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Visual Analysis Essay

Visual Analysis Essay - A Writing Guide with Format & Sample

14 min read

What is a Visual Analysis Essay

A visual analysis essay basically requires you to provide a detailed description of a specific visual work of art. It is a type of analytical essay that deals with imagery and visual art instead of texts.

The subject of a visual analysis essay could be an image, painting, photograph, or any visual medium.

In this type of essay, you need to describe the artwork and analyze its elements in detail. That is, how different elements and features fit together to make the whole work stand out. In this sense, you need to use a mixture of descriptive writing and analytical language.

To write a good visual analysis essay, you need to know the basic visual elements and principles of design. Let’s learn about these concepts first before diving into the writing steps.

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Visual Elements for a Visual Analysis Essay

Writing a visual analysis essay involves analyzing the visual elements of a piece of art. These elements form the basis of the features and characteristics of an image.

Below you can find the common visual elements of a visual analysis essay.

Principles of Design in a Visual Analysis Essay

In addition to visual elements, you must also consider the principles of design for writing a great visual analysis essay. These principles help you identify and explain the characteristics of the image.

How to Write a Visual Analysis Essay - 7 Simple Steps

Now that you have an idea about visual elements and principles, you are now ready to proceed.

Here are the steps that you need to follow for writing a visual analysis essay. Let’s discuss them in detail.

Step 1 - Gather General Information About the Artwork

Once you have a specific artwork or image, here is how to start a visual analysis essay. You need to ask some basic questions about the work and jot down your ideas.

This pre-writing step is for brainstorming ideas. Ask these questions to begin:

Who and what does the artwork represent?
Who is the author of the piece?
Who did the artist create the work for? Who is the intended audience?
When and where was the work created? What is its historical context?
Where was this work displayed for the first time?
Identify which medium, materials, and techniques were used to create the image?

Step 2 - Note Down the Characteristics of the Artwork

The next thing that you need to do is identify what the image depicts. Moreover, you need to identify and describe the visual art elements and design principles used in the work.

Here’s what you need to note:

The subject matter and its representation.
Colors, shapes, and lines used in the composition.
The balance, proportion, and harmony within the artwork.
Any symbolism or metaphors present.

By pointing out such characteristics, you set the stage for a nuanced analysis in your essay.

Step 3 - Visual Analysis Essay Outline

Once you have gathered your main points by carefully studying the image, you should now organize them in an outline.

Here is how you make an outline for your visual analysis essay:

Step 4- Write the Introduction

This is the first paragraph of a visual analysis essay in which you need to provide some background information on the topic. After grabbing the readers’ attention with an interesting fact, briefly provide information on the following points.

Talk briefly about the painting and its artist or creator.
Provide a brief description of the painting and give historical context
Add an interesting fact about the artist or the painting.

The introduction should end with a thesis statement. The visual analysis essay thesis states the analysis points on the artwork that you aim to discuss in your essay.

Step 5 - Provide Detailed Description, Analysis, and Interpretation

In the body section, you need to explore the artwork in detail. In the first body paragraph, simply describe the features and characteristics of the work. For instance, talk about the technique being used, shape, color, and other aspects to support your thesis.

In the next paragraphs, you can go into the analysis and interpretation of these elements and the work as a whole. Present all the details logically and discuss the relationship between the objects. Talk about the meaning, significance, and impact of the work.

Step 6 - Writing a Conclusion

Once you have completed the body section, move to the conclusion paragraph. This is the last paragraph of the essay that should be strong and well-written to create a sense of closure.

Here’s how you can do it

Revisit the main insights gained through the analysis, summarizing the key visual elements and principles discussed.
Emphasize the significance of cultural or historical context in interpreting the visual narrative.
Tie together the threads of your analysis to reinforce your thesis or main argument.
End with a memorable statement and encourage readers to carry the lessons learned from the analysis into their own encounters with art.

Step 7 - Edit & Revise Your Essay

Here’s how to end your visual analysis essay: edit and revise your first draft until it becomes the perfect version. Consider these steps for an excellent revision:

Review for Clarity: Ensure your ideas flow logically. Clarify any ambiguous or unclear statements to enhance the overall readability of your essay.
Trim Unnecessary Details: Trim excess information that doesn't directly contribute to your main points. Keep your analysis focused and concise.
Check Consistency: Verify that your writing style remains consistent throughout the essay. Maintain a balance between formal language and engaging expression.
Fine-Tune Transitions: Ensure smooth transitions between different sections of your essay. Transitions help guide your reader through the analysis, making the journey more enjoyable and comprehensible.
Proofread for Errors: Carefully proofread your essay for grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors. A polished essay enhances your credibility and the overall professionalism of your work.

With these basic steps, you can craft an amazing visual analysis essay. Read on for some useful tips for analyzing different kinds of visual subjects.

Tips on How to Analyze a Photograph

Painting and photograph analysis are very similar. There are three ways in which photo visual analysis is conducted: description, reflection, and formal analysis.

Although the historical study may be used, it is not necessary.

Description - It implies examining the picture carefully and considering all of the details. The description should be neutral, focusing on simple facts without expressing a personal viewpoint.
Reflection - For the next stage, consider the emotions that the picture stirs in you. Every viewer will have a distinct viewpoint and feelings about the piece. Knowing some historical background might be useful when formulating an educated response.
Formal analysis - Consider the visual components and concepts. How are they shown in the photo?
Historical analysis - For a contextual analysis, keep an eye on the photo's surroundings. Make sure you comprehend the surrounding environment in which the photograph was taken. What era was this image shot during?

Tips on How to Analyze a Sculpture

A sculpture, unlike a painting or photograph, requires a different approach to visual analysis. It still depends on visible components and principles, however it does so in a slightly different way.

When you're writing about sculptures, keep the following in mind:

Medium, size, and technique - What kind of material is it? Is it carved in a negative or positive method?
Color and lightning - Describe the hue of the sculpture, whether it is painted. Was the sculptor concerned with the illumination when creating the work?
Human body and scale - Consider how a human body is portrayed in the piece. Also, assess the sculpture's size compared to that of the viewer.
Function - What was the sculpture's main aim? You could speak about whether it represented a religious conviction or honored someone, for example.
Composition - Examine the placement of the piece and determine whether there is a focal point.

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Visual Analysis Essay on Advertisement

In advertisements, visuals are used to pique interest or persuade the public that what is being advertised is needed. The goal of a visual argument is to generate attention and intrigue. Images are utilized in advertisements to transmit information and interact with the audience.

When conducting a visual analysis of an ad, keep the following in mind:

Textual Elements
Illustrations
Composition

This all has an impact on how people perceive information and how they react to it.

When you analyze the visuals of an ad, you're performing a rhetorical analysis. The study of images and extracting information from them is known as visual rhetoric. It aids in the comprehension of typography, imagery, and the structure of elements on the page.

How to Write a Visual Analysis Paper on an Advertisement

Visual components in advertising are important. It aids in the persuasion of the audience.

Always keep the rhetorical situation in mind while analyzing visual arguments. The following are some key elements to consider:

Audience - Who is the advertisement meant to attract?
Purpose - What message does the photo try to get across to the audience?
Design - What kind of visualizations are included? Are the visuals clear and easy to follow? Are there any patterns or repetitions in the design?
Strategies - Is there any humor, celebrities, or cultural allusions in the graphic's message?
Medium - Is the photograph surrounded by text? Is there any text within the picture? How does it interact with the picture to produce an intended effect if there is any?
Context - What are the characters in an ad? Where are they positioned?
Subtext - Consider the meaning of the picture's words. What are they trying to say?

Visual Rhetorical Analysis Essay Examples

Here are some visual analysis essay samples that you can read to understand this type of essay better.

Art history Visual Analysis Essay Example

Political Cartoon Visual Analysis Essay

Rhetorical and Visual Analysis Essay Sample

Mona Lisa Visual Analysis Essay

Visual Analysis Essay Topics

Here are some top visual analysis essay topics that you can choose from and begin the writing process.

Make a review of your favorite Hollywood production and discuss the visual arts involved.
Write about the use of color and action in TV commercials.
Discuss how the brand name is displayed in digital media campaigns.
Discuss different types of visual appeals used in web ads.
What is the special about Cleo Award-winning ads?
The Use of Light and Shadow in Caravaggio's "The Calling of Saint Matthew"
The Symbolism of Colors in Vincent van Gogh's "Starry Night"
What is the importance of art and culture in our life?
How has art changed over the last 50 years?
The use of colors in marketing and advertising.

To conclude,

From gathering information about the artwork to crafting a compelling analysis, we've navigated the essential steps you need for a visual analysis essay. Moreover, with the specific tips and examples, you have everything you need to get started.

So dive into the writing process with confidence and return to this blog whenever you need help on any step!

However, if you have gone through the whole article and are still unsure how to start your essay, we can help you.

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How to Write a Visual Analysis Essay: Examples & Template

A visual analysis essay is an academic paper type that history and art students often deal with. It consists of a detailed description of an image or object. It can also include an interpretation or an argument that is supported by visual evidence.

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The picture shows the definition of a visual analysis.

In this article, our custom writing experts will:

explain what a visual analysis is;
share useful tips on how to write a good visual analysis essay;
provide an essay sample.
🎨 Visual Analysis Definition
🏺 Artwork Analysis Tips
✅ Visual Analysis Writing Guide
📑 Example & Citation Tips

🎨 What Is a Visual Analysis?

The primary objective of visual analysis is to understand an artwork better by examining the visual elements. There are two types of visual analysis: formal and contextual.

A formal analysis focuses on artwork elements such as texture, color, size, and line. It aims to organize visual information and translate it into words. A formal analysis doesn’t interpret the piece.
Unlike formal analysis, contextual analysis’ primary goal is to connect artwork to its purpose or meaning within a culture. A contextual analysis includes formal analysis. Additionally, it discusses an artwork’s social purpose and significance.

Usually, students deal with formal visual analysis. Before starting to work on your essay, make sure to ask your professor whether to include contextual analysis or not.

The Purpose of Analyzing Images

Why is visual analysis important? What does it help to learn? There are several things that visual analysis helps with:

It allows students to enhance their appreciation of art.
It enables students to develop the ability to synthesize information.
It encourages students to seek out answers instead of simply receiving them.
It prompts higher-order critical thinking and helps to create a well-reasoned analysis.
By conducting visual analysis, students learn how to support and explain their ideas by studying visual information.

What Is Formal Analysis: Art History

When we look at an artwork, we want to know why it was created, who made it, and what its function was. That’s why art historians and researchers pay special attention to the role of artworks within historical contexts.

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Visual analysis is a helpful tool in exploring art. It focuses on the following aspects:

Interpretation of subject matter ( iconography). An iconographic analysis is an explanation of the work’s meaning. Art historians try to understand what is shown and why it is depicted in a certain way.
The analysis of function. Many works of art were designed to serve a purpose that goes beyond aesthetics. Understanding that purpose by studying their historical use helps learn more about artworks. It also establishes a connection between function and appearance.

Formal Analysis: Art Glossary

Now, let’s look at some visual elements and principles and learn how to define them.

Visual Elements :

Visual Principles :

🏺 How to Analyze Artworks: Different Types

Writing a formal analysis is a skill that requires practice. Being careful and attentive during the pre-writing stage is essential if you want to create a good and well-structured visual analysis. 

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Visual analysis essay mainly consists of two components:

Description of the selected image or object,
Interpretation built on the visual evidence.

During the pre-writing stage:

Collect general information about an artwork. Describe it briefly. Pay special attention to visual elements and principles:
Develop an interpretation. Think critically. What does the information in your notes imply? How can it be interpreted?
Support your ideas. To do it, refer to the visual elements directly. Avoid generalizing art and double-check your prompts.

How to Analyze a Painting Using the Elements of Art

To write an excellent formal visual analysis, you need to consider as many visual principles and elements as you can apply. In the formal analysis part:

Target your description;
Address only those elements relevant to your essay;
Pay attention to visual elements and principles;
Introduce the subject of the painting and describe it;
Explain why you have decided to discuss specific elements;
Discuss the relationship between visual elements of the artwork;
Use the vocabulary terms.

