Chapter 7 Scale and Proportion PART 1 FUNDAMENTALS Copyright © 2011 Thames & Hudson

Chapter 7

Scale and Proportion

PART 1FUNDAMENTALS

Copyright © 2011 Thames & Hudson

Chapter 7 Scale and Proportion

PART 1FUNDAMENTALS

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Debra J DeWitte, Ralph M Larmann, M Kathryn Shields Copyright © 2011 Thames & Hudson

IntroductionIntroduction

We perceive scale in relation to our own sizeArt objects created on a monumental scale appear larger than they

would be in normal lifeArt objects created on a human scale correspond to the size of

things as they actually existSmall-scale objects appear smaller than our usual experience of

them in the real world

Usually, an artist ensures that all the parts of an object are in proportion to one another

But discordant proportions can express specific meanings


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ScaleScale

Artist and designers make conscious choices about the scale of their work when they consider the message they want to put acrossA small-scale work implies intimacyLarge-scale works can be experienced by groups of viewers

and usually communicate big ideas directed at a large audience

Practical considerations can affect an artist's decision about scale tooCost, time it will take to execute the piece, and demands that

a specific location may place on the work are all factors


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Scale and MeaningScale and Meaning

Usually a monumental scale indicates heroism or other epic virtues

War monuments, for example, often feature figures much larger than life-size in order to convey the bravery of the warriors

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Interactive Exercises:



Scale and MeaningScale and Meaning

Click to start the Interactive Exercises


1.126 Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen, Mistos (Match Cover), 1992. Steel, aluminum, fiber-reinforced plastic, painted with polyurethane enamel, 68' x 33' x 43' 4”. Collection La Vall d'Hebron, Barcelona, Spain

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Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen,Claes Oldenburg and Coosje van Bruggen,Mistos (Match Cover)Mistos (Match Cover)

Uses monumental scale to poke fun while expressing admiration for the little things of everyday life

Oldenburg transforms the essence of everyday things as he magnifies their sculptural form

Oldenburg believes that the items of mass culture, no matter how insignificant they might seem, express a truth about modern life


1.127 Robert Lostutter, The Hummingbirds, 1981. Watercolor on paper, 1 ¾ x 5 5/8”. Collection of Anne and Warren Weisberg

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Robert Lostutter, Robert Lostutter, The HummingbirdsThe Hummingbirds

Lostutter uses small scale to enhance the character of his work

He likes to create his works on the scale not of a human but of a bird

The tiny scale of the work—only one person at a time can see it properly—forces us to come closer

Viewing it becomes an intimate experience


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Hierarchical ScaleHierarchical Scale

Hierarchical scale refers to the deliberate use of relative size in a work of art, in order to communicate differences in importance

Almost always, larger means more important, and smaller means less important

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Hierarchical ScaleHierarchical Scale



1.128 Relief from the northern wall of the hypostyle hall at the great temple of Amun, 19 th Dynasty, c. 1295–1186 BCE. Karnak, Egypt


Hierarchical scale

A

B

C

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Hierarchical scale: Relief from the Hierarchical scale: Relief from the northern wall of the hypostyle hall at the northern wall of the hypostyle hall at the great temple of Amungreat temple of Amun

In the art of ancient Egypt, the king, or pharaoh, was usually the largest figure depicted because he had the highest status in the social order

This scene depicts the military campaign of Pharoah Seti I (figure A) against the Hittites and Libyans


1.129 Jan van Eyck, Madonna in a Church, 1437–8. Oil on wood panel, 12 5/8 x 5 1/2”. Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen, Berlin, Germany

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Jan van Eyck, Jan van Eyck, Madonna in a ChurchMadonna in a Church

Uses hierarchical scale to communicate spiritual importance

In his effort to glorify the spiritual importance of Mary and the Christ child, van Eyck separates them from normal human existence Van Eyck has scaled them to symbolize their central

importance in the Christian religion


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Distorted ScaleDistorted Scale

An artist may deliberately distort scale to create an abnormal or supernatural effect

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Distorted ScaleDistorted Scale



1.130 Dorothea Tanning, Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, 1943. Oil on canvas, 16 1/8 x 24”. Tate, London

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Dorothea Tanning, Dorothea Tanning, Eine Kleine NachtmusikEine Kleine Nachtmusik

Dorothea Tanning was a Surrealist artist The sunflower seems huge in relation to the interior

architecture and the two female figures standing on the left By contradicting our ordinary experience of scale, Tanning

invites us into a world unlike the one we know Eine Kleine Nachtmusik (“A Little Night Music”), is

borrowed from a lighthearted piece of music by the composer Mozart, but ironically Tanning’s scene exhibits a strange sense of dread


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ProportionProportion

The relationships between the sizes of different parts of a work make up its proportions

By controlling these size relationships an artist can enhance the expressive and descriptive characteristics of the work

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ProportionProportion


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1.131 Examples of how proportion changes on vertical and horizontal axes

