"Reading the Image"
A group activity
In this group activity, we gathered four artworks and analyzed them using the four planes of analysis: the basic semiotic, the iconic, the contextual, and the axiological or evaluative planes.
The four artworks we discussed were:
Gold Marilyn by Andy Warhol
The Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dalí
The Rape of Proserpina by Gian Lorenzo Bernini
Vitra Fire Station by Zaha Hadid
I find this activity interesting because it’s like I was able to read into an artwork in a sense that is more contextual rather than the usual appreciation I do with artwork which was relating or feeling into it. But through the four planes of analysis by Alice Guillermo, I was given a guideline or a manual on how I can look into an artwork deeper, and possibly see the real intentions and meaning of the artist.
Alice Guillermo's four planes of analysis could be highly beneficial when analyzing artwork. These planes are like multiple instruments that assist us in better comprehending the artwork and noticing multiple aspects of it in a way we haven’t seen before.
I have realized that these four planes allow us to view the artwork from multiple perspectives and investigate its many layers of significance. It enables us to enjoy the artist's symbols and signs, comprehend the visual aspects, examine the historical and cultural context, and think about the artwork's value. We may obtain a better comprehension of the artwork and have a more meaningful experience with it by employing these planes.
The artwork assigned to me in this group work was the Gold Marilyn by Andy Warhol.
Using the four planes, I came up with these findings: Gold Marilyn was done during the early '60s, wherein a new movement was born. It was focused on popular culture and national icons, and was aptly named "Pop Art." Andy Warhol's Gold Marilyn, created in 1962, exemplifies Pop's intrinsic irony. Its work takes a strong hold on the iconic plane as the main image shows Marilyn Monroe.
Her image was strategically placed in the center, showing a central focus on it, with a gold backdrop that alludes to a religious tradition of painted icons, transforming the Hollywood actress into what is like a Byzantine Madonna, Marilyn replacing the Virgin Mary. This represents society's celebrity obsession, especially at that time. Notably, Warhol's timing considered Monroe's death a few months before, which makes its spiritual symbolism extremely moving.
In further analysis, fans of Marilyn worshiped her like religious devotees; nonetheless, Warhol's intentionally messy silk-screening draws attention to the artifice of Marilyn's beautiful façade and positions her among other mass-marketed commodities at the Museum of Modern Art.