If you are asked to do a contextual analysis , you may want to:

Focus on the historical importance of an artwork;
Explore the style or movement associated with an artwork;
Learn about the historical context and the public’s reaction to the artwork;
Learn about the author and how they’ve created the piece of art.

Painting Analysis Essay Example & Tips

Here is a template you can use for your essay.

Get an originally-written paper according to your instructions!

Now, let’s take a look at an essay example.

How to Analyze a Photograph

Analyzing photos has a lot in common with paintings. There are three methods on which photo visual analysis relies: description, reflection, and formal analysis. Historical analysis can be included as well, though it is optional.

Description . It implies looking closely at the photo and considering all the details. The description needs to be objective and consists of basic statements that don’t express an opinion.
Reflection. For the next step, focus on the emotions that the photograph evokes. Here, every viewer will have a different opinion and feelings about the artwork. Knowing some historical context may be helpful to construct a thoughtful response.
Formal analysis . Think of the visual elements and principles. How are they represented in the photograph?
Historical analysis. For a contextual analysis, you need to pay attention to the external elements of the photograph. Make sure that you understand the environmental context in which the photo was taken. Under what historical circumstances was the picture made?

Photo Analysis Essay Tips

Now that we’ve talked about analyzing a photograph let’s look at some helpful tips that will help you write an essay.

How to Analyze a Sculpture

Visual analysis of a sculpture is slightly different from the one of a painting or a photograph. However, it still uses similar concepts, relies on visual elements and principles. When you write about sculpture, consider:

Visual Analysis Essay on a Sculpture: Writing Tips

A sculpture analysis consists of the following parts:

Description . Include specific details, such as what the sculpture may represent. For instance, the human figure may be an athlete, an ancient God, a poet, etc. Consider their pose, body build, and attire.
Formal analysis . Here, visual elements and principles become the focus. Discuss the color, shape, technique, and medium.
Contextual analysis . If you decide to include a contextual analysis, you can talk about the sculpture’s function and how it conveys   ideas and sentiments of that period. Mention its historical and cultural importance.

When it comes to sculpture analysis, you may also want to collect technical data such as:

The size of the sculpture
Medium (the material)
The current condition (is it damaged, preserved as a fragment, or as a whole piece)
Display (Was a sculpture a part of an architectural setting, or was it an independent piece of work?)

For instance, if you were to do a visual analysis of Laocoön and His Sons , you could first look up such details:

Location: Discovered in a Roman vineyard in 1506
Current location: Vatican
Date: Hellenistic Period (323 BCE – 31 CE)
Size: Height 208 cm; Width 163 cm; Depth 112 cm
Material: Marble
Current condition: Missing several parts.

Visual Analysis Essay: Advertisement Analysis

Visuals are used in advertisements to attract attention or convince the public that they need what is being advertised. The purpose of a visual argument is to create interest. Advertisements use images to convey information and communicate with the audience.

When writing a visual analysis of an advertisement, pay attention to the following:

text elements,
illustrations,
composition.

All of this influences how the viewer perceives the information and reacts to it.

When you write about an advertisement, you conduct a rhetorical analysis of its visual elements. Visual rhetoric is mainly directed at analyzing images and extracting information from them. It helps to understand the use of typography, imagery, and the arrangement of elements on the page.

Think of the famous visual rhetoric examples such as the We can do it! poster or a Chanel №5 commercial. Both examples demonstrate how persuasive imagery has been used throughout history.

How to Write a Visual Analysis Paper on an Advertisement

The presentation of visual elements in advertising is essential. It helps to convince the audience. When you analyze visual arguments, always keep the rhetorical situation in mind. Here are some crucial elements to focus on:

✅ How to Write a Visual Analysis Paper: Step by Step

Now, we’ll focus on the paper itself and how to structure it. But first, check out the list of topics and choose what suits you best.

Visual Analysis Essay Topics

There are a lot of artworks and advertisements that can be analyzed and viewed from different perspectives. Here are some essay topics on visual analysis that you may find helpful:

Analyze Gustav Klimt’s The Kiss (1907-1908.)
The theme of humanity and The Son of Man (1964) by René Magritte.
The use of visual elements in Almond Blossom by Vincent van Gogh (1888-1890.)
Identity and Seated Harlequin (1901) by Picasso .
Explore the themes of Paul Klee ’s The Tree of Houses , 1918.
Objectives, activities, and instructions of Pietro Perugino’s fresco The Delivery of the Keys to Saint Peter .
Reflection on social issues of the time in Two Fridas by Frida Kahlo and Untitled by Ramses Younan .
Analyze the importance of Mural (1943) by Jackson Pollock .
The political message in John Gast’s painting American Progress (1872).
Describe the visual techniques used in Toy Pieta by Scott Avett .
The interpretation of the painting Indian Fire God by Frederic Remington.
Explore the historical significance and aesthetic meaning of Ognissanti Madonna by Giotto di Bondone .
Analyze different interpretations of The Three Dancers by Pablo Picasso .

Photography:

The idea behind Lindsay Key (1985) by Robert Mapplethorpe.
Explore the mythical appeal of Robert Capa’s photograph The Falling Soldier (Spain,1936) from Death in Making photobook.
Describe Two Boys with Fish (2018) from Faith series by Mario Macilau.
Kevin Carter’s Starving Child and Vulture (1993) as the representation of photojournalism.
The story behind Philippe Halsman’s Dali Atomicus , 1948.
Describe The Starving Boy in Uganda photograph by Mike Wells
Analyse the view of a historic disaster in San Francisco photograph by George R. Lawrence.
The statement behind Eddie Adams’s photo Shooting a Viet Cong Prisoner .
How is Steve McCurry’s perception of the world reflected in his photo Afghanistan Girl .
Analyze the reflection of Ansel Adams’s environmental philosophy in his photo Moon and Half Dome (1960).
Describe Girl on the Garda Lake (2016) by Giuseppe Milo.
Combination of internal geometry and true-to-life moments in Behind the Gare Saint Lazare by Henri Cartier-Bresson .
Modern art and Couple on Seat by Lynn Chadwick (1984.)
Analyze the biblical context of Pieta (1498-1499) by Michelangelo.
The use of shapes in Louise Bourgeois ’ Spider (1996.)
Analysis of the symbolism behind The Thinker (1880) by Rodin.
The historical meaning of Fountain (1917) by Duchamp .
Analyze the Miniature Statue of Liberty by Willard Wigan
The combination of Egyptian culture and classical Greek ideology in statue of Osiris-Antinous .
Reflection of the civilization values in emperor Qin’s Terracotta Army .
The aesthetic and philosophical significance of Michelangelo’s David .
Explore the controversial meaning of Damien Hirst’s sculpture For the Love of God (2007).
Analyze the elements of art and design used in The Thinker by August Rodin .
Symbolic elements in the Ancient Greek statues of Zeus .
Depiction of the fundamental aspects of Buddhism in The Parinirvana of Siddhartha/Shakyamuni.

How Volkswagen : Think Small (1960) ad changed advertising.
Analyze the use of figures in California Milk Processor Board: Got Milk? (1993) ad campaign .
Analyze the use of colors in Coca-Cola — The Pause that Refreshes (1931.)
Explore the historical context of We Can Do It! (1942) campaign.
The importance of a slogan in 1947: A Diamond Is Forever by De Beers.
Examine the specifics of visual advert: dogs and their humans.
Describe the use of visual techniques in Kentucky Fried Chicken company’s advertisement.
Analyze the multiple messages behind the print ad of JBL .
Discuss the methods used in Toyota Highlander advertisement .
Elucidation of people’s dependency on social networks in the advertising campaign Followers by Miller Lite.
The use of the visual arguments in Schlitz Brewing Company advertisement .
The role of colors and fonts in Viva la Juicy perfume advertisement .

Visual Analysis Essay Outline

You can use this art analysis template to structure your essay:

The picture shows the main steps in writing a visual analysis essay: introduction, main body, conclusion.

How to Start an Art Essay

Every analysis starts with an introduction. In the first paragraph, make sure that:

the reader knows that this essay is a visual analysis;
you have provided all the necessary background information about an artwork.

It’s also important to know how to introduce an artwork. If you’re dealing with a panting or a photograph, it’s better to integrate them into the first page of your analysis. This way, the reader can see the piece and use it as a reference while reading your paper.

Art Thesis Statement Examples & Tips

Formulating a thesis is an essential step in every essay. Depending on the purpose of your paper, you can either focus your visual analysis thesis statement on formal elements or connect it with the contextual meaning. 

To create a strong thesis, you should relate it to an artwork’s meaning, significance, or effect. Your interpretation should put out an argument that someone could potentially disagree with. 

For instance, you can consider how formal elements or principles impact the meaning of an artwork. Here are some options you can consider:
If your focus is the contextual analysis, you can find the connection between the artwork and the artist’s personal life or a historical event.

How to Write Visual Analysis Body Paragraphs

Body paragraphs of formal analysis consist of two parts—the description and the analysis itself. Let’s take Klimt’s The Kiss as an example:

The contextual analysis includes interpretation and evaluation.

Visual Analysis Essay Conclusion

When you work on the conclusion, try to conclude your paper without restating the thesis. At the end of your essay, you can present an interesting fact. You can also try to:

Compare an artwork to similar ones;
Contrast your own ideas on the piece with the reaction people had when it was first revealed.
Talk about an artwork’s significance to the culture and art in general.

📑 Visual Analysis Essay Example & Citation Tips

In this section of the article, we will share some tips on how to reference an artwork in a paper. We will also provide an essay example.

How to Reference a Painting in an Essay

When you work on visual analysis, it is important to know how to write the title of an artwork properly. Citing a painting, a photograph, or any other visual source, will require a little more information than citing a book or an article. Here is what you will need:

Size dimensions
Current location
Name of the piece
Artist’s name
Date when artwork was created

If you want to cite a painting or an artwork you saw online, you will also need:

The name of the website
Website URL
Page’s publication date
Date of your access

How to Properly Credit an Artwork in APA

How to properly credit an artwork in mla, how to properly credit an artwork in chicago format.

Finally, here’s a sample visual analysis of Rodin’s sculpture The Thinker in APA format. Feel free to download it below.

Many people believe that works of art are bound to be immortal. Indeed, some remarkable masterpieces have outlived their artists by many years, gaining more and more popularity with time. Among them is The Thinker, a brilliant sculpture made by Auguste Rodin, depicting a young, athletic man, immersed deep into his thoughts.

You can also look at the following essay samples to get even more ideas.

The Protestors Cartoon by Clay Bennett: Visual Analysis
Visual Analysis – Editorial Cartoon
Visual Analysis: “Dust Storm” Photo by Steve McCurry
Visual, Aural, Read & Write, Kinesthetic Analysis
Schlitz Brewing Company Advertisement: Visual Arguments Analysis

Thanks for reading through our article! We hope you found it helpful. Don’t hesitate to share it with your friends.

❓ Visual Analysis FAQs

To write a visual argument essay, you need to use rhetorical analysis. Visual rhetoric is directed at analyzing images and extracting the information they contain. It helps to analyze the visuals and the arrangement of elements on the page.

A well-though contextual analysis will include:

1. formal analysis, 2. some information about the artist, 3. details on when and where the piece was created, 4. the social purpose of the work, 5. its cultural meaning.

It is better to include pictures in the introduction part of your paper. Make sure to cite them correctly according to the format you’re using. Don’t forget to add the website name, the URL, and the access date.

To analyze means not only to describe but also to evaluate and synthesize visual information. To do that, you need to learn about visual elements and principles and see how and why they are used within artworks.

🔍 References

Art History: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Visual Analysis: Duke University
Writing a Formal Analysis in Art History: Hamilton College
Contextual Analysis: Pine-Richland School District
How to Analyze an Artwork: Student Art Guide
Introduction to Art Historical Analysis: Khan Academy
Guidelines for Analysis of Art: University of Arkansas at Little Rock
Elements of Art: Getty.edu
Formal or Critical Analysis: LibreTexts
Analyzing a Photograph: University of Oregon
Picture Composition Analysis and Photo Essay: University of Northern Iowa
Visual Analysis Guidelines: Skidmore College
How to Analyze Sculpture: NLA Design and Visual Arts: WordPress
Visual Rhetoric: Purdue University
Formal Visual Analysis: The Elements & Principles of Composition
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Writing Essays in Art History

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These OWL resources provide guidance on typical genres with the art history discipline that may appear in professional settings or academic assignments, including museum catalog entries, museum title cards, art history analysis, notetaking, and art history exams.

