ART APPRECIATION

FFA2 (SCRIPT FOR REPORTING)

Realism and Social Realism

Welcome back guys to another fruitful video of art appreciation. For this episode, we
will be talking about “Realism & Social realism”. What are we waiting for?, Let's start! First
off, what is realism and how did it start? Multiple revolutions happened in France, and after
some time, realism started. Realism was an artistic movement that was first discovered in
France in the 1850s after the 1848 Revolution. It was an artistic movement that arose in
opposition to Romanticism. Realists rejected Romanticism, which had influenced French
literature and art since the late 18th century, rebelling against the exotic subject matter and
exaggerated emotionalism of the movement. The goal of the movement was to portray the
truth or reality in life. It focuses on showing everyday activities and life, primarily among the
middle or lower class society, without romantic idealization or dramatization. Realism was at
first rejected by many critics, as to them it rebelliously showed too much empathy for the
people and was seen as a manner of art which seems to be a “pursuit of ugliness” as it depicts
the ugly realities of life. Thus, this became the inspiration of the man named Gustave Courbet
who was a French painter, and the leader of the realism movement. He rejected the classical
styles of traditional paintings. He was the first artist to lead and practice the realist
movement, he set an example for other artists to instead make the commonplace and
contemporary the focus of their art claiming independence from the Romanticism movement.
He viewed the frank portrayal of scenes from everyday life as a truly democratic art. An
example of his works is the Burial at Ornans and the Stone Breakers, which received various
reactions from the public and critics for the bold social statements in his works. And
alongside Honore Daumier and Jean Francois Millet, used their skills as an artist for political
aims and to criticize the immorality and ugliness he saw in the French society. One of his
famous works is The Gleaners. Many more artists became part of the realist movement, but
these are the famous personalities who supported and started the movement.

From Realism, you’ll have Social Realism. The Social Realism movement began in
the 20th century, where it depicts brutality of human nature, social and racial injustices,
inequality in social classes, struggles in life due to poverty, and it treats the working class as
heroes. The word 'social' means the people in a society, while 'realism' means the way these
people were depicted in each medium. Hence, social realism started when the labouring class,
those who are in the poverty line, rose. It contains strong, overt, political, and social
commentary, packaged in a way that was supposed to be accessible to the people, not just the
elites. The subjects in the works of the Social Realist were often dealing with injustice, either
conquering it or suffering as heroic martyrs, which was a relevant idea back in the Great
Depression.

Social Realism was associated with the Great Depression, the Mexican Revolution,
and the Industrial Revolution. The Great Depression and the Mexican Revolution were
separate events but both were very chaotic and made use of social realism as a form of social
protest. Artists during those times used their artworks as weapons to fight and express their
political views. On the other hand, the Industrial Revolution emphasized the difference
between the lower and upper class in society, which then led the focus of social realism to the
harsh realities of the modern world and to portray the working class even more.

Also, this movement had an impact and became very significant because they
believed that art was a weapon that could fight the capitalist exploitation of workers and stem
the advance of international fascism. This movement was used by the artists as a form of
protest which exposed the sociopolitical issues and struggles of the times. Despite the several
conflicts and negative criticisms that were encountered during this movement in terms of how
it showed the rural bourgeoisie, the rural upper class and the lower class, and the concern that
the upper-class felt about being overthrown and losing their status, Gustave Courbet, the
leader of this movement, still had received an applause from the audience because the
movement was considered a success not only because of the medals and the highest merit
award that he got but also because of how he effectively and creatively used art to enlighten
the people about the reality. Fortunately, ever since this movement started, it has never
become obsolete because it is still used and supported by the people until now, especially in
the newspapers, making it simple, yet eye-catching, entertaining, and informative.

Moving on there were various artworks internationally and locally that supported
social realism, and for our first stop, I now welcome you to the Art Institute of Chicago.
Here, you can find the iconic painting of ​Grant Wood​, the ​American Gothic​, produced in
the 1930s, which illustrates the identity of the Americans that is shown from its subjects and
the background depicts the isolation and estrangement of modern life. Onto our second
exhibit stop is in Harlem, New York, where ​The Invisible Man by Gordon Parks & Ralph
Ellison that produced in 1952 was presented. The artwork tackles the social injustices and
racial divisions of African Americans. ​To give further examples, here is the Demonstration​.
It depicts a crowd of unemployed men and women that shows the solidarity of the poor. This
artwork was done by Antonio Berni who is socially engaged in figurative painting with a
Marxist viewpoint for interpreting the Society. Next is the ​Presents from Madrid​. It is an
artistic exploration of the Spanish Civil War. It has a genre of a didactic, narrative and
concerned with the human figure. The artist of this artwork is Paraskeva Clark who centres
her work on public and political issues. Another is ​An American Tragedy​, which has been
hailed as the “Archetypical Work of Social Realism” for its bold execution and equally bold
subject matter of labour conflict. This is an artwork by Philip Evergood who he had suffered
on his beating at the hands of the police which prompted him to paint this artwork. Our third
stop is in Orleans, France where the Courbet Museum is located. In this museum, the painting
The Stone Breakers ​by Gustave Courbet can be found. It is ​a practical illustration of
everyday life and an allusion of the essence of poverty. He let the image of the two men, one
too young for hard labour and the other too old, express the feelings of hardship and
exhaustion. Courbet shows sympathy for the workers and disgust for the upper class by
painting these men with dignity all their own.

