This Season
Tailgating
New Year, New You
Tax Time
 

Art Appreciation: Analyzing Paintings & Photographs

Why is "The Last Supper" is considered a classic work of art? Learn how to analyze paintings in this free art appreciation lesson series from an art instructor.

Series Summary

Painting and drawing is the art of using a pigmented medium to create a picture of reality filtered through the imagination, the senses, emotions, and life experience. Artists the world over have multiplied the uses of painting and drawing as a vital mode of human expression, whether recording history, retelling myth and legend, expressing religious fervor, or exploring the unknown. From early history to the present, we have records of men and women making graphic representations of their world, showing their understanding and their curiosity. In this art appreciation series, an experienced art instructor will discuss the elements, such as spacial cues and color values, which work to together to create a great painting. She discusses famous paintings such as Leonardo da Vinci's "The Last Supper" and "Mona Lisa," how the artist controls the line of sight of the spectator with shapes and color values. The background story can also play an important role in how people interpret a painting. The art instructor will help people to develop their own skills of analysis.
Listing 1-21 of 21 eHow Videos
  •  Art Appreciation: Reference Files

    Keep a file of photographs as a source for inspiration. Learn how to consider all possible interpretations when analyzing paintings in this free art appreciation video from an art instructor.

  •  Art Appreciation: Context of the "Mona Lisa"

    Leonardo da Vinci's "Mona Lisa" has been reinterpreted several times by contemporary artists. Learn how to determine what a painting is about in this free art appreciation video from an art instructor.

  •  Art Appreciation: Keep an Open Mind

    Art can incorporate music or anything else that inspires the artist. Learn how to analyze meanings of paintings in this free art appreciation video from an art instructor.

  •  Art Appreciation: Color Choice in Klee's "Sinbad the Sailor"

    Painters use color to draw attention to an area of a painting. Learn how to analyze color in paintings in this free art appreciation video from an art instructor.

About the Presenter

Gretchen Kibbe