Art History Analysis – Formal Analysis and Stylistic Analysis

Typically in an art history class the main essay students will need to write for a final paper or for an exam is a formal or stylistic analysis.

A formal analysis is just what it sounds like – you need to analyze the form of the artwork. This includes the individual design elements – composition, color, line, texture, scale, contrast, etc. Questions to consider in a formal analysis is how do all these elements come together to create this work of art? Think of formal analysis in relation to literature – authors give descriptions of characters or places through the written word. How does an artist convey this same information?

Organize your information and focus on each feature before moving onto the text – it is not ideal to discuss color and jump from line to then in the conclusion discuss color again. First summarize the overall appearance of the work of art – is this a painting? Does the artist use only dark colors? Why heavy brushstrokes? etc and then discuss details of the object – this specific animal is gray, the sky is missing a moon, etc. Again, it is best to be organized and focused in your writing – if you discuss the animals and then the individuals and go back to the animals you run the risk of making your writing unorganized and hard to read. It is also ideal to discuss the focal of the piece – what is in the center? What stands out the most in the piece or takes up most of the composition?

A stylistic approach can be described as an indicator of unique characteristics that analyzes and uses the formal elements (2-D: Line, color, value, shape and 3-D all of those and mass).The point of style is to see all the commonalities in a person’s works, such as the use of paint and brush strokes in Van Gogh’s work. Style can distinguish an artist’s work from others and within their own timeline, geographical regions, etc.

Methods & Theories To Consider:

Expressionism

Instructuralism

Postmodernism

Social Art History

Biographical Approach

Poststructuralism

Museum Studies

Visual Cultural Studies

Stylistic Analysis Example:

The following is a brief stylistic analysis of two Greek statues, an example of how style has changed because of the “essence of the age.” Over the years, sculptures of women started off as being plain and fully clothed with no distinct features, to the beautiful Venus/Aphrodite figures most people recognize today. In the mid-seventh century to the early fifth, life-sized standing marble statues of young women, often elaborately dress in gaily painted garments were created known as korai. The earliest korai is a Naxian women to Artemis. The statue wears a tight-fitted, belted peplos, giving the body a very plain look. The earliest korai wore the simpler Dorian peplos, which was a heavy woolen garment. From about 530, most wear a thinner, more elaborate, and brightly painted Ionic linen and himation. A largely contrasting Greek statue to the korai is the Venus de Milo. The Venus from head to toe is six feet seven inches tall. Her hips suggest that she has had several children. Though her body shows to be heavy, she still seems to almost be weightless. Viewing the Venus de Milo, she changes from side to side. From her right side she seems almost like a pillar and her leg bears most of the weight. She seems be firmly planted into the earth, and since she is looking at the left, her big features such as her waist define her. The Venus de Milo had a band around her right bicep. She had earrings that were brutally stolen, ripping her ears away. Venus was noted for loving necklaces, so it is very possibly she would have had one. It is also possible she had a tiara and bracelets. Venus was normally defined as “golden,” so her hair would have been painted. Two statues in the same region, have throughout history, changed in their style.

Compare and Contrast Essay

Most introductory art history classes will ask students to write a compare and contrast essay about two pieces – examples include comparing and contrasting a medieval to a renaissance painting. It is always best to start with smaller comparisons between the two works of art such as the medium of the piece. Then the comparison can include attention to detail so use of color, subject matter, or iconography. Do the same for contrasting the two pieces – start small. After the foundation is set move on to the analysis and what these comparisons or contrasting material mean – ‘what is the bigger picture here?’ Consider why one artist would wish to show the same subject matter in a different way, how, when, etc are all questions to ask in the compare and contrast essay. If during an exam it would be best to quickly outline the points to make before tackling writing the essay.

Compare and Contrast Example:

Stele of Hammurabi from Susa (modern Shush, Iran), ca. 1792 – 1750 BCE, Basalt, height of stele approx. 7’ height of relief 28’

Stele, relief sculpture, Art as propaganda – Hammurabi shows that his law code is approved by the gods, depiction of land in background, Hammurabi on the same place of importance as the god, etc.

Top of this stele shows the relief image of Hammurabi receiving the law code from Shamash, god of justice, Code of Babylonian social law, only two figures shown, different area and time period, etc.

Stele of Naram-sin , Sippar Found at Susa c. 2220 - 2184 bce. Limestone, height 6'6"

Stele, relief sculpture, Example of propaganda because the ruler (like the Stele of Hammurabi) shows his power through divine authority, Naramsin is the main character due to his large size, depiction of land in background, etc.

Akkadian art, made of limestone, the stele commemorates a victory of Naramsin, multiple figures are shown specifically soldiers, different area and time period, etc.

Iconography

Regardless of what essay approach you take in class it is absolutely necessary to understand how to analyze the iconography of a work of art and to incorporate into your paper. Iconography is defined as subject matter, what the image means. For example, why do things such as a small dog in a painting in early Northern Renaissance paintings represent sexuality? Additionally, how can an individual perhaps identify these motifs that keep coming up?

The following is a list of symbols and their meaning in Marriage a la Mode by William Hogarth (1743) that is a series of six paintings that show the story of marriage in Hogarth’s eyes.

Man has pockets turned out symbolizing he has lost money and was recently in a fight by the state of his clothes.
Lap dog shows loyalty but sniffs at woman’s hat in the husband’s pocket showing sexual exploits.
Black dot on husband’s neck believed to be symbol of syphilis.
Mantel full of ugly Chinese porcelain statues symbolizing that the couple has no class.
Butler had to go pay bills, you can tell this by the distasteful look on his face and that his pockets are stuffed with bills and papers.
Card game just finished up, women has directions to game under foot, shows her easily cheating nature.
Paintings of saints line a wall of the background room, isolated from the living, shows the couple’s complete disregard to faith and religion.
The dangers of sexual excess are underscored in the Hograth by placing Cupid among ruins, foreshadowing the inevitable ruin of the marriage.
Eventually the series (other five paintings) shows that the woman has an affair, the men duel and die, the woman hangs herself and the father takes her ring off her finger symbolizing the one thing he could salvage from the marriage.

The Writing Center • University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Art History

What this handout is about.

This handout discusses a few common assignments found in art history courses. To help you better understand those assignments, this handout highlights key strategies for approaching and analyzing visual materials.

Writing in art history

Evaluating and writing about visual material uses many of the same analytical skills that you have learned from other fields, such as history or literature. In art history, however, you will be asked to gather your evidence from close observations of objects or images. Beyond painting, photography, and sculpture, you may be asked to write about posters, illustrations, coins, and other materials.

Even though art historians study a wide range of materials, there are a few prevalent assignments that show up throughout the field. Some of these assignments (and the writing strategies used to tackle them) are also used in other disciplines. In fact, you may use some of the approaches below to write about visual sources in classics, anthropology, and religious studies, to name a few examples.

This handout describes three basic assignment types and explains how you might approach writing for your art history class.Your assignment prompt can often be an important step in understanding your course’s approach to visual materials and meeting its specific expectations. Start by reading the prompt carefully, and see our handout on understanding assignments for some tips and tricks.

Three types of assignments are discussed below:

Visual analysis essays
Comparison essays
Research papers

1. Visual analysis essays

Visual analysis essays often consist of two components. First, they include a thorough description of the selected object or image based on your observations. This description will serve as your “evidence” moving forward. Second, they include an interpretation or argument that is built on and defended by this visual evidence.

Formal analysis is one of the primary ways to develop your observations. Performing a formal analysis requires describing the “formal” qualities of the object or image that you are describing (“formal” here means “related to the form of the image,” not “fancy” or “please, wear a tuxedo”). Formal elements include everything from the overall composition to the use of line, color, and shape. This process often involves careful observations and critical questions about what you see.

Pre-writing: observations and note-taking

To assist you in this process, the chart below categorizes some of the most common formal elements. It also provides a few questions to get you thinking.

Let’s try this out with an example. You’ve been asked to write a formal analysis of the painting, George Morland’s Pigs and Piglets in a Sty , ca. 1800 (created in Britain and now in the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond).

An oil painting of two pigs with piglets in a sty.

What do you notice when you see this image? First, you might observe that this is a painting. Next, you might ask yourself some of the following questions: what kind of paint was used, and what was it painted on? How has the artist applied the paint? What does the scene depict, and what kinds of figures (an art-historical term that generally refers to humans) or animals are present? What makes these animals similar or different? How are they arranged? What colors are used in this painting? Are there any colors that pop out or contrast with the others? What might the artist have been trying to accomplish by adding certain details?

What other questions come to mind while examining this work? What kinds of topics come up in class when you discuss paintings like this one? Consider using your class experiences as a model for your own description! This process can be lengthy, so expect to spend some time observing the artwork and brainstorming.

Here is an example of some of the notes one might take while viewing Morland’s Pigs and Piglets in a Sty :

Composition

The animals, four pigs total, form a gently sloping mound in the center of the painting.
The upward mound of animals contrasts with the downward curve of the wooden fence.
The gentle light, coming from the upper-left corner, emphasizes the animals in the center. The rest of the scene is more dimly lit.
The composition is asymmetrical but balanced. The fence is balanced by the bush on the right side of the painting, and the sow with piglets is balanced by the pig whose head rests in the trough.
Throughout the composition, the colors are generally muted and rather limited. Yellows, greens, and pinks dominate the foreground, with dull browns and blues in the background.
Cool colors appear in the background, and warm colors appear in the foreground, which makes the foreground more prominent.
Large areas of white with occasional touches of soft pink focus attention on the pigs.
The paint is applied very loosely, meaning the brushstrokes don’t describe objects with exact details but instead suggest them with broad gestures.
The ground has few details and appears almost abstract.
The piglets emerge from a series of broad, almost indistinct, circular strokes.
The painting contrasts angular lines and rectangles (some vertical, some diagonal) with the circular forms of the pig.
The negative space created from the intersection of the fence and the bush forms a wide, inverted triangle that points downward. The point directs viewers’ attention back to the pigs.

Because these observations can be difficult to notice by simply looking at a painting, art history instructors sometimes encourage students to sketch the work that they’re describing. The image below shows how a sketch can reveal important details about the composition and shapes.

An oil painting of two pigs with piglets in a sty demarcating large compositional elements in different colors.

Writing: developing an interpretation

Once you have your descriptive information ready, you can begin to think critically about what the information in your notes might imply. What are the effects of the formal elements? How do these elements influence your interpretation of the object?

Your interpretation does not need to be earth-shatteringly innovative, but it should put forward an argument with which someone else could reasonably disagree. In other words, you should work on developing a strong analytical thesis about the meaning, significance, or effect of the visual material that you’ve described. For more help in crafting a strong argument, see our Thesis Statements handout .

For example, based on the notes above, you might draft the following thesis statement:

In Morland’s Pigs and Piglets in a Sty, the close proximity of the pigs to each other–evident in the way Morland has overlapped the pigs’ bodies and grouped them together into a gently sloping mound–and the soft atmosphere that surrounds them hints at the tranquility of their humble farm lives.

Or, you could make an argument about one specific formal element:

In Morland’s Pigs and Piglets in a Sty, the sharp contrast between rectilinear, often vertical, shapes and circular masses focuses viewers’ attention on the pigs, who seem undisturbed by their enclosure.

Support your claims

Your thesis statement should be defended by directly referencing the formal elements of the artwork. Try writing with enough specificity that someone who has not seen the work could imagine what it looks like. If you are struggling to find a certain term, try using this online art dictionary: Tate’s Glossary of Art Terms .

Your body paragraphs should explain how the elements work together to create an overall effect. Avoid listing the elements. Instead, explain how they support your analysis.

As an example, the following body paragraph illustrates this process using Morland’s painting:

Morland achieves tranquility not only by grouping animals closely but also by using light and shadow carefully. Light streams into the foreground through an overcast sky, in effect dappling the pigs and the greenery that encircles them while cloaking much of the surrounding scene. Diffuse and soft, the light creates gentle gradations of tone across pigs’ bodies rather than sharp contrasts of highlights and shadows. By modulating the light in such subtle ways, Morland evokes a quiet, even contemplative mood that matches the restful faces of the napping pigs.

