A Comparative Study between Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frideric Handel

Johann Sebastian Bach and George Frideric Handel were both Baroque composers who used the Italian and French styles that were the basic language of the Baroque. The study of Bach and Handel is interesting because of their marked similarities and subtle differences. Bach and Handel were of Saxon ancestry. They came from neighboring towns, Bach from Eisenach, Handel from Halle, and were born but one month apart in the same year, Handel in February, Bach in March, 1685 (Young, 1962). They were both masters of concerto in all its forms:sonata;suite;fugue;opera;cantata;both sacred and secular;oratorio;mass;passion.Both Bach and Handel learnt their art by making copies of all the works of acknowledged masters. Bach and Handel were studious copyists throughout their lives. Besides Johann Christoph, Bach took as models the Italians, Frescobaldi, Corelli, Vivaldi, Lotti, Caldara, Legrenzi, Marcello and many others. His special interests led to keyboard music, to violin music and to choral mus ic. Handel, under Zachau, made an anthology of excerpts from Froberger, Kerll,Strungck, Johann Krieger. During his later career he was influenced by Alessandro Stradella, Giacomo Carissimi, Georg Muffatt, Karl Heinrich Graun, Giovanni Clari and others.Though they sound like brilliant stars rising at the same time, they charted their different paths in music according to their individual natures. There was no musical tradition in Handel's family, his father was a prosperous surgeon who intended George Frideric for the Law; on the other hand members of the Bach dynasty had been for generations conspicuous in musical affairs in Thuringiaevering. Bach remained within the boundaries of his Saxon fatherland throughout his life and was a good citizen and was the father of twenty children.Handel, on the other hand was the man of the world, honored all over Europe. He was bold and outgoing in nature. The one tragic similarity in their lives is that they both went blind at the end of their li ves (Young, 1962). While Bach's grave was forgotten, Handel, who died nine years later, in 1759, was laid to rest in the English pantheon, Westminster Abbey. In those days, music was solely written for the sole purpose of immediate performance, its preservation beyond that moment being a secondary consideration. â€Å"Occasional† or commissioned work used to be the rule.Bach wrote his cantatas for the services of St. Thomas' Church in Leipzig, and Handel wrote his operas for special performances and strictly to suit the voices of the personnel that happened to be available. Bach’s work was mostly unrecognized and neglected for many generations till the 19th century. He was recognized as a great musician by the world only 75 years after his death. The later 18th century knew Bach mainly as an instrumental composer who wrote especially for the organ and the piano (Bekker, 1927). People tended to interpret Bach’s from diverse viewpoints.Bach used to be considered a contrapuntist pure and simple, a learned musician who treated music as a sort of mathematics (Bekker, 1927). From this viewpoint, Bach seemed to be principally a servant of the church, a sort of Protestant Palestrina who also wrote secular music. Later it became apparent that he could not after all be counted simply as a composer of Church music, so he was looked upon as a romantic poet. The romanticists, declared that Bach was the archromanticist, and should be interpreted with the utmost feeling and expression.Some felt that Bach's music was inherently emotional (Bekker, 1927). Whatever the angle of perception, Bach came to be regarded as the great builder of musical form. Contrastingly, Handel, the cosmopolitan composer and impresario, was internationally famous in his own lifetime. He was primarily a writer of oratorios (Young, 1962). His instrumental compositions were not considered serious enough for study. The Italian operas which he composed in were considered worthless in the eyes of the critics of that period (Bekker, 1927).Today however, things have changed and Handel's operas are in the repertoire of nearly every great opera-house (Bekker, 1927). Bach used a personal synthesis of the Flemish and Italian styles with German counterpoint, Handel showed a strong early inclination toward the extroverted and dramatic world of Italian opera (Krantz, 2007). In short, it can be said that Bach looked inward and Handel outward. Bach composed cantatas and organ music and, by his genius and talent for seeing holistic symbolism in words and music, he extended the character of his models (Young, 1962).Handel, more fluent, more rhetorical, and a free agent with his way to make in the world seized the formalized patterns of entertainment music in secular cantata, in oratorio, in opera, and in instrumental music (Young, 1962). Both Bach and Handel had different personalities. Bach was an introvert whereas Handel was an extrovert. Handel assimilated the various nati onal styles and specialized in each of them separately. Bach assimilated the various influences with his own personal style and arrived at a fusion of national styles in which the single elements are inseparable (Dorak, 2002).The main works of Handel are his operas, written from an universal perspective for an international public. The main works of Bach are his cantatas, written for the local churches, and his passions, the monuments of his liturgical