Art Appreciation: Subject, Form, and Content

• Art appreciation covers the essential components of art creation: subject, form, and content.
• These components are inseparable in the artistic planning process.
• The aim is to understand the artist's communication of conscious and unconscious intentions, meanings, rootedness, and context.

Subject

• This is the easily identifiable image within a work of art.
• Subjects can be representational (depicting recognizable things) or non-representational (abstract).
• The subject answers the question of "what" the artwork is about, its topic, image, or focus.

Sources and Kinds of Subject:

• Nature: Inspiration is often derived from the environment's shapes and forms, such as trees, land, animals etc.
• People and World Events: Human figures are used as subjects to convey emotions; portraits are common.
• Myths and Legends: Visualizing stories through myths and legends. Greek civilization popularized this.
• Spiritual and Religious Beliefs: Art serves as an outlet for religious expression. Common in Buddhist and islamic countries.
• Ideas Commissioned by Employers: Artists create logos, brochures, and designs based on client needs.

Form

• Form refers to the overall organization, strategies, development, composition, and substantiation of the artwork.
• Form answers the question of "how" an artwork is made.

Two-Dimensional Art

• This is created on a flat surface, or plane.
• Examples include paintings and drawings

Two-dimensional media

• Drawing involves moving an instrument to leave a mark, primarily in the form of a line.

• Important elements are lines, shading techniques (hatching, cross-hatching, blending, stippling).

• Common tools in drawing are pencils, crayons, markers, pens, and chalk.

• Painting is an art process that uses colors applied to surfaces with brushes, knives, or rollers.

• Can be oil-based (using linseed oil and turpentine) or water-based (water-soluble media).

Three-Dimensional Art

• Art that has actual and real depth.
• It can be viewed from different angles and has a physical impact.

Three-dimensional media

• Sculpture is a type of three-dimensional art using media like clay, glass, plastics, wood, stone, or metals.
• Assembling involves constructing a sculpture using different materials.
• Modeling is an additive process where the artist gradually adds material to build the form.
• Carving is a subtractive process where the artist removes parts of a solid mass to create the form.
• Casting involves using pliable materials.
• Crafts are three-dimensional objects with utilitarian intentions.
• Architecture involves planning, creating, and maintaining structures for human and other life forms.

Technological Media

• Technological media such as photography, film, video, and computer art allows for new artistic expression.
• Photography involves capturing optical images on light-sensitive cameras.
• The daguerreotype was the first camera recorded in history (19th century).
• The first digital single-lens reflex camera (DSLR) was invented in 1975 by Kodak engineer Steven Sasson.
• Film and Video involves showing motions of pictures.
• Computer Arts are once called Digital Arts or New Media Art, which relies on computers and applications to create art using software, computers, or electronic devices.

Content

• It contains emotional or intellectual messages.
• It explains the "why" of the artwork.
• Content is the most difficult aspect to recognize.