Jacques-Louis David The Death of Marat 1793. Oil on canvas
The Death of Marat is an infamous painting created by the Neoclassicist artist Jaques-Louis David. What was neoclassicism? It was a Western art movement that drew inspiration from the "classical" art and culture of Ancient Greece or Ancient Rome. This art was often idealised and presented figures in an idealised way. This picture shows the Discuss thrower and this is typical of classical Greek Sculpture. These artists celebrated human anatomy and Neo classical artists in the 18-19th centuries aimed to imitate these forms as they felt they reflected on their society. Here the artists appears to imitate the trailing arm of the Discuss thrower with the man in the bath tub.
Marat is the man in the bathtub, who was murdered in the period of the French Revolution (18th Century) by the young lady, Charlotte Corday. The painting itself says more than it does and has several impressions on audiences; some would say he committed suicide. Marat was involved in the French Revolution itself, signing and reporting names of French people who were against the Jacobins; killing of the Queen and King of France, to be a Republican country.
The artists who painted this image is David. He was a neoclassical painter. This self portrait was painted in prison. David was in prison due to his propaganda paintings but painted himself looking innocent and plain, as if he hasn’t done anything bad. Like most of his paintings, especially the Death of Marat; they all show emotion. He couldn’t speak very well, so he uses his art to express how he feels. Like Marat, he was in the radical group of Jacobins which formed the National Convention, encouraging France to go Republic and to kill off the Queen and King. The black and white version of his original image highlights David's use of light and tone. His face in this painting shows his innocence and his face, and light colours indicate his kind and humble appearance but behind the painting, lies a man who, along with the French people ruled France without a Queen or King and killing all those who go against the rules. He is a fake artist, who paints to cover up the horrible truth behind his paintings and idealises the happy and perfect look.
As I said before, he sugar coats his art and turns it into a different meaning. He manipulates images and gives false information to the people.
He is hated by most French people and thus he got exiled from France and to never come back. His painting of Marat has been transferred to the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium as the French are offended and certainly doesn’t want to re-live the past.
Jacques-Louis David The Death of Marat 1793. Oil on canvas
In the painting, you can see Marat naturally posing and graceful, despite being murdered in his bathtub. His right arm is slumped with a quill, giving an impression that he’s fallen asleep and that the blood is simply due to his skin condition; on his left hand, he is holding a piece of paper, assuming he was writing a “love” letter to a lady, with a wooden box next to him that has his ink pot, more paper and another quill. Looking closely, you can see blood in his chest and splodges on the white blanket, representing his “innocence”. This is typical of David’s neoclassical paintings.
Looking at the letter closer, you can see that it isn’t a love letter, but a letter from Charlotte Corday about meeting up. This says a lot, as Marat is at fault for killing all the people and Charlotte couldn’t stand it, and therefore killed Marat in his bathtub when she went to meet him at his home. Marat was assassinated in his bathtub by the Moderate Charlotte Corday on 13th July 1793. Marat edited magazines for the French people and so was an expert in propaganda articles. David makes him appear like a martyr, a Republican Saint, or an antique hero; either way David sees him as a saviour, for handing in names and killing innocent people. The artist himself, David, painted his murdered friend, sugar coating the fact that he’s killed so many people, but still painted him looking innocent. The whole painting itself seems like David is praising him like a saint, where the light is shining above him like an angel and his face simply graceful and peaceful looking, like he is happy to be dead.
This portrait of Marat shows his innocent face, looking into the distance as if he’s not with the world. His clothes show elegance and high class, returning to his statues from David: “Antique Hero”. His actual appearance in the portrait is the opposite to the one that David painted; he looks older, clearly shown on his face.
His arm is drooping against the bathtub, elegantly and his muscles look relaxed instead of tense. On the left is a Baroque painting by Rubens called “The depiction of Christ” from 1611 which depicts Jesus, drooping gently whilst the people try to pull him up on the cross. The angle of his face is also like Jesus’; to the side and peaceful. This trailing arm suggests resurrection and he will live again and live to control France once more.
The French people say “Year one of the French Revolution” and this seen on the box. It also suggests that this is not the end.
Paul Delaroche The Execution of Lady Jane Grey 1833 Oil on canvas
With Lady Jane dying at a young age, Delaroche painted her smoothly with oil paint, almost making it seem photographic. The difference in skin is easily seen between Sir John Brydges; Lady Janes is smooth and pure, whilst Sir John Brydges looks rougher, older and a lot darker than Lady Janes.