Foot

Lip

Hip

A B C

WidthHeight


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Human ProportionHuman Proportion

Carefully chosen proportion can make an art object seem pleasing to the eyeThis goes for the human body, too

The ancient Egyptians used the palm of the hand as a unit of measurement

The ancient Greeks sought an ideal of beauty in the principle of proportion

The models used by the Greeks for calculating human proportion were later adopted by artists of ancient Rome, and then by Renaissance artists

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Human ProportionHuman Proportion


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1.132 Ancient Egyptian system using the human hand as a standard unit of measurement

6 palms = 1 cubit 4 cubits = 1 man’s height[24 palms]

4 fingers = 1 palm


1.133 Nigerian Ife artist, Figure of Oni, early 14th–15th century. Brass with lead, 18 3/8” high. National Museum, Ife, Nigeria

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Nigerian Ife artist, Nigerian Ife artist, Figure of OniFigure of Oni

The Oni is the most powerful and important figure in this culture

The head is large in proportion to the rest of the body; the Yoruba believe that the head is the seat of a divine power

Many African sculptures exaggerate the head and face as a way to communicate status, destiny, and a connection to the spiritual


1.134 Raphael, The School of Athens, 1510–11. Fresco, 16’ 8” x 25’. Stanza della Segnatura, Vatican City

PART 1FUNDAMENTALS

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts, Debra J DeWitte, Ralph M Larmann, M Kathryn Shields

Chapter 1 Art in Two Dimensions: Line, Shape, and the Principle of Contrast


Gateway to Art:Gateway to Art:Raphael, Raphael, The School of AthensThe School of AthensScale and Proportion in a Renaissance MasterpieceScale and Proportion in a Renaissance Masterpiece

Raphael’s sensitivity to proportion reflects his pursuit of perfection

He indicated the importance of his masterpiece by creating it on a magnificent scale

He composed the individual figures so that the parts of each figure are harmonious in relation to each other and portray an idealized form

Double emphasis on the center brings our attention to the opposing gestures of two famous Greek philosophers, Plato and Aristotle


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The Golden SectionThe Golden Section

The Golden Section is a proportional ratio of 1:1.618, which occurs in many natural objects

Real human bodies do not have exactly these proportions, but when the ratio 1:1.618 is applied to making statues, it gives naturalistic results

The proportions of Ancient Greek sculptures are often very close to the Golden Section

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Golden Section & ProportionGolden Section & Proportion


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1.135 The Golden Section

Golden Mean1:1.6180337...

1:1.6180337...

1

1.618

Fibonacci Sequence1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, …

Root 5 Rectangle

13

85

3 211

1/2

1.618…

2.236…

2√5


1.136 Poseidon (or Zeus), c. 460–450 BCE. Bronze, 6’ 10 1/2” high. National Archaeological Museum, Athens, Greece


1.137 Diagram of proportional formulas used in the statue

1.618

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PoseidonPoseidon

As a Greek god, Poseidon had to have perfect proportions The sculptor applied a conveniently simple ratio, using the

head as a standard measurement The body is three heads wide by seven heads high


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Proportional RatiosProportional Ratios

“Golden Rectangles” is a technique based on nesting inside each other a succession of rectangles based on the 1:1.618 proportions of the Golden SectionThe shorter side of the outer rectangle becomes the longer side of

the smaller rectangle inside it, and so onThe result is an elegant spiral shape


1.138a Henry Peach Robinson, Fading Away, 1858. Combination albumen print. George Eastman House, Rochester, New York


1.138b Proportional analysis of Henry Peach Robinson’s Fading Away

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Henry Peach Robinson, Henry Peach Robinson, Fading AwayFading Away

Henry Peach Robinson was a great photographic innovator

This image shows Robinson’s attention to the coordinated ratios in artistic composition

Notice how the right-hand drape divides the photograph into two Golden Rectangles, and how the spiral draws our eye to the dying young woman


1.139 Iktinos and Kallikrates, Parthenon, 447–432 BCE. Athens, Greece

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Iktinos and Kallikrates, ParthenonIktinos and Kallikrates, Parthenon

By applying the idealized rules of proportion for the human body to the design of the Parthenon, a temple of the goddess Athena, the Greeks created a harmonious designThe proportions correspond quite closely to the Golden

SectionThe vertical and horizontal measurements work together to

create proportional harmony


1.140 The use of the Golden Section in the design of the Parthenon

Pediment

Triglyphs


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ConclusionConclusion

When proportion conforms to scale, all the parts of the work look the way we expect them to

Scale and proportion are basic to most works; size choices influence all the other elements and principles in the design

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This concludes the PowerPoint Slide Set for Chapter 1.7

Gateways to Art: Understanding the Visual Arts By Debra J DeWitte, Ralph M Larmann, M Kathryn Shields


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Chapter 7 Scale and Proportion PART 1 FUNDAMENTALS Copyright © 2011 Thames & Hudson