A2 art history exam final the moon

A2 Critical and Contextual studies unit 2

The Moon Charlie Hopgood Throughout this project I will be exploring multiple artworks that feature the moon giving an in depth analysis of the hidden messages and meanings within the piece. This will include the context of the time period and the style in which the painting was painted in to help us fully understand the meanings behind these paintings.

Experiment on a Bird in an Air Pump, Joseph Wright, 1768

Based in the English midlands and where the industrial revolution had began to take place there was a society of inquisitive and rich people who called themselves the Lunar Society; but nicknamed the lunatics. They met with one another each month to discuss the new theories and findings in science and to do experiments such as the one that can be seen being performed on a table with a bird. Here they'd discuss and share scientific ideas that they have learnt and heard of since their last meeting. Many of Wrights friends were part of these societies and the concept of sharing ideas and theories was the whole reason for the Age of Enlightenment. In this painting you can see that the society are meeting under a full moon which can be seen in the window. However first I will be looking at another one of Wrights paintings featuring the moon and how he uses it to portray light within a landscape.

Experiment on a Bird in an Air Pump Joseph Wright was born in 1734 painted this painting in 1768. he was styled Joseph Wright of Derby and was an English landscape and portrait painter and was said to be “the first professional painter to express the spirit of the industrial revolution”. Mostly known for his use of the chiaroscuro effect where the contrasting of light and dark shades of colour were emphasised within his candle lit paintings. Most of his artworks are owned by the Derby City Council and therefore are displayed at the Derby Museum and art Gallery.

Context

The Enlightenment This was a modernising period that ‘natural philosophers’ and the new men of industry believed would bring light into the dark age of superstition, and remove political tyranny. Science and the ‘light’ of pure reason were to be the tools used by this Enlightenment. This period was also known as ‘The Age of Reason’. This was due to the scientific revolution and the most influential thing during the enlightenment was the Encyclopaedia published between 1751 and 1772 which had thirty-five volumes. Created by a team of 150 scientists and philosophers it helped spread the ideas of the enlightenment across Europe and further over sea.

During the 18th century England became very industrialised during the industrial revolution as machines were then implemented in every work place. This cut down the man power needed to create products saving time which made people richer quicker. However due to this new modernised era the wealthier became richer and the poor became poorer. This was due to the reason being that the need for workers was no longer needed as machines took their jobs.

Whilst the population started to spur out of control with overcrowding; cities were filled with dirt and noise pollution .

Whereas the rich were spoilt with lavishing riches and a life style above all others as they lived in their large rich mansions frowning on those below them. this was all due to the progression of science and how it tried to improve the speed of manufacturing changing the lives of people for good and for worse.

What is happening?

In the painting there is a group of wealthy people gathered to watch a scientific demonstration in a domesticated setting like it is a secret meeting.

In the centre of the painting you can see a man experimenting with a bird on a stand. What he is doing is creating a vacuum in the glass jar by using an air pump to suck the air out therefore suffocating the bird inside. However, when looking closer you can see that his left hand is placed on top of the glass. This seems to be where the gentleman will open the glass jar to allow the air to rush back in and restore life back to the bird.

In this painting of Jesus you can see a bird hovering above his head. This bird is a sign of God within religion. By relating this image to the painting we are looking at you can see that the artist has further suggested that science is killing God and religion as the industrial revolution brings machines and science into light and people loose faith in God and start to believe in the proven sciences.

When looking closer at the man you can see a poised look of concentration. During the time period religion had started to fade and science was taking over as people became more curious of life and its existence. This suggests that the man is a god like figure that has control over life and death meaning he has the power to end the birds suffering and restore life to it.

He is also much higher up than the other participant in this experiment. This suggests that he is more important and focuses the viewers attention on him due to his task of giving and taking life away from the bird.

To the right of the painting you can see a boy ready poised with a bird cage for the release of the bird.

By placing the boy here Wright has drawn the viewers attention to the small details such as the moon peeking though the clouds from the window.

This was a crucial feature to the scientific validity of this experiment because it refers to the scientists that met up on that Monday closest to the full moon called the Lunar Society.

The image suggests that the people that are conducting this experiment are those amongst the higher wealthy people. This is due to the fact that the bird that they are killing is a rare white cockatoo which is more expensive that the experiment itself. Because they are rich they have the same frame of mind towards the people who are poorer and bellow them as they do with the bird; having very little regards for life and showing no empathy to something that is below themselves.

In the left and right of the image you can see two men looking at the experiment act as a framing device for the painting. This allows the artist to fill the foreground and make the painting look more appealing. It also allows the experiment to look more interesting as though more people are crowded around as they find a venerable animal dying fascinating.

Some people also believe that the main model in the painting is of a man called Joseph Priestly. He was a scientist, doctor, inventor and philosopher.

He was also a key leader to the lunar society and due to his skills and professions could have possible been the ‘Lunatic’ to undergo this experiment.

To the right of the main scientist you can see a woman and child hugging one another while being embraced by the male. Presumable her husband he tries to comfort her and show her the experiment but her and her child reframe from looking. This compares the male and female views on the subject and experiment as the reactions contrast showing the females to have more regard for life than the males.

By using the yellow line on the painting you can see the composition that the Wright has created. The main focus of it is the centrality of everything and how the canvas is evenly filled; this prevents it being to manic with bodies distracting the viewer from what is going on.

When looking closer at the painting you can see a pediment above the doorway that is full of scrolls. This gives us the impression that this is from the classical time period of art. Due to the composition of the painting and the time period in which it was painted in this has some associations with neoclassical artwork.

Neoclassical This was the name given to artworks from the western movements and can be linked to that of sculptures, theatre, music and painting.

Also known as the rebirth of classicism it takes inspiration from the classical arts. Originating in Rome in the early 17th century and was mainly focusing on the enlightenment where the neoclassical movement was in competition with romanticism. This painting displays elements of both.

In the lower right of the painting you can see a man staring at a skull found on the centre of the table. The artist has used the light source being a candle to be placed right behind the skull so that it brings it into the light and tells the viewer that it is a main focus of the painting. This acts as a memento mori which is another term for ‘a reminder of death’ which suggests that the man is focused on death and thinking about what it means.

The theme of death within this painting also relates to how important we as people view death and what we should do with our lives before we die.

This segment to the painting is very important as it seems that because the scientist is killing a bird the one viewer of the experiment seems to be debating if it is the right thing to do. He could also be brooding on ‘the age of reason’.

A Moonlit Lake by a Castle, Joseph Wright, 1734 – 1797

Looking at another painting by Joseph Wright displaying the moon in full view for the person to see. It is the main light source of this image and casts a luscious glow across the lake and abandoned castle. This time he is using the moon to create an atmosphere in which light is battling darkness.

On the lake the moon has made a glistening reflection. This has been used to allow the artist to bounce the light off the lake and illuminate the foreground in front of it. The moon is the only light source in this image and the reflection gives the viewer an idea of how the light is coming down and casting the foreground into a sinister silhouette.

When zooming in closer to the moon you can see that the artist has created very intricate details to portray the light that the moon casts.

