October 23, 2015
Learning to look
We are all familiar with the situations we encounter in an art museum while standing in front of a painting, usually a master piece and wondering how long shall we keeping look at it. And moreover, how to look at it? Are we missing anything while looking at a painting and are we taking the full advantage of the visual experience? This summer I did an art history research with Mary Anne Goley, who is an expert of a 19th century American artist, John White Alexander. We examined of his paintings and analyzed the history background behind them. It appears that there is much more going on while looking at a painting and the first step, which is so easy that we kind of doubt the process, is to trust your eyes. Follow where your gaze goes. And you will see the painting telling its story for you.
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