Formal Analysis Of 'Hilltops' By Franklin Carmichael
Jessica Tang
Formal Analysis
Richard W. Hill
Melanie Wilmink
FA/ARTH 1900
Tutorial 12
“HILLTOPS” BY FRANKLIN CARMICHAEL FORMAL ANALYSIS
Franklin Carmichael’s “Hilltops” is a 25.4 x 30.4 cm oil on panel painted in 1943 located in the Art Gallery of Ontario. The painting is a depiction of a landscape consisting of rolling hills in the foreground and middle ground and sky with an overcast of clouds. Carmichael used flat areas of colour, bold horizontal lines, and simplification of objects that instils a sense of stability. In contrast, his use of thick, distinguishable lines, bright blue tones in the sky that is starkly juxtaposed with sullen grey clouds, as well as the mix of cool and warm colours of the hilltops in the foreground and middle …show more content…
ground ignite tensions between them. The contrast of elements in Carmichael’s “Hilltops” demonstrates an abundance of energy and dynamism, heightening the overall drama of this relatively small scale of work. Carmichael incorporated a variety of colours in his painting to capture the essence of energy and dynamism.
The colours he used are saturated, embodying power and bright contrast. The drastic use of colour depicts the overall dynamic of Carmichael’s work. The foreground has hills that are composed of different tones of greys that are warmed with the use of muddy browns to create volume. The coolness of the blues and greys in the sky are contrasted with the warmth of the hills that are accented with playful, liberal strokes of mustard yellows and greens that amplify warmth in the foreground. In opposition to the murky and mundane colours of the sky and foreground, he paints the sky with vivid tints of blue. The smooth gradation of the blue sky creates a softness that seems to resist getting consumed entirely by the dim colours of the clouds and hills. The artist has not restricted his colour palette and created a clear contrast between the uses of the two different temperatures of colours. The pairing of a wide range of contrasting colours demonstrated in the clouds, sky, and hills strays away from harmonizing the entire painting and suggests a force of creative …show more content…
energy.
Carmichael uses the classic foreground, middle ground, and background to create depth and drama in his landscape painting with the assistance of colour. He divides the space into three planes: one being the clouds that occupy the top section of the painting, the second being the sky taking up the middle section, and lastly the foreground of hills taking the bottom half. As we move our eyes into the distance past the foreground, the artist chose to use more flat and solid areas of colour in the middle ground to create his own interesting rendition of atmospheric perspective, although “Hilltops” is not a realist painting. In atmospheric perspective, objects in the distance are to appear less distinct and less saturated in colour. To preserve the contrast between hills of the foreground and middle ground, Carmichael decides to do the opposite by using darker values of solid blues and harsh outlines on the middle ground hills. This contradicts the clouds he painted in this work that do comply with the atmospheric perspective phenomenon. The clouds nearest to the viewer are darker shadows of grey and the clouds in the distance seem to be tinted with light shades of greys, accentuated by hints of yellow for a touch of warmth, and the cloud tops are highlighted with white to give them dimension. The atmospheric perspectives between the middle ground hills and the clouds are not in agreement and conflict with each other. However, Carmichael was still able to create a focal point by making a very tiny area located in the centre of the middle ground hills cascade into the background in compliance to atmospheric perspective. There is a small area of pinkish-purple that stands out from the deep shades of blue. This tension adds to the painting’s visual drama. In addition, the intense shades of bright blues in the sky forms a divide that separates the dull coloured foreground from the monotonously grey clouds. The sky intervenes the grey clouds from harmonizing with the grey foreground, exaggerating the tension and contrast in the artwork.
