GEC 07

ART APPRECIATION

Lecture 1
Art and Humanities

The art and humanities aren’t just there to be consumed when we have a free moment.
We need them as medicine. They help us live.
- Barrack Obama

Objectives:
At the end of the lecture, students are expected to:
 Distinguish the humanities and the sciences as fields of learning.
 Understand the Filipino notion of personhood or pagkatao.
 Examine the history of art as a humanistic discipline.
 Compare and contrast the concepts of art according to Western thought and
Filipino thought.
 Discover the Filipino identity through the arts.
 Apply the Filipino sense of art in the process of appreciating art.

Lectures
1.1. Art as a Humanistic Discipline
1.2. The Humanities and the Filipino Personhood (Pagkatao)
1.3. The Filipino Concept of Art

Videos:
“Laura Morelli (2014). “Is there a difference between art and craft?” In https://www.you
tube.com/watch? v=tVdw60eCnJI

“Xiao Time: Damian Domingo, Ama ng PHL Painting at unang pormal na gurong Filipino
ng sining sa Pinas” (2014) in https://www.you tube.com/watch?v=3i8muLe9vss.

ANC-NCCA (2015). “Dayaw: Inukit, Hinulma, Nilikha (Iconic Symbols of the Indigenous)”
Episodes 3. In https://www.you tube.com/wat ch?v=8KlO 6_Jpd-4.
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Lecture 1.1
Art as a Humanistic Discipline

The Meaning of Humanities

Nine days before his death, Immanuel Kant was visited by his physician. Old, ill and nearly
blind, he rose from his chair and stood trembling with weakness and muttering unintelligible words.
Finally his faithful companion realized that he would not sit down again until the visitor had taken a
seat. This he did, and Kant then permitted himself to be helped to his chair and, after having
regained some of his strength, said, “The sense of humanity has not yet left me” The two men
were moved to tears. (Panofsky, 1955)

In the field of learning, there are two primary

divisions, Sciences and Humanities. The latter is
comprised of language, history, art, and
philosophy. In the discussion of Gabelo (2018),
humanities is composed of academic disciplines
that make it distinctive in both content and method
from the physical and biological sciences and from
the social sciences.
MARIA GLORIA R. BECO-NADA
Southern Luzon State University
College of Arts and Sciences
 GEC 07
ART APPRECIATION

Humanities deals with human phenomena. It is derived from Latin word

humanus, which means human, cultured, and refined. With the words’ origin, Humanities
in Latin is humanitas. According to Panofsky (1955), humanitas is the quality which
distinguishes man, not only from animals, but also, and even more so, from him who
belongs to the species homo without deserving of homo humanus; from the barbarian or
vulgarian who lacks pietas, that is respect for moral values and that gracious blend of
learning and urbanity which can only circumscribe by the discredited word “culture”
Based from the discussion of Estolas, Javier and Payno (2011), the said definition is
based on the philosophical view of humanism which stresses the dictum of Protagoras, a
Greek philosopher, that “man is the measure of all things,” implying that the humanities
emphasizes the dignity and worthiness of man and recognizes creative expressions.
Then, for White (1997) as cited by Leano and Agtani (2018), the humanities are the
stories, the ideas, and the words that help us make sense of our lives and our world. In
the explanation of Sanchez, et al. (2012), the term humanities refers to the arts - visual
arts such as architecture, painting, and sculpture; music, dance, the theater or drama,
and literature. They are the branches of learning concerned with human thought, feelings
and relations. The importance of the human being and his feelings and how he
expresses those loose feelings have always been the concern of the humanities.

