Friday, March 8, 2013

Alex Lundy - Formal Art Critique


Michael Brangoccio, Promise (1999).  Acrylic on Canvas (45.5” x 69.5”)

     Brangoccio’s large acrylic painting portrays five birds all either flying at what seems to be high rate of speed or standing around a birdhouse.  It is unclear whether the birds live in the birdhouse or if they are fleeing from it.  Rocks are positioned in the foreground of the painting.  Two mountains with some sort of body of water and several fruits (probably oranges by their spherical nature, their general color, and the stem) floating in it create the background.  On the left hand side of the painting, there are some unreadable characters which, though there is guarantee of their meaning, must be important to the meaning of the piece.  Across the vertical space to which the birdhouse is attached, the value of the hue changes from dark to light as the eye moves from left to right.  Is this the shadow of some unseen object or creature? Is it a shadow cast from a raincloud?  Or is it a figurative foreshadowing of events yet to come?
     The painting consists of a nice balance between blue and the cross-complementary hues of Red-Orange and Orange-Yellow.  All of the hues seem to have been fairly moderated in value which gives more of a sense of unity within the painting.  Although they are different hues, the artist dulls the painting decreasing its saturation.  I can’t help but feel that this approaches meaning through content in regards to temperature.  The cross-complementary scheme suggests warm and cool hues, but by decreasing the saturation, the once noticeably warm hues of Red-Orange and Orange-Yellow seem now to suggest life lived in the past but is now dying.
     There is some inconsistency as to where the action takes place.  If the eyes scan the painting from top to bottom, it looks like the birds and birdhouse are underwater.  If they scan from bottom to top, it seems as though there is a river in the background, starting in the mountains, which is going to become a waterfall over the ledge upon which the birdhouse is attached.  Each scenario brings about different results regarding content.  Perhaps the artist is suggesting a stray from what is real in life (if we think about the birds as being underwater).  Another possibility is the expectation of being delivered from the wasteland in which they are living, in other words, death sets them free.  In either case and in conjunction with the painting’s name, I feel that the content is expressing the hope and promise of new life.
     The location of the piece is on a long hallway wall.  The wall opposite the painting is a giant window, allowing natural light to flood onto the canvas.  This seems like a fitting place to exhibit the painting because it suggests that the birds in the piece are in their natural habitat, giving it a more realistic impression.
     For me, the most unresolved element of this painting is the location of the main action.  I feel like the artist did a poor job of demonstrating what exactly is happening and why the birds are so restless.  I would have liked to see this better represented for clarity purposes, but the painting itself is well-done.

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