A substantial amount of line work is evident in Carmichael’s painting as he paints within his panel canvas space. This exudes a feeling of constricted energy when you look at how he contained himself from making brush strokes that extend to the edges of the panel. The observer’s perception is an intense feeling of confinement when they see that the brush strokes do not fully meet the edge of the panel canvas. This impedes in the horizontal extension of the landscape. There are visible line tracings seen on the hills located both at the foreground and middle ground. The artist demonstrates different lengths of paintbrush strokes that are rarely touch one another, which further emphasizes the constriction of energy. The contours found in the objects audaciously make themselves present to the eye as our eyes naturally trace the repetitive, thick and wavy strokes that outline the rolling hills and clouds in the sky, giving off an impression of movement. There is a contrast between the clouds that is comprised of free-flowing lines running horizontally and the curving ones of the hills in the foreground, ultimately creating tension in the work. Similar to reading a book where your eyes run through sentences from one side of the page to the other, the viewer’s eyes perform a similar movement with the painting. Carmichael created an asymmetrical visual balance in “Hilltops.” The left and right sides of the painting are not mirrored, but still holds the same visual weight. The heavy, grey clouds in the top right corner dissolve into the left side of the sky. The observer is able to accumulate the visual energy of the artwork and gain momentum by scrolling their eyes across the painting from right to left, moving from higher concentrations of colour and detail to lower concentrations. Carmichael successfully creates movement with the use of various horizontal brush strokes in the clouds and natural curves of the hills that emphasizes a sense of energy and dynamic movement in his work.
Carmichael was able to bring together a wide variety of formal qualities into his painting that embodies energy and dynamism.
Action lies in the relationship between the artist’s choice of colours, space, and lines. He uses vibrant and rich colours to grab the observer’s attention and to create visual interest. Carmichael made excellent use of space by organizing the composition of the landscape. A foreground, middle ground, and background created depth in his work. Line is a vital aspect of movement and dynamic activity in the painting and was demonstrated through the varying lengths of bold, horizontal brush strokes. Collectively, all these formal elements, the use of contrasting temperatures of colour, thick lines, and solid forms all encapsulate the work’s energetic
spirit.
Hilltops, 1943
Franklin Carmichael, Canadian
Oil on panel
Overall: 25.4 x 30.4 cm
Formal Analysis
Richard W. Hill
Melanie Wilmink
FA/ARTH 1900
Tutorial 12
“HILLTOPS” BY FRANKLIN CARMICHAEL FORMAL ANALYSIS
Franklin Carmichael’s “Hilltops” is a 25.4 x 30.4 cm oil on panel painted in 1943 located in the Art Gallery of Ontario. The painting is a depiction of a landscape consisting of rolling hills in the foreground and middle ground and sky with an overcast of clouds. Carmichael used flat areas of colour, bold horizontal lines, and simplification of objects that instils a sense of stability. In contrast, his use of thick, distinguishable lines, bright blue tones in the sky that is starkly juxtaposed with sullen grey clouds, as well as the mix of cool and warm colours of the hilltops in the foreground and middle …show more content…
ground ignite tensions between them. The contrast of elements in Carmichael’s “Hilltops” demonstrates an abundance of energy and dynamism, heightening the overall drama of this relatively small scale of work. Carmichael incorporated a variety of colours in his painting to capture the essence of energy and dynamism.
The colours he used are saturated, embodying power and bright contrast. The drastic use of colour depicts the overall dynamic of Carmichael’s work. The foreground has hills that are composed of different tones of greys that are warmed with the use of muddy browns to create volume. The coolness of the blues and greys in the sky are contrasted with the warmth of the hills that are accented with playful, liberal strokes of mustard yellows and greens that amplify warmth in the foreground. In opposition to the murky and mundane colours of the sky and foreground, he paints the sky with vivid tints of blue. The smooth gradation of the blue sky creates a softness that seems to resist getting consumed entirely by the dim colours of the clouds and hills. The artist has not restricted his colour palette and created a clear contrast between the uses of the two different temperatures of colours. The pairing of a wide range of contrasting colours demonstrated in the clouds, sky, and hills strays away from harmonizing the entire painting and suggests a force of creative …show more content…
energy.
