Art Criticism Lesson - University of Baguio

University of Baguio Assumption Road, Baguio City 2600 Lesson 6: Art Criticism I. Objectives 1. Explain what art criticism is. 2. Explain each of the 4 procedures in art criticism. 3. Criticize a work of art following the 4 procedures: description, analysis, interpre...

University of Baguio Assumption Road, Baguio City 2600 Lesson 6: Art Criticism I. Objectives 1. Explain what art criticism is. 2. Explain each of the 4 procedures in art criticism. 3. Criticize a work of art following the 4 procedures: description, analysis, interpretation, and judgment. II. Lesson Proper: A. WHAT IS ART CRITICISM? Art criticism is the discussion or evaluation of visual art. Art critics usually criticize art in the context of aesthetics or the theory of beauty. A goal of art criticism is the pursuit of a rational basis for art appreciation. Art criticism employs certain methods in studying a particular work of art. The methods used by art critics to identify these qualities often involve four operations: description, analysis, interpretation, and judgment. Learning how these operations are used will help you develop your own skills in examining and discussing works of art. These examinations and discussions will help you make your own personal decisions about those jobs and greatly increase your enjoyment of them. Art criticism is not a matter of casual observation and impulsive expressions of likes or dislikes. It is a reasoned activity of the mind. Art critics use the operations of description, analysis, interpretation, and judgment to gain information from the artwork, rather than gathering facts about the work and the artist who created it. Used by a critic, these operations direct attention to internal clues, that is, clues found in the work itself. When examining any work of art, critics ask and answer questions such as these: What is seen in the artwork? How is the artwork designed? What does it mean? Is it a successful work of art? B. 4 PROCEDURES IN ART CRITICISM 1. Description This initial step begins by making a thorough inventory of everything one sees in the work of art. In other words, one identifies the literal qualities, or realistic presentation of subject matter, and the elements of art found in the work. During this step you must be objective. In other words, give only the facts. List everything you see and be specific without guessing. 2. Analysis During analysis, the principles of art will be used to determine how the elements of art used in the picture are organized. By focusing on the relationship of principles and elements, one would gain an understanding of the work’s design qualities, or how well the work is organized, or put together. This understanding will enable one to determine if the work has an overall sense of unity. During step two you are still collecting facts. Now, however, you will pay attention to the elements and principles of art. You will list HOW the artist has used the elements and principles. How has the artist used lines and implied lines? How has the artist used shape, form, value, texture, space, and color? 3. Interpretation When interpreting the meaning of an artwork, one must refer to everything he or she learned during the description and analysis. The concern centers on identifying the expressive qualities, or the meaning, mood, or idea communicated to the viewer. However, everyone knows that a work of art may be interpreted in different ways by different people. Therefore, one’s interpretation of the painting will be a personal one, based on the information that was gathered from the artwork under study.  Page 1 of 2 During step three, you have two questions to answer: “What is happening?” and “What is the artist trying to say?” You will interpret (explain or tell the meaning of) the work. 4. Judgment Judgment is an important part of the art criticism process to demonstrate a genuine appreciation for art. The act of making a judgment and defending that judgment with good reasons demonstrates that a person understands and appreciates a work of art. Conclusion Understanding the steps to art criticism and implementing them in a structured way in critique, will lead to stronger artworks. These steps help us to appreciate all forms of art, including the works that we may not appreciate at first glance. All forms of art have their place, and all deserve a fair approach to evaluation. IV. References: Walker, A. (1998, October 8). Musical Criticism. Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/musical-criticism Caslib, Bernardo et.al. (2018) Art Appreciation. Manila: Rex Book Store Gaut, B. and Livingston, P. (eds). (2003).The Creation of Art, ch. 6, pp.148–73 retrieved from: https://www.open.edu/openlearn/pluginfile.php/610549/mod_resource/content/1/re a ding6.pdf https://oercommons.org/courseware/lesson/32528/student/?section=1 0 https://prezi.com/4gqfdz9e5t6w/the-4-steps-of-art-criticism/ Page 2 of 2  University of Baguio Assumption Road, Baguio City 2600 LESSON 7: PEOPLE INVOLVED AND PROCEDURES FOLLOWED IN THE PRODUCTION, CURATING, EXHIBITING, AND SELLING OF ARTWORKS I. OBJECTIVES: At the end of the lesson, the students should be able to 1. Define the role of managers, curators, buyers, collectors, art dealers in the art world. 