Functions of Art and Philosophy PDF

FUNCTIONS OF ART AND PHILOSOPHY OVERVIEW There are various ways to define the nature and characteristics of arts. It is a concept which basically provides color and substance to our everyday existence as humans. Life without art is dull and without meaning. Art stimulates our senses and cognitive ab...

FUNCTIONS OF ART AND PHILOSOPHY OVERVIEW There are various ways to define the nature and characteristics of arts. It is a concept which basically provides color and substance to our everyday existence as humans. Life without art is dull and without meaning. Art stimulates our senses and cognitive abilities as it allows the expression of emotions and the subjective self. LEARNING OBJECTIVES At the end of this lesson, the students are expected to: 1. Distinguish directly functional and indirectly functional art 2. Explain and discuss the basic philosophical perspectives on art 3. Realize the functions and purpose of art forms in everyday life 4. Apply concepts and theories on politics and aesthetics in real life issues COURSE MATERIALS *note: Before starting the discussion and to better understand the lesson, the instructor/professor is recommended to ask the students to watch the video links. Also, the instructor/professor can modify the video links listed according to his/her preference. 1. Video link discussion on Function of Art: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYdkTW-wPlA 2. Video link discussion on Purpose and Function of Art: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3tWjB_mB_Jo 3. Video link discussion of Alain de Botton, What art is for?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZVlQOytFCRI 4. Video link discussion of Katerina Gregos, Why art is important?: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UPk56BR1Cmk 5. Video link presentation of 1st year anniversary of Surian ng Sining (SUSI): https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=2706734962938036 Discussion Philosophy as a World-view and Methodology by Alexander Spirkin Philosophy, science, and art differ principally according to their subject-matter and also the means by which they reflect, transform and express it. In a certain sense, art, like philosophy, reflects reality in its relation to man, and depicts man, his spiritual world, and the relations between individuals in their interaction with the world. We live not in a primeval pure world, but in a world that is known and has been transformed, a world where everything has, as it were, been given a "human angle", a world permeated with our attitudes towards it, our needs, ideas, aims, ideals, joys and sufferings, a world that is part of the vortex of our existence. If we were to remove this "human factor" from the world, its sometimes inexpressible, profoundly intimate relationship with man, we should be confronted by a desert of grey infinity, where everything was indifferent to everything else. Nature, considered in isolation from man, is for man simply nothing, an empty abstraction existing in the shadowy world of dehumanized thought. The whole infinite range of our relationships to the world stems from the sum-total of our interactions with it. We are able to consider our environment rationally through the gigantic historical prism of science, philosophy and art, which are capable of expressing life as a tempestuous flood of contradictions that come into being, develop, are resolved and negated in order to generate new contradictions. No scientifically, let alone artistically, thinking person can remain deaf to the wise voice of true philosophy, can fail to study it as a vitally necessary sphere of culture, as the source of world- view and method. Equally true is the fact that no thinking and emotionally developed person can remain indifferent to literature, poetry, music, painting, sculpture and architecture. Obviously, one may be to some extent indifferent to some highly specialized science, but it is impossible to live an intellectually full life if one rejects philosophy and art. The person who is indifferent to these spheres deliberately condemns himself to a depressing narrowness of outlook. Does not the artistic principle in philosophical thought deserve the attention of, and do credit to, the thinking mind, and vice versa? In a certain generalized sense the true philosopher is like the poet. He, too, must possess the aesthetic gift of free associative thinking in integral images. And in general one cannot achieve true perfection of creative thought in any field without developing the ability to perceive reality from the aesthetic standpoint. Without this precious intellectual prism through which people view the world everything that goes beyond the empirical description of facts, beyond formulae and graphs may look dim and indistinct. Scientists who lack an aesthetic element in their makeup are dry-as-dust pedants, and artists who have no knowledge of philosophy and science are not very interesting people either, for they have little to offer above elementary common sense. The true artist, on the other hand, constantly refreshes himself with the discoveries of the sciences and philosophy. While philosophy and science tend to draw us into "the forest of abstractions", art smiles upon everything, endowing it with its integrating, colorful imagery. Life is so structured that for a man to be fully conscious of it he needs all these forms of intellectual activity, which complement each other and build up an integral perception of the