RVA REVIEWER CHAPTER 2.docx

**Art Making** - **Definition**: Artmaking involves human creativity and imagination, usually in visual forms like painting or sculpture, aimed at producing works appreciated for their beauty or emotional impact. - **Purpose**: - **Representation**: Reflects reality or expresses...

**Art Making** - **Definition**: Artmaking involves human creativity and imagination, usually in visual forms like painting or sculpture, aimed at producing works appreciated for their beauty or emotional impact. - **Purpose**: - **Representation**: Reflects reality or expresses emotions/ideas. - **Aesthetic Exploration**: Investigates the nature of perception and formal elements for their own sake. - **Evolution**: Artmaking is evolving to include more aesthetic and socio-educational functions. - **Historical Perspectives**: - **Aristotle**: Artmaking originates from the human love for imitation and recognizing likenesses. It's about copying and understanding the external and internal forms of objects. - **Leo Tolstoy**: Art is a human activity where one conveys personal feelings to others, who then experience and reflect these feelings. - **Viewer's Role**: - **Subjectivity**: Each artwork has unique criteria for understanding, leading to broader interpretations. - **Perception and Behavior**: Art and everyday objects can influence our perceptions and behavior, changing how we interact with the world. **Art Criticism** - **Definition**: Art criticism involves analyzing and evaluating works of art to understand and establish their significance in art history. - **Requirements**: - **Knowledge**: Critics need a solid understanding of art history. - **Challenge**: Critics must navigate between defending traditional values and embracing new perspectives. - **Challenges**: - **Defensive Clichés**: Critics face the risk of relying on outdated assumptions about art. - **Exploration**: The adventure of art criticism lies in exploring new art possibilities and approaches. - **Art Criticism Aspects**: - **Psychological**: Examining the psychological impact of art. - **Moral**: Assessing the moral implications of art. - **Spiritual**: Considering the spiritual dimensions of art. - **Viewer's Discretion**: - **Personal Interpretation**: The impact of art can vary, providing viewers the chance to expand their perspectives. - **Definition of Visual Communication:** - **Visual Communication** involves using symbols and imagery to transmit information and ideas. - It is a method of graphically representing information to create meaning efficiently and effectively (Pimenta & Poovaiah, 2010). - **Types of Communication:** - **Verbal Communication:** Speaking and written words. - **Non-Verbal Communication:** Tone, body language, etc. - **Visual Communication:** Includes signs, graphic designs, films, typography, and more (Study.com, 2003). - **Importance of Visual Communication:** - Visual communication is considered a major mode of communication and is heavily relied upon by people (Study.com, 2003). - **Semiotics:** - The study of symbols and visual communication. - Analyzes how people interpret signs and symbols. - Example: Recognizing a picture of a \"tree\" and associating it with the concept of a tree due to cultural and societal learning. - **Human Visual Processing:** - Visual communication allows us to grasp reality or abstract concepts through what we see. - The complexity of the world is partly processed through visual communication. - The principle that "to see is to believe" underscores the significance of visual perception. **LESSON 1: ART MAKING IN SEEING AND SENSE** **Stages of Art Making (Moore, J. O. 2021)** 1. **Inspiration** - Moment of excitement and creativity. 2. **Percolation** - Refining and developing ideas before creating. 3. **Preparation** - Active and focused creation of a blueprint. 4. **Creation** - The process varies based on personal style and medium. 5. **Reflection** - Post-creation evaluation, which can differ among artists. **Importance of Art Production** - Art making involves exploring materials, techniques, and decision-making practices used by artists historically. - Contemporary artists use production in various ways, sometimes focusing on the process itself or exploring themes overlooked by others. **Role of Visual Perception** - **Seeing and Sense (Mirzoeff, 1999)** - Human experience is increasingly visual; seeing involves both automatic and complex processes. - Eyes are seen as windows to the soul; interpreting visuals is both natural and intricate. **Sensory Awareness** - **Collaboration of Senses (Hoy, P. 2015)** - Senses work together to help