Critique #1

The artist of my painting is Steve Atkinson and the title is Hope and Despair. He uses acrylic paint over a triple primed canvas. The subject matter is hope. In this painting there is an obvious change between dark and light. In the painting the dark colors which are the mountains are enclosing the person who is also painted dark colors. The dark colors represent despair and anguish. The light colors in the sky are a deep red, orange, and bright yellow. The sun is in the middle and the focal point of the painting. The bright colors represent what is coming in the future for the person, which is hope.
In critiquing this painting I would have to begin with the term chiaroscuro. In the painting there is an obvious distinction between dark and light colors. In the painting the content in the art is in despair and looking and reaching for hope, which is in the distance. The emphasis of the painting is the dark tone of the mountains is placed around the brightness of the sun and vibrant happy colors. In the painting the artist shows a person in the middle of it which represents figurativeness. The focal point of the painting is the sun which represents hope. The foreground of the painting is the dark colored mountains which represents despair. By interpreting this painting I would say the person is surrounded by darkness and is reaching out for hope which is the sun and light colors. The pigment of the painting is dark colors including brown and black. It also has a deep red, orange, and bright yellow. The painting has shade within the mountains and the person. The subtle message the artist is trying to give is that the person is reaching out for hope. The value of the painting is light and dark figures. Lastly, the graphic is painted with acrylics.
The focal point of the piece of art is the sun. The surrounding colors around the sun are darker and the sun is deeper than the color of the sun. The closer to the sun the brighter and more vibrant the colors get. The bright colors represent hope. The narrative is subtle. The dark colors which represent the mountains and the person represent despair. The sun and vibrant sky represents hope. The person is reaching for what is coming in his future, which is hope. The mix of dark and light colors makes this painting very effective and unique.

DECLARATION
For my concept folio I decided to do the theme of hope. The definition of hope is, the feeling that what is wanted can be had or that events will turn out for the best. To me hope is a way to go on living even when all the odds are against you. Hope is a lifestyle, one that I wish I could stand by but it's impossible for anyone to be hopeful all the time. Even so, we must all hope as often as possible and as much as possible. Sometimes it seems like Hope is a bad thing because hope distracts us from our goals but it is actually taking us to new paths when we are lost. No one can live without hope.
Being a senior in high school means many changes are going to be happening within the next year. Filling out applications, writing essays, and paying fees are a few of the small parts of applying to college. Once you are done with this, you think you would be relived but you are not. This is the worst part; waiting. Waiting for college admissions to decide if you are good enough to attend their college and waiting to see if your family is financially eligible to get financial aid. Throughout this process all I can have is hope. Hope that I can get into my top schools and be able to afford them. Hope that next year I will meet new people are form new relationships. All I can do is hope for the best.
After the recent tragedy in Haiti, many celebrities are reaching out. Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, and Sandra Bullock donated $1 Million to Doctors without Borders, an organization where Doctors and nurses volunteer to provide urgent medical care in countries to victims of war and disaster. Also, Gisele Bundchen donated $1.5 million to Red Cross. These celebrities donated money to give the Haitian people hope to survive and begin a new life. There is a website where people submit art they have created that signifies hope for African children and other people suffering of starvation and diseases. There is another website which deals with the hope of Obama changing the United States. People will send in their art work to the website. Some songwriters who write about hope are Journey, Tom Petty, Lee Ann Womack, Michael Jackson, and many others. Many poets also wrote about hope such as Emily Dickinson, Raymond A. Foss, and many more.