2. Identify the medium and techniques used in the art production process. II. LESSON PROPER A. PEOPLE INVOLVED IN THE PRODUCTION OF AN ARTWORK The production of an artwork involves a complex process starting from the medium that will be used by the artist, the techniques applied to achieve the desired outcome, the unveiling of artwork to the public, and the destination of the artwork people’s homes, art gallery, or the museum. This process involves the following people. 1. ARTISTS AND ARTISANS Artists All fine artists first learn to sketch and begin with a pencil and sketchpad to work with an idea on paper. Artists transfer their visions to canvases or other medium, and this may mean working in oil, watercolor or pastels. Sculptors take their sketches and create 3D products from clay, marble, or other material. Illustrators might work for a publishing or animation company or create original comic books. All artists' work aims to create an overall reaction from a viewer. Job responsibilities of an Artist include: Developing ideas for a canvas or product Selecting a medium for a final work, including texture, size, or area Collecting work for a portfolio Applying for grants for financial support Artisans Artisans are craftsmen who make practical artistic products, such as earrings, urns, stained glass, and other accessories. Artisans gain their knowledge by studying under master craftsmen and then practicing with continued study. Artisans work to create something new, original, and at times, provocative. They spend a good portion of their time selling and promo. Job responsibilities of an Artisan include: Using and mixing mediums like paint, metal, glass, or fabric Shaping, gluing, sewing, testing, and producing products. Displaying work at various sites including auctions, craft shows or online markets. Estimating costs and material needs. 2. CURATORS The word ‘curator’ originates from the Latin cura, which means to care. Curators are employed to take care of collections. Some curators, however, don’t have collections to care for; instead, they work with artists and ideas to make exhibitions. Curated exhibitions are held in galleries and museums, but they can also be displayed in a range of locations such as local council buildings, hospitals, universities, public spaces, retail, and hospitality venues and even in disused shop fronts or residential houses. Cura is also related to the word ‘curiosity’ and curators also have a responsibility to their curious audiences. Curators spend time researching works of art and reinterpreting these works for their audiences. Today, curators, along with artists, are storytellers. Curators make decisions about which works of art should be displayed and how they should be seen. They also decide on the themes and ideas to be experienced by the audience. Page 1 of 3 3. ART DEALERS An art dealer sales and/or buys and sells art. They typically specialize in a period or genre of art like contemporary or impressionist art and can play an important role in enhancing the profiles of up-and coming artists. Dealers gain in-depth knowledge of their specialty, familiarizing themselves with artists in the field and collectors and museums that specialize in the art they broker or sell. While many art dealers’ own galleries, not all do, and it's not required to enter the profession. Art dealers often have degrees in art history or fine arts. They may start as artists themselves and shift over to sales or start with an entry-level position at a gallery, museum, or auction house. Over time, they developed the contacts and knowledge they needed to start working as an art dealer. 4. ART COLLECTORS Young or old, emerging, or experienced, art collectors are looking to buy art to build their personal collections. They buy for a myriad of reasons, from aesthetic value to financial investment. The US, China and the UK are the three largest markets for art. Together they accounted for 83% of total global sales. The US was by far the largest market, accounting for 42% of sales. China was in second place with 21%, and the UK in third with 20%. It’s not the first time that China has leapfrogged the UK in the art market, but it’s only managed to beat the US once. 5. ART CONSULTANTS An art consultant is a person who advises clients on the purchase of art. The job description for an art consultant may vary depending on their specific industry, but generally, they are responsible for helping buyers find quality pieces that fit within their budget and desired aesthetic. Art consultants work