world and versatile orientation in it. The biographies of many scientists and philosophers indicate that the great minds, despite their total dedication to research, were deeply interested in art and themselves wrote poetry and novels, painted pictures, played musical instruments and molded sculpture. How did Einstein live, for example? He thought, wrote, and also played the violin, from which he was seldom parted no matter where he went or whom he visited. Norbert Wiener, the founder of cybernetics, wrote novels, Darwin was deeply interested in Shakespeare, Milton and Shelley. Niels Bohr venerated Goethe and Shakespeare; Hegel made an exhaustive study of world art and the science of his day. The formation of Marx's philosophical and scientific views was deeply influenced by literature. Aeschylus, Shakespeare, Dante, Cervantes, Milton, Goethe, Balzac and Heine were his favorite authors. He responded sensitively to the appearance of significant works of art and he wrote poetry and fairy-tales. The radiance of a broad culture shines forth from the work of this genius. Lenin was not only acquainted with art but also wrote specialized articles about it. His philosophical, sociological and economic works are studded with apt literary references. And what a delight he took in music! In short, the great men of theory were by no means dry rationalists. They were gifted with an aesthetic appreciation of the world. And no wonder, for art is a powerful catalyst for such 2 abilities as power of imagination, keen intuition and the knack of association, abilities needed by both scientists and philosophers. If we take the history of Oriental culture, we find that its characteristic feature is the organic synthesis of an artistic comprehension of the world with its philosophical and scientific perception. This blending of the philosophical and the artistic is inherent in all peoples, as can be seen from their sayings, proverbs, aphorisms, tales and legends, which abound in vividly expressed wisdom. If we are to develop effective thinking, we must not exclude any specifically human feature from participation in creative activity. The gift of perception, penetrating observation of reality, mathematical and physical precision, depth of analysis, a free, forward-looking imagination, a joyful love of life—these are all necessary to be able to grasp, comprehend and express phenomena, and this is the only way a true work of art can appear, no matter what its subject may be. Can one imagine our culture without the jewels of philosophical thought that were contributed to it by human genius? Or without its artistic values? Can one conceive of the development of contemporary culture without the life-giving rays of meditative art embodied in the works of such people as Dante, Goethe, Leo Tolstoy, Balzac, Pushkin, Lermontov, Dostoyevsky, Tchaikovsky, and Beethoven? Culture would have had a very different history but for the brilliant minds that gave us their masterpieces of painting, music, poetry and prose. The whole world of our thoughts and feelings would have been different, and incomparably poorer. And we, as individuals, would also have been flawed. The intellectual atmosphere that surrounds us from childhood, the style of thinking that permeates folk sayings, tales and songs, the books we have read, the paintings and sculptures we have admired, the music we have heard, the view of the world and humanity that we have absorbed thanks to our contact with the treasures of art, has not all this contributed to the formation of our individual self? Did it not teach us to think philosophically and perceive and transform the world aesthetically? An indispensable feature of art is its ability to convey information in an evaluative aspect. Art is a combination of man's cognitive and evaluative attitudes to reality recorded in words, colors, plastic forms or melodically arranged sounds. Like philosophy, art also has a profoundly communicative function. Through it people communicate to one another their feelings, their most intimate and infinitely varied and poignant thoughts. A common feature of art and philosophy is the wealth they both contain of cognitive, moral and social substance. Science is responsible to society for a true reflection of the world and no more. Its function is to predict events. On the basis of scientific discoveries one can build various technical devices, control production and social processes cure the sick and educate the ignorant. The main responsibility of art to society is the formation of a view of the world, a true and large-scale assessment of events, a rational, reasoning orientation of man in the world around him, a true assessment of his own self. But why does art have this function? Because in its great productions it is not only consummately artistic but also profoundly philosophical. How deeply philosophical, for instance, are the verses of Shakespeare, Goethe, Lermontov, Verhaeren! And indeed all the great writers, poets, composers, sculptors, architects, painters, in short, all the most outstanding and brilliant exponents of art were imbued with a sense of the exceptional importance of progressive philosophy and not only kept abreast of but were often responsible for its achievements. How profound were Tolstoy's artistically expressed meditations on the role of the individual and the people in the historical process (for example, Napoleon and Kutuzov, or the Russian people in the war of liberation of 1812, as portrayed in War and Peace), on freedom