The Pinch of Poverty

1. What are the major contributing factors to poverty?
2. How does this artist portray poverty (positive or negative light)?
3. What is the artist's message about poverty?
4. Identify and explain two elements of art that enhance the message.

1. Many different factors contribute to poverty, the root of which is often misfortune. For example, those born into an environment in which education is not an easy or sought-after goal would be more likely to drop out of school to help their family, or they might not go to college. Without a good job and foundation, this would likely provide the same situation for the next generation.
2. The artist portrays poverty in a negative light, showing that a family finds it difficult to provide for themselves (especially without a paternal figure).
3. The artist's message is that poverty is extremely difficult and affects the innocent, making it extremely hard to escape it.
4. Color was used to enhance the message; the colors are generally drab and grey, but the flowers that the girl is selling are bright and could represent hope. Another element was space; the little girl stands ahead of her family, as if she, too, but already providing for her family, could symbolize hope for better days.