The use of the clouds allowed the wright to create a clean reflection across dim and gloomy clouds. This suggests that the pure light that is beaming out the new moon is cleansing the abandoned and dark castle from darkness.

To fill in the mid ground and the background the artist has used the tree canopy to create small gaps that the light can peek through. This tree that I have zoomed in has emphasised the difference and separation of light and dark. It has created a barrier in which the viewer can see where the light has reached and slowly started to disintegrate.

Other than the moon the second main feature to this painting is the lonely castle that stands in solemnness. Left to rot and erode it makes the viewer think of what this landscape has been through in the past. The new moon portrays a sense of a new day and age for this castle as nature takes back the land and re-establishes itself amongst the man made structures. This is typical of romanticism.

Here I have two segments of the sky to show the different methods in which Wright has used to apply the paint to create different textures. As seen in the top segment the colours of the cloud are very subtle and evenly blended to portray the beginning of a dark and eerie sky.

However, when you get to the sky surrounding the moon you can see that the artist has layered multiple colours on top one another to show a deep and thick cloud that the light is battling through. This also creates reflections showing the different shapes of the clouds. Along with the colours the cracking of the paint not only show the age of the painting but also shows how thick the paint has been applied here; the more cracks there are the more paint in that segment of the sky.

Through out this painting the artist has used very dim colours and tones emphasising the portrayal of light and dark.

The dark can be seen casting a sinister atmosphere across the abandoned castle and scenery surrounding it. this gives very little suggestion to there being life making the viewer think that this scene is a baron and abused building.

The light that spreads across the land is then bringing the darkness into light and making what seems evil good again.

Intention The moon in the landscape meant much more to the artists and audiences of the nineteenth century. This was a time of wide contrasts between past and present, reason and emotion, optimism and despair. Art was a way of making sense of the world, much as science struggled to do the same, and through the century art and science moved in parallel. However, handbooks of the 19th century painting explain that the moonlight is evocative, mysterious, and expressive. “moonlight possesses great charms for all lovers of nature. Objects seen by it seem separated from the more common light and influence every-day life, and subject to different laws, as if they belonged to another world”… (George Barnard, The Theory and Practice of Landscape Painting in Water-colours. London: Routledge, Warne, and Routledge, 1859,p. 240)

The Moon and Romanticism Romanticism became more popular in art during the end of the 18th century where artists aimed to emphasis emotions and feelings within their work to allow the viewer to connect more with the artworks and to portray a message.

So to express emotions and feelings more within their work, artists such as Casper David Friedrich who was one of the main romantic painters in Germany mainly used nature as his focused subject matter allowing the viewer a glimpse of tranquillity and piece. The majority of these landscape images are accompanied by a figure turned away looking into the distance. They were often either accompanied by other figures in the painting or were on their own which was to represent the viewer where these scenes were set around night or dawn where the full moon was often features to give a even and pure light across the scenery.

This is the main reason for the full moon to accompany our imagery within the paintings as the natural light source. The moon portrayed a sense of feelings, mysticism in the night and was the best method to portray love. This was allowed by the light that swept across the landscape that allowed the artist to enhance the emotions and emphasis the feelings that he was trying to portray.

Rising Moon, John Constable, 1810

I will now be looking at the rising moon by John Constable due to the visible full moon rising above the far field. This is a romantic artwork and has been designed to enhance the emotions that are portrayed by using an eerie and gloomy light given off by the moon.

John Constable said, “We see nothing truly till we understand It�. 7 C. R. Leslie, Memoirs of the Life of John Constable, Esq. R.A., Composed Chiefly of His Letters (London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, 1845), p. 350.

John Constable Born into a successful family in 1776 his father was a prosperous Suffolk miller allowing him to have a happy childhood without the burden of poverty like most families during the 18th century Britain. His youth and upbringing had a profound effect and influence on the art that he later on created. Eventually moving from his birth place most of his work tended to be on his childhood landscapes and where he grew up created from memory. Influenced by Ruben's and Claude he became further passionate about landscapes although he had a formal art education. He exercised his technical skill in the traditional methods by copying the works of the old masters which he found unique and different. This allowed him to become familiar with a practise that was slowly becoming extinct due to the scarce amount of works that were being produced in this technique by modern artists. Constable believed that in all his works he had to capture the effect of chiaroscuro. However in the process of trying to achieve this effect his work developed into an expressive and unfinished execution.

Presumably painted from memory of one of his childhood landscapes as he was growing up you can see the old Britain to the left and the countryside to the left. This is dividing by a clear path that the moonlight shines through like a barrier separating nature from the industrialising city.

Very little ranges of colour have been used within this painting where the artist has mainly kept to dark colours such as black and whites of the moon.

19th Century Britain Britain had started to evolve during this century becoming more industrialised than it ever was before. This bring more jobs to the people and during 1801 however the increasing number of factories led to people abusing the system such as children working in cotton mills and women being made to work long hours. To combat issues such as this in1819 a law was passed to prevent children under 9 working in these mills but due to the lack of enforcement there were no inspectors to back up this law. So in 1833 a law was passed to assign inspectors to each mill. Women were made to work gruelling 12 hour day shifts and in 1850 laws were passed to make them work 10 and a half hours in textile factories but allowed 1 ½ hours of lunch break.

However, when more of the population came to work and make a living in the big cities of Britain, overcrowding became a huge problem. Multiple families sharing a house with one room allocated to each family. These close quarters then caused many problems within the society and was one of the main reasons that caused the Great fire of London. In 1854 a large outbreak of cholera swept through London due to the close quarter housing causing millions of people to fall ill and die.

This is where romanticism started to flourish due to the reason people started to question their reason on the world. Where the industrial factories turned night into day and people looked to the moon questioning the future. Due to the increased population and urbanisation it caused rural and urban areas to lose their identity. This led to artists such as Constable to look at the landscape as a means of personal expression. The nocturnal scenes are painted in rural scenes taken away from urbanized areas where the paintings represented that of a past life where time has gone by.

The artist has used very vigorous brush strokes with an intensely dark colour throughout this painting. Constable was known for this technique, and it is typical of Romanticism. This can especially be seen in the tree canopy where the outline of the bushes are highlighted by the intense glow from the moon. This has allowed the artist to enhance the dramatic effect that is being given off and heightened emotion within this painting.

However unlike other artist constable hasn’t focused his work on a detailed subject where the artist has used intricate details. Instead there this work has a rushed look but allows for the viewers attention to be drawn to the moon. The quick brush strokes also allows for the many colours that have been used in this painting to be blended and create more of a sinister feeling.

When looking closer at the painting you can see lighter colours in the bottom left side with some reflections from the moon. These shapes could be people or livestock such as cattle however due to the darkness of the night very little insight has been allowed keeping this segment of the painting a mystery allowing the viewer to keep guessing. However feature gives life to the painting allowing for some hope in the darkness.

The main feature that I am looking at within this painting is the moon just above the foreground of the painting. The colours that have been used within this subject in particular are very blocked and separated where the artist has used a clean white colour but added a little yellow to represent the craters that you can see on the moon. The bright and intense colour of this moon has also allowed him to create an eerie and mysterious glow coming from the far distance. This light can be seen to radiate from the moon as if it is a force field being created giving the painting the effect that the light is battling the dark and sinister landscape that can resemble death. It shows that even in the dark of night light can still prosper.

