Analyzing+the+Charging+Bull



=**__The Charging Bull at First Glance__**= ====The Charging Bull in New York is an incredibly large sculpture built and designed by [|Arturo Di Modica]. The size and stature of the sculpture are immediately absorbed upon viewing the bull, but also the odd juxtaposition of a bull in the middle of the city stands out to create a first impression. This odd parallel of city and bull creates curiosity, and draws the viewer towards the Bull. This curiosity is coupled with a feeling of aggression coming from the bull. The downward slant of the bull’s form uses a triangular pattern to point the eye towards the head of the animal and where the animal might be looking. The tail and the legs create a pushing movement, which makes the bull perpetually poised to strike towards its target. Even its muscle structure is taught with power, with the front left leg being crushed under the pressure of the bull’s moment of aggression.====

=**__The Movement__**= ==== The angle of the bull is important to consider when analyzing this statue. Since the bull is a statue, there is no apparent starting point to begin to see the bull. The angle that the statue uses draws the viewer down to the head of the animal from any vantage point. It is at the head that the emotion and the movement within the bull’s body are focused. The head is not bowed, but looking straight and focused at its intended target. The head angle is not actually in a charging stance with horns forward and eyes looking upward. Instead, the eyes are immediately recognizable as focusing and intent on something ahead of the bull. The characteristics of the bull’s eyes are also not traditional in the sense that they are not exactly like a living bull’s eyes. With brows furrowed, the eyes are slanted and angular which suggests human emotions of aggression and anger. This gives the bull a human emotion that connects it directly to the viewer. By adapting the look of the bull, the artist is connecting the piece directly to his audience. This connects the viewer to the possible meaning that the bull has in its location and in its cultural context. The aggression that the bull is showing the viewers is a symbol for American aggression in the market place and our standing as an economic power. ====

=**__The Medium__**= ==== The Charging Bull was built in bronze and stands 11 feet tall and 16 feet long. The bronze, while it is an appropriate color for a bull, is a very long standing and strong material that stands the test of time. This is emblematic of the bull’s power as a symbol, and the long standing relevance that the image holds. The metal also supplements the power held within the form and figure of the bull. The hard nature of the metal and the strength in the bull represent the power behind American economics and its long standing effects. In light of today’s economic climate, the bull’s power and movement also reflect the tumultuous position that the marketplace inhabits on a daily basis. The aggression within the bull is then construed towards the temper within the beast and the indiscriminate targeting of the viewer and its surroundings. ====