Analysis of a work of fine art example. System analysis of art. Analysis plan for a painting

We look at the world with our own eyes, but artists taught us to see it. S. Maugham.

Symbolism and Art Nouveau in Russian art of the early 20th century. PETROV-VODKIN Kuzma Sergeevich (1878-1939) “Bathing the red horse”

The events of October 1917, the first post-revolutionary years - this time has become history and even legend for us. Perceiving it differently than our fathers and grandfathers, we strive to feel and comprehend the era, its pathos and drama, immersing ourselves in its art, bypassing the categorical statements of politicians.

In one of the books published in 1926 (Shcherbakov N.M. Art of the USSR. - New Russia in art. M., Publishing house “AHRR”, 1926), the idea was expressed: “... in such crystals - a painting, a song, a novel, a statue - a monument - not only the deathly, mirror shadow of life is stored for a long time, but also part of the energy that is in the passage of centuries retains its charge for those who approach it."

Kuzma Sergeevich Petrov - Vodkin (1878 - 1939) a representative of the Russian avant-garde, was born in the city of Khvalynsk, Saratov province, into the family of a shoemaker. He studied briefly in Samara and St. Petersburg, and from 1897 at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture with A.E. Arkhipov and V.A. Serov. A trip to Italy and northern Africa, studying at the Aschbe school in Munich and Parisian studios, and acquaintance with European art significantly expanded the artistic horizons of Petrov-Vodkin. Early period The artist’s work is marked by a symbolist orientation (“Dream”, 1910), in which the influence of Vrubel and Borisov-Musatov is discernible. Petrov-Vodkin became famous in Russia in 1912, when his painting “The Bathing of the Red Horse” was exhibited at the World of Art exhibition, which amazed viewers with its daring originality. This work of the artist marks an important milestone in his work: the symbolism of his artistic language finds plastic and figurative expression in the traditions of icon painting, color - in the tricolor system: red, blue, yellow. The artist strives to discover in man the manifestation of the eternal laws of the world order, to make specific image personification of the connection of cosmic forces. Hence the monumentality of the style and the “spherical perspective”, i.e. perception of any fragment from a cosmic point of view, and understanding of space as “one of the main storytellers of the picture.”

Bathing the red horse.

On a huge canvas, an almost flat red horse, occupying a good half of the surface of the entire canvas (and it large sizes: 160 x. 180 cm), sitting naked, a boy painted in orange and yellow paint. With one hand he holds on to the bridle, with the other he leans on a huge red horse, rushing forward, deliberately turning towards us, as if posing. The horse does not fit into the picture frame and rests against its edges. The eye shines feverishly, the nostrils flutter, but the man holds it back. Not a giant, but a fragile young man, a teenager easily sits on a horse, trustingly placing his hand on the elastic croup, easily and freely controls the horse, clearly standing out against the blue-green background of the reservoir in which two more boys are training with their horses.

What is the meaning of such a strange image? The fact that the essence is not in the everyday plot (art does not deal with everyday life) of horses bathing (this is clear from the title - after all, there are no red horses) is clear: the meaning of the picture is encrypted, you need to be able to read it. According to one of modern interpretations, very common, the horse is perceived as a symbol of Russia, personifying its beauty and strength, it is associated with Blok’s image of a “steppe mare” galloping, which combines Russia’s past, its modern, and that eternal that will remain forever. Another interpretation, even more generalized, expressed by art critic D. Sarabyanov: “This is a dream of beauty, not everyday, but unexpected, a feeling of awakening, gathering energy before future trials, this is a premonition of great events, changes.”

The vagueness of the concept of the painting was confirmed by Petrov-Vodkin himself, who said two years after its creation when it began world war, that “unexpectedly for him, a thought flashed through his mind - so that’s why I wrote “Bathing the Red Horse” (Rusakov Yu.A. Petrov - Vodkin. Art., 1975.) Although in recent years he was already ironic about this, rejecting what was said, emphasizing his reluctance to tie his picture to any specific historical event: “When the war broke out, our clever art critics said: “This is what “Bathing the Red Horse” meant, and when the revolution occurred, our poets wrote: “This is what the red horse means” - this is a holiday of the revolution” (quoted from: Mochalov L. V. Petrov - Vodkin - L., “Aurora”., 1971.) The uncertainty of the idea of the work, the vagueness of the forebodings contained in it are a true expression of the state of mind not only of Petrov - Vodkin, but also of the intelligentsia in general in the first two decades of the twentieth century. The experiences, aspirations, and dreams of people seemed to materialize in the symbolic image of a red horse. They are not individually everyday, but high, huge, eternal, like the eternal dream of a wonderful future. To express this state, a special artistic language was needed.

Petrov-Vodkin’s innovation is based on his understanding of the art of modern and previous eras, primarily the work of the Impressionists and Matisse, and the traditions of ancient Russian art (remember, for example, the famous icon of the Novgorod school of the 15th century “The Miracle of George on the Serpent”), which possessed rich means of depicting the eternal , spiritual, pure morality. A clearly defined silhouette of objects, locally painted surfaces, a rejection of the laws of perspective and the depiction of volumes, a special use of color - the famous “tricolor” of Petrov-Vodkin are present in this landmark canvas for the artist, revealing the originality of his artistic language. IN folk tales There is also an image of a rider on a Red Horse. The word “red” in Russian has a broad meaning: red - beautiful, which means not only beautiful, but also kind; red - girl.

The artist’s active appeal to the traditions of icon painting is not accidental. His first teachers were the icon painters of his native Khvalynsk, located on the high Volga bank.

Everything in the picture is built on contrasts. The color red sounds alarming and inviting. And like a dream, like a forest distance - blue, and like a ray of sunshine - yellow. The colors do not collide, do not oppose, but harmonize.

“The main sign of the new era is movement, mastery of space,” the artist asserted. How to convey this? How to master space in painting? Petrov-Vodkin sought to convey the boundlessness of the world, using the so-called. "spherical perspective". Unlike linear, opened by artists Renaissance, where the point of view is fixed, spherical perspective implies multiplicity, mobility of points of view, the ability to view the depicted object from different sides, allowing one to convey the dynamics of action, a variety of viewing angles. Spherical perspective determined the nature of the composition of Petrov-Vodkin’s paintings and determined the rhythm of the painting. The horizontal planes became round, like the spherical surface of the earth, planetary.

The vertical axes diverge fan-shaped and oblique, and this also brings us closer to the feeling of outer space.

The color schemes of Petrov and Vodkin are conventional: the color planes are local and closed. But, possessing a subtle, innate sense of color, the artist, based on his theory of color perspective, created works with an emotionally imaginative structure, which were accurately and fully revealed by the ideological concept and pathos of the picture.

Petrov-Vodkin accepts the revolutionary era in Russia with his characteristic philosophical wisdom. He writes: “In the chaos of construction, for everyone not absorbed in personal scores... one string rings like an alarm: Life will be wonderful! Wonderful life will!" (Quoted from: Kamensky A. A. Romantic montage. M., Soviet artist. 1989)

Petrov-Vodkin’s favorite themes in his work, especially in the difficult 20s, were themes of motherhood and childhood, etc.:

“1918 in Petrograd” - “Petrograd Madonna”

Portrait of Anna Akhmatova

Self-portrait

Still life with a blue ashtray

Still life with a mirror

Still life with letters

Pink still life. Apple tree branch

Morning still life

and large monumental canvases, in which the result of his understanding of the past and the present

"Death of a Commissar"

After the artist's death, his work was deleted from Soviet art and only in the 1960s was it rediscovered and realized.