To the left of the painting you can see a small grouping of buildings that seem to be very built up. They are cased in a dark brown which could resemble an old and worked scene. This suggests that the building are that of an industrial town much like what Britain was becoming during the 19th century as machines and factories started to change the way that society worked and boosting the economy.

The artist has used a mixture of whites and blues to create the night sky. This allows for the light to travel throughout the sky easier without any clouds in the way. Instead of portraying an atmosphere of dramatic intensity from stormy clouds the artist has used few colours blended making the white light more mysterious and allows the viewer to think more. They think about what this scene is about and what the artist is trying to tell them.

When looking at this painting you can see a clearing of mud between the built up city and the undergrowth of the tree line. This raking light from the moon cascading down this clearing can be seen as a barrier between the industrialising city and nature. This can be referred to the dividing of good and evil where the pureness and tranquillity of nature has been separated from the destructive and greedy power of man. The moon can be viewed as a stronger force in this scenario sort of like god separating the good from the bad.

Fighting Temeraire, Joseph William Mallord, 1838

Now I will be looking at another romantic painting called the Fighting Temeraire by Joseph William Mallord Turner and how the moon has been used in this image to symbolise a new day. Along with the new and modernised steam boat towing the more old fashioned boat to be scrapped it represents how the new finally replaces the old and no matter how great something is its bound to end much like the life itself. This can be seen as a Memento Mori being that this is a reminder of death that is certain to happen to everyone.

Fighting Temeraire Joseph Mallord William Turner Mostly known for his paintings on the movement of Romanticism he was an English painter born in 1775. as well as painting he also had many other talents such as watercolour and printmaking. He was mostly known however for his expressive colours that were very intense and breath taking which then led to people recognising him as ‘The painter of light’. Although he was born in a middle class family he worked his way up from nothing to a world renowned painter when he started studying at the Academy of Arts from 1789 when he enrolled at the age of 14. during his life time he approximately did 2000 paintings and 19000 drawings and was therefore championed in 1840 by the leading English arts critic John Ruskin.

Context

Romanticism

The painting mainly focuses on a ship named the Temeraire which featured 98 guns. It played a great part in the victory in the battle of Trafalgar in 1805 for Nelson which gave it the nickname the ‘Fighting Temeraire’. It remained in service up until 1838 when she was decommissioned and towed from the Sheerness to Rotherhithe to be disassembled. This painting is said to represent the declining naval power of the British where the ship is pictures traveling east away from the sunset. The artists was trying to portray a sense of loss as one of the greatest ships in the navy was about to be gone forever.

This was the term that was used to describe the movement in which artists became more interested on theming their work with human psychology, expression of personal feelings and interest in the natural world and was popular during the nineteenth century. It was a way of allowing the artist to create a piece of work that emotionally connected to the viewer and made an impact on their views weather it was the feeling of love or if the painting was designed to outrage who ever saw it. It also saw to glorify the past and nature and was a method that was used when trying to portray an historical event or story as it made a deeper connection with the viewer by emphasising emotions, such as this painting by Delacroix called the Death of Sardanapulus.

Although it is faint, in the top left side of this magnificent painting you can see the crescent moon with a bit of its reflection on the clouds. This along with the sun can suggest that there is a new day approaching. Along with the contextual understanding of the image this can suggest that a new day brings new things as this grand ship is being towed away to be disassembled.

Mainly painted with a warm colour palette Turner has really captured the sunset and all its glory. It makes the painting look more magnificent as deep orange sunsets are often seen as magnificent and breath taking much like this ship. The artist has created an atmosphere in the sky that gives the ship a magnificent send of as it is taken to be broken into scraps.

Here I have highlighted the main focus of the painting that being the ship called the Temeraire. As you can see it is being towed across the water by a steam boat in front of it.

This resembles the new replacing the old and that all good things must come to an end. It can also relate to the life of a person as they can achieve great things in their life much like this ship but there comes a time that that all ends and our life ends no matter what we have accomplished. It can also be seen as a Memento Mori which means a reminder of death as this boat is being taken away to be disassembled.

In the lower right hand corner you can see the artist has included intricate details such as a half sunken ship. This tells the viewer that even though the ship has helped and achieved great things for the navy it is approaching some what of a death where its cast to one side and forgotten about.

The main focus of this piece for Turner was capturing the correct lighting to boost the atmosphere. This creates more emotion within the painting capturing the final moments of the Temeraire. It also portrays the feeling that Turner felt to the viewer when he saw this scene himself.

Two Men Contemplating the Moon, 1819, Casper David Friedrich

Moving on from the fighting Temeraire I will be looking at another Romantic painting titled Two Men contemplating the Moon by Casper David Friedrich and how he has used the moon and other features to portray emotion and thoughts linking to the sublime. The moon in this painting can be seen in the centre wrapped around a tree in its crescent form.

David Friedrich Born in 1774 he was the best known German romantic landscape painter. During his life he was a lonely man who lived in solitude due to a tragic childhood that scarred him for life. Born in Pomerania on the Baltic coast he spent most of his life in Dresden which was the cultural centre of Europe.

However he wasn’t born into an upper class family meaning he struggled to gain recognition for his work and made little riches over his lifetime; this could be the reason for his dramatically sad and empathetical scenes such as this one called Two men contemplating the moon.

After studying at the Academy Copenhagen which was one of Germanys most renowned school of education he never again travelled outside Germany, this meant he had refused the opportunity to leave his home country to travel to Rome to study art and their landscapes.

Using a lot of symbolism and intense spiritual character he mainly made studies of detailed nature. However, his most successful works came from his imagination and what he thought up; making a composition from scratch on canvas.

But towards the end of his life he became ill and died living in poverty with all obscurity.

Context

Ruckenfigur

Coming under the movement of romanticism it expresses emphasised emotions and feelings as the soft moon cascades throughout the scene. Along with the technical device of Ruckenfigur it invitingly allows the viewer to become part of the painting making more of a deeper connection.

During the 19th century there was allot of oppression in Germany during the revolution. People became sick of the censorship and oppression on the people from the ruling class thinking of themselves as immune to the issues of their country.

In many paintings during the 19th century artists tended to use a German feature called Ruckenfigur commonly known as figure from the back. This was where the artists would paint their landscapes featuring one or more figure but from a view point which only showed their backs. This feature was mainly used to allow the viewer to visible see the perspective of the subject and share the same breath taking moment that the subject in the painting is in; allowing the viewer into their emotional state so that you can share their feelings. These types of artworks were very popular during the 19th century due to the paradoxical effect that was produced by the artist.

Although the pose of the subject was inviting the viewer into the scene them having their back turned communicated an atmosphere and mood of isolation.

In this painting both men are together contemplating the moon.

During the time in which this painting was painted there was a lot of lunar fascination within Germany, first seen in literature but then incorporated into art by Friedrich. However other than admiring natures light this painting has a deeper meaning due to the clothes that both men are wearing. These are old Germanic costumes and represented a group of rebels associated with the anti-Napoleonic sentiments. The moonlight in this image cascades along the landscape in the painting making everything in the foreground such as the oak and the men silhouettes as they are surrounded by darkness. The smooth lighting that is also given off by the moon allows for an even lighting along the foreground scenery. This has allowed for the small details and features included to be visible as the light diffuses through the tree and men.

