Lauren's Art Exploration Blog

  The painting shown below is "Fruit and Insects" by Rachel Ruysch. The work of art was produced in 1711 and is currently housed at The Uffizi Museum in Florence, Italy. This piece was crafted on wood using oil paints.  At first glance, this work of art appears to be a produce still life. But upon closer inspection, you will notice the hidden gems that tie Ruysch's work to the expansion of science during the Baroque time period. This painting incorporates insects, lizards, and even bird nests and eggs. The artist does this seamlessly, considering I don't often picture my produce with reptiles and insects surrounding them. That statement itself, may showcase a problem with the modern world. These species are often found among gardens, farms, and areas where these types of fruits are grown. I think this painting pulls me towards a world before the influence of industrialization. It feels simple and natural. I suppose it feels more connected to the Earth, as we do see ac...

The painting shown below is "Primavera" by Alessandro Botticelli. The work of art was produced in 1480 and is currently housed at The Uffizi Museum. This piece was crafted on a poplar wood backing using tempera paint.  This work is so breathtaking. The detail that Botticelli captures in the painting is almost hard to believe. Specifically, the translucent fabric effect that he pulls off so effortlessly. His use of very dark color in the background makes the figures pop out, making their skin looks radiant and shimmery, almost gold-like. The array of flora in the scene is quite incredible. There have been at least 138 different species of plants identified within this piece, all of them being accurately portrayed by Botticelli. This painting is titled "Primavera", which means Spring when translated from Italian. The artists' use of mythological symbolism here is apparent as we see Zephyrus, God of the West Wind, taking Chloris (nymph of spring). She is then trans...

     For this analysis, I have chosen the work of art shown below. This piece is " Wisteria at Kameido Tenjin Shrine” from  One Hundred Famous Views in Edo  by  Utagawa Hiroshige. It was produced in  1856 and is now housed at the British museum in London. The art work is a woodblock print. When viewing this artwork, the color is what immediately drew me in. Most specifically, the deep blue in the foreground  and midground that is depicting the water. This intense, eye-catching color makes up almost half of the entire paper. In addition, this same color is used above at the very top of the paper. I think the use of this color at both the top and bottom of the page creates a cohesiveness within the work that helps to draw the eye to the middle, focusing on the bridge. The use of line in the image is quite delicate in the foreground, specifically where the flowers and shruberry are. I think this lends the image a graceful and serene feeling. Another ...