Paradigm of Learning

The basic question in humanities is Who Am I? because the paradigm of learning in

humanities uses reflexive method. Martin and Jacobus
(2004) as cited by Gabelo (2018) explained that
humanities contains records of man’s quest for answers
to the fundamental questions he often asks about
himself and about the world he lives in. Unlike in the
paradigm for learning in the sciences, a scientist learns
about everything in the world through scientific method.
The idea is, for a person to understand the world, he
should start knowing himself first. The basic answer to
the question, who am I? is I am a human being.
According to Gabelo (2018), to be human is to show characteristics of rationality,
benevolence and care; to be cultured and refined is to show good tastes and manners
indicative of good, proper education. These are manifested in all he thoughts and actions
that center on human
interests and ideals, values
and sentiments. She also
added that, there are
fundamental principles that
stress the importance of the
individual and specific
human needs. One the
underlying principles is
self-concept which has
important role in one’s
growth and development.
It is said to be the
main reason why
humanists gain wisdom
rather than knowledge. In gaining knowledge, it is comparable to ancient Greek

MARIA GLORIA R. BECO-NADA

Southern Luzon State University
College of Arts and Sciences
 GEC 07
ART APPRECIATION

philosopher, Thales of Miletus who investigated various areas of knowledge and

tried to explain cosmological events. In the illustration below, he fell to the ditch
while he was busy observing the sky. It is figuratively explaining that as human
beings tend to focus on the everything about the world, they may not see what is
most essential and important to them which are just in front of them or within their
grasp. Then, it will lead to forgetting to know anything about themselves.

What is Art?

According to Estolas, Javier and Payno (2011), art is derived from the Latin word,
ars, meaning ability or skill. In this sense, art is used in many varied ways. It covers those
areas of artistic creativity that seek to communicate beauty primarily through the senses.
Then, for Brommer (1997), art is difficult to define. He added that unlike light, though,
art isn’t one thing or single phenomenon. People create it, and that’s enough to make it
complicated and subject to many definitions. Furthermore, he said that art can be
personal, art call for social change, and art can portray human emotions as well as evoke
them. It can express harmony or disharmony, show simple and everyday in unfamiliar
ways, or be monumental, mysterious, and fantastic. Art is perhaps humanity’s most
essential universal language. While art uses visual images to communicate its messages,
we use words to describe the images, reactions and feelings we have about objects of
art.
Moreover, Martin and Jacobus (2008) defined art as something that brings us into
direct communication with others and reveals the essence of our existence. Also,
Sanchez, et al., 2012) viewed art as very important in our lives. They explained
that art constitutes one of the oldest and most important means of expression developed
by man. In this sense, Leano and Agtani (2018) also agreed to the idea that art helps us
make sense of our world, and it broadens our experience and understanding. The arts
enable us to imagine the unimaginable, and to connect us to the past, the present,
sometimes simultaneously. Then, it confirms to the idea of Sanchez et al. (2012) that
wherever men have lived together, art has sprung up among them as a language
charged with feeling and significance. The desire to to create this language appears to e
universal. As a cultural force, it is pervasive and potent. It shows itself even in primitive
societies.

ASSUMPTIONS OF ART
Panisan, Bongabong, Boongaling & Trinidad (2018) gave three assumptions
about art; art is universal, art is not nature, and art involves experience. Below is
their explanation about the assumptions of art.
There are principles and bases of appreciating a work of art since it is in art
that man can communicate one’s individuality and way of life.

Art is Universal
Art is everywhere; wherever men have lived together, art has sprung up
among them as a language charged with feelings and significance. The desire to
create this language appears to be general, and art as a cultural force can be
pervasive and potent. Art has no limit, and it rises above cultures, races, and
civilization. It is timeless because it goes beyond the time of our own existence.