with both private collectors and businesses to help curate collections, design gallery displays, or advice customers on what types of artworks would best suit the space. This article will discuss what an art consultant does. One of the most popular services that art consultants provide is organizing open studio tours. This involves working with artists to create a tour itinerary, publicizing the event, and managing the logistics on the day of the tour. Open studio tours are a great way for people to learn more about the process of making art, meet local artists, and purchase artwork directly from the source. If you’re interested in arranging an open studio tour in your area, be sure to get in touch with an art consultant. B. HOW ARTWORKS ARE PRODUCED 1. THE ARTIST’S STUDIO Ideas surrounding the artist’s studio have evolved over time: the name is derived from the Italian word studiolo, a room which was designed for contemplation, such as a study. Men with recognizable talent were commissioned by wealthy members of the upper classes to produce portraiture, in the form of paintings, sketches or sculpted busts (to name a few examples). The studio was therefore defined as a locale where “work” was made, in the traditional sense of the word; their labors were dedicated to the receipt of payment, fiscal or otherwise. Despite the potential for the individual to have taken pleasure in his profession (his, as it was certainly male oriented) the studio was first and foremost a place of industry. Nowadays, artists create art studios unique to her/his project – it is commonly used as a space where artists get to reflect, display research, store and make art. 2. TECHNIQUES USED BY ARTISTS Artists use different techniques in making their art. Technique varies, depending on the different media used. For example, in painting, the artist may use different brush techniques to provide texture, use bright colors to intensify or emphasize the subject of his painting, or use of chiaroscuro.  Page 2 of 3 Chiaroscuro - the word chiaroscuro is Italian for light and shadow. It's one of the classic techniques used in the works of artists like Rembrandt, da Vinci, and Caravaggio. It refers to the use of light and shadow to create the illusion of light from a specific source shining on the figures and objects in the painting. In music, different techniques are applied to achieve a beautiful composition. For melancholic music, violin and piano are mostly used because of the soft sound they produce, the notes played mostly belong to the minor keys, and the rhythm is slow. The key to understanding the different techniques used by artists is to identify first the elements and principles of design used in creating the art. How the artist manipulates these elements and principles of design being driven by his imagination and creativity will determine the outcome of his artwork. IV. REFERENCES: Caslib, Bernardo et.al. (2018) Art Appreciation. Manila: Rex Book Store Cambridge Dictionary.Com. retrieved from: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/imagination Esaak, S. (2019). What Is the Definition of 'Medium' in Art? Thought. Co. retrieved from: https://www.thoughtco.com/medium-definition-in-art-182447 Page 3 of 3  University of Baguio Assumption Road, Baguio City 2600 LESSON 8: FORM AND COMPOSITION OF ART I. OBJECTIVES: At the end of the lesson, the students should be able to 1. Explain how the elements and principles of design are used to create a work of art. 2. Distinguish the elements of design from the principles of design. 3. Evaluate an artwork using the elements and principles of design. II. LESSON PROPER FORM AND COMPOSITION OF ART When looking at art, many people today take a holistic or gestalt approach to understanding it. In this approach, the work of art is experienced as a single unified whole and an intuitive conclusion is drawn. This approach to art is a good place to start, but it can also be useful to examine the individual parts of an artwork and the relationships those parts have to the whole. When we examine an artwork by taking it apart, we are looking at its design. Design is divided into two broad categories: the elements of design and the principles of design. The elements of design are the physical parts of the artwork, or the form. The principles of design are the ways in which those parts are arranged or used, or the composition. A. Elements of Design A design is a governing plan or approach by which various parts of an artwork are created and assembled. It is rare to find a work of art that is entirely accidental or has come wholly out of the unconscious intuition of an artist. Further, looking at the way in which various parts of a work of art are arranged—even an intuitive or accidental work—can reveal clues to the goals and beliefs of the artist, the community in which the artist has worked, and the problems the work of art was meant to address. 