Blizzard

   The below image I found an intriguing portrayal of a blizzard. The art itself is very 19th century-ish-- this for me increases the art's intrigue-- specific techniques create a specific atmosphere that's related to a specific era-- it's retro, if you will. Furthermore, I'm in awe with the composition. The artist achieves a flawless balance of negative and positive space weaving together into one blizzardy storm: the horse trudging forward, cranberry red sled in tow while daringly approaching the "dead zone" of the painting-- assumed to cross hypothetical paths with a man and his dog moving in the opposite direction on the other side of the composition-- of which are also approaching the dead zone, yet not quite there. The composition is masterful, the whole "dangerously close to the dead zone" thing implies great. struggling movement. Such as we Vermonters know all to well, is inevitable and heavy correlated to "walking" in deep snow. I like the crossing paths aspect of the art too, this also emphasizes movement. All of this is enveloped by a mystic winter wonderland: an average, rural street transformed into a fantasy land that would put Narnia to shame.

Mask inspiration

The mask below is a classic example of a Venetian mask. I especially commend the artists' subtle transition from mask to face in the eye area-- it's done so masterfully, the woman's' face almost seems part of the mask. The colors are also breathtaking-- a captivating yet paced and by no means color scheme of silvers, yellows and other "moon, sun and sky" colors leave one in awe. Though it may give the illusion of being simple, a second look reveals that this mask was no easy creative accomplishment. Intense detail on the minutely perfected outlines of the silver stars and moons on the cheeks to the very deliberate, exact gradiation of the crisp yellow "eye-shadow" all point to one conclusion: this piece of art is a masterpiece.

Portrait

The portrait below is by the well known 20th century artist Henri Matisse. Matisse uses bold, textured strokes of paint at opposing angles to give the illusion of value and exaggerated, saturated colors to further emphasize this illusion. I find this piece of artwork interesting because even decades after its production, it comes across as unique, fresh and creative. Even if I don't necessarily want to use the same techniques in my art than Matisse, his work is nonetheless inspiring because of its outside-of-the-box "embrace the shake"-ness.