Literature

1. Emokhanova L.G. World artistic culture. Tutorial. M., 1998.

2. We read and talk about Russian artists. A textbook on the Russian language for foreign students. Ed. T.D. Chilikina. M., 1989.

3. Parkhomenko I.T. History of world and domestic culture. M., 2002.

4. Sokolova M.V. World culture and art. M., 2004.

5. Ostrovsky G. Stories about Russian painting. M., 1989.

6. Rapatskaya L.A. Russian artistic culture. M., 1998.

The formation of realism in Russian music. MIKHAIL IVANOVICH GLINKA (1804 - 1857)

Opera "LIFE FOR THE TSAR"

“Music is created by the people, and we, composers, only arrange it.” M.I. Glinka.

M.I. Glinka entered the history of music as the founder of the Russian national musical classics. He summed up all the best that was achieved by Russian composers of previous periods (Varlamov, Alyabyev, Verstovsky, Gurilev, Dubyansky, Kozlovsky, etc.), raised Russian music to new level and gave it to her leading value in world musical culture.

The art of M.I. Glinka, like the work of A.S. Pushkin and other figures of his era, was born of the social upsurge in Russia that arose in connection with the Patriotic War of 1812 and the Decembrist movement of 1825.

M.I. Glinka became the first classic of Russian music because he was able to deeply and comprehensively express in his creativity the advanced ideas put forward by this social upsurge. The main ones are the ideas of patriotism and nationality. The main content of Glinka's work is the image of the people, the embodiment of their thoughts and feelings.

Before Glinka, in Russian music the people were depicted only in their everyday life: in everyday life - his relaxation, fun. For the first time in Russian music, Glinka depicted the people as an active force, embodying the idea that it is the people who are the real bearers of patriotism.

Glinka was the first to create full-fledged musical images heroes from the people who go to great lengths for the sake of their native country. In such images as Ivan Susanin, Ruslan and others, Glinka summarizes the best spiritual qualities of the entire people: love for the Motherland, valor, spiritual nobility, purity and sacrifice.

Truthfully embodying the most essential, typical features of the heroes and the entire people, Glinka reaches a new, highest degree of REALISM.

In his work, Glinka relies on folk songs: “The people create music; and we, artists, only arrange it.” The closeness and inner kinship with folk art is felt everywhere in Glinka: in everyday episodes (like other composers before Glinka), in heroic and lyrical ones.

Glinka is Pushkin in music. Pushkin A.S. just like Glinka, he introduced folk images, vernacular into Russian literature.

Glinka mastered all the achievements of composer skill. He studied the experience of foreign composers - Bach, Handel, Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, while he remained a deeply national, Russian composer.

The opera “A Life for the Tsar” is the first example of heroic folk music in the history of music. musical drama. At its core - historical fact- a patriotic feat of the peasant of the village of Domnino, near Kostroma, - Ivan Osipovich Susanin, committed at the beginning of 1613. Moscow had already been liberated from the Polish invaders, but the invaders' detachments were still roaming the Russian soil. One of these detachments wanted to capture Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich, who lived near the village of Domnino. But Susanin, whom the enemies wanted to make their guide, feigned agreement, led a detachment of Poles into a dense forest and killed them, dying himself.

Glinka in his opera embodied the idea of the greatness of the feat accomplished in the name of the homeland and people. The dramaturgy of the opera is based on the conflict of two forces - the Russian people and the Polish gentry. Each action of the opera is one of the stages in the disclosure of this conflict, which is revealed not only in the plot of the opera, but also in its music. The musical characteristics of Russian peasants and Poles are opposite: Russians are characterized by SONGS, while Poles are characterized by DANCES. The socio-psychological characteristics are also opposite: the Polish invaders are accompanied by either careless or warlike music of “Polonaise” and “Mazurka”. The Russians are depicted with calm and courageous songs of the folk - peasant or soldier type. By the end of the opera, “Polish” music loses its militant spirit and sounds depressed. Russian music, increasingly filled with power, pours out into the mighty, jubilant anthem “GLOR.”

The heroes of the opera are from among Russian peasants - Susanin, Antonida (daughter), Vanya ( adopted son), warrior Sobinin. They are individual and at the same time personify one of the sides of the character of their people: Susanin - wise greatness; Sobinin - courage; Antonida - warmth. The integrity of the characters makes the heroes of the opera the embodiment of the ideals of the human personality.

Act 2 of the opera - “Polish Act” - “Polonaise” and “Mazurka” - typically Polish dances, distinguished by their brightness national character. “Polonaise” sounds proud, ceremonial and militant. (Hearing).

“Mazurka” is bravura, with a sweeping melody. The music paints a portrait of the Polish gentry, covering up greed, arrogance, and vanity with an external shine. (Hearing).

Both the Polonaise and the Mazurka are presented not as peasant dances, but as knightly dances.

Glinka was the first to give dance great dramatic significance. With the “Polish Act” of this opera, Glinka laid the foundation for Russian ballet music.

“Susanin’s Aria” - (4th act), the dramatic climax of the entire opera. Here the main features of the hero’s appearance are revealed at the decisive hour of his life. Opening recitative - “They sense the truth...” based on the leisurely, confident intonations of the song structure. The aria itself “You will rise, my dawn...” expresses deep thought, excitement and heartfelt sorrow and courage. Susanin sacrifices himself for the sake of the Fatherland. And love for her gives him strength, helps him endure all suffering with dignity. The melody of the aria is simple and strict, widely chanted. It is full of warmth of intonation characteristic of Russian lyrical song. The aria is constructed in 3 parts: the first is of a concentrated, restrained nature; the second is more excited and expressive; the third is a repetition of the first part. (Hearing).

In this aria, Glinka, for the first time, based on folk song intonations, created music imbued with genuine tragedy, “he elevated the folk tune to tragedy.” This is the composer's innovative approach to folk song.

The brilliant “HAIL” crowns the opera. This choir embodies the idea of patriotism and the greatness of the Motherland, and here it receives the most complete, complete and vivid figurative expression. The music is full of solemnity and epic power, which is characteristic of the ANTHEM. The melody is akin to the tunes of heroic, brave folk songs.

The music of the finale expresses the idea that Susanin’s feat was accomplished for the sake of the people and is therefore immortal. The music of the finale is performed by three choirs, two orchestras (one is a brass band on stage) and bells. (Hearing).

In this opera, Glinka retained the features of a romantic worldview and embodied best features Russian realistic music: powerful passion, rebellious spirit, free flight of fantasy, strength and brightness of musical color, high ideals of Russian art.

Literature

1. Russian musical literature. Ed. E.L. Fried. L., 1970

2. Cannes - Novikova E. A little story about M.I. Glinka. M., 1987.

3. Livanova T.M. M.I. Glinka. M., 1962.

4. Remizov I.V. Glinka M.I. M., 1960.

Ideas of the Enlightenment foreign literature Jonathan Swift (1667 - 1745) "Gulliver's Travels"

Our age is worthy only of satire. J. Swift

Great works of art born during the Enlightenment have lived on for four centuries. The thoughts, passions, and deeds of people of that distant time become close to people of other eras, capture their imagination, and instill faith in life. Among such creations is Mozart’s opera “The Marriage of Figaro” with its hero who never loses heart and never gives up under any circumstances. Among such creations are Daniel Defoe’s novel “Robinson Crusoe” and paintings by William Hogarth and Jean Baptiste Simeon Chardin and other masters of the era.

If a traveler comes to the capital of Ireland, Dublin, he is necessarily taken to a small house where the dean once lived cathedral St. Petra Jonathan Swift. This house is a shrine for the Irish people. Swift is English, but was born in Dublin, where the father of the future writer moved in search of work.

