[This is the second installment in a series of art viewing tips for beginners to the art world. Read on for more tips in this ArtBarcs blog series to aid those newcomers how to enjoy art like a pro! Read Tip #1 here.]

TIP #2:
Consider all the Artist’s Choices. When creating a work of art, artists make certain decisions and choices to effectively convey their thoughts and emotions. Artists deliberately choose the medium of the artwork, the colors, the linear perspective and other tell-tale signs to express something specific. Take a look at a piece of art and think about all the decisions that particular artist made and try to understand why.

What medium was used?
There are many mediums that an artist can choose when starting a piece, oil, acrylic or pastel to name a few. The artist takes time in considering the best medium for their message. As you look at a piece think about every kind of medium, why would the artist choose this?

Dry Polaroid Transfer on Arches Water Color paper created from a hand built assemblage combined with pastels

Brush Strokes?
Notice the brush strokes, try and guess what size brush was used and look at the techniques used to apply the paint. There are countless styles of painting, each creating a different mood and feel. What is the artist trying to portray in the piece?

This abstract improvisation painting uses large, wide brush strokes.

Color Palettes
An artist’s palette is filled with many colors that help to make the heart of the piece. From shades to tones an artist meticulously calculates where each hue is placed. When looking at a piece of art take into account all of the different colors. On a canvas there can be thousands of hues, spending time enjoying them will help to put you in the artist’s shoes.

All of these details create a whole painting and an entire artistic message. Keep an eye out for this help and enjoy the details!

Read Tip #1: Open Your Eyes here!

[This is the first installment in a series of art viewing tips for beginners to the art world. Read on for more tips in this ArtBarcs blog series to aid those newcomers how to enjoy art like a pro!]

To an outsider, the world of fine art can be an intimidating place. From remembering a whole slew of unfamiliar names and titles to getting all the new lingo down pat for art discussions – many newcomers feel pressure to try and act a certain way when they want to try to enjoy art compared to the standards of other art fans.

ArtBarcs never wants anyone to feel like they can’t enjoy artwork because they don’t think they fit into the fine art environment; we feel everyone should have a chance to enjoy art any way they’d like. That’s why we will be releasing a handful of tips to aid those just getting their art bearings and to remind the seasoned appreciators of the simple love that can exist for fine art. Put these art viewing tips in your personal “Art Viewing Arsenal” and begin to thoroughly enjoy artwork at your own pace!

TIP #1:
Open Your Eyes. Don’t forget this first major point! When you first see a piece like this, taking the time to fully see what is in front of you is half the battle. Take a few steps back. Spend some time looking at the piece at a distance. Get the full view of the canvas. Thick, heavy lines of bold color may, at first, confuse the eye and you may not know what the painting first depicts if you are standing too closely.

This may be what you see if you're standing too closely to a piece.

Fully take in the color choices. Note the brush strokes; the highlights and lowlights. Also remember to take in the size of the canvas; how big is it?

Take a few more steps backward, let your eyes adjust – and voila!  It’s a screaming baby!

Difficult Passage - Wide Open Big Cry

But, there are also some instances when stepping in for a closer look is the only way to view a piece of art and understand the full message the artist was intending. Using all of these full-view viewing techniques is only half the battle — now it’s time to get up close and personal.

Step up closely to the art piece. You can now see all the details that are not as clear from your original far stance. It’s a whole new world this close!

Take a look at the example:

Killer Baner Bots From Bomberburgh

When you take this piece for example, none of the minute details would be available to the viewer until she was quite close. To fully understand the piece as a whole, you must get in closely to the canvas. From a distance, the figure details would be lost, the colors blurred and the specific intricacies gone.

Up close, the detail are much more evident.

Have any questions? Put them in the comments below! Or visit the ArtBarcs Facebook page here.

Next Tip: We’ll discuss personal artist choices!