This example paragraph follows the 5-step process outlined in our handout on paragraphs . The paragraph begins by stating the main idea, in this case that the artist creates a tranquil scene through the use of light and shadow. The following two sentences provide evidence for that idea. Because art historians value sophisticated descriptions, these sentences include evocative verbs (e.g., “streams,” “dappling,” “encircles”) and adjectives (e.g., “overcast,” “diffuse,” “sharp”) to create a mental picture of the artwork in readers’ minds. The last sentence ties these observations together to make a larger point about the relationship between formal elements and subject matter.

There are usually different arguments that you could make by looking at the same image. You might even find a way to combine these statements!

Remember, however you interpret the visual material (for example, that the shapes draw viewers’ attention to the pigs), the interpretation needs to be logically supported by an observation (the contrast between rectangular and circular shapes). Once you have an argument, consider the significance of these statements. Why does it matter if this painting hints at the tranquility of farm life? Why might the artist have tried to achieve this effect? Briefly discussing why these arguments matter in your thesis can help readers understand the overall significance of your claims. This step may even lead you to delve deeper into recurring themes or topics from class.

Tread lightly

Avoid generalizing about art as a whole, and be cautious about making claims that sound like universal truths. If you find yourself about to say something like “across cultures, blue symbolizes despair,” pause to consider the statement. Would all people, everywhere, from the beginning of human history to the present agree? How do you know? If you find yourself stating that “art has meaning,” consider how you could explain what you see as the specific meaning of the artwork.

Double-check your prompt. Do you need secondary sources to write your paper? Most visual analysis essays in art history will not require secondary sources to write the paper. Rely instead on your close observation of the image or object to inform your analysis and use your knowledge from class to support your argument. Are you being asked to use the same methods to analyze objects as you would for paintings? Be sure to follow the approaches discussed in class.

Some classes may use “description,” “formal analysis” and “visual analysis” as synonyms, but others will not. Typically, a visual analysis essay may ask you to consider how form relates to the social, economic, or political context in which these visual materials were made or exhibited, whereas a formal analysis essay may ask you to make an argument solely about form itself. If your prompt does ask you to consider contextual aspects, and you don’t feel like you can address them based on knowledge from the course, consider reading the section on research papers for further guidance.

2. Comparison essays

Comparison essays often require you to follow the same general process outlined in the preceding sections. The primary difference, of course, is that they ask you to deal with more than one visual source. These assignments usually focus on how the formal elements of two artworks compare and contrast with each other. Resist the urge to turn the essay into a list of similarities and differences.

Comparison essays differ in another important way. Because they typically ask you to connect the visual materials in some way or to explain the significance of the comparison itself, they may require that you comment on the context in which the art was created or displayed.

For example, you might have been asked to write a comparative analysis of the painting discussed in the previous section, George Morland’s Pigs and Piglets in a Sty (ca. 1800), and an unknown Vicús artist’s Bottle in the Form of a Pig (ca. 200 BCE–600 CE). Both works are illustrated below.

An oil painting of two pigs with piglets in a sty for comparison with the image of a bottle in the form of a pig.

You can begin this kind of essay with the same process of observations and note-taking outlined above for formal analysis essays. Consider using the same questions and categories to get yourself started.

Here are some questions you might ask:

What techniques were used to create these objects?
How does the use of color in these two works compare? Is it similar or different?
What can you say about the composition of the sculpture? How does the artist treat certain formal elements, for example geometry? How do these elements compare to and contrast with those found in the painting?
How do these works represent their subjects? Are they naturalistic or abstract? How do these artists create these effects? Why do these similarities and differences matter?

As our handout on comparing and contrasting suggests, you can organize these thoughts into a Venn diagram or a chart to help keep the answers to these questions distinct.

For example, some notes on these two artworks have been organized into a chart:

As you determine points of comparison, think about the themes that you have discussed in class. You might consider whether the artworks display similar topics or themes. If both artworks include the same subject matter, for example, how does that similarity contribute to the significance of the comparison? How do these artworks relate to the periods or cultures in which they were produced, and what do those relationships suggest about the comparison? The answers to these questions can typically be informed by your knowledge from class lectures. How have your instructors framed the introduction of individual works in class? What aspects of society or culture have they emphasized to explain why specific formal elements were included or excluded? Once you answer your questions, you might notice that some observations are more important than others.

Writing: developing an interpretation that considers both sources

When drafting your thesis, go beyond simply stating your topic. A statement that says “these representations of pig-like animals have some similarities and differences” doesn’t tell your reader what you will argue in your essay.

To say more, based on the notes in the chart above, you might write the following thesis statement:

Although both artworks depict pig-like animals, they rely on different methods of representing the natural world.

Now you have a place to start. Next, you can say more about your analysis. Ask yourself: “so what?” Why does it matter that these two artworks depict pig-like animals? You might want to return to your class notes at this point. Why did your instructor have you analyze these two works in particular? How does the comparison relate to what you have already discussed in class? Remember, comparison essays will typically ask you to think beyond formal analysis.

While the comparison of a similar subject matter (pig-like animals) may influence your initial argument, you may find that other points of comparison (e.g., the context in which the objects were displayed) allow you to more fully address the matter of significance. Thinking about the comparison in this way, you can write a more complex thesis that answers the “so what?” question. If your class has discussed how artists use animals to comment on their social context, for example, you might explore the symbolic importance of these pig-like animals in nineteenth-century British culture and in first-millenium Vicús culture. What political, social, or religious meanings could these objects have generated? If you find yourself needing to do outside research, look over the final section on research papers below!

Supporting paragraphs

The rest of your comparison essay should address the points raised in your thesis in an organized manner. While you could try several approaches, the two most common organizational tactics are discussing the material “subject-by-subject” and “point-by-point.”

Subject-by-subject: Organizing the body of the paper in this way involves writing everything that you want to say about Moreland’s painting first (in a series of paragraphs) before moving on to everything about the ceramic bottle (in a series of paragraphs). Using our example, after the introduction, you could include a paragraph that discusses the positioning of the animals in Moreland’s painting, another paragraph that describes the depiction of the pigs’ surroundings, and a third explaining the role of geometry in forming the animals. You would then follow this discussion with paragraphs focused on the same topics, in the same order, for the ancient South American vessel. You could then follow this discussion with a paragraph that synthesizes all of the information and explores the significance of the comparison.
Point-by-point: This strategy, in contrast, involves discussing a single point of comparison or contrast for both objects at the same time. For example, in a single paragraph, you could examine the use of color in both of our examples. Your next paragraph could move on to the differences in the figures’ setting or background (or lack thereof).

As our use of “pig-like” in this section indicates, titles can be misleading. Many titles are assigned by curators and collectors, in some cases years after the object was produced. While the ceramic vessel is titled Bottle in the Form of a Pig , the date and location suggest it may depict a peccary, a pig-like species indigenous to Peru. As you gather information about your objects, think critically about things like titles and dates. Who assigned the title of the work? If it was someone other than the artist, why might they have given it that title? Don’t always take information like titles and dates at face value.

Be cautious about considering contextual elements not immediately apparent from viewing the objects themselves unless you are explicitly asked to do so (try referring back to the prompt or assignment description; it will often describe the expectation of outside research). You may be able to note that the artworks were created during different periods, in different places, with different functions. Even so, avoid making broad assumptions based on those observations. While commenting on these topics may only require some inference or notes from class, if your argument demands a large amount of outside research, you may be writing a different kind of paper. If so, check out the next section!

3. Research papers

Some assignments in art history ask you to do outside research (i.e., beyond both formal analysis and lecture materials). These writing assignments may ask you to contextualize the visual materials that you are discussing, or they may ask you to explore your material through certain theoretical approaches. More specifically, you may be asked to look at the object’s relationship to ideas about identity, politics, culture, and artistic production during the period in which the work was made or displayed. All of these factors require you to synthesize scholars’ arguments about the materials that you are analyzing. In many cases, you may find little to no research on your specific object. When facing this situation, consider how you can apply scholars’ insights about related materials and the period broadly to your object to form an argument. While we cannot cover all the possibilities here, we’ll highlight a few factors that your instructor may task you with investigating.

Iconography

Papers that ask you to consider iconography may require research on the symbolic role or significance of particular symbols (gestures, objects, etc.). For example, you may need to do some research to understand how pig-like animals are typically represented by the cultural group that made this bottle, the Vicús culture. For the same paper, you would likely research other symbols, notably the bird that forms part of the bottle’s handle, to understand how they relate to one another. This process may involve figuring out how these elements are presented in other artworks and what they mean more broadly.

Artistic style and stylistic period

You may also be asked to compare your object or painting to a particular stylistic category. To determine the typical traits of a style, you may need to hit the library. For example, which period style or stylistic trend does Moreland’s Pigs and Piglets in a Sty belong to? How well does the piece “fit” that particular style? Especially for works that depict the same or similar topics, how might their different styles affect your interpretation? Assignments that ask you to consider style as a factor may require that you do some research on larger historical or cultural trends that influenced the development of a particular style.

Provenance research asks you to find out about the “life” of the object itself. This research can include the circumstances surrounding the work’s production and its later ownership. For the two works discussed in this handout, you might research where these objects were originally displayed and how they ended up in the museum collections in which they now reside. What kind of argument could you develop with this information? For example, you might begin by considering that many bottles and jars resembling the Bottle in the Form of a Pig can be found in various collections of Pre-Columbian art around the world. Where do these objects originate? Do they come from the same community or region?

Patronage study

Prompts that ask you to discuss patronage might ask you to think about how, when, where, and why the patron (the person who commissions or buys the artwork or who supports the artist) acquired the object from the artist. The assignment may ask you to comment on the artist-patron relationship, how the work fit into a broader series of commissions, and why patrons chose particular artists or even particular subjects.

Additional resources

To look up recent articles, ask your librarian about the Art Index, RILA, BHA, and Avery Index. Check out www.lib.unc.edu/art/index.html for further information!

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.

Adams, Laurie Schneider. 2003. Looking at Art . Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Barnet, Sylvan. 2015. A Short Guide to Writing about Art , 11th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Tate Galleries. n.d. “Art Terms.” Accessed November 1, 2020. https://www.tate.org.uk/art/art-terms .

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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Visual Analysis: How to Analyze a Painting and Write an Essay

A visual analysis essay is an entry-level essay sometimes taught in high school and early university courses. Both communications and art history students use visual analysis to understand art and other visual messages. In our article, we will define the term and give an in-depth guide on how to look at a piece of art and write a visual analysis essay. Stay tuned until the end for a handy visual analysis essay example from our graduate paper writing service .

What Is Visual Analysis?

Visual analysis is the process of looking at a piece of visual art (painting, photography, film, etc.) and dissecting it for the artist’s intended meaning and means of execution. In some cases, works are also analyzed for historical significance and their impact on culture, art, politics, and the social consciousness of the time. This article will teach you how to perform a formal analysis of art.

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A visual analysis essay is a type of essay written mostly by students majoring in Art History and Communications. The process of visual analysis can be applied to painting, visual art, journalism, photo-journalism, photography, film, and writing. Works in these mediums are often meant to be consumed for entertainment or informative purposes. Visual analysis goes beyond that, focusing on form, themes, execution, and the compositional elements that make up the work.

Classical paintings are a common topic for a visual analysis essay because of their depth and historical significance. Take the famous Raphael painting Transfiguration. At first glance, it is an attractive image showing a famous scene from the Bible. But a more in-depth look reveals practical painting techniques, relationships between figures, heavy symbolism, and a remarkable choice of colors by the talented Raphael. This deeper look at a painting, a photograph, visual or written art is the process of visual analysis.

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Formal Analysis of Art: Who Does It?

Most people who face visual analysis essays are Communication, English, and Art History students. Communications students explore mediums such as theater, print media, news, films, photos — basically anything. Comm is basically a giant, all-encompassing major where visual analysis is synonymous with Tuesday.

Art History students study the world of art to understand how it developed. They do visual analysis with every painting they look it at and discuss it in class.