The Execution of Lady Jane Grey interpreted by Paul Delaroche, in 1833. In the image is Lady Jane Grey, getting ready to be executed by Sir John Brydges. Lady Jane was known for her Protestant ways, making the people of England vote for her instead of Queen Mary the I, who was the half sister of Edward IV. England crowned Jane as Queen… However, she only lasted for nine days on the throne; due to Queen Mary the I and her officials reported her for treason, so Lady and her husband got sent to the Tower of London and was executed at Tower Green on 12th February 1554. The painting by Delaroche depicts Lady Jane Grey’s execution. In in the painting, there are 5 people; in the middle is Lady Jane, who looks like she’s trying to find her way to the beheading table, she is wearing a white dress, referencing to her innocence and purity. In the middle with Lady Jane, stands Sit John Brydges her to the beheading table. Two ladies on the left looking glum and solemn. The lady in black faces the wall, with her hands above her head as if trying to escape. The lady on the floor looks dumbfounded, as if she’s not ready to be executed just yet. On the right, stands a man who has an axe next to him. His posture is like Classical Contrapposto, referencing to classical art because the way his legs are positioned like the sculptures of heroes. The colour of his outfit is red, perhaps symbolising the execution itself. The hay is there to absorb the blood from the person being beheaded. The mood isn’t very pleasant; it The light seems like it’s coming from gives you an eerie feeling the top left corner of the painting because someone's about to and right in the centre; highlighting get executed but also knowing her doll like face. Her blindfold the hay is there to soak the makes her look like she’s not with blood isn’t appealing. It looks reality as she tried to fumbles for like they‘re on a stage, the block. Delaroche made it seem performing an execution play. like a 3 dimensional form.
Lady Jane was only young when she died (16 years of age). Due to Queen Mary I (reigning 1516-1558) being a half sister to Edward VI, she wanted to be crowned Queen instead of Lady Jane as she was a Catholic and wanted the public to be Catholic than protestants. Lady Jane was crowned queen in a bid to shore up Protestantism and keep Catholic influence at bay. Lady Jane is the Grand-daughter of Mary Tudor, who was Henry VIII’s sister and had support from the Protestant worshippers. In these two pictures, the one on the right was painted by an artist, making Jane look realistic, even though she was 16, she looked much older than her age. On the left is Delaroche’s version of Lady Jane; completely different to the one on the left. Delaroche’s Lady Jane looks doll like, porcelain skin and fragile features whilst the other portrait looks rough, as if Lady Jane is stressed and her wrinkles are showing. For the audience, seeing this painting has a remarkable meaning to the British; beheading isn’t pleasant, it’s barbaric and brutal. The British Empire wanted to be civilized, and banished execution. Looking at this from my perspective; I find it disturbing and very gruesome, to be beheaded at the age of 16… I’d be terrified and thinking about it, I’m sure majority of the audience who sees this painting is lucky to be living in a century where execution doesn’t exist anymore.
The brush strokes of the two different artists have a huge contrast: Delaroche’s version is accurate, real life and look photogenic making Lady Jane look beautiful even though she is getting beheaded, whilst the other artist has drawn Lady Jane with a high status; her burgundy dress, her jewellery to show her royalty and high class. The Tudor Era, majority of royalty and high class would wear jewellery to show off… however in Delaroche’s, Lady Jane was stripped off all her royalty and was dressed in white, showing her young and vulnerable side.
Delaroche’s painting was exhibited in the Salon in 1834 where it caused sensation. Revolving around the French revolution, when the King and Queen of France got killed at the guillotine in 1793. The painting itself is massive: 246 x 297 cm. That’s a life size painting and the larger the scale, the more important and more historical the painting is. This is what the Salon would look like back in the 18th Century where paintings would hang above one another and the biggest paintings have more meaning than the smaller ones.
The Salon happens every year and all the French artists go in and compete with another with their paintings. It’s some form of entertainment for the French people. Only the top artists, like Delaroche, can only get involved in the Salon. The painting has to be historical or has historical meaning in order for it to be hung on the wall. This portrait of Delaroche, unknown painter looks professionally done. His facial features are strikingly sharp, clearly showing his professionalism and it compliments his artwork. He was trained by Antoine-Jean and Baron Gros, a painter of life-size historical subjects who had many students. Remarkably, he was one of the top students who was successful with his big art work piece of Lady Jane’s execution.
