Comprehensive Filipino Art, Philosophy, and Aesthetics Review

Human Essence

Unity of body + soul with 3 faculties.

Mind

Thinking, reasoning, imagination.

Will

Emotions, desires, choices.

Senses

Perceiving through sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell.

Socrates

"Know thyself" → self-knowledge is the foundation of wisdom.

St. Augustine

"Withdraw into yourself, truth dwells in the inner man."

Thales of Miletus

Criticized those who know the world but not themselves.

Confucius

Past wisdom guides present harmony & virtue.

Renaissance Humanism

Emphasized goodness, creativity, optimism of humanity.

Art

Conscious use of skill and creative imagination in producing aesthetic objects.

Purpose of Art

Express human values, beauty, truth; reflect culture & record history; awaken emotions, stimulate imagination, provoke thought.

Goya's 'El Tres de Mayo'

Protest & historical witness.

Jeepney art

Filipino identity & resilience.

Psychological Functions of Art

Remembering, hope, sorrow, rebalancing, self-understanding, growth, appreciation.

Art Therapy

Art therapy reduces stress.

Social Critique

Challenge norms (e.g., Duchamp's Fountain).

Perceptual Elements

Line, shape, form, color, texture.

Representation

Subject matter (person, event, object).

Emotional Suggestions

Moods like sadness, joy, fear.

Common Symbolism

Helmet = power; Skull = mortality; Clock = time passing; Book = knowledge; Light = hope; Shell = wealth.

Munch's 'The Scream'

Anxiety & existential dread.

Chagall's 'I and My Village'

Childhood memories & subconscious.

Dali's Surrealist works

Dreams, subconscious desires.

Holistic Perception

Perception organizes sensory input into meaningful wholes.

Gestalt Principles

Whole > parts; Figure/Ground; Similarity; Proximity; Closure.

Freud

Art reveals subconscious desires.

Jung

Archetypes in collective unconscious.

Aesthetics

Philosophy of art, beauty, taste (Baumgarten).

Theory of Beauty

nature of beauty.

Theory of Art

essence of art.

Art Criticism

evaluation & judgment.

Ganda

attractiveness, harmony, vibrancy.

Ugali

values, kindness, morality.

'The colorful is beautiful'

seen in parols, costumes, banderitas.

Sublime

greatness (e.g., Burj Khalifa, Niagara Falls).

Pathetic

evokes pity (e.g., famine art).

Picturesque

color beauty (sunsets, landscapes).

Grotesque

distortion (Goya's grotesque faces).

Cute

small beauty (bonsai, origami).

Piquant

ugly smallness.

Graceful

beauty in motion (dance, calligraphy).

Awkward

clumsy, unharmonious motion.

Absolute Beauty

beauty in the object itself (symmetry, proportion).

Subjective Beauty

beauty depends on observer, culture.

Imitationism / Mimesis

Plato - art = imitation, 'copy of a copy,' distracts from truth (Allegory of the Cave).

Mimesis

imitation; representation of reality in art.

Surrealism

movement emphasizing the unconscious and dreams.

Gestalt

psychological theory about perception (whole > parts).

Ready-made

readymade objects declared as art (Duchamp).

Iconography

study of symbols and motifs in art.

Pahiyas

festival held in Lucban, Quezon in honor of San Isidro Labrador every May 15.

Pasyon

singing or chanting of the life of Christ during Lent.

Humanities

The humanist learns about themselves by reflecting on their nature and own experiences.

Who am I?

the basic question in the Humanities.

Pasiking

indigenous basket backpack made by the ethnolinguistic groups in Northern Luzon.

Dayaw

meaning valuable, good, beautiful, excellent.

Tinalak

a cloth made by women dream-weavers.

T'nalak weaving

A traditional weaving technique by the Tiboli women that represents the Filipino aesthetic worldview 'the colorful is beautiful.'

Augustine of Hippo

Christian theologian who formulated the insight 'Withdraw into yourself. Truth dwells in the inner man.'