make sense of our environment. - Becoming more aware of this collaboration can enhance our experiences and interactions. **Semiotics** - **Understanding Signs (Shirato, T. & Webb, J. 2004)** - Semiotics analyzes signs, which can be anything that represents something else. - Even obscure visual images can carry meaning and are a powerful tool for analysis. **Practical Application** - **Enhancing Experience (Hoy, P. 2015)** - Focus on sensory awareness to improve how you experience and interact with the world. - Paying attention to sensory inputs can offer new insights into personal and creative processes. **LESSON 2. ART CRITICISM AS READING THE REAL** **Art Criticism (Wilson K., 2021)** - **Description**: - Focus on objectively describing what is seen in the artwork. - Avoid judgments or interpretations. - Detail elements like size, scale, and materials. - **Analysis**: - Examine what the described elements suggest. - Consider why the artist chose specific colors, shapes, and angles. - Analyze how these elements convey feelings, ideas, or historical context. - **Interpretation**: - Establish the context of the artwork. - Explore the artist's intention and the work's overall meaning. - Use evidence from within the work and other sources to support interpretations. - **Evaluation of Judgment**: - Assess the artwork's place in comparison to similar works. - Determine the most important aspects for evaluating its quality. **Photographic Analysis (Shirato & Webb, 2004)** - **Stratum 1: Material Structure**: - Understand the real meanings of the photograph's text and signs. - Consider the photograph's physical and material aspects. - **Stratum 2: Social Meaning**: - Reorganize the forms in the photograph to understand their social significance. - Engage in deciphering the conventional subject matter of the photograph. - **Aristotle's Perspective**: - Art as a means of \"reading\" and interpreting deeper meanings beyond the apparent. - Art reflects ideals and imitates reality. **LESSON 3. RELATIONSHIP OF VISUAL ARTS** **Importance of Visual Arts** - **Connection to Life**: - Visual arts help express personal tastes, preferences, and ideas. - They play a role in how communities think and identify themselves. **Popular Art Expressions** 1. **Film**: - Movies are a series of still photographs projected to create the illusion of movement. 2. **Narrative Painting**: - Paintings that depict a moment in a story, providing context for what happens before and after the scene. 3. **History Painting**: - Paintings focusing on serious narratives or exemplary actions. - Subjects often include biblical, mythological, secular, or historical themes. 4. **Animation**: - Derived from \'animare\' (to breathe into life), it involves creating motion pictures from a sequence of still drawings. 5. **Comics**: - Sequential art often combined with text (balloons) to tell a story. - Originates from the Greek word \'komikos\' (comedy). 6. **Narrative Illustrations**: - Illustrations depicting a sequence of events affecting at least one character. 7. **Pictorial Narrative**: - Combines \'pictorial\' (from \'picture\') and \'narrative\' (storytelling). - Relates to telling a story through visual representation. **Visual Narratives (Pimenta & Poovaiah, 2010)** - **Definition**: - Visual Narratives are graphics that narrate a story. - \'Visual\' refers to what can be seen, while \'Narrative\' refers to the telling of a series of events. - **Characteristic Features**: - **Presence of a Story**: - Essential for visual narratives. - Can include various genres like fiction, mythology, folklore, etc. - **Purpose of Communication**: - Designed to convey a story to the viewer. - **Presence of a Participant (Actor)**: - Characters in the story who perform actions. - A key component of visual narratives. - **Unique Universe**: - Each visual narrative creates its own world or setting. - **Medium**: - Can be expressed on various mediums such as paper, stone, etc. - **Note on Viewer Interpretation**: - Understanding the narrative might be affected by cultural, contextual, or linguistic differences. - Lack of comprehension does not invalidate the narrative quality of the visual. **LESSON 4. NARRATIVE** **Understanding Narrative** - **Definition**: - A narrative is a method of presenting related events to tell a compelling story. - It connects disparate events through a theme, idea, or storyline. - Typical narratives have a beginning, middle, and end. - **Origins and Scope**: - The term \"narrative\" comes from the Latin word \'narrare\' (to relate). - Narratives are present in various forms including essays, biographies, novels, myth, legend, fables, cinema, comics, and more. - Narratology is the study of narratives (Shirato & Webb, 2004). - **Narrative as a Concept**: - Describes the quality and form of texts. - Helps interpret texts, organize information, and express personal views through stories (Worth, 2004). **Types of Narrative Writing (MasterClass, 2021)** 1. **Linear Narrative**: - Events are presented in the order they happened. - Can use any narrative perspective (first-person, second-person, third-person). - Example: *Pride and Prejudice* by Jane Austen. 