1797-1856
This is the Salon in the present time in France, still intact. A lot of changes, renovations to keep it in shape, but other than that, the golden hue of the ceiling is still the same; the shaping of the tiles is similar to the above picture, where you’ve got square tiles as a main concept.
The Raft of Medusa Theodore Gericault 1818-19 Oil on canvas. 491 x 719
The Raft of Medusa was painted in France by Theodore Gericault in 1818-19. It was painted in the Romanticism era (19th Century). The painting is huge, a monumental size and is 491 x 719 scale. It would count as a historical painting, and would be worthy of going in The Salon. Gericault thought that the Captain had sunk the Medusa with selfish thinking. There are several people in this painting, all yearning for help and seeking rescue, due to the fact that they’re on a raft and there is not enough space. The raft itself looks like it’s sinking, slowly and the people dying of dehydration or hunger. Looking at the painting, I feel sorry for the people, dying slowly desperately asking for help. The weather is stormy, gloomy and windy; the colours are dull and sombre and have no life at the bottom but as you go up the pyramid – the lighter the colours are the happier and hopeful they appear to be.
On the side of the raft, you can see the French Uniform torn and wet from the water. The uniform itself is telling a massive story. The people at the bottom of the raft look dead; slumping and unconscious whilst at the top of the raft, the survivors are calling out to the ship. Regardless, all of them look terrified and exhausted; losing hope of surviving except for the few.
In the distance, you can tell there is a ship but it’s so tiny; linking to the fact that they don’t have any hope of being rescued. Gericault made it like this so the audience themselves have a hard time seeing the ship.
A man on the left hand side is stuck underneath the raft in a small gap, his rib cage showing, due to the low nutrition and lack of water. His painful face is clearly shown, his eyebrows furrowed and mouth downwards.
On the other hand, the man with the flag trying to catch attention looks a lot healthier, even with no nutrition, he looks strong and able to move his arm about to catch the attention of the ship. He looks as if he is treated highly by his crew mates as he’s got people supporting him.
Romanticism: What was it and how does it link to “The Raft of Medusa”? Romanticism is a type of art style. It’s normally described as “poetic” and depicts emotional subject matter in an imaginative form. The Raft of Medusa is exactly that; Gericault made this painting emotional and imaginative, and interpreted the Raft of Medusa narrative it like how he would see it. Imagination, emotion, and freedom are certainly the focal points of romanticism. The painting itself says emotional issues; where the sailors are dying of hunger and thirst because of the sinking Medusa, their emotional state kicking in and wanting to eat each other. Gericault was not there to witness The Raft of Medusa sinking, but he used his imagination, with a bit of help from survivors and other references, he managed to depict and create a painting that is initially probably what happened to the Medusa. The good thing about romanticism style of painting is that you have freedom to do what you want. You don’t have to accurately paint the picture; you just have to capture the feeling and imagine what it would be like if you were there. That’s the good thing about romanticism.
Liberty Leading the People
The Raft of Medusa
Gericault painted The Raft of Medusa with evidence he decided to find. He interviewed some survivors, and found out that they would use the axe to kill each other and ate one another; so when people woke up they would see legs and arms and heads sprawled on the raft.
Gericault blamed the Captain for sinking Medusa and the innocent sailors employed by the Bourbon King Louis XVIII. This time in history was the most gruesome time. Gericault went to the morgues of the death sailors and decided to use the dead parts as reference, to draw and imagine the situation they would have been in. In the era of romanticism, this was romantic as he wanted to live the painting but at the same time be authentic and realistic. On the right, was a painting he created of anatomical arms, to show his research. He also used the heads of the dead, referencing from them as well.
This is the template of the Raft, approximately the same raft from Medusa. It was drawn by J. Correard. Gericault wanted to be authentic and wanted it to look alike so he used as much reference as he could, including the Raft itself.
Delacroix painted Liberty Leading the People in 1830. This was also created in the Romanticism period and is associated with political radicalism often used as contemporary subject in art. The painting itself was made cue to a revolution in France in 1830 against the Bourbon King Charles X, relating back to The Raft of Medusa when which also blamed the monarch for the sinking of the Medusa.
Liberty Leading the People Delacroix 1830 Oil on Canvas Large scale
During the Revolution, Bourbon King Charles X was overthrown by July Monarchy of Louis-Philippe. Delacroix took no part in the revolution but decided to paint the painting, to show the misery of the French Revolution and how everything is turned to Chaos.
