ART APPRECIATION
midterm
ART INTRODUCTION
what is art?
— in both the sciences and the arts we strive to weave
our experiences into coherent bodies of knowledge and
to communicate them.
● enhances daily experiences
● is linked to quality of life.
● touches everyone.
● is all around us.
meaning
1. ability — the human capacity to make things of
beauty and things that stir us.
2. process — the different forms of art such as drawing,
painting, sculpting, architecture, and photography.
3. product — the completed work.
whatever the definition, it is important to know the
vocabulary of art in order to understand it.
some “truths” about art
— there is no agreed-upon definition of art.
— art does not necessarily have to be beautiful.
— art can be created for any number of reasons.
the philosophies about art:
– many philosophers have argued that art serves no
function, that it exists for its own sake.
— some have asserted that the essence of art
transcends the human occupation with usefulness.
— others have held that in trying to analyze art too
closely, one loses sight of its beauty and wonderment.
understanding and appreciating art
the questions to ask:
“why was this created?”
“what is its purpose?”
what are the purposes of art?
art and beauty
— art adds beauty to our lives by looking to nature
— art depicts the western concepts of beauty
— non-western concepts of beauty
examples:
LEONARDO DA VINCI — “Mona Lisa” (c. 1503—1505).
oil on wood panel. 30 1/4” x 21”.
KENYAN WOMAN, MASAI TRIBE — standards for beauty
can differ from culture to culture.
a closer look
a portrait in the flesh
● sometimes artists try to improve on nature —
thereby creating an alternative standard.
examples:
French performance artist Orlan, who has dedicated
herself to embodying Western classic beauty as found
in the works of Leonardo, Botticelli, and Boucher through
multiple plastic surgeries. Here Orlan is being “prepped”
for one in a series of operations.
SANDRO BOTTICELLI — “The Birth of Venus (1486).
detail, tempera on canvas. 5’8 7/8” x 9/1 1/7”.
art and our environment
— used to create pleasing environments.
— used as decoration
— used to transport to another place.
examples:
JOYCE KOZLOFF — “Galla Placidia in Philadelphia (1985)
mosaic installation. 13’ x 16’.
DALE CHIHULY — “Fioridi Como (1998)”
70’ x 30’ x 12’
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art and truth examples:
— truth in art is subjective JESSIE OONARK — “A Shaman’s Helping Spirits (1971).
— truth to nature? stonecut and stencil. 37 1/6“ x 25 1/6“
— true to human experience? AARON DOUGLAS — “Noah’s Ark (c. 1927).
— true to materials? oil on masonite. 48” x 36”.
ANTHEMIUS OF TRALLES AND ISIDORUS OF MILETUS
examples: Hagia Sophia, Constantinople (modern–day Istanbul),
FRIDA KAHLO — “Diego in My Thoughts (Diego y yo) Turkey (532–537 CE). interior view.
(1949)”.
oil on canvas, mounted on Masonite. 24” x 36”. art and ideology
— art has been used to create and reinforce ideology.
art can be used to ( ideology is the way a society looks at things or a
— replicate nature society's commonly held beliefs. )
— show reality
— or express an artist’s own experiences. examples:
SUZANNE VALADON — “Adam and Eve (1909)”

art and immortality oil on canvas. 63 ¾ x 51 ⅝.

— used to defy death.

— art can bring people “together” from different periods art and fantasy
of time. — art can express our innermost fantasies.

