MEANING 1

Symbolism

This is the Bastet, the feline goddess of Ancient Egyptian Religion. This object symbolizes a culture-dependent idea. The viewer sees a cat's head on the body of a woman. These two concepts (cat and woman) are drawn from nature. The scene of a woman with a cat's head is out of the ordinary. Hence the viewer realizes that the cat's head is of great significance. The size of the cat's head is exaggerated- especially in being fused to the large headdress. Furthermore, the Bastet sits up straight astutely with her fists clenched, perhaps denoting powerful, majestic royalty. Thus it can signify that the goddess sits atop her thrown, wearing a headdress as a crown and holding her most treasured possession. The proportions of the Bastet's body (slender figure with large breasts) can signify the ideals of beauty from ancient Egyptian culture.





Abstraction

This image is abstract because it depicts the structural level of a stage set. It is reduced to the basics. The colors, tones, lines, shapes, etc. allow the viewer to see the understructure of a stage set of an artificial city. All these elements are visual clues for the viewer. The stage set has been drawn in minimal representational details. The viewer is particularly guided by blue, green, and red rays piercing through the image and joining at the bottom. With these rays, the image clarifies that the viewer is seeing a stage with spotlights. The spotlights make this image a concept-based abstraction. Almost any visual form with these "spotlights" can be seen as a stage. At the same time, this image can perhaps be a depiction of visual plans for a stage set.

Representation

This is a representational image because it presents the physical reality of a sea turtle. The painting reports large amounts of visual detail. The viewer is able to see the various colors, textures, shapes, etc. of a real sea turtle's body. We recognize the universal appearance of a generic turtle. At the same time, however, the colors, shapes, proportions, and markings allow the viewer to see that this is a specific kind of turtle. These detailed identifying factors let the viewer know this is particularly a sea turtle. We recognize the animal from environment and experience in having seen an actual sea turtle. Because this painting is so realistic, it is used as a technical reference to a sea turtle's natural appearance. The image is very lifelike, so the viewer feels as if he/she is witnessing a live sea turtle that is swimming under the sea or at an aquarium.