Swift's independent life began on the English estate of Moore Park, where, after graduating from Dublin University, he received a position as secretary to the influential nobleman Sir William Temple. The former minister Temple, having retired, settled on his estate and began to engage in literary work. Swift, who had an extraordinary talent for writing, was simply a godsend for Temple, who shamelessly took advantage of the work of the young secretary.

This service weighed heavily on the young secretary, but he was kept in Moore Park by the Temple’s extensive library and his young pupil Esther Johnson, for whom Swift carried a tender affection throughout his life.

Stela (as Swift called her) followed his friend and teacher to the Irish village of Laracor, where he went after Temple's death to become a priest there. Many years later, Swift would write to Stella on her birthday:

Heart friend! It will suit you

Today is the thirty-fifth year.

Your years have doubled

However, age is not a problem.

I won't forget, Stela, no,

How you bloomed at sixteen,

However, beauty trumps

It takes over your mind today.

When would the gods share

These gifts are divided in half,

What an age for human feelings

Revealed two young nymphs such

So dividing your years,

So that beauty splits into two?

Then to the freak of fate

I would have to heed my plea

How, having shared my eternal ardor,

So that it can be common to two people.

Swift had to survive Stele, and he deeply mourned the death of "the most faithful, worthy and priceless friend with whom I ... was ... blessed."

Swift could not limit himself to only the modest activities of a pastor. While Temple was still alive, he published his first poems and pamphlets, but the real beginning literary activity Swift can be considered his book “The Tale of a Barrel” - (an English folk expression that has the meaning: talk nonsense, grind nonsense), written for the general improvement of the human race.

Voltaire, having read “The Tale of the Barrel,” said: “Swift assures that he was filled with respect for his father, although he treated his three sons with a hundred rods, but incredulous people found that the rods were so long that they also touched the father.”

"The Tale of a Barrel" brought Swift great fame in literary and political circles in London. His sharp pen is appreciated by both political parties: Whigs and Tories.

Swift at first supported the Whig party, but very soon left them due to disagreement with their policies. foreign policy. The Duke of Marlborough, the leader of the Whigs, sought to continue the bloody war with France for the “Spanish inheritance.” This war ruined the country, but Marlborough grew rich from military supplies. Swift began to support the Tories and fought against the war with his pen.

In 1713, the Treaty of Utrecht was concluded, not without the direct influence of the writer. This agreement is even called “Swift's Peace”.

Swift had now become such an influential figure in political circles that it was inconvenient to leave him as a village priest.

Friends assured that he would be elevated to at least the rank of bishop. But high-ranking clergy could not forgive the brilliant satirist for his famous “Tale of a Barrel.” After many years of hesitation, the queen granted Swift the position of dean (rector) of Dublin Cathedral, which was tantamount to an honorary exile.

For eight years, Swift was almost constantly in Ireland, in Dublin. And in 1726, in the fifty-eighth year of his life, he again found himself at the center of a political struggle. This time he turned his talent to protecting the Irish people.

The reason for Swift's appearances in the political arena was the scandal that erupted around Irish money. The English entrepreneur Wood, who minted copper money for Ireland, pocketed part of the copper received from the English government. The Irish received their salaries in shillings, which contained 10 times less copper than English coins of the same denomination. Swift published a series of pamphlets called “Letters from a Draper,” in which he, ostensibly on behalf of a Dublin draper, described the appalling poverty of the Irish and blamed it on the English government, which, through the hands of Wood, was undermining the Irish economy.

Swift's pamphlets caused an uprising in Dublin. The Prime Minister of England, Lord Walpole, ordered Swift's arrest. But the reserved and stern dean of Dublin Cathedral became the favorite of the Irish people. A special detachment was created to guard him, which was on duty near Swift’s house day and night.

As a result, Prime Minister Walpole received a response from Ireland: “Ten thousand soldiers are needed to arrest Swift.” The matter had to be hushed up. Viceroy

Ireland's Lord Carteret declared: "I rule Ireland by the permission of Dr. Swift."

Swift died in 1745 and was buried in Dublin Cathedral. On his tombstone was engraved an inscription composed by himself: “Here lies the body of Jonathan Swift, dean of this cathedral church, and severe indignation no longer tears his heart. Go, traveler, and imitate, if you can, the stubborn defender of manly freedom.” Swift was distinguished by his extraordinary secrecy. He surrounded with special mystery the creation of the main work of his life - a novel on which he worked for more than six years - “A Journey to Some Remote Countries of the World by Lemuel Gulliver, First a Surgeon, and then a Captain of Several Ships.” Even the publisher, who received the manuscript of the novel from an “unknown person” in 1726, did not know who its author was. Swift placed the manuscript on his doorstep and called. When the publisher opened the door, he saw the manuscript and a cab leaving. Swift immediately left London back to Dublin.

We've all read this fascinating book in childhood. Although it was written for adults. Therefore, let's try to read it again and try to penetrate the author's intention.

The composition of the novel consists of 4 parts. Each part is a story about some fantastic country. The story is told from the perspective of the main character - Gulliver, a navigator who by chance ends up in these countries. In other words, like Robinson Crusoe, this is a travel novel. Let's remember where the novel begins.

Gulliver finds himself in Lilliput - a country inhabited by tiny people, 12 times smaller than a normal person.

We learn that in Lilliput there is a monarchy and at the head of the state is the emperor, a small man like all the Lilliputians, but he calls himself “The Joy and Terror of the Universe.” In the empire “...About seventy moons ago, two warring parties were formed, known as Tremeksenov and Slemeksenov. The first are supporters high heels, the second - low...His Majesty is a supporter of low heels and has decreed that all employees of government and court institutions wear low heels.” We see how “significant” their differences are.

High-ranking persons applying for an important government position compete in the ability to jump on a rope. Swift means by such exercises the ability to deftly weave intrigues and curry favor with the monarch.

Lilliput is at war with the neighboring state of Blefuscu over which end to break the eggs. Many years ago, the heir to the throne cut his finger at breakfast while breaking an egg from the blunt end. “Then the emperor, his father, issued a decree ordering all his subjects, under pain of severe punishment, to break eggs with sharp end. This decree embittered the population to such an extent that... it was the cause of six uprisings... The monarchs of Blefuscu steadily incited these uprisings and sheltered their participants in their possessions. There are up to eleven thousand fanatics who were sentenced to death for refusing to break eggs from the sharp end."

We see how absurd the reason for these bloody wars is. And Gulliver understands this, but can he influence the events of Lilliputian life? Gulliver is first a captive of the Lilliputians. He offers no resistance and is only concerned with not causing harm to these small creatures. Then he received very limited freedom, having signed nine points of obligation, and immediately rendered an invaluable service to the rulers of Lilliput by capturing the enemy fleet. Thanks to this, a peace treaty was concluded on terms favorable to Lilliput.

How did the Emperor repay Gulliver for this and other services rendered by him?

Due to the slander of envious people, Gulliver was accused of high treason and sentenced to death, but then the emperor, “out of his characteristic kindness, decided to spare his life and be content with the command to gouge out both his eyes,” and then starve him to death.

This is how the emperor and his minions repaid Gulliver for his complaisance, kindness and help.

Gulliver no longer trusts in the emperor's mercy and flees to Blefuscu, from there, having built a boat, he sets off for his homeland.

Thus ended Gulliver's first journey.

What is fantastic about the country of Lilliput? The small size of the inhabitants of this country and everything that surrounds them? Compared to normal human height, Gulliver is exactly 12 times larger than the Lilliputians, so it is he who seems to the Lilliputians to be a fantastic creature. In all other respects, Lilliput is a very real country.

