Monday, September 24, 2007

Critical Analysis



This painting is entitled Woman in a Garden. It was painted with oil on canvas by Claude Monet in 1867 during the Impressionist movement. Claude Monet was born in Paris on November 14, 1840. Even as a child he was drawn to nature, especially the sea and sky. I can appreciate Monet’s work because I am also one to marvel at the wonders of nature and all of her beauty. This picture made me feel as if I were the woman standing in the garden. By looking at the picture I can smell the sweet aroma of the flowers and feel the heat of the hot summer sun beating down on my back. But the question remains, who is the woman in the picture?

The picture is of a woman with a long white dress and a parasol standing in a large, lush, green garden accented with red, yellow and white flowers. The focal point on the picture is a short, round, flowering tree with soft yellow blossoms. This tree blooms among a symmetrical group of red flowers around its roots. It appears to be a bright summer day. The sky is bright blue, without a cloud in sight.

The woman is standing facing the tree, which leaves us unable to see her facial features. She stands to the bottom left of the painting and the sun in the picture has cast a shadow to her right. The tree, which is the focal point also casts a shadow to its right. Behind the focal point, is a smaller tree with bright yellow blossoms. The background of the picture consists of a lush green foliage. To the left of the focal point there is a cluster or white flowers. And far beyond the focal point, there is a row of younger trees which are red, yellow and white.

After gazing upon this piece of art for a few days, I decided that the woman in the picture is someone like me admiring the magnificence of the garden. After discussing this with a group of friends, others have mentioned that the woman might be waiting for someone to meet her in the garden. I still believe she is merely looking upon the garden on a beautiful summer day. By looking at the picture, she does not appear to be in motion and she is standing in front of the tree. If she had been waiting for someone, I don’t think she would have been standing facing the tree. She seems comfortable standing where she is and she is not the focal point of the picture. It is almost as though Monet would like us to admire the beauty of the garden with the woman.

It would be difficult to tell how old this lady is because her face is not visible and her skin is not showing. However, she does appear to be a full-grown adult. The artist was probably farther away from the woman when he was painting. Monet has a wonderful way of painting with detail without using fine lines. She was probably dressed in modern-day clothing at the time of the painting. It seems to be near noon, perhaps and hour or to before judging by the angle of the sun.

This piece of art is intriguing and brilliant. The bright colors ‘jump out’ of the painting and the woman’s white dress offers a wonderful contrast of the colorful background. In my opinion, this is a beautiful piece of work and the message is up for interpretation. If I could sell this painting for the artist, it would probably sell for large amounts of cash, as Claude Monet is one of the most well-known artists of all time. After all, he has been inspired by one of the most beautiful women of all time, Mother Nature. Which brings me back to my question, who is the woman in the picture? In my opinion, the woman in the picture is me. When I look at this painting, I love to ‘jump into her shoes’ and pretend that I am standing in the garden among the blossoming trees. The beauty of the painting is that the woman’s identity is up for siege.

No comments: