Meaning and Importance of Art PDF

MEANING AND IMPORTANCE OF ART Art is a subject under humanities. Since art is subjective in the sense that people differ in their perception of an object or thing. Hence, there can be no one universal definition of it. What may be beautiful and meaningful for some people may be considered as someth...

MEANING AND IMPORTANCE OF ART Art is a subject under humanities. Since art is subjective in the sense that people differ in their perception of an object or thing. Hence, there can be no one universal definition of it. What may be beautiful and meaningful for some people may be considered as something ugly and meaningless to others. In other words, different authors and writers define art in various ways as they perceive it. Moreover, the meaning of art has changed throughout history due to multicultural settings. Thus, every time a new movement in art emerged, the meaning of what is art, what is acceptable as art, is being challenged. Hereunder are some of the definitions of art given by various authors and writers. Art is derived from the Latin word “ars,” meaning ability or skill- J.V. Estolas Art is a product of man’s need to express himself- F. Zulueta -emotions need not only be felt but expressed. These are emotions transformed into something that is beautiful worthy to be shared. Art lets people express their emotions creatively and productively. Art is that which brings life in harmony with the world- Plato -art is meant to “express only images of good, and to prohibit them from exhibiting the opposite forms of vice and intemperance and meanness and indecency” the main moral concern is the effect of art on minds and development of the character of citizens. Art is not what you see but what you make others see-Georgia O’Keeffe & Edgar Degas -one of the things that makes a great art is its ability to convey message and its efficiency to stir up people’s ability to think and interpret the artwork. Its influence or its impact on the viewers must be considered. Art is the right reason of making things. It is the process of creating things that is guided by good intention and it does not violate the universal concept of justice.- Aristotle  There are many reasons to make art. Some make art to make money. Well this is just fine, but Aristotle has his own standard of what a real art is. For him, the artist must take into consideration the impact of a particular artwork to its viewers. It must be created with good intention and for the greater good of all the people and not to demean or to cause injustice/s to the people. From the above definitions of art, it can be concluded that there are several ways of defining art as there are many people, authors, and writers in the universe. Each definition is influenced by the unique perspective of the above authors and writers as well as their own personality and character. Nevertheless, a glimpse of the above definitions bring us four (4) common essentials of art. 1. Art is man-made, not God-made -Art is a perceived, conceived idea on many items designed by man. We are driven to arrange our surroundings which for want of a better term we call nature. Art is nature framed by the artist to reveal something specific about it. It reflects the artist’s view of nature. 2. Art is creative, not imitative -Art must be creative because it’s a product of our imagination. We can use art as an expression of our feelings, emotions and selves. Art must be not imitative because every piece of art has its own artist.The artist has the property of those artworks. We can adapt other people’s style but not the work itself. 3. Art benefits and satisfies man-when he uses art in practical life through artistic principles, taste, and skill. -We take into example the programs created to help promote and care for our environment. The benefit afforded to us by the program is enough example to speak of art benefiting and satisfying man.  4. Art is expressed through a certain medium or material by which the artist communicates himself to his fellows. -The Spoliarium of Juan Luna would give us a message that Spanish friars are too much in handling the Filipino people due to abuses suffered by the latter under their hands. What are the importance of arts to my life as a student? Arts play a valuable role to students in such a way that: 1. Through participation in arts-music, dance, drama, media arts, and the visual arts-  students can develop their creativity, self-awareness, self-confidence, sense of well-being and to learn about their identity Arts create a safe space for students to explore talents and build their confidence 2. Through intense involvement in artistic activities  students experience a sense of wonder and joy when learning though the arts Working together for a common purpose teaches students that their contribution is important, which is perfect for the collaborative nature of the arts.  students can be motivated to participate more fully in cultural life Arts provide a unique platfom to discuss many different cultures, socioeconomic levels, and current events. Through arts, students have a place not only to learn about different cultures than their own, but also to ask questions and be more informed about the daily struggles and realities of people who may seem different.  students are able to gain educational opportunities which they can use later in their career life. By working collaboratively on a project, students learn to communicate more effectively , compromise when necessary, and work hard even if their role may seem small. Other definitions of art Ancient Latin, ars (“craft” or specialized form of skill) Art then suggested the capacity to produce an intended result from carefully planned steps or method. (build a house) It is considered as the “Lifeblood” of humanities Without arts, it is impossible to speak of a human person. As a human person is bound to express his ideas and thoughts. Such can be done only through medium of expression which is propounded by arts. Everything around us, all that you can see is an art, and without it, man cannot survive  Any creative skill, a talent, a painting, a design, a colorful creation, an original composition and a masterpiece. -Art can be expressed in many forms and it is commonly manifested by the skills embedded in person. Our innate gifts and talents are enhanced through different art activities It is an essential factor that motivates an individual to create and appreciate a thing of beauty. -It is impossible to appreciate something without our own standard that will help us to give our opinion about a work of art. The existence of standards that we have will always motivate us to improve further as to our satisfaction level of arts. In this case, it will motivate us to either create and improve further. What are the significance of Humanities?  It introduces us to places we have never visited. -It gives us a vicarious experience of going to places we have never been before by means of paintings, films, books and the like. More so during this whole  pandemic thing. We’re all kind of deprived to visit places we want to visit face to face. But with the different products of arts, we can somehow experience going to places that are deemed impossible to go to. It is just amazing how we could get a glimpse of what is happening in a place, real time with real people and get to feel how they are feeling too. By just simply reading a fiction book where a character gets to travel to Dysney land gives us also the opportunity to experience the place. This could be the cheapest way possible for us to go to places we have never visited and yet provides all sorts of experience.  It introduces us to ideas that never crossed our minds. -By just merely looking at someone else’s creation, it gives us the opportunity to reflect and or formulate ideas that never crossed our minds. You may even get to say, “oo nga ano, pwede pala to” or “ang galing naman ng gumawa nito, magaya nga din”. That’s another thing about arts. It activates our creativity in the sense that it introduces us to concepts that we never have thought of and not alone just to do the same but to have it as our basis in refining whatever is in our hands and in our minds.  It introduces us to persons we never met -You may never get to experience a face to face interaction or encounter with your favorite artists but you know a lot and you have a lot to say about them for you have been watching them through televisions, hear about them through radios and read about them through books/newspapers. It gives us some sort of a connection to people who are beyond our reach, even beyond our knowledge. A person can get inspired by a stranger he/she just met from a newspaper being read , or the journal being studied. Thanks to youtube you’ve got to know and let yourselves be entertained and or even influenced positively by your favorite vloggers.  By showing how others have lived and thought about life, it helps us decide what is important in our lives and what we can do to make them better.  -It gives us the chance to discover other people and their way of living, thinking and feeling. We get to see through them how we can improve and decide for ourselves in a way that does not destroy us, rather to make us reach our potentials and grow as a person. We have been so openly presented with a lot of stories from which we are drawn to reflect on, to criticize, to look up to and or to study and all of these are meant not only to touch our senses but to touch even the deepest of our core as a person. By connecting us with other people, they  point the way to answers about what is right or wrong, or what is true to our heritage and our history. -It’s always nice to connect with other people. Through them we get to learn a lot of stuff like things our immediate family members or friends have never taught us or have made us realize. As we broaden our connection, we enrich our lives as well with life lessons and wisdom. Their experiences and opinions help us become critical of what is good and bad, what is true to our heritage and to our history. Indeed it is just beneficial to get to know other people apart from our close ones. We get to hear variety of stories not only of their present, but even stories of their past where we can learn all sorts of things. It is just fair to say that we learn from all the people that we meet or have met even if it’s just one or two or too many. We learn from even the littlest of things.  