In an account by one of Friedrich’s friends William Wegener he said that the two men that are featured in this painting are Friedrich and his pupil August Heinrich. Friedrich being the man on the left and his pupil on the right. This suggests that the artist is giving some insight into what his life is like; teaching a budding artist to look more closely at nature and take in the magnificent sights. However they may be having a deeper meaning where the men are talking about something other than their art careers.

However the use of Ruckenfigur in this image allows the viewer to enter the emotional moment between the artist and his student giving us an idea of the things that they looked for in a landscape and how Friedrich taught.

When looking closer at the composition of the painting you can see that the majority of the painting is taken up by the slanted oak tree with the two men to the left which acts as a framing device for the moon in the centre. The composition of the painting is very filled leaving little space for the sky to come through. The artist has done this to allow the visible shape and silhouette of the tree to be visible allowing for intricate details to be made without too much dark space.

Course of Empire: Desolation, 1848, Thomas Cole

Now I will be looking at Course of Empire: Desolation by Thomas Cole. This is an example of Romanticism from America. Here the moon doesn’t illuminate the whole scene with its gloomy light it still resembles a new day and era.

Thomas Cole

After painting 4 other paintings of the same scene from different perspectives Cole has now painted the final stage called Desolation. Starting at The Savage State the artist paints the progressive course of the destruction of this civilisation. In this painting the final stage has occurred where there is no life present and all man made structures have been destroyed and left in ruins. However the cycle has started over and nature is taking control of the mountains and the sea, re claiming what was once its. However history will repeat itself when new settlers start their civilisation here and all that is created will be destroyed again and nature can yet again take back the land.

The Savage State

The Arcadian or Pastoral State

The Consummation of Empire

Destruction

Born in 1801 he was a romantic landscape painter and founder of the Hudson River school. He had spent 2 years at the Pennsylvania Academy of the fine arts where he was under the watch of his teacher called Stein; a well known portrait painter during the 19th century. His career first took off when some of his landscape paintings being displayed in a new York shop window caught the attention of Colonel John Trumbull and the painter Asher B. Durand where they bought his paintings and assured a prosperous and successful future for him.

This led to Thomas Coles influence and importance as an American artist during the mid 1830’s to rapidly increase through his career and his work influenced the art of his peers and the following generation of American artists.

Instead of following the traditional method of reflective art within landscapes he decided to express an historical or social event and sometimes did work on the subject of politics.

Desolation

In the top left of the painting you can see that the artist has used a dramatic cloud to frame the top of the painting. This emphasises the mood of destruction within this devastated civilisation; this is typical of romanticism. The colours that have been used have been kept within the grey colour palette range which gives them a very moody appearance. However due to the sunlight a golden orange tint can be seen as nature and life starts to take over and restore order.

Although the moon can be seen in the centre of the painting it isn’t the light source for this landscape. By looking closely at this pillar and other demolished structures throughout the mountains you can see the light is coming from another direction. This suggests that this is a daylight moon as the main light source is the sun coming from behind the perspective that the artist has chosen to paint. This gives the painting a golden and prosperous light as nature is finally able to grow.

By looking closer at the rubble from the ruined building from a previous civilisation you can see weeds and bushes starting to sprout. This tells us that not that life in this area has been killed off nature can finally take back what's hers and re claim the land that was taken away from her by man kind.

The artist is suggesting that this is an infinite cycle and will happen again when the next settlement decides to make a home here.

However, the cloud then slowly fades into what can be seen as the full moon. This full moon has been placed in the centre of the painting due to its substantial meaning. Because it is a new moon it resembles a new start for nature and the landscape around the old civilisation where there is a new beginning.

By using yellow lines I have separated the painting into 9 segments with two sets of parallel lines going vertical and across. This is to show how the artist has laid out the painting and where certain features have been placed. In the foreground you can see the majority of the rubble and devastation of the structures; in the middle you can see the main hall to the civilisation and the opening of the bay to the sea with the moon placed directly in the quarter line with the sky in the upper half.

With the orange lines you can see the different segments going along where the left has the main buildings and destroyed features, the middle has the ocean and moon with the mountain and forest starting at the right hand side of the painting.

This composition overall makes the painting pleasing to the eye and makes the viewer want to have a closer look. It also has allowed the artist to draw the attention to different features that he has included one after the other.

By having a clear sky with very few clouds has enabled the artist to create a completely new atmosphere within this painting. Whereas a clear sky would be bland he has include the clouds to create an intense and moody sky in which is disappearing into a clear blue sky. The way the artist has made the majority of the sky a luscious blue allows the scene to look more magical and relieved of an evil that had a grasp on it.

Instead of creating a blank and blue water the Cole has used a lot of whites and lighter shades to portray the reflection from the water. This has allowed him to also create the reflection of the buildings and the moon light. The moonlight reflecting off the water also creates character within the painting allowing Cole to explore with light even though the sun is out as well.

The Sheepfold, Moonlight Jean-Francois Millet, 1872

Linking to my theme of the moon, this painting features a bright moon that has either passed its full moon stage or is just about to become one. The eerie glow that it gives off casting everything in front of it into a silhouette instantly changes the atmosphere into a spooky scene. This further emphasises the solitary and poor situation that the shepherd is in making the viewers become more aware and passionate to the way that this man has to live.

Jean-Francois Millet In the painting Millet has painted a peasant shepherd urging his sheep into the sheepfold where he can keep them safe overnight with his hut in the background; behind him his two dogs are waiting to assist the man as the sheep are wrapped around the fencing being guided in.

Much like Millet’s background he tended to paint scenes of the less fortunate who aren’t as privileged as the rest of the population in that time period. In this scene he is depicting a lonely farmer that is working all hours of the day to keep his only source of income and lively hood living.

This then shows the viewer what things the poor have to do to carry on surviving throughout the year when times get tough.

He was a French painter and was one of the many founders of the Barbizon School. He was mainly recognised for his work that focused on the subject of poor farmers where he would paint them as they went about their daily jobs around their land. The style in which he painted in and the time period has categorised him in the Realism art movement where the colours and blending of his work gave an almost picture like feel as if time had stopped. He had started to become smarter in the topics of Latin and modern authors but due to his poor incomed family he had to start working with his father on farms as he was the eldest of his brothers.

The moon caused the farmer in the painting to become a silhouette giving the painting more of a lonely atmosphere. It further portrays the idea that he is on his own doing this hard labour so that he can earn money for himself and any possible family he has.

In the painting the artist has painted the a small shack for the sheep as shelter. This shows how poor the farmer is as he isn’t able to afford proper housing to keep his live stock safe and out of the elements.

Although the majority of the sky is clear the artist has included one dark rain cloud. This suggests an atmosphere of misery and depression linking to the mental state of the shepherd. This also fills in the emptiness of the sky and emphasises the light of the moon as it reflects off the cloud.