severity. Handel, being a widely traveled musician has visited many international centers of music. Bach, on the other hand confined himself within the limits of central Germany. Bach’s great works include the Passacaglia and Fugue in C Minor, most of the great preludes and fugues, and the 45 chorale-preludes gathered in Das Orgelbuchlein [the little organ book].His instrumental compositions are the Chromatic Fantasy and Fugue; the English Suites; the French Suites; the Two-Part and Three-Part Inventions; and Book I of the cele brated Well-Tempered Clavier. He also wrote several unaccompanied violin sonatas and cello suites, and the Brandenburg Concertos, recognized as the best concerti grossi ever composed. The St. John Passion was performed (1723) at Leipzig and his Magnificat was presented shortly after he assumed that post.Many more of his superb religious compositions followed: the St. Matthew Passion (1729), the Christmas Oratorio, the sonorous Mass in B Minor, and the six motets. The principal keyboard works of this period were Book II of The Well-Tempered Clavier and the four books of clavier pieces in the Clavierubung and the Goldberg Variations. His last notable compositions were the Musical Offering composed (1747) for Frederick the Great and The Art of the Fugue (1749). In all his positions as choir director, Bach composed sacred cantatas—a total of some 300, of which nearly 200 are extant.There are also over 30 secular cantatas, composed at Leipzig, among them Phoebus and Pan (1731). Th e bulk of his work is religious. In his instrumental and choral works he perfected the art of polyphony, displaying an unmatched combination of inventiveness and control in his great, striding fugues (The Columbia Encyclopedia, 2004a). Handel's 46 operas include much of his finest music; among them are Julius Caesar (1724), Atalanta (1736), Berenice (1737), and Serse (1738), which contains the tenor aria now known as Largo. Handel's opera, ‘Messiah’ was presented in Dublin in 1742.An essentially contemplative work, it stands apart from the rest of his 32 oratorios, which are dramatically conceived, and its immense popularity has resulted in the erroneous conception of Handel as primarily a church composer. Other outstanding oratorios are Acis and Galatea (1720), Esther (1732), Israel in Egypt (1736–37), Saul (1739), and Judas Maccabeus (1747). He also composed about 100 Italian solo cantatas; numerous orchestral works, and the anthem â€Å"Zadok, the Priest† (1727) for the coronation of George II, which has been used for all subsequent coronations (The Columbia Encyclopedia, 2004b).There is one particular text that was set to music by both Bach and Handel. This is Eilt ihr angefocht'nen Seelen in the Passion Oratorio (by Handel) and in the St. John Passion (by Bach). They used the same key and the same pictorial representation of ‘haste', and the choral interjections at dramatic points are also common. Bukofzer, however, has opined that Handel's music is inferior because it lacks the highly individual stamp that distinguished Bach from all other composers (Dorak, 2002). When one considers their particular musical styles, Johann Sebastian Bach's music is not pompous, not theatrical; it is not court music, not gala music.His music was essentially introspective music; he did not think of the audience for whom he composed; his music is the product of his inner reflections. It is an outward expression of his tender feelings. Even in the most grandiose and eloquent moments of his â€Å"Passions† he still remains intimate. Bach’s music thus addressed itself mainly to the connoisseur. Handel wrote for the world, for the court, for the stage. His music is naturally brilliant; he has the gift for clear sonorities and powerful rhythms, which make a physical impression on the crowd, exalt and carry it away.His breadth and simplicity of design make his work illuminating, he is popular. But Bach's art is one that aims to say many things in an instant – in a single word (Landormy & Martens, 1927). This richness sometimes made it difficult for people to understand and appreciate. Handel focuses most on the harmonic clarity of his ensemble; he makes choice of what he wishes to say, he is sober, concise; He prefers to use the simple air of accompanied monody rather than polyphonic complexities (Landormy and Martens, 1927).Dynamic patterns in music were principally of two types: the melodic, which made use mainly of the voice and is known as thorough-bass, and the contrapuntal, which made use mainly of instruments and is mistakenly called polyphony (Bekker, 1927). On the superficial level, one may find that Bach is a composer of instrumental music in contrapuntal style and Handel on the other, a composer of vocal music in thoroughbass style. Some might classify the work of Bach, the pious man as subjective and Handel, the worldly man as an objective type. But these distinctions are not firmly based.Both were religious men who were also practical in their approach. They were both introspective as well as objective and both wrote vocal as well as instrumental music, and both made use of thorough-bass as well as of contrapuntal forms. They figured bass and counterpoint, and although they performed individually, they were also teachers in singing. They even chose to specialize in the same musical instrument: the organ. Bach lead his congregation in the singing of cantatas on Sundays o r the Passions on high holidays at St. Thomas's church at