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La Spolarium by Juan Luna
1. The formal elements that are shown in the painting are lines, light, shape and time. Lines can
be evident in the painting by the lines in the floor and the implied lines that is made by the
bodies in the painting. Light is being used here because the artist used artificial light to
portray the darkness of the room. The people in the painting represent the shapes and time is
shown because we know that this painting is a painting that was made to show the old times.
2. The principles of design present in the painting are proportion and unity. Proportion is
evident because we can see that artists has painted the people in the painting with normal
body parts and that it was not altered in any way. Unity is shown because all of the parts in
the painting unifies with each other to make single statement.
3. The use of light and dark also makes the painting more stunningly tragic by giving emphasis
to the remains of gladiators. The harmony of the elements and principles of art in the painting
reflects the brilliance of the master painter, Juan Luna. The mood and visual effect that this
painting portrays can be considered to be suffering, mourning, pain, and defeat.
4. This artwork depicts the inner political and socio-cultural views; as well as the sentiments of
a Filipino master painter. The painting circulates around bloodied gladiators who were once a
symbol of greatness and splendor, however, lost, and now being dragged like slaves. A true
downfall; a great tragedy: the gladiators actually depict our country, The Philippines, as a
country which was once clad with rich culture, but it took a turn for loss, leaving themselves
to be dragged like slaves, stripped of weaponry to fight, and garments to retain dignity.
Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dali
1. The element of value is present because the artist uses light brown in the background and
dark brown in the foreground to create depth. The artist also used the element of texture
using a different brush technique to make everything surrounding the clocks appear rough as
a way to make the clocks more appealing to the eye because the clocks appear smooth.
Another element of design used is the shape element. Shape is a major characteristic of the
painting because all the clocks have organic shapes. The organic shapes allow the viewer to
distinguish all the clocks from each other, and it helps from the uniqueness of this painting.
2. The Persistence of Memory contains a self-portrait over which is draped a 'soft watch'. For
Dali, these 'soft watches' represent what he called the 'camembert of time', suggesting that the
concept of time had lost all meaning in the unconscious world. The ants crawling over the
pocket watch suggest decoy, an absurd notion given that the watch is metallic. These
'paranoid-critical' images reflect Dali's reading and absorption of Freud's theories of the
unconscious and its access to the latent desires and paranoia of the human mind, such as the
unconscious fear of death alluded to in this painting.
 The famous melting clocks represent the omnipresence of time, and identify its mastery over
human beings. It is said that his inspiration for the soft watch came from the surreal way that
Dalí saw a piece of runny Camembert cheese melting in the sun. These symbols represent a
metaphysical image of time devouring itself and everything else.
 The swarming ants in Dalí’s pictures and sculptures are references to death and decay, and
are reminders of human mortality and impermanence. They are also said to represent
overwhelming sexual desire.
 One of the watches is melting over a white object. At first, it appears to be a meaningless
lump. However, upon closer examination, you may notice that it almost looks like a face.
Especially if you look at it sideways. It could be symbolizing metamorphosis. The face, along
with the melting clocks, could be talking about a change one is going through. Many of us
will go through transformations in our life, and the odd melting sensation of the painting can
symbolize the awkward transition between two stages. We all have been through it, and it's
how we handle a metamorphosis that tells us a lot about us.
 The olive tree is seen as a symbol of wisdom, but with it broken, it brings forth the decline of
what we view as ancient wisdom. Also, a branch is peaceful, and a broken branch could be a
symbol of wartime. During the 1930s, the political climate was nothing but war, so it makes
sense why Dali would include this.
 The ocean can symbolize timelessness. Many things in our life change, but some things are
universal, such as the ocean.
3. The Persistence of Memory is rich with symbolism, and portrays Dalí’s signature dream-like
atmosphere. It was created using Dalí’s paranoiac-critical method, where Dalí would enter a
state of self-induced hallucination in order to create “hand-painted dream photographs”.
4. The message the artist is trying to inform the reader is that nothing lasts forever; it’s all a
matter of time before things fall. This is effective by the way the artist chooses to paint the
clocks. Since the clocks seem to be slipping off the surfaces on which they’re on, his message
is about time running out. It is very clear that the artist wants to inform people that time runs
out sooner or last, just like the clocks seem to approach their end as they slip down towards
the open darkness on the bottom of the painting. The artist also persuades the viewer at the
same time to reflect on their lives given that the clocks also represent the viewer’s limited
time of living.

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La Spolarium by Juan Luna

Persistence of Memory by Salvador Dali

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