It could be said that every artwork tells a story, since even completely
non-objective abstract paintings are made up of marks that chart
the histories of their own creation, and abstractions can be “read” in
various ways based on each viewer’s unique physiological and
emotional responses, memories, and gut-level intuitions. And in turn,
every effective artwork, even the most literally narrative illustration,
can be viewed in terms how the elements of line, shape, texture,
color and space are composed in support of that narrative.
Visual art is a mode of communication that predates written language,
and it has always been a powerful way of delivering messages and
telling stories. Long before a majority of people could read, paintings
and sculptures communicated the facts, fables and morals of natural
phenomena, mythological and religious stories, and important people,
places and events. Art constitutes a visual record of what was important
to people in a given place at a given point in history.
To "read" the story in a work of art, we decode the clues
the artist gives us and put them together to build a narrative. Who
are the characters? How are they interacting? Where and when? What
action is taking place? What props does the artist give the characters?
Other cues within the work, like color, light and dark, and the relative
scale of objects and characters, also affect the meaning of the story.
Artists often tell stories about their own lives, or about things
unfamiliar to us because they are not of our own time, place, or
experience. Artworks may inspire people to ask questions and look
in other places for more information about a topic. In this way,
art helps us to learn more about others, to deepen our understanding
of history, and to enlarge our experience of the world around us.
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