Leipzig much in the same way as Handel conducted his operas and his oratorios (Bekker, 1927).Bach’s music can be termed as intensive melodies whereas Handel’s music can be termed extensive melodies. Bach uses very dense contrapuntal texture with complex and chromatic harmonies. On the other hand Handel uses a simple template for his expressions and hence his work is meant for instant sensuous appreciation. The extensive quality of Handel's melodies allows his music to be amplified whereas this is not possible in the case of Bach's music. Amplification would destroy the transparency of the contrapuntal process. The vocal component of Bach’s music is very difficult to perform.There are disjunct movements and awkward intervals. There is no overlapping between the instrumental and vocal lines. In fact, the free-voiced choral polyphony of Handel and the strictly linear, instrumentally conceived polyphony of Ba ch form the two poles of late Baroque music (Bekker, 1927). Handel considers the flow of ideas more important than elaboration whereas to Bach, elaboration is more important. The fast changing textures in his choral writing clearly indicate that for Handel, counterpoint is only a means to a dramatic end (Krantz, 2007). On the contrary, Bach takes it as an end in itself which must be consistent.By nature of its conception, Handel’s counterpoint reaches its apex through the vocal medium. Handel’s work depends so much on the vocal component so much so even his keyboard fugues seem to call for text and become most excellent in vocal form. This accounts for the success of Handel in vocal music (Krantz, 2007). Bach is more adept at the instrumental form. Bach prefers to submit his choral polyphony to an instrumental standard. To quote Tevfik Dorak: â€Å"In the flexibility of his choral idiom, Handel surpasses Bach in the same measure as Bach surpasses Handel in contrapunta l consistency† (Dorak, 2002).One of the major differences between them lay in their individual conception of tone. A person who conceives tone vocally will also feel instrumental music as vocal, and the person who conceives tone instrumentally will also feel vocal music as instrumental. Some comparative features among the two great masters are as follows (Dorak, 2002):Bach conceived tone instrumentally and Handel vocally.Bach focused a lot on spiritual music and created profoundly religious cantatas, passions and masses. Handel treated even religious theme based oratorios such as the â€Å"Messiah† with a theatrical effect. This was more popular to the middle class audience.The vocal component of his music was used essentially as a melodic instrument with the most intricate demands of counterpoint expected of it. Handel's writing for the voice is completely idiomatic and the freer contrapuntal textures are more vocally conceived and are contrasted with powerful choral w riting.Handel demonstrates the Italian conservatism in his music and uses very simplified form. Bach is conservative in his adherence to the complex polyphonic texture, but progressive in his choice of modern forms, such as the concerto form of Vivaldi. Similarly, the organ style of Handel is clearly influenced by the idiom of the harpsichord as the opposite is true for Bach.Bach is related to the immediate future in his attitude because of modern day focus on instrumental music, while Handel is related to the past. On the other hand the melodic, homophonic figured bass chosen by Handel is more relevant to modern music than Bach's contrapuntal style. Thus both these composers are in some ways relevant to the past and in some other ways relevant to the future. The two great masters of the Baroque period were not beyond criticism.Bach was criticized because he was too intellectual and, paradoxically, because an excess of reason conflicted with the aesthetic precepts of the Age of Reas on. Handel was criticized for exceeding the conventional in the extras which he introduced into his orchestration to underline his dramatic appreciation of scene and situation. Whatever be the criticisms, it remains undeniable that these two masters of Baroque were outstanding in their natural talent. Though they belonged to the same place and same period and produced musical works of similar genre, they differed in their styles of expression.This difference actually was a major asset to these great masters who remained true to their inner beliefs. The honesty of expression combined with their outstanding talents has helped define baroque music.BibliographyDorak, Tevfik (2002). Handel and JS Bach. http://www. dorak. info/music/jsbgfh. htmlBukofzer MF. Music in the Baroque Era. WW Norton & Company Inc. NY, 1974, pp. 345-9.Krantz, Allen (2007). George Frideric Handel. http://www. classicalarchives. com/bios/handel_bio. html Landormy, Paul and Martens, H. Frederick (1927).A History of Music. Charles Scribner's Sons. New York. 1927. The Columbia Encyclopedia (2004a).Bach, Johann Sebastian. Sixth Edition. Columbia University Press. New York. 2004 The Columbia Encyclopedia (2004b).Handel, George Frideric. Sixth Edition. Columbia University Press. New York. 2004. Young, M. Percy. (1962).The Choral Tradition: An historical and analytical survey from the sixteenth century to the present day. W. W. Norton Publishing. New York 1962. Bekker, Paul (1927).The Story of Music: An Historical Sketch of the Changes in Musical Form. Translated by Alice Kortschak and Herter Norton. W. W. Norton and Company Inc. New York. 1927.