In the painting you can clearly see that the leading power is a woman, charging and killing the Bourbon supporters radicalising the French country. The facial expression of each person in the painting shows excitement and hunger for power, their weaponry pointed at one another, struggling for freedom.
Gericault used bright colours, complete contrast to the actual meaning of the painting to show the hope of the French people. Sharp colours, dark navy blue and pure white with blazing sharp red to deepen their excitement and hate. The way it flaps in the wind shows that the French will strike back and fight for their freedom.
In this part of the painting, a woman is seen standing high above the rest of the men. Personifying the Liberty is a woman. She is seen wearing the hat “Phrygian� which was worn during the French war, symbolising the leadership she has. She is holding the tricolore flag in her left hand which Charles X banned and an infantry musket in her right hand to show her power. She is the potent of symbolising Freedom. Delacroix has painted her semi-nude, revealing her breasts to show Freedom and not to be afraid of change. The woman is an embodiment of Freedom and democracy (which was first found in Ancient Greece) and Delacroix has used it again to remind us by the use of partial nudity. A man is seen begging for his life, trying to ask for mercy but Liberty is ignoring him completely. He is seen wearing the Royal outfit for a soldier this is symbolising that he is very vulnerable.
• Accompanied by figures from all classes of society including - a bereted street urchin brandishing a pair of pistols - top hatted figure - probably an artisan or chief of a workshop - a white shirted, sabre-wielding factory worker, - day labourer in blue shirt from the countryside who is on his knees
You can clearly see the differences between these two men: One is wearing a top hat, waist-coat showing his middle class status. Whilst the man with the rough clothes, would be a worker, a lower class to the middle class man but both are fighting for freedom and to fight the King, Charles X. Gericault wanted to let the audience know that combining the strength of the French people, they could overcome and rule over King Charles X, the savage Bourbon King.
The figures on the floor are the people who died and stripped from their clothes, clearly showing the people who were against the liberation of the King. It is clearly shown the struggles they had, in order to fight for what they care for as well.
Francisco Goya 1746 – 1828 He is a Spanish painter hired by Charles IV, to paint him and his royal family. When the French invaded Spain, where Napoleon ruled the army (Napoleon the Ruler of France), he worked for the new French rulers when Charles IV got killed. During this period, he had to stay silent whilst observing the gruesome war, like he was instructed to do, or else he would have been executed by the French. When Napoleon lost the Battle of Waterloo, Goya was able to paint all the events he had witnessed and express them out to the world; to show the agony and brutal world that the French and Spain lived in. Goya firstly worked in the Royal Court, then acknowledged by the Royal Family and hired him to woven tapestries. From the beginning, he had a link to the Royalty and in 1779, Goya managed to get hired by the Royal Family to paint for them. He slowly kept improving, and in time he was able to paint every face clear and accurate. This was the start of portrait career as a Portrait Artist.
In this painting, he was instructed to paint Charles IV family in 1800. Due to King Charles IV weakness and wimpy personality, Spain fell into political and social corruption, leading Napoleon to invade Spain and take over. Goya’s skills are excellent; he managed to capture the tiniest details of the clothing and beading. If you look closely, in the background towards the left corner, Goya painted himself in the painting, to acknowledge his presence.
The Third of May 1808 (also known as The Execution of the Defenders of Madrid). 1814. Oil on canvas. 345 x 266 cm
The The Third of May 1808 (known as Execution of the Defenders of Madrid) is an art work painted by Goya in 1814. He witnessed this in 1808 but could not paint it until the 1814. If you look at the painting, a lot of blood and dead bodies on the ground. This could probably be because the people were going against the Spanish Royalty, and was executed by being shot. The man is wearing white, showing his innocence and purity. His hands are up, and if you look closely at his hands, there are red marks, which also could stand for a stigmata, like how Jesus has the cross to represent his stigmata. Goya thinks that the rebels in the pictures will resurrect like Jesus does, and will rise again to rebel against the Spanish Royalty.
In the far distance, you can see the City of Madrid. As you can see, the whole line goes all the way up to the City.
In these two close up shots of the painting, you can see they’re all covering their eyes and ears; so that they won’t be able to hear the gun shots resonating in the dark night air. They’re body gesture tells them everything about how they’re feeling.
The gunners are targeting the rebels, but they have their backs to us, showing the fact that they’re only concentrated on the rebels and killing them all off. The lantern is shining towards the rebels in the night, highlighting their rebellious behaviour.