Obviously, Lilliput resembles Swift's contemporary England, with its two warring parties, behind-the-scenes intrigues of politicians, with a religious schism that is not worth a damn, but costs the lives of thousands of people.

We also recognize the ancient enmity of neighbors - England and France, only Swift changed their geographical position: Lilliput is his mainland, and Blefuscu is an island.

What's the point of this fantastic downsizing? Why did Swift need Lilliput if he wanted to describe England?

Swift depicts all the orders and events of Lilliputian life in such a way that this country, with England visible behind it, looks very funny. Having turned his fatherland into Lilliput and forcing us to believe in its reality, Swift subjects English morals, politics, and religion to caustic satirical ridicule.

In other words, Lilliput is seen by the artist and revealed by means art is contemporary bourgeois England with a social system that Swift denies.

Showing that modern English society is not ideal, Swift sends his hero to other “distant countries of the world.” For what? In search of this ideal.

Did Swift find an ideal social order in which people would be free, equal and have a sense of brotherhood towards each other?

To answer this question, we read a fragment from the second part of the novel: “Seeing me, the baby... raised... a cry,... he mistook me for a toy. The hostess, guided by a feeling of maternal tenderness, took me and placed me in front of the child. He immediately grabbed me by the waist and shoved my head into his mouth. I screamed so desperately that the child dropped me in fright. Fortunately, the hostess managed to offer me her apron. Otherwise I would certainly have fallen to my death."

This fragment is from the second part of the novel “Journey to Brobdingnag.” Here Gulliver himself found himself in the role of a Lilliputian in relation to the inhabitants of this country, which became the cause of funny situations.

For example, the story with two rats, from which Gulliver courageously defended himself, wielding his cutlass.

Let's remember the episode with the frog that almost sank Gulliver's boat with a sail. And the story with the monkey, who almost tortured poor Gulliver to death, mistaking him for a baby, is absolutely dramatic.

All these episodes are very funny for both the giants and the readers. But Gulliver himself was in real danger to his life.

How does Gulliver manifest himself in these funny, humiliating and dangerous situations?

He does not lose his presence of mind, nobility, feeling self-esteem and the curiosity of the traveler. For example, having killed a rat that could have torn him to pieces a minute ago, Gulliver busily measures its tail and informs the reader that the length of the tail was two yards minus one inch.

The humiliating position of a small toy did not make Gulliver either cowardly or evil. He invariably responds to the antics of the royal dwarf with generosity and intercession. Although the dwarf once stuck him in a bone, and another time he almost drowned him in a bowl of cream.

What does Gulliver do in the land of giants? He studies the Brobdingnagian language so that he can converse with the kind and intelligent King of Brobdingnag.

What are the king and Gulliver talking about?

The king asks Gulliver about the English government, which Gulliver talks about in great detail. His report to the king took five audiences.

Why does the king listen to Gulliver's stories with such interest? The king himself answered this question. He said: “...although sovereigns always firmly adhere to the customs of their country, I would be glad to find in other states something worthy of imitation.”

And what “worthy of imitation” did Gulliver offer the king? He described in detail the destructive effects of guns filled with gunpowder. At the same time, Gulliver kindly offered to make gunpowder. The king was horrified by such a proposal. He was deeply outraged by the terrible scenes of bloodshed caused by the action of these destructive machines. “Only some evil genius, an enemy of the human race, could have invented them,” the king said. Nothing gives him such pleasure, said the king, as scientific discoveries, but he would rather lose half his kingdom than be privy to the secret of such an invention. war did not find anything worthy of imitation. The King of Brobdingnag states that "...for good management the state requires only common sense, justice and kindness. He believes that anyone who, instead of one ear or one stalk of grass, manages to grow two in the same field, will render a greater service to humanity and his homeland than all politicians taken together.”

This is an enlightened monarch, and his state is an enlightened monarchy. Can this state be considered ideal, the one the enlighteners dreamed of? Of course not! The inhabitants of this country are driven by greed, the thirst for profit. The farmer drove Gulliver to exhaustion by making money from him. Seeing that Gulliver was sick and might die, the farmer sold him to the queen for a thousand zlotys.

On the streets of the capital, Gulliver saw beggars. This is how he talks about it: “It was a terrible sight. Among the beggars there was a woman with such wounds on her chest that I could have climbed into them and hidden there, as in a cave. Another beggar had a crop the size of five bales of wool hanging around his neck. The third stood on wooden legs each twenty feet high. But most disgusting of all were the lice crawling on their clothes.”

As we see, the society of the country of giants is not free from social ills, despite the fact that at the head of this country there is a king-scientist, a king-philosopher who cares about his subjects, but the driving force of the life of society is money, the passion for profit. Therefore, one part of society grows rich without hindrance, while the other becomes poor.

Swift showed that an enlightened monarchy is not capable of providing its subjects with the triumph of freedom, equality and fraternity if the power of money over people remains in this state, and therefore poverty and inequality.

But the author does not lose hope. Maybe there are other countries somewhere else that are structured more fairly. The search is not over. And Gulliver, miraculously freed and returned to his homeland, he did not lose his passion for travel.

“We weighed anchor on August 5, 1706...” Thus began Gulliver’s third journey - “Journey to Laputa”

Gulliver ends up on a flying island. Who did he see there?

“Never before have I seen mortals who caused such surprise with their figure, clothing and facial expression. All their heads were slanted to the right and left: one eye squinted inward, and the other looked straight up. Their outerwear was decorated with images of the sun, moon, and stars interspersed with images of a violin, flute, harp, trumpet, guitar, and clavichord.”

What are the strange inhabitants of the island doing?

The Laputans are occupied with the most abstract sciences and art, namely mathematics, astronomy and music. They are so immersed in their thoughts that they do not notice anything around them. Therefore, they are always accompanied by servants, who, as needed, pat the masters on the lips, then on the eyes, then on the ears with huge bubbles inflated with air, thereby encouraging them to listen, see, and speak.

In the capital there is a project academy where they carry out rather strange scientific research. One of the scientists extracts sun rays from cucumbers. Another came up with a new way to construct buildings - from the roof. The third breeds a breed of naked sheep. Such “great” discoveries, all this scientific activity are not aimed at improving people's lives. The country's economy is shattered. People are starving, walking in rags, their homes are being destroyed, and the scientific elite doesn’t care about this.

What is the relationship between King Laputa and his subjects living on earth?

In the hands of this monarch is a terrible punitive machine - a flying island, with the help of which he keeps the entire country in subjection.

If some city refuses to pay taxes, then the king stops his island over them, depriving people of sun and rain, and throwing stones on them. If they persist in their disobedience, then the island, by order of the king, is lowered directly onto the heads of the disobedient ones and flattened them along with their houses.

This is how destructive a scientific achievement can be when it is in the hands of an inhuman ruler. Science in this country is inhumane, it is directed against people.

Three countries passed before the eyes of the traveling Gulliver, in which there was one type public administration- monarchy.

Readers, together with Gulliver, came to the conclusion that any monarchy is evil. Why?

We can confirm this. Even an enlightened giant king cannot create ideal economic and social conditions for people to live. Monarchy in its worst form, when an evil despot indifferent to the interests of the people has unlimited power, is the greatest evil for humanity.

