Activity Five

Many artist create art with different themes.

Martin Johnson Heade's "Cattleya Orchid and Three Brazilian Hummingbirds", 1871, on oil wood, depicts an Art and Nature theme. Nature and Art theme is based on artworks about good old mother nature (74.) The title, the name the artist gave this painting, supports the nature theme because states that you are viewing an orchid and hummingbirds which are a part of nature. While the subject, what the painting is of, nature and the main context is a large flower and three hummingbirds. This theme is aslo supported by different principles and elements of art. The figure, a shape you detach and focus on(89), a large beautiful flower grabs and holds your attention right away. The artist also uses color to enhance the theme. The background is painted primarily with warm colors, the green leaves and blue sky in the right corner (95). While the main focul points are highlighted with warm colors, the purple flower and the red, yellow and purple hummingbirds (95). Emphasis which is what our attention is drawn to(134), and large scale, which is larger than normal(136), help enhance our attention on the flower as well. Subordination, uses less detail in order to enhance something else(134), also keeps our attention on the flower and the hummingbirds because the background is rather dull and a bit drab. These key elements keep our attention focused on the what the artist wanted us to look at, nature.

Horace Vernet's, "Hunting in the Pontine Marshes", 1833, on oil canvas, aslo depicts a major theme. However, this paintings theme is looking inward: the human experience, which is art depicting what life is like (64.) This painting depicts this theme because the men in the boat are hunting which everyone in the world has to eat and these men are hunting which is described in the title. The subject of the painting is a boat traveling through the woods or marshes on a small river. Like Heade's painting, many design elements and principles of art help enhance the paintings theme. Unlike Heade, Vernet used direction and movement (84) in order to bring our attention to the painting's main focus. The vertical direction of the white tree helps your eyes slope down to the hunters in the boat(85). Similar to Heade, Vernet uses color to enhance his focul point. However, he uses shades, colors darker than their original (96), of green to outline the painting and tints, colors lighter than thier original (96), to highlight the river, the fallen and broken tree and the hunters. Atmospheric perspective, suggest a receding landscape (113), also enhances the human experience theme because it gives the woods a never-ending look which is typical in real life. Vernet also uses emphasis and subordination just like Heade's painting(134). The outline which is not as visually stimulating, subordination, allows the viewer to pay more attention to the fallen tree and the hunters, emphasis. As we can see both artist used similar and different elements and principles to support thier completely different themes.

Works Cited

Getlein, Mark. "Living With Art, eighth edition". New York 2008.