For our fourth exhibition stop, come with me, and let’s fly to the Philippines! I now
welcome you to the Ateneo Art Gallery in Katipunan, Quezon City. You can find here the
Kinupot that was made by Edgar Talusan Fernandez in 1977. This artwork was made during
the Martial Law, and it was inspired by the desaparesidos or the missing persons, depicting
the restraint period of media censorship. Also, here in the Philippines, we have Antipas
Delotavo. His artwork ​“Itak ng Puso ni Mang Juan” features an old laborer, who is Mang
Juan, walking in front of a logo of a transnational company. As you can see in the picture, his
skin was painted brown and his polo shirt and pants resemble the factory worker’s uniform
which represents the Filipino Laborers. He looks tired and worn out as if all of his strength
were drained because of the company he works for. He represents the workers under a
capitalist society that are not being treated well and are taken advantage of by the companies
and corporations. Another example is ​“Comprador” that was created by Pablo Baens
Santos, who was one of the first generations of social realists, together with Antipas Delotavo
and Edgar Talusan Fernandez. In his artwork, there are two politicians in suits at the top of
the composition with money moving through their outstretched hands. The politicians, one
from the Philippines and the other from the United States stand on the backs of the workers
profiting from their labour. They can be seen laughing as a group of Filipino workers
struggle below. There is a large green dollar sign located in the upper right corner, which
states that the politicians are only interested in money. Furthermore, the artwork of Orlando
Castillo “​Ibat Ibang Uri ng Torture: Alay sa mga Bilanggong Pulitikal” ​in 1997, depicts
political prisoners naked and relocates them in their agony, tied to wooden posts and evoking
the ritual of slow death in the different permutations of persecution. There are winged figures
that can be seen in the back, which bears witness to life in the fields and hovels, the
revolution, and even the aftermath of strife. Neil Doloricon’s ​“Welga” ​in 1985 portray ​the
rage and sentiments of labour groups during the Marcos regime. Papo de Asis was also one of
the social realists who worked with others to oppose a Martial Law government. His artworks
such as ​“Insurrection” ​and “Lupa, Kabuhayan, Katarungan” ​shows the ​anguished
expression of a people long denied justice and equality.
Artwork/s:

American Gothic by Grant Wood

Reference/s: ​Grant wood: The work and life of the artist behind American Gothic. (2020,
August 11). TheCollector. ​https://www.thecollector.com/grant-wood-american-gothic/

Invisible Man by Gordon Parks and Ralph Ellison

Reference: ​Invisible man: Gordon Parks and Ralph Ellison in Harlem​. (2017, October 26).
The Gordon Parks Foundation.
https://www.gordonparksfoundation.org/publications/invisible-man-gordon-parks-and-ralph-
ellison-in-harlem
Gordon Parks Ralph Ellison

https://www.nga.gov/education/teachers/lessons-activities/uncovering-america/parks-photogr
aphy.html
https://www.biography.com/writer/ralph-ellison

Demonstration by Antonio Berni

Reference:
https://www.google.com.ph/url?sa=i&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwic5bfj0fXsAhXDA
4gKHTInBJYQjhx6BAgBEAI&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FAnton
io_Berni&psig=AOvVaw2MK7h04tXQPql7a7vcZPHq&ust=1605017287674078
https://www.artsy.net/artwork/antonio-berni-manifestacion

Presents from Madrid by Paraskeva Clark

by Paraskeva Clark

Reference: ​https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paraskeva_Clark
https://www.aci-iac.ca/art-books/paraskeva-clark/key-works/presents-from-madrid

An American Tragedy by Philip Evergood

by: Philip Evergood

Reference: ​https://www.pinterest.com/pin/33777065925560847/
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Evergood#/media/File%3AAAA_everphil_8653.jpg
The Stone Breakers by Gustave Courbet
Gustave Courbet (Artist)
Reference:
https://kiamaartgallery.wordpress.com/2015/04/23/realism-gustave-courbet-the-stonebreakers
-1849/amp/

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gustave_Courbet

Kinupot by Edgar Talusan Fernandez

Itak ng Puso ni Mang Juan by Antipas Delotavo

Comparador by Pablo Baens Santos

Iba't Ibang Uri ng Torture: Alay sa mga Bilanggong Pulitikal by Orlando Castillo

Welga by Neil Doloricon

Insurrection and Lupa, Kabuhayan, Katarungan by Papo de Asis
Romanticism
Burial at Ornans

Stone Breakers
The Gleaners

Honore Daumier

Jean Francois Millet

The Great Depression
The Mexican Revolution
The Industrial Revolution