Detailed Analysis of Pictorial Space Painting in MoMA

Oskar Kokoschka, Self-Portrait 1913

In this painting, Kokoschka uses limited values, so the pictorial space seems shallow and flat. The color tone is dark and grey in general, so the object seems close to the background. Although character twists his shoulder, creating a 3D perspective of the human body, there is no vanishing point in the painting. Also, the background has no change in color, so there is no linear perspective in the painting.

 

Henri Matisse, The Blue Window 1913

Matisse uses a rich range of color and contrasting values to make a deep pictorial space in both the figure and the ground. While dark blue on the background, warm orange is on the objects. It creates a depth in the space that dark blue background recedes to the back and warm orange objects come to the front. Also, the black line in the middle and the horizon behind the objects divide the space into two parts — one is inside the window, another is outside the window. Henri employs one point perspective in this panting, although the vanishing point is unseen; the hierarchy of spaces can still expressed.

 

Max Beckmann, Descent from the Cross 1917

The general color tone is warm, but gray as well. Beckham uses 1 point perspective in this painting. The value is limited in the painting, but the painting does not seem shallow or flat, since it has multiple layers in space. The ladder behind people is partially covered by them, and people’s shape are overlapping, and the ladder seems slope to the back, because it gets narrower to the top, and the ground also gets smaller to the back, though the vanishing point is hidden. All these elements creates a depth in the space. Also, men on the front is larger than men on the back, so there is the illusion of scale in the painting.

 

Mark Rothko, No.3/No.13 1949

Rothko uses a great range of color and contrasting values in this painting, but the painting seems flat and shallow. Because lines in the painting are all straight, they flatten the pictorial space and appear static. The warm red on the background contrast with cool color lines on it, which creates a hierarchy of one is above the other. The color lines are parallel to each other, so there is no perspective in this painting.

 

Max Ernst, Woman, Oldman, and Flower 1923-24

This painting seems deep in space, because Ernst applies a rich range of color and contrasting values. Large warm color characters and objects are come front, and cool blue sky and sea recedes to the back. Horizons of sea and ground are showed in the painting, which imply the space of sky, sea and ground. This painting has 1 point perspective. The left character has a full body showed, but is smaller than the right partially body. So it looks like the left character stands farer than the right character. By depicting the shape of cities which lay on the sea horizon so small, Ernst creates an illusion of scale and a depth in space that cities are extremely far away.

 

Max Ernst, The Blind Swimmer 1934

In this painting, the lines become more straight and intense to the center, so it seems like it’s carving in. In this way, Ernst creates an illusion of depth in space, so it seems like there is a 1 point perspective in the painting, and the vanishing point is hidden behind the object in the middle. The pattern is generally symmetrical. The color tone is bright. Black thin lines with light green on the background, and warm color in objects in the middle makes it coming front. Lines curves around the circle in the middle and the darker green in the circle also help creating the illusion of carving in.

 

Max Ernst, Napoleon in the Wilderness 1941

The range of color is rich in this painting. The contrasting color between characters and ground and background builds the depth in space. The warm red, orange and brown in characters make them coming front, and the cool blue on the background makes it recede and helps sky and sea. The blue changes gradually from dark to light at the top of the painting, which makes the sky has a dimension. Horizon behind characters divides sky and sea, also helps building the hierarchy of spaces which sea is behind characters. This painting has 1 point perspective.

 

Bridget Riley, Fission 1962

Riley uses dots as lines in this painting, and all dots are black, and the background is white. So there is no range of color and value in this painting. Dots get more oval and thinner to the middle, which creates a dimension to the painting that it is carving in in the middle. Like Max Ernst’s The Blind Swimmer, this painting don’t have a specific perspective, but the carving in part in the middle makes it looks like has a depth in space and has a 1 point perspective and has an unseen vanishing point.

 

Oskar Schlemmer, Bauhaus Stairway 1932

Schlemmer applies multiple point perspective in this painting. Theres is people climbing stairs from two different perspectives: one is viewed from people’s back and the other one is people’s profile view. Also, there is a shape of building outside the window and has 2 point perspective. The first one’s vanishing point is hidden by the wall, and the second one’s vanishing point is outside the frame. The color plays an important role in this painting. The only warm color in this painting is the warm orange in the largest character. So the character would be viewed as the main character and is pushed to the front. The background including stairs is cool blue, so it’s receded to the back. The lines of stairs are drawn diagonally, so they shows as going up and have a movement with people climbing. People has different view in this painting: profile, front view, close-up (from the back), and back view.

 

Charles Sheeler, Bucks County Barn 1932

This is a typically 2 point perspective painting, which has the impression of looking in 2 directions from the corner of house. The vanishing point is hidden. The range of color is great, and there is contrasting color between dark red chimney and green ground. Tree besides houses is larger than trees behind houses. This creates an illusion of scale, which helps build the linear perspective. Two horizons layer each other and one of them partially covered by the house, and houses overlaps each other, which create a depth in space and a hierarchy in positions. Also, the contrast between gray wall and white wall shows the light source.

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