UNIVERSITY OF MINDANAO

Tagum College

Department of Arts & Sciences Education

Language Discipline

Physically Distanced but Academically Engaged

Self-Instructional Manual (SIM) for Self-Directed Learning (SDL)

Course/Subject: GE 20 - READING VISUAL ARTS

Name of Teacher: Jose Elmer S. Oficiar, PhD

Matt C. Astaca-an

THIS SIM/SDL MANUAL IS A DRAFT VERSION ONLY; NOT FOR

REPRODUCTION AND DISTRIBUTION OUTSIDE OF ITS INTENDED USE.
THIS IS INTENDED ONLY FOR THE USE OF THE STUDENTS WHO ARE
OFFICIALLY ENROLLED IN THE COURSE/SUBJECT.
EXPECT REVISIONS OF THE MANUAL.
Let us begin!

Big Picture A

Week 1-3: Unit Learning Outcomes (ULO): At the end of the unit, you are expected to:

a) Review on the different Styles of Painting and understand the meaning of an

artwork through its colors.

Big Picture in Focus: ULOa. Review on the different styles of painting and
understand the meaning of an artwork through its colors.

Metalanguage
In this section, the most essential terms relevant to the study of the history of the Rizal
law and to demonstrate ULOa will be defined that you can refer to whenever you
encounter these terms as we go through the study of curriculum.
 Visual Arts - "Visual Arts" is a modern but imprecise umbrella term for a broad
category of art which includes a number of artistic disciplines from various sub-
categories. Its wide ambit renders meaningless any attempt at definition, so
rather than define or compose some diluted meaning for it, here is a list of its
constituent disciplines.

 Fine Arts- All fine art belongs to the general category of visual arts. These
include activities such as: Drawing, Painting, Printmaking and Sculpture, along
with associated activities like Graphic art, Manuscript Illumination, Book
Illustration, Calligraphy and Architecture.

 Contemporary Arts- The visual arts also include a number of modern art forms,
such as: Assemblage, Collage, Mixed-media, Conceptual
Art, Installation, Happenings and Performance art, along with film-based
disciplines such as Photography, Video Art and Animation, or any combination
thereof. This group of activities also includes high tech disciplines like computer
 graphics and giclee prints. Another modern visual art, is the new environmental
or Land art, which also includes transitory forms like ice/snow sculpture, and
(presumably) graffiti art.

 Decorative Arts and Crafts- In addition, the general category of visual arts
encompasses a number of decorative art disciplines and crafts,
including: ceramics and studio pottery, mosaic art, mobiles, tapestry, glass art
(including stained glass), and others.

 Painting – Painting isthe expression of ideas and emotions, with the creation of
certain aesthetic qualities, in a two-dimensional visual language. The elements of
this language—its shapes, lines, colours, tones, and textures—are used in
various ways to produce sensations of volume, space, movement, and light on a
flat surface. These elements are combined into expressive patterns in order to
represent real or supernatural phenomena, to interpret a narrative theme, or to
create wholly abstract visual relationships.

 Artist- An artist is a person engaged in an activity related to creating art,

practicing the arts, or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday
speech and academic discourse is a practitioner in the visual arts only.

Essential Knowledge

REVIEW ON STYLES OF PAINTING

Introduction

Part of the joy of painting in the 21st century is the wide range of available forms
of expression. The late 19th and 20th centuries saw artists make huge leaps in painting
styles. Many of these innovations were influenced by technological advances, such as
the invention of the metal paint tube and the evolution of photography, as well as
changes in social conventions, politics, and philosophy, along with world events.

This list outlines eight major styles of art (sometimes referred to as "schools" or
"movements"), some much more realistic than others. Although you won't be part of the
original movement—the group of artists who generally shared the same
painting style and ideas during a specific time in history—you can still paint in the styles
they used. By learning about these styles and seeing what the artists working in them
created and then experimenting with different approaches yourself, you can begin to
develop and nurture your own style.
 1. Abstractionism

Jackson Pollock - Full Fathom Five, 1947. Oil on canvas with nails, tacks, buttons, key, coins, cigarettes, matches, etc.
50 7/8 x 30 1/8 in. © 2019 Pollock-Krasner Foundation / Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York

Any art that illustrates anything, but not in the truest of forms, can be classified as
abstract art. This is a real product of radical thought.