1. Line Line is the first order element of design. A line is an infinite series of points that are arranged in a direction. The direction of a line may be straight (unchanging) or curved (changing). All kinds of objects are linear, or predominantly formed by using lines. Qualities of line: a. Gesture is the line produced by the movement of the artist’s hand, arm, or body, of a kind of dance with the materials. Straight lines can represent rigidity, which is neither good nor bad, but depends on context. b. Contour is the line where differing areas meet and form edges. Human visual perception includes an enhanced ability to detect edges in nature. Contour lines follow the shapes of objects where they stand out from backgrounds. In mapmaking, contour lines indicate the shape of the landscape in regular increments of vertical height. On contour maps, lines that appear close together indicate a rapid change in height. Lines that are far apart indicate more gentle slopes. c. Crosshatching is the use of uniformly spaced intersecting lines that create the perception of value or light and dark. These crosshatching lines generally follow the shape of an object. Some lines are not drawn at all. Instead, they are implied or suggested by an intentional alignment of shapes. d. Expressive content. By its nature, a line compels the viewer to follow along its path. The character of the line can control the direction, speed, and attention of the viewer. The movement of a line can be curved or angular. A line can be thick or thin, pale, or bold. These qualities are “read” rationally and emotionally; thus, line can have an expressive and emotional content that can often be found by viewer introspection. Line is not just a two-dimensional design element.  Page 1 of 4 2. Shape The shape has two dimensions, length, and width. Shapes can be regular or irregular, simple, or complex. Shapes can have hard or soft edges. Hard-edged shapes have clearly defined boundaries, while soft-edged shapes slowly fade into their backgrounds. There are two broad categories of shape: geometric and organic. Geometric shapes are regular and ordered shapes using straight lines and curves. Organic shapes are generally irregular and often chaotic. In two-dimensional artworks, shapes are figures placed on a two-dimensional surface that is known as a ground. This creates a relationship between foreground and background known as the figure/ground relation. The figure is the object that appears to be in front of the ground. In some artworks this relationship is intentionally unclear. In this case, an effect known as figure/ ground reversal can occur. In figure/ground reversal, what was seen as the positive shape of the figure can also be seen as the negative space of the ground. This effect disrupts the sense of space in an artwork and disorients the viewer. 3. Mass/Volume Volume has three dimensions: length, width, and height. Volumes may have interior or exterior contours, and they may be closed or open in form. Mass is the quantity of matter, often meaning its weight. A closed form is a volume that is not pierced or perforated. 4. Perspective Perspective in art is the illusion of space on a flat surface. Before the discovery of the geometric system of linear perspective in fifteenth-century Italy, the illusion of space was created by using three main visual cues to the recession of space. These three cues are height, scale, and overlap. Objects that are higher on the drawing surface, objects that are smaller in scale, and objects that are partially obscured by other objects all appear further away in space. Linear perspective is based on the regular geometric recession of space. Linear perspective uses a vanishing point and horizon line. The vanishing point is the spot where all receding lines seem to converge on the horizon line. The horizon line is the set of all possible eyelevel vanishing points. Orthogonal lines are the lines that appear to meet at the vanishing point and imply the regular recession of space. Horizon lines and vanishing points can provide clues to the artist’s intent. Intuitive perspective acknowledges that receding lines converge but does not recognize that they converge at a single horizon line and vanishing point. Nonetheless, even when paintings lack a rigorously coherent geometric system of linear perspective, determining where the horizon would be can inform us about how the artist views the subject. 