The Card Players: William Sidney Mount and Francis Criss

889 Words2 Pages

William Sidney Mount and Francis Criss strategically used the elements and principles of art to create The Card Players in the time period of 1845-1850 and City Landscape in 1934, respectively, in order to accurately portray the meaning and significance behind each aspect of each piece of art. While both pieces of art are similar in many ways, there are significant differences as well. Some of the major differences include the color palette that is used and the motion and focal point emphasized and created in The Card Players. The two pieces are similar in aspects such as the rhythm that is created, the lines created, and the values that are used throughout for many purposes. One of the most noticeable differences that the viewer might see when comparing the two pieces of art is the color choices that the artists made. In The Card Players, the most prominent and most widely used color is brown. Although the same color is used throughout, there are different variations, or values, of brown to give the piece contrast. For example, the clothing that the subjects are wearing is significantly lighter in value than the walls of the building that surround them. Also, this value technique helps to show the shadows and illuminations that would be realistic in that particular setting. There is a shadow in the far right corner of the painting where minimal sunlight is being let in, or is being blocked by the subjects, while the bricks on the left side are lighter in value as if they are illuminated by the sun that is being let in. There is not as much value being illustrated in City Landscape as in The Card Players. There is a larger variety of colors being used instead of different values of the same color. Although, there are value chang... ... middle of paper ... ... point. This point is the white building in the painting. The lines all end at his point in order for the eye to follow the line down to this particular building. William Sidney Mount and Francis Criss both used several elements and principles to capture the essence of each of their oil paintings. Each artist chose specific elements and principles in order to give the piece of art the effect that they wanted the viewer to see. While each artist painted a different setting and story, some of the same aspects were used to create both pieces of art. There are also differences that set them apart and make each painting a truly unique work of art. Each specific element and principle including linear aspects, focal point, value, and motion that is used by the artist in either The Card Players or City Landscape has the purpose of guiding the viewer through the artwork.

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