Other stuff we're supposed to be examining:

"Reverence of Goldfish"

• the palette in this one is a little more depressed, because of the deep shadows. They give the masses of fish great contrast though
• the man sitting on the bed - he might be only half conscious, or depressed like his surroundings - seems to be the focus of the piece, as the majority of the fish are pointed toward him.
• if it weren't for the fish this would read as a very domestic scene, perhaps in a Tim burton film from the 90's - the monochromatic decorations remind me of films like Beetlejuice andEdward Scissorhands, because they're minimal. They provide only the basic detail necessary to describe the scene, which leaves you more space visually for the characters within the scene.
• the young woman is asleep and ignorant to the fish mob

"Portrait of Nan" by Joe Peter Witkin

• elegance due to elevated hair, satin gloves and decoration, perhaps a noblewoman.
• the little skull might be an agent of death, either in her command or her ally, like an ambassador
• the woman's true face is concealed by the large letter -perhaps her real face is grotesque, or isn't there at all
• the blank look on the fake face combined with the dangerously spiked hair suggests she is cruel or powerful
• the cruelty is only reinforced by the darkness of the photograph and the strange, dark stain on the left, could be blood or something similar.
• the darkness of the page and the sharp furniture on which the woman sits are all very unfriendly, if not mildly threatening