I have provided a file with the artwork you can choose from

PART I. DESCRIBE in detail the artwork(s), Act as if you are writing for an audience who hasn?t seen or experienced the artwork(s). Your reader (me) is only able to experience the work(s) through your words. It is your responsibility to look at the work(s) as objectively as possible and articulate these findings to me. Your reader depends on YOU to make the appropriate word choices, to consider what the artist may or may not be doing. Use descriptive words and significant details to create a mental picture for your reader. The more specific, objective, and clearer you are, the better. Avoid clich?s (?beauty is in the eye of the beholder?) and sweeping generalizations. Let the reader know what material or materials you think the work may have been made in (oil painting, pencil, charcoal, mosaic, metal, fabric, wood, stone, photography) and if it is a two-dimensional work or a sculptural one. Give yourself time to look at the work closely, so you can describe it as accurately as possible.

Remember that the whole purpose of this assignment is to help you to learn how to trust your own abilities to observe, using your own senses, and make conclusions as these are essential skills for any life work. The work you do on this paper is useless if it means parroting what someone (art critic or curator) else said. This means you must think for yourself.

You must focus on one, two or three art works. Be sure to include the name of the Image Number in the description, so I know which one you are writing about.

PART II. ANALYZE the aspects of the work(s) you choose to describe. Interpreting means that you attempt to understand what the work is communicating, using the elements from the work to back up your points. Basically, you are acting like detective who uses the clues to figure out what it means. The more you observe the work, the better you will be able to find out what it may be saying. Walk your reader through the process of why you thought certain aspects of the work meant certain things. Remember to be careful to not assume something that isn?t there. The evidence (aspects of the work) tells you what you think it is conveying. There is no perfect interpretation; however, you must be careful that the work described fits with your analysis. To help you in doing this, think about the choices the artist made and why he/she did it that way. Why did they choose to use particular shapes, colors, lines, or details? How does the light shape what you see? How does the composition as a whole effect the viewer? Did they create a duality of some kind? What may have been the point? To educate? To inspire? To make you feel a certain way? To get you to see better? To make you feel uncomfortable? To stimulate your imagination?

PART III. EVALUATE the work(s). Now, be subjective. Tell your reader how you felt or thought about the work(s). If you like or dislike some aspect of it, do not simply state this, give reasons for why the work of art affected you the way it did. In other words, think about how the artistic choices influenced your experience of the event. It is your job to convince the reader of your aesthetic judgment using evidence; mere statements of the experience being “bad” or “good” do not tell your reader why it is worth seeing or not. In addition, judge the work not just on how it makes you feel but also by realizing what you find to be visually appealing or not. If you are ambivalent about the work, you could write about that. Remember, you are being responsible to your reader by considering that she might not have your same perspective, so you must consider that as well. This is an important aspect of the essay, so don?t forget to write about it!

PART IV. CONCLUDE with a paragraph or two that addresses the arts in general (literature, theater, music, dance as well as the visual arts). Articulate whether you think artists are agents of cultural change, purveyors of ideas and emotional states, or communicators of values. Think about the various purposes that art can serve: as a source of entertainment, as a form of agitating, as a method for healing, as a prod for self-questioning, as a means to inspire, as a pathway towards delight, or as a vehicle towards higher ideals. In YOUR OWN WORDS, tell your reader how any artist?s choices and actions (the work itself being an active form of communication) influence the world around him or her. Discuss whether an artist should be aware of the consequences of his/her artwork. Why or why not? Then consider what responsibilities audiences of artworks have in viewing and responding to the work. You should also include an artist(s) and/or a thinker(s) we have discussed in the course as an example of what communicators do. Finally, you should then consider the ways in which you are responsible for what you say and do.

Important Note:

You should avoid reading or looking at anything about the work if you happen to recognize it. There is NO REASON to use research for this paper. It is supposed to be your personal response to the work(s) you witness. For example, it is not an explanation on Ancient Egyptian sarcophagi, the symbolism behind Hindu sculptures, or Japanese pottery techniques.