At this point in time, Goya was 62 years old when Napoleonic invasion of Spain started, and Spain was subjected to six years of war and revolution. Goya was in Madrid when the tragedy of 2nd and 3rd of May happened. As I’ve said in previous slides, it was in 1814 that Goya was able to paint these paintings. This painting was also painted on a large scale, to show its historical context and monumental size. He was instructed to not paint these whilst it was happening because of the new rulers of Spain. The painting itself is a confusion to the French and Spanish people; The Confusion of Battle. The Second of May 1808. painted in 1814. Oil on Canvas.
Guernica Pablo Picasso 1937 Oil on Canvas 350 x 780
Guernica is a painting done by Pablo Picasso, in the Cubism era. Picasso painted this to show the present time, what happened on 26 April 1937. The Basque Town of Guernica was unfortunately bombed by German bombers and fighters from the Condor Legion. The bombing lasted for a solid three hours, leaving thousands injured and deaths. Each of these animals and human have a negative feeling; trying to flee from the bombing but it was too much and therefore they couldn’t run anymore. It is said that Guernica was the most famous anti-war painting ever done in the 20th Century. With a painting this huge, it would be classed as historical and monumental to the audience, making it an important painting in time and more to come. Picasso started on May 1 1937 and took him five weeks to complete the Guernica. The horse and bull, were his own motif and personal ambivalent symbols relating to the bombing and corrida (bullfight term) which was originally in his work for years.
One of Picasso’s known talent is the not accurate features. This distorted picture a bare-breasted lady was one of Picassos first painting to have a lady. Her distorting image is symbolising the terror and horror she is experiencing.
“The Bull is not fascism but it is brutality and darkness … the horse represents the people … the Guernica mural is symbolic”
Looking at it closely, you can see that the whole painting is divided by a triangle; sectioning each scene individually. Where there is the lamp, the horse is screaming from the fire, getting the viewers attention to the painting. As I’ve said on previous slides; the painting is huge and Picasso took five weeks to paint it. He had to put the canvas in a diagonal position. He used a ladder in order to get to the highest point of the painting and even attached a long stick to a paintbrush for him to reach the top.
Pablo Picasso - 1881 - 1973 A Spanish expatriate, one of the greatest and most influential artists of the 20th century, as well as the co-creator of Cubism. Picasso devoted himself to an artistic production that contributed significantly to—and paralleled the entire development of—modern art in the 20th century. Picasso devoted himself to an artistic production that contributed significantly to—and paralleled the entire development of—modern art in the 20th century. He created the most powerful and emotional paintings such as: Guernica, where the Germans were bombing innocent people. Even though he’s dead; his paintings and artwork are still inspiring artists and young people until this day.
The Swing Jean-Honore Fragonard 1732-1806 Oil on Canvas 81 x 64 cm
The Swing by Jean-Honore Fragonard is a masterpiece created in the Rococo Period; the era of flirtatious behaviour. Jean went to an Arts Academy and an unexpected customer confronted him, asking to paint him and his lover a portrait. He asked it to be painted so they’re both secret lovers. The customer wanted the man at the back as a bishop, but he suspected he would get arrested and instead made it so it’s a cuckolded husband. As you can see, they are in a garden; but not any garden, a private estate garden. Jean had this erotic painting was designed for private display but corrupted when the French Revolution in 1789 occurred. The first owner who had this painting, Menage de Pressigny, who was guillotined in 1794 and soon after, the painting was confiscated by authorities. The Louvre declined painting, so therefore an English collector purchased it and it wasn’t exhibited until 1860. The colours that Jean used are all light and flirtatious colours, harmonizing with one another. The light pink Rococo dressed is a symbol of love and erotic emotion, the swing represents inconsistency and is an ideal vehicle to portray marital infidelity.
The woman’s dress is lifted up when she is swinging, and the supposed secret lover is seen laying on the ground looking up at her, admiring the view. This symbolises the flirting going on between the secret lovers.
It is known, back in the Rococo era; when a woman’s shoe is thrown up in the air, it is seen as a loss of their virginity. The pink dainty shoe also shows the flirtatious scenery.
At the corner of the painting on the bottom right; you can see a dog, barking and yapping at the swing. It’s presence is ironic because dogs in the Rococo era were often included in most portraits as symbol of marital infidelity. It’s jumping and howling as if to warn the husband that it’s an affair, but no one is paying attention to its howls and yaps.
