Barge Haulers on the Volga Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Barge Haulers on the Volga - Assignment Example This is because they are hauling the large boat upstream against the water currents and the sun is overhead. The figures of the men are positioned at the centre of the painting. At the background of the painting there are clouds seen from a distance and on the ground, there is water seen in the background where the men have pulled the boat from. Their landscape is also shown from a distance. The source of light is on top of the men as this is shown in their short shadows (Bolton, 2010). The shadows of the men are almost beneath them showing that the source of light was on top of them. The landscape in the background helps to prove and show the direction of the river and its currents. It clearly shows that the men are pushing the bought upstream. The tonal range of the painting is medium as their colours used are not so striking. The artwork has a blue tonal range because of the water and there is also some yellow standing out depicting the source of light. In the art, I see the eleven dressed in rags and they are also bound with leather harnesses. The painting brings out both the appreciation and celebration of men’s fortitude and dignity and at the same time, it highly condemns the people who sanctioned the inhumane activity. As much as the painting shows them to be accepting the men are defeated. Their faces and posture in the painting show physical discomfort. In the painting I only see one person coming out strongly. It is the youth who is brightly coloured and he seems to fight against the binds of leather and he appears to take a heroic poise (Cohen, 2008). He has raised his head to stare into the distance. This shows he has hope that there is redemption coming. The inverted Russian flag clearly shows that whatever is happening is not right or allowed. There is movement in the artwork and this is showed by the currents of water. The men also seem to be in motion hauling the boat. The artist has made the two-dimensional wor k to look as if in the third dimension by use of shades of colour.