2Q_Lesson 1 - Visual Arts

Contemporary Arts 

Composed of works that are created by today’s contemporary artists and has a world view and is sensitive to changing times 

Contemporary Arts 

“Art made and produced by artists living today.”

Contemporary Arts 

“Artwork that is created by today’s contemporary artists and has a world view and is sensitive to changing times.” 

Contemporary Arts 

art produced by living artists, who produce the most up-to-date artworks 

Contemporary Arts 

refers to work of arts made since the aftermath of World War II and is used to describe the works of artists still living and creating art works

Visual Arts 

Broad term that encompasses a wide range of artistic disciplines that use visual elements to communicate ideas and emotions

Art Criticism  

Specific way of viewing at an art piece 

Art Criticism

Without being professional, one can discern the quality of art  

1. Mimetic (based on subject matter) 

2. Expressive (based on artist) 

3. Pragmatic (based on the audience) 

4. Formal (based on the form) 

THE FOUR COORDINATED OF ART CRITICISM

Subject Matter (Mimetic) 

Art is an imitation of reality (Plato, Greek philosopher)

Subject Matter (Mimetic) 

Art is a reflection or a mirror of reality (Aristotle, Greek Philosopher) 

Plato

idealist

Plato

believes that art is far removed from reality which exists in the realm of ideals or universals, of which our world is but an imperfect imitation, and art is, in turn, only an imitation of our world

Aristotle

empiricist

Aristotle

rejected the belief in the realm of ideals 

Aristotle

“Art is a mirror of reality and therefore, brings us in contact with it.”

Mimetic

approach to art criticism through the subject matter is called “mimetic” 

Mimetic

emphasizes the significance of subject matter or content in art 

Mimetic

the merit of a work of art lies in its subject

Representational or Figurative Art, Non-representational or Non-objective Art

2 TYPES OF SUBJECT MATTER

Representational or Figurative Art

depicts something other than its own form 

Representational or Figurative Art

can be defined as any type of art where the subject matter is recognizable from the real world, i.e., It shares a “likeness”

Non-representational or Non-objective Art

represents nothing except its own form 

Non-representational or Non-objective Art

subject matter and form are one: the form is the subject

Non-representational or Non-objective Art

may simply depict shapes, colors, lines, etc., but may also express things that are not visible – emotions or feelings for example 

The Artist, Writer, or Creator (Expressive)  

From the point of view of the artist  

The Artist, Writer, or Creator (Expressive)  

Means of expression 

The Artist, Writer, or Creator (Expressive)  

Artist puts something of himself into his art, it becomes an extension of himself, an objectification of some aspect of his personality  

The Artist, Writer, or Creator (Expressive)  

Stresses the relationship of the artwork to its creator

The Artist, Writer, or Creator (Expressive)  

Artist himself becomes the major element generating both the artistic product and the norms by which the work is to be judged 

The Artist, Writer, or Creator (Expressive)  

Artist's life-history, his philosophy and beliefs, his character, certain circumstances in his life which may have influences the creation of the artwork  

The Artist, Writer, or Creator (Expressive)  

His background, the era during which he lived, and other pertinent information places us in a better position to interpret and evaluate his work

Audience (Pragmatic)

From the viewpoint of the audience, art is experience; for what is a poem unless one can read it; what is a painting unless one can see it, and what is a sonata unless one can hear it?

Audience (Pragmatic)

Art always has an this, even if this is none other than the artist himself

Pragmatic Approach

Pragmatic critics attach little importance to the aesthetic value and instead judge art according to how useful it is to the audience

Modern Critics

reject the pragmatic approach

Modern Critics

they consider all the values of art, aside from the aesthetic value, as merely secondary, therefore incidental, non-essential

Modern Critics

assert that the aesthetic judgment of the masses is far from reliable, the masses being for the most part uneducated, ignorant

Modern Critics

the greatness of a work of art does not depend on, and cannot be measured by its popularity with the people

Form (Formal)

With respect to form, art is a composition, a whole consisting of various parts or elements; the selection organization, and integration of these elements according to certain formal principles and employing certain techniques constitute that which we call the form of art

form of art

employing certain techniques constitute

Modern Critics

advocating the formal and aesthetic approach to art criticism, stress the importance of form in a work or art 

Modern Critics

this view seeks to liberate art from the chains of morality, religion, political propaganda, social, reform, etc., and sets up art as something worthy of appreciation for its own sake

Formal Approach 

considers the form as the basis of aesthetic judgment and other considerations are secondary

Formal Approach 

This approach requires that the audience is knowledgeable, which is the reason why pragmatists charge that it encourages snobbery and elitism

pragmatists

charge that it encourages snobbery and elitism

Formal Approach 

analyzing the form of a painting (or any work of art for that matter) is an intellectual undertaking that employs a systematic method to arrive at an aesthetic judgment