examples: examples:
ANDY WARHOL — “Four Marilyns(1962)”. MARC CHAGALL — “I and the Village”
synthetic polymer paint and silkscreen ink on canvas.
30" ×23⅞". art and psychoanalysis
— many 20th century artists looked to the
art and glory psychoanalytic writings of Sigmund Freud and Carl
— art immortalizes people and events throughout the Jung, who suggested that primeval forces are at wok in
ages. the unconscious reaches of the mind.
— the wealthiest of patrons commissioned artists to — artists sought to use their art as an outlet for these
create works that glorified their reigns and unconscious forces.
accomplishments.
examples:
examples: MAX BECKMAN — “The Dream”
COLUMN OF TRAJAN, FORUM OF TRAJAN, ROME,
dedicated 112. 128 feet high. art, intellect, and emotion
— art can make you think.
art and religion — art can make you feel.
— the quest for immortality. — art can trigger associations.
— finding answers for the unanswerable.
— express hopes for fertility.
CONCEPTUAL ART
— to propitiate the gods.
— conceptual art does not represent external object.
— to symbolize great religious events and values.
— it also challenges the traditional view of the artist as
— and to commend heavenward the souls of the
creative visionary, skilled craftsperson, and master of
departed.
one's media. the“art” lies in the artist's concept.

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word works art, experience, and memory
— often comment on the impersonal systems of — art has served to record and communicate
modern times, while posing a challenge to the formal experiences and events.
premises of art and stirring intellectual responses in the — art also conveys the personal experience of an artist.
viewer.
examples:
examples: LOUISA CHASE — “Storm (1981)”
JENNY HOLZER — “Untitled (1989–1990)” oil on canvas. 90” x 120”
selection from “Truism: Inflammatory Essays, he Living ALFRED STIEGLITZ — “The Steerage (1907)
Series, he Survival Series, Under a Rock, Laments, and photograph
Mother and Child Text.” LED electronic display signboard FAITH RINGGOLD — “Tar Beach (1988)”
installation. 11" × 162' × 44" (27.9cm × 49.4m × 111.8cm). acrylic paint on canvas and pieced fabric. 74” x 68 ½”.

art is harmony. art in the social and cultural context

— GEORGES SEURAT
in recording experiences, artists frequently notes:
RYOANJI ZEN TEMPLE, Japanese sand garden, Kyoto, — the activities and the objects of their times and
Japan. places
— contemporary fashion and beliefs

compare + contrast — the crafts and sciences

the piano lesson(s) — architecture

by MATISSE AND BEARDEN

— HENRI MATISSE – “Piano Lesson (1916)” examples:

oil on canvas. 8’ 1⁄2” x 6’11 3⁄4”. EDWARD HOPPER — “Nighthawks (1942)”

— ROMARE BEARDEN – “Pano Lesson (1983)” oil on canvas. 30” x 60”

oil with Collage. 29» x 22’ RICHARD HAMILTON — “Just What Is It That Makes
Today’s Homes So Different, So Appealing? (1956)”
collage. 101⁄4” x 93⁄4”
reaction?
ZAHA HADID — Sheikh Zayed Bridge, Abu Dhabi, to be
LAURIE SIMMONS — “Red Library #2 (1983)
completed in 2006. designed by Zaha Hadid.
color photograph. 48 ½” x 38 ¼”

art and social consciousness

art and chaos
— artists have taken on bitter struggles against the
— artists have sought to show chaos, apocalyptic
injustices of their times and have tried to persuade
events, war, famine, and natural catastrophes.
others to join them in their causes,
… by using their (art) skills.
examples:
JAUNE QUICK-TO-SEE SMITH — “Eclipse (1987)
examples:
oil on canvas. 60” x 60”
EUGÈNE DELACROIX — “Liberty Leading the People
(1830)”
oil on canvas. 8’6” x 10’10”.
SUZANNE LACY AND LESLIE LABOWITZ — “In Mourning
and in Rage (1977)” performance at Los Angeles City
Hall.
BETYE SAAR — “The Liberation of Aunt Jemima (1972)”
mixed media. 11 3⁄4” x 8” x 2 3⁄4”.