Art is not Nature

Art is man-made; it is a creation of man utilizing his thoughtful skill and artistry,
which undergoes process and planning. Art is artificial because it is just an
imitation or even an appropriation of reality and nature. It is a representation of
ideas, thoughts, and feelings that are communicated in creative and artistic ways.
Art that is created by God is divine, and art that is created by man is superficial or
temporary. Works of art are made by artists to adore the wonders of life and the
beauty of God’s creation.
MARIA GLORIA R. BECO-NADA
Southern Luzon State University
College of Arts and Sciences
 GEC 07
ART APPRECIATION

Art can never be natural because it is momentary in the constant

transformation of change; it does not change by itself unless manipulated by its
creator, which is man. Artists could make any work of art, but they definitely could
not form nature. From man’s experiences, we cannot even compare art with
nature because it is something mysterious, and it is made by the Divine
Providence whose depth and mystery is beyond human understanding.
Art involves experience.
Art is a depiction of our experiences. It demands taking part. Art involves
laying of pigments, moulding of clay, chipping of marble, casting of bronze,
constructing of buildings, singing of songs, playing roles on stage, acting, and
going through rhythmic movements in a dance. Every art does something
with some physical material, the body or something outside the body; thus,
the only way to find conviction and assertion is through immersion in the arts.
We can only appreciate art if we spend time to look at it, touch it, and feel it.

Functions of Art based on the discussion of Leano and Agtani (2018)

No piece of art can be assigned a function in essay form or in casual

conversation, it is not first considered within the proper context. Trying to classify
function depends on context.
That said, the functions of art normally fall into three categories. These are
personal, social and physical functions. These categories can and do, overlap in
any given piece of art (Essak, 2018)

The Personal Function

An artist may create out of need for self-expression, or gratification. He/She

might have wanted to communicate a thought or point to the viewer. Perhaps the
artist was trying to provide an aesthetic experience, both self and viewers. A
piece might have been meant to “merely” entertain others. Sometimes, a piece
isn’t meant to have any meaning at all.
On slightly higher level, art may serve the personal functions of control. Art is
used to bring order to a disorganized and disorderly world. Conversely, art can be
used to create confusion when an artist feels life is too dull and ordinary.
Art can also be therapeutic for both the artist and the viewer. Expressive art
therapy is the use of creative arts as a form of therapy and is a fantastic field that
has proven to work wonders in may people’s lives.

It can help someone express themselves, explore their emotions, manage

addictions, and improve self-esteem. Example, music. The therapeutic value of
music cannot be ignored. Woks of an art make us aware of other ways of thinking,
feeling, and imagining that have never occured to us before.

Another personal function of art is that of religious service. Religious art

usually expresses collective ideas about human life in relation to the divine. For
our purposes, then, an art of spiritual concern is any search for ultimate values
through the use of visual form. The crucifixion is an example of visual form in
relation to our religious belief. Another us the “The Last Supper” painting.

The Social Function

One cannot conceive of a society without art, for art is closely related to every
aspect of social life. Social functions of art are those that go beyond personal
intrinsic value to art’s social benefits. Individuals and their society are dynamically
related. Art communicates. Most often it is constructed with the intention of

MARIA GLORIA R. BECO-NADA

Southern Luzon State University
College of Arts and Sciences
 GEC 07
ART APPRECIATION

sharing responses to and opinions about life with others. Art enriches, informs,
and questions world. When highly values, it can be both social and financial asset.
Art can have powerful transformattive and restorative effects within a society as
well.

Art performs a social function when:

1. Influences social behavior (Political Function). It seeks or tends to influence

the collective behavior of a people. Example is the “Bayanihan”. Some people
think that art designed to influence social behavior is corrupt, impure, “mere”
propaganda, and so on.

2. Display and celebration. It is created to be seen or used primarily in public

situation like fiestas, parade, etc.
One function of sculpture and painting is the commemoration of important
personages in society. The statues of national heroes that grace our parks and
plazas are commemorative works as are the commissioned paintings of leaders
or rulers. Often they serve to record important historical events, or reveal the
ideals of heroism and leadership that the community would want the young to
emulate.
Social description expresses or describes social or collective aspects of
existence as opposed to individual and personal kind of experiences.

The Physical Function

The physical functions of art are often the easiest to understand. Works of art
that are created to perform some service have physical functions.