In abstract paintings, you will never find a man, animal or even any real life object.
Every object on the canvas is represented as either colors and or shapes. A simple
shape on the painting can do many wonders. The artist might augment the shape with
some simple exaggerations. Sometimes, the shape is scaled down to produce the effect
the artist wants on the canvas.

The colors on the canvas represent emotions and shapes symbolize objects. In
the abstract style paintings of 21st century, anything can happen on the canvas. There is
hardly any direction on the abstract paintings of today. Yet, the results are appealing
and aesthetically satisfying.

2. Cubism

Portrait of Pablo Picasso by Juan Gris

Cubism, highly influential visual arts style of the 20th century that was created
principally by the artists Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque in Paris between 1907 and
1914. The Cubist style emphasized the flat, two-dimensional surface of the picture
plane, rejecting the traditional techniques of perspective, foreshortening, modeling,
and chiaroscuro, and refuting time-honoured theories that art should imitate nature.
Cubist painters were not bound to copying form, texture, colour, and space; instead,
they presented a new reality in paintings that depicted radically fragmented objects.

Today, Cubism is another style of abstract art painting. But, Cubism was a strong
presence in the art world even before abstract painting became prevalent. People like
Picasso, Braque, Gris etc followed Cubism and made it famous. The world of art
painting would have never been the same without contributions from these Cubist
artists.

3. Expressionism

From the Vincent van Gogh and Expressionism Exhibition Oskar Kokoschka (1886-1980), Hirsch as an Old Man, 1907.
Oil on canvas, 70 x 62.5 cm. Lentos Kunstmuseum Linz.

The abstract style of art takes many forms. Expressionism is one such form. This
style of painting is closely related to the emotions and feelings of human heart. This
emotional overflow of human heart is illustrated from a subject’s perspective. The
expressionist paintings either represents emotional state of the artist or is intended to
induce some kind of an emotional echo within the viewer.

Jackson Pollock was one of the biggest names in expressionist art painting.
However, in most of his famous creations, he hardly touched the canvas with a brush.
Pouring paint onto the canvas was his style of painting. This way he could capture the
natural movement of paint too. Another famous expressionist artist is Vincent Van
Gogh.

4. Fauvism
 Charing Cross Bridge, London (1906) is a painting by French painter and Fauve art movement co-founder Andr Derain

Fauvism, style of painting that flourished in France around the turn of the 20th
century. Fauve artists used pure, brilliant colour aggressively applied straight from the
paint tubes to create a sense of an explosion on the canvas.

The Fauves painted directly from nature, as the Impressionists had before them, but
Fauvist works were invested with a strong expressive reaction to the subjects portrayed.

5. Dadaism

Artist: Marcel Duchamp

Dadaism is an avant-garde intellectual movement that started around World War

1. Although not at first an art movement, it did influence art greatly for a time. The art of
the movement spanned visual, literary, and sound media, including collage, sound
poetry, cut-up writing, and sculpture.

6. Realism

The Gleaners by Jean-François Millet

Realism emerged in France in the 1850s. On the heels of the 1848

Revolution—an event that established the “right to work” in the country—the movement
introduced the idea of average, working class people, contemporary settings, and day-
to-day scenes as worthy artistic subjects.

Artists working in the Realist style rejected the standards of Romanticism (1800-
1850), a genre defined by a heightened sense of emotion. Typically, Romantic paintings
feature either mythological figures or sublime scenes of nature. In either case, it glorifies
its subjects—a trait that Realist artists directly dismissed.
 7. Hyperrealism

Hyperrealism is the young art form of creating illusions by enhancing reality.

Artists of this genre take their works beyond purely photographic quality by placing
added focus on visual, social, and cultural details of everyday life. They play with colour
intensity, lighting, contrast, and sharpness to shape a more vivid depiction of what we
can see with the naked eye.

Hyperrealist artists typically choose from drawing, painting and sculpture in their
efforts to bring an added dimension of reality to life. Thanks to increased use of
technology in the visual arts, they may also use digital illustration techniques or
alteration of images transferred onto canvases or molds in their work.

