Art Techniques: Soulmaking, Appropriation, and Improvisation in Creative Practice

Soulmaking

Soulmaking is the process of giving life, emotion, and inner meaning to an artwork. It happens when artists pour their thoughts, feelings, and spirit into what they create—transforming simple materials into something that speaks to the human soul.

Key Ideas of Soulmaking

Art is more than skill or beauty—it expresses the essence of life.

Example of Soulmaking

Fernando Amorsolo - 'Planting Rice' shows Filipino joy and sunlight; captures warmth and optimism.

Summary Thought on Soulmaking

Soulmaking transforms technical art into emotional truth.

Appropriation

Appropriation in art is the practice of borrowing, reusing, or transforming existing images, styles, or objects to create new meanings.

Key Ideas of Appropriation

Artists use existing artworks, images, or symbols in new ways.

Example of Appropriation

Andy Warhol - Reused commercial images (like Campbell's soup cans, Marilyn Monroe) to comment on consumerism.

Summary Thought on Appropriation

Appropriation reminds us that art is never isolated—it builds on history, reimagines culture, and speaks through transformation.

Improvisation

Improvisation means creating spontaneously, without fixed planning or detailed design.

Key Ideas of Improvisation

Encourages freedom of expression and experimentation.

Example of Improvisation

Jackson Pollock - Used action painting; spontaneous drips and gestures to express motion and emotion.

Summary Thought on Improvisation

Improvisation celebrates creativity in motion—art as an act of presence and intuition.

Final Insight

All three—Soulmaking, Appropriation, and Improvisation—reflect different ways of giving meaning to art.