Humanities, Art History, Art

Appreciation,
Assumptions, and The Arts

The Starry Night (1889)

Vincent Van Gogh

©jszmorales
 Humanities
Latin “Humanus” which means
Human, Culture, Refined.

Generally, human beings possess

and show quality like rationality,
kindness, and tenderness.

Such basic qualities of humans

gain different connotations based
on one’s environment, values,
beliefs and experiences. They are
the contributing factors to the
refinement of human’s basic
Salvator Mundi (1490-1500)
qualities. Leonardo da Vinci
 Importance and Meaning of
Humanities

The humanities are those

studies that are directly
concerned with human values.

Unlike the sciences, which are

expressed through numbers
and symbols, human values
can be, felt, and expressed in
subtle and enduring ways.
The Thinker (1904)
Auguste Rodin
 Importance and Meaning of
Humanities

In the medieval period the

word “Humanities”
distinguished that which
pertained to humans from that
which pertained to God

The Virgin of the Rocks (1483-

1485)
Leonardo da Vinci
 Importance and Meaning of
Humanities
Humanists of the
Renaissance
stated that
humanities
pertains to the
intrinsic value of
man's life on
Birth of Venus (1484-1486) earth.
Sandro Botticelli

Nowadays, it refers to the study of arts - the visual arts

such as architecture, painting and sculpture; music;
dance; the theater; literature; and films.
 Humanities vs Science
Humanities
covers a broad
area of human
creativity but
are distinct from
mathematics
and the “hard”
The Persistence of Memory
(1931) sciences.
Salvador Dali

The separation between the humanities and the

sciences is illustrated in the way values work differently
in the two areas.
 Humanities vs Science
Both the scientist and the humanist
must make value judgments. The
development of powerful weapons
is seen as a positive development
for the scientist - because of the
many possibilities the development
of the weapon might bring.

On the other hand the humanist

might see the development of
powerful weapons as a bad thing
that will eventually affect or even
Girl with a Pearl Earring (1665)
destroy a culture, people and an Johannes Vermeer
entire lifestyle.
 Humanities vs Science

While science
deals mainly with
facts, the
humanities go
beyond facts.
The Night Watch (1642)
Rembrandt

Humanities go beyond the facts about a work of art and get to

the values implied in the work. We learn to recognize the values
expressed in such works as well as to understand the ways in
which they are expressed.
 Humanities vs Science

Though science as a body of

knowledge is carefully
documenting what is happening
in reality, those in the humanities
are able to project this reality in
other medium (not necessarily
experimentation but more of
reflective and personal
experiences such as paintings,
dance, music, etc.). Vitruvian Man (1490)
Leonardo da Vinci
 Humanities vs Science

The School of Athens (1509-1511)

Raphael

The study of arts is the study of mankind. Humanities is therefore

significant to our lives. Through humanities we uncover human
thoughts, feelings, relations, and history. It constitutes one of the
oldest form and most important means of expression developed by
man.
 What is art?
Art is defined as the visual work that
represents an idea, expresses
feelings, or presents an interesting
design.

The various branches of creative

activity, such as painting, music,
literature, and dance.

The expression or application of

human creative skill and imagination,
typically in a visual form such as
painting or sculpture, producing works
to be appreciated primarily for their Venus de Milo (101 BC)
beauty or emotional power. Alexandros of Antioch
 What is art?
Art is something
we do, a verb.
Art is an
expression of our
thoughts,
emotions,
Whistler’s Mother (1871) intuitions, and
James Abbott Mcneil Whistler
desires.
But it is even more personal than that: it's about sharing the way
we experience the world, which for many is an extension of
personality.
Whistler’s Mother (1997)
Mr. Bean
 Why study art?
Art teaches
us that
people
everywhere
share
common
goals and
A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte (1884-1886)
Georges Seurat dreams.
Art is a never-ending process of discovery and rediscovery
about people, traditions, cultures and time periods.
 Major Artistic Periods
Prehistoric
Classical
Medieval
Renaissance
16th to 20th
Century David (1501-1504)
Michelangelo
 Art History
• The study of art
from past to
present.
• Art historians
describe, analyze,
interpret and judge
an artwork. Alexander Hamilton (1792)
John Trumbull
 Why study art history?
Opportunity to
enhance essential
skills and talents that
lie at the core of a
good liberal arts
education, including
reading, writing, and
Stonehenge (3001 BC)
critical thinking. Neolithic Ancestry
 Importance of Art
Art will allow us to explore
illuminating experiences,
thus, affording us an extra
understanding, prudence,
and sensitivity towards
cultural differences.
But Art, aside from uniting,
The Seated Scribe (2620-2500 BC)
also divides people and ???

creates distinction of culture.

 Importance of Art
No matter how time changes,
Art is there to accompany and
enable us to survive.
Intuition - good art is
successful expression of
emotion, and expression
consists in the finding of images
by which the emotion is
articulated and rendered
determinate for apprehension. Female Portrait (1530)
Lucas Cranach the Elder
 Importance of Art

Summer (1555)
Jacopo Tintoretto

Through art, by sympathetic and imaginative self-

identification, we enjoy, savor, or get the feel of emotions
and attitudes which otherwise we would not have known.
Importance of art

Les Plaisirs du Bal (c.1715-17)

Jean-Antoine Watteau
 Assumptions of Art
Art is universal.