1. Form and Function

The function of an object is generally essential in the basic form that it
takes. A chair is so designed as to allow the seated body rest comfortably on
it. The shapes, sizes, and different parts are harmoniously related to one
another and integrated into an object that fulfills and tells about their
particular purpose.

2. Architecture
The design of the building is determined primarily by its operational
function. What is the building for? Who are going to use it? How many are
they? The design that a building takes is also adapted to the climate of the
region. The architect must take the physical, psychological, and spiritual
needs of the family into account when he designs a house.

3. Community Planning
A community is more than just a group of buildings. It is a group of
individuals and families living in a particular locality because of common
interest and needs. Community planning involves the efficient organization of
buildings, roads, and spaces so that they meet the physical and aesthetic
needs of the community.

Community planning takes into consideration the assignment of areas for

proper land use. These are:

3.1 Residential districts

Special areas are assigned for residential purposes. The present
trend is to get away from overcrowded downtown districts and the
attendant problems and settle in areas where it is possible to blend
the charms of rural living with the conveniences of urban living.
MARIA GLORIA R. BECO-NADA
Southern Luzon State University
College of Arts and Sciences
 GEC 07
ART APPRECIATION

3.2 Industrial and commercial areas

These areas are usually located near the source raw materials. A
commercial area can be a cluster of small neighborhood stores, a
shopping complex in the suburbs, or a central downtown district. It is
usually situated where it can be reached easily by car or public
transport.
3.3 Civic centers
A community governs itself; it, therefore provides structures
where the functions of government can be efficiently carried out, and
which would, in appearance, be symbolic of community dignity and
pride.
3.4 Parks, plazas, and malls
The need for a balance between man-made structures and
natural areas is answered in the design of plazas and malls. These
may provide some relief from problems such as air and water
pollution, inadequate facilities for recreation, and lack of parking
space.
3.5 Streets and roads
Transportation must function with reasonable ease and rapidity
from one area to another. Streets are large or small according to their
function.

4. Function and beauty

Man things remain the same in shape throughout the years because their
functional requirements do not allow for greater variations in their form. Time
has proved that their designs best enable them to accomplish their purpose.

Humanities and Art

According to Flores (1998), humanities as it deals with the arts has to identify key
areas.

1. Art as aesthetic performance

At the vital center of the Humanities is how the social person (not man or individual
or human being) encounters the world through emotion, thought, and action. No amount
of emperical natural and social science could make us abandon the wisdom that to
encounter the world is to encounter it multidimensionally and never in fragmented ways,
but always through a specific perspective. While there are distinctions built into the
relationship among the spheres of human emotions, thought, and action, we need not
delink the performative chain to celebrate false harmony. We only have to realize that, as
playwright Bertolt Brecht puts it, “to think feelings and feel thoughtfully” is to apprehend
the world in moments of contradiction and re-creation. The world in this encounter both
embedded and embodied in the body politic in the process of performance.
The concept of this encounter compels us to come to grips with the aesthetic
experience, or the manner in which makes sense of the world as we see, touch, hear,
taste, feel and intuit it. In the process, we discern the modes by which the world is
constituted and how we are constituted in relation to it, as well as the strategies by which
people transform nature or familiar convention into something different, into form which
transcends the tedium of structure. And the thorny issue here is that the transcendence
need not be solely ascribed to artistic practice. In other words, everyday life which
supposedly lies outside the domains of the art world is very much governed by aesthetic
logic.

MARIA GLORIA R. BECO-NADA

Southern Luzon State University
College of Arts and Sciences
 GEC 07
ART APPRECIATION

2. Art as discourse and signifying system of cultural knowledge

The discussion of art as signifying practice of cultural knowledge sheds light on the
close relationship between technique and technology of meaning.