It helps us address the challenges we face together in our families, our communities, and as a nation. -It helps us build better relationships and helps us cope with the different adversities of life by means of enlightenment. It inspires us to get united and not divided. By now, we are living in a world that needs more of unity, compassion, and resiliency. What better way is there for us to overcome so many adversities in life but to have ourselves be enlightened of what really is happening around us.   It develops ones critical and imaginative thinking -It broadens your perspective. You may be able to use your critical and creative thinking skills to dissect the steps it took to create a world-famous sculpture or painting. In this scenario, the humanities degree is less about you and more about your ability to appreciate another person’s hard work. It makes us understand and appreciate the experiences of others. Because by appreciating alone means we give respect of the artist’s talent, hardships and intention of creating such beauty. In turn, we get not only the pleasures of experiencing the artwork but the wonders it could create from the inside of your intellect. You must have experienced just merely looking at an artwork and you were just so entertained and amazed by how one could even possibly think of it, how such ideas could come across the that person’s mind and how thrilled you could possible be to be as creative and as imaginative. Arts and humanities are considered as two of the oldest fields of knowledge available to man. The difference between the two is often seen with ambiguity. While art is seen as more all-inclusive field, humanities, on the other hand, takes into consideration a diverse and oftentimes unrelated set of disciplines from literature to political history. Both humanities and arts can prepare you to think critically, act creatively, and succeed in a rapidly changing world  Kinds of Art The following are the different kinds of art. Definitions and examples are included below for you to better understand the lesson. Kinds of Art Definition Examples Visual Arts These are art forms that create works that are primarily visual in nature such as painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, photography, video, filmmaking, design, crafts, and architecture. Film This is also called a motion picture, a medium used to simulate experiences that communicate ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty or atmosphere by the means of recorded or programmed moving images along with sensory stimulations. Dance The movement of the body in a rhythmic way, usually to music and within a given space, for the  purpose of expressing an idea or emotion, releasing energy, or simply taking delight in the movement itself. Poetry It is a poetry that is specifically -ex. Ang Huling Tula na isusulat performance composed for or during a ko para sayo by Juan Miguel Severo performance before an audience. -also known as spoken poetry Performance It is an artwork or art exhibition art created through actions executed by the artist or other participants. and presented to an audience within a fine art context, traditionally interdisciplinary. Literary It is the integrative discipline of ideation, literary appreciation and multi-modal creative writing. - In the most basic sense, literary art is any form or piece of art, made by use of word’s Noli Me Tangere and El and language. Like the paint to Filibusterismo by Dr. Jose Rizal an artistic painter. Whether this takes form in books, speeches,  poem’s, news articles or anything else. It is both the process and Architecture the product of planning, designing, and constructing buildings or any other structures. Theater It is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers, typically, actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, called stage. Applied These are arts that apply design Arts and decoration to everyday and essentially practical objects in order to make them aesthetically pleasing. Nature of Art Art is everywhere -When you wake up in the morning what do you see? When you go to school or hangout in Robinsons place with your friends what do you see? When you shop in Lazada or shopee for a home décor or gadgets or school materials what do you see? Basically, almost everything that we see around us, including the things that we use are all products of arts. You may have just realized it by now that have created not just one but myriads of what we call now as art. Art is part of one’s life. He/she cannot ignore its presence even if he/she tries to. -We are all artists in some ways. Your choice of pairing of clothes is an art. The way you tie your hair is art. The movies you watch, books you read, musics you listen to are all sorts of arts. So basically, arts has been part of our day to day life. In fact, we desperately look for art much as we want to ignore it. Artworks have been some sort of an opium that fills the void in our lives. With it, we kept entertained. Our lives have been so much easier and comfortable with its presence and that is why people, the artists, continuously create more of it up until now. The creations improve and becomes far more impressive as time progresses. ART as expression and communication -Art is the expression of inner feelings, idea, thought about something or the environment. Art is created through expressing ones feelings, emotions, intuitions, and desires, but it is even more personal than that; it’s about sharing the way we experience the world, which for