B.

ANALYSIS Contemporary
Philippine Arts
from the
(ANALYZING THE WORK) Region
 When
you've
described
the work,
it's time to
examine it
1. DISCUSS HOW THE or explain
how it all

WORK USES THE comes

together.
Start by
PRINCIPLES OF thinking
about how
COMPOSITION. the work is
made up,
keeping a
few simple
ideas in
mind
 BALANCE

How do the colors, shapes and textures

of the piece fit together? Should they
produce a balanced or harmonious
effect, or is the piece in some way
unbalanced?
 CONTRAST

Does the job use contrasting colors,

textures, or lighting? Contrast can also
be seen in the use of various shapes or
contours, such as jagged vs. curved lines
or geometric vs. natural shapes.
 MOVEMENT

Why is the work generating a sense of

movement Is your eye drawn in a specific
way through the composition?
 PROPORTION

Do the proportions of the different

elements appear as you might expect, or
are they surprising? For example, if the
research depicts a group of people, do
all of the figures look bigger or smaller
than they would have in real life?
 2. IDENTIFY THE
SUBJECT OF THE JOB.
Many of the works of art have one
or more points designed to attract
your attention and draw your gaze.
For a portrait, this may be the
subject's face or eyes. It may be a
centrally located or well-lit object
in a still-life.
 3. SEARCH FOR
PATTERNS AT WORK.
Identify a few main themes and explain
how the artist used design elements
(color, light, room, form, and line) to
illustrate these themes. Themes could
include things like:
a. The use of a color scheme to give the
work a particular mood or meaning.
b. Symbolism and religious or
mythological imagery.
c. Repeating images or motifs within a
work or group of works.
C. INTERPRETATION
(INTERPRETING THE
WORK)
 TRY TO IDENTIFY THE PURPOSE OF THE
WORK.
In other words, what do you think the artist
was trying to say with the work? Why did they
create the work? Try to summarize the overall
meaning of the work, as you see it.
 DESCRIBE YOUR OWN APPROACH TO
WORK.
Talk about how you feel when you're looking
at work. What do you think is the overall mood
of the job? Does that remind you of something
(ideas, memories, certain works of art)? Use
descriptive language to speak about your
reaction to work. Was the mood at work sad?
hopeful? peaceful? Perhaps you'd like to
describe the work as stunning, or ugly?
 BACK UP YOUR INTERPRETATION/
DEFINITION WITH EXAMPLES.
Using examples from your job summary and
review to illustrate why you think and feel the
way you do it. Example, “I believe that James
Sant’s portrait of a young bride is intended to
give a sense of the bride’s spiritual devotion.
This is indicated by the line of the composition,
which draws the viewer’s eye upward, following
the upward gaze of the subject. It is also
suggested by warm light, coming from a source
somewhere above the young woman.”
 D. JUDGEMENT
(JUDGING THE WORK)
Decide whether you think the work is good.
Your aim here is not simply to determine if
the art is "good "or "bad." Rather,
concentrate on whether you think the work
is "productive." Think, for example, of the
following:
• Do you think the illustration expresses
what the artist wanted to say?
• Did the artist make effective use of their
knowledge and techniques?
• Is art original, or is it imitating other
works?
 1. EXPLAIN HOW YOU JUDGE THE JOB.

When you have agreed on a few elements of

the work to be assessed, clearly demonstrate
the focus of your evaluation. You may suggest,
for example, that you judge the piece on how
well structured it is, how well done it is
technologically, and how well it expresses the
intended mood or themes.
 2.SUMMARIZE WHY YOU THINK THE WORK
HAS BEEN SUCCESSFUL OR INEFFECTIVE.

 Explain your decision on the job in a few sentences. Please

offer clear reasons for your decision, using your
understanding and analysis of the work. For example, “I
believe this work is successful because the use of light,
shape, gesture, and line all work together harmoniously to
portray the mood of the subject.” As presented above, the
different principles and steps in critiquing the artwork are
presented.
 Are you now ready to critique? What do you thing is the
significance of an art critiques? Are they really helpful?
Basically, an art critique allows the artist to understand how
they influence their audience. It also allows the
audience/viewer to gain a better understanding of that
artists' work. Moreover, it is also a spur to deciding what you
really think is the meaning, even though disagreement with
the critic.
 SUMMARY

ART CRITIQUE
A. Description (Describing the work for critiquing) Gather
important knowledge about being a critique.
B. Analysis (Analyzing the work)
C. Interpretation (Interpreting the work)
D. Judgement (Judging the work)
 ACTIVITY 2: SUMMARIZATION

A. Fill in the table the different principles and steps in

critiquing artwork. The first one is done for you.