3. Art as social history.

The Humanities must not only be committed to aesthetic experience and the
language of artistic communication, but also to the social enactment of experience and
communication in a given historical context. As we encounter the world and speak the
language of art, we must also reckon with how the world is produced through labor and
capital. The scale of mural implicates, for instance, the public that must come under its
gaze. The still life emerges from middle-class patronage and reconstructs the spatial
logic of the home and domesticity. What is the relationship between the luster ans
density of oil and the politics of capitalist consumption? What are the social implications
of linear perspective?
These concerns and questions home into the question of social history of which art
is not only part but, in fact, participates in producing it. Social history produces art and art
produces social history not by reproducing it through imitation and reflection, but through
representation and reinvention using the labor and capital of artistic production. This
artistic production is never to be reified from the social conditions of production in history,
but must also be viewed as the sole determinant of aesthetic experience and artistic
meaning.

Artist and Artisan

Works of art are valued not only by

artists and patrons but also by entire
cultures. (Adams, 2011) When does a
creative work be called as art? What is
the distinction between art and craft?

During the early times, artists and

artisans work together as their patrons
would pay them collective. Collective
efforts were paid well rather than
individual work. A patron, someone
who commissions works of art, often orders more monumental tributes. (Adams,
2011, p. 2)

It was until 14th century when the distinction between

artist and artisan was slowly taken shape. There was a
sudden rise in the appreciation of individual creativity than
collective production. In the discussion of Hodge (2014) she
said that the role of the artist as “genius” developed during the
14th century, with a status far beyond that of the skilled artisan
and craftsman.

Then, in 1550, Geogio Visari, an Italian painter and

architect, published his book entitled, Lives of the Most
Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects. Personages
whose biographies were included in the his book, became
well-known. Also, it was the birth of the so-called “artist”

Gabelo (2018) identified what is an artist and an artisan. For her, artist is a person
who exhibits exceptional skills in the visual and/or
the performing arts. Unlike other people, artists are more sensitive, very perceptive and
more creative. They have the knack of interpreting ideas into an artistic form using as

MARIA GLORIA R. BECO-NADA

Southern Luzon State University
College of Arts and Sciences
 GEC 07
ART APPRECIATION

their medium the words, pigments, clay, stone, musical notes or any combination that
may be best represent his image. Then, an artisan, on the other hand, is a person who is
skilled trade that involves making things by hands. He is a craftsworker who makes or
creates objects of great beauty by just using their hands. His creations may be functional
or decorative like an earthen pot or “palayok” for cooking or vase for decoration.
In the Western art, there are two classifications; major art and minor art. The former
is made by artists and primarily concerned with the form of beauty while the latter is
made by artisans and concerned with functionality and usefulness of human-made
objects. According to Leano and Agtani (2018), an artist is dedicated only to creative side,
making visually pleasing work for only for the enjoyment. And appreciation of the viewer
but with no functional value.Then, an artisan is essentially a manual worker who makes
items with his or her hands, and who through skill, experience. And talent can create
things of great beauty as well as being functional.

Take a look at the picture of the

ceiling of Sistine Chapel.Before
Michaelangelo painted the ceiling, it
was built first by artists and artisans.
But it is only Michaelangelo takes the
credit.
In the example, it is clear what an
artist and an artisan are capable of.
Both artists and artisans are creative
and have skills and talents. They are
both incomparable because each has
unique way of presenting their artistic
talent.

However, the Western concept of art, for an artist

to be called artist,one should attended in an
art school. Also, art is meant for higher social
class. Lastly, there is hierarchy between liberal
and servile art.

According to Adams (2011), in the West,

the major
visual arts fall
into three broad
categories: pictures, sculpture, and
architecture.
She added that pictures (from the Latin word
pingo, meaning “I paint”) are two-dimensional
images (from the Latin word imago, meaning
“likeness”) with height and width and are
usually flat. Pictures are not only paintings,
however: they include mosaics, stained glass,
tapestries, drawings, prints, and photographs

Aside from visual arts, music, dance drama and literature are also part of the
major Western art.

MARIA GLORIA R. BECO-NADA

Southern Luzon State University
College of Arts and Sciences