Research Point: Figures in Interiors

Looking at paintings of figures in interiors, consider what you think are the artist’s intentions are and look at the technical and creative solutions that they’ve brought to the subject.

Edouard Vuillard, especially in his early career, was heavily influenced by his mother’s work as a seamstress and the patterned fabrics which surrounded her.  His art is very decorative, often confusing on the eye, frequently so much so that we struggle to see the subject(s) depicted.

In "Room with Three Lamps, Rue St Florentin", the only things that appear solid are the three lamps of the title because they are formed of solid blocks of orange and white.  Everything else is created of a tapestry of brush strokes and patterns; the walls, doorways, carpet, rugs, wall hanging, tablecloth and house plants used to create further patterns against the patterned walls!  Because there is no part of the painting which is not patterned, it is very difficult to focus on one point.  Because of this, you almost fail to see the figure sitting in the wheelchair in the centre of the painting, even though the diagonals of the runner beneath him converge centrally on his body.  It is also possible that there may be a figure in the bottom left, sitting at the desk but again, this is very difficult to decipher in this small view.

Vuillard’s technique somewhat echoes the pointillist techniques of Seurat and Signac but Vuillard does not appear to have focused on colour theory as the reason for his patterns – he was much more interested in the patterns themselves. 

Vuillard’s creative technique of placing a figure in an interior seems to be to treat it in exactly the same way as the background – there is no hierarchy in many of Vuillard’s paintings as to what he wants the viewer to see, I feel he wants the viewer to decide what they want to look at most in the painting.  In the painting above, he does not mention the figures in the title, just calls it “Room with three lamps” – the figures are not a significant part of the painting, it feels more like they were there included purely because they were there at the time

Edward Hopper’s painting "Chop Suey" does the opposite to Vuillard’s; it makes the figures the central focus of the painting.

Compositionally, Hopper has used the corner of the restaurant to provide us with two sets of figures that, at first glance, are relating to each other.   All the figures are placed in the bottom half of the painting, leaving the top half to give a sense of the physical space of the room they are in.  Large windows flood the scene with light and create strong shadows.  All the figures are placed on the diagonal to match the perspective of the windows and ledge.

Black tables are topped with white counters to create a strong tonal contrast and create a base on which the figures are displayed.  The focal point of this painting is the woman in the green top with a dark cloche hat.  This is heightened by the way he has painted her face – very pale skin, dark eyes and bright red lips topped by the dark line of the cloche hat.  She really should be talking to the woman sitting opposite her but appears very distant, and in fact, when viewed closely is staring out at the viewer, as it she has been interrupted by something.  With the couple in the background, she appears to be looking/talking to him, but he is indifferent, looking down towards the table. 

There is no intimacy between any of the figures. This gives the painting a sense of anonymity and coldness, which is accentuated by the darkness of the shadows behind the main figure contrasted against the light and warmth coming through the windows.  Although it appears to be winter (hats and scarves on the figures), the painting creates the impression that it is warmer outside.

A further way Hopper has created this impression is by the use of colour.  Outside the restaurant is the warm red of the sign, bordered by the warm brown of the window ledge, contrasted with the cool blues, greys and darks of the interior.  Even the woman’s green jumper is a cool shade.

"Girl Reading at an Open Window no 2" by the contemporary artist, Daniel Gonzalez Covers (a Spanish artist) was found on the Saatchi Gallery website.  On researching him further, most of his works (whether paintings or drawings) are very monochromatic in nature, with very little colour and so relying totally on composition and tonal contrasts for the painting’s effect.

This work is very clearly a reference/homage to Vermeer’s painting "Girl at a Window Reading a Letter".  Gonzalez Coves has used some of the same props in this painting – a diagonal window ledge to create perspective and space, and a draped curtain to add softness to the scene.  However, Gonzalez Coves has completely updated the image by the use of neutral tones and much starker, minimalistic background. 

However, the painting still has the same voyeuristic feel as the Vermeer – we are intruding on a woman’s private moment reading personal correspondence – she is not looking at us, she is lost in her own world.  Gonzalez Coves has considerably reduced the light in the room – giving the feeling of early morning/evening light; even in the modern age – she needs the window in order to read the letter.  

The artist has used strong verticals here – the curtains, window frame, doorframe, door and door panels, as well the vertical of the figure itself.  Apart of the diagonal of the window, the only other construction lines are the horizontals of the door panels, the 90° angle being replicated by the woman’s arm.

The artist has used a light tone on the woman’s clothing to draw attention to her – the background is few shades darker.  The strongest points of contrast are the drapes of her clothes next to her upper arm which leads the viewer’s eye out towards her hands, which contrasts the dark shadow on the back of the hand to the highlight on the knuckle, highlighting the letter (which otherwise gets lost in the background).