In this painting Millet has painted a moon just off the centre of the painting. They way that it has been painted in an obscure pattern is not one that artists tend to use to depict whilst they often choose the full moon or crescent moon. This grand sight casts a gleaming light across the sheep farm making the farmer that of a silhouette in the distance; this gives the painting an eerie feel and portrays a sense of loneliness to the viewer. This moon appears realistic and millet is often associated with the realism movement in France.

In this painting of a solitude shepherd organising his sheep the artist has included two dogs to the left of the man. This could have been used to emphasise how alone the farmer is out in the baron field where he is exposed. The only company that he has are these two loyal dogs. As well as them being able to keep him company they act as a helping hand and are the only other tool that the farmer has to get the sheep where he wants.

The Weeders, Jules Breton, 1868

In the upper right hand corner you can see the crescent moon high in the sky as the sun starts to set. Much like that of The Sheepfold by Miller the painter of this painting Jules Breton has created a scene showing peasant people working in manual labour on a farm. In this case the artist has painted a group of women who seem to be picking a small plant from a field.

Jules Breton Born in 1827 he was a French Realist painter and the majority of his work was influenced by the French countryside and by using more traditional methods than other artist allowed his work to stand out more than other artists of that era.

He moved to Antwerp in 1846 where he took lessons with Egide Charles Gustave Wappers and spent most of his time copying the works of Flemish masters to further improve his skills within the subject of realism. This allowed him to implement the skills he had learnt into his own work to further progress his own understanding of art and how he can portray certain scenes with more empathy so that the viewer can connect with what is happening better.

Context

Romanticism

Focusing on peasant life this painting is an oil on canvas painting painted by an artist named Jules Breton in 1868 showing a group of women weeding a farmers field until the sun has started to set and light has started to disappear. During the 19th century France was under much political stress as the government and monarchy struggled to keep order and find a suitable heir. This caused a lot of tension with the people of France as they still carried on working to make a living.

It wasn't until the end of the 19th century that rapid industrialisation started to allow Paris to make railways that increased trade offering more jobs and a better life for the French people.

However during this political era when Napoleon governed as first Consul the art movement of Romanticism became a more popular movement for artists to paint in. This displayed many features such as emotion, nature that were often painted in a realistic manner. This movement was inspired by the wake of the civil uprising against the opposing government where romanticism was used in the visual arts and literature using realism which focused on modern subjects and lives around the lower classes much like in this painting.

Originating in Europe at the end of the 18th century it was characterised by its emphasis on emotion and individualism as well as the glorification of the past and nature. The reason for this movement was as a reaction to the industrial revolution where nature was being replaced with the man made machines and factories that were changing the way that society worked and jobs around the neighbouring areas in which new factories were being built. artists painted in this style as an aim to emphasis emotion and allow the viewer of their work to connect more with nature and make more of a empathetical connection with their work. This resulted in changing peoples opinion s and views on things and acted as a propaganda within the media and was often used by churches with religious paintings to make the viewers think more about life.

For the woman closest to the foreground the artist has created her with a struggling look on her face. This emphasises to the viewer the struggles that the people have to go through to make even a small amount of money. It tells us that when you are born into a lower class family that you have to work hard for the rest of your life so that you and your family can survive.

Much like the woman at the front with the upset and struggling face this woman seems to be taking a break from the hard labour. The pose that she has been painted in tells us that the work that they are doing takes a toll on your body and can have painful results. However in front of this woman are two bags of weeds. These are presumably the weeds that all the women have collected from that part of the field and that this woman is the person that looks over all the others to make sure they are doing their job.

The artist has featured the crescent moon in this painting that implies that they have been working for a long time on this field. It represents the end of the current day and the start of the night and the fact that they have to work till there is very little light shows that they have to work hard to get a decent amount of pay. The way the artist has painted this part of the painting allows you to see the subtle brush strokes that have been created in the oil paint creates very realistic tones and colours that seem like a picture has been taken.

As suggested by these three women close together it can be seen that they have a systematic way of pulling the weeds. This allows them to get the job done thoroughly and quickly. It tells the viewer that the work they are doing is very demanding and that they don’t have much time to do it properly. The fact that all the people on the field doing this job are women suggests that this wasn’t a job for the men to be doing. It can also suggest that the women did this job whilst their men were out working so that they could bring more money and an extra income to the family.

Yet again along with the moon this sunset allows the viewers too see that the women have been working for a long time and that the day is over. However the colours within this segment of the painting are very warm with red, orange and yellows being used. This has allowed the artist to blend a nice sunset that casts the trees in front of it into a silhouette. This emphasises emotion within the painting and is the main piece that links to the day ending. It also shows that even thought the work is so hard it is being done in such a beautiful and breath taking environment and surroundings.

To fill the painting the artist has included more women working in the far distance in the background. This enhances the broadness of the field and how large the scale of work that needs doing is. The amount of people working on the filed in such a close proximity also suggests that it is an important task as the weeds are stealing the nutrients from the crops hindering their growth.

The number of women on the filed also suggests that their are allot of families that are in poverty and have to do the smallest and hardest of jobs to make a living.

Harvest Moon, George Inness, 1891

Following my analysis of The Weeders by Jules Breton I will be looking at Harvest Moon by George Inness. The reason I have chosen this painting is because of the moon lit landscape. As seen by this zoomed in segment the artists light source for this painting is a full moon just off the centre of the painting.

George Inness

The lighting of this landscape is all natural coming from the full moon in the far distance of the scene. Much like most of his other artworks, the use of colours and brush strokes have created a slightly blurred moon allowing for the creation of depth. This allows the viewer to see how the far field in the background that the moon is about to disappear behind is much further away than the one in the foreground.

Born in 1825 he was an American landscape painter who studied at the Barbizon school in France. Although through out his work you can see his style evolve over his career that spanned more than 40 years he became most known for his work that displayed powerful emotions and atmosphere with coordinated depth of mood.

His work was renowned for having blurred elements with focused ones as he was labelled the master of light, colour and shadow which allowed him to relate depth within his work.

However, he didn’t paint in the movement of realism or impressionism but instead intended to create artworks that portrayed depth and display emotion.

At the start of his career a patron named Ogden Haggerty sponsored Inness’ first Grand tour to Europe in 1851 so that he could study and paint.

His passion for landscapes started to develop when painting in Rome where he had magnificent views and natural scenes at his disposal.

To the left of the painting you can see the farmers cottage painted right on top of the lower half of the painting. The cottages chimney gives life to the painting and shows that other than nature there is some human presence as well. It also breaks down the amount of green in the painting and adds more of a variety of colour to the painting.

Here I have used some lines to show the perspectives and features that the artist has included to make his work more coordinated and as accurate to what the eye would see.

As seen by the orange line this marks just under centre of the painting. This is where the tree line and the cottage have been painted allowing the artist to break up the sky from the multiple shades of green in the ready to harvest field bellow.

However, the blue line has been used to bring attention to the field of view that Inness has created. This is the way that he has created depth within the painting. It is a tool that the artist has used to make the subject in the foreground sharper and more focused than that in the background which can be seen to be more blurred and out of focus. This makes the painting more interesting to look and the scaling is more lifelike than that of realism where the main focus is detail.

