each painting in your response.

Provide proper citations for any information from outside sources included in your essay.

Describe the painting School of Athens.  How does School of Athens reflect Renaissance thinking and philosophy?  ALSO identify the some of the main figures in The School of Athens.  Discuss the painter’s treatment of them (for example, why is Diogenes on the floor to Aristotle’s left?)

/in /by

Choose four of the following questions and write a 150-350 word response to each question (points deducted for not meeting word count requirements).  Include the question at the top of your response. Put all responses into one document – in other words don’t submit the assignment multiple times, once for each response.  Remember – you MUST put information in your own words (this includes information from your text book and online sources) or it is considered plagiarism and you will receive a score of 1 on the assignment

 

SELECT FOUR below

1. When did the Black Death occur? What effects did the Black Death have in society AND the arts?  Give at least one specific example of art related to the Black Death.

2. Name at least three characteristics of Renaissance art.  Give at least one specific example for EACH characteristic you list.

3. Who defined the rules for perspective art?  Why is this technique important?  Provide at least one specific example of perspective art from this time period.

4. Describe the painting School of Athens.  How does School of Athens reflect Renaissance thinking and philosophy?  ALSO identify the some of the main figures in The School of Athens.  Discuss the painter’s treatment of them (for example, why is Diogenes on the floor to Aristotle’s left?)

5. Does Machiavelli’s image of The Prince reflect or contradict the Renaissance concept of individualism? Humanism?

6. Discuss the changing role of artists and their patrons between the Middle Ages and the High Renaissance.’

7. Analyze the system of patronage in Florence by focusing on the Medici family and their artistic contributions to the city. Name at least two artists who worked for the Medici family.

8. Who is your favorite Renaissance painter? Renaissance art work? Why?