and necessity, on the conscious and the unconscious in human behavior. Consider the psychological and philosophical depth and the artistic power with which Balzac revealed the social types in the society of his day in all their diversity (the idea of greed and acquisitiveness in the character of Gobseck!). How philosophical are the artistic and 3 publicistic works of Voltaire, Rousseau, Diderot, Thomas Mann, Heine, Herzen, Chernyshevsky and many others. If we turn to science fiction, we find that it is full of scientific and philosophical reflections, of varying visions of the future of science, technology and human existence in general. Quite often its plot is a series of mental experiments. However, neither the scientific nor the philosophical content, no matter how fully expressed in a work of art, constitutes its specific element. We never speak of any work of art, no matter how powerful, as a study, whereas creative work in philosophy is a study, an inquiry, and it is characterized above all not by its artistic but by its scientific qualities, although its artistic aspect is highly valued and has more than purely aesthetic significance. The crown of philosophical inquiry is truth and prediction, whereas in art it is artistic truth, not accuracy of reproduction, in the sense of a copy of what exists, but a lifelike portrayal of typically possible phenomena in either their developed or potential form. If art produced only truths similar to scientific truths, there would be no masterpieces of world art. The immortality of great masterpieces lies in the power of their artistic generalization, generalization of the most complex phenomenon in the world—man and his relations with his fellow men. Some people believe that the specific feature of art is that the artist expresses his own intellectual world, his own intrinsic individuality. But this is not quite true. In any active creativity, any act that reflects and transforms life, a person also expresses himself. And the higher the level of creativity, in this case artistic, the higher the level of generalization, and hence the universal, despite all the individuality of the form. "Man's individuality or singularity is not a barrier to the universality of the will, but is subordinated to it. A just or moral, in other words, a fine action, although performed by one individual, is nevertheless approved by all. Everyone recognizes himself or his own will in this act. Here there occurs the same thing as in a work of art. Even those who could not create such a work find their own essence expressed therein. Such a work is therefore truly universal. The more its individual creator dissolves in it, the more approval it earns." The aesthetic principle is not the specific element in philosophy although it is present there. Naturally, philosophy is distinguished from the other sciences by its being related far more closely to the aesthetic principle, to art. It synthesizes the everyday experience of the people and something from the other sciences, and also something from art without confining itself to any of them. The aesthetic element is also present in any science. By some scientists it is even regarded as a criterion of truth: the true is elegant and highly refined in its structure. The beauty, the elegance of an experiment, or of any theoretical construction, especially if it sparkles with wit, does credit to scientific thought, evokes our legitimate admiration and affords us intellectual and aesthetic pleasure. Quite often this elegance shows itself in a meaningful brevity, for genius is usually simply expressed, without superfluous words. So truth and beauty are sisters, although not always. In philosophy this aesthetic principle is expressed more powerfully and fully. It is not only more synthetic and integrated than science. In its very social purpose it is, or should be, closer and more understandable to the masses of the people. It should not be separated from them by the "barbed wire" of a formalized, let alone a mathematised language. A considerable number of philosophical works have been written in poetic and artistic form. Actually they are not poetry but philosophical thoughts expressed as poetry. Many brilliant works of philosophy are couched in such fine language that they read like great works of both science and art. Inspired by their genius, the great philosophers clothed their profound thoughts in images of astonishing aptness. Many people draw attention to the fact that the achievements of science, no matter how significant they once were, are constantly being reviewed, whereas the masterpieces of art survive the centuries in all the splendor of their individuality. But have you noticed that something similar 4 happens in philosophy too? The works of the great philosophers retain their inimitable value through the centuries. So in philosophy, just as in art, history is of special importance. Whereas the works of the classical natural scientists are expounded in textbooks and few people read them in the original, the classical works of philosophy must be read in the original in order to gain a full appreciation of philosophical culture. Every great philosopher is unique in his intellectual and moral value; he teaches us to perceive the world and ourselves profoundly and in their most subtle aspects. What has been said does not, of course, imply that philosophy may ultimately be reduced to a form of art. Philosophical treatises do not become works of art even when they are expressed in the