Abused and Abusive Adolescents Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Abused and Abusive Adolescents - Essay Example   Barnett, Miller- Perlin, and Perrin (250), I totally differ with parents who are not human in their form of instilling discipline to their teenagers. Some parents overdo it and as a result, cause a permanent effect on their teenagers causing them to develop long-term effects. For instance, a parent decides to discipline his child to sleep outside on the dog mat because he or she could not finish up his homework. It is unlawful for any parent to administer discipline to his or her child which in the long run will result to the child being with problematic effects. This parent is prune to facing the law. It makes sense when a parent politely corrects his or her child and shows him the consequences of his actions rather than a parent who inhumanly punishes his or her child with frustrations or ego oriented mindset. Importance of the topic I have realized that in a family setting there exist all forms of family violence and abuse. Through this, one requires an adequate know-how on to deal with any form of family abuse and how to provide long-term solution to any difference that may arise in the family. This is facilitated by putting in place mechanisms and channels that are to be followed in order to solve issues either in a short run or long run perspective. Through reading this course i have been in a position to embrace self-control in decision-making processes. This is because the decision made can have an intense impact if the judgment is not correctly made (Barnett, Miller- Perlin, and Perrin 275).

Public International Law Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Public International Law - Essay Example To stop the influx of the people from the mentioned countries, the Immigration Act 1971 came into being. According to which only those Britishers who have strong links with the United Kingdom, the  Channel Islands  and the  Isle of Man had the right to abode, live and seek employment in the United Kingdom and the cited Islands2. Gone are the days when Indians, Africans and the Carribians were on the priority list of job seekers in the United Kingdom. The people of mentioned countries joined Armed Forces and Factories to help the Britishers to fight against their enemies in the World War-II and to produce war related products. Another factor of migration to Britain on the mass scale was the wages of working in the Armed Forces and the Factories, which were higher in Britain as compared to their homelands3. International Laws The International Law, unlike national laws has to address certain laws, rules and regulations, customs (interaction with the people of different countries) , respective governments, businesses entities besides rights and responsibilities in dealing with the sovereign states. The apex body responsible for making international laws must take into consideration the international norms; agreements; treaties; accords, UN charters, protocols; tribunals; memoranda’s; legal precedents of the International Court of Justice etc to adhere and to abide by the member countries4. The diverse legal systems and different historical backgrounds of different countries have compelled the countries to address international law including common law and civil law. It covers all the aspects of domestic laws, substantive laws, procedures and the remedies. The international law is heavily dependant on a) Principle of Comity   b) State Doctrine  and c) Sovereign Immunity5.   Keeping in mind the importance of International law, the developed world hires to address international issues in many of its agencies. The prominent entities are a) State Depa rtment b) Commerce and Environmental Protection Agency. There are number of lawyers who are working in a) United Nations b) World Bank c) Bureaus of American States d) International tribunals e) International Court of Justice and f) certain intergovernmental establishments. Apart from that mentioned above, there are NGOs who keep an eye on the international issues, including but not limited to, development activities, protection of human rights, environment laws, power sector, trade, arms control, drugs, human trafficking and transitional justice6.    National Laws of USA According to the US Nationality Act of 1952 (INA) â€Å"any person who is not a citizen or a national of the United States is considered as Immigrant.† U.S. Immigration law further provides a detailed guidance to the immigrants in terms of residence and naturalized citizenship, wherein they will avail full citizenship rights. It includes regulatory body, which deals with the immigrants, who intend to enter in the US with reference to how long he or she will remain in the country and when he will leave the country7. As far as the duties and obligations of US law enforcers are concerned, they can be termed as shared responsibilities. For example, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is taking care of its responsibilities towards a) Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) b) U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services

Write a paper to compare the external and internal forces, how do Term

