[excerpts from] “How to look at art”

“If we can define a work of art as a unique human creation that communicates visually, then there is no single approach that would be appropriate for each and every art object. Understanding this diversity…is the first step to learning how to look at art, for it suggests that each work will demand a unique response. Although each object raises its own issues, the commonalities to be found within the art world are also on display.

Because each person brings their own interests and background to the study of art, [ I ] encourage you to approach art in whatever manner and sequence is most satisfying to you…

If you are a fan of history, you will be interested in asking yourself how a work or group of works might relate to development in society, religion, or culture during a particular period…

At certain points in the chronology of art you will discover “turning points,” brief explanations of how and why art changed at a certain time. Sometimes these points concern technical matters… Others can be closely connected to changes in society…still others discuss changes in artistic style…

If you feel more comfortable approaching art from the point of view of subject matter, turn to… Portraiture, Still Life, [Landscape], Mythology, Allegory and other subjects… [see] how artists have interpreted each theme during different periods in different parts of the globe…

Another way to look at works of art is to study what are called their “Formal qualities” such as composition, color, and materials. To study how the choice of colors can change over time, for example, start in chronological [order] c.1850 and look forward in time…looking at the paintings created in France. Notice how the colors become lighter and brighter at the time of the Impressionism; if you continue forward in time, you’ll see how bold contrasts of strong color were introduced by [artists]of the twentieth century. Academic artists during this period continued to use color in a restrained manner…

Works of art- the products of human effort and genius- are unpredictable and of infinite variety. Because there are so many ways to approach this great trajectory of human creativity, you are invited to devise your own ways of exploring the riches… Once you start, you will discover that looking at art is like eating chocolates; one sample is never enough…

-David G. Wilkins

(painting-Leighton)