
The Flower Carrier by Diego Rivera and American Gothic by Grant Wood show differential life styles. The Flower Carrier was created in 1935. It shows a peasant man on his hands and knees, kneeling over with a large basket full of flowers tied to his back. Meanwhile, there is a woman attempting to hold the basket on him, as it appears that he is trying to stand up. The man is wearing white long pants and shirt with a yellow fedora hat. The American Gothic, created in 1930, shows a pale couple standing sternly in front of a white house with gothic windows. The man holds a pitchfork as they stand in conservative dark clothing.  These contrasting pieces of artwork depict the different lifestyles of socio economic classes in different countries.

In The Flower Carrier, Rivera utilizes bright colors and boy language to depict the peasant lifestyle. The hunched over man signifies the struggle and weight of working. While the picture obviously depicts him hunched over because he is carrying a large basket of flowers on his back, the deeper significance is the symbolism of having to carry the weight of a family and support. The man is carrying the flowers, which may have been grown on his own, to what may be a market or a place to sell them for a living. The vibrant pink flowers draw focus for the audience, creating a beauty in the painting, which diminishes focus from the man’s peasant like appearance and struggle to carry the basket. The beauty of the flowers signifies the beauty of a family. The man carries the flowers on his back regardless of the struggle it brings upon him, just as it may be a struggle to support his family. Also, the vibrant and beautiful pink flowers may represent the vibrancy and beauty of this man’s family. The man struggles to support the family, as they are his love and the beauty in his life.  The man is wearing white long pants and a white long sleeve shirt with a yellow hat. This outfit creates the appearance of a peasant as it is traditionally what they wear, allowing the audience to assume this man’s socio economic status. Rivera gives a depiction of the life of a peasant man through the representation of his working struggle to support his family. Also, there is a woman, who may be the man’s wife, standing behind him, giving support as she attempts to help him up. The vibrant colors from the followers and yellow hat create a cheerful tone. This cheerful tone is despite the acknowledgement of the man’s peasant like outfit and struggle to carry the large basket of flowers. The contrast of the colors with the body language signifies the content in this lifestyle with genuine beauty, such as that of a flower or of a family, despite the economic or surrounding struggles. 

American Gothic by Grant Wood depicts the ordinary life of an American in the 1930s.  The models for this portrait are Grant Wood’s sister, Nan, and Wood’s dentist, Dr. B.H. McKeeby. While in reality the two are not a couple, the painting depicts them as what may be a married man and wife. The two stand with straight intimidating faces. Dr. B. H. McKeeby sands with a pitchfork in a white shirt with denim and black jacket. Nan’s outfit consists of a black sweater over a white collared shirt. There is a maroon/ brown colored vest on the black sweater that has white patters on the edges and a subtle pattern throughout. The woman and man stand with straight faces, next to each other without signs of affection. The two standing in front of the white/ cream house give the idea of them being a couple outside their house where they may work as, according to the pitch fork, farmers, or any other manual labor. The simplicity of their clothing and the stern faces give the perception that while they are working class members, they do not live luxuriously however, they are not living in poverty. It can be assumed through Wood’s American Gothic that the average middle socio economic class lived simply with professions such as farming. The simplistic neutral colors create a contented tone, which compliments the stern body language of the two models in the portrait, emphasizing the simplicity of the middle class American.

The differences of the American Gothic and The Flower Carrier are represented through the tones of the pieces through the color and body language of the focal points. The Flower Carrier shows the affection and support of a man who struggles to carry a basket of flowers, which symbolizes his supporting his family, from his wife who stands behind him in an attempt to help him and return the support. Meanwhile, the American Gothic shows the simplicity of the middle class life through the unaffectionate stance between Nan and Dr. B. H. McKeeby. There is a greater sense of bliss in The Flower Carrier than in American Gothic due to the use of vibrant colors. The pink and yellow have such strong presences in The Flower Carrier they effect the entire tone. Meanwhile, in American Gothic, the neutral colors affect the tone however; they do not change it in accordance to the body language. While the dynamic yellow and pink contrast the body language and tone of the lifestyle of the man, creating a happier tone, the neutral colors simply match the straightforward inflection of American Gothic. The Flower Carrier’s bright colors that contradict the feeble body language create a hopeful tone that allows for the flowers to be a representation of the family that the peasant man is attempting to support. Meanwhile, the American Gothic’s neutral colors compliment the indifferent body language of the two models creating an emphasis on the symbolism of the simplicity of the middle class in America in the 1930s.

The Flower Carrier by Diego Rivera and the American Gothic by Grant Wood give contrasting yet accurate depictions of the perceptions of varying lifestyles due to socio economic statuses. Both artists utilize body language and color to create strong tones giving the representation of the attitude of those living in these lifestyles at the time. While The Flower Carrier’s colors contrast the body language, it effectively shows the artist and the focus of the painting’s attitudes toward their particular lifestyles. Meanwhile, the American Gothic’s color scheme compliments the body language of the models in the piece, emphasizing the artist’s depiction of the middle class American. The Flower Carrier and the American Gothic accurately represent different lifestyles through the artist’s use of tonal manipulation with color and body language. 
