Edward Weston

3 Pages 740 Words

Edward Weston Formal Analysis


When a formalistic critic analyzes a work of art, they look at certain things. The criticism of art is to stress the significance of form over content as the source of a work’s subjective appeal. In an analysis critics consider aesthetic effects created by design factors. The piece of artwork that I chose to formally analyze is a photograph by Edward Weston, entitled “Pepper”.
There are many elements of this work, which contribute to the overall outcome of the photograph. At first glance the pepper seems to be a photograph of a man and a woman kissing, but when looked at closely you are able to see that the figure is in fact a pepper. Since the image is in black and white you are able to look past the color of a pepper, and look deeper into the form. Weston uses shadows and highlights to bring out features of the pepper that would not be noticed otherwise. The lighting also helps to show the real texture of the pepper by showing the smoothness of the skin. Since the background of the pepper is very dark also adds to the shadows and highlights, making the shadows very dark, and the highlights very light. The pepper chosen also portrays a part in the image. The pepper that Weston chose for this photograph is disfigured and not very recognizable as a pepper at first glance. The disfigurement of the pepper makes the viewer have to fully analyze the image in order to fully understand the meaning and true content of the photograph. This analysis and the effects Weston used to take the picture, play in the overall outcome of the photograph.
Weston uses different techniques in making his photograph unique. He places the pepper in a funnel to create depth, with darkness only in the background. He also crops the image so that the only thing that is seen in the photo is the pepper. This lets the viewer concentrate on the pepper itself and not on its surroundings. Since the pepper is...