Lesson 2 - The Process of Art/ Art Criticism

OVERVIEW
This module explores the artistic process and the art industry surrounding it: from individual
artists turning ideas into works of art to collaborative creative projects, public art and the viewer.
It covers the following topics:

• The Artistic Process

• Major forms of Art
• Art Crtiticism

OBJECTIVES
Upon successful completion of this module, you should be able to:

• Describe specific processes used by visual artists.

• Identify the different forms of art
• Judge an artwork based on the four components of Art Criticism

THE ARTISTIC PROCESS

How many times have you looked at a work of art and wondered “how did they do that”? Some
think of the artist as a solitary being, misunderstood by society, toiling away in the studio to
create a masterpiece, and yes, there is something fantastic about a singular creative act becoming
a work of art. The reality is that artists rely on a support network that includes family, friends,
peers, industries, business and, in essence, the whole society they live in. For example, an artist
may need only a piece of paper and pencil to create an extraordinary drawing (Links to an
external site.), but depends on a supplier in order to acquire those two simple tools. Whole
industries surround art making, and artists rely on many different materials in order to realize
their work, from the pencil and paper mentioned above to the painter’s canvas, paints and
brushes, the sculptor’s wood, stone and tools and the photographer’s film, digital camera and
software or chemicals used to manipulate an image.
 From the Kusama exhibition, part of Fairchild's 2009 Knight Arts Challenge project to
expose new audiences to contemporary art by exhibiting large-scale outdoor sculpture on
its grounds. Date: 28 November 2009, 05:27 Source: Fairchild Tropical Botanic
Garden Author: Knight Foundation
This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0
Generic license.

After the artwork is finished there are other support networks in place to help exhibit,
market, move, store and comment on it. Commercial art galleries are a relatively recent
innovation, springing up in Europe and America during the Industrial Revolution of the
nineteenth century. As these societies concentrated their populations in cities and formed
a middle class, there was a need for businesses to provide works of art for sale to a
population that began to have more spare time and some discretionary income. As art
became more affordable, the gallery became a place to focus solely on buying and
selling, and, in the process, making art a commodity.

Museums have a different role in the world of visual art. Their primary function is in the
form of a cultural repository – a place for viewing, researching and conserving the very
best examples of artistic cultural heritage. Museums contain collections that can reflect a
particular culture or that of many, giving all of us the chance to see some of the
great art (Links to an external site.) humanity has to offer.

The role of the critic commenting on art is another function in the process. Critics offer
insight into art’s meaning and make judgments determining ‘good’ or ‘bad’ art based on
the intellectual, aesthetic and cultural standards they reflect. We will take a closer look at
the role of the critic when we explore meaning in another module.

In this way, museums, galleries and critics have become gatekeepers in helping to
determine what is considered art within a culture like our own.
 3 Major Forms of Art

Visual Arts is one of the finest forms of art to express feelings, emotions, and imagination of an
artist. It is simply an expression of an artist who holds apparatuses including graphite pencils, pen,
ink, wax shading, pencils, colored pencils, charcoal, chalk, pastels and much more relies upon its
purpose and nature. The main forms of visual arts includes ceramics, drawing, painting, sculpting,
photography and much more.
Literature Arts is exceptionally self-expressive in light of the fact that, this creative writing
expresses the writer or an author emotions, feeling, a point of views and much more. This form of
arts is informative yet imaginative (style of writing), where it generally uses metaphorical literary
dialects, phrase and much more. The main form of literature arts includes Poetry, Fiction writing,
Play-writing, Epic poetry and much more. Remember, Literature Arts is creative and highly
entertaining forms of art as we all love listening to stories, we all enjoy reading Novels. In this
way, Literature Arts is one of the most cherished forms of art by the audience.
Performing Arts is one of the most expressive, appreciated and loved by the millions of people,
Performing Arts includes drama, music, dance, theater and much more. Performing Arts like dance
generally uses sound (music), as well as body along with expression, resulting in a rhythmic
enigma. Unlike the other forms of art, the artist in the performing Arts is generally known as the
performer. While, the performer can likewise be determined into dancer, singer, musicians,
comedians, actors and so on.

