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Form can mean a lot of things. One definition is that it is an object that is 3-dimensional, or has length, width, and height (Fussell, 2019). In the artistic sense however, the term form has two meanings:  it can refer to the overall structure of the work — its physical nature or an artwork's element of shape among the various elements that make up an artwork (tate.org.uk, n.d.). Artists rely heavily on different elements like space, shape, shading (shadow and lighting), and even texture in order for them to be able to show the form and also to relay to the viewer a sense of 3-dimensional depth that will entice the viewer to appreciate the painting (Boddy-Evans, 2019).

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It is worth noting that the definition above focused on the 3-dimensional aspect of paintings mainly because it is clear that painting has progressed and it has consistently improved throughout the course of history as evident in the evolution of the Egyptians' flat hieroglyphs into the Baroque artist's use of the chiaroscuro technique (Marder, 2019).  It is important for the viewer to be able to analyze the artwork by being able to separate its content and context but also unify it in the end in order to understand and fully grasp what the artist is trying to say through his/her artwork. The elements and the form are crucial in one's understanding of a painting because without them, a viewer is unable to comprehend what he sees (Marder, 2019). (Image retrieved from Pinterest)

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When one is discussing form, it is also important to tackle beauty. One is able to appreciate a painting when the elements and the form all work together to make something beautiful. A beautiful painting results in a fine art. A painting is beautiful when it is able to stir the human emotion and is also pleasing to the eye (Gilson, 1966).
(Image retrieved from Pinterest)

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It is important to know a short background on the artist in order to get a glimpse of what time period the artist lived in and also gives the viewer an idea of why the painter painted his artwork that way. Giovanni Francesco Barbieri was an Italian painter during the Baroque period. He was born in 1591 and died in 1666. He was known as a painter with tons of artworks that usually depicted religious images and he was not that influential since his was singular but he still contributed a lot to the Church's fight against reformation through his paintings nonetheless (nga.gov, n.d.). (Image retrieved from Google Images)

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The artwork has naturalistic figures, architecture, and clothing. The artwork is relatively simple- there are only a few things that are happening in the painting. Large figures in the foreground and not a lot of distracting things in the background. There is a rational sense of space, depth, and light  which makes it a traditional baroque painting (Harris, 2015).

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In baroque, nothing is included accidentally or for no reason which is why even the most mundane objects in the background have meaning. The quill, inkwell, and book all symbolize him as St. Luke the Evangelist. The ox also solidifies this idea that he is indeed St. Luke. The positioning of the items can also suggest the fact that St. Luke in this painting is turning his back on the books in order to paint which suggests that painting is even more important than the written word. One can say that a picture does indeed hold a thousand words (Harris, 2015).

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It is also important to note that the angel is touching the artwork which could suggest divine intervention of some sorts. Furthermore, St. Luke's action of painting is possibly Guercino's way of showing that one of the Protestants' heroes actually believe in the importance of religious images. It is important to remember that during this time, The Roman Catholic is doing their best to fight the Protestant movement in the most peaceful way possible which is why Baroque artists subtly include these types of meanings.

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The painting is indeed a baroque artwork and the one can safely assume that Guercino made sure that the viewer is able to understand that St. Luke wants the viewer to see that he is indeed painting a portrait of the Virgin (which is evident through his gesture) and this artwork is one example of how paintings during this time period focused primarily on religion and simplicity through the use of elements like shadows, shape, and color. (Harris, 2015)