Picture analysis

Alfonso Callejas

Description:
A color image of a dark brown cow peering over a wooden beam, only the top of its nose, right eye, ears and forehead are visible. Behind it there are more wooden beams. The top half of the image is a blue, slightly cloudy sky with trees on the left side.

Reflection:
The image evokes a feeling of captivity. The cows eye seems strained, buldging out giving the animal a look of anxiety. The sense of captivity is heighted by the blue sky and trees in the background, and the dramatic transition between the foregorund and background.

Formal:
The image plays strongly with horizontal lines and echoed elements. There are 2 lines which go through the picture, the bottom beam in front of the cow and the beam behind the cow which devideds the picture almost perfectly in half. The shape of the cow's head is echoed by the shaped of the trees in the background. There is also a stark contrast in the colors of the foreground (dark browns) and background (green, blue and white).