In the fourth part, Gulliver finds himself in the country of the Houyhnhnms. The inhabitants of this country are horses, but, according to Gulliver, rationality and moral qualities superior to humans. Houyhnhnms do not know such vices as lies, deceit, envy and greed. Their language does not even have words to denote these concepts. They do not quarrel with each other and do not fight. They don't have weapons. They are kind and noble, value friendship above all else. Their society is built on reasonable principles, and its activities are aimed at the benefit of all its members. The political system of this country is a republic. Their form of power is the council.

“Every four years at the spring equinox... a council of representatives of the entire nation takes place. ...At this council the situation of the various districts is discussed: whether they are sufficiently supplied with hay, oats, cows and Yahoos. If something is missing in one of the districts, the council delivers everything needed from other districts. Resolutions on this are always adopted unanimously.”

To Gulliver this country seemed ideal. But is it ideal from our point of view?

The Houyhnhnms have no written language, and therefore no literature. They do not develop either science or technology, i.e. they don't strive for social progress. Their vaunted intelligence still cannot be compared with the inquisitive human mind endlessly striving to learn new things.

“The basic rule of life for them is to completely subordinate their behavior to the guidance of reason.” But this practically excludes all feelings. They even treat the death of their loved ones “reasonably,” that is, with indifference. Here it is appropriate to recall the episode with one mare who was late for a visit due to sudden death husband. She apologized for being late, and throughout the evening she was as calm and cheerful as the other guests.

The good Houyhnhnms nevertheless expel Gulliver from their country, deciding that it is unreasonable to keep such a dubious creature in their society. What if he brings them some harm!

Gulliver returns to his homeland, where he now spends most of time in the stable. The journey is over. You can also sum it up. Having walked your hero through various countries, does Swift find an ideal social order?

No. Swift does not find a positive ideal either in his contemporary English bourgeois society (Lilliput), or in the enlightened monarchy of giants, or on the flying island of scientists. And the virtuous republic of the Houyhnhnms seems like a utopia; it is no coincidence that it is, after all, a society of horses, not people. What is the main strength of Swift's novel?

The strength of his novel lies in its satirical ridicule of unjust forms of social existence. There are unusual creatures in part four of the novel that play a large role in the narrative. Who are Yahoos? What is the meaning of their appearance in the novel?

Yahoos are dirty, ugly wild animals that inhabit the country of the Houyhnhnms in abundance. to his appearance they are very human-like. Upon closer examination, Gulliver also saw this similarity and was horrified. But is it only in appearance that yahoos resemble people?

The gray horse, after similar conversations with Gulliver, came to the conclusion that the customs and morals of European peoples have many similarities with the customs of Yahoos. “...The causes of strife among these cattle are the same as the causes of strife among your fellow tribesmen. In fact, if you give five Yahoos food that would be enough for fifty, then instead of calmly starting to eat, they start a fight. Everyone tries to seize everything for themselves.” Often in a fight they inflict serious wounds on each other with their claws and teeth. Yahoos fight not only over food, but also over jewelry - multi-colored shiny stones that they hide from each other. There are other similarities with people. For example, they enjoy sucking the root, which has the same effect on them as alcohol and drugs do on Europeans. Most herds have rulers who are particularly vicious in nature and therefore keep the entire herd in obedience. They surround themselves with nasty favorites that everyone else hates. The gray horse saw in

this is very similar to European monarchs and their ministers. Where did these vile animals come from in the country of the Houyhnhnms? According to legend, a pair of vile Yahoos once arrived in this country from across the sea. They multiplied, went wild, and their descendants completely lost their minds. In other words, Yahoos are degenerate people who have lost their culture and civilization, but have retained all their vices human society.

Swift here polemicizes with Defoe and his image of the ideal, rational bourgeois, since the story of the Yahoos is an anti-Robinsonade. In the fourth part, Swift's satire reached its climax. Funny becomes scary. Swift painted a picture of the degeneration of human society, living according to the laws of Yahoo.

The fourth part is the final conclusion, the result of this philosophical journey. As long as humanity is driven by the thirst for profit, power and bodily pleasures, society will not be built according to the laws of reason. Moreover, it will follow the path of degradation and destruction. Swift consistently and logically debunks the enlightenment-bourgeois ideology, moving from the particular to the general, from one specific country to a universal generalization.

The brilliant satirist was far ahead of his era. What is the modernity of the novel’s sound for us? Have Swift's warnings lost their relevance?

If greed, deception, the power of money and things, drunkenness, drug addiction, blackmail, servility, exorbitant ambitions and ambitions that were not realized in the past and which cannot be realized in the present, provocations and endless feuds with their own kind, turning into terrible, bloody wars, will reign over humanity, then people risk turning into Yahoos. And no civilization and high level Scientific and technological progress will not save them from this. It’s scary if a culture is hopelessly behind civilization! People change clothes, but vices, acquiring a civilized appearance, remain.

The category of genre in the analysis of a work of art is somewhat less important than the category of gender, but in some cases, knowledge of the genre nature of the work can help in the analysis and indicate which aspects should be paid attention to.

In literary studies, genres are groups of works within literary genres, united by common formal, content or functional characteristics.

It should be said right away that not all works have a clear genre nature. Thus, Pushkin’s poem “On the hills of Georgia lies the darkness of the night...”, Lermontov’s “The Prophet”, plays by Chekhov and Gorky, Tvardovsky’s “Vasily Terkin” and many other works are indefinable in the genre sense.

But even in cases where the genre can be defined quite unambiguously, such a definition does not always help the analysis, since genre structures are often identified by a secondary feature that does not create any special originality of content and form. This applies mainly to lyrical genres, such as elegy, ode, message, epigram, sonnet, etc.

IN epic genres What matters first of all is the opposition of genres in terms of their volume. The established literary tradition distinguishes here the genres of large (novel, epic), medium (story) and small (short story), but in typology it is realistic to distinguish only two positions, since the story is not an independent genre, gravitating in practice either to a short story (“Belkin’s Tales” by Pushkin) or to a novel (his “The Captain’s Daughter”).

But the distinction between large and small volume seems essential, and above all for the analysis of a small genre - a story. Yu.N. Tynyanov rightly wrote: “The calculation for a large form is not the same as for a small one.” The small volume of the story dictates unique principles of poetics and specific artistic techniques. First of all, this is reflected in the properties of literary figurativeness.

The story is highly characterized by “economy mode”; it cannot contain long descriptions, therefore, it is characterized not by detail-details, but by details-symbols, especially in the description of a landscape, portrait, interior. Such a detail acquires increased expressiveness and, as a rule, appeals to the reader’s creative imagination, suggesting co-creation and conjecture.

Chekhov, in particular, a master of artistic detail, built his descriptions on this principle; Let us remember, for example, his textbook image of a moonlit night: “In descriptions of nature, one must grasp at small details, grouping them in such a way that after reading, when you close your eyes, a picture is given.

For example, you will get a moonlit night if you write that on the mill dam a piece of glass from a broken bottle flashed like a bright star and the black shadow of a dog or wolf rolled like a ball” (Letter to Al.P. Chekhov dated May 10, 1886). Here the details of the landscape are guessed by the reader based on the impression of one or two dominant symbolic details.

The same thing happens in the field of psychologism: for the writer it is important here not so much to reflect the mental process in its entirety, but to recreate the leading emotional tone, the atmosphere of the hero’s inner life at the moment. The masters of such psychological stories were Maupassant, Chekhov, Gorky, Bunin, Hemingway and others.

In the composition of a story, as in any small form, the ending is very important, which is either in the nature of a plot denouement or an emotional finale. Also noteworthy are those endings that do not resolve the conflict, but only demonstrate its intractability; so-called “open” endings, as in Chekhov’s “The Lady with the Dog.”

