LEUNG Pui Shan (Kate) talks on DantCommunityBed2002

1) INTRODUCE THE DRAWING IN GENERAL TERMS

•What is the title of the drawing?

CommunityBed.

•What is the name of the artist?
Dant.
•What is the year the drawing was done?
2002.
•What is the medium? (ie the materials used to produce the picture, for example charcoal on paper, pen and ink etc)
Pencil on paper.
•What is the subject matter or general theme of the work? (eg is it a figure drawing, a map, a portrait, an autobiographical work, a picture about nature, a drawing of the city etc?)
It is a drawing that the artist expresses his feelings about the community. The artist draws the city from his point of view or by his perceptions. The drawing is obviously not realistic but it does show the conceptions of the artist. Besides, through this piece of drawing, audience can easily understand what are the feelings of the artist.

•What is the purpose of the drawing? (eg Is it a diagram that explains how something works? Does it record accurately record the appearance of something? Does it express the artist's emotion or memory? )
This drawing is apparently not the explanation of anything or an accurate record of  something. In stead, it is a piece of work showing the phenomenon of society. And it expresses the artist's emotion to the society. It is not a realistic picture to show the situation during that period of time. However, it is a picture reflecting what the artist thinks about the society. Those feelings may be radical or extreme that the artist cannot easily or freely express out. And thus he chooses to express them through the drawing.

2) DESCRIBE THE DRAWING IN DETAIL

•How is line used? What does it do/express?
Lines are fine and soft in this drawing. Lines are very subtle that create the texture of the bed. It is easy to know that the big bed in the middle is made of wood because lines create veins of wood. Also, lines on the bricks which used to construct the buildings are clearly shown. The leaves are not clear but the layers of tress can be recognised. Lines are applied more in the bottom but fewer in the upper part of the picture.
•How is tone used? What does it do/express?
The tone is overt on the bottom and left hand side of the drawing. For example,the shading of the window on the buildings is dark. And part of the tree is dark as well. But the tone is not so obvious on the left hand side and the upper part of the picture. The color is lighter on the upper part of the drawing. In addition, the overall tone is soft and there is no distinct contrast.
•What can you say about shape and/or form in this picture? What is the effect?
 Every objects of the drawing are three-demensional, especially the buildings, the bed in the middle and the cars on the bottom of the picture. It makes audience put more emphasis on those objects. And those objects are more realistic. Also, the objects' height and depth are eaily noticed because the artist draws a three-demensional form of them.
•Is texture a feature of the drawing?
 The texture is smooth and fluent at all. In details, different lines make different texture. For example, The wood which is used to made of the big bed is rough. It is because the lines create the veins of wood.
•What can you say about the composition of the drawing? What is the effect of this type of composition on the overall drawing?
The composition of the drawing is full. There are many different objects all over the picture, for example buildings, trees, roads, people and so on. There is no space of the picture actually. Besides, the artist draws a huge bed in the middle of the picture which makes audience focus on it. The big bed draws audience attention and therefore the people on the bed are also attractive. On the contary, the objects on sides are normal compare with the bed. So they are easily regarded as supporting roles of the big bed.
•Is rhythm important in this picture? If so, say more about it...
The rhythm is quite important of this picture. The rhythm is fairly stable especially the things on the big bed. The arrangement of objects in this picture quite even although there are different kind of objects here.
•Is the picture balanced? Explain...
 The picture is balanced. The whole picture is stuffed of objects without any space. The bed in the middle is the main focus. Apart from that, the picture is filled with people, trees, etc. There is no unusal things to affect the whole picture.
•Is perspective used in the picture? If so, describe the way that the illusion of three-dimensional space has been created.
It is an aerial perspective. The most clearest things are in front of teh picture. And the objects on the top of the picture are light in colour which shows the distance of the objects.
•Is the picture harmonious? If so, in what way?
 The picture is harmonious. The fine lines show many details of the picture.
•Are there any strong contrasts in the picture? Say more...
There are no strong contrats in the picture. In stead, the changing is gradually shown as the distance is far. The things in upper part of the drawing is lighter in color and fewer details are shown.

3) INTERPRETATION AND EVALUATION

•What is the mood of the drawing? Justify your answer using information from your responses above
The mood is this picture is complicated. It shows the discontent of the reality.
•What does the drawing express? Justify your answer using information from your responses above
The city in the picture is crowded and full of people. There are no individual beds for people. The situation is messy and seems no social order. Besides, most people are poor so that they do not have any clothes to wear. The big bed they shared is broken reflects that the living environment is bad. Nevertheless, the buildings on the left are beautiful and people who walk on the right hand side are wearing clothes. It shows that the liveing stardard of those people is better than "the people on the bed". This reflects a big contrast of this drawing.

•In your opinion, why is this work interesting/moving/ clever/ imaginative/thought-provoking/......?  Choose the adjective(s) that best fit(s) the work, and then justify your conclusion in terms of specific features and qualities of the drawing.
The most eye-catching object is the big bed in the middle of the picture. It is so attractive that people on the bed have different positions and poses. It creates the messy condition of living. It shows the situation of those people is bad. Besides, I like the comparison between the poor people who wear no clothes and the richer people who walking on the right hand side. Also, I like the way that the artist expresses his feelings. It is very easy to understand.