In Alex Katz’s artworks, there is always express himself through drawing, painting, etc. We can see his situation through the painting, like the “lilies against yellow wall” and “the moose” which may cause by his muse. In his early work the characters and objects shows his feelings. Placing his emotions into his work, he can only paint when he feels a certain way. The similarities in this painting, gives the audience a look into how he feels. The setting of the snow mountain and the yellow glass are feeling sad. In the painting of “the moose” relate to the many of others he painted by the objects. Each object has showed his situation at that time. “The moose” is a simple when looked at but holds many meanings for the painter. It also can see what kind of experience he suffers.
Alex Katz painted the “The moose” on 1983. The pose of the moose would make the reader wonder. The buns of moose were showed in front of the picture which I took notice of. “At a fairly early point he arrived at his signature blending of figure, landscape and abstraction -- not too suave, not too rough, a little goofy, a touch melancholic -- and he has stayed with it.” (Holland 1) The buns are one of the most important parts in the picture. It would make the reader confuse and would think how come this picture would exist. The artist didn’t make the buns of the moose clearly. It was hard to realize it is a moose in the first sight until see the head of the moose. The artist used the raw umber color on the top. And it made it darker and darker when the eyes move towards down. I can’t picture brown, but I can picture the umber color. And the color was showed the artist was very softly and gently to draw that place. Through this color can’t see the shape at all. Just the few lines made very real. The other reason make the reader thought real because the tail is prominent. The color was the same as the buns. The color was increasing different. We still could see the lighter color in the medium of the dark. We can know the artist made the lighter color first, and then cover the dark color.In the back of the moose, it draws by the ghost white and the plum color. It showed the age of moose was old. It is hard to picture these colors on the back of the moose. It liked the snow on the back. It also displayed the cold weather. And let the reader feel painfulness. In that weather, it would made reader to sympathize the moose. We could through these to think about the feeling of the artist at that time. It showed the artist also has some painful in his heart. The shapes on the back like the eagle stretch its plumage cover on the moose. It showed the moose want to has the plumage and fly away. The eye of the eagle was sharp. The tail of the eagle is the same place on the tail of the moose. The ghost white and the shapes of the color are obviously separate the eagle and the moose. The line of the feather is decreasing when is going down the picture. It showed very real because the size of the eagle is correspond the standard of the eagle. The expression of the eagle is also showed very real. “Katz manages to efface whatever opinions he might have in service to a formal,” (Lennie 5)The one of most attract and catch the reader’s sight may be the eye of the moose. It almost set on the center of the picture. The little rectangle enclose by the white color, it display the spirit of the moose. The litter rectangle was surrounded by ivory black. At the edge of the eye, the artist made a little gray color lighter and lighter reflect the angle of the ray. It showed particularity detail. It could prove the artist was concentrated on that time. It also showed the propriety mix.The hole of the nose is also worth while to pay attention on. Perhaps the most reader wouldn’t see the hole of the nose, but the artist made it bigger than used to. It used the brick color to show the clear menu. There are many black spot cover on the brick color. It showed the ray shine different, and the distant between moose and people. “it is about surface appearance, figuration edited down to a purity that flirts with abstraction but never crosses over.” (Lennie 2) It also considered the limit of the human being eyesight. In the clear menu contain the paste. We could see the wise skill of the artist. May the reader would think why the horns so big and how come the color is so oddball. Is it the most important thing as the thing in the head? When we were still focusing on the horns, we can see the horns like the tree. The tree is very important at this place. We couldn’t see any tree but the shadow in the lake. That could let us thought the moose couldn’t leave there. It belongs to there. We also could think the artist has some thing want to do, but he couldn’t accomplish it.During looking at the moose, the yellow thing may catch our sight. Let us follow it down and think what it is. When we distract and focus on the yellow thing we could see that is the glass. It already is yellow. At that situation, it may tell us it is fall and is going to winter. It made us slop over. The winter always made people felt bad. It would remind the reader the pity thing or bad memory or so on. We could think the artist has some unhappy thing in his mind. “straightforward depiction that manages to be both cerebral and approachable.” (Lennie 5) He also wanted to show us that he has the bad situation in his live. There still have some sea green dark color and white color mix in the yellow grass. The shapes of the grass are point to the moose. It looks as the moose made them be yellow and wilted them. At here, the artist express his live is dark. It displayed he did something wrong. At the back of the moose, there is the lake and mountains were drawn by steel blue and steel blue light. It is hard to believe the sky such dark. It doesn’t have any green color on the mountain. It doesn’t have anything on the mountain but stone. It means it doesn’t have any tree on the mountain. It showed it doesn’t have any energy on this place. It likes anything will be end soon. The color of the sky could tell us the time close to dark. That day is close to end. “It's a romantic, melancholy moment in the woods,”(Lennie 9) It doesn’t have delight thing. At this point, we could know the artist already be old man. He felt his live doesn’t have delight thing as young any more. He felt his live is grey. He also made us feel that he will be end.
Art is a way for a person to express the artist what they know about the world and what he think about the world through drawing, painting, dancing, etc, or a combination. Alex Katz holds true to this, he paints for his wife and no other, as his emotions belong to him. He likes to paint his friends and family. “his wife and muse” (Kathryn 1) It has tell us how important paint his wife. It would relate to muse. Just like “The black dress” and “Ada with Nose”, it has show us Alex Katz drew his wife on different angle and expand bigger to view. Alex Katz paints his wife particular on every part.
