"The Persistence of Memory" Critique

Imitationalism

This painting is a surrealist painting therefore it is not meant to look real. The artist used bright colours that don’t look realistic for the scene that is being portrayed. There are many objects in this painting that wouldn’t normally be found is a desert setting such as the pool, the various melting clocks, the giant brown block, the tree growing out of the giant block and the white form in the middle of the painting. The melting clocks look like a real clock would look if it were melting, but clocks don’t melt and they also don’t belong in the desert or this picture. The white form is the most bizarre and most interesting part of the painting, this is because no one knows what it is and everyone can interpret it differently. It is sometimes seen as an animal, an animal skin, or even a portrait of the artist Salvador Dali. Because you cannot tell what it is and it doesn’t depict a specific object, it is very unrealistic. Overall imitationally this painting is poor because it is not realistic.

Formalism

This painting is great formally for many reasons. This artwork has asymmetrical balance. The block with the bottle and the melting clocks on it in the lower left corner balances the mountains in the upper right corner. While the tree and the pool in the upper left corner is balanced by the white form and the darkness in the bottom right corner. The painting has very intense and contrasting colours that create contrast and emphasis. The top half of the painting has bright colours that contrast with the bottom half of the painting that has darker colours. There is emphasis on the white figure in the middle of the painting because it is white, which contrast with the darkness all around it. There are a variety of implied textures such as the smooth water, the hard and bumpy mountains, and the grainy ground. The spacing and placement of the mountains, white figure, the block and the pool create movement. The viewer’s eye is led all around the painting. There isn’t really any repetition of shapes in this artwork, but that is part of its beauty. The same colours are repeated everywhere and the shapes work well together which creates rhythm. There is a variety of straight, curvy and jagged lines. These lines create organic and geometrical shapes. Overall this painting has strong

harmony and unity.

Emotionalism

This painting is very odd emotionally. Looking at “The persistence of memory” it is hard to figure out what feelings are trying to be communicated. This is because it is a surrealist painting. When I look at it I feel confused but that is good because it makes me want to try and understand it more. The desert setting creates a lonely and isolated feeling because there are no signs of life or civilization around. The melting clocks make it feel like time is passing so slow that it is almost frozen, this creates a very tired and slow feeling. The strange collection of objects in the painting makes the viewer curious and puzzled. Emotionally this artwork is very good because it creates a variety of feelings and it keeps the viewer interested.