Art is cultural.

Art is not nature.

Art involves experiences.

Art as an expression and

as a form of creation.
Mona Lisa (1503)
Leonardo da Vinci
 Assumptions of Art
Art is universal.

Art knows no limit. It

transcends cultures, races,
and civilizations. It reaches
the farthest and the most
isolated spots in the
universe. As long as human
beings exist, art is feasible,
alive, and dynamic.
Portait of a Man in Red Chalk (1512)
Leonardo da Vinci
 Assumptions of Art
Art is universal.
Art is a means of
communication.
Regardless where
people live, they share
common means of
expressing their Pietà (1498-1499)
Michelangelo
thoughts and feelings.
 Assumptions of Art
Art is universal.

Art is a call for unity

and reconciliation. It
binds us and makes
us feel that we are
one in our dreams
and mission. St. John the Baptist (1513)
Leonardo da Vinci
 Assumptions of Art

Art is universal.

In contrary, it can also

be used to
communicate mutiny
and rebellion.
The Virgin and Child with St Anne and St John the
Baptist (1499-1508)
Leonardo da Vinci
 Assumptions of Art
Art is
universal.
Art is
timeless. It
goes beyond
the time of
Sistine Chapel Ceiling (1508-1512)
our
Michelangelo
existence.
Art started since the birth of mankind. Logically, it would
continue to live in accordance to mankind’s existence.
 Assumptions of Art

Art is universal because it addresses needs of people

from all over the world. Art is there to serve our human
fundamental needs.
 Assumptions of Art
Art is Cultural

Art is the oldest form

of human records.

Artworks serve as
windows to the
distant past.
Death Mask of Tutankhamun (1332 BC-1323
BC)
 Assumptions of Art
Art is Cultural

Art endured so many centuries.

It served mankind for shaping
civilizations and society.

It is a vehicle of communication
and expression which unifies
people despite differences in
language, culture and tradition.
Nefertiti Bust (1345 BC)
Thutmose
 Assumptions of Art
Art is not nature.

Art is not nature

because Art must be
man-made.

Abstraction White Rose (1927)
Georgia O’Keeffe
It is a creation of man
that may reflect a
profound skillfulness
and craftsmanship.
 Assumptions of Art
Art is not nature.
Art is artificial because
it is just an imitation or
even an appropriation
of reality or nature.
Art can never be
natural because nature
is ever changing, yet
Nature Symbolized (1911) Art is permanent unless
Arthur Dove
manipulated by man.
 Assumptions of Art
Art is not
nature.
Artist could
make
artworks, but
Tiger In A Tropical Storm (1891)
Henry Rousseau not nature.
Nature is too big, too grand, too mysterious, and too
beautiful to be grasped in pigment, choreography, or in
words.
Art can never compete with nature.
 Assumptions of Art
Art is not nature.
But art and nature have a
give and take
relationship. Nature
provides medium,
resources, and models.
Art confers recognition
and appreciation.
Both Nature and Art are
perceived through the
Boy On The Rocks (1895) senses.
Henry Rousseau
 Assumptions of Art
Art involves
experience.
Art is a
representatio
n of our
Genji Monogatari Emaki (1120-
1140)
???
experiences.

It demands involvement. We can only

appreciate art if we spend time to look at it,
listen to it, touch it, or feel its presence.
 Assumptions of Art
Art involves
experience.

Art’s rawness
triggers
perception, wit,
Spoliarium (1884)
Juan Luna and spirituality.
Art is utilized either to influence and
convince, or to destroy and unshape one’s
belief.
 Assumptions of Art
Art as an
expression
and as a
form of
The Pyramids at Giza (2550-2490 BC) creation.
Pharaos Khufu, Khafre, Menkaure

Art provides records of human achievement and ideas.

Art teaches us about human creativity.

 The Arts

Lés Misérables (1985)

The Original West End Cast
 Visual Arts
The visual arts
are art forms such
as ceramics,
drawing, painting,
sculpture,
printmaking,
design, crafts,
photography,
video, filmmaking,
and architecture. Manneken Pis (1619)
Hieronimus Duquesnoy the Elder
 Film and Television

E.T. (The Extra-Terrestrial) (1982)

Steven Spielberg

A film, also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture,

theatrical film, or photoplay, is a series of still images that, when
shown on a screen create the illusion of moving images.
 Performing Arts

Hamilton (2015)
Lin-Manuel Miranda
Performing Arts are a form of art in which artists use their
voices, bodies or inanimate objects to convey artistic
expression.
 Architecture

Marina Bay Sands (2010)

Moshe Safdie

Architecture is both the process and the product of planning,

designing, and constructing buildings or any other structures.
 Dance
Dance is a
performing art
form consisting of
purposefully
selected
sequences of
human
movement.
Lisa Macuja-Elizalde
 Literary Arts

Literary Arts is the

integrative
discipline of
ideation, literary
appreciation, and
creative writing.
The Alchemist (1988)
Paulo Coelho
 Theatrical Arts

The Phantom of the Opera (2011 Cast)

Andrew Lloyd Webber

Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers,

typically actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or
imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage.
 Applied Arts
The applied arts are
all the arts that
apply design and
decoration to
everyday objects in
order to make them
aesthetically
pleasing.
Eames Lounge Chair (1956)
Ray Eames