writing

Describe a Work of Art:

In class, we talked about how anxiety, depression and other psychological disorders manifest themselves in the works of talented and famous artists like Van Gogh, who suffered from a by-polar disorder, and Edvard Munch, who had symptoms of anxiety and depression in real life. 

Choose a work of art that you know and like whose central idea, image, or color palette reflect sorrow, despair, or a depressed state of the artist who created that painting.

You can talk about the works that we discussed in class: The Starry Night by Van Gogh or The Scream by Edvard Munch.  

Choose one of the works and reflect on it in an essay of 300-400 words: what do you see depicted in the painting, what attracts you to it, what is its central idea or message, how does the anxiety of the artist manifest itself in the painting?

First, describe what you see on the painting using a spatial order. When describing a painting, you can move from left to right, from back to front, or from top to bottom. For example, you can start by describing the central and most important image or you can start with the background and move towards the forefront of the painting.

Second, explain how you understand the work of art and its central idea, why it appeals to you, etc.