Damian Domingo

The painter who created 'Tipos del Pais,' a watercolor of Filipinos in native costumes, and pioneered genre painting showing Filipino life and attire.

Humanities and the arts

Central to all human cultures throughout time, reflecting human experience, values, and creativity across history.

Filipino traditional culture

Emphasizes the creative process (paglikha) rather than the finished product in art.

Respect for cultures

Essential for respecting one's own culture; teaches tolerance and respect as part of humanitas.

Pagpapakatao

The cultural process of becoming human, distinct from Pagkatao (biological being).

Filipino identity

Rich identity existed during the pre-Colonial Period, evidenced by pottery, weaving, music, and belief systems.

Madali ang maging tao; mahirap magpakatao

A Filipino proverb expressing the anthropological view of becoming fully human.

Cultural survival

Requires criticism and reflection to preserve and improve cultures.

Juan Luna

An artist whose works focus on nationalism and heroism, not industrial critique.

Research in Arts and Humanities

Provides societies the capacity to do more good things and improve the quality of life.

Analysis of art

Based on three human faculties: mind (intellect), will (emotion), and senses; perception is the process of the senses.

Composition with Red, Yellow, and Blue

This painting belongs to abstract or non-representational art, emphasizing pure form, color, and balance, not objects or people.

Shell

In Vanitas art, the shell symbolizes luxury and material wealth, while the skull symbolizes mortality, and books or flute symbolize knowledge and pleasure.

Dust in the Wind

The song suggests the idea of life is like dust fading in the wind, expressing human mortality and the fleeting nature of life, which aligns with the Vanitas theme—everything in life is temporary.

The Scream

Munch's painting represents fear, anxiety, and existential anguish, part of Expressionism.

Planting Rice

A representational work showing realistic Filipino life and culture.

Vanitas Still Life

The Vanitas genre symbolizes life's temporality and vanity — deeply philosophical and intellectual.

Emotional art

Art that expresses and evokes emotions such as joy, sorrow, fear, and serenity.

Symbolism in art

Symbolism in art transforms visible images into carriers of hidden meanings. A symbol allows an idea to be seen.

Emotional Conveyance

Art can express and evoke emotions by appealing to the viewer's will and senses.

Artistic Contexts

Understanding an artwork requires knowing when, where, and why it was created.

Conceptual Relationships

Art links abstract ideas with visual or material elements. Every line, color, and shape can embody a concept.

Helmet

Symbolizes power.

Broken chain

Symbolizes freedom.

Color red

Symbolizes passion, danger, or strength.

Light

Symbolizes hope or enlightenment.

Shadow

Symbolizes mystery or sadness.

Edvard Munch

Norwegian artist known for 'The Scream', which conveys emotional anxiety.

Fernando Amorsolo

Filipino artist known for 'Planting Rice', representing Filipino identity and sunlight.

Herman Stynweck

Dutch artist known for 'The Vanities of Human Life', focusing on vanity and mortality.

Piet Mondrian

Dutch artist known for 'Composition with Red, Yellow, and Blue', emphasizing formal balance.

Felix Hidalgo

Filipino artist known for 'Christian Virgins Exposed to the Populace', focusing on injustice.

Michaelangelo / Leonardo da Vinci

Italian artists known for works like 'Last Supper', 'Mona Lisa', and 'David', representing the ideal human form.

Goya

Spanish artist known for 'The Third of May 1808', addressing social injustice and war.

Malevich

Russian artist known for 'Suprematist Composition: White on White', representing pure geometric spirituality.

Historical Context

The period and events surrounding an artwork influence its style and message.

Visual (Formal)

Line, color, shape, texture, composition.

Representational

Realistic portrayal of subjects.

Intellectual (Symbolic)

Hidden meanings, moral ideas, and philosophy.

Emotional (Expressive)

Feelings, mood, psychological impact.

Cultural Context

Local traditions and values shape artistic form.