English Literature students perform visual analysis too. Every writer paints an image in the head of their reader. This image, like a painting, can be clear, or purposefully unclear. It can be factual, to the point, or emotional and abstract like Ulysses, challenging you to search your emotions rather than facts and realities.

How to Conduct Visual Analysis: What to Look For

Whether you study journalism or art, writing a visual analysis essay will be a frequent challenge on your academic journey. The primary principles can be learned and applied to any medium, regardless of whether it’s photography or painting.

For the sake of clarity, we’ve chosen to talk about painting, the most common medium for the formal analysis of art.

In analyzing a painting, there are a few essential points that the writer must know.

Who is the painter, and what era of art did they belong to? Classical painters depict scenes from the Bible, literature, or historical events (like the burning of Rome or the death of Socrates). Modernists, on the other hand, tend to subvert classical themes and offer a different approach to art. Modernism was born as a reaction to classical painting, therefore analyzing modernist art by the standards of classical art would not work.
What was the painter’s purpose? Classical painters like Michelangelo were usually hired by the Vatican or by noble families. Michelangelo didn’t paint the Sistine Chapel just for fun; he was paid to do it.
Who is the audience? Artists like Andy Warhol tried to appeal to the masses. Others like Marcel Duchamp made art for art people, aiming to evolve the art form.
What is the historical context? Research your artist/painting thoroughly before you write. The points of analysis that can be applied to a Renaissance painter cannot be applied to a Surrealist painter. Surrealism is an artistic movement, and understanding its essence is the key to analyzing any surrealist painting.

Familiarizing yourself with these essential points will give you all the information and context, you need to write a good visual analysis essay.

But visual analysis can go deeper than that — especially when dealing with historic pieces of visual art. Students explore different angles of interpretation, the interplay of colors and themes, how the piece was made and various reactions, and critiques of it. Let’s dig deeper.

A Detailed Process of Analyzing Visual Art

Performing a formal analysis of art is a fundamental skill taught at entry-level art history classes. Students who study art or communications further develop this skill through the years. Not all types of analysis apply to every work of art; every art piece is unique. When performing visual analysis, it’s essential to keep in mind why this particular work of art is important in its own way.

Step 1: General Info

To begin, identify the following necessary information on the work of art and the artist.

Subject — who or what does this work represent?
Artist — who is the author of this piece? Refer to them by their last name.
Date and Provenance — when and where this work of art was made. Is it typical to its historical period or geographical location?
Past and Current Locations — where was this work was displayed initially, and where is it now?
Medium and Creation Techniques — what medium was this piece made for and why is it important to that medium? Note which materials were used in its execution and its size.

Step 2: Describe the Painting

Next, describe what the painting depicts or represents. This section will be like an abstract, summarizing all the visible aspects of the piece, painting the image in the reader’s mind. Here are the dominant features to look for in a painting:

Characters or Figures: who they are and what they represent.
If this is a classical painting, identify the story or theme depicted.
If this is an abstract painting, pay attention to shapes and colors.
Lighting and overall mood of the painting.
Identify the setting.

Step 3: Detailed Analysis

The largest chunk of your paper will focus on a detailed visual analysis of the work. This is where you go past the basics and look at the art elements and the principles of design of the work.

Art elements deal mostly with the artist’s intricate painting techniques and basics of composition.

Lines — painters use a variety of lines ranging from straight and horizontal to thick, curved, even implied lines.
Shapes — shapes can be distinct or hidden in plain sight; note all the geometrical patterns of the painting.
Use of Light — identify the source of light, or whether the lighting is flat; see whether the painter chooses contrasting or even colors and explain the significance of their choice in relation to the painting.
Colors — identify how the painter uses color; which colors are primary, which are secondary; what is the tone of the painting (warm or cool?)
Patterns — are there repeating patterns in the painting? These could be figures as well as hidden textural patterns.
Use of Space — what kind of perspective is used in the painting; how does the artist show depth (if they do).
Passage of Time and Motion

Design principles look at the painting from a broader perspective; how the art elements are used to create a rounded experience from an artistic and a thematic perspective.

Variety and Unity - explore how rich and varied the artists’ techniques are and whether they create a sense of unity or chaos.
Symmetry or Asymmetry - identify points of balance in the painting, whether it’s patterns, shapes, or use of colors.
Emphasis - identify the points of focus, both from a thematic and artistic perspective. Does the painter emphasize a particular color or element of architecture?
Proportions - explain how objects and figures work together to provide a sense of scale, mass, and volume to the overall painting.
Use of Rhythm - identify how the artist implies a particular rhythm through their techniques and figures.

Seeing as each work of art is unique, be thoughtful in which art elements and design principles you wish to discuss in your essay. Visual analysis does not limit itself to painting and can also be applied to mediums like photography.

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The Structure: How to Write a Visual Analysis Paper

It’s safe to use the five-paragraph essay structure for your visual analysis essay. If you are looking at a painting, take the most important aspects of it that stand out to you and discuss them in relation to your thesis. Structure it with the simple essay structure:

Introduction: An introduction to a visual analysis essay serves to give basic information on the work of art and briefly summarize the points of discussion.

Give a brief description of the painting: name of artist, year, artistic movement (if necessary), and the artist’s purpose in creating this work.
Briefly describe what is in the painting.
Add interesting facts about the artist, painting, or historical period to give your reader some context.
As in all introductions, don’t forget to include an attention-grabber to get your audience interested in reading your work.

Thesis: In your thesis, state the points of analysis on this work of art which you will discuss in your essay.

Body: Explore the work of art and all of its aspects in detail. Refer to the section above titled “A Detailed Process of Analyzing Visual Art,” which will comprise most of your essay’s body.

Conclusion: After you’ve thoroughly analyzed the painting and the artist’s techniques, give your thoughts and opinions on the work. Your observations should be based on the points of analysis in your essay. Discuss how the art elements and design principles of the artist give the painting meaning and support your observations with facts from your essay.

Citation: Standard citation rules apply to these essays. Use in-text citations when quoting a book, website, journal, or a movie, and include a sources cited page listing your sources. And there’s no need to worry about how to cite a piece of art throughout the text. Explain thoroughly what work of art you’re analyzing in your introduction, and refer to it by name in the body of your essay like this — Transfiguration by Raphael.

If you want a more in-depth look at the classic essay structure, feel free to visit our 5-PARAGRAPH-ESSAY blog

Learn From a Visual Analysis Example

Many YouTube videos are analyzing famous paintings like the Death of Socrates, which can be a great art analysis example to go by. But the best way to understand the format and presentation is by looking at a painting analysis essay example done by a scholarly writer. One of our writers has penned an outstanding piece on Leonardo Da Vinci’s La Belle Ferronnière, which you may find below. Use it as a reference point for your visual analysis essay, and you can’t go wrong!

Leonardo da Vinci was an Italian artist born in April 1452 and died in May 1519who lived in the Renaissance era. His fame and popularity were based on his painting sand contribution to the Italian artwork. Leonardo was also an active inventor, a vibrant musician, writer, and scientist as well as a talented sculptor amongst other fields. His various career fields proved that he wanted to know everything about nature. In the book “Leonardo Da Vinci: The Mind of the Renaissance” by Alessandro Vezzosi, it is argued that Leonardo was one of the most successful and versatile artists and anatomists of the Italian renaissance based on his unique artwork and paintings (Vezzosi, p1454). Some of his groundbreaking research in medicine, metal-casting, natural science, architecture, and weaponry amongst other fields have been explored in the book. He was doing all these in the renaissance period in Italy from the 1470s till his death.

Visual analysis essays will appear early in your communications and art history degrees. Learning how to formally analyze art is an essential skill, whether you intend to pursue a career in art or communications.

Before diving into analysis, get a solid historical background on the painter and their life. Analyzing a painting isn’t mere entertainment; one must pay attention to intricate details which the painter might have hidden from plain sight.

We live in an environment saturated by digital media. By gaining the skill of visual analysis, you will not only heighten your appreciation of the arts but be able to thoroughly analyze the media messages you face in your daily life.

Also, don't forget to read summary of Lord of the Flies , and the article about Beowulf characters .

Need Someone to Write Your Paper?

If you read the whole article and still have no idea how to start your visual analysis essay, let a professional writer do this job for you. Contact us, and we’ll write your work for a higher grade you deserve. All ' college essay service ' requests are processed fast.

How to Write a Policy Analysis Paper Step-by-Step

Introduction to art historical analysis

Seated Figure, terracotta, 13th century, Mali, Inland Niger Delta region, Djenné peoples, 25/4 x 29.9 cm ( The Metropolitan Museum of Art )

Why does a work of art look the way it does? Who made it and why? What does it mean? These questions and others like them lie at the heart of art historical inquiry. Art historians use various types of analysis to provide answers. These have varied over time and continue to evolve, but in general, three categories can be distinguished. In the essays and videos on Smarthistory, different types of analysis are used, often without identifying them explicitly. If you become familiar with the three categories below, you will be able to recognize them.

Left: Woman with wax tablets and stylus , c. 50 C.E., fresco (National Archaeological Museum, Naples; photo: Meidosensei , CC BY-SA 2.0); center: Justinian (detail), Justinian and Attendants , mosaic, north wall of the apse, San Vitale, Ravenna, Italy, c. 547 (photo: Steven Zucker , CC BY-NC-SA 2.0); right: Circle of Peter Hemmel von Andlau (Strassburger Werkstattgemeinschaft), Adoration of the Magi (detail), 1507, Munich, Germany, pot metal and colorless glass, vitreous paint, and silver stain, 72.4 x 45.7 cm (Cloisters, The Metropolitan Museum of Art; photo: Steven Zucker , CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

Art as physical object

Oil and pigments on canvas , carved marble , woven fibers , a concrete dome —most works of art and architecture are physical things. As such, a fundamental determinant of the way they look is the material of which they are made. In architecture, the word used for this is simply materials. In art, the term medium (plural: media) is also used.

Materials have specific properties that dictate the ways they can be manipulated and the effects they can produce. For example, marble will crack under its own weight if not properly balanced and supported, which imposes limits on the sculptural forms or architectural designs that can be created with it. Fresco painting, stained glass, and mosaic are all capable of creating breathtaking images, but their visual qualities differ significantly due to the distinct physical properties and working methods of each medium. This latter aspect—the way a medium is worked or used—is called technique. Together, materials and technique determine basic visual features and the parameters within which an artist or architect must work.

Learning to recognize specific media and techniques and how they have been used historically are fundamental art historical skills. Not only do they allow you to understand the logic behind specific visual qualities, but they may also help identify when and where a work was made since certain media and techniques are characteristic of specific periods and places.

Conservation

Technological advances have led to new methods of analyzing materials and techniques. Today this research is carried out primarily by art conservators . Because art and architecture, like all physical things, are subject to the corrosive effects of time and environment, conservation science is a crucial field. Training in art conservation typically involves coursework in chemistry as well as the practice and history of art.

While the main job of conservators is preservation, their investigative techniques can also benefit art historians. Technologies such as X-radiography, ultraviolet illumination, and infrared reflectography can reveal features of an object invisible to the human eye, such as the inside of a bronze statue, changes made to a painting, or drawing under a painted surface. X-ray fluorescence can identify the pigments in paint or the composition of metals by their chemical profiles. Dendrochronology can establish the earliest date a wooden object could have been made based on tree ring growth patterns. Analysis of materials and techniques using methods such as these can help art historians answer questions about when, where, how, or by whom, a work was made.

Egon Schiele, Portrait of Wally Neuzil , 1912, oil on panel, 32 x 39.8 cm (Leopold Museum, Vienna; photo: Steven Zucker , CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

Art as visual experience

Most art is visually compelling. While materials and technique determine the range of what is possible, the final appearance of a work is the product of numerous additional choices made by the artist. An artist painting a portrait of a woman in oil on canvas must decide on the size and shape of the canvas, the scale of the woman and where to place her, and the types of forms, lines, colors, and brushstrokes to use in representing the sitter and her surroundings. In a compelling work of art, myriad variables such as these and others come together to create an engaging visual experience.

Visual (formal) analysis

Art historians use visual analysis to describe and understand this experience. Often called formal analysis because it focuses on form rather than subject matter or historical context, this typically consists of two parts: description of the visual features of a work and analysis of their effects. To describe visual properties systematically, art historians rely on an established set of terms and concepts. These include characteristics such as format, scale, composition, and viewpoint; treatment of the human figure and space; and the use of form, line, color, light, and texture.

