ART RESEARCH PAPER Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

ART - Research Paper Example The Institute bought the painting, and it is displayed till today. As a result of the competition, the painting started receiving its fair share of publicity by being featured in Chicago dailies. Its fame spread to Boston, Indianapolis, Kansas city and New York. The painting was received well in these cities and states as they saw it as a perfect representation of the state of Iowa (Hoving & Wood 14). Iowa residents, however, did not share the same sentiments as the other Americans. Iowans saw the American Gothic as a caricature depicting the wrong impression of life in their state. The painting depicted the as â€Å"grim-faced puritanical Bible-thumpers† due to their conservative nature. In his defence, Grant Wood stated that the painting was a mere appreciation of the Iowan lifestyle (Evans 31). The painting was inspired by the lifestyle of the residents of Iowa and their simplistic view of life. The background of the painting was inspired by his travels of the Iowa landscape. Iowan residents found fault in the painting due to the house having unusual windows and being inspired by Gothic architecture. Gothic architecture, contrary to the picture, does not originate from America it is of European origin. The painting portrays a woman and a man standing side by side while the man holds a pitchfork. A house, constructed with Gothic architecture, stands behind the two. The man in the picture was Byron McKeeby, who was his dentist while the woman in the picture was his sister Nan (Hoving & Wood 7). The composition of the painting was new as the Gothic form of architecture was new in the Iowan landscape. The cast displayed in the picture was familiar to the American audience. The arched window believed to be from Sears, flourished the painting. The dentist looks directly at the audience while the woman stares at the other side of the painting. The woman deliberately fails to make eye contact