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art & popular culture
INTRODUCTION TO

ready-mades — objects elevated from commonplace ART APPRECIATION

to the position of art.
assemblages — art made and assembled from found
what is art?
objects.
pop art — art that utilizes the commonplace objects
art constitutes one of the oldest and most important
and visual clichés to make the viewer thing twice about
means of expressions developed by a man and
the symbols and objects that surround us.
woman.

examples:
art is a product of man's need to express himself and is
MIRIAM SCHAPIRO — “Wonderland (1983)”
not limited to the revelation of emotions alone - the
acrylic and fabric collage on canvas. 90” x 144”
personal and social values of the artist are also
(framed)
manifested and conveyed through the arts.
MARCEL DUCHAMP — “Fountain (1917)”
1951 version after lost original. porcelain urinal. H: 24"
art is made by man, no matter how close it is to nature;
although each work of art is evidently the expression of
art and the needs of the artist an artist's personal thoughts and feelings, it may be
inferred that, like any other individual. He/she belongs
some artist create solely for: to a nuclear, and he/she cannot free himself/herself
— “self-actualization” from the influence of his/her social, economic, political,
— novelty cultural, geographic, scientific and technical
— exploration environment- these factors undoubtedly affect his/her
— understanding creative expression. Zulueta(2006)
— aesthetics
— beauty assumptions of art
— order
— emotional or psychological needs assumption is a thing that is accepted as true or as
certain to happen, without proof. It is something that
examples: you accept as true without question or proof. Many
JOSÉ CLEMENTE OROZCO — “Epic of American assumption has been written about arts and some of
Civilization: Hispano-America (c. 1932–1934)” these are:
fresco. 10” x 9’11”
MATTHEW I. SMITH — Untitled (n. d.). art has been created by all people at all times, in all
graphite on paper. 8 1⁄2” x 11” countries and it lives because it's well-liked and
enjoyed. Naturally arts linger on particularly if it is
OUTSIDER ART popular and loved by people.
— outsider art is a catchall category that has been
used for works by untrained artists or self taught artists. example, the works and writings of Dr. Jose Rizal and
the movie, The Ten Commandments.
for example:
criminals who create because they are in isolation art involves experience
or people with autism and schizophrenia, etc.
in order to experience something, you have to make
use of your five senses. Hence, there can never be
appreciation of art without having experience it.

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what makes art such a powerful tool to art as a form of creation
communicate the experience of the artist, is
that it defies the limitation of the language. art is something that is created with imagination and
skill and that is beautiful or that expresses important

the body always experiences first, and then the mind ideas or feelings. As it is said, human is the creator of

connects it to concepts, language, and mental art.

understanding. However, we know our language is

limited and that it is a broken tool when it comes to no art can be created without human which, in turn,

accurately express the mysterious complexities of uses his/her imagination and creativity to produce art.

being. Concepts also come with their own layered According to the world’s most basic definition, an artist

personal understanding. is simply a person who creates art.

why art is not nature? nature of arts

why nature is not art?

art is not nature

art is not nature; nature is not art.

Art is made of by man and nature by God. How ever

nature can be enhanced by man. The enhanced
beauty of and artistry of nature, then, can be classified
as an art.

art is cultural

art as a form of creation

art is a work of humans and anything that has been
created by humans is part of culture.
in creating visual, auditory, or performing artworks,

art becomes cultural when it depicts people’s away of expressing the author’s imaginative or technical skill,

life, religious practices, mores traditions, etc. intended to be appreciated for their beauty or
emotional power.

art has a unique possibility to capture winds of change,

simultaneously as it impacts the formation and in their most general form these activities include the

development of societies and the people living there. production of works of art, the criticism of art, the study
of the history of art, and the aesthetic dissemination of

it has a potential to perform and convey messages, art.

ideas, expressions where words fall short. It can connect

directly to people´s heart and body, sometimes more
than to the mind, which enables art to actually shift
mindsets in a more profound way than other forms of
communication.

