VCS 105

ART APPRECIATION
Topic 3: Form & Content

Prepared by: Mdm. Siti Hajar Maizan

sitih809@uitm.edu.my
013-501 4140

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 TE NT CO
CON NT
EN
CON T
TEN
THE STUDY OF T

N TENT
CO

CONTENT
T
TEN
CON

C CO
O ENT NT
N N T EN
TE
N CO T
T Thursday
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 WHAT IS CONTENT ?
-idea-based & it means:

(1) what the artist intended to portray,

(2) what the artist actually did portray

(3) how we react (as individuals, to both the

intended and actual messages)

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 CONTENT
consists of :

SUBJECT
and
ICONOGRAPHY

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Category of SUBJECT

• Cultural
• Religious
• History
• Genre
• Still life
• Mythological
• Personification
• Landscape
• Portrait 5
The content of a work of art is the meaning
conveyed by a painting or an artwork. (by the
artist)

The content of a work of art requires an

interpretation of what is represented. (by the artist
and the viewers)

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Content
- a function of the intentions of an artist and the interpretation of
a viewer.
-The emotional or intellectual message of an artwork.

-The expression, essential meaning, significance, or aesthetic value

of a work of art.

-Content refers to the sensory, subjective, psychological, or

emotional properties we feel in a work of art.

- Content is not just a description of the subject matter.

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 TWO STEPS IN
DETERMINING CONTENT
ARE:

1. Look closely at the work of art to discover

what the artist chose to represent.

2. Identify the range of possible meanings

for the work's subject.

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 Defining the term :

Appreciation
sensitive awareness; especially : recognition
of aesthetic values.

An expression of admiration, approval, or

gratitude

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 APPRECIATION
Appreciating the good things around us, the beauty
of nature, someone’s physical traits, a good work
of art, or a poem, or a speech or a sporting victory.

From this point, we are open to the suggestions around us

and that certain good feelings are aroused when we see
something worth praising or complimenting.

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TO APPRECIATE ART …….

• It simply means to be able to look at art

works and then later, form your own
opinion.

• It requires organized effort and systematic

study.

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 APPRECIATION
METHOD

THE STUDY OF
Form and Content

(1) the elements of art, is idea-based and means

(2) the principles of design and
(3) the actual, physical materials
that the artist has used.
(1) what the artist meant to portray,
(2) what the artist actually did
portray and
(3) how we react, as individuals, to
both the intended and actual
messages.
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What am I supposed to see when
I see a painting?

• Art has its own language, so instead of merely “looking” at a

work of art, try to “experience” it.
• The Language of Art consists of color, line, space and texture
etc.

• Artists use these to create a statement, or some kind of mood

or express something he or she feels.

• In experiencing a work of art, we need to try and read the

language of the painting, just as one would try and read a
book or a magazine.
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LEVELS OF Philosophy of
Art/Aesthethics
APPRECIATION

Art History

Art criticism

Art appreciation
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 EXAMPLE:

APPRECIATION OF
FORM AND CONTENT

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October
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Hall of Bulls at Lascaux, France
15000 – 10000bc
Lascaux, France
Mixed Species Grouping
Big Sized Hunting Animal
Three Kinds Of Animals: Bulls, Horses And Deer
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Thursday, October 27, 2022

FORMALISTIC ASPECTS
[HALL OF BULLS]

lBold outlines lNaturalistic

representation of
lNormally big size animal figure
hunting animal
lMixed species
lLimited colors – red, grouping of animal-
black, ochre bulls, horses and
lNo depiction of space deer's
or perspective lPainted on cave wall
and ceiling

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1. Henri Breuil:
the cave paintings - being hunting magic, meant to increase the number of
animals.

2. Some theories:
might have been a way of transmitting information a religious or ceremonial
purpose

3. David Lewis-Williams:
the paintings were made by Cro-Magnon shamans.

• The shaman would retreat into the darkness of the caves, enter into a trance
state and then paint images of their visions, perhaps with some notion of
drawing power out of the cave walls themselves.

• The variety of subject matter (from prey animals to predators

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and human
hand-prints).
FORMALISTIC ASPECTS
SCULPTURE VENUS OF WILLENDORF

• 24000 – 20000 Bc
• Limestone
• Less Than 5” High [11cm]
• Symbol Of Fertility

Anonymous Figure – no face details from

Willendorf, Austria

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CONTENT
SCULPTURE VENUS OF WILLENDORF

• The female reproductive anatomy

exaggerated:

• Abdomen, hips, breasts, thighs,

vulva : therefore experts think it
represented a fertility symbol,
perhaps carried by a male
hunter/gatherer as a reminder of
his mate back home

• Woman as a symbol of human

reproduction. Beauty is
associated with the concept of
fertility Thursday
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October
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PROTO RENAISSANCE ART
GIOTTO
Madonna Enthroned
1310
Tempera on wood, 325 x 204 cm
Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence

The paintings of Giotto are generally

recognized as having established a new
direction in Western art, one that led into the
Renaissance
He turned this painting style, with its 2-
dimensional, lifeless quality, into a 3-
dimensional art characterized by naturalism
and the full expression of human emotion.
Through the innovative use of light and shade,
and the placement of figures so as to create
depth, Giotto was able to paint realistic-
looking individuals, rather than the flat,
ornamental depictions found in most
illuminated manuscripts or Italian altar
paintings
EXERCISE

What can you tell about the following artworks. Lets

discuss about the form or formalistic aspects in these
painting.

We will discuss NEXT WEEK.

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