Big Idea Research-

Originally, I had been researching flowers and what each of them means. That lead me to a website which discussed flowers for each birth month. That reminded me a lot of astrology and birth stones. I thought more about this and somehow I got to the notion that humans like finding something that they relate to, something that gives them a sense of identity, meaning, or importance. I continued along this train of thought and looked into the need for importance/meaning in everyday life. It appears to me that humans have been searching for purpose for as far back as our records go.

Artist Critique #1-

The piece of artwork I chose to critique is "Boy and Dog" or "Bibicus Vincit" by Sofonisba Angussola. I chose this piece one, because her name is kinda interesting and two, because the dog in the painting looks weird. It's an oil painting  however I am not sure of it's original size. The painting is of a young boy with a bird perched on his hand. He is in the process of getting on a dog for whatever reason. Both the boy and the dog are staring at the viewer. There's a large tree in the background, along with what looks to be a small village or some buildings. 

There's a slightly informal balance to the whole thing. The entire bird and both the dog's and the boy's head are to the left. So is the boy's arm.  His leg is swinging up and two the right and the tree is leaning in the same direction. The colors are primarily muted earth tones with the exception of the red on the boy's pants and hat. The red is a nice contrast and draws the eye to the movement of him. The movement is him swinging his leg over the dog and reaching out to the bird.

The artist could be trying to show human and animal companionship, or perhaps the white bird could be a signal of calamity and peace? Both the boy and the dog are staring intensely at the viewer in a somewhat unsettling way. 

​I do overall like the painting. The dog looks a bit wonky and off balanced and the way they both stare at the viewer is slightly unnerving. But I do like the boy's outfit and the background detail is very nice. I cant tell it's an in action painting, which is good. 

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Artist Critique #2-

​The piece of artwork I chose to critique is one done by Fede Galizia in 1596. It is called "Judith with the head of Holofernes". It is an oil painting, as all of her other pieces of artwork are. It is believed that this is a self portrait. 

The image depicts a woman in an elegant gown with fancy jewelry. She is facing to the left but her body is turned right. One hand is clenched into a fist and the other rests atop of a head. Despite this, she manages to maintain a calm aura and a slight smile. The servant in the background is holding a platter. He has a hand pressed to his face, almost like he's lost in thought. The platter he holds has a human head resting on top of it, one of a (hopefully) dead man.

In the painting, the colors are quite muted. Little lighting is in the image aside from that on the woman herself. The composition is nicely done. I enjoy the balance between the taller woman and the short servant with the platter in front. 

I do like the painting. It makes me wonder why the artist chose to do a self portrait in such a gruesome way. The reason I chose this image was because the head caught my eye.

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