One of the genre varieties of the story is the short story. A short story is an action-packed narrative, the action in it develops quickly, dynamically, and strives for a denouement that contains the whole meaning of what is being told: first of all, with its help, the author gives meaning life situation, pronounces a “sentence” on the characters depicted.

In short stories, the plot is compressed and the action is concentrated. A rapidly developing plot is characterized by a very economical system of characters: there are usually just enough of them to allow the action to continuously develop. Episodic characters are introduced (if they are introduced at all) only to give impetus to the plot action and then immediately disappear.

In a short story, as a rule, there are no side plot lines or author's digressions; only what is absolutely necessary for understanding the conflict and the plot is revealed from the characters’ pasts. Descriptive elements that do not advance the action are kept to a minimum and appear almost exclusively at the beginning: then, towards the end, they will interfere, slowing down the development of the action and distracting attention.

When all these trends are brought to their logical conclusion, the short story acquires a pronounced structure of an anecdote with all its main features: a very small volume, an unexpected, paradoxical “shock” ending, minimal psychological motivations for actions, the absence of descriptive moments, etc. The anecdote story was widely used by Leskov, the early Chekhov, Maupassant, O'Henry, D. London, Zoshchenko and many other short story writers.

A novella, as a rule, is based on external conflicts in which contradictions collide (inception), develop and, having reached the highest point in development and struggle (culmination), are more or less quickly resolved. In this case, the most important thing is that the confronting contradictions must and can be resolved as the action develops.

For this, the contradictions must be sufficiently defined and manifested, the characters must have some psychological activity in order to strive to resolve the conflict at all costs, and the conflict itself must at least in principle be amenable to immediate resolution.

Let us consider from this angle the story by V. Shukshin “The Hunt to Live.” A young city guy comes into the forester Nikitich's hut. It turns out that the guy escaped from prison.

Suddenly, the district authorities come to Nikitich to hunt, Nikitich tells the guy to pretend to be asleep, puts the guests to bed and falls asleep himself, and when he wakes up, he discovers that “Kolya the Professor” has left, taking with him Nikitich’s gun and his tobacco pouch. Nikitich rushes after him, overtakes the guy and takes his gun from him. But in general, Nikitich likes the guy, he feels sorry to let him go alone, in winter, unaccustomed to the taiga and without a gun.

The old man leaves the guy a gun so that when he reaches the village, he will give it to Nikitich’s godfather. But when they each went in their own direction, the guy shoots Nikitich in the back of the head, because “it will be better this way, father. More reliable."

The clash of characters in the conflict of this short story is very sharp and clear. Incompatibility, opposite moral principles Nikitich - principles based on kindness and trust in people - and the moral standards of “Koli the Professor”, who “wants to live” for himself, “better and more reliable” - also for himself - the incompatibility of these moral principles intensifies as the action progresses and embodied in a tragic, but inevitable, according to the logic of the characters, denouement.

Let us note the special significance of the denouement: it does not just formally complete the plot action, but exhausts the conflict. The author's assessment of the characters depicted, the author's understanding of the conflict are concentrated precisely in the denouement.

The major genres of epic - the novel and the epic - differ in their content, primarily in their problematics. The dominant content in the epic is national, and in the novel - the novel's problematic (adventurous or ideological-moral).

For a novel, therefore, it is extremely important to determine which of the two types it belongs to. Depending on the dominant content of the genre, the poetics of the novel and epic are constructed. The epic tends to be plot-driven; the image of the hero in it is constructed as the quintessence of typical qualities inherent in a people, ethnic group, class, etc.

In an adventure novel, the plot also clearly predominates, but the image of the hero is constructed differently: he is emphatically free from class, corporate and other connections with the environment that gave birth to him. In an ideological and moral novel, the stylistic dominants will almost always be psychologism and heteroglossia.

Over the past century and a half, a new genre of large volume has emerged in the epic - the epic novel, which combines the properties of these two genres. To this genre tradition such works as “War and Peace” by Tolstoy, “ Quiet Don" Sholokhov, "Walking in Torment" by A. Tolstoy, "The Living and the Dead" by Simonov, "Doctor Zhivago" by Pasternak and some others.

The epic novel is characterized by a combination of national and ideological-moral issues, but not a simple summation of them, but such an integration in which the ideological and moral search of the individual is correlated primarily with folk truth.

The problem of the epic novel becomes, in Pushkin’s words, “human fate and people’s fate” in their unity and interdependence; Critical events for the entire ethnic group give the hero’s philosophical search special sharpness and urgency; the hero faces the need to determine his position not just in the world, but in national history.

In the field of poetics, the epic novel is characterized by a combination of psychologism with plot, a compositional combination of general, medium and close-up plans, the presence of many plot lines and their interweaving, and author's digressions.

Esin A.B. Principles and techniques of analyzing a literary work. - M., 1998

Theoretical knowledge that students receive at MHC lessons, are in demand when analyzing a work of art, which is, in fact, the subject of study and consideration in the lessons of world artistic culture. What is the algorithm for analyzing works various types art? Perhaps the information presented below will be useful to a teacher seeking an answer to this question.

Algorithm for analyzing a work of painting

The main condition for working with this algorithm is the fact that the name of the painting should not be known to those doing the work.

What would you call this painting?
Do you like the picture or not? (The answer should be ambiguous).
Tell us about this picture in such a way that a person who does not know it can get an idea about it.
How does this picture make you feel?
What do you think the author “wanted to say” with this painting? What is its main idea, “why” did he write it?
What did the author do to make us understand his intention? By what means did he achieve this?
Would you like to add or change anything in your answer to the first question?
Return to the answer to the second question. Has your assessment remained the same or changed? Why do you rate this picture so much now?

Algorithm for analyzing works of painting

The meaning of the painting's title.
Genre affiliation.
Features of the plot of the picture. Reasons for painting. Searching for an answer to the question: did the author convey his idea to the viewer?
Features of the painting's composition.
The main means of artistic image: color, drawing, texture, chiaroscuro, brushwork.
What effect did this work of art have on your feelings and mood?
Where is this work art?

Algorithm for analyzing works of architecture

What is known about the history of the creation of the architectural structure and its author?
Indicate whether this work belongs to a cultural-historical era, artistic style, or movement.
What embodiment was found in this work of Vitruvius’ formula: strength, benefit, beauty?
Point out artistic means and techniques for creating an architectural image (symmetry, rhythm, proportions, light and shadow and color modeling, scale), tectonic systems (post-beam, pointed-arch, arched-dome).
Indicate the type of architecture: volumetric structures (public: residential, industrial); landscape (gardening or small forms); urban planning.
Point out the connection between the external and internal appearance of an architectural structure, the connection between the building and the relief, the nature of the landscape.
How are other forms of art used in the design of its architectural appearance?
What impression did the work have on you?
What associations does the artistic image evoke and why?
Where is it located? architectural structure?

Algorithm for analyzing works of sculpture

History of the creation of the work.
Information about the author. What place does this work occupy in his work?
Belonging to an artistic era.
The meaning of the title of the work.
Belonging to the types of sculpture (monumental, memorial, easel).
Use of material and processing technology.
Dimensions of the sculpture (if it is important to know).
Shape and size of the pedestal.
Where is this sculpture?
What impression did this work have on you?
What associations does the artistic image evoke and why?

Material provided by T.A. Zaitseva, methodologist of MOUDO "IMC"

Literature

World artistic culture: grades 10-11: Additional materials for lessons / author. – comp. O. E. Nadelyaeva. – Volgograd: Teacher, 2009. – 198 p.

