PENCIL

WATERCOLOR
BAMBOO TREE/ BAMBOO
What is Medium?
MEDIUM – defined as the material, or the
substance out of which a work is made

Media is the plural of medium

 SCULPTOR
uses metal, wood, stone, clay and glass

 Sculptures fall within the category of “three-dimensional”

arts because they occupy space and have volume

Pottery is a form of sculpture

Guillermo Tolentino
ARCHITECT
uses wood, bamboo, bricks, stone, concrete
and various building materials

• Buildings are also called “three-dimensional” arts because

like sculpture, they occupy space and have volume

• However, architecture has the added element of time,

since we move into the structures
PAINTER
uses pigments (e.g., watercolor, oil, tempera,
textile paint, acrylic, ink, etc.) on a usually flat ground
(wood, canvas, paper, stone wall such as in cave paintings)
MUSICIAN
uses sound and instruments (including the human voice)

D A N C E R
uses body and its movements
• Dance is often accompanied by music, but there are dances
that do not rely on musical accompaniment to be realized
• Dance can tell stories, but at other times, they convey
abstract ideas that do not rely on a narrative
THEATER ARTIST
uses the stage, production design, performance
elements, and script to enable the visual,
musical, dance and other aspects to come
together as a whole work
PHOTOGRAPHER
uses camera to record the outside world

FILMMAKER
uses the cinematographic camera to record
and put together production design,
sound engineering,
performance, and screenplay
The writer of a novel, poetry, nonfiction and fiction uses words.

Designer, the performance artist, and the installation

artist combine use of the range of materials above.
On the basis of medium, the arts can be classified as practical,
environmental, pictorial, auditory, narrative, dramatic, and musical.

The musical arts include music, poetry (those that have

perceptible rhythm and can be sung or danced to), and
dance that is accompanied by music.
The practical arts have immediate use for
everyday and business life such as design,
architecture, and furniture.

Environmental arts occupy space and change in its

meaning and function depending on their
categories including architecture, sculpture, and
site-specific works such as installations and public
art.
Pictorial works include painting, drawing, graphics, and stage
and production design (lighting, dress, props, and set).

Works that are staged and performed are considered Dramatic

and they include drama, performance art, or music and dance

If they are based on stories, the art forms are

classified as narrative and they include drama,
novel, fiction, nonfiction, music, and dance.
All these art forms can be integrated and result in Combined
arts, such as designs, mixed media, photography, film, video,
performance art, theater productions, and installations.

For example:
WHAT IS TECHNIQUE?
it is the manner in which artists use
and manipulate materials to achieve
the desired formal effect, and
communicate the desired concept, or
meaning, according to his or her
personal style
The distinctive character or the nature of
the medium determines the technique.

For example:

Stone is chiseled
Wood is carved
Clay is modeled and shaped
Metal is cast
Thread is woven
Technique involves tools and technology, ranging
from the most traditional (for example carving,
analog photography, and filmmaking) to the most
contemporary (digital photography, digital
filmmaking, music production, industrial design,
and robotics).
How is art experienced and consumed?

Art is considered “artifact” when it is

directly experienced and perceived.
building

It can be spatial and static or unmoving painting

novel

or time-based and in motion

Live theater production Mobile sculpture

When we experience a work indirectly or through a medium
like film or video, we described it as a “recorded” or
documented artwork
Examples are:
1. a documentation of a performance
2. a photograph of a painting
3. a DVD or CD of a film or musical piece
4. A novel read from an electronic tablet
We call a work a time-based artifact or performance if we
receive or perceive it live or directly in real time.
Examples are live plays, live
performance art and installation

A time-based artifact is recorded, and we watch it in

real time but not at the site of production
How have contemporary artists
expanded the range of medium
and techniques they utilize?
As we discussed in lesson 1, contemporary artists
are producing artworks that are more process-
based, site-specific, interactive and collaborative.
 • She uses the traditional medium of acrylic on
Untitled (Mirrors) canvas and the traditional modern style of
by Maria Taniguchi
abstraction
• However, she gives these elements a
contemporary twist that turns painting into a
meditation on form
• Instead of being an object or artifact that is
exclusively “pictorial”, the painting process
itself also becomes an important aspect of
both creation and reception
• The viewer imagines the artist painting grid
by grid meditatively, with careful and diligent
brushwork
LET’S SUM IT UP! 
MEDIUM – defined as the material, or the
substance out of which a work is made

TECHNIQUE– the manner in which artist useand

manipulate materials to achieve the desired formal
effect, and communicate the desired concept, or
meaning, according to his or her personal style.
 ACTIVITY 5
Find a pair. Discuss and do the following with your pair.

1. Provide 5 artworks produced by the artists here in Rizal and

determine what are the mediums and techniques they used to
produce their artworks. Understand how the artwork was made and
determine the meaning conveyed by the art.

2. Give at least 2 examples of contemporary artist that

invented and explored new media and techniques in
producing their artworks. Explain how they expanded the
range and techniques they utilize.