Alex Katz paints “The black dress” on 1960 with oil. The black on Alex Katz’s wife was fit her which I took notice of. We can see the black color on the dress cover whole body. The black color made the painting darkness. It also makes the other place more obviously. It would make the view wonder. It would guess the artist is on purpose to cover something. We are hard to see how his wife’s figure is. Was Alex Katz on purpose? “It is a fine balance, and one that has guaranteed her longevity as a subject.” (Faye 2) It had told us that Alex Katz want to cover his wife’s age. He wants his wife keep the same figure. But the people must be old. He can not change the fact. The only thing he can do is paint her down on the paper. It would keep it forever. At here, we can see that Alex Katz will cheat himself. He doesn’t want to accept the natural condition.
When the eyes keep look on the Alex Katz’s wife, we could see the different pose from her. It is hard illuminate what she was doing. "Ada," as Alex has painted her, is more than a person, as the best portrait personas usually are. (Faye 2) How the people look on is different. Her hand and her leg create the different expression. There are no different pose are alike. Just looking at her hair, it is also different some is look denser than some. It had told us that the Alex Katz’s wife at different period. It was the different age. It had told us that Alex Katz very love his wife. No matter how old she was.
The most eye-catching point in the painting is the man who is on the right. It is also is as the picture on the painting. All pictures are drawn in Alex Katz’s wife. In the picture of that man suppose it is Alex Katz. Alex Katz is looking on his wife’s different pose. He also looked his wife on different period. It could express Alex Katz care for his wife every time. He also cares for his wife every change. It had told the viewer he love his wife more than everyone. But Alex Katz is not a real person in the painting. He drew himself as the picture in the painting. It could represent he was separated a distant from her. His wife only can do something for him as look at the picture.
Much is learned from Ada's clothing and her general look, which places her unequivocally in each decade of the era covered. Katz's rather empirical American approach, with observations gleaned from what is immediately at hand, and a tidy, almost proper sense of what is fit to show, sets him worlds apart from Picasso and other European avant-gardists, with their psychically charged, erotic portraits of multiple paramours. (Faye, 3)
In this painting, Katz cordons off a cultural space in which this elegant woman is an object of esthetic appreciation--from many different angles--though not particularly an object of overt desire. The color of the cordon is yellow. Yellow is the color that would catch the viewer’s attention as the traffic light why use on the cross street. Alex Katz was on purpose to show cordon, and let the view know that is one person. That’s was his wife.
In the first expression of the painting, it looked like the camera in the middle, and took the picture of them. The light in the middle is brighter than two sides. It looks like a dream. How could six the same people stand together. The dream about the same person at the different age gets it together. Alex Katz thinks that he would do his subject no matter what. “found my subject matter and a reason to devote my life to painting,'' he has written.” (Grace)
The “black dress” may imply that Alex Katz is not satisfied with the people will be old, especially in his wife. He needs to draw it down on the paper. The painting can be interpreted in two different ways; he wants to watch his wife forever and draw his wife. The other way is his wife watch him and is waiting for him at different period. In fact, everything in the world is running. It would never stop. Even though the “black dress” can cover up some of the change, but it can’t cover up the whole change.
The third painting is “Ada and Alex” also done with oil between 1980. In the painting, the first thing that caught my eyes was the man who is Alex. The age of Alex Katz is younger than right now. He is 82 years old at this year. The color on Alex Katz is displayed young. But he didn’t smile. It showed Alex Katz is cool. “Everyone in Katz's world is a cool cat.”(Lennie 12) Include Alex Katz himself. He also made himself be a part of the painting. He made himself cooler than everyone that he drew. He wears the business suit as something formal. His head is lean some angle. It showed he cares his space less than he cares his wife. He wife set on the middle. The most part occupy by his wife. It had told us his wife is most important in his life. “his wife and muse” (Kathryn, 1) His wife as the muse in his artwork. He would think his wife when he was drawing the picture. That is a reason why he likes to portrait of the people, especially in his wife.
The woman on the left is Alex Katz’s wife. In the first impression in the painting is there is a woman smile. Why Ada was smiling?” We don't know why she's smiling when she does, or at whom, if anyone.”(Faye 9) Maybe Alex Katz thinks Ada in his heart is the good person who can make him happy. She can make many great time in Alex Katz’s memory. Ada’s head raise little bit as she needs to look at the far distant. It made us think about there is something we don’t know. There is a secret in her mind.” the slightly upturned corners of her mouth make her look as though she is keeping a secret.”(Faye 10) Nobody knows what’s in her mind except Alex Katz.
Look at the painting specifics, there is no setting on the painting. It has showed Alex Katz can not get the other be important in his world. His world only Ada is enough. As the note in the biography of Alex Katz, he is born in New York. His world suppose there is various in his mind.
The most interesting is Ada’s clothing and her look. Much is learned from Ada's clothing and her general look, which places her unequivocally in each decade of the era covered. Katz's rather empirical American approach, with observations gleaned from what is immediately at hand, and a tidy, almost proper sense of what is fit to show, sets him worlds apart from Picasso and other European avant-gardists, with their psychically charged, erotic portraits of multiple paramours. (Faye, 3)
Through his years of painting, Alex Katz as a portrait artist expresses himself by the painting what he wants to paint. What he sees in his friends and his wife. He tries to show his painting to the audience what he thinks. In the “black dress” and “Ada and Alex Katz”, there is a pattern has tell the audience that Ada is the most important person in his world.