Write a to compare the external and internal forces, how do earthquakes and vocanoes develope can we predict their occurance - Term Paper Example They also help in the determination of the distribution of the surface and ground water (A Living Planet 19), and the shape of the deserts and features such as sandbars (FCAT Science 187). The formation of the soil occurs as a result of erosion and weathering (A Living Planet 20). Erosion can be of many types, such as water erosion, wind erosion, glacial erosion, and loess formation (A Living Planet 20). The process of weathering could be mechanical or chemical (A Living Planet 19). Other external forces include tornadoes, hurricanes, and water runoff (FCAT Science). On the other hand, the internal forces of the earth result in the formation of deep seafloor features (FCAT Science 175), along with the formation of landscape structures such as mountain ridges, fault lines, and phenomena such as volcanoes and earthquakes (FCAT Science 176). The internal forces can be attributed to the movement of the lithosphere which is explained most satisfactorily by the plate tectonics theory (FCAT Science 178). It states that the crust or the lithosphere of the earth is divided into twenty plates (FCAT Science 178), which are dynamic in nature due to the movement of underlying magma in the asthenosphere below (FCAT Science 178). Their movements include sliding, colliding, convergent, and divergent movements (FCAT Science 178). Divergent movements, in which the plates move away from each other (FCAT Science 179), have resulted in the formation of the Atlantic mid-ocean ridge and the Atlantic ocean seafloor (FCAT Science 179). As the crust is pulled apart, it r esults in earthquakes (FCAT Science 179). Convergent movements occur when the plates move towards each other (FCAT Science 180), resulting in the

Advanced management accounting Assignment Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Advanced management accounting - Assignment Example The net present value method is usually used to calculate the economic viability of a project and it is used to determine if the project is economically viable or it is not. The advantage of using the NPV criteria in the valuation of a project is the fact that the method has a clear decision making process. In evaluating a project or product, if the net present value is positive, then the project should be accepted by the management because the product or project would benefit the company (Cadenhead, 1970, 80).If the net present value is a negative, then the project or product should be rejected. If the net present value is equal t zero, then the management would be at a break even and any decision taken would not be harmful to the profitability of the company (Barton, 1999, 234). In case the management of Smart electronics decides to talk up the proposed investment, it would be costly for the company because the company would be running at a loss as a result of the many costs that a re associated with the product. The only thing that would warrant the acceptance of the product would be the reduction of costs to the company. The many costs that are associated with the product are making it hard for the company to gain any profits (Bastable, 1995, 133). C) Return on investment is a rate of return that accrues to shareholders of a company as a result of investing in the company. The rate of investment would be the main determinant for an investor before making any decision. The rate of return is however determined by the risk factor that is associated with a project or company. A company that has a high rate of risk is usually associated with high returns while companies that have low risk levels are associated with low returns. In the case of Smart electronics, the return on investment will be viewed on the rate of return that will accrue to the company as a result of investing in the new product. The investment in a new product should be feasible in the sense th at the returns should be positive and that the returns would be in such a manner as to work in the favor of the company in terms of profitability. Profitability of a company will increase if the company gets high returns from the products that it sells. For smart electronic to maximize on its rate of return, it should try to cut on costs that are associated with a product and the level of efficiency should be improved so as to ensure that running costs are as low as possible. The level of efficiency is usually determined by the machinery that is in the company. That should be done in a manner that the process of a company are efficient and the people working in the various departments are also efficient enough. Efficiency of processes is done by the company improving on the machinery that is been used in a company and the company improving the level of technology that is required to make the production process easier and simpler (Anthony, 1997, 225). The efficiency can

Leadership Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3500 words - 2