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art represents reality
representation is the use of signs that stand in for and
take the place of something else. It is through
representation that people organize the world and
reality through the act of naming elements. Signs are
arranged in order to form semantic constructions and
express relations.
art represents reality, since it is often depicting objects
or scenes from the world. An artwork can depict a
scene such as a café or a restaurant, or a park or
garden. So, there is a scene in which art represents
mind’s eye or what the imagination perceives.
art is an expression
the expression contained in the form is an attempt to
translate the unnamed and unknown. Intrinsic to our
existence as humans is our quest to create meaning,
and art allows that process to take place .Making
meaning involves understanding our surroundings and
marking our experiences.
art serves as means of communication
the purpose of works of art may be to communicate
political, spiritual or philosophical ideas, to create a
sense of beauty to explore the nature of perception, for
pleasure, or to generate strong emotions.
art matters
the arts matter because they allow us to express
ourselves and illustrate the world around us in a
different light, helping us to gain understanding of
people and society, and give hope while living in this
world. Art matters because it illustrates the human
experiences.
art is universal
literally, art can be found in every corner of the world.
Art is everywhere and it is embedded into the way of life
of the people. Exclusivity is out of bounds when we
speak of arts because it is for everyone. Art is the true
Esperanto, an artificial international language, the one
form of culture that is genuinely beyond national
limitations. (esperanto — world’s most widely spoken language)
art is creation
it is the combination of already existing material
elements into new forms which become the realization
of a preconceived idea. Both hut and picture rose in the
imagination of their makers before they took shape as
things.
imagination and creativity
the biggest difference between creativity and
imagination is that imagination is thinking of something
– whether it is and object, place, time, etc., that is not
present, while creativity is doing something meaningful
with our imagination.
imagination allows us to think of things that are not real
or around is a t nay given time, creativity allows us to
do something meaningful with our imaginations.
emotion and art
in order for emotions to move through us freely, they
must be accepted and expressed. Doing so enlivens us
and fuels our creativity. Fortunately, experiencing
emotions directly through art is fairly simple – if you
allow for the process.
this could be done drawing, painting, sculpting, music,
movement, writing, drama, whatever creative means
allows you to open up and bare your soul. You needn’t
be talented or skilled at any of these either. They are
simply a means for expressing yourself.
and each time you create a work of art, you’re sharing
new ideas, as well as different ways to express yourself.
This can certainly serve as motivation for others.
functions of art
no piece of art can be assigned a function either in
essay form or in casual conversation, if 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 are personal, social and physical functions.
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personal functions in the words of LEO TOLSTOY

an artists may create out of a need for self expression, “The activity of art is based on the capacity of people
or gratification. He/She might have wanted to to infect others with their own emotions and to be
communicate a thought or point to the viewers. infected by the emotions of others. Strong emotions,
Perhaps the artist was trying to provide an aesthetic weak emotions, important emotions or irrelevant
experience, both for self and viewers. A piece might emotions, good emotions or bad emotions – if they
have been meant to merely entertain others. contaminate the reader, the spectator, or the listener –
Sometimes a piece isn’t meant to have any meaning at it attains the function of art.”
all.
in summary, art can be considered powerful because
example is the statue of Venus, a Roman mythology of the following reasons, among others:
Goddess.
“it has the power to educate people”
physical function
“it promotes cultural appreciation”
form and Function- The function of an object is
generally essential in the basic form that it takes. “It breaks cultural, social, and economic barriers.”

architecture — the design of the building is “It accesses higher orders of thinking”

determined primarily by its operational function.

“The truth is that people have recognized how powerful
art can be.”
community planning — a community is more than
just a group of buildings. It is a group of individuals and
many times in history have we heard of people being
families living in a particular locality because of
criticized, threatened, censored, and even killed
common interest and needs
because of their artwork.

philosophical importance of art

short assessment

like philosophy, art also has a profoundly

communicative function. Through
communicate to one another their feelings, their most
intimate and infinitely varied and poignant thoughts. A
common feature of art and philosophy is the wealth
they both contain of cognitive, moral and social
substance.
impact of art on politics, culture, and people
“When human ideas, expression, and creativity are
it people
forced to serve an overly rational or ideologically
programmed agenda, when the mind and soul are
collared by convention or chaffed by censorship, when
freedom is suppressed, the arts suffer in fulfilling their
purpose, which is, ultimately, to express the truth.
Expression that is not free, is not full. It misleads since it
does not tell the whole truth.. (hngnews,2012)”

art is powerful

art is powerful because it can potentially influence our

culture, politics, and even the economy. When we see a
powerful work of art, you feel it touching deep within
your core, giving us the power to make real-life
changes.