THE CONTEXT

OF ART
• Art does not have one, single context but multiple and varied contexts.
• History is one important context.
• It is important that we discern various contexts so that we may have a better grasp of
art’s complexity and diversity. By recognizing its many context, we acknowledge art’s
interaction with active forces in the society: social, political, economic, religious, and
historical.
• Art draws inspiration from the society and at the same time, art is honed by the
specific conditions that engendered its production.
• Analyzing its contexts allows us to establish the synergy of art and society and
recognize the former’s ability to function as an agent of change.
• It also enables us to critically look at some of the widely held notions on culture and to
reexamine them from a perspective on a diligent study of specific contexts.
WHAT IS CONTEXT?
 WHAT IS CONTEXT?

• It is a set of background information that enables

us to formulate meanings about works of art and
note how context affects form.
• Refers to settings, conditions, circumstances, and
occurrences affecting production and reception or
audience response to artwork.
 WHAT ARE THE
DIFFERENT
CONTEXT IN ART?
 A. ARTIST BACKGROUND

• The artist’s age, gender, culture, economic conditions, social

environment, and disposition affect the art production.
• The mode of production which encompasses the kind of
materials accessible to the artists as well as the conditions
surrounding labor, also hope the work produced by the artist.
• Some of the artists deliberately foreground their cultural
identity in their works…
ABDULMARI ASIA IMAO (TAUSUG NATIONAL
ARTIST- AWARDED IN 2006)
 What hones the artist?
• Travels, training and professional development
broaden the artist’s horizons..
• The exposure of the painter and National Artist
Victorio Edades to the 1913 International Exhibition
of Modern Art during his study in the US in the early
20th century was said to have a profound impact on his
artistic vision and style.
VICTORIO EDADES

The Sketch
 B. NATURE
• Can be seen as a source of inspiration and
wellspring of materials for art production.
• While it is seen as source of inspiration, it is also
seen as a force that one has to contend with.
PHOTOGRAPHERS ALERT THE PUBLIC ABOUT
ALARMING EFFECTS OF CLIMATE CHANGE,
AND HOW IT FORCES PEOPLE TO BECOME
“REFUGEES IN THEIR OWN LAND”.
VEEJAY VILLAFRANCA
ROY LAGARDE
FERNANDO AMORSOLO (1ST TO BE NAMED
NATIONAL ARTIST IN 1972)
RICARTE PURUGGANAN
 C. EVERYDAY LIFE

• Philippine traditional art has always been an integral part

of daily life. Its significance lies not only in its aesthetic
appearance but also in its functionality and its value to the
community that produced it. Because traditional forms
may also be used in daily private situations, it is
experienced more intimately, and engages many senses
simultaneously.
 D. SOCIETY, POLITICS AND HISTORY
• The artist’s creative process is affected if not compromised by
patronage, such as the State or the Church.
• Changes in the society, politics and economy affect artists, the work that
they do, and the structures that support their production.
• Technological innovations engender shifts in artistic production. It was
only in the early 20th century when photography became accessible to
local photographers as Kodak set up shop in the Philippines in 1928.
• Photography fulfilled documentary and artistic functions, serving as an
alternative to painting as a reproducible and inexpensive form of
portraiture.
• We can also look at the technology-dependent cinematic art
as an example. First film ever to be directed by a Filipino was
based on the play Dalagang Bukid by Hermogenes Ilagan and
Leon Ignacio.
• Directed by Jose Nepomuceno in 1919, at the time when
technology integrating sound in the movies was not yet
developed, live music was synced with the moving image.
Here, we can imagine the singer-actress National Atang de la
Rama singing while the movie ran.
• The painting of National Artist Benedicto Cabrera titled
Brown Brother’s Burden, ca. 1970, approximates the look of
an old photograph which, presents an aspect of colonial
history from the gaze of the colonized.
• If we were to look at the jeepney on the other hand, we
will see that its style of ornamentation, reminiscent of folk
characteristics, has practically effaced its roots as a
postwar vehicle.
Brown Brother’s Burden by
BenCab
 E. MODE OF RECEPTION

• Aside from considering our personal identity as a

perceiver of art as well as the contexts discussed above,
it is also important to note when, where and how art is
encountered.
• Most often, art is encountered via the museum; arranged
and categorized before a public for the purpose of
education and leisure.
GRAFFITIS
• Reception is very much affected by our level of exposure to art forms
that may be unfamiliar or have startling or shocking images.
• In 2010, Mideo Cruz rose to national prominence or notoriety,
depending on your point of view, over his work Poleteismo at an
exhibit titled Kulo or boil at the CCP. His installation which featured a
sculpture of Christ with a phallus on his nose, among other provocative
elements, shocked a vocal segment of the Filipino public. This reaction
was not only incited by the imagery, but circumstances surrounding
the work also fueled the controversy.
• The artist’s age, gender, culture, economic conditions, social environment,
and disposition affect production as well as reception.
• There are varied contexts or conditions that affect the way art is produced,
received, and exchanged. The artist’s personal contexts like age, gender,
and cultural background may strongly influence the form and content of
their works. Larger milieus such as nature and the social environment
shape the artist’s disposition and access to resources.
• lastly, the mode of reception is an important context which considers the
moment (time and space) by which we encountered the artwork and how
we might respond or engage with it in relation to our personal
experiences and that of the wider public’s.
OUTPUT