In describing visual qualities, formal analysis usually identifies certain features as contributing to the overall impression of the work. For example, a prominent linear form might suggest strength if straight and vertical, grace or sensuality if sinuous, or stability and calm if long and horizontal. Sharp contrasts in light and dark may make an image feel bold and dramatic whereas subdued lighting might suggest gentleness or intimacy. In the past, formal analysis assumed there was some elementary level of universality in the human response to visual form and tried to describe these effects. Today, the method is understood as more subjective, but still valued as a critical exercise and means of analyzing visual experience, especially in introductory art history courses.

Jacques-Louis David, Oath of the Horatii , 1784, oil on canvas, 3.3 x 4.25 m, painted in Rome, exhibited at the salon of 1785 (Musée du Louvre; photo: Steven Zucker , CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

Formal analysis is a powerful tool for appreciating art. Armed with it, you can analyze any work based simply on the experience of looking at it. But the method is also important for understanding art in its historical context. This is because the visual properties of works made by an individual artist or, more generally, by artists working in the same time and place, typically have common features. Art historians call these shared characteristics style. As art historian James Elkins elegantly phrased it, style is “a coherence of qualities in periods or people.” [1] This may include consistency in things like medium, function, and subject matter, but when art historians use the term style, they primarily mean formal characteristics.

Style varies by time and place, so like medium and technique, it can be used to determine the origin of a work of art. Because of its complexity, style is a far more specific indicator than materials and technique alone. Early art historians used stylistic analysis to categorize the vast legacy of undocumented art, assigning works to cultures, artistic circles, or individual artists based on their formal qualities. Today, stylistic analysis continues to be used to establish origins when unknown works are discovered or previous attributions revised.

In addition to helping categorize individual works, style has shaped the narratives told by art historians in fundamental ways. Until the mid-20th century, most histories of art focused on tracing stylistic development and change. As a result, many of the period divisions traditionally used for Western art are based on style. Some examples are Geometric, Orientalizing, Archaic, and Classical in ancient Greece , Romanesque and Gothic in Medieval Europe, and the Early, High , and Late Renaissance. Today style is only one of many aspects of art that interest art historians, but the power of tradition has ensured that style-based period divisions and labels remain widely used. Likewise, familiarity with the style of specific periods, places, and artists is still considered fundamental art historical knowledge and often remains the focus of introductory art history textbooks and courses.

Art as cultural artifact

While understanding the physical properties and visual experience of art is important, today most art historical research focuses on the significance of works as cultural artifacts. This category of analysis is characterized by a variety of approaches, but all share the basic objective of examining art in relation to its historical context. Most often, this is the time and place in which a work was created—typically we want to know why and by whom it was made and how it originally functioned. But since works of art and architecture often survive for centuries, art historians may also study a work’s cultural significance at later historical moments.

Buddha Shakyamuni or Akshobhya, the Buddha of the East, 11th–12th century, Tibet, gilt copper, 58 cm high ( The Metropolitan Museum of Art )

Subject matter / iconography

One of the most basic types of contextual analysis is the interpretation of subject matter. Much art is representational (i.e., it creates a likeness of something), and naturally we want to understand what is shown and why. Art historians call the subject matter of images iconography . Iconographic analysis is the interpretation of its meaning. In many cases, such as an image of the crucified Christ or seated Buddha, identifying the subject presents few problems. When the iconography is obscure or treated in an unusual way, art historians try to understand it by studying the historical context in which the image was made, typically through comparison with texts and other imagery from the time. With challenging images, scholars may disagree on which contextual materials are relevant, resulting in conflicting interpretations. For many complex or enigmatic works, the meanings of the subject matter continue to be debated and reinterpreted today.

Another common aspect of art investigated through contextual analysis is function. Historically, many works of art and nearly all architecture were intended to serve some purpose beyond the aesthetic. Understanding function is crucial because it usually plays a role in determining many features, including iconography, materials, format, and aspects of style. At the most basic level, art historians analyze function by identifying types—an altarpiece , portrait, Book of Hours , tomb, palace, etc. Studying the history and use of a given type provides a context for understanding specific examples.

Analysis of function becomes more complex when the personal motivations of the people responsible for making a work are considered. For much of history, this includes not only artists but also the patrons who commissioned works and in some cases, advisors acting on the patron’s behalf. When such agents can be identified, definitively or hypothetically, their motivations become potential contexts for understanding purpose and appearance.

Michelangelo, Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel (detail), 1508–12, Vatican, Rome (photo: Kent G Becker , CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

With complex works, this can soon raise interpretive quandaries. Take, for example, Michelangelo ’s famous frescos on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel . Are these highly original paintings best understood in relation to the function of the chapel (a key ritual site in the Vatican palace), or the concerns of the painter, Michelangelo, or of the patron, Pope Julius II , or of one or more of the Julius’s advisors at the papal court? The answer is likely some combination of these, but the contextual materials relevant to each are so vast and diverse that there is no one way to interpret them.

Thinking critically

This raises a final point about analyzing the meaning of art and architecture as cultural artifacts. While art historians rely on facts as much as possible and seek to interpret works in ways that are historically plausible, we recognize that subjectivity is inescapable. As discussed in “ What is art history? ,” we interpret the past in ways that make sense in the present. Today, art historians continue to ask traditional questions like those noted above, but they also ask new ones inspired by social developments such as feminism, globalism, multiculturalism, and identity politics .

So, as you read, watch, and listen, try to recognize the approaches being used and to think critically about them. Is the speaker or writer talking about the work as a physical object, visual experience, or cultural artifact? (Often it will be some combination.) What contexts are being used to explain meaning? Which contexts are not considered? This may leave you with as many questions as answers, but that is good. You are here not only to gain knowledge, but also to develop a curiosity about the world and the ability to think critically about it.

[1] James Elkins, “Style,” Grove Art Online, Oxford Art Online (Oxford University Press, accessed August 15, 2017).

Additional resources

Read a chapter in our textbook, Reframing Art History , about learning to look and think critically.

Read a chapter in our textbook, Reframing Art History , about close looking and approaches to art.

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How to Write a Visual Analysis Essay: Mastering Artful Interpretations 👌

Setting itself apart from other essays, visual analysis essays necessitate a thorough examination of design elements and principles. Whether it's the mysterious smile of the 'Mona Lisa' or a striking photograph capturing a fleeting moment, visual art has the power to move us. Writing this kind of paper is like peeling back the layers of a visual story, uncovering its meanings, and unraveling its impact.

Think of it as decoding the secrets a picture holds. Imagine standing in front of a famous painting, like the 'Mona Lisa' in the Louvre. Millions are drawn to it, captivated by the tale it tells. Your essay lets you share your perspective on the stories hidden in images.

If you're feeling unsure about tackling this kind of essay, don't worry—check out this blog for a straightforward guide. The expert team at our essay service online will walk you through each step of writing the essay, offering tips and examples along the way.

art history visual analysis essay example

What Is a Visual Analysis Essay

A visual analysis essay is a unique form of writing that delves into the interpretation of visual elements within an image, such as a painting, photograph, or advertisement. Rather than focusing solely on the subject matter, this type of essay scrutinizes the design elements and principles employed in the creation of the visual piece.

Design Elements: These include fundamental components like color, size, shape, and line. By dissecting these elements, you gain a deeper understanding of how they contribute to the overall composition and convey specific messages or emotions.

Design Principles: Equally important are the design principles—balance, texture, contrast, and proportion. These principles guide the arrangement and interaction of the design elements, influencing the visual impact of the entire composition.

Purpose: The goal is not only to describe the visual content but also to decipher its underlying meaning and the artistic choices made by the creator. It goes beyond the surface level, encouraging the writer to explore the intentions behind the visual elements and how they communicate with the audience.

Stepwise Approach: To tackle this essay, follow a stepwise approach. Begin by closely observing the image, noting each design element and principle. Then, interpret how these choices contribute to the overall message or theme. Structure your essay to guide the reader through your analysis, providing evidence and examples to support your interpretations.

Tips for How to Write a Visual Analysis Essay Successfully:

Use clear and concise language.
Support your analysis with specific details from the visual piece.
Consider the historical or cultural context when applicable.
Connect your observations to the overall artistic or rhetorical goals.

Sample Visual Analysis Essay Outline

This sample outline offers a framework for organizing a comprehensive structure for a visual analysis essay, ensuring a systematic exploration of design elements and principles. Adjustments can be made based on the specific requirements of the assignment and the characteristics of the chosen visual piece. Now, let's delve into how to start a visual analysis essay using this template.

I. Visual Analysis Essay Introduction

A. Briefly introduce the chosen visual piece

Include relevant details (title, artist, date)

B. Provide a thesis statement

Express the main point of your analysis
Preview the key design elements and principles to be discussed

II. Description of the Visual Piece

A. Present an overview of the visual content

Describe the subject matter and overall composition
Highlight prominent visual elements (color, size, shape, line)

III. Design Elements Analysis

Discuss the use of color and its impact on the composition
Explore the emotional or symbolic associations of specific colors

B. Size and Shape

Analyze the significance of size and shape in conveying meaning
Discuss how these elements contribute to the overall visual appeal
Examine the use of lines and their role in guiding the viewer's gaze
Discuss any stylistic choices related to lines

IV. Design Principles Analysis

Discuss the visual balance and how it contributes to the overall harmony
Analyze whether the balance is symmetrical or asymmetrical
Explore the use of texture and its impact on the viewer's perception
Discuss how texture adds depth and visual interest

C. Contrast

Analyze the contrast between elements and its effect on the composition
Discuss whether the contrast enhances the visual impact

D. Proportion

Discuss the proportion of elements and their role in creating a cohesive visual experience
Analyze any intentional distortions for artistic effect

V. Interpretation and Analysis

A. Explore the overall meaning or message conveyed by the visual piece

Consider the synthesis of design elements and principles
Discuss any cultural or historical context influencing the interpretation

VI. Conclusion

A. Summarize the key points discussed in the analysis

B. Restate the thesis in the context of the insights gained

C. Conclude with a reflection on the overall impact and effectiveness of the visual piece.

An In-Depth Guide to Analyzing Visual Art

This in-depth guide on how to start a visual analysis essay begins with establishing a contextual foundation, progresses to a meticulous description of the painting, and culminates in a comprehensive analysis that unveils the intricate layers of meaning embedded in the artwork. As we navigate through each step of writing a visual analysis paper, the intention is not only to see the art but to understand the language it speaks and the stories it tells.

Step 1: Introduction and Background

Analyzing the art requires setting the stage with a solid analysis essay format - introduction and background. Begin by providing essential context about the artwork, including details about the artist, the time period, and the broader artistic movement it may belong to. This preliminary step allows the audience to grasp the significance of the painting within a larger cultural or historical framework.

Step 2: Painting Description

The next crucial phase in visual analysis involves a meticulous examination and description of the painting itself. Take your audience on a vivid tour through the canvas, unraveling its visual elements such as color palette, composition, shapes, and lines.

Provide a comprehensive snapshot of the subject matter, capturing the essence of what the artist intended to convey. This step serves as the foundation for the subsequent in-depth analysis, offering a detailed understanding of the visual elements at play.

Step 3: In-Depth Analysis

With the groundwork laid in the introduction and the painting description, now it's time to dive into the heart of writing a visual analysis paper. Break down the visual elements and principles, exploring how they interact to convey meaning and emotion. Discuss the deliberate choices made by the artist in terms of color symbolism, compositional techniques, and the use of texture.

Consider the emotional impact on the viewer and any cultural or historical influences that might be reflected in the artwork. According to our custom essay service experts, this in-depth analysis goes beyond the surface, encouraging a profound exploration of the artistic decisions that shape the overall narrative of the visual piece.

How to Write a Visual Analysis Essay: A Proper Structure

Using the conventional five-paragraph essay structure proves to be a reliable approach for your essay. When examining a painting, carefully select the relevant aspects that capture your attention and analyze them in relation to your thesis. Keep it simple and adhere to the classic essay structure; it's like a reliable roadmap for your thoughts.

