The evolution of art over the span of centuries and the changing notion of the artist's place in society can be seen in the comparison of two very different works by two different artists. Impressions of who the artist was and what they contributed to society were transformed; and with the development of advanced techniques in media and style, art in general evolved from decorative objects made by skilled craftsmen to philosophical masterpieces with important messages by men who were deemed elitist intellectuals. Therefore, society's perception of artists in the past and modern discernment of the artist are two drastically different concepts.

During the Italian Renaissance, (1300-1600, roughly) transformation of artistic styles occurred and different philosophical concepts were beginning to emerge. Painters were beginning to make the transition from craftsmen to philosophers. The first work I chose to contrast and compare is 'The Crucifixion with saints, ' c. 1400 by Paolo Di Giovanni Fei, a reference to the Biblical annunciation scene when Gabriel announces to Mary the incarnation of Jesus. The work is a triptych, done in tempera and gold leaf on wood panel. As said i

The second work I chose to compare and contrast was Chuck Close's 'Self Portrait/White Ink,' an etching with aquatint and engraving done in 1978. The print is done in white ink on black paper, which is a reversal of the typical use of black ink on white paper. It is a magnified image of the artist's face, gridded in a map of hundreds of small squares which are individually etched and cross-etched in white ink. The finished effect is almost like an optical illusion; the viewer's attention fluctuates between the surface pattern of and the overall picture, which can only be clearly read from a distance. Stated in the etching's caption is this: "For Chuck Close, realism has always been an artificial construction. Close uses the face for pictorial rather than psychological exploration, although the results are inevitably revealing." Hence, we can observe that through portraiture Close is attempting to use the human face (which he calls "the road map of life") as a mode of cre!

In 'The crucifixion with saints,' the background is done in gold tempera, a popular practice in the 14th century because of its reflective sheen and implication of an ethereal, heavenly glow. Commissioners of paintings spent most of their money on m

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