5. Texture The term texture describes the surface quality of an artwork. Texture is an important element of design because it engages the sense of touch as well as vision. Objects can be rough or smooth, wet, or dry, sticky, or slick, hard or soft, brittle or flexible. Actual texture is primarily—though not exclusively— sculptural, while implied texture is primarily used in two-dimensional works of art. 6. Color Color is the most prominent element of design and is one of the most powerful and yet subjective elements in art. a. Color as perceived by humans can be broken into three discrete parts: hue, saturation, and value. Hue is the wavelength of a given color. Longer wavelength colors appear on the  red end of the spectrum, while shorter wavelength colors are on the violet end. Page 2 of 4 Saturation is the purity of a color and ranges from a neutral gray to the pure color while holding brightness as a constant. Value is the lightness or darkness of a color and ranges from fully illuminated (the pure hue) to fully darkened (black). b. In organizing ideas about color, artists and art theorists have evolved a series of color schemes or ordered relations between different colors. Monochromatic color scheme uses a single color. Complementary color scheme uses colors opposite to each other on the color wheel. Impressionist painters exploited the effect of complementary color schemes to heighten the brilliance of their color palettes. Analogous color scheme uses only one area of the color wheel. If green is chosen as the anchor color for the scheme, for example, the artist will use colors that occur between the yellow and blue points on the wheel. 7. Scale/Proportion The design principle of scale and proportion is the issue of size of elements both individually and in relation to other elements. Forced perspective is the arrangement of figure and ground that distorts the scale of objects, making small objects appear large or large objects appear small by juxtaposing them with opposites. Forced perspective is most convincing when done photographically. 8. Balance The design principle of balance is the issue of visual “weight.” Compositional balance is achieved when these competing visual weights are roughly equivalent. There are two kinds of compositional balance: symmetrical and asymmetrical. The lines and shapes in a composition that uses the principle of symmetrical balance are usually equally arranged around an axis, or central line. Vertical and horizontal axes are generally reserved for very stable compositions. Asymmetrical balance is achieved when visual weights do not correspond to one another in shape, size, or placement; they are not distributed equally in a composition. Within the two-dimensional space of the work, however, we “read” each blank area as having a visual weight that counterbalances the forms in the remainder of the compositional space. It is not always necessary for an artwork to be balanced. An obvious imbalance can produce the effect of unsteadiness, disorientation, or distress, which can become a useful part of the larger idea within the work of art. 9. Emphasis/Movement The design principle of emphasis or movement is the intentional use of directional forces to move the viewer’s attention through a work of art. When we see a color shift within a shape, this implies movement. And, when we see a line in a work of art, we are compelled to follow it. 10. Rhythm/Repetition The design principle of rhythm is the repetition of visual elements to establish a pattern. This pattern can then be used to provide a stage for a special object, or the pattern can be interrupted to direct attention to the change.  Page 3 of 4 IV. References: Caslib, Bernardo et.al. (2018) Art Appreciation. Manila: Rex Book Store Cambridge Dictionary.Com. retrieved from: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/imagination Esaak, S. (2019). What Is the Definition of 'Medium' in Art? Thought. Co. retrieved from: https://www.thoughtco.com/medium-definition-in-art-182447 Page 4 of 4  University of Baguio Assumption Road, Baguio City Lesson 9: History of the Arts Objectives: At the end of the lesson, the students should be able to: 1. Trace the evolution of arts starting from the prehistoric art periods to the contemporary period. 2. Identify the differences of arts that have evolved from prehistoric times up to the present times. 3. Give observations on the differences of arts from each period of art history. 4. Give the importance of preserving national cultural heritage. CHARACTERISTICS OF ARTS ALONG THE FOLLOWING ART PERIODS PREHISTORIC ART PERIOD Divided into further into 3 periods: Paleolithic, Mesolithic, and Neolithic Arts produced: cave wall paintings, petroglyphs, rock arts, Venus’s figurines, clay pots. Materials used: Charcoal, pigments, animal blood, wood, stone, ash. Characteristics: Arts are functional (for hunting, food gathering), communication (cave paintings), rituals (Venus’s figurines), petroglyphs (shelter/shield) EARLY CIVILIZATION PERIOD Civilizations: Sumerians, Akadian, Babylonian, Assyrian, and Persian Arts produced: Early writings (Code of Hammurabi, Cuneiform), decorative arts, sculptures, paintings, statues, temples, agricultural tools (functional arts), pottery, carpet-making, and silk-weaving. Materials: Wood, stone, bronze, metals, pigments for paints, frescos, clay Characteristics: Highly advanced