The painting itself is linking to the previous paintings of Romanticism, showing the era of gruesome and harsh life of the people in France because of the French Revolution. Most artists in the era of Romanticism are known to be daring, painting all the artwork pieces we look into now. They all served a purpose.
Jean-Honore Fragonard
In the Rococo era, woman on swings are very popular. The husband, who appears to control it, but in reality he would never have been able to pull the ropes that high.
Small sketches from the paintings
Intention of all Analysis. All of the analysis I have done are to show that I have an understanding of Historical Art. By researching different historical paintings and artists, it made me create a PowerPoint presentation of all the famous paintings that existed in the world. Each artist and painting all link to certain Era’s of different periods such as; Neoclassicism, Romanticism etc. Other paintings that I researched includes the Rococo Period, Cubism Period etc. All of the paintings have taught me things and found off things I wouldn’t of known: The Death of Marat is an exceptional painting with hidden meaning and deep emotions written behind it. By figuring out the actual meaning, it instantly comes to you how brutal the Death of Marat actually is. Furthermore, each artist somehow links to one another; for example Delaroche and David are both French artists, both born in France but Delaroche has painted a European painting: The Execution of Lady Jane Grey. Even if they’re both not from the same period, they both hold links about the French Revolution and how the French got corrupted. The Romanticism period is an eventful era, where deaths took place in a lot of European countries, especially Spain. The painting, The Execution of the Defenders of Madrid also known as The Third of May 1808 is a brutal era. Goya, the artist, painted this in order to record all the events happening due to the new leader, Napoleon.
To begin with, I am looking into other posters created by different galleries around the world to get an idea of what a poster needs to have. On the left is the “Art Nouveau” in Amsterdam. On the Right, you’ve got “Reaction” in Manchester Art Gallery. I chose these two because they’re both unique and different. Both have similar wordings and titles and have similar colour theme, but I will now go into more depth for each one of these.
Analysis of an Existing poster The logo as well is done in watermark that makes it look professional and real. It’s a smart way of inputting a logo so that it won’t be powering the background and foreground, as their logo is quiet big for an exhibition poster.
Towards the bottom, in very small writing you can make out all the sponsors that they have for the gallery.
In this exhibition poster, the background is light and fades in with the yellow that makes it attractive to the viewer. I like the blue flower as a foreground as it looks floral and neat. The font that they have chosen is unique and not original which is always good. I really like how they did the writing on the side: “Hermitage Amsterdam”, referring to the place where it will be held. It’s a different way to present a title of a Museum.
In the middle, you can clearly see the date on when it will start and end, and it’s even got the website for the Gallery. The font of “Art Nouveau” is different and in a way looks traditional like back in the Historian times.
In this poster, you have got the title “Reaction” the most eye catching title on the poster. It’s big and white and each letter is orientated differently to create an effect. The title must be big and noticeable, in order for people to take notice. The background itself is eye catching also, with bright orange and highlights outlining the figure wonderfully.
Over here is a comment to allow the viewer what the gallery is about. One simple sentence can tell you about what’s going on in a gallery. Below it are the dates and times of when the Gallery will be available for viewing to the public.
Analysis of an Existing poster The figure in the poster is the same colour as the background but you can distinctively notice the figure, it doesn’t drown with the background. The highlights make it look more realistic, outlining and defining the edges of the figure to show it’s a human form.
It’s not noticeable but if you look at the bottom of the poster, there is a logo for the Arts Council and Manchester Art Gallery.
I will re-create the “Reaction” poster from the above slide and create my own version by copying and pasting a background from google on photoshop.
After, I got the image of Liberty leading the People, cropped out the background so only the Lady is left and copy and pasted that on top of the background.
Then, I used ctl+Alt+Z to enlarge the Lady and create a foreground. I faded her and change the opacity on a grey scale to create this fading effect.
I used the overlay option by clicking on “Blending options” and selected the red colour so it blends with the background so the only thing that’s left is the figure.
Intention My intention by doing all this is to show evidence that I am looking into other posters and experimenting what I can do with them on Photoshop like: editing the actual poster, re-designing the poster or creating a whole new poster related to it.
In this screenshot, I have done the final touches to the poster on the above slide. I’ve made sure to include my own information but in the same place as the original poster would have had and I made the title same font as my original poster but I changed the positions about. I like how this turned out as it is similar to the original poster but instead of a persons head and chest area, it is Liberty leading the People, linking back to my actual poster I have created.
