UNIT 3

Subjects and Uses of Arts throughout History

 Subjects and Their Uses in Art

Iconography -Significance of Iconography

Elements and Principles of Art

Subjects and Their Uses in Art

• Subject refers to what an

artwork is all about. It is varied
because it pertains to anything
such as person, object, scene, or
event portrayed in art.
Photograph by: Derick Labuguen
What is ICONOGRAPHY?

Iconography is the containment of

deeper meanings in simple
representations.
Iconography is a particular
type of image used by an artist to
convey a particular meaning. It is the
traditional or conventional images or
symbols with a subject and especially
a religious or legendary subject. It may
also mean a particular depiction of a
subject in terms of the image content,
like the number of figures used and
their placing and gestures.
 1. pre-iconographic description. The most fundamental step, identifying the components in a
picture. It is “the sphere of practical experience”, augmented by research when elements of
the picture are unfamiliar (Panofsky [1955] 1982, p. 33).

2. Iconographical analysis. Here, one uses the stuff of pre-iconographic description to identify
symbolic elements such as personifications, allegories, symbols, attributes, and emblems inherent
in the artifact. It is necessary to consult materials outside of the picture or sculpture (including
books, myths, and standard representational practices for the subject) to make sense of these
elements.

3. Iconological interpretation. This is “iconology turned interpretative” (Panofsky

[1955] 1982, p. 31), wherein one synthesizes the materials collected from the iconographical
analysis with knowledge of the period in which the picture was created. To check the sanity
of one’s
interpretation, Panofsky enjoined the iconographer to hew to the “general and essential
tendencies of the human mind” (Panofsky [1955] 1982, p. 39). (Drainville, 2018)
Iconography is a method of examining, categorizing, and interpreting
imagery. As viewers of visual arts, iconography is out a most common way to
interpret images, that when we see an image, we examine it by looking unto
it, observing parts and possible symbols we are familiar with.
 Deeper understanding of how iconography
works: Jan van Eyck’s, Arnolfini Portrait
painted in 1434.

This is not a painting of an actual

scene, but an image constructed
to communicate specific things.

Jan van Eyck,

Arnolfini Portrait, 1434,
oil on canvas.
Work is in the public domain
 1.You notice that the bride holds her garment
in front of her belly in order to appear
pregnant. She wasn’t pregnant at the time of
the painting, but this is a symbolic depiction to
represent that she will become fruitful.

2.The little dog at her feet is a symbol of

fidelity and is often seen with portraits of
women paid for by their husbands.
 3.The discarded shoes are often a symbol
of the sanctity of marriage.

4.The single candle lit in the daylight (look at the

chandelier) is a symbol of the bridal candle, a
devotional candle that was to burn all night the
first night of
the marriage. Other interpretations claim
that the single candle is a symbol of the presence
of God.

5.The chair back has a carving of St. Margaret, the

patron saint of childbirth.
 6.The orange on the windowsill and the
rich clothing are symbols of future material
wealth (in 1434 oranges were hand
carried from India and very expensive)
and fertility.

7.The circular mirror at the back reflects both the artist

and another man, and the artist’s signature reads,
“Jan van Eyck was present”—both are witnesses to
the betrothal in the picture. (We don’t think of this
much anymore, but a promise to marry was a legal
contract). The circular forms around the mirror are tiny
paintings of the Stations of the Cross– moments near
the end of the life of Jesus
Different Kinds of Subject in Arts

Narrative Art
This kind of art tells a story as a
sequence of events or as a moment
in an ongoing story. This was very
evident during the medieval period in
the Christian tradition. The Byzantine
artists and the church itself depicted
biblical scenes as a narrative.

.
Nudism
The art of nudism started way back
from the upper Paleolithic period showing the
image of fertility deities. But the idea of nudism
became popular during the early Greek time,
wherein almost all their sculptural figure were
all done in the nude.
Nude art is a work of art wherein its primary
subject is the unclothed human body. A nude
figure is a tradition in Western Art that was
used to express the ideals of male and female
beauty.

.
Religious Art
Religion has utilized the arts for its purposes, usually for rituals and for
teaching. Most of the world’s religions used arts for worship, for
preaching, to inspire feelings of devotion, and to convert non-believers.
.
Personification and Allegory
Talking about personification means
talking about allegory because texts and
images which
are considered allegories often contain
personifications.
 Genre
Artists have always shown a deep
concern and interest about life
around them. Their observations
of people going about their usual
ways and performing their daily
tasks were mostly shown in their
paintings. Examples of these are
candle vendors, cockfighters,
children at play, etc. These are
called genre paintings.

“Day Off” Watercolor by

Derick Labuguen
 Portraiture
The portrait is a
painting of a human figure
maybe the face, a bust figure
or a full figure. It may show a
single person or a group of
people standing, sitting, or in
motion.
Portraits are commonly used
to mark milestones in people’s
lives. Occasions like baptisms,
weddings, and graduations are
some of the events people
pose for their portraits.

Photograph by: Derick P. Labuguen

 Nature
Artists have always been
fascinated with their natural and
physical environment, consisting
of seascapes, landscapes and
cityscapes. Seascape is applied to
works that show marine life,
water forms and sailing ships and
boats. On the other hand,
landscape depicts sceneries on
land like mountain, forest, trees,
garden, etc. while cityscape
shows urban life.

Photograph by: Derick Labuguen

 Still Life
Still life refers to any inanimate
objects usually arranged in an
indoor setting. It is a work whose
forms are arranged deliberately
like a basket of fruits, a bunch of
flowers, dishes of food on a table,
musical instruments, etc. The
goodness of having a still life as a
subject is its availability and
capability to be organized. The
artists usually arrange the objects
to show particular human
interests and activities.

“Tinapay at Kape” watercolor by: Derick P. Labuguen

Protest Art
It is an art whose subject conveys
strong hesitance to something,
maybe satirical in nature. This art
as a form of disagreement was
used by the artists of the early
medieval period in expressing
their discontentment and
disapproval against the tyranny of
Rome. Early Christian art was
done secretly because the Roman
empire was bent at consolidating
rules under an emperor.
In the modern days, people
fighting for their rights made
effigies, placards and streamers to
raise their voice in protest.
Fantasy Art
Fantasy art is an art of imagination, since the subject drawn here are far from reality. It
suggests the strange, the irrational and the absurd. There can be no limits imposed on an artist’s
imagination for it can go beyond the real and the possible.
Abstract and Non-Objective Art
Abstract art is just the same
as Non-Objective art in the sense that
both do not present descriptions,
stories or references to identifiable
objects or symbols. They depart from
what is present in real life by stripping
down to visual elements such as lines,
shapes and colors to translates a
particular feeling, emotion and even
concept.
The artist simplifies and
reorganizes objects and elements
according to his artistic expressions.
The original objects can be rarely
identified unless the artist has named
them in his title.
Polishing time
A. Identify the kind of subject depicted from the given pictures.
B. Why is abstract art considered as non-objective art?
Explain your answer
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“Art is not what you see, but what you make others see.” –
Edgar Degas