Art’s Explorer #3: Fine Art Critique

Art Word of the Week: Texture

  On January 25, 2011 I had visited the Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO) for the first time. I was very excited to go to a place where I had never been before. While looking through the AGO plenty of art work had caught my eye but one in particular made me feel something different. This particular artwork initially reminded me of my sister and I when we were young explorers.

This art work above is named Picking Flowers by Helen McNicoll and was created around 1912. Helen McNicoll is a famous artist that was born in Toronto, Ontario in 1879 but grew up in Montreal. Throughout her career, Helen studied art in Montreal, England, Italy and France. Helen’s canvases portrayed pleasing domestic scenes, peaceful afternoons at the seashore, and loving interior scenes. Helen passed away in 1915 at the age of thirty-six in Swanage, England.

My initial reaction to Helen McNicoll’s canvas was warmth and happiness. I really like this canvas because it reminds me of my childhood summer days for my sister and I. The sunny is shining brightly and I feel like I can feel the warmth of the sun on my skin. The materials that have been used are oil on the canvas and possibly different types of soft brushes to get different texture effects on particular objects in the canvas. My senses can smell the fresh summer afternoon, the freshly bloomed flowers and my skin can feel the warmth of the sun shining brightly. The one thing that stands out to me in this canvas is the sun above shining on particular objects and the shadows it produces.

  I believe the Helen McNicoll could have seen this real image on one of her travel studies in Italy. I believe it was done in Italy because of the atmosphere and season this canvas in created in. This canvas looks like it was created by hand and took a great amount time to get every aspect right such as if there was a bit of wind and what was moving, where and what objects were giving off shadows etc. The overall theme in this particular Ago art room was landscapes and people mixed together along all four walls.

 The art word of the week I have chosen for this canvas is texture, which is the “surface quality of a work of art” (Schirrmacher & Fox 2009, P 144).When looking at this canvas in the art gallery it looked so soft and smooth. You can tell that Helen was trying to get that soft and warm summer day. Everything looks so fresh and you get a joyful feeling when looking at this canvas.

   For educators, this would be a great hands on experience for children. Field trips are always a great way for children to learn about new and exciting things that are not present in their every day lives. Field trips give children the opporunity to explore and learn from the environment physically but also visually learn. Taking children on a field trip to the AGO allows them to gain appreciation for the fine arts but also allows them to open their eyes to the wonders of the artistic world. Educators can educate children on how important a painting is to an artist through the personal meaning of their painting. This also educates children that their artist creations should have personal meaning to themselves.

  In conclusion, I had enjoyed my experience at the AGO. I love seeing new, exciting things especially that are different from what I usually do with my time. I would definitely like to experience and see new and exciting things that I have not seen or done before.

If you are interested in visiting the AGO take a look at there offical website for more information :)
                                            http://www.ago.net/

Schirrmacher, R., & Fox, J., E. (2009). Art and creative development for young children (6^th Ed.). Belmont, CA: Delmar.