Formal Analysis

An art-historical method that examines an artwork's observable formal attributes — composition, color, line, light, texture, scale, space, and style — and how they are organized, independent of biographical or historical context. In accessibility contexts, formal analysis provides a vocabulary for describing visual features in alt text and image descriptions in a way that is grounded in what is observable, which can scaffold interpretive claims (mood, symbolism, narrative) without collapsing them into pure speculation.