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  • Essay / Review of Betty Goodwin's work

    Betty Goodwin is a contemporary artist, whose work brings to light a variety of increasingly important issues in life, particularly in humans and society. The majority of his most famous works are composed of very warm and dark colors such as intense shades of reds and blacks. Additionally, she uses a lot of negative space by carefully placing her subject in a specific position and pose. Often, viewers find his work very detailed in terms of context and media application. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay In 1983, Goodwin created one of his famous pieces called “Moving Towards Fire,” which is part of his “Swimmers Series.” This particular work of art is made using "oil, colored chalk and graphite on three sheets of fine wove paper." The subject of the image – the body – appears to float in the lower right corner of the vellum paper. Goodwin uses texture through strokes of red and hints of white space to give the human's floating form a burnt appearance. In my artistic work, I have strived to imitate this violent but raw style on an apple. I chose to use soft pastel because, from my previous experience, I found that it would allow me to smudge onto card stock more easily. First, I tested a mix of different colors that would match Goodwin's color palette. Then, to create a similar texture, I added touches of peach/beige to the surface of the apple, specifically on the lighter parts. In his work, Goodwin also creates a “watery” effect surrounding the human that appears as the heat emitted by the flames. This effect provides context and is therefore one of the reasons why his image appears visually interesting. In my work, I used my fingers to spread the light red around the apple to mimic its style in the image while creating a violently red aura representing the heat of the flames. Goodwin uses value to bring out the human form of the subject, as shown by the variation of light and dark areas around the body. I added value to my apple by shading, blending and fading the light and dark colors. Adding value really brings my work to life because it emphasizes the rawness and definition of the apple. The apple, in my case, symbolizes human society because it is the origin of the majority of good and bad events in the world. The burning apple is a representation of the gradual decay and turmoil that humans are rapidly heading towards. To conclude, Betty Goodwin's work really attracted me because of its open nature. As a viewer, I found the composition and style of his work to be quite unique and visually intriguing. After researching her passion for her art, I was even more drawn to her work. This is mainly because I've never seen an artist who truly highlights the darkness of humanity in such a stunningly expressive way. I loved imitating his style through the simplicity of a simple apple. I was very amazed by the end result of my artwork because even though it was practically an apple, it now conveyed a much deeper meaning that can be left to an individual's interpretation..