Fauvism & Expressionism · 1923

Medusa

Alexej von Jawlensky 1864–1941

Medusa (1923) by Alexej von Jawlensky. Its palette is led by muted lime green (#69796c, 24%) and taupe (#544e3b, 21%), with accents of pewter, gold, scarlet red and pale golden yellow. Overall the canvas is mid-toned, moderately saturated and warm.

Color reading

Brown, gray and yellow cover about two-thirds of the canvas. Its most vivid color, scarlet red #BE4B33, takes up 5% of it.

Palette

#69796c MG 057 muted lime green 23.5% of canvas
#544e3b MG 176 taupe 21.1% of canvas
#24262c MG 222 charcoal 13.9% of canvas
#5e393c MG 144 dark crimson sienna 11.6% of canvas
#9b9395 MG 214 pewter 11.2% of canvas
#a18a2c MG 039 gold 8.5% of canvas
#be4b33 MG 017 scarlet red 5.3% of canvas
#e3c054 MG 041 pale golden yellow 4.9% of canvas

Color families

Brown 31%, Gray 23%, Yellow 12%, Blue 12%, Green 9%

Measurements

Lightness: 0.51
Contrast: 0.45
Vividness: 0.052
Warmth: +0.68
Complexity: 190 cells
Hue range: 0.77
Focus: 0.06

Composition

55% of the visual weight is in the right half, 58% in the upper half. Symmetry 0.62 (how closely its shapes and edges mirror each other). 17% of the canvas is calm space. Half of the detail sits in 31% of the canvas. Measured from the image, not a rule the painter followed.

Details

Date: 1923
Medium: Oil on cardboard
Size: 42.0 × 31.0 cm
Genre: mythological painting
Collection: Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon, Lyon

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More by Alexej von Jawlensky

Tête de femme, 1912
Abstract Head, 1921