Leadership - Essay Example To become an effective leader, it is crucial on the part of the manager to be able to find the type of leadership approach that works best for them. Often times, choosing the best leadership style depends on the manager’s personality, characteristic, working environment and the team members. The focus of this study is to gather primary and secondary research as a way of determining the qualifications of a good leader. The first part of the paper will address the problem statement by conducting a literature review with regards to the qualifications of effective leaders. The second part of the paper will gather primary research data by conducting an actual research survey. In the process of presenting the primary data, the research survey methodology which consists of five relevant questions will be tackled in details. Based on the gathered primary and secondary research information, a proposed leadership model will be constructed prior to the conclusion and recommendations. Leadership is about the ability of a person to make his/her subordinate follow and adapt with useful changes within or outside the work place. Since it takes a special interpersonal influence and motivational skills to enable a manager to effectively mould and convert a group of employee into becoming a responsible and efficient subordinate, it remains a challenge on the part of each manager to be able to identify the qualities of a good leader. A leader can easily become an effective manager. However, not all managers are capable of becoming good leaders. For this reason, the main purpose of the research study is to increase the knowledge of the managers with regards to the essential qualities that makes up a good leader. A good leader needs to have a combination of wisdom, integrity, sensitivity, and tenacity (WITS). (van Maurik, 1994) The author mentioned that a good leader must have these traits to be able to have a clear vision of the

Analytical Comparison and Contrast Coursework Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Analytical Comparison and Contrast - Coursework Example Here, the artworks, ‘The Blue Boy’, an oil painting by Thomas Gainsborough, and ‘Pinkie’, a portrait by Thomas Lawrence, are made use to compare, under the subject: Two artists’ conceptions of a single theme. Thesis statement: Analysis of similarities and differences between two Artworks to attain an inference on the same by considering the artists, the viewers, and related facts in history or society (special references to the artworks: ‘The Blue Boy’ (portrait), by Thomas Gainsborough, and ‘Pinkie’ (portrait), by Thomas Lawrence). Analysis The analysis of the artworks ‘The Blue Boy’( See appendix -1) by Thomas Gainsborough, and ‘Pinkie’( See appendix -2) , by Thomas Lawrence is based on the following factors like the artists, assessment as a viewer, and other related facts in history or society, and strictly based on similarities and differences. I. Artists A. Similarities One can easily identify a number of similarities between Thomas Gainsborough and Thomas Lawrence. The following are some important similarities. First of all, the first names of the artists (Thomas Gainsborough and Thomas Lawrence) are similar. Besides, both the artists made use of the same medium to express their creativity (say, oil and canvas). Both the artists were British citizens, who primarily focused in portrait painting. Within their lifetime, they were considered as noteworthy portrait painters in Europe. As pointed out, they made use of oil and canvas as their medium, which was most suitable for portrait painting. Both the artists transformed their personal interest (say, drawing/painting) into their career as painters. B. Differences There exist a number of differences between Thomas Gainsborough and Thomas Lawrence. The following are some important differences. Thomas Gainsborough was born in Sudbury. On the other side, Thomas Lawrence was born in Bristol. Thomas Gainsborough’s father wa s a weaver by profession, but Thomas Lawrence’s father was an inn keeper. Before becoming a landscape painter, Thomas Gainsborough was a landscape painter. James Ernest Thorpe states that â€Å"The Blue Boy was often thought of as Gainsborough’s greatest painting† (435). Later, he turned to portrait painting. But Thomas Lawrence was genuinely interested in portrait painting. Thomas Gainsborough completed the painting ‘The Blue Boy’ in the year 1770, but the portrait ‘Pinkie’ by Thomas Lawrence was completed in the year 1794. Thomas Gainsborough married Margarett Burr and had children. On the other side, Thomas Lawrence was forced to be a lifelong bachelor. Besides, he was forced to lead an unhappy personal life. Thomas Gainsborough’s portrait painting helped him to keep himself away from economic problems. On the other side, Thomas Lawrence was forced to face economic problems in his life. II. Assessment as a viewer A. Similariti es When one tries to assess the artworks ‘The Blue Boy’ and ‘Pinkie’, one can easily identify a number of similarities. Some of the most important similarities are pointed out below. First of all, both the works are portraits of youngsters booming with energy. The medium made use by the painters is similar, i.e. oil and canvas. Both the paintings are presently owned by The Huntington (museum/ art gallery) in California. Both the paintings are from England and are considered as best examples for portrait painting in Europe. Besides, both the artworks are considered as showpieces at The Huntington. As these portraits are exhibited in the same gallery, most of the viewers consider that these works are completed by the same painter. The position of the youngsters (models) in the portraits is helpful for the viewers to have clearer look on their faces. Both the works give