Many times art is created to serve as tools for beautification. Other pieces of art such as music, poems, and even films are used for entertainment purposes. However, these are not the only uses of art as most of them have covert messages intended for a certain audience while others pronounce their subject matters and themes overtly for all to see. For instance, several pieces of art made in the past had a different significance to the people and the environment they were made in and the environment they would be used in. This essay will review two pieces of art taking into consideration their themes, structural elements, and subject matter.

Bernini’s Angels: “Angel with Lance.”

Subject Matter

Bernini was given a task to model the bridge of Saint Peter (Ponte Sant’Angelo), which was utilized by believers to reach Saint Peters in Rome. Bernini used ten angels representing different themes on the bridge. However, he did not carve all of these angel sculptures by himself; he made just two of them. Angel with Lance is one of the sculptures used in decorating this bridge. One of the baroque artists named Domenico curved this beautiful piece of art. The angel holding the lance has significance.

Structural Elements

The most striking element in the “Angel with Lance” is the use of clay in its molding. Recent reports show the sculptures in the square being remade because they had been eroded to a certain extent. The sculptures also have real artist’s hair making them the real

Shape

“Angel with Lance” is a three-dimension piece of art made of real hair and clay. This is perhaps the reason they deformed after many years on the top of the bridge. The sculpture is made to appear as if the angel is in the cloud with a cloud resembling shape surrounding the sculpture.

Texture

The texture of the Angel with Lance is rough in some places and smooth in others to portray the true aspect of an angel. The arms

Line

The sculpture is made of several curves to portray the body of a person representing an angel.

Theme/Message

carries. Christianity is a religion founded on the doctrines put forward by Jesus. Additionally, the death of Jesus and His resurrection on the third day provides huge importance to this religion. The fact that Rome is believed to be one of the places Jesus preached gives meaning to the existence of perhaps, the largest Christian church in the world history, the Vatican. St. Peters Square is the biggest square where Catholics all over the world sometimes converge for special masses lead by the Pope. The Lance held by the angel sculpture is used to remind the pilgrims using this bridge of the sacrifice Jesus Christ gave for the forgiveness of their sins.

This is a very important message partly because it forms the basis of Christianity, the faith professed by the largest percentage of the global citizenry. It is also important because, Jesus, a deity, accepted to come down to earth and die for the sins of many. The angel holding the lance is a clear demonstration of the importance of the crucifixion of Jesus Christians.

Japanese Footbridge by Monet

Subject Matter

crossing a bond in a garden, which belonged to Monet. Monet decided to paint this art in the way he presumed the universe and not according to how the world looked like. This is the reason he used different colors from those existing in his garden. Monet portrays the beauty that exists in the mind through this painting done in 1889. Although

Structural Elements

Since a painting is not the same as a sculpture, its structural elements differ a little bit. However, the aspect of color, composition, and line exist in the two cases. The structural elements evident in the Japanese Footbridge are

Color

Monet decides to use several colors to beautify his painting as well as convey the message in the painting. There are several colors used in the painting including yellow, light green, purple, green, pink, and even dark green. Although some of the colors do not rhyme with those found in any garden, Monet used them to give a different feel to his painting.

Lines

Several paintings utilize lines of different forms and sizes because of the need to join one side of the work of art to the next. The flowers, the bridge, the crests of the bond and even the other plants in the work of art use lines. The essence of the line is to provide an outline of the various objects in the .

Texture

Like most paintings, the texture and feel of the painting are smooth given the paint used. However, the appearance and the objects in the painting make it appear coarse because it looks real. This painting led Monet to create a similar garden using different species of plants to recreate his painting in the real world. This garden was created in Giverny.

Message/Theme

Monet’s paintings were made to portray the beauty that has never existed in this world. His use of different colors unlike those found in the nature shows his desire for thinking outside a given cocoon and creating marvelous objects. Monet chose to disregard the colors of the nature and use his colors hence coming up with an awesome painting. He chose to create his nature but by combining colors that are already in existence. The theme of the painting is perhaps creating something from individual experiences and not imitating what is already existing.