subject matter as, and thus no more “real” than,
the other two sculptures. Giacometti’s version,
because of its exaggerated form, conveys a sense of
isolation and nervousness, perhaps even anguish.
Haring’s sculpture, relying on stylized and almost
cartoonlike form, seems more playful and mischie-
vous than the other two. Suddenly, because of the
different form each sculpture takes, we realize that
the content of each has changed: they are no longer
aboutthe same subject. Praxiteles’s sculpture is
38 CHAPTER 2PRINCIPLES OF FILM FORM
1 23Form and contentCompare these sculptures: [1] Hermes
Carrying the Infant Dionysus, by Praxiteles, who lived in
Greece during the fourth century BCE; [2] Walking Man II,by
Alberto Giacometti (1901–1966), a Swiss artist; and [3] Self
Portrait, by Keith Haring (1958–1990), an American. Although
all three works depict the male figure, their forms are so
different that their meanings, too, must be different. What,
then, is the relationship between the form of an artwork and
its content?