Art Appreciation - Formal Analysis of an artwork

1.2 Form, Volume, Mass, and Texture We see a three-dimensional work of art in terms of its height, width, and depth. The term form is used to describe any three-dimensional work. Three- dimensional forms can be geometric or organic. They also have volume (the amount of space occupied by the form) and mass (the impression that the volume is solid and occupies space). The surface of the form can be described in terms of its texture. Forms can be created in relief (viewed from one side only) or in the round (can be seen from all sides). A viewer can walk around the freestanding Roman sculpture Aphrodite Crouching at Her Bath (1.2.8a and 1.2.8b), and find that their experience changes as they see it from different angles. Artists can use three-dimensional artworks to express many ideas and emotions. Méret Oppenheim playfully tests our assumptions about everyday objects with a furry teacup and saucer (1.2.20). On a larger scale, Constantin Brancusi expresses permanence in love (1.2.17a), while the fourteenth- century sculptor of the Roettgen Pietà (1.2.4) communicates the terrible sorrow of Mary as she holds the lifeless form of Jesus. TOPICS COVERED IN THIS CHAPTER: • FORM • FORM IN RELIEF AND IN THE ROUND • VOLUME • MASS • TEXTURE