Article Analysis on Chuck Close

Shianne Larsen

Chris Szczesny-Adams

09 April 2016

ARTICLE ANALYSIS

        The first article is titled “Following the Light, and Making Faces”. It is written by Helen Harrison on 22nd of February in 2004 for “The New York Times” newspaper. It is dedicated to the famous artist Chuck Close, who is photographer, printmaker and painter. The author makes an emphasis on a fact that Close is an abstract expressionist who takes the photographs of people and later transforms them into large paintings. The article has a considerable amount of text, however, it does not focus on the style and works of the artist that much. The main purpose of the author was to reveal some of the interesting facts of the Close`s biography, like the places he lived and studied. The article is written in a clear manner and is easy to read despite the big amount of text. There are lots of quotations here and there as Helen Harrison had a personal conversation with Chuck Close, which makes the reading much more interesting and proves the credibility of the article. The main purpose is also achieved as there are numerous facts about various periods of the artist`s life and some of the people he worked and studied with. This reading is good and informative, however it is not for the people who have completely no clue about Chuck Close`s persona, but for the ones who are familiar with his works and would like to learn something more about him. (Harrison, “The New York Times”)

        The next article about Chuck Close can be also found at “The New York Times” and is titled “Chuck Close, Collaborating in a Big Way”. It is written by Rena Silverman on the 7th of May in 2015. As it comes from the title, the article is mainly about Chuck Close`s collaborations with other artists, studios and companies. Also, the author pays a close attention to the instruments, tools and equipment that were used by Close during his work. Rena Silverman did a great research and revealed over ten collaborations of Chuck Close and listed the works that were made as a result, as well as techniques that were used to complete the artworks. She also showed a high level of credibility by posting links and quotes in text. The article`s size is quite compact and the author managed to set out all of the important facts clearly without braking the narrative line. The text is written concisely and accurately, which suits well for “The New York Times” columnist. (Silverman, “The New York Times”)

        The third article is called “Beyond the Portrait: The Many Categories of Chuck Close”, which is a direct description of the artist`s works. The article is written by Jessica Backus in 2013 for the Artsy.net online portal. The main purpose here is to showcase the main styles that Chuck Close works with. This aim is achieved well as the author lists all of the styles and supports them with actual examples with short descriptions. The reading by itself is well balanced and keeps the reader concentrated. As usual, there are lots of quotes in the text, but the main aspect of credibility here is the style of author`s writing itself. Everything is set out with a great knowledge of the subject supported by personal comments and citations. The article is very informative and easy to read, which is why it is a great source for the regular people to find out the original facts about Chuck Close. (Backus, “Beyond the Portrait: The Many Categories of Chuck Close”)

        The last article about this artist`s persona is “Pixels and Paintings”, which is written by the two Doctors of Medicine: James Ravin and Peter Odell. This one is really interesting, because it is formed from the ophthalmologist perspective, not an artistic. Both authors analyze the visual components of the Close`s artworks and their perception by the human eye. The main purpose of the reading is to note how intensively the color spectrum and object location on the artist`s paintings and photographs affect the eye muscle. They definitely reveal all of the important aspects of this matter and their credibility leaves no doubts as a scientific fact. However, the entire reading may be complicated for some people as it is written by the professionals of a really narrow area of knowledge. The text is overloaded with facts and terms, which bring the feeling of sterility and make the reader a little bit bored. Still, it is a descent article with useful information in it. (Ravin and Odell, “Pixels and Peinting”)