ART CRITICISM
Defining Art Criticism
· Art criticism is responding to, interpreting meaning, and making critical judgments about
specific works of art.
· Art critics help viewers perceive, interpret, and judge artworks.
· Critics tend to focus more on modern and contemporary art from cultures close to their own.
· Art historians tend to study works made in cultures that are more distant in time and space.
· When initially introduced to art criticism, many people associate negative connotations with the
word "criticism."
A professional art critic may be
· a newspaper reporter assigned to the art beat,
· a scholar writing for professional journals or texts, or
· an artist writing about other artists.
Journalistic criticism –
· Written for the general public, includes reviews of art exhibitions in galleries and museums.
· (Suggestions that journalistic criticism deals with art mainly to the extent that it is
newsworthy.)
Scholarly art criticism
· Written for a more specialized art audience and appears in art journals.
· Scholar-critics may be college and university professors or museum curators, often with
particular knowledge about a style, period, medium, or artist.

FORMAL ANALYSIS
-Four levels of formal analysis, which you can use to explain a work of art:
1. Description = pure description of the object without value judgments,
analysis, or interpretation.
· It answers the question, "What do you see?"
· The various elements that constitute a description include:
a. Form of art whether architecture, sculpture, painting or one of the minor arts
b. Medium of work whether clay, stone, steel, paint, etc., and technique (tools used)
c. Size and scale of work (relationship to person and/or frame and/or context)
d. Elements or general shapes (architectural structural system) within the composition, including
building of post-lintel construction or painting with several figures lined up in a row;
identification of objects
e. Description of axis whether vertical, diagonal, horizontal, etc.
f. Description of line, including contour as soft, planar, jagged, etc.
g. Description of how line describes shape and space (volume); distinguish between lines of
objects and lines of composition, e.g., thick, thin, variable, irregular, intermittent, indistinct, etc.
h. Relationships between shapes, e.g., large and small, overlapping, etc.
i. Description of color and color scheme = palette
j. Texture of surface or other comments about execution of work
k. Context of object: original location and date

2. Analysis = determining what the features suggest and deciding why the artist used such
features to convey specific ideas.
· It answers the question, "How did the artist do it?"
· The various elements that constitute analysis include:
a. Determination of subject matter through naming iconographic elements, e.g., historical event,
allegory, mythology, etc.
b. Selection of most distinctive features or characteristics whether line, shape, color, texture, etc.
c. Analysis of the principles of design or composition, e.g., stable,
repetitious, rhythmic, unified, symmetrical, harmonious, geometric, varied, chaotic, horizontal or
vertically oriented, etc.
d. Discussion of how elements or structural system contribute to appearance of image or function
e. Analysis of use of light and role of color, e.g., contrasty, shadowy,
illogical, warm, cool, symbolic, etc.
f. Treatment of space and landscape, both real and illusionary (including use of perspective), e.g.,
compact, deep, shallow, naturalistic, random
g. Portrayal of movement and how it is achieved
h. Effect of particular medium(s) used
i. Your perceptions of balance, proportion and scale (relationships of each part of the
composition to the whole and to each other part) and your emotional
j. Reaction to object or monument

3. Interpretation = establishing the broader context for this type of art.

· It answers the question, "Why did the artist create it and what does it mean
The various elements that constitute interpretation include:
a. Main idea, overall meaning of the work.
b. Interpretive Statement: Can I express what I think the artwork is about in one sentence?
c. Evidence: What evidence inside or outside the artwork supports my interpretation?

4. Judgment: Judging a piece of work means giving it rank in relation to other works and
of course considering a very important aspect of the visual arts; its originality.
· Is it a good artwork?
· Criteria: What criteria do I think are most appropriate for judging the artwork?
· Evidence: What evidence inside or outside the artwork relates to each criterion?
· Judgment: Based on the criteria and evidence, what is my judgment about the quality of the
artwork?

Barrett's Principles of Interpretation

1. Artworks have "aboutness" and demand interpretation.
2. Interpretations are persuasive arguments.
3. Some interpretations are better than others.
4. Good interpretations of art tell more about the artwork than they tell about the critic.
5. Feelings are guides to interpretations.
6. There can be different, competing, and contradictory interpretations of the same artwork.
7. Interpretations are often based on a worldview.
8. Interpretations are not so much absolutely right, but more or less reasonable, convincing,
enlightening, and informative.
9. Interpretations can be judged by coherence, correspondence, and inclusiveness.
10. An artwork is not necessarily about what the artist wanted it to be about.
11. A critic ought not to be the spokesperson for the artist.
12. Interpretations ought to present the work in its best rather than its weakest light.
13. The objects of interpretation are artworks, not artists.
14. All art is in part about the world in which it emerged.
15. All art is in part about other art.
16. No single interpretation is exhaustive of the meaning of an artwork.
17. The meanings of an artwork may be different from its significance to the viewer.
Interpretation is ultimately a communal endeavor, and the community is ultimately self-
corrective.
18. Good interpretations invite us to see for ourselves and to continue on our own.