Looking at art well takes a plan. Art classes often use four steps, in this order: describe, analyze, interpret, judge. The Art History courses build on the same habit (see Formal Analysis: Describe, Analyze, Interpret).
| Step | The question | Sounds like |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Describe | What do I see? | "A girl in a white dress stands in the middle of a large room." |
| 2. Analyze | How are the elements and principles used? | "Light from the right falls on her, so she is the focal point." |
| 3. Interpret | What might it mean or express? | "It may be about who is watching whom." |
| 4. Judge | Does it succeed, and why? | "It works because the light and the mirror keep me looking and wondering." |
Key idea
Describe what you see, analyze how it is arranged, interpret what it might mean, then judge with reasons. Evidence comes from looking.
Why it works
Each step rests on the one before. A meaning you can point to in the picture ("the light falls on her, so…") is stronger than a guess. Describing first also slows you down, so you notice things a quick glance misses.
Worked example: Four steps with Las Meninas
Use the four steps on Diego Velázquez's Las Meninas (1656).
- Describe. The young princess Margarita stands in the middle of a large, high room in the royal palace, with two maids of honor beside her. At the left, Velázquez himself stands at a huge canvas. On the back wall a small mirror shows the king and queen, and a man pauses in a bright open doorway.
- Analyze. Light from windows at the right falls on the princess, making her the focal point. The room is deep, and its lines lead back toward the bright doorway. The upper half is dark and nearly empty, which makes the lit figures stand out.
- Interpret. The mirror suggests the king and queen stand where we stand. The painting may be about looking itself: the figures look out at us as we look at them. What Velázquez is painting is still debated.
- Judge. Many viewers find it a masterpiece because the light, the space and the puzzle of the mirror keep them looking. Give your own judgment, with reasons from the first three steps.
Answer: Describe the figures and room; analyze the light and space; interpret the mirror and the gazes; judge with reasons.
Common mistake
Jumping straight to "I like it" or to a meaning before looking. A judgment with no description behind it is only an opinion. Start with plain facts anyone could agree on, and save meaning and judgment for the end.