2. **Non-linear Narrative**: - Events are presented out of chronological order using flashbacks or other devices. - Creates suspense or emphasizes thematic connections. - Example: *The Odyssey* by Homer and *The Overstory* by Richard Powers. 3. **Quest Narrative**: - Centers around a protagonist's journey toward a significant goal. - The journey is often fraught with obstacles and challenges. - Example: *The Odyssey* by Homer and *The Hobbit* by J.R.R. Tolkien. 4. **Viewpoint Narrative**: - Expresses the subjective experiences and perspectives of characters. - Can be first-person or third-person omniscient. - May include unreliable narrators who present subjective or inconsistent information. - Example: *Lolita* by Vladimir Nabokov. **Key Points** - **Narratives** are central to storytelling and come in various forms. - **Narrative Types** help structure how stories are told and perceived. - **Narratology** explores how stories are organized and interpreted. **LESSON 5: PRACTICE IN ART CRITICISM** **Art Criticism (Barrett, 1994)** - **Purpose**: - Art criticism involves responding to, interpreting, and making judgments about artworks. - Critics help viewers perceive, interpret, and assess art. - Art critics usually focus on modern and contemporary art from familiar cultures, while art historians may study works from distant cultures or historical periods. - **Perception of Criticism**: - Initial associations with the term "criticism" may be negative, but it is essential for understanding art. **Formal Analysis** **1. Description** - **Purpose**: - Purely describe the artwork without judgments or interpretations. - **Key Elements**: - **Form**: Type of art (architecture, sculpture, painting, etc.). - **Medium and Technique**: Materials used (clay, paint, etc.) and tools. - **Size and Scale**: Dimensions and contextual relationships. - **Elements**: Shapes, lines, colors, textures, and their relationships. - **Context**: Original location and date of the artwork. **2. Analysis** - **Purpose**: - Determine what features suggest and why the artist used them. - **Key Elements**: - **Subject Matter**: Identify and interpret iconographic elements. - **Features**: Analysis of line, shape, color, texture, and design principles. - **Light and Color**: Role and effects of lighting and color use. - **Space and Movement**: Treatment of space, landscape, and movement. - **Medium**: Effects of materials used. - **Balance and Proportion**: Relationships of parts to the whole. **3. Interpretation** - **Purpose**: - Establish the broader context and meaning of the artwork. - **Key Elements**: - **Main Idea**: Overall meaning of the work. - **Interpretive Statement**: Summarize what the artwork is about in one sentence. - **Evidence**: Support interpretation with evidence from within or outside the artwork. **4. Judgment** - **Purpose**: - Rank the artwork and assess its originality and quality. - **Key Elements**: - **Criteria**: Determine appropriate criteria for judgment. - **Evidence**: Relate evidence to each criterion. - **Judgment**: Assess the quality based on criteria and evidence. **Principles of Interpretation (Barrett, 1994)** 1. Artworks have inherent \"aboutness\" and require interpretation. 2. Interpretations should be persuasive arguments. 3. Some interpretations are better supported than others. 4. Good interpretations reveal more about the artwork than the critic. 5. Feelings can guide interpretations. 6. Multiple, even contradictory, interpretations can exist for the same artwork. 7. Interpretations often reflect the interpreter's worldview. 8. Interpretations are judged on their reasonableness, coherence, and inclusiveness. 9. The artwork's meaning may differ from the artist's intended meaning. 10. Critics should not act as spokespersons for artists. 11. Interpretations should highlight the artwork\'s strengths. 12. Focus should be on the artwork, not the artist. 13. Art reflects the world in which it was created and other art. 14. No single interpretation is exhaustive. 15. Interpretation is a communal process and should invite ongoing exploration.