Art analysis paper

Revised: 12/15/16

Formal Analysis Essay & Museum Visit Art Appreciation Instructor: Lauren Cotner Francis

What is a formal analysis?

A formal analysis is the fundamental form of writing about art. In a strict formal analysis, no other information is required besides that which you can see; and while some knowledge of the subject matter helps, your focus should be on the visual elements of a work.

A formal analysis focuses on aspects like line, color, composition, and style, and describes the effect of these artistic decisions on the viewer. While any formal analysis must employ a good deal of description, it is important to remember that even a pure formal analysis must always be thesis-driven and each point should tie back to the overall interpretation of the work.

For a more elaborate discussion of formal analysis, see pages: 119-123 of Sylvan Barnet’s A Short Guide to Writing About Art (8th ed.).

What i s the ass ignment?

Write a 1200 word (shorter papers will be penalized, but longer papers are welcomed), double-spaced, 12-point font essay exploring the formal elements and principles of design of ONE work from one of the following collections of art:

• The Museum of Fine Arts, Houston

• The Menil Collection • Contemporary Arts Museum,

Houston • Lawndale Arts Center, Houston

Note: if you live outside of Houston or wish to visit another museum while traveling, please contact your instructor via e-mail FIRST to get permission to use that museum for your essay.

Helpful hint: Check museum hours online before venturing out. Often museums are closed on Mondays and/or Tuesdays. The MFAH is free on Thursdays and the Menil is always free. Some will offer reduced admission costs when you show your student ID.

Once you select ONE work (painting, drawing, sculpture, photograph) from the museum you visit, you will describe it using formal analysis.

Hint: selecting a painting or colorful drawing will generally provide more to write about than something monochromatic or very simple. Choose something that inspires you, intrigues you or delights you! The best essays are going to be about an artwork that you appreciate, not simply the first one you see when you come into the museum.

Revised: 12/15/16

Expectat ions for the Assignment :

• While at the museum:

o You must take a photo of yourself on the grounds or in the museum (if permitted, preferably next to the work of art that you are discussing) and paste that photo into the cover page of your essay. Some museums will not allow photography inside, so please ask a guard prior to taking a photograph.

o You must also take a photo of or scan in a ticket stub, receipt or brochure with a date imprinted on it for the cover page. This date (on the ticket/receipt) must fall within the time frame of the course. For museums that have free admission, you may ask the front desk to give you a note indicating that you attended and when.

• You must also include a reproduction of the image you choose with your paper (a scanned postcard, a digital photo or a reproduction found online are all options). Ensure you can provide a reproduction of your chosen image BEFORE you start writing. While at the museum, you may want to select three or four images as “back- ups” in the event that you cannot get a reproduction of the image or are not allowed to photograph in the museum. Not all images in all local museums will be available on the Internet, but many will be easily located by “google imaging” the artist and title of the work.

• If you do not include both a photo of yourself at the museum AND a reproduction of your image, you will have points deducted (10 points for each). These images must be included in a cover page in the final document---not e-mailed separately.

• Spend no fewer than 30 minutes viewing your work.

• Your essay should be a formal, concise, grammatically correct piece of writing. I will grade your essays on writing style, sophistication of your thoughts, utilization of art historical vocabulary, and overall flow.

• You must write a specific thesis statement about your chosen artwork. Include that thesis in your introductory paragraph. If your essay lacks a thesis or structure and organization, your grade will suffer. An example thesis might be: “In Raphael’s Marriage of the Virgin, the artist uses one point perspective, balanced composition, and vibrant primary colors to convey a sense of stability and order, thus representing the Christian narrative in the idealized, harmonious aesthetics of the Renaissance.” Why is this a strong thesis? It lists the artist and title of the work, provides specific formal elements and principles of design which will be the focus of the paper AND explains what those formal elements achieve in the artwork.

• Anytime you reference the title of your image, please i ta l i c ize that title. Be certain to introduce the artwork’s artist, title and date in the first paragraph.

Revised: 12/15/16

Research and Formatt ing

• This essay does not require the use of secondary resources. However, if you do reference another scholar, citations must be used and a bibliography must be included. This includes the wall text from the museum. Please implement MLA or APA style for any references. Wikipedia is not a valid resource in my courses. However, the point of this exercise is not to regurgitate someone else’s thoughts but to voice your own. Remember: plagiarism is borrowing anyone else’s thoughts, words, or ideas without giving them due credit. When in doubt, cite your research! If you need help learning how/when to footnote/cite, please consult the MLA Handbook. If you wish to use another formatting style, please e-mail the instructor first.

• If you choose to use ANY information from the wall label next to the artwork, you must cite it. You can Google “how to cite a wall label” to find out more information about citing this type of source.

• When you are ready to submit your final essay, please rename the file: fa_lastname_firstinitial.doc (or .docx)

• I will only grade documents submitted on time and in standard Word format. All images must be included in your final document and not uploaded or e-mailed seperately. Any assignments not properly loaded into the dropbox by the date indicated will not be graded. Consult your syllabus for the due date.

• Please list your word count at the end of your essay (you can see a total word count at the bottom of your Word document as you write).

Suggestions for Writing Your Formal Analysis:

1. Read the image as you would read text. Begin on one side and work across, relating what you see, or find the most important part of the image and read from that point. Do not skip around. You can even do this aloud to a friend or family member as a warm-up practice. Don’t show them the artwork and then verbally tell them about everything you see in the painting. Then show them the artwork and see what you left out!

2. Describe some important details and/or discuss the materials or methods used to make the artwork.

3. Summarize the overall appearance of the piece.

4. Try to avoid too much interpretation about the artist’s biography or cultural context. Focus on description.

5. Discuss SOME of the visual elements: Color, Value, Line, Shape, Form, Texture, Space. Note that you will not have a successful essay if you attempt to write about every element. Focus your thesis on the most important elements and those which make the artwork interesting or unique. Think about how those elements affect you as a viewer and how the elements might help the artist achieve his or her goal.