Along the top of this painting the artist has create a dim cloudy that seems to surround the light of the moon. This creates a sinister atmosphere as if something terrible is about to happen. It also adds more tones to the paintings that are very different to the palette of green that the artist has used through out the foreground and middle of the scene. Yet again the shades and brush strokes that the artist has decided to use has created a nice smooth and blended texture that almost makes the clouds seem life like and with the intensity and blurriness of them creates a humid and pre rain feel around the whole image.

In the foreground the artist has used small dabbing brush strokes of a more blocked green to create leaves in a clearing of mud. This adds more detail along with the thin sharp strokes for the grass. Adding a more dynamic and detailed technique to the painting overall.

Starry Night, Van Gogh, 1889

In this painting by Van Gogh he has used the moon light sky with the stars to illuminate the foreground and midground. It is said that this was the sight in which he saw out his window in the asylum. By using rapid brush strokes and intense colours this artist has managed to create a shimmering light that is sweeping across the mountain landscape. This creates a barrier between the dark and quite town and the light of the sky; resembling life and death. This gives us insight into the frame of mind the artist was in when he was painting this painting.

Starry Night Van Gogh Born in 1853 with the name Vincent Willem van Gogh he was a post impressionist painter. He is mostly known for his striking colours and brush work that aren’t seen in any other artist style. He has completed to what is estimated at 2,100 artworks that consist of oil paintings, watercolour, drawings and sketches.

Context The Starry Night was painted in 1889 in France when Van Gogh was staying in an asylum in Saint-Remy a year before his death when he died of a self inflicted gun wound. In a letter to his brother he wrote “ this morning I saw the countryside from my window a long time before sunrise, with nothing but the morning star, which looked very big,” along with his emotions and memory he constructed this oil painting on a canvas depicting what he saw as an expressive swirling night sky above a sleeping village. Its dimensions are 73.70 x 92.10cm and is an oil on canvas painting currently on display at the Museum of Modern art in New York.

Impressionism

Post-impressionism

Originally developed by Claude Monet and other painters that were based in Paris in the 1860’s. instead of painting in a studio like other movements such as and romanticism it is painted outside in the open air. They believed that by working quickly they could capture the true momentary and transient effects of the sunlight. This allowed for the shifting pattern of nature to be captured within the artworks but also due to the quick movements of the artist showed up their brush strokes and the style in which they painted; this also allowed the artist to better portray light as the colours were broken and un blended allowing them to stand off the page more. Although it originated in France it then later influenced other artists over seas such as the popular British impressionists such as Walter Richard Sickert and Wilson Steer.

This is made up of many styles that is intended to react against the impressionist movement. This art movement was first developed during the late nineteenth century and early 20th century and the term came from an art critic called Roger Fry when he described an artists work, he later used the same term again when organising an image. However the main use of post-impressionism was to create art that would contradict and create a reaction against impressionism.

In the upper right hand corner the moon can be seen in its crescent stage. This shows how powerful the sky is with the intense light sweeping across the town bellow it. This can also be a contrast between life and death with the bright stars and a gloomy peaceful village.

In the sky of this painting van Gogh has depicted the sky brimming with clouds that swirl around one another with shining stars and a bright crescent moon as one of the main focus points. The way that the brush strokes have created individual lines for each colour allows the portrayal of light to be enhanced as each of the colours is more prominent on the canvas. Contrasting with the blue sky this cloud shows an effortless swirl that is illuminated by the moon showing how graceful nature is.

Further suggesting the link between light and dark with life and death is the tall and curvy tree in the foreground of the painting. This is a cypress tree that was presumable part of the landscape that van Gogh saw outside the asylum. The tree is also commonly associated with mourning which suggests that frame of mind that the artist was in when painting this painting. Being the darkest spot in the painting draws the viewers attention as if there is some evil lurking over the town as darkness spreads throughout the night.

Van Gogh’s use of colour within his artworks often made analysts believe that he had a disability that changed the way that he viewed colour much like what happens in lead poisoning. There is a wide range of yellows used within this artwork as seen in this star that can be seen next to the cypress tree. The viewers attention is drawn to the sky due to the composition of yellows and whites within this star as they spiral and disperse out becoming more spaced between every brush stroke.

When taking a closer look at this star and the clouds around it you can see that there are hints of a mint green amongst the white. This is there to show the reflection of the moon and further portray the traveling of the light across the dark.

The quick and fast movements of the brush strokes also allows the artist to portray a dramatic effect within his work. It makes the light more intense and allows more depth to be created within the art. By using impasto oil paints van Gogh was also able to layer the colours which added to the composition of the painting and created visible textures.

When looking closer at the village you can see that van Gogh has used mostly dark and dim colours so that the houses don’t take the attention away from the starry night. The use of orange and yellow gives the small town some life although it somewhat seems abandoned other than a few people. The elongated spire that seemingly points towards the sky at the main swirling motion of the wind.

Along the middle of the painting above the mountain you can see the glare from the moon about to come cascading into the town. By adding this to the painting Van Gough has created a barrier between light and dark or life and death where the light is protecting life from death.

The snake charmer, 1907, Henri Rousseau

Following starry night by van Gogh I will be looking at another painting that has been done in a style of art that not many artists liked to use but became very well known. The reason I am looking at this piece by Henri Rousseau is due to the moon illuminating the whole scene. It creates a golden glow on the image revealing the darkness in the undergrowth.

Henri Rousseau Born in 1844 in Laval in France he had joined the army but was never had the chance to see combat. When he left the army in 1868 he entered the Paris municipal toll-collecting service as a second clerk. This led to his nick name ‘Le Douanier’.

He was a French post-impressionist painter in Naïve or Primitive manner where the colours were simplistic as well as the line work featuring very traditional styling of painting. He became a serious painter in his early forties and by 49 he retired from his job as a toll and tax collector to become a full time painter.

Due to the style in which he painted in during the 19th century it left his work being heavily ridiculed. However he won admiration of the Avant-garde and in 1908 Pablo Picasso held a banquet to honour Rousseau and the work he has created.

Context Commissioned by the mother of painter Robert Delaunay the snake charmer was painted by a self taught artist called Henri Rousseau. The main reason for Rousseau to be commissioned to do this piece of work was due to his acceptance by the Avant-garde. In this moonlight scene a woman plays her flute next to the river bank summoning the serpents from the surrounding undergrowth. Rousseau’s best known artworks often tend to depict jungles and the multitude of green colours that have been layered in different ways to create the multiple tones that can be seen in this image.

It was thought that Rousseau taught very simplistic patterns and included these in his work where everything was very simplistic.

However, he actually took great care in planning his work and at the top of the canvas you can see that there is a white and pure full moon. The moons light then illuminates everything bellow with a clean and even light.

By looking closely at this segment of the painting you can see a very even blend of tones and multiple greens in a small and confined space. This is due to the technique in which the artist painted in. instead of blending and applying all the colours at once by mixing them he layered his paint after the previous layer had dried. He started with the sky and then slowly layered the leaves to create depth.

When comparing the flamingo to the rest of the painting you can see that this is the only part that has used a pastel like colour scheme. Much like the snakes the bird is fixed on the music that the woman is playing. The horizontal lines of the water ripples enhances the stillness of the bird and how fixated on the woman the animals are.