8. Impressionism

The Absinthe Drinker by Edgar Degas

Impressionism is an art movement originated in Paris in late 19th century.

Impressionism caught eyes of many critics, but mostly for the wrong reasons. The thin
brush strokes, common and ordinary subjects, unusual angles etc are some features of
this style of art painting. Outdoor sceneries of landscapes and even streets became
settings for impressionist painters.

If you look closely at impressionist paintings, you will find that black is a
color that is rarely used. For dark tones, complementary colors were mixed and used.
The artists were very keen about making the color and reflection right for every object
on the canvas. More importance was given to natural lighting. Impressionist paintings
were even considered as an alternative to photography, which then lacked the luxury
of colors.

SYMBOLS OF COLORS

Color have always been recognized for its symbolic power and an appreciation of
this reaches back to ancient times. However, the understanding and interpretation of
color symbolism has changed over time and varies from culture to country.
 Red through its association with fire and blood is used to represent danger,
anger and violence. For the same reason it is also associated with affairs of the heart:
love and passion.

Orange symbolizes creativity, change, energy and endurance. It is the color that
represents Autumn. As a secondary color it combines elements of the colors used to
mix it: the creative passion of red with the energy and joy of yellow.

Yellow is the color of the sun - the life support for our planet. As such it has come
to represent life, energy, happiness, hope and wisdom.

Green, as the color of plants and grass, is the color of nature and all that is
associated with health and growth. However, it is also used to represent more negative
traits such as envy and inexperience.

Blue is the coolest and most calming of all the colors. As the color of the sky, it
has been used since ancient times to represent heaven. In classical mythology, blue
was the color associated with the gods, Venus and Jupiter. In Christianity, it becomes
the symbol of the Virgin Mary as Queen of Heaven. As the color of the ocean, it is also
suggests qualities like freshness, purity and hygiene.

Purple is the color of royalty, wealth and power. In times past, purple dyes were
rare and expensive. Only the rich and powerful could afford to wear clothes of this
luxurious color.

Brown is the color of earth, wood and stone. As such, it evokes craftsmanship
and the great outdoors. It is also used to represent humility: a down to earth virtue.

Black and its association with darkness is used to represent death, evil,
witchcraft, fear and mourning.

Grey is the natural color of some metals and stone, but it also has some negative
associations with the weather, boredom, decay and old age. Grey is a mixture of black
(death) and white (peace) and is the color of ashes and dust. As such it is also
associated with death and mourning.

Self-Help: You can also refer to the sources below to help you
further understand the lesson:

Boddy- Evans, Marion. “7 Major Painting Styles Ranked Primarily From Most to Least
Thought Co, Thought Co, 15 Nov. 2019, www.thoughtco.com/art-styles- explained-
realism-to-abstract-2578625
“Post-war & Contemporary Art.” Post-War & Contemporary Art/ Artnet Auctions,
www.artnet.com/auctions/post-war-and-contemporary-art

“Symbolism of Color: Using Color for Meaning.” Symbolism of Color: Using Color for
Meaning, www.Incredibleart.org/lessons/middle/color2.htm

Let’s Check

Instruction: Identify the Style of Painting of the following images. Choose the best
answer.

1. 2.
a. High Renaissance a. Fauvism
b. Cubism b. Expressionism
c. Realism c. Realism
d. Fauvism d. Futurism

"Der Blaue Reiter" by Wassily Kandinsky

"Mona Lisa" by Leonardo Da Vinci

3. 4.
a. Impressionism a. Expressionism
b. Realism b. Dadaism
c. Cubism c. Abstractionism
d. Pointism d. Fauvism

"Les Demoiselles d'Avignon" by Pablo Picasso

5. a. Impressionism
b. Abstractionism
c. Hyperrealism
d. Cubism

A Sunday Afternoon on La Grande Jatte" by Georges Seurat

Let’s Analyze
Color the image based on your preferred colors. Provide a short explanation.

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In a Nutshell

Knowledge Inventory. List down all the things your learned from this unit.

1.
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2.
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5.
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