QUESTIONS TO ASK WHEN ANALYZING A WORK OF PAINTING
In order to abstract from the perception of the plot and everyday life, remember that a painting is not a window into the world, but a plane on which the illusion of space can be created by pictorial means. Therefore, first analyze the basic parameters of the work:

1) What is the size of the painting (monumental, easel, miniature?

2) What is the format of the painting: a rectangle elongated horizontally or vertically (possibly with a rounded end), square, circle (tondo), oval?

3) In what technique (tempera, oil, watercolor, etc.) and on what basis (wood, canvas, etc.) was the painting made?

4) From what distance is it best perceived?

I. Image analysis.

4. Does the film have a plot? What is shown? In what environment are the depicted characters and objects located?

5. Based on image analysis, you can draw a conclusion about the genre. What genre: portrait, landscape, still life, nude, everyday, mythological, religious, historical, animalistic, does the painting belong to?

6. What problem do you think the artist solves – visual? expressive? What is the degree of conventionality or naturalism of the image? Does convention tend towards idealization or expressive distortion? As a rule, the composition of the picture is associated with the genre.

7) What components does the composition consist of? What is the relationship between the subject of the image and the background/space on the painting canvas?

8) How close to the picture plane are the objects in the image?

9) What angle of view did the artist choose - from above, below, level with the depicted objects?

10) How is the position of the viewer determined - is he involved in interaction with what is depicted in the picture, or is he assigned the role of a detached contemplator?
11) Can the composition be called balanced, static, or dynamic? If there is movement, how is it directed?

12) How is the picture space constructed (flat, indefinite, the spatial layer is fenced off, deep space is created)? How is the illusion of spatial depth achieved (differences in the size of the depicted figures, showing the volume of objects or architecture, using color gradations)? The composition is developed by means of drawing.

13) How pronounced is the linear beginning in the picture?

14) Are the contours delimiting individual objects emphasized or hidden? By what means is this effect achieved?

15) To what extent is the volume of objects expressed? What techniques create the illusion of volume?

16) What role does light play in the picture? What is it like (even, neutral; contrasting, sculpting volume; mystical). Is the light source/direction legible?

17) Are the silhouettes of the depicted figures/objects legible? How expressive and valuable are they in themselves?

18) How detailed (or vice versa generalized) is the image?

19) Is the variety of textures of the depicted surfaces (leather, fabric, metal, etc.) conveyed? Color.

20) What role does color play in the picture (is it subordinate to the drawing and volume, or, on the contrary, subordinates the drawing to itself and builds the composition itself).

21) Is color simply a coloration of volume or something more? Is it optically faithful or expressive?

22) Do local colors or tonal coloring predominate in the picture?

23) Are the boundaries of the color spots visible? Do they coincide with the boundaries of volumes and objects?

24) Does the artist operate with large masses of color or small spots-strokes?

25) How are warm and cold colors painted, does the artist use a combination of complementary colors? Why is he doing this? How are the most illuminated and shaded areas conveyed?

26) Are there glares or reflexes? How are the shadows written (deep or transparent, are they colored)?

27) Is it possible to identify rhythmic repetitions in the use of any color or combination of shades, is it possible to trace the development of any color? Is there a dominant color/color combination?

28) What is the texture of the painting surface - smooth or impasto? Are individual strokes distinguishable? If so, what are they - small or long, applied with liquid, thick or almost dry paint?

06.08.2013

Dictionary of basic concepts.... 419

ANALYSIS OF A WORK OF ART

SAMPLE QUESTIONS AND CHARTS

A work of architecture

When analyzing works of architecture, it is necessary to take into account the features of architecture as an art form. Architecture is a form of art manifested in artistic character structures. Therefore, the appearance, scale, and shape of the structure must be analyzed.

1. What objects of the building deserve attention?

2. By what techniques and means are the author’s ideas expressed in this work?

3. What impression does the work make?

4. What sensation can the recipient (perceiver) experience?

5. How does the emotional impression of a work help its scale, format, horizontal, vertical or diagonal arrangement of parts, the use of certain architectural forms, the distribution of light in architectural monument?

6. What does the visitor see when standing in front of the façade?

7. Try to explain why this seems most important to you?

8. By what means does the architect highlight the main thing? Describe the basic artistic means and techniques for creating an architectural image (symmetry, rhythm, proportions, light and shade and color modeling, scale).

9. How are volumes and spaces composed in an architectural structure (architectural composition)?

10. Describe whether this object belongs to a certain type of architecture: volumetric structures (public: residential, industrial); landscape (garden and park or small forms), urban planning.

11. Try to imagine what events can occur more often in this architectural structure.

12. Are the composition of the work and its main elements symbolic in nature: dome, arch, vault, wall, tower, calm?

13. What is the title of the work? What would you call it?

14. Determine whether this work belongs to a cultural and historical era, artistic style, or movement.

16. How do the form and content of this work relate?

17. What is the connection between the external and internal appearance of this architectural structure? Does it fit harmoniously into the environment?

18. In your opinion, what embodiment did Vitruvius’ formula find in this work: benefit, strength, beauty?

19. Are other types of art used to design the appearance of this architectural object? Which? Do you think the author's choice is justified?

Work of painting

In order to abstract from the perception of the plot and everyday life, remember that a painting is not a window into the world, but a plane on which the illusion of space can be created by pictorial means. Therefore, it is first important to analyze the basic parameters of the work.

1. Size of the painting (monumental, easel, miniature)?

2. Format of the painting: horizontally or vertically elongated rectangle (possibly with a rounded end), square, circle (tondo), oval?

3. In what technique (tempera, oil, watercolor, etc.) and on what basis (wood, canvas, etc.) was the painting made?

4. From what distance is it best perceived?

Image analysis.

5. Does the film have a plot? What is shown? In what environment are the depicted characters and objects located?

6. Based on the analysis of the image, draw a conclusion about the genre (portrait, landscape, still life, nude, everyday, mythological, religious, historical, animalistic).

7. What problem do you think the artist solves – visual? expressive? What is the degree of conventionality or naturalism of the image? Does convention tend towards idealization or expressive distortion?

Composition Analysis

8. What components does the composition consist of? What is the relationship between the subject of the image and the background/space on the painting canvas?

9. How close to the picture plane are the objects in the image?

10. What angle of view did the artist choose - from above, below, level with the depicted objects?

11. How is the position of the viewer determined - is he involved in interaction with what is depicted in the picture, or is he assigned the role of a detached contemplator?

12. Can the composition be called balanced, static, or dynamic? If there is movement, how is it directed?

13. How is the picture space constructed (flat, indefinite, the spatial layer is fenced off, deep space is created)? How is the illusion of spatial depth achieved (differences in the size of the depicted figures, showing the volume of objects or architecture, using color gradations)?

Analysis of the drawing.

14. How pronounced is the linear beginning in the picture?

15. Are the contours delimiting individual objects emphasized or smoothed? By what means is this effect achieved?

16. To what extent is the volume of objects expressed? What techniques create the illusion of volume?

17. What role does light play in the picture? What is it like (even, neutral; contrasting, sculpting volume; mystical)? Is the light source/direction legible?

18. Are the silhouettes of the depicted figures/objects legible? How expressive and valuable are they in themselves?

19. How detailed (or vice versa generalized) is the image?

20. Is the variety of textures of the depicted surfaces (leather, fabric, metal, etc.) conveyed?

Color analysis.

21. What role does color play in the picture (is it subordinate to the design and volume, or, on the contrary, does it subordinate the design to itself and builds the composition itself)?

