I don't understand artwork I saw - Essay Example

malist movement of the time, choosing to indulge in her own vibrant, pulsing style of art that reflected not only her talents but her personal experiences as well (Kimmelman). Murray’s art consists of bold paintings which are usually centered around depictions of domestic objects and interiors; but these everyday objects are transformed into diverse, fluid, multi-layered designs which often carry double meanings. The paintings borrow generously from the strong canvassing of Cubism and free floating forms of surrealism to turn the objects of the art into pliable formations (Moyer).

While overly humorous or even cartoonish, her paintings have a deeper edginess which stems from her negative experiences in the art world. "Theres a great deal of pain and a great deal of tragedy and a great deal of anger in her work, so she expresses that anger and that pain in forms that seem kind of comfortable .when you get close to them you realized that they can bite." Quoted by Robert Storr, the Dean of the Yale School of Art (Sydell). Her 2005 piece is titled “Do the Dance” based on the name of a song by Ray Chalresand Betty Carter.

The painting features a clear influence from the visuals of comic books and cartoon, with eye popping colors and shapes that seem to bulge and distort moving from one corner of the piece to the other. Murray counted Paul Cezanne, Pablo Picasso and Jackson Pollock as her main inspirations, but her own work is a blend of the styles of these different masters and she adds her own brand of insanity to the work. The painting features some familiar objects like an overturned and over flowing bottle, faces in various stages of abstractism as well as bodies, organs and vaguely human shapes.

But the overall picture is shape shifting and gives a dizzy impression to the viewer. The painting showcases the fine painterliness and strong palettes (Horsely) that Murray was known for; the edges between each object are finely defined and the shapes seem not