Visual Storytelling

All three artists have different styles, but all of them are using their art to send a message. Crosby adds collages into her works. Realistic images of people and things in her paintings are laid over people in the background or things/people that are not the main subject, to make the subject stand out. There are still some collage elements in the subject though. For example, in “Wedding Portrait,” the pattern on the girl's dress includes a detailed image of her and her husband. The collages in the background and the subject tell the story of the wedding between the woman and her husband. In “Untitled,” Marshall contrasts the woman’s dark skin with the white of the canvas and palette. She is painting with lots of color. In the youtube video, Marshall talked about painting to spotlight black people because in older art they were never the focus. Because of this, I think the message Marshall is conveying with this piece is that black people have a place in art, and black artists deserve to have their story told. 

Peter Bruegel’s paintings are very detailed. In “Hunters in the Snow,” the landscape encompasses a large area. He painted each individual down on the ice and each tree off in the distance. The colors are not vibrant but muted. There are people going about their everyday lives. He captures the different duties and experiences all happening at the same time. All of this adds up to create a realistic vibe. The piece is titled “Hunters in the Snow,” but Bruegel tells so many stories past the group that is hunting.

Bruegal approaches storytelling by painting lots of detail. His works look realistic. By capturing all that is there, he captures the story he wants to tell. Contemporary artists like Crosby and Marshall aren’t super focused on including every detail. In fact, Crosby talked about painting the dress in “Wedding Portrait,” based on what she wished she could’ve had. She adds photo collages over parts of her portraits to tell a story, too. These artists bring in other aspects like this to help tell the story, which contrasts Bruegal’s approach of prioritizing an everyday, believable scene.