Introduction

The gateway to a successful visual analysis essay lies in a compelling introduction. Begin by introducing the chosen visual piece, offering essential details such as the title, artist, and date. Capture the reader's attention by providing a brief overview of the artwork's significance. Conclude the introduction with a concise thesis statement, outlining the main point of your analysis and previewing the key aspects you will explore.

Crafting a robust thesis statement is pivotal in guiding your analysis. Clearly articulate the primary message or interpretation you aim to convey through your essay. Your thesis should serve as the roadmap for the reader, indicating the specific elements and principles you will analyze and how they contribute to the overall meaning of the visual piece.

The body is where the intricate exploration takes place. Divide this section into coherent paragraphs, each dedicated to a specific aspect of your analysis. Focus on the chosen design elements and principles, discussing their impact on the composition and the intended message. Support your analysis with evidence from the visual piece, providing detailed descriptions and interpretations. Consider the historical or cultural context if relevant, offering a well-rounded understanding of the artwork.

Conclude with a concise yet impactful conclusion. Summarize the key points discussed in the body of the essay, reinforcing the connection between design elements, principles, and the overall message. Restate your thesis in the context of the insights gained through your analysis. Leave the reader with a final thought that encapsulates the significance of the visual piece and the depth of understanding achieved through your exploration.

In your essays, it's important to follow the usual citation rules to give credit to your sources. When you quote from a book, website, journal, or movie, use in-text citations according to the style your teacher prefers, like MLA or APA. At the end of your essay, create a list of all your sources on a page called 'Sources Cited' or 'References.'

The good news for your analysis essays is that citing art is simpler. You don't need to stress about putting art citations in the middle of your sentences. In your introduction, just explain the artwork you're talking about—mentioning details like its name and who made it. After that, in the main part of your essay, you can mention the artwork by its name, such as 'Starry Night' by Vincent van Gogh.

This way, you can keep your focus on talking about the art without getting tangled up in the details of citing it in your text. Always keep in mind that using citations correctly makes your writing look more professional.

Visual Analysis Essay Example

To provide a clearer illustration of a good paper, let's delve into our sample essay, showcasing an exemplary art history visual analysis essay example.

Unveiling the Details in Image Analysis Essay

Have you ever gazed at an image and wondered about the stories it silently holds? Describing images in visual analysis papers is not just about putting what you see into words; it's about unraveling the visual tales woven within every pixel. So, how do you articulate the unspoken language of images? Let's examine below:

Start with the Basics: Begin your description by addressing the fundamental elements like colors, shapes, and lines. What hues dominate the image? Are there distinct shapes that catch your eye? How do the lines guide your gaze?
Capture the Atmosphere: Move beyond the surface and capture the mood or atmosphere the image evokes. Is it serene or bustling with energy? Does it exude warmth or coolness? Conveying the emotional tone adds layers to your description.
Detail the Composition: Dive into the arrangement of elements. How are objects positioned? What is the focal point? Analyzing the composition unveils the intentional choices made by the creator.
Consider Scale and Proportion: When unsure how to write an image analysis essay well, try exploring the relationships between objects. Are there disparities in size? How do these proportions contribute to the overall visual impact? Scale and proportion provide insights into the image's dynamics.
Examine Textures and Patterns: Zoom in on the finer details. Are there textures that invite touch? Do patterns emerge upon closer inspection? Describing these nuances enriches your analysis, offering a tactile dimension.
Cultural and Historical Context: Consider the broader context in which the image exists. How might cultural or historical factors influence its meaning? Understanding context adds depth to your description.

Final Thoughts

As we conclude our journey, consider this: how might your newfound appreciation for the subtleties of visual description enhance your understanding of the world around you? Every image, whether captured in art or everyday life, has a story to tell. Will you be the perceptive storyteller, wielding the brush of description to illuminate the tales that images whisper? The adventure of discovery lies in your hands, and the language of images eagerly awaits your interpretation. How will you let your descriptions shape the narratives yet untold?

Keep exploring, keep questioning, and let the rich tapestry of visual storytelling unfold before you. And if you're looking for a boost on how to write a thesis statement for a visual analysis essay, order an essay online , and our experts will gladly handle it for you!

How Do You Make a Good Conclusion to a Visual Analysis Essay?

How do you write a visual analysis essay thesis, what is a good approach to writing a visual analysis paper formally.

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Art History Writing Guide

I. Introduction II. Writing Assignments III. Discipline-Specific Strategies IV. Keep in Mind V. Appendix

Introduction

At the heart of every art history paper is a close visual analysis of at least one work of art. In art history you are building an argument about something visual. Depending on the assignment, this analysis may be the basis for an assignment or incorporated into a paper as support to contextualize an argument. To guide students in how to write an art history paper, the Art History Department suggests that you begin with a visual observation that leads to the development of an interpretive thesis/argument. The writing uses visual observations as evidence to support an argument about the art that is being analyzed.

Writing Assignments

You will be expected to write several different kinds of art history papers. They include:

Close Visual Analysis Essays
Close Visual Analysis in dialogue with scholarly essays
Research Papers

Close Visual Analysis pieces are the most commonly written papers in an introductory art history course. You will have to look at a work of art and analyze it in its entirety. The analysis and discussion should provide a clearly articulated interpretation of the object. Your argument for this paper should be backed up with careful description and analysis of the visual evidence that led you to your conclusion.

Close Visual Analysis in dialogue with scholarly essays combines formal analysis with close textual analysis.

Research papers range from theoretic studies to critical histories. Based on library research, students are asked to synthesize analyses of the scholarship in relation to the work upon which it is based.

Discipline-Specific Strategies

As with all writing assignment, a close visual analysis is a process. The work you do before you actually start writing can be just as important as what you consider when writing up your analysis.

Conducting the analysis :

Ask questions as you are studying the artwork. Consider, for example, how does each element of the artwork contribute to the work's overall meaning. How do you know? How do elements relate to each other? What effect is produced by their juxtaposition
Use the criteria provided by your professor to complete your analysis. This criteria may include forms, space, composition, line, color, light, texture, physical characteristics, and expressive content.

Writing the analysis:

Develop a strong interpretive thesis about what you think is the overall effect or meaning of the image.
Ground your argument in direct and specific references to the work of art itself.
Describe the image in specific terms and with the criteria that you used for the analysis. For example, a stray diagonal from the upper left corner leads the eye to...
Create an introduction that sets the stage for your paper by briefly describing the image you are analyzing and by stating your thesis.
Explain how the elements work together to create an overall effect. Try not to just list the elements, but rather explain how they lead to or support your analysis.
Contextualize the image within a historical and cultural framework only when required for an assignment. Some assignments actually prefer that you do not do this. Remember not to rely on secondary sources for formal analysis. The goal is to see what in the image led to your analysis; therefore, you will not need secondary sources in this analysis. Be certain to show how each detail supports your argument.
Include only the elements needed to explain and support your analysis. You do not need to include everything you saw since this excess information may detract from your main argument.

Keep in Mind

An art history paper has an argument that needs to be supported with elements from the image being analyzed.
Avoid making grand claims. For example, saying "The artist wanted..." is different from "The warm palette evokes..." The first phrasing necessitates proof of the artist's intent, as opposed to the effect of the image.
Make sure that your paper isn't just description. You should choose details that illustrate your central ideas and further the purpose of your paper.

If you find you are still having trouble writing your art history paper, please speak to your professor, and feel free to make an appointment at the Writing Center. For further reading, see Sylvan Barnet's A Short Guide to Writing about Art , 5th edition.

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Art History 101: How to Write an Effective Art Analysis

Image of Michelangelo's the Creation of Adam

This blog post was written by former employee and SLC Writing Services Coordinator Hermine Chan.

Visual culture is an important aspect of the study of the humanities. Art presents a window into the lives and cultures of the peoples of the past, and understanding how to engage with this visual culture can be an asset to the study of history. Yet, it can be daunting to write about artwork, since most disciplines do not constantly engage with art. This article will offer some basic tips on how to engage with artwork and write an effective art history analysis.

1. Artwork as primary source

The first tip to understanding artwork is to look at it as a primary source. A primary source is an “immediate, first-hand [account] of a topic, from people who had a direct connection with it” (“ Primary Sources: A Research Guide ,” n.d.). Now, you can begin the first steps of analysis by finding the basic information about the source. You can start by considering the following questions:

Who is the artist? What information can you find on this person?
When was this work created? What art movements took place at this time period? What significant historical events were taking place?
Was this work commissioned by anyone? If yes, how might this impact the artwork? Who is the audience?
Additionally, “why” questions are very helpful: Why would the artist make this piece? Why did the artist choose a certain colour? Why are the different elements in the painting arranged this way? And so on.

While these are very important questions to ask, it might not be possible to find answers to all of them. That is ok! These questions are meant to guide you in the first steps of writing your paper and provide you with some information and ideas on how to continue your work. Also note that because you are essentially writing a primary source analysis, you are looking for patterns in the work to inform your analysis. You can find patterns by looking at colours, lighting, perspective, and composition.

2. Colours and lighting

Colours and lighting can provide useful information about the artist’s intent. Sometimes artists use these tools to highlight or obscure an aspect of a piece of art. Here is an example:

The Image of The Calling of Saint Matthew

Notice how in this painting, the five men on the right are in focus. Their brightly coloured clothing against the dark background is one way in which their position is highlighted. The lighting also helps to bring the viewers’ attention to the men, especially to their facial expressions.

Here, keep in mind the importance of patterns in informing your interpretations. Consider how the colours and lighting influence the mood of the painting, how they obscure or highlight certain elements, or if a colour has a significant meaning.

Image credit: Caravaggio, The Calling of Saint Matthew , c. 1599-1600, oil on canvas, Contarelli Chapel, Church of San Luigi dei Francesi, Rome.

3. Perspective and composition

Perspective and composition are additional tools artists use to guide the viewers’ attention to the different elements in their works. Much like colour and lighting, the position of certain elements in an artwork can be helpful for interpretation. Some important questions to consider are as follows: What is significant about the position of a certain element? Does the arrangement of the different elements in the piece send a message? If yes, what could that mean? How would this message relate to the other patterns that you have identified?

Here is an example:

The fountain on the left is positioned diagonally from the left of the etching toward the middle, this guides the viewers’ eyes toward the monument and informs the viewers of its importance. Further, the fountain becomes the focus of the artwork because of its size compared to the rest of the buildings in the work. Notice, also, how the lighting in this piece obscures the humans at the bottom of the etching as to not distract the viewers from looking at the fountain.

If you are struggling with perspective and composition, it might be a good idea to come back to the artwork after a break. After the break look at the artwork again and think about the following questions: Where are your eyes drawn to most? Why there? What about the composition or perspective makes this possible? Keep in mind that composition and perspective have to work hand in hand with other tools like colours and lighting. Once you have examined all of these elements, you can identify some patterns in the art so write yourself some notes to help you in the writing process.

Image credit: Giovanni Battista Piranesi, View of the large Trevi Fountain formerly called the Acqua Vergine , from Views of Rome, 1750-1759, etching on heavy ivory laid paper, the Art Institute of Chicago,

4. Make an outline and write a thesis statement

It can become overwhelming to analyze a piece of art, especially if it is your first time doing so. An outline will keep your ideas organized and help you identify patterns easier. Note that the patterns you identify will help you to come up with a thesis statement that drives your argument. So, it is a good idea to keep your ideas organized! You can organize your outline based on the different categories you would like to explore or the individual elements you think are significant. There is no right way to make an outline, but if you need some help you can find ideas here . Additionally, you might benefit from drawing diagrams to categorize your ideas. Write down or highlight the overlaps you notice; they will be very useful when you are working on your thesis statement, because these overlaps signal themes and messages the artists might be conveying. Now that you have gathered your notes and identified some themes, you are ready to write your thesis statement.