By using a transferring device he was able to accurately copy his sketches onto the canvas to create these simplistic patterns. In this segment you can see that the moon has cast a clean and even The main focus of this painting as well golden glow on the plant. This creates a as the moon in the woman just off the sense of harmony within the painting creating depth. centre of the painting. She is very obscure and the only visible parts to her are her eyes, curves and leg length as well as her long flowing hair reaching her knees. Compared to Eve in the garden of Eden the roles have been reversed and the woman is charming the serpents and nature; showing that she is unafraid of them.

Intention After exploring the works of different artists I will be designing an art exhibition to display these paintings for the world to see. During this process I will explore multiple titles and designs for posters I can use to attract visitors. By using designs and ideas from currently created exhibition posters I will use them as a basis idea to allow my own version and ideas to develop into my final project.

Titles Illuminated Radiant Selene Artmis Hecate Lunar

Enlightened Purity Orb of light Luminous Bright Effulgent

After looking for words that are related to the moon and light I have selected these few that I believe best describe the moon. In the second row the three names Selene, Artmis, Hecate; all three of these people are considered lunar gods and could be a possible idea for my title. However, the title that best describes the moon is the word Lunar.

The reason I have chosen this word to represent my exhibition is because it sums up the light that is given off by the moon and can directly be linked to the subject theme that I have chosen. Therefore by using this title I will develop multiple ideas that will allow me to create my very own exhibition displaying the paintings that have some lunar significance.

To start off the making of this font I used the colours from the poster and layered them to make a blended glowing like colour. This was to be used as my background so that the font looked as though it was giving off light.

Next I created a font in which had gaps between it so that it looked like neon bars.

This was so that when I proceeded to the next step the glow looked even more emphasised

Next I went into the blending options and added an outer glow. This made it look as though the letters were light beams and giving off a luminous and eerie light.

The reason I have chosen to look at this font from a the poltergeist movie is because the word lunar that I have chosen to have as my title for the exhibition sums up the light in which the moon gives off. This font has an led neon light effect that is broadcasted out from the lined title.

For my version of this title I made a font that had similar gaps inside the letters and transferred it to photoshop. I then used the blending options to give the text an inner and outer glow after selection a colour that I best felt matched lunar light. For the background I took three sample colours from the actual poster going from light to dark. I then used a soft edged brush to create a beaming light effect that seemed as though the lunar title was emitting an eerie and bright glow. These three colours were done on top of one another to make it look blended and realistic.

First of all I designed a font that best matched that of the poster inspiration. I then used the colour drop tool to use the colour from the actual poster and use it for my font. I then used the blending options to add a texture and then added a gradient.

Next I used the rectangular marque tool and selected small areas In which to colours the same as the font. I did this by holding the alt + and back keys to fill the selected area.

To finish the font I added these lines to multiple places such as the ones that can be in the example font. This is to give it the dispersion effect.

After looking at this poster for the movie twilight I thought the font fitted the theme of the moon and lunar really well. Not only does this posters title have association with the moon and was one of the possible contenders for my title the font colour also resembles that of the moon.

To re create this I made a font that was very similar to the one seen in the poster and changed the colour to the same sort of colour. I then used the blending options on the text to create a texture so it wasn’t blocked text. This looks very similar tom the worn down look that the poster has. I then proceeded to use the rectangular marquee tool to highlight sections in which I would change to the same colour as the text. This created the lined effect that you can see in the original poster.

Gallery Poster To develop ideas for my own exhibition poster I am going to be looking at posters such as this national portrait gallery poster for ideas. This is so that I have a real example of what mine should look like and what information should be included.

By looking at this poster you can see that there is one main focus point for the viewer to look at to entice them into coming to see the gallery. In this example that is the portrait of a child empathetically staring at the viewer with a look of curiosity.

However, the information around the image has been kept to a minimum and very simple so it isn’t distracting and easy for the viewer to see. It features a black background which makes the white stand out more. They have also used purple text to highlight the important information that the viewer will need to know.

They have also included a link to their website which is an idea which I could possibly use to link the viewer to this power point featuring in depth analysis of paintings.

Their dynamic font is also catching to the eye and suits the dark black background well. One of the main reasons why this font is so successful is due to the amount of space that there is with the simplistic design.

To start I have taken the colour from my research poster and used the bucket tool to create a new canvas. This is on an A3 document on photoshop where I will be creating a poster much like the original.

Then in a font that I created I typed my title. However by then using alt and the arrow keys I closed the gaps between the letters to make them closer together.

I then added the rest of the information such as the dates and times as well as the location. Where as the original had a moon like fill I decided to insert a whole moon into the background. I then got rid of the text to reveal the moon and fill the writing with the white of the picture.

To fill the blank black space behind the moon I then inserted a galaxy into the background. After experimenting with multiple positions I settled on the stars closer to the galaxy due to the iridescent light that is coming out.

This makes it look as thought he moon is giving off this luminous light.

Much like the original poster I researched I felt like the top of mine had a lot of empty space. To fill this I added an image of the full moon in the same sort of position as the research poster. I then turned the opacity down to allow the background to show a little making the moon less intense and stop it distracting from the title and information.

To start of the development of this poster I took a painting that features the moon in the centre. I then enlarged it to fit an A3 document on photoshop and turned the opacity down.

By creating a rectangle shape in PowerPoint I copied it into photoshop and free transformed it. I then moved it to the same sort of position as the original poster and used the eyedropper tool to get the same colour.

For the black shape I did the same as the red but have inserted the text on top. The text is in a font called Nevis bold and for the title it was merged with the black shape. This allowed me to then select the title text with the magic wand tool and delete it revealing the background layer.

To complete this poster I inserted the rest of the information such as times and date and the location of the exhibition. This was all placed in the same sort of are as the original poster to give it the best comparison and a good end result.

After looking at my artist inspiration of a pre existing exhibition poster I have decided to rein act it to see how well it would work to fit my theme. Everything has been done the same as the original and for the bands I pasted some shapes in from PowerPoint and used the transform tool. However instead of a cream background I used a painting featuring the moon. I them used the magic wand tool to cut out the text leaving the background visible.

After looking through a website called graphic mama ( https://graphicmama.com/blog/graphic-designtrends-2018/ ) I have chosen to look at the relax poster. The first image on the left is the image I chose to do the effect on with just the clouds to see how well the effect would turn out. However to link it more to my project I got a picture with the moon and created the effect again. However due to the dark background the blue doesn’t stand out as well and is dominated by the red.

Here I have designed two poster ideas following the idea of 3D after looking at my poster inspiration. However due to the colours in the first image it has prevented the blue standing out and has become black and red. The second example fits the theme of the inspiration idea and this is what I will use to show an example of an exhibition poster.

After looking at the example from the graphics website I have created my own version using the clouds that I had originally made. For the title I used a blocked font called Nevis bold in which I duplicated twice to create three of the same title.

These were then moved to different locations but close together and still making contact. The colours were then changed to a similar one as seen in the Relax poster. To get the transparent effect that they had I turned the other two fonts opacity down whilst keeping the green one at 100%. This allowed the other fonts to be made visible and give it the 3D and slitting effect as seen in the poster. To finish it off so it could link to the moon I inserted a moon into the page and turned the opacity down; I then made a cut out of some of the clouds to put on top of the moon to give it the effect that the moon is peeking out of the clouds.

