Gender of Art and Katherine Strause - Essay Example

Adopted from http www.katherinestrause.com/ Introduction The artwork analyzed in this essay is a painting by KatherineStrause that was exhibited at the Delta Exhibition showcased at the Arkansas Arts Center in Little Rock. This paper is a critical analysis of an artwork; critical artwork requires deciphering the piece into different components (Carroll 7). It has a horizontal organization depicting a wedding couple, man and woman standing while cutting a cake flanked on both sides by people who seem to be witnesses to the marriage ceremony. It is oil on canvas painting done in almost entirely six bland colors: pale green, the dominant color which also serves as the background colour, blue, white, red, black and brown. The two males are putting on suits, with the groom donning a black coat, white shirt and a yellow tie, and on the right side of the coat’s lapel, there is a yellow flower. The other male is donning a blue jacket, with a white shirt and a maroon tie and a light maroon pocket-handkerchief on the top left pocket of the jacket. On the lower left side of the painting is a woman who seems to be having mixed feelings as she seems to be grinning while at the same time her grin has a mild sadness to it with the eyes closed. The man seated on the left shows content in his facial expression while the younger girl on the lower right side of the painting seems to be cynical of the whole ceremony being portrayed in the painting as shown by her gaze fixed away from the main theme. The faintly painted entrance or exit on the background acts as a reference point indicating the physical location or context of the scenario, which in this case an indoor private ceremony given the few number of people portrayed by the painting. This analysis of the geographical context of the painting is further augmented by the flowers Strause has included on the lower left side next to the seated woman. The top left and top right flanks of the painting are a pair of scissors and a rope tied in a knot respectively that Strause has ably brought out using intense dark lines intended to bring focus to the items, which makes part of the artist’s title of the painting. The artwork contains an array of media used in the piece and they include oil paint, canvas and pastel to portray clearly the artist’s expression of adeptness in the range of media used. Strause uses well-defined and bold lines, which appear carefully planned to paint the figures of people in the artwork, indicating her precision and accuracy in painting. The background has shades of light green, blue and white which seem to have been done in a manner to portray them as if they were left unfinished. Items on the surface in front of the female figure on the lower left of the painting have also been painted as if left unfinished. The artist has used a variety of techniques in applying oil paint in the artwork, as some subjects in the painting appear carefully planned leaving no spaces while in other instances, the artists application of the oil paint on canvas appears to be more inconsistent and seems to have been done in alacrity. This shows enthusiasm of the artist in her work while on the other hand application of the paint with careful planning creates a feeling of easiness and patience. As I sit and view this artwork, my eyes are occasionally veer from the pair of scissors and the rope tied in a knot on the left top and right top of the painting respectively to the focal point around the wedding couple cutting what appears to be a wedding cake. This movement happens mainly because of the bold lines the artist has applied in painting the two objects at the top and the color intensity of the bride and grooms costumes. The pair of scissors and the knot are standing out since the artists has painted them in a manner that makes them appear isolated from the other subjects in the piece while the focal point, that is the wedding couple have been painted using very intense colors as seen with the groom who is donning a black suit. The focus is also emphasized on the couple with the contrast that the artist has created with their costumes where the bride is painted in white with prints of blue. The artist has achieved symmetry through careful application of color and use of lines, the horizontal organization of the painting and balance of subjects or figures in his painting. If the lines used on the pair of scissors and the knot had been faint or of lesser intensity, more focus would have been on the lower part of the painting particularly the man and woman in the middle, which would have made the painting’s composition less, balanced. The title the artist has used for the painting, Cut and Tie, is very curious concerning the painting. The intensity of the male figures blue coat and his content posture makes him very visible in the painting, as does the male figure who in this case is the groom. The white color of the standing female figure’s gown, though traditionally regarded as the wedding gown color, portrays a sense of purity and innocence, as does the facial expression that the artists has conveyed. On closer view and examination of the piece, you notice a bottle that seems to be holding what looks like flowers, which the artist appears to have done in a haste given the unfinished appearance, the lines seem sketchy and obscure. Additionally, the cake has got red dotting it, a color that is usually associated with love or danger, even though it is not as pronounced as the other colors. The painting is however best analyzed through the facial expression of the people in the piece of art. The younger woman on the lower right corner of the painting is looking away from the focal point where all others seem to have fixed their gazes on while the woman on the lower left has a grin with a pinch of sadness depicted on her face. These two aspects alone, the use of colors and the facial expressions of the people in the painting, can be used as center of analysis in interpreting the artist’s intention, which I believe Strause is trying to convey her concept of gender and stand on relationships particularly marriages. The woman on the lower right in the painting appears have questions about the idea of marriage and can be viewed as someone who is cynical and skeptical of all that is going around in the artwork. The artist accomplishes to depict this through the posture of the girl that is not directed at the focal point and the facial expressions. The woman on the lower left has mixed feelings about the whole arrangement as seen in her facial expression who if assumed to be the bride’s mother. She appears to be happy for her daughter while at the same time sad, possibly because she understands the problems that come with marriage, and because the daughter is severing ties with her to tie new ones with the husband. The pair of scissors and the rope tied in a knot at both top flanks indicate the relations both bride and groom have to ‘cut’ and the new one that they are ‘tying’ in the painting. I believe Strause is trying to show us, through the painting, that the ties or relationships define one’s lifetime with people we cut or sever and the new ones that we tie or bind. In her own admission during the launch of the exhibition where the artwork was featured, Strause explained that the painting was influenced by her collapsed marriage. Work Cited Carroll, Noel. Philosophy of art a contemporary introduction. London, Routledge. 2002. Print. Read More