5. Support your thesis statement

Once you have a thesis, it is time to support it with your evidence. This might sound difficult at first since your evidence does not come from sentences and paragraphs. Keep your outline nearby and use the visual details that you have already noted to support your claim. Here, you might have to describe some of the details in the artwork to make your evidence appear clearer to your readers. If that is the case, try to be concise and only describe the elements that are relevant to your thesis. For instance, if your thesis focuses on the importance of colours in depicting social hierarchy, you might want to briefly describe the colours used to depict a certain social class. Additionally, think back to your answers to some of the “why” questions presented in this article. You will need to explain your reasoning for focusing on your chosen evidence, so your answers to some of these “why” questions help you to support your evidence. Further, if you have some information about the historical period or the art movements of the time, you can examine the details of the piece of art according to this information. Artists generally depict themes that correspond to the events of their own lifetime, so an understanding of the historical period might be useful in contextualizing your evidence.

Remember that these are only basic tips meant to ease your path in writing an art history analysis. Do not hesitate to ask for support if you need it. Your instructors and TAs are experts in their fields and will be happy to assist you with your assignments. And as always you can book a consultation with a Writing and Learning Peer at the Student Learning Commons at any point in the writing process. Happy writing!

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Department of History

Introduction to visual analysis.

This information is also available as a handout here .

One of the Learning Outcomes for this module is that by the end you should be able to ‘exhibit improved ability to assess and evaluate historical sources’, which includes visual images. Visual analysis is an important historical skill. As Gillian Rose puts it...

‘[A]rt historians of all sorts of interpretive hues contain to complain, often rightly that social scientists [and historians] don’t look at images carefully enough. And often too, social scientists [and historians] tend to assume that images are simply reflections of the social ‘contexts’…In contrast, I argue that it is necessary to look very carefully at visual images, and it is necessary to do so because they are not entirely reducible to their context. Visual representations have their own effects ’ (Gillian Rose, Visual Methodologies , 2001, p. 15; emphasis added).

Visual analysis is also of particular significance in the relation to the Caribbean because images have been central to the relationship between the Caribbean and its inhabitants, on the one hand, and the societies of ‘the West’, on the other. For example, the fact that the Caribbean has been imagined and represented as a paradise has both a long history and real consequences for the region and its peoples.

Above: The Caribbean as ‘paradise’ – sun, sea, sand (and the ever-present palm tree)

To help you develop skills in this area, we will be undertaking some visual analysis throughout our lecture and seminar programme. This text is intended to give you some general advice in this area and you should bring the accompanying handout with you to all lectures and seminars .

While there is no compulsory form of assessment relating to visual analysis in this module, one of the questions in the summer examination paper will be along the following lines:

‘Look carefully at the image of [IMAGE DESCRIPTION]. The accompanying caption reads: “[CAPTION]”. Provide a critical interpretation of the image and caption in relation to relevant themes in Caribbean history’.

In addition, you are welcome to incorporate visual analysis into your short and long essays as and when appropriate. I am happy to discuss this with you as part of essay planning.

Learning to analyse visual images

While there are a lot different theoretical and methodological approaches that can be used in visual analysis (see ‘Bibliography’ below), we will keep things simple in this module. Here are some of issues and questions that I want you to address whenever you analyse a visual image:

Look over the image slowly, carefully and deeply.
Pay attention to the figures shown and the features of the landscape, including their position in relation to one other.
When analysing human figures, think about their posture (are they standing, sitting, lying down etc.?); their social identity (gender, ethnicity etc.); the direction of their gaze; and the interrelations between them.
How is colour used?
Remember that in most images, including staged photographs, nothing is there ‘by accident’. Therefore, think carefully about why certain things are shown – and perhaps why others are not – and what the image’s creator might be trying to convey in this way.
When comparing two or more images, think both about similarities – which may point to common, underlying themes – and differences.
What is the historical context in which the image was created and how can this help you to understand it?
What do we know about the creator of the image and their intentions?
Who might the intended audience be?
Overall, I want you to think about what the image might mean and what message it may be trying to convey.

Whenever we do any kind of visual analysis, you will be working with other students and there will be plenty of opportunities for us to talk things through as a class. I know that this kind of work may be new to many of you and I am not expecting you to become art historians! However, I am confident that you will develop new analytical skills that will be of use in the module and beyond.

Finding visual sources

Should you wish to include visual analysis in your own short or long essays, it is very easy to find all sorts of images of the Caribbean, especially those associated with present-day forms of tourism, through online searches. The following are great sources of historical images:

‘Caribbean Views: The Full Collection’ (British Library)
‘Slavery Images: A Visual Record of the African Slave Trade and Slave Life in the Early African Diaspora’ (Virginia Humanities and University of Virginia) [Be aware that many of these images are of Africa and non-Caribbean slave societies. Always look at the accompanying ‘Source’ and ‘Comments’ carefully to check that you are dealing with Caribbean images.]

Bibliography

The following texts will help with both different methods of visual analysis and provide specific examples of such analysis.

Burke, Peter, Eyewitnessing: The Uses of Images as Historical Evidence (London: Reaktion, 2001).

Kriz, Kay Dian, Slavery, Sugar and the Culture of Refinement: Picturing the British West Indies, 1700-1840 (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2008).

Mohammed, Patricia, Imaging the Caribbean: Culture and Visual Translation (Oxford: Macmillan, 2009).

* Rose, Gillian, Visual Methodologies: An Introduction to the Interpretation of Visual Materials (London: Sage, 2016). [This is the best ‘how-to’ book on visual analysis. The library also holds earlier editions from 2001, 2007 and 2012].

Thompson, Krista A., An Eye for the Tropics: Tourism, Photography, and Framing the Caribbean Picturesque (Durham: Duke University Press, 2006).

Visual Analysis / Formal Analysis: An Art History Essay Example

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Formal Analysis Paper Examples
Formal Analysis Paper Examples. Formal Analysis Paper Example 1. Formal Analysis Paper Example 2. Formal Analysis Paper Example 3. VISIT OUR GALLERIES SEE UPCOMING EXHIBITS.
Visual Analysis Essay: Outline, Topics, & Examples
A visual analysis essay is a common assignment for the students of history, art, and communications. It is quite a unique type of academic essay. Visual analysis essays are where images meet text. These essays aim to analyze the meanings embedded in the artworks, explaining visual concepts in a written form.
How to Write a Visual Analysis Essay: Examples & Template
Visual analysis is a helpful tool in exploring art. It focuses on the following aspects: Interpretation of subject matter (iconography). An iconographic analysis is an explanation of the work's meaning. Art historians try to understand what is shown and why it is depicted in a certain way. The analysis of function.
Art History Essays
Art History Analysis - Formal Analysis and Stylistic Analysis. Typically in an art history class the main essay students will need to write for a final paper or for an exam is a formal or stylistic analysis. A formal analysis is just what it sounds like - you need to analyze the form of the artwork. This includes the individual design ...
Art History
Let's try this out with an example. You've been asked to write a formal analysis of the painting, George Morland's Pigs and Piglets in a Sty, ca. 1800 (created in Britain and now in the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond).. George Morland (English), Pigs and Piglets in a Sty, ca. 1800.Oil on canvas, 9 ½ x 12 in. Virginia Museum of Fine Arts, Richmond.
Visual Analysis: How to Analyze a Painting and Write an Essay
A visual analysis essay is a type of essay written mostly by students majoring in Art History and Communications. The process of visual analysis can be applied to painting, visual art, journalism, photo-journalism, photography, film, and writing. Works in these mediums are often meant to be consumed for entertainment or informative purposes.
How to do visual (formal) analysis in art history
Transcript. Giovanni Bellini's "Madonna of the Meadow" is a Renaissance painting analyzed using visual tools like scale, composition, pictorial space, form, line, color, light, tone, texture, and pattern. The painting's moderate size, pyramid-like composition, and use of perspective create a sense of depth and intimacy.
A Guide for Writing Art History Visual Analysis Essays
A comprehensive guide will help you understand how to approach visual analysis assignments. In art history essays, you will be required to write about a wide range of materials, from illustrations to images. You will also be expected to collect your evidence by observing objects. On the other hand, if you are determined to master this skill by ...
Smarthistory
How to do visual (formal) analysis. by Dr. Beth Harris and Dr. Steven Zucker. Giovanni Bellini, Madonna of the Meadow, c. 1500, oil and egg on synthetic panel, transferred from wood, 67.3 x 86.4 cm (The National Gallery). Speakers: Dr. Steven Zucker and Dr. Beth Harris. Additional resources: " Introduction: Learning to look and think ...
art history guide final
Here is an example of an art history thesis that could support either a visual analysis or a research paper: "Michelangelo's David is a monument dedicated to overcoming adversity." The visual analysis could describe David's gesture and scale, its comparison to Classical models, its realism versus idealism, and so on.
PDF AP Art History
Provides two specific examples of visual and/or contextual evidence relevant to the selected work of art and the topic of the prompt. C Evidence (0-2 points) Decision Rules and Scoring Notes. C Evidence (0-2 points) The evidence provided must be accurate, relevant, and art historically defensible. C Evidence (0-2 points) Object 1.
Visual Analysis Guidelines in Art History
Saratoga Springs, NY 12866. DEPARTMENT CHAIR: Telephone: (518) 580-8415. Office: 111. ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT: Office: 113. See Prof. Waraich for: signature on study abroad forms, major/minor forms, and AP credit. Visual Analysis Guidelines for writing an Art History paper.
PDF What this handout is about Writing in art history
In art history, however, you will be asked to gather your evidence from close observations of objects or images. Beyond painting, photography, and sculpture, you may be asked to write about posters, illustrations, coins, and other materials. Even though art historians study a wide range of materials, there are a few prevalent assignments that ...
Introduction to art historical analysis (article)
One of the most basic types of contextual analysis is the interpretation of subject matter. Much art is representational (i.e., it creates a likeness of something), and naturally we want to understand what is shown and why. Art historians call the subject matter of images iconography. Iconographic analysis is the interpretation of its meaning.
PDF visual analysis
Visual analysis is the basic unit of art historical writing. Sources as varied as art magazines, scholarly books, and undergraduate research papers rely on concise and detailed visual analyses. You may encounter a visual analysis as an assignment itself; or you may write one as part of a longer research paper.
Smarthistory
Art historians use various types of analysis to provide answers. These have varied over time and continue to evolve, but in general, three categories can be distinguished. In the essays and videos on Smarthistory, different types of analysis are used, often without identifying them explicitly. If you become familiar with the three categories ...
How to Write a Visual Analysis Essay with Precision
Step 1: Introduction and Background. Analyzing the art requires setting the stage with a solid analysis essay format - introduction and background. Begin by providing essential context about the artwork, including details about the artist, the time period, and the broader artistic movement it may belong to.
How to Write a Visual Analysis Paper
Sample Outline of Visual Analysis Essay. Introduction: Tell the basic facts about the art (see citing your image). Get the reader interested in the image by using one of the following methods: Describe the image vividly so the reader can see it. Tell about how the image was created. Explain the purpose of the artist.
Art History Writing Guide
Writing Assignments. You will be expected to write several different kinds of art history papers. They include: Close Visual Analysis Essays. Close Visual Analysis in dialogue with scholarly essays. Research Papers. Close Visual Analysispieces are the most commonly written papers in an introductory art history course.
Art History 101: How to Write an Effective Art Analysis
This article will offer some basic tips on how to engage with artwork and write an effective art history analysis. 1. Artwork as primary source. The first tip to understanding artwork is to look at it as a primary source. A primary source is an "immediate, first-hand [account] of a topic, from people who had a direct connection with it ...
Visual Analysis
Introduction to Visual Analysis. This information is also available as a handout here. One of the Learning Outcomes for this module is that by the end you should be able to 'exhibit improved ability to assess and evaluate historical sources', which includes visual images. Visual analysis is an important historical skill.
Art history visual analysis essay example
Sample Paper # [Student Name][Assignment Name] [Date] [Instructor's Name] Details of Renaissance Paintings (Sandro Botticelli, Birth of Venus, 1482)Andy Warhol (1984) by acrylic and silkscreen ink on linen Viewed at Arkansas Arts Center Andy Warhol exhibition (October 28, 2008) A Modern Venus Andy Warhol's piece titled Details of Renaissance Paintings (Sandro Botticelli, Birth of Venus ...
Visual Analysis / Formal Analysis: An Art History Essay Example
Visual analysis (also called "formal analysis") is an exercise in close observation. This type of art historical writing is a thorough analysis of the formal (having to do with form) characteristics of a work of art, and is one of the basic requirements of any art history course. This writing assignment includes an essay example which may be ...