While at Baylor University for a wedding, I attended the museum. One painting in the museum struck my attention. I assume it was a painting done by a student at the University because there was no name or title next to it. The lack of identification only added to the mystery and tone of the painting itself.
This painting has two focal points. First of all there is the naked woman on the left hand side with black lines encircling her, and then there is a big black door or window on the right hand side. There is a perfect balance between the two focal points, most likely to emphasize the woman being alone on the left hand side. To separate these images, there is a gray line down the middle. Some may argue that this could be a focal point; however I view it more as a separator between the two objects. With the two focal points, the painter uses ovals. The lines that encircle the woman are drawn to create a dark oval around her, and the door (besides being somewhat oval itself) has lines on the outside that further emphasize the shape. The two focal points help show the tone of the painting, which tends to be anxiety and isolation. With the two objects being so far apart with a line in the middle, the loneliness is expressed. Also, the woman is the only object that stands in the middle of the room, all other objects are either on the walls or against the walls. The woman is physically isolated in the room.
The colors used in this painting are also dull colors. The painter uses black, brown, yellow, and some gray. Without splashes of bright color, the painting loses life and possibly signifies the isolation even further. The onlooker sees a woman encircled in dark black lines with only dark colors around her. Warm colors seem to be presented more in the foreground while cool colors are used in the background. This could be used for a visual effect. Also, the fact that all the lines are thick black lines further shows the importance of them in interpreting the painting. They add a tension to the onlooker, and possibly anxiety for what is occurring in the painting. The onlooker now asks why is the woman alone. And why is she naked and alone? The nakedness of the woman shows vulnerability, so further add to the tone of the painting.
The artist does not seem to have needed a steady hand when painting this piece. The objects are not perfectly drawn and are not drawn perfectly to scale. The jaggedness of the objects adds to the mystery and anxiety. The lines themselves seem to be the most chaotic and intense part of the painting, again signifying their importance in the tone. Because of the intensity of the lines, the artist made it clear that the woman is the most important aspect of the painting. Not only is she naked, which draws attention, but she is encircled by the most lines. Even though there are jagged dark lines everywhere in the painting, the artist seemed to elaborate it around the woman. This not only brings more attention to her, it also further emphasizes the isolation of the woman in the room.
The intensity of this painting is what drew my attention. The colors, although dull choice of colors, is done in an intense way to invoke some kind of curiosity from the onlooker. Also, the fact that the painter put so much emphasis on the naked woman really intrigues me and made me want to further analyze the painting.
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