colorful and deeply symbolical language of poetry, as was often the case in ancient times, in the philosophy of the Renaissance and the New Age. Take Plato, for example. He had a colorful world-view, its very form evokes admiration. He is aesthetic all the way through. Or take the philosophical views of the French materialists of the 18th century. They are simultaneously splendid works of art, full of humor, satire and barbed witticisms aimed at religion, scholasticism, and so on. Their works still delight us with the brilliance of their form, which clothes subtle and profound thoughts. Or again, take the philosophical ideas of Tolstoy or Dostoyevsky, in which their masterpieces are steeped. We began by dealing with the aesthetic principle in philosophy. But to a no less degree one can speak also of the philosophical principle in art. Probably the closest thing to philosophy is poetry, which has the power to make laconic but profound generalizations about both social and individual life, moral phenomena, and the relationship between man and the universe. The metaphorical language of art, far from being alien to philosophy and other sciences, is an essential condition for every new step into the unknown. The similar and the specific in philosophy and art can also be seen in the nature of generalization. Philosophy uses generalizations and its generalizations are of an extremely broad, virtually universal character. Its categories of the general, the particular and the unique are both interconnected and yet separate concepts. In art, on the other hand, the general, the particular and the unique are alloyed in the very fabric of the artistic image. Philosophy is theoretical from beginning to end, whereas art is sensuous and imaginal. Philosophical thought reflects its subject- matter in concepts, in categories; art is characterized, on the other hand, by emotional and imaginal reflection and by transformation of reality. This is not to say, of course, that art, particularly in its verbal form, in belles lettres, and even more so in the intellectual type of novel, contains no concepts. Dostoyevsky's novels are three-quarters philosophical. The same applies to the works of Goethe, for example, for whom feeling and a philosophical understanding of nature, expressed in both artistic form and scientific analysis, were his life's work. The scientific, philosophical and artistic approaches were organic in Goethe. His work as a thinker is inseparable from that of the artist. When composing his works of art, he is at the same time a philosopher. He achieves the greatest aesthetic power in those very works (Prometheus and Faust) where the unity of artist and philosopher is most organic. Can we distinguish clearly between the philosophical and aesthetic principles in Faust? All that can be said is that no genius could have created such a work without a synthesis of the philosophical, aesthetic and the scientific. Without a certain degree of intellect there can be no subtle feelings and from this it follows that art, which aesthetically expresses man's emotional-intellectual world in his relationship to the environment, is bound to feel the impact of philosophy and the other sciences. A world-view may come into art but not as an intrinsic part of it. We can speak of the philosophical content of art, just as we can speak of the philosophical content of science, when the scientist begins to consider the essential nature of his science, its moral value, social responsibility, and so on. These are actually philosophical questions and they do not form part of the specific nature of the given science. Rather they are the self-awareness of the science, just as the artist's reflections on the nature of art, its social meaning, and so on, are the self-awareness of art. And this is in fact philosophy, 5 whose categories permeate all forms of thought, including that of the artist. Without them no artist could generalize, identify the typical in the particular fact, assess the quality of his subject-matter, preserve proportion, the most vital element in aesthetic imagination, or comprehend the contradictions of life in such a way as to give them full expression. The work of the artist is not spontaneous. It always follows some kind of plan and it is most effective when talent is guided by a world-view, when the artist has something to tell people, much more rarely is it effective when it comes about as a result of the accidental associative play of the imagination, and never is it effective when it is a result of blind instinct. The keen attention that is given to the problems of method is a sign of progress in both modern science and art, a sign of the increasing interaction of all aspects of intellectual life—science, philosophy, and art. ASSESSMENT/ SUGGESTED STUDY GUIDE 1. How is Philosophy and Art connected? 2. Discuss the various purposes and functions of art in our society. 3. Explain the meaning of “And no wonder, for art is a powerful catalyst for such abilities as power of imagination, keen intuition and the knack of association, abilities needed by both scientists and philosophers.” 6  SUBJECT, CONTENT, AND ART AND ARTISANS OVERVIEW This module is an interlinked in the arts and philosophical concepts, theories vis-à-vis functions of art, its subject, content, and art and artisans. LEARNING OBJECTIVES At the end of this lesson, the students are expected to: 1. Know and understand the essential feature of the functions of art and philosophy as well as theories of representational art and non-representational art. 2. Compare and contrast representational art with the development of non-representational art or art as expression. 