22. Is color simply a coloration of volume or something more? Is it optically faithful or expressive?

23. Are the boundaries of the color spots visible? Do they coincide with the boundaries of volumes and objects?

24. Does the artist operate with large masses of color or small spots-strokes?

25. How are warm and cold colors painted, does the artist use a combination of complementary colors? Why is he doing this? How are the most illuminated and shaded areas conveyed?

26. Are there glares or reflexes? How are the shadows written (deep or transparent, are they colored)? Is there a dominant color/color combination?

Other options

1. What objects of the author’s emotional attitude to the object (fact, event, phenomenon) deserve attention?

2. Determine whether this work belongs to the genre of painting (historical, portrait, still life, battle, other).

3. What techniques and means are used to express the author’s ideas in this work?

4. What impression does the work make?

7. How does the use of certain colors help the emotional impression?

8. What is shown in the picture?

9. Highlight the main thing from what you saw.

10. Try to explain why this seems most important to you?

11. By what means does the artist highlight the main thing?

12. How are colors compared in the work (color composition)?

13. Try to retell the plot of the picture.

14. Are there any plots in the work that symbolize anything?

15. What is the title of the work? How does it relate to its plot and symbolism?

16. Are the composition of the work and its main elements symbolic in nature: horizontal, vertical, diagonal, circle, oval, color, cube?

Work of sculpture

When analyzing works of sculpture, it is necessary to take into account the own parameters of sculpture as an art form. Sculpture is an art form in which a real three-dimensional volume interacts with the three-dimensional space surrounding it. Therefore, volume, space and how they interact must be analyzed.

1. What impression does the work make?

3. What is the nature of the work?

4. What objects of the author’s emotional attitude to the object (fact, event, phenomenon) deserve attention?

5. What techniques and means are used to express the author’s ideas in this work?

6. What is the size of the sculpture? The size of the sculpture (monumental, easel, miniature) affects its interaction with space.

7. What genre does this sculpture belong to? What was it intended for?

8. Describe the original material used by the author and its features. What features of the sculpture are dictated by its material (why was this particular material chosen for this work)? Are its properties compatible with the idea of the work? Is it possible to imagine the same work from other materials? What would it be like?

9. What is the texture of the sculptural surface? Homogeneous or different in different parts? Smooth or “sketch”, traces of the touch of tools are visible, natural-like, conventional. How is this texture related to the properties of the material? How does texture affect the perception of the silhouette and volume of a sculptural form?

10. How do its scale, format, horizontal, vertical or diagonal arrangement of parts help the emotional impression of the work?

11. What is the role of color in sculpture? How do volume and color interact, how do they influence each other?

12. Who (what) do you see in the sculpture?

13. Highlight the most important, especially valuable things from what you saw.

14. Try to explain why this seems to you the most important, especially valuable?

15. By what means does the sculptor highlight the main thing?

16. How are objects arranged in the work (subject composition)?

17. In what space was the work located (in a temple, in a square, in a house, etc.)? At what point of perception was it intended (from afar, from below, near)? Is it part of an architectural or sculptural ensemble or is it independent work?

18. Is the sculpture designed for fixed points of view, or does it fully reveal itself when walked around? How many completed expressive silhouettes does she have? What are they (closed, compact, geometrically regular or picturesque, open)? How are they related to each other?

19. What can this sculpture do (or say) if it “comes to life”?

20. What is the title of the work? What is its (name) meaning, do you think? How does it relate to the plot and symbolism?

21. What is the interpretation of the motif (naturalistic, conventional, dictated by the canon, dictated by the place occupied by the sculpture in its architectural environment, or some other)?

22. What ideological positions do you think the author of the work wanted to convey to people?

23. Do you feel the influence of any other types of art in the work: architecture, painting?

24. Why do you think it is preferable to view sculpture directly rather than in photographs or reproductions? Give reasons for your answer.

Items of decorative and applied art

When analyzing objects of decorative and applied art, it should be remembered that they primarily played an applied role in a person’s life and do not always carry an aesthetic function. At the same time, the shape of the object and its functional features influence the nature of the image.

1. What is such an item intended for?

2. What are its dimensions?

3. How is the decoration of the item located? Where are the figurative and ornamental decoration areas located? How is the placement of images related to the shape of the object?

4. What types of ornaments are used? On what parts of the object are they located?

5. Where are figurative images located? Do they take up more space than ornamental ones or are they simply one of the ornamental registers?

6. How is a register built with figurative images? Can we say that free composition techniques are used here or the principle of juxtaposition is used (figures in identical poses, minimal movement, repeating each other)?

7. How are the figures depicted? Are they moving, frozen, stylized?

8. How are the details of the figures conveyed? Do they look more natural or ornamental? What techniques are used to convey figures?

9. Look inside the object, if possible. Are there images and ornaments there? Describe them according to the above diagram.

10. What are the main and additional colors used in the construction of ornaments and figures? What is the tone of the clay itself? How does this affect the character of the image - does it make it more ornamental or, conversely, more natural?

11. Try to draw a conclusion about the individual patterns of this type of decorative and applied art.

Algorithms for analyzing works of art

The main condition for working with this algorithm is the fact that the name of the painting should not be known to those doing the work.

What would you call this painting?

Do you like the picture or not? (The answer should be ambiguous).

Tell us about this picture in such a way that a person who does not know it can get an idea about it.

How does this picture make you feel?

Would you like to add or change anything in your answer to the first question?

Return to the answer to the second question. Has your assessment remained the same or changed? Why do you rate this picture so much now?

Algorithm for analyzing works of painting

The meaning of the painting's title.

Genre affiliation.

Features of the plot of the picture. Reasons for painting. Searching for an answer to the question: did the author convey his idea to the viewer?

Features of the painting's composition.

The main means of artistic image: color, drawing, texture, chiaroscuro, brushwork.

What effect did this work of art have on your feelings and mood?

Where is this work of art located?

Algorithm for analyzing works of architecture

What is known about the history of the creation of the architectural structure and its author?

Indicate whether this work belongs to a cultural-historical era, artistic style, or movement.

What embodiment was found in this work of Vitruvius’ formula: strength, benefit, beauty?

Point out artistic means and techniques for creating an architectural image (symmetry, rhythm, proportions, light and shadow and color modeling, scale), tectonic systems (post-beam, pointed-arch, arched-dome).

Indicate the type of architecture: volumetric structures (public: residential, industrial); landscape (gardening or small forms); urban planning.

Point out the connection between the external and internal appearance of an architectural structure, the connection between the building and the relief, the nature of the landscape.

How are other forms of art used in the design of its architectural appearance?

What impression did the work have on you?

What associations does the artistic image evoke and why?

Where is the architectural structure located?

Algorithm for analyzing works of sculpture

History of the creation of the work.

Belonging to an artistic era.

The meaning of the title of the work.

Belonging to the types of sculpture (monumental, memorial, easel).

Use of material and processing technology.

Dimensions of the sculpture (if it is important to know).

Shape and size of the pedestal.

Where is this sculpture located?

What impression did this work have on you?

What associations does the artistic image evoke and why?

Analysis of the film's history.

First part of the analysis. History of appearance. Director's idea. Working with the scriptwriter and cameraman.

1. Analysis of the characters' characters.

The film is full of characters. Characteristics of the main characters (details of personification). Characteristic minor characters(their functions in relation to the main characters, to the action of the film). Actors working on their roles. Actor's analysis of the game.

2. Analysis of the film as a reflection of the director’s subjectivity

Feature cinema as an independent work of art. Author's, i.e. director’s position (most often it manifests itself in his interviews; it can be found in interviews, memoirs, and articles by participants in the creation of the film). Influence real events in his personal and social life on the film. Reflection inner world director.