On Dali and Resizing (AKA Blog 5A)

Original:

Resized:

The original image by Salvador Dali draws our attention to the “Earth Egg” at the center of the image, which appears to depict a man emerging from the center of a cracked Earth. To draw the focus of the observer, Dali uses the RULE OF THIRDS by placing the man’s hands and feet at strategic spots where the lines of thirds that divide the image intersect. Also drawing our attention to the man inside the Earth Egg is the fact that all of the LINES in the image are directed at the Man and the Egg. The woman on the right is pointing to him and the fabric floating above the Egg has its edges and corners pointing down at it. The crack through the egg also draws our attention to the man. This, in terms of camera angles, is what we could call an EXTREME WIDE SHOT because we can see all of the characters as well as their environment.    

      The resized image of the child standing behind its mother could be called a WIDE SHOT because though the other elements of the original image are not seen, the entire body of the child is in view. In the original image, our focus is on the man emerging from the Earth Egg because of the painting’s TEXT AND SUBTEXT. The text of the image is that a man is emerging from the Earth, which is shaped like an egg, while a mother and child watch. The subtext is Dali’s interpretation of the creation of humanity, born from the protective and nurturing egg that is the Earth. This creates AFFINITY as all people are aware that we are born from the Earth, so much so that we refer to it as “Mother Earth.” However, the image also creates CONTRAST in the mind of the observer because most do not necessarily think of humanity as being born from eggs. In this case, the contrasting element compliments the familiar element, creating the idea in the mind of the viewer of the Earth as an egg.