3. Characterize sources and kinds of art through its content in art (levels of meaning). 4. Define an artist’s or artisan’s medium and technique. COURSE MATERIALS 1. Chapters 1 and 2, Philosophy of Art, A Contemporary Introduction, Noel Caroll, Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group, London and New York, 2002. (PDF included) 2. Mao Zedong’s Revolutionary Aesthetics and Its Influence on the Philippine Struggle by Alice G. Guillermo (PDF included) (https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1-5i9GjfIVbs2pVI7JwbHN90QvtAAY3C_?usp=sharing) Discussion 1. After Chapter 1 “Art and Representation” on “Philosophy of Art, A Contemporary Introduction”, the instructor will facilitate the discussion on the following: - Discuss / write (for offline students) how the earliest philosophies of art in the West influence the art for centuries, like the imitative (mimetic) theory of art by Plato and Aristotle. - Discuss / write at least one reflective question you have in mind about theories of representation. 2. After Chapter 2 “Art and Expression “on “Philosophy of Art, A Contemporary Introduction”, the instructor will facilitate the discussion on the following: - Discuss / write by differentiating the theories of representation (imitation, representational, nonrepresentational, visual, or pictorial representation-resemblance theory, illusion theory, conventionalist theory, neonaturalist) with the expression theory of art. - Discuss / write at least one reflective question you have in mind about the expression theory of art. 7 3. After reading the article “Mao Zedong’s Revolutionary Aesthetics and Its Influence on the Philippine Struggle” by Alice G. Guillermo, the instructor will facilitate the discussion on the following: - Discuss / write a short analysis on a particular subject in the article in relation to the study of art appreciation course. Suggested Study Guide - Search the internet for sample of works by artists and artisans and write an analysis of the difference or similarity between artists and artisans by discussing their medium and techniques. - Examine a work of art in your home or community and identify its features which you appreciate and cite instances when the artists’ work may influence your ways of life, feelings and thoughts. ASSESSMENT Aside from submission of all written articles based on the instructions during the discussions, students will have to write and submit a reflection and general impressions on the texts and lessons about the Functions of Art and Philosophy/Subject/Content/Artists and Artisans. 8  ELEMENTS AND PRINCIPLES OF ART OVERVIEW There is no art without its elements. This formal quality of art in its distinct usage and arrangement give art beauty and contribute to its meaning. In this topic, this different elements and principles of art, and how these translate in an artwork will be discussed and examined. LEARNING OBJECTIVES At the end of this lesson, the students are expected to: 1. Identify the elements of art. 2. Analyze the various elements present in visual, auditory, and combined arts. 3. Identify the principles of design. 4. Define and translate principles of design in an artwork. COURSE MATERIALS 1. Menoy, Jesus Z. Introduction to the Humanities (A holistic Approach). Books Atbp. Publishing Corp., 2009 2. Reganio Jr. et al. Art Appreciation: Introductory Reading on Humanities Focus on Philippine Art Scene. Books Atbp. Publishing Corp., 2013 3. Constantino Jr., Bienvenido B. Arts Across Time and Borders. Books Atbp. Publishing Corp., 2014 Discussion What are the forms of art? 1. Literary Arts are those presented in the written mode and intended to be read. These include prose and poetry. (e.g. novels, short stories, sonnet, ballad, epic, essay) 2. Visual Art are those forms perceived by the eyes. These include painting, sculpture, and architecture a. Graphic Arts are those visual arts that have length and width; they are also called two-dimensional arts. They are described as flat arts because they are seen of flat surfaces. b. Plastic Arts are those visual arts that have length, width, and volume; thus, they are also called three-dimensional arts. 3. Audio Visual Art are those forms perceived by both ears (audio) and eyes (visual). They are called performing arts in as much as the artists render a performance in front of an audience. 9  What are the elements of art? I. Color - gives meaning, value, intensity and saturation to an object. It has series of wave lengths which strikes our retina. - “element that is produced when light strikes an image” - Its properties include: 1. Hue refers to the names we assign a color, such as yellow, blue, green 2. Saturation refers to the vividness of color. 3. Value refers to the lightness or darkness of the color. Figure 1: The Color Wheel Classification of colors: o Primary colors- colors that cannot be formed from mixtures because they are pure colors. Example: red, blue and yellow. o Secondary colors- colors form out of combination of two primary colors. Example: Blue + Yellow = Green; Red + Blue = Violet; Red + Yellow = Orange o Intermediate colors- colors form out of mixing one primary and one secondary. Example: Yellow + Green = Yellow green; Red + Violet = Red violet; Red + Orange = Red orange o Tertiary colors- form out of combination of two secondary colors. Example: Orange + purple = russet; Orange + green = citron; Purple + green = olives 10 II. Line - one or two dimensional art that indicates direction, orientation, movement, and energy. It is considered as the oldest, simplest, universal element. Types of Lines: 1. Solid line: used to define forms 2. Broken lines: used to suggest hidden forms Direction of Line: o Vertical line- basic framework of all forms, power, strength, stability, simplicity, and efficiency. o Horizontal line- creates an impression of serenity and perfect stability. Rest, calmness, peace, and reposed. 