This is one of my posters and the most effective poster than the below slide. The bold and thick writing on the poster stands out and can catch the viewers eyes. I’ve used inspiration from another poster, but changed the size and places where each letter is. The font I have used is “Cooper Black”. I’ve used this font because it’s thick and eye catching. The colours harmonise with one another and it blends perfectly to the white font.
By doing this, I am able to show a typography technique where I can see where each letter goes up to. The Ascending line is where all the letters with high points would reach. My word Mean line is only on the Base line. The descending line is mainly for J’s, lower case G’s and Y’s. The font Base line that I have used doesn’t reach the ascending Descending line or descending lines. Ascending line
Romanticism
On this slide I have shown I have gone further into my poster. I’ve changed the title and added my own touch it, so I won’t be able to copy the original poster. I have decided to cut out the Serifs from some of the words, to create a sharp and neat edge to the letters. I really like it this way because it shows my own touches to the poster and it’s much more effective, the viewers will notice it.
I find this effective because it’s different and a unique style of cropping out the Serifs and creating your own kind of font. I’ve stuck with the same colours, just changing title a little to avoid any copying.
By using the “Blending Option” button, I am able to go on to Drop Shadow and select the “Of Romanticism” and create a shadow behind it. This is another improvement from my original poster on the previous slide.
I’ve re-done my poster slightly; by cutting the Serifs off from the letters I am able to show a clean cut edge to the letters and by including a shadow on the “Of Romanticism” and the “Revolution” it creates a very realistic shadow behind the words, making it seem real. I’ve also changed and developed this by changing the original “Bath Spa Art Gallery” small caption and included the artist names instead, showing all the artists name and artwork that will be included in the museum.
I really like this design poster because it does bring out the poster a lot more, and it makes it unique and different unlike my previous attempt of doing it. I like the other attempt also, but this one is a lot more appealing and the audience would see the shadow from afar. The logo is still standing out with it’s white colour and you can see the swirls and spirals coming out from it. The “Museum and Art Gallery of Bath” is now at the bottom, near the logo as it look’s neater down there than being at the middle. The date is the same; same font and same size but the only different is the date has been lowered down so it’s a lot closer to “Museum and Art Gallery of Bath” caption.
In this screenshot, I have got Liberty leading the people as my background and I created a foreground that includes burnt down trees to represent the death and war. By creating this design, I played around with the opacity and blur; opactiy: 56% and blur 46%.
Over here, I have used the “clipping mask” tool to blend the words with the painting of Liberty Leading the people. Its effective because it’s professional and looks realistic.
This here is my final poster for my Gallery. I have made sure to include every important detail such as; telephone number, location, post code and what it’s about briefly explained. I’ve included the date on when it ends and starts. I have included my own logo, creating an “A” shape to represent the “Art gallery” title. I’m pleased over all because I managed to create a poster that viewers can see clearly.
Intention on Logo’s for my poster and step by step how to create them. I have created these 3 logos to show that I am thinking of a design for my poster to make it realistic. On the next few slides I will show how I got to these designs.
This logo is similar to the AG one but it’s just a letter A and a sophisticated swirl designs on it. By going on google, I managed to get an image of swirls to include on my Logo.
1. I got a paint splash image from the internet and used Photoshop to create a new paint brush tool. By creating this paint brush tool, I am able to use it as a brush.
2. Once I’ve gotten my paint brush, I tested out to get shades. The more I clicked on the same spot, the darker it got.
4. The final touches I did was included an A by using the Text tool in photoshop, keeping it Trajan Pro font, so the consistency is the same. I made it so the A is in the middle of the splash and creates an artistic logo.
3. I then used the paint brush tool I created and made this splash on photoshop.
In this screenshot, I clicked on the “Text” tool and chose my Trojan Pro font and overlapped the A with the G.
For this screenshot, all I did was get an image on the internet off black swirls and made it into a paint brush, and continuously clicking on the same spot to make it darker to the A making the long swirly lines overlap onto the G.
This is my final outcome: by putting a smaller version of the same swirl at the bottom of the G, I managed to create this logo. I really like this logo because it shows the neatness of the Gallery itself. It’s clean, neat and unique by itself. It’s simple and affective, the viewers would be able to see it from the poster.