Carmichael uses the classic foreground, middle ground, and background to create depth and drama in his landscape painting with the assistance of colour. He divides the space into three planes: one being the clouds that occupy the top section of the painting, the second being the sky taking up the middle section, and lastly the foreground of hills taking the bottom half. As we move our eyes into the distance past the foreground, the artist chose to use more flat and solid areas of colour in the middle ground to create his own interesting rendition of atmospheric perspective, although “Hilltops” is not a realist painting. In atmospheric perspective, objects in the distance are to appear less distinct and less saturated in colour. To preserve the contrast between hills of the foreground and middle ground, Carmichael decides to do the opposite by using darker values of solid blues and harsh outlines on the middle ground hills. This contradicts the clouds he painted in this work that do comply with the atmospheric perspective phenomenon. The clouds nearest to the viewer are darker shadows of grey and the clouds in the distance seem to be tinted with light shades of greys, accentuated by hints of yellow for a touch of warmth, and the cloud tops are highlighted with white to give them dimension. The atmospheric perspectives between the middle ground hills and the clouds are not in agreement and conflict with each other. However, Carmichael was still able to create a focal point by making a very tiny area located in the centre of the middle ground hills cascade into the background in compliance to atmospheric perspective. There is a small area of pinkish-purple that stands out from the deep shades of blue. This tension adds to the painting’s visual drama. In addition, the intense shades of bright blues in the sky forms a divide that separates the dull coloured foreground from the monotonously grey clouds. The sky intervenes the grey clouds from harmonizing with the grey foreground, exaggerating the tension and contrast in the artwork.
A substantial amount of line work is evident in Carmichael’s painting as he paints within his panel canvas space. This exudes a feeling of constricted energy when you look at how he contained himself from making brush strokes that extend to the edges of the panel. The observer’s perception is an intense feeling of confinement when they see that the brush strokes do not fully meet the edge of the panel canvas. This impedes in the horizontal extension of the landscape. There are visible line tracings seen on the hills located both at the foreground and middle ground. The artist demonstrates different lengths of paintbrush strokes that are rarely touch one another, which further emphasizes the constriction of energy. The contours found in the objects audaciously make themselves present to the eye as our eyes naturally trace the repetitive, thick and wavy strokes that outline the rolling hills and clouds in the sky, giving off an impression of movement. There is a contrast between the clouds that is comprised of free-flowing lines running horizontally and the curving ones of the hills in the foreground, ultimately creating tension in the work. Similar to reading a book where your eyes run through sentences from one side of the page to the other, the viewer’s eyes perform a similar movement with the painting. Carmichael created an asymmetrical visual balance in “Hilltops.” The left and right sides of the painting are not mirrored, but still holds the same visual weight. The heavy, grey clouds in the top right corner dissolve into the left side of the sky. The observer is able to accumulate the visual energy of the artwork and gain momentum by scrolling their eyes across the painting from right to left, moving from higher concentrations of colour and detail to lower concentrations. Carmichael successfully creates movement with the use of various horizontal brush strokes in the clouds and natural curves of the hills that emphasizes a sense of energy and dynamic movement in his work.
Carmichael was able to bring together a wide variety of formal qualities into his painting that embodies energy and dynamism.
Action lies in the relationship between the artist’s choice of colours, space, and lines. He uses vibrant and rich colours to grab the observer’s attention and to create visual interest. Carmichael made excellent use of space by organizing the composition of the landscape. A foreground, middle ground, and background created depth in his work. Line is a vital aspect of movement and dynamic activity in the painting and was demonstrated through the varying lengths of bold, horizontal brush strokes. Collectively, all these formal elements, the use of contrasting temperatures of colour, thick lines, and solid forms all encapsulate the work’s energetic
spirit.
Hilltops, 1943
Franklin Carmichael, Canadian
Oil on panel
Overall: 25.4 x 30.4 cm