The Price of Blood: Art Critique
The Price of Blood was created in 1868 by Thomas Satterwhite Noble. When I first examined this painting, the first word that came to my mind was “eerie.” I could sense that some sort of conflict or debate was going on between the three men in the painting. The image definitely seemed gloomy because of the expression on the mens’ faces and the use of darker colors that Noble painted with. The image filled me with discomfort because of the way the three men are depicted; the men look as if they are in an argument or are trying to negotiate something. The title for The Price of Blood was inspired by Harriet Beecher Stowe’s controversial novel, Uncle Tom’s Cabin, which was first published in 1852. What is immediately visible in Noble’s painting is that there are three men standing around a table. One man is standing beside the table, wearing a white button-up shirt, dark colored pants, not wearing any shoes, and looking away from the two other men at the table. Another man is standing behind the table, holding a paper in one hand and his other hand is on the table. This man is also dressed in dark colors wearing a hat and a dark suit and is looking down at the paper he is holding. The third man in the painting is sitting down at the table looking away from the two men and is dressed in a jacket and slippers. He is wearing a jacket that is painted with grey, red, and black with nice pants and shoes. The table is depicted with a patterned table cloth and there happens to be papers ripped up and laying on the floor in the painting. There is also a painting of The Sacrifice of Isaac, inside the painting behind the three men. When observing the painting, I see that Red is the only bright color depicted and is located on the clothes of the man sitting down and on the table cloth. The wood is smooth and polished on the chairs and on the table there are other papers and stack of gold. The balance of the painting seems off-centered because you have two men standing up in
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