The painting by Jacob Lawrence GOING HOME, (1946), is an amazing painting. When I first looked at this painting the first thought that came to my mind was the musicians were on a train on their way home, feeling exhausted having just finished playing at a night club. The train seats are green; this is the first color that captures your eyes.
The color of the seats along with some of the red luggage gives the impression of the mood as being calm and relaxed.Over to the left of the picture in the upper hand corner there is a silhouette of the sun going down, but when looking through the windows the color blue is showing the outside scenery as if the night is approaching. The intensity of this picture has the appearance of being so lifelike. The artist uses actual straight lines along with some curving lines. In one of the poses, one of the musician puts a suitcase overhead and they are somewhat on a vertical angle.
Also with this picture it can make you unsure of whether the scenery was captured in the early morning or late evening.The painting Going Home is a two dimensional space. When looking at Jacob Lawrence’s painting, it is easy to see everything all at once. There is no available space. He used very bold colors that stood out.
This painting can also be categorized as a temporal art, which consists of music, dance and poetry. The rhythm is evident just by looking at how the musicians are sleeping; they are all in different positions. In his painting he formed a great unity within the picture so that all the objects go together.Jacob Lawrence seems as though he took careful consideration in choosing the size of his painting, he was able to put a lot into his painting.
Everything was in relation to one another and as a whole the painting was joined together. There was nothing in the picture that seemed like it did not belong. There is plenty of contrast in his work. The artist uses dark against light colors. For example, the yellow orange color that was used for the men’s clothing gives the picture a little warmth along with the black that is used on some of the suits.
To bring out some more color, a little white is used as well, also you are able to spot a little girl with a red dress wearing white tights. That particular pose takes your eyes off the men that are sleeping, and makes you question why this little girl is out so late at night, and on the road with the musicians. In addition, there are many remarkable points to focus on. The strongest pose that comes out at you is the musician who is putting the suitcase overhead.
The angles are so strong and sharp, the color of the black and dull brown stands out; and the artist shows the gentleman’s hands clasped around the suitcase in a circle.In this painting there is only one neutral spot that someone would not really focus on. This painting is full of colors. It gives the viewer a variety of warm and cool looks, and the view gets a sense of tranquility as the people in the picture are all resting. Learning to appreciate art is opening a new chapter of my cultural education.
Already I find that I am seeing the world differently. In the past my love of art was limited just to the theatre, but I am now finding that art fulfills my inner muse.
