Love for Family by Nell Campos
• What can you say about this piece
of art?
• What style of painting is used?
• How did the artist use the
elements of art and the principles
of design in this painting?
• What do you think is the message
behind the painting?
• Do you think the artist is
successful in trying to convey his
message through this artwork?
Critiquing an
Artwork
Art critique
A detailed analysis and evaluation of a work of
art.
Different people may have different
interpretations of a single artwork, and they
may have varying reactions to it but to achieve a
more detailed, thoughtful critique, a few basic
guidelines could be used.
Art critique
These guidelines are the components
of (or the stages in writing) an art
critique. These components are
description, analysis, interpretation and
judgment.
Components of an Art
Critique
Description: the visual facts
An art critique can be written by first providing
some basic information about the artwork like the
title of the work, artist’s name, when the piece was
created, where it was made, the types of media
used to create the work (e.g., oil paint on canvas),
and the exact size of the work.
Components of an Art
Critique
When describing the artwork, use neutral terms and be
objective. Your description should include things like form
and scale of the artwork. For example, you might say,
“This is a huge landscape painting of a volcano, showing
thick clouds around it, with an orange sky in the
background. Down in the foreground are green rice
terraces and 3 men walking on the paddies…”
Components of an Art
Critique
Avoid using adjectives like “beautiful” or “ugly”.
At this point, you are not judging, you are simply
talking about what you see.
This is also the part where you describe the
artwork in terms of the elements of art used.
Components of an Art
Critique
Analysis: the use of design principles
Discuss how the artwork uses the principles of
design. In this step consider the most significant art
principles that are used in the artwork. Describe how
the artist used them to organize the elements:
Balance, Contrast, Movement, Proportion, etc.
Components of an Art
Critique
The following questions may guide you:
Balance:
How do the colors, lines, shapes, and textures work
together?
Are they balanced and harmonious or is the artwork
imbalanced in some way?
Components of an Art
Critique
Contrast:
Does the work use contrasting colors and textures?
Movement:
Do you notice a particular movement in terms of patterns and
variations of lines, shapes, and colors in the artwork?
Proportion:
Do the sizes of the elements appear the way you would
expect?
Components of an Art
Critique
Using the rule of thirds, what do you think is the subject
of the piece? What is its focal point?
Try to identify which parts of the work are emphasized.
In addition, look for the themes in the work and discuss
how the artist used the elements of art (line, color,
shape, etc.) to express these themes.
Components of an Art
Critique
Themes might include things like symbolism
and religious or mythological imagery, or the
use of a particular color scheme to give the
work a particular mood or meaning
Components of an Art
Critique
Interpretation: the meaning of the artwork
An interpretation seeks to explain the meaning of the
work based on what you have learned so far about the
piece. What do you think is the message behind this
artwork? What do you think the artist is trying to
convey?
Components of an Art
Critique
Backup your interpretation with examples from your
description and analysis. For example,
“I think this painting is a visual metaphor of the
sufferings of the Filipinos during the Spanish colonial
period. This is indicated by the dark color scheme used in
the painting, figuratively depicting the dark era of our
history...”
Components of an Art
Critique
Judgment: personal evaluation
This is your personal evaluation based on your understanding
of the artwork.
• Decide whether you think the work is successful or not.
• Explain how you are judging the work.
• Summarize why you think it is successful or unsuccessful.
Components of an Art
Critique
Judgment: personal evaluation
For example, “I believe this work is successful because the use
of light, shape, and texture all work together harmoniously to
portray the mood of the subject.”
Components of an Art
Critique
Here are a few questions to consider:
• Do you think the work says what the artist wanted it to
say?
• Did the artist use their tools and techniques well?
• Why do you think this work has intrinsic value or
worth?
• Do you find that the work communicates an idea,
feeling or principle that would have value for others?
The Weeping Woman
by Pablo Picasso
France, 1937
Description: The Weeping Woman is
a painting finished by Pablo Picasso
in France, 1937. This type of artwork
can be considered to be
expressionism. There isn’t an actual
background scene in the painting.
The background is completed with
different lines and colors. The
woman is the focus point of this
painting. She is wearing an accessory
on top of her head which
demonstrates her elegance.
Description: My first impression of
the artwork is that the face of the
woman is not proportionate and is
only painted with lines, no curves.
The main colors that are used in this
painting are green, yellow, blue,
purple, red and black. The painting is
set mainly of lined and little curves.
The mood and visual effect that this
painting portrays can be considered
to be suffering, and sadness.
Analyze: The colors that the author
uses can be considered to be quite
different as each color conveys a
separate impression. The light purple
that begins at the bottom top of the
woman’s eyes can convey sadness.
The other half of the face is mainly
covered in green and yellow; these
can be said to interpret other solid
emotions that the painter must have
towards this woman as she was a
vital character in Picasso’s life.
Analyze: The painting is created with
mainly lines which can mean that the
woman had strong physical features
or that her different emotions were
felt passionately as lines are usually
seen as strong technical elements.
The only curves that are being used
are for her hair and eyes. The eyes
look quite down or depressive. This
is because the woman is crying,
which goes back to the main mood
which is suffering.
Interpretation: I believe that Picasso
wanted the audience to feel pain and
provide a statement that explains
how all women feel and the agony
that they are consistently in. The
audience can see that the woman
has peeled away her flesh by
corrosive tears to reveal her white
bones. The handkerchief she tries to
stuff in her mouth seems as a shard
of glass. This vivid image can convey
pain and hurting.
Interpretation: Picasso has expressed
the behavior of this woman several
times and often describes the constant
tears that fall off her eyes. So, the
feeling conveyed by the artwork is
definitely suffering. Picasso wanted us
to feel her and understand the pain
that she was going through. It was not
easy to be a woman during that time
since females where often frowned
upon. Picasso demonstrates the
appreciation that he has for her
through this painting as he wants the
audience to understand her.
Judge: Finally, the artist’s value may
be to evoke pain, as mentioned
previously. This is due to the colors
that Picasso used and the shapes
that he draws; not only these
technical elements but also the
images that the painter uses within
the actual face of the woman. The
painting relates to the entire female
community. This community can
understand the painting and know
what Picasso was trying to portray.
Judge: Every woman is able
understand and comprehend the
message behind this painting as we
all feel the same way at one point in
our lives. I believe that this is a
strong value in the painting. The
weak value lies in the different colors
that the painter chooses. I found it
confusing to interpret other areas of
the face as the colors that were used
didn’t seem to match other locations
of the face.