and well-developed arts, handmade crafts, express the culture of people and their talents. EGYPTIAN ART PERIOD Arts produced: funerary arts, pyramids and tombs, sculptures and statues, paintings. Materials used: gemstones, woods like acacia, tamarisk, and sycamore fig as well as fir, cedar, gold, silver, bronze, pigments. Characteristics: Balance and symmetry in the works of art (sculpture), Figures were always shown with a side view: The Egyptians did not employ any kind of perspective in their art, and the size of a person or object related to its importance, rather than its actual size, very limited range of colors - white, black, reddish brown, green, blue and yellow; Egyptian art often incorporated hieroglyphic text, in such a way that the art and the text reinforced each other. There were many symbolic elements. GREEK ART PERIOD Arts produced: sculptures, paintings, great architecture, temples, pottery. Materials Used: limestone, marble (which soon became the stone of choice particularly Parian marble), wood, bronze, terra cotta, chryselephantine (a combination of gold and ivory) and, even iron. Characteristics: have a high aesthetic idealism, is not a natural and direct reality representation, but an idyllic and perfect vision of the artistic mind instead, that is perceived and depicted by them in their different artwork platforms. They are greatly skilled; they idealized the representation of human figures is the taste developed for athleticism, which served as an inspiration to the Greeks and was very cultivated by these. The sport developed athlete’s perfect bodies, providing artists their best models. Fascinated by the sinuous forms of the human body, achieved already in the classical stage phenomenal domain of knowledge of Page 1 of 3  Anatomy, thereby allowing them to represent shapes and curves of the body with detail and realism. ROMAN ART Arts produced: architecture, painting, sculpture, and mosaic work. Luxury objects in metalwork, gem engraving, ivory carvings, and glass are sometimes considered to be minor forms of Roman art, illuminated manuscripts. Materials Used: Roman art also encompasses a broad spectrum of media including marble, painting, mosaic, gems, silver and bronze work, metals, glass, and terracotta, just to name a few. The city of Rome was a melting pot, and the Romans had no qualms about adapting artistic influences from the other Mediterranean cultures that surrounded and preceded them. Characteristics: Considered themselves miserable artists, but great engineers. Most of the Roman sculpture is a simple continuation of the Greek of the Hellenistic period (for example, most of the religious images). But the Romans differed from the Greeks in two areas: the relief and the portrait. The Roman relief reaches extraordinary levels and stands out for the composition of the scenes and certain effects of depth. The Roman portrait reaches extraordinary levels of realism and psychological depth. The monumental Roman sculpture has left also works of imperishable beauty. Roman sculpture was to pay homage to Roman rulers of their day, who were considered divinities. But during the Byzantine period, Christian art was abundant. MODERN ART Arts produced: paintings, sculptures, mosaic, murals, pottery, sculpture, crafts, furniture art, architecture, mixed media arts. Materials Used: oil paint, acrylic paint, watercolor, stones, rocks, metals, bronze, gold, fabric, cloths, paper, glass, clay, and a wide variety of materials. Characteristics: A genre of many forms that generally explored the conveyance of conceptual concepts that began the quest to define “What is Art” in essence and how we find meaning that defines being human. It arose in the 19th century and flourished in the mid-20th century challenging conventions and what is contemporary to a time is ever provoked to broaden our perspective of perception. CONTEMPORARY ART Arts produced: Traditional arts, Mixed arts- ex. lyrical painting, trans creation, focus on performance art (dance, music, motion pictures,), photography, pottery, graffiti art, street arts, and many more. Materials Used: A wide array of materials that are often mixed, from the traditional media to new materials, for example, coffee-painting, sand painting, etc. Characteristics: emphasis on self-expressions and the emotional attitudes; it is created having a world view and sensitivity to changing times; art appropriation is common; focus on performance arts; installation arts that transforms space; the idea of “art for art’s sake. References: Caslib, Bernardo et.al. (2018) Art Appreciation. Manila: Rex Book Store Mittler, G.2006. Art in Focus.Interactive Student Edition.Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, CA Gersh-Nesic,B. (2019). What Is Appropriation Art? Visual Arts. Humanities.ThoughtCo. retrieved from: https://www.thoughtco.com/appropriation-appropriation-art-183190 Page 2 of 3 Page 3 of 3