Formal Analysis

           Chuck Close (1940), an American artist, is infamous for his realistic and large portraits, such as in the silk and linen wrap rug, Lucas/Rug (1993). In Lucas/Rug, Close used a square design for the rug; the image depicted revolves around a circular grid that is centered in the middle of the square. The rug exhibits vertical symmetry, which is emphasized by the implied vertical line down the middle of the rug. The rug is unified by the repeated grid pattern, and all the boxes in the grid are revolving around the central point—also creating movement.

            Close used a very wide color pallet in Lucas/Rug; however, the rug is dominated by warm colors. Every splash of warm color is almost always contrasted with a cool color, and with the addition of the high value colors, makes the rug extremely vibrant. The lightest colors used in the rug are on the subject’s face, and when coupled with the circular grid, very effectively makes the subject’s face (primarily the eyes) the focal point.

            From some angles the rug seems completely abstract; however, when taking a step back and looking at the rug from other angles it coalesces into a portrait of a man. The rug is made up of small and abstracted circles with several different colors inside each part of the grid--which Close created by very skillfully weaving different colors of silk together--yet the circles still amalgamate into a portrait. Few artists are capable of incorporating unity, movement, and color to make an interesting piece of art work, let alone weave the artwork into a rug. The skill level Close has to join color and pattern together to create a portrait, as well as create a well-crafted rug, shows the dexterity Close possesses as an artist.