The Creation of Man by Michelangelo

Michelangelo Buonarotti (1475-1564) was an Italian painter, architect, and sculptor.  Similar to Leonardo da Vinci, he also displayed an expertise in several fields of science and the arts.  Widely known for this work, the PIETÀ,  a sculpture of Christ after the crucifixion in the arms of his mother Mary, and the Final Judgment,  which depicts the Second Coming of Jesus, and the Creation of Man.  Both the Final Judgment and the Creation of Man are located in the Sistine Chapel, the Pope's residence at the Vatican City.  In 1508, the Pope, Julius II commissioned Michelangelo to adorn the chapel with illustrated stories from the Bible, book of Genesis.  The work was completed in 1512.
     The Creation of Man(Adam) was created using a painting technique called fresco which  involves using water based pigments laid directly on to newly placed plaster or gypsum. The painting is conceptually based on a passage in Genesis 1:27,  "So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them."  Upon reading the passage, any reader would conceptualize a image of God carving into a slab of earth to create Adam.   But it seems Michelangelo has taken the concept of man's creation a step further.  "Michelangelo takes these words, and expresses, in his own way, the supreme creative moment when "man became a living soul" (Hurll, Estelle, Kindle Location 646).  Like da Vinci, Michelangelo places the subject in action. This is shown with the use of gestures, God's extended finger toward Adam.

Sources:

Hurll, Estelle M. (Estelle May) (2011-03-30). Michelangelo A Collection Of Fifteen Pictures And A Portrait Of The Master, With Introduction And Interpretation (Kindle Locations 646-647). Kindle Edition.   

Symonds, John Addington (2012-05-12). The Life of Michelangelo Buonarroti. Kindle Edition.

The Last Supper by da Vinci

Leonardo da Vinci (April 15, 1452 – May 2, 1519) was an Italian painter, inventor, and illustrator. A Renaissance man, he displayed insight and expertise in several sciences such as botany, anatomy, engineering, and architecture. His widely known for his Mona Lisa, the Vitruvian Man and the Last Supper.  Circa 1495,  Ludovico Sforza, Duke of Milan commissioned Leonardo da Vinci to complete a painting for the refectory of the Church and Dominican Convent of Santa Maria della Grazie in Milan, Italy.  The Last Supper  is 4.6 by 8.8 meters (roughly 15 by 29 feet).  Leonardo used tempera gesso over a ground to paint the work.  Tempera gesso involves using white paint mixture consisting of a binder mixed with chalk, gypsum, pigment, and oil painted over wood or a Masonite material.  The mixture dries quickly and the oil adheres the pigment to the wall.  

In the first four books of the Gospel, which consist of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, the bible reports that at their final gathering before the crucifixion,  Jesus and the Apostles, enjoyed a supper and he revels he will be betrayed by one of them.  The entire dramatic event becomes one of the main source of Christian faith, the Eucharist or Holy communion, where believers re-enact the last supper as an expression of faith and of obedience to Christ.

Leonardo da Vinci captures the drama and enlightenment of Jesus final gathering with the Last Supper.  Leonardo takes a realistic approach with his subjects: All are drawn slightly oversized compared to real life dimensions.  Jesus, as the main subject, is balanced as the center of the painting.  This is conveyed in the number of disciples to his right and left; and with the windows behind him; and the line of the walls and the table.   Further,  each disciple is drawn in the act of conversing, arguing and discussing with hand gestures and turned heads.  Leonardo's insight into the art of individuals conversing is done beautifully and expressed the drama fully in the Last Supper.

Sources:

King, Ross (2012-10-30). Leonardo and the Last Supper (p. 54). Bloomsbury Publishing Plc. Kindle Edition.

Kirof, Blago (2013-01-31). Leonardo da Vinci Paintings: Annotated (Kindle Locations 40-41).  Kindle Edition.

Da Vinci, Leonardo (2012-02-14). Leonardo Da Vinci's Collection (Illustrated): The Notebooks of Leonardo Da Vinci (Volume 1 And Volume 2), Thoughts On Art And Life (Kindle Locations 422-423). Kindle Edition.

Automat by Edward Hopper

Edward Hopper (1882–1967) was a American realism painter, mostly known for his still-life type paintings and illustrations of American culture. Realism is the attempt to portray subject matter with a photographic precision.  Normally, there is nothing exotic or supernatural about realistic painters works. Only the daily mundane barrage of life is drawn and expressed. For the bulk of Hopper's works, the most evident feeling or emotion emanating from his paintings is the constant loneliness.  The lone figure displaying no action but a moment that can be described as a deep sigh brought on from trying to outwit loneliness.  One of his better known paintings, Automat (c. 1927), shows an alone woman dressed attractively as if she is waiting for someone or just having a cup of coffee alone. Some evidence of what the artist is trying to express can be noticed in the position of the opposite chair, that it is tucked in and not slanted out as if someone had been sitting there.  Also, the reflection of the automat 's ceiling lights with the absence of anything else being viewed in the painting seems to imply a state of being alone and uneasiness.   When compared with Van Gogh's style, there are no swirls of colors to convey emotion or to reveal an hidden meaning, its seems overly straightforward (illustrated) and realistic setting.  Hopper's pattern of displaying common scenes with a singular person being alone seems to be a criticism of an inherent loneliness of everyday life.  

Automat c. 1927

Hopper's preoccupation with loneliness is evident in Eleven AM c. 1926 and Gayle on the F Train c. 1971.

Eleven AM  c.1926

Gayle on the F Train 

The Scream by Edvard Munch

Edvard Munch (1863 – 1944) was a Norwegian symbolist painter. He is well known for his psychologically charged paintings that displayed a singular intense emotion.  He most recognized work, The Scream, actively describes a wavy dark figure with a pale face walking along a bridge that oversees a body of water.  The intense feeling of horror, or shock emitting from the figure is immediately evident.  The eyes and facial expression with hands clasping the sides of his face forms a strong symbol of real horror.  The expression of emotion is created by Munch thru the use of line. The wavy form of the main figure contrasted with the straight line of the bridge and distant figures behind him vividly infers something that is only sensed by the wavy figure.  The two figures on the walkway are drawn with straight lines, and are expressed as real elements.  In addition, notice how the walkway is drawn straight to lead the viewer into the painting.  The sky is expressed with wavy lines and unnatural color.  The audience gets the feeling the expressed emotion is infectious with way the wavy line moves into the sea near the figure when contrasted with the walkway and the two figures.

The Bather by Edgar Degas

Edgar Degas (1834–1917) was a French impressionist painter but was more of  a precursor to the French bohemian movement during the late 1800's. He was known mostly for his expressions of modern life and female nudes.  In the Bather,  Degas uses pastels, a chalk medium, to create a high quality with a unfinish or rough appearance. Also, He uses a private moment not seen nor made aware of anyone but the subject.  His technique creates a keyhole view point with his subject and the audience would feel a sense of catching a rare glimpse of beauty.  When compared to the standard studio nude painings during his time, Degas' approach and the use of pastels, instead of brush and oil paints, was a shift into a bohemian culture and expression.