Room of Life

Life is short, and yet we often waste it worrying about the inevitability of death. Richard Hamilton was an artist who critiqued this problem. In his artwork “Interior”, Hamilton pieces together newspaper cut outs, drawings, and still photographs to present us a timeline of life and death. His three sections of the photo symbolize phases of life, and in the middle of his painting there is a woman. Using contrast, choice of colors, organization, subject, and artistic styles, Richard Hamilton communicates that we should focus on our life when we are alive rather than on death.

Hamilton uses choices in artistic style, organization, and colors to symbolize childhood. This first stage of life takes up the left side of the painting and is portrayed with vivid colors that plane into unknown white space. This is the only place in the photo where there are shapes of vivid color or white space. This artistic style symbolizes the freedom and uninhibited imagination of a child. To them, there are no rules on what life should be like, and their vivid imagination can go where reality doesn’t completely exist.

Hamilton then uses dark colors and organization in the right portion of his piece to symbolize death. The very right of Hamilton’s “Interior” is a black and white photograph of a chair and a curtained window. This section is the only section that is completely black and white. Usually, dark colors represent grimness, sadness and death; therefore, the dark side represents death. Not onlythat, but Hamilton organizes this section as far away from childhood as possible. This choice communicates that this section is a stage of life far past childhood. Thus, through color choice and organization, Hamilton displays that this black and white portion symbolizes death.

After the artist communicates his symbol of life, he uses the subjects of the piece to communicate that we often focus on death in our lives, and we should not. The two subjects of the piece are the lady and the black and white cut out that she is staring at. This object clashes greatly with its surroundings, and it is very clear that it does not belong there. This black and white object is in the same style of color as the section of death. The similarity in color scheme conveys that this object also symbolizes death. However, the contrast of color between this symbol of death and the setting of life around it communicates that the idea of death in this stage of life is out of place.

Richard Hamilton pairs this symbol with the subject of the lady to communicate that we should focus on life instead of death. The lady is positioned in the middle of the painting, in the section of life that symbolizes middle age. The lady is staring at the black in white object, apparently captivated by it. The lady’s focus on the symbol of death displays our tendency to worry about death instead of focusing on life. Thus, through his subjects Hamilton expresses that we should focus on the life around us instead of death.

In conclusion, Richard Hamilton uses contrast, choice in colors, subjects, and artistic style to create symbols that convey that we should focus on life instead of death. The left section of Hamilton’s “Interior” is very bright and represents childhood. The center section represents middle age, and the right represents death with dark colors and is in contrast to the rest of the painting. Hamilton’s use of subject in the middle of the painting allows us to understand that we focus on death, and that we should not. This idea is very important in postmodern times. As humans, death is something we fear, and have always feared, and may fear for a very long time being. Hamilton reminds us that death is an inevitable end, and that to enjoy life while we have it is extremely important. Live life as you see fit, and do not worry about death.

- B. Lit. Group Six

#Postmodern