I think this is a successful attempt at reconstructing the research poster. This is due to how subtle the colours in the background are.

This allows for the information in the foreground to stand out more and allow the viewer not to be too distracted.

This technique with the coloured lines can be used in my exhibition booklet to highlight the artists name on each of their paintings.

After looking for more inspirational ideas that can influence my work I have found another image from graphic mama. I have selected a 3D looking effect of a woman's head shot using a limit of two colourations. This gives a modern and dynamic atmosphere across to the viewer and allows for a more vibrant and colourful poster to be created.

First of all to imitate the image that I found on the graphics trend page I will need a subject of my own. In this case I have chosen to use the main person in the painting ‘An experiment on a bird with a air pump’ by joseph wright. Here we have one of the lunar society members. I needed a clear and focused image for when it is enlarged

After finding this image I enlarged it to fit the size of a A3 document on photoshop so that the face is covering the whole page. This is so that the poster that I am creating has the whole page covered by this lunatics face.

Next I duplicated the layer so that I can edit the copy whilst keeping the original. This is so that if a mistake is made I can easily go back and alter my decisions.

Next I created a layer mask where I have changed the hue and saturation of the image. Within the hue and saturation tool I; chose colourise which allowed the whole image to be changed one colour.

For this image I changed it red to match that of my inspiration example.

The last step was then copied for another copy of the original layer but changing the hue and saturation to a colourised blue. The edited coloured layer mask was then merged with their individual layers so that they were then separated.

This is the final outcome following the inspirational 3d design on graphic mama. By turning the opacity down on the blue image I have slightly revealed the red one underneath; this gives the image a ghostly and dynamic effect that I am very pleased with. Following the development of this technique I have been reminded of a famous poster by an artist named Shepard Fairey who designed Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign poster. Much like the 3D effect it uses similar colours and tones but uses a more pop blocked design and inspires me to create a poster much like it.

After experimenting with other backgrounds combined with this editing technique I have now progressed to try it with this final image I have created. However after looking at the end result compared to the other examples I think this isn’t the best out of the selection I now have. However it has helped me to understand what colours best stand out in front of the background.

The black background on the text works really well however due to the fact that the cut out text creates a blended colour effect of the 3d background.

Obama’s HOPE Poster Created by an artist called Shepard Fairey this iconic poster is widely known around the world when is came to represent the president in the 2008 presidential campaign. It consists of a stylized stencil portrait of Obama that can be compared to that of cubism with blocked colours representing different lighting. Within this poster there are only 5 colours used to represent the president entirely. Many words have been used at the bottom of the frame such as “progress” and “change” but “hope” being the most popular and striking to the crowds being the most widely distributed version.

However, amongst its complexity thus design was created within a day and then printed first as a poster and Fairey managed to later sell an estimated 290 copies of this poster on the streets before it was then widely distributed.

After Obama’s win in the election for president of the united states in 2009 the image was acquired by the Smithsonian Institution for its National Portrait Gallery.

Now I will attempt to recreate this poster to my best capabilities to allow for a stunning poster that will bring more viewers to my exhibition

Firstly to recreate this iconic poster I needed an image that could be related to my exam topic of the moon. In this instance I am using the face of the main experimenter in Joseph Wrights painting called ‘Experiment on a Bird in an Air Pump’. To get a clear and sharp image I needed to use the picture on the national gallery that allowed me to zoom in close on the painting whilst keeping a high sharpness. This was then copied into a new document in photoshop.

I then used the Hope poster in photoshop and created another layer with the navy blue band at the bottom as seen in this screenshot. The background was then split in half with two different tones of brightness dividing the page in two. The head was also enlarged so that it covered the majority of the page.

I then used a channel mixer and posterizer along with a gradient map to change the colour of the entire image. A blur filter was also applied to blur the surface but keep the edges pristine and then a cut-out filter to separate the picture into multiple colours.

Unlike the original poster that had 5 colours I changed mine to 8 so that there was still a lot of detail preserved in the final image.

Finally the poster was separated into its final colours to closely resemble the inspiration piece. This was done in the gradient map by changing the locations and colours to the my image so that each segment of the poster is assigned its own colour.

After looking at the Snake Charmer featuring block colours that have been layered amongst one another to create depth I have been reminded of a campaign poster for the president. Whereas muted tones have been used in the painting this artist has used bright colours to create a more eye catching and modernized poster.

The simplistic design of this font really catches the viewers attention and the two tones of the same colour contrast one another really well making the text come off the page. To recreate this logo I took the original poster into photoshop and cropped it down to the text. I then filled the actual font with the background colour to create a clear canvas however saving the original colour to the text. Next I searched for a font that closely resembled that of the original in the presidential campaign poster for Obama. In this case a font called Nevis Bold best suited what I was aiming for and the end result closely resembles that of what I was aiming to achieve.

To complete this poster I added the text which was in the font called Nero a very similar font to that of the original campaign poster. The image was then flattened to refine the edges and opened into another photoshop document resizing it to A3. part of the background was changed blue and certain colours within the face were also changed such as the new blue colour seen throughout the subjects face. Overall I believe I have created a poster that closely resembles that of the original by Shepard Fairey.

For the ticket stub I first selected the background I wanted to have and this was one of a lake with the moon illuminating the scenery by a house. I think that by having a darker foreground the illuminated moon stands out more from the rest of the painting.

I then added a barcode to allow the user of the ticket entry into my art exhibition. It will determine what is a fake ticket or a real one and let us know whether the ticket has been used yet. I also added a dashed line so that once the ticket has been scanned the barcode can be cut or ripped off so that it cant be used again.

To create the title I used a font called Nevis bold and created a clipping mask with A Moonlit Lake by a Castle in the background. A outer glow was then added to make it stand out from the page more.

Finally to finish off the ticket I added the relevant information such as the title date and times to allow the viewer to know when the exhibition is. This is so that even though they aren’t by the poster they can see the relevant information. I changed the clipping mask within the font so that it was the same design as the poster to make it more relevant. I also added an artistic cut-out from the filter gallery to produce a simple blocked effect to match my poster whilst keeping to the same sort of colour palette.

National Gallery

After my visit to the national gallery in London I have developed some ideas that can be implemented into my own exhibition design. First of all the room are very large allowing for a large flow of visitors to walk through at any point in time. I will also take into consideration the placement of the paintings on the wall and how they are positioned. Here they have put larger painting closer to the floor than the smaller paintings often doubling up the smaller paintings above one another. This is a good concept however, could cause congestion around multiple paintings with them being hung over one another.

After my visit to multiple galleries such as the Tate modern and the national gallery I have designed my own exhibition room. After traveling through their rooms and seeing the broad and open spaces that the visitors can travel through I felt like I needed to implement this into my own work. This would allow for an easier flow of visitors and the place to not get as crowded and trapping people in certain paces. Here I have also shown where the painting will be in relation to the layout of the exhibition which will also be shown on the booklet, this will allow the viewer to see where the paintings will be before they visit my gallery.