Analysing Fonts
I’ve chosen this kind of font because it clean and streamlined just like my gallery would be like. It looks neat and clean and you can easily make the letters out so the viewer can see it from afar. This is one of my potential fonts I could use.
I considered this font because it looks quintessential, but I also thought: “will the viewers see it from afar? Will they be able to read it?” these questions would come up and I decided I’ll consider this as a font but I won’t use it because it’s too swirly and in my opinion isn’t neat enough.
This is similar to the top one. I considered it as one of my fonts…but I didn’t really like the “R” and how it’s been created. It’s legible looking, and I would definitely recommended it as my final font but the thickness isn’t enough to stand out.
For one of my final font for a poster, I have decided to use Trajan Pro as it looks sophisticated and neat. I like the way the R’s are created and the way they’re all the same size, even if capitalized or not. It’s bold but not too bold and it’s just the right font for the poster; viewers can see it from afar and understand it clearly. The spaces are even and the bottom of each letter are touching and exactly the same. Overall I am pleased with this font as it will communicate my message.
Revolution of Romanticism Finally, I have chosen this font for my poster. I chose this because it’s bold, thick and stands out just like the poster I have used to give me inspiration. It’s easier to see from afar and the viewers can read it. The spaces are closer to each other than the Trajan Pro which makes it unique and stands out from the rest of the fonts. I’ve used this font to attract the audience and make people want to visit my gallery. Overall I am also pleased with this font.
Exhibition Guide Analysis This guide was used for Constantin Brancusi’ sculptures. The guide helps the audience to understand what he does and how he does his sculptures and “The essence of Things”. On each page, the guide includes huge photos taking up one whole page and in some pages, just medium sized photographs with explanation. The guide is A5 size, not too big and not too small for an exhibition guide information booklet. The creator of the guide manages to fit in information that is needed to explain Constantin’ works. Each page has a repetitive format; it has room’s 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 etc. Each room has it’s own photograph with a small scale and some rooms have a bigger scale with small amount of information to go with it. The text itself is put on Justify format to create a neatness and tidy outlook.
It’s presented just like any exhibition guide, information and what each room in the gallery is about etc. It’s sophisticated and square shaped format attracts the audience and allows to them to read it easily. What’s unique about this guide book is that on every page there is a quote of some sort… for example, on the page that says “room 1”: “The greatest happiness is the contact between our essence and the eternal essence”. I’m not entirely sure if it was quoted by Constantin, but it does have an effect on the audience like myself.
Small annotations on the outside to explain briefly what is happening to save reading for those who doesn’t like reading big paragraphs.
I really like this design for an exhibition guide and the amount of information that is in it. It doesn’t go on and on, its not boring and its very entertaining as in most exhibition guides you don’t tend to have quotes every now and then on pages. I’ll definitely take some of the guides ideas and input it in my own exhibition guide. The quotes themselves sort of gives you inspiration, depending how you read it.
The National Gallery in London. The framing of the painting is sophisticated and I really like the gold theme; it shows how old and ancient it is. The black border for the door and the wooden floor are really appealing and catches the eye. The burgundy red for the walls is consistent, and I really like how it’s done. For my gallery, I will change it to white so it has a black and white theme. The painting has it’s name and details on the side off it and for my gallery, I will have it on the bottom instead of the sides.
This is the entrance to the museum; I really like how it’s been made from wood, to create that antique feeling. I really like how the door is done and I’ll use this as inspiration for my door.
I will also include barriers for the paintings to warn people “Do not touch” and I will include few benches so people can sit down whenever they wanted to. I will change the colour of the bench to match the changes of the walls.
The walls are dark wood and the flooring is pinky/pale orange, keeping my bright coloured theme just like my poster.
Entrance This is a close up of my wall and flooring in 3D.
In this diagram, I have sectioned out rooms to show the different paintings. With these paintings, I will have small information on all of them below the painting. I’ve used the Stone Quarry tile effect and used that for my flooring. The biggest rooms are where all the famous paintings reside in.
Raft of Medusa
Liberty leading the People
The Swing
The 3rd of May Death of Marat
Raft of Medusa Liberty leading the People
May the 3rd
Death of Marat
This is another design for my exhibition space. I have chosen these colours as it matches my poster, with the bright colours. There will be a lot of space, so each painting and artist will share one big room etc. like on the below diagram. There will be a porch where people can enter and get their leaflets/purchase tickets etc. I have also included windows and doors, the black lines on the sides are windows coloured dark brown made off wood.
The swing