Art Criticism

By: Taylor G.
The piece I chose was Claude Monets Les Glaons. It
was made in 1893 using oil on canvas. The painting is of a
lake with ice chunks on it. Over the horizon you can see tall, leafless trees and small bushes. The sky is very light with white, fluffy
clouds. The whole painting was made with light, soft colors. He
used mostly purples, blues, oranges, whites, and greens. It is a
mixture of warm and cool colors. The painting is using line with
broken brush strokes, like other paintings of the impressionism
period. You can see texture in the trees and bushes. There are
also different places where you can see value in the shadows
behind the bushes. Overall with the light, soft colors and the
sketch-like appearance the painting looks heavenly.
If you look at the painting you will see many principals of art.
The whole painting has unity because the colors go together.
There is emphasis on the lake due to the sun shining on it. The
painting has asymmetrical balance. The trees in the distance are
proportional. You can also see the movement of the ripples in the
water.
When you look at this piece you can only get a feeling of
peace. The clear sky and the still water put you in a calm state. I
think this depicts Claude Monet as being a calm, quiet man. It
also shows his love for natures beauty. I would say I am the
same, which is why I love this piece so much.

I dont have many suggestions for this piece. The one thing I
would suggest would be to make the reflections of the trees more

proportional. The reflections of the trees in the back are as tall as

the ones in the front. That is the only suggestion I have.