11  o Diagonal line- it shows movement and instability. Portrays movement action. o Jagged line- it shows violence, zigzag, confusion, and conflict. o Curve line- it shows a gradual change of direction and fluidity. It signifies subtle form. III. Form ▪ “includes shape and perceived volume”* ▪ In 3D figures, the form is exemplified in its height, width, and depth* ▪ Shape which the expression of content takes ▪ The personal ways of handling tools to form shapes is allows an artist to create his own unique technique ▪ Material, on the other hand, is the substance used in art and what is manipulated in a distinct technique (Left: Seated Youth by Wilhelm Lehmbruck; Right: The Thinker by Auguste Rodin) 12 IV. Space ▪ Provided by the artist for specific purposes* ▪ Includes the foreground, background, middle ground* ▪ It also includes the area between objects, which can either be positive space or negative space;* positive space refers to the focal objects in the work of art, while negative space refers to empty space surrounding the objects. ▪ Two types of perspective: 1. Atmospheric: utilizes the properties of light and air in depicting the illusion of distance 2. Linear: involves the use of vanishing points and receding hidden lines (Above: Linear Perspective; Below: Atmospheric Perspective) 13  Background Middle Ground Foreground (Above: Wanderer Over a Sea of Fog by Caspar David Friedrich; Below: Still Life, Jar and Fruits by Paul Cezanne) Negative Space Positive Space 14  V. Texture ▪ “denotes the smoothness, ruggedness of the image or the object.”* ▪ Can either be:* 1. Real – can be felt 2. Implied – artificial VI. Shape and Mass ▪ Refers to an area with boundaries identified or drawn using lines ▪ Two types of shapes: 1. Organic shape – based on natural or living forms and can be irregular 2. Geometric shape – based on measured forms Principles of Art o Emphasis – the composition refers to developing points of interest to pull the viewer’s eye to important parts of the body of the work. o Balance – it is a sense of stability in the body of work. It can be created by repeating same shapes and by creating a feeling of equal weight. o Harmony – achieved in a body of work by using similar elements throughout the work, harmony gives an uncomplicated look to your work. o Variety – refers to the differences in the work, you can achieve variety by using difference shapes, textures, colors and values in your work. o Movement – adds excitement to your work by showing action and directing the viewer’s eye throughout the picture plane. o Rhythm – a type of movement in drawing and painting. It is seen in repeating of shapes and colors. Alternating lights and darks also give a sense of rhythm. 15  o Proportion or scale – refers to the relationships of the size of objects in a body of work. Proportions give a sense of size seen as a relationship of objects. Such as smallness or largeness. o Unity – is seen in a painting or drawing when all the parts equal a whole. Your work should not appear disjointed or confusing. ASSESSMENT Create an artwork that would exhibit at least five elements of art using any form or media. Then write a short essay on how the principles of art are used and integrated in your artwork. 16  ASSUMPTIONS OF ART OVERVIEW Many people find art as a key to the meaning of their lives. Art for them is the source of meanings. Theories of art are very important topic to be discussed in this module. In this topic, at least five out of the many theories of art would be studied and imbedded in the minds of the students. These theories are art as imitation, as expression of emotion, as form, as what the artworld say it is and the end of art. LEARNING OBJECTIVES At the end of the discussion, the students are expected to: 1. Describe fully and enumerate the five theories of art 2. Identify and differentiate the Five Theories. 3. Explain the significance and uniqueness of each theory COURSE MATERIALS 1. The discussion of the five theories of art is based on Manuel Velasquez’s book called Philosophy: A Text with the Readings. The students are advised to read Chapter 9: Art and Meaning, pages 665-697. 2. The students must also watch the following movies/documentaries: a. The Russian Ark- A Russian film without editing b. The Buried- a Hollywood film with only one character *note: With these two films, the students can analyze and apply the theories of art. c. A BBC documentary ‘What is Beauty’ – this documentary film explains the rules of proportionality being applied in the human face and tackles the theories of art as well. ASSESSMENTS 1. Clearly differentiate the five theories of art. a. What are the assumptions of each theory? b. What are the criticisms on each theory? c. What are their commonalities? 2. Give at least one or two examples of each theory of arts being applied in the nine major kinds of arts namely: a. Sculpture f. Photography b. Painting g. Film c. Architecture h. Music d. Literature i. Dance e. Theatre 17