many is an extension of personality. Art is not nature A work of art is man-made whereas nature is given around us. Although art may closely resemble nature, it can never duplicate nature. It is only man’s way of interpreting nature. Art perfects nature Although nature displays order and harmony, sometimes it is in its chaotic state. Artist duplicate things they like and eliminate the undesirable elements in nature to convey their message of love and beauty. Art and culture are linked. Art is an expression of a particular person or group of people. Art mirrors the beliefs and practices of a certain group of people. Thus art reveals not only the identity of the artist but even the society he/she belongs to. Art must be universally significant. The works of Rizal and Francisco Balagtas are not read because they are old but because they are beautifully written. Arts, regardless of its origin, time, and place are liked and enjoyed by people continuously. DEFINITIONS OF BEAUTY Webster dictionary: Beauty is an assemblage of perfection through which an object is rendered pleasing to the eye. Plato: Beauty is equated with the sublime identity with good. Basically, for Plato, a thing is not considered beautiful if it does not serve a good intention. The same is true to a person as he/she will be considered beautiful so long as the beauty applies both on the outside and on the inside (personality). Aristotle: Beauty is a symmetry, proportion, and an organic order of parts into united whole. For Aristotle, what we can certainly state is that our attraction to another person’s body increases if that body is symmetrical and in proportion. *Scientists believe that we perceive proportional bodies to be healthier. Spinoza: A thing is beautiful if we desire it, and desire it because it is good; and if it is good, it is therefore beautiful. He dismisses beauty as mere sensual content. The standards include your desire on that particular thing. Hence, beauty for Spinoza is subjective. Idealist: “Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” We have different standards of beauty. What may be beautiful for me may not be beautiful to you. We cannot really judge other people of their choices because we perceive things differently and as a matter of fact, matters of taste are not matters of dispute. Santayana: Beauty is pleasure objectified. It is when the experience and emotion of pleasure intertwines with the qualities of the object that beauty arises. With art, beauty has become an artist’s definitive goal. But surprisingly, an artist’s passion transcends beyond his master pieces. It is his ultimate goal to touch and connect with human emotion. Artists are able to stimulate their audiences in some way that which would create feelings, curiosity and interest. It is capable of bringing the audience into another dimension that which play with their thoughts and memories and thus bring beauty in a sensual way. TYPES OF BEAUTY IDEAL BEAUTY One finds from objects or scenes in nature which conforms or approximate to his idea of how beauty should be made or formed, which expectation is the result of man’s accumulated knowledge or total aesthetic experiences. This type of beauty resembles perfection. REAL BEAUTY A type of beauty which conforms to the general expectations of man in a particular society, period and culture according to subject, function or genre that it represents. One best example for this is Liza Soberano. Liza’s beauty matches the standard/ tastes of Filipino about being beautiful. However, this does not mean that Liza’s beauty accords with all other people in other countries. NATURAL BEAUTY Natural beauty is aA type of beauty as found in nature and is not man- made. Objects which exhibits manifestations that there has been no intervention made by man are qualified under this type of beauty. One example for this is the Blue water located in Baggao,Cagayan ARTIFICIAL BEAUTY This is a type of beauty is realized the moment man tries to make some changes in nature in order to realize some concept, atmosphere or mood. This is some sort of a corrective measure man does to qualify a thing or a person on the standards they have for beauty. An example of this is the Banaue Rice Terraces. DECORATIVE BEAUTY The type of beauty that is realized from the actual physical or material presence of the work of art. It refers to the decorative function of the work of art that helps beautify the place. An example of this is the chapel with impressive lighting Callao Cave (Penablanca Cagayan). SPIRITUAL BEAUTY This type of beauty is discerned from works of art in which subjects are about religion, or beauty found in noble and virtuous life. This type of beauty surpasses physical beauty. This type of beauty includes qualities such as joy, love, grace, gentleness, unselfishness and not only limited to spiritual materials such as the bible and its content, churches and spiritual statues. When we express these Godlike qualities, actively live them, we're actually expressing beauty! The picture on the right shows a lot of these qualities. INTELLECTUAL BEAUTY This type of beauty is discerned after giving due consideration to points or elements or a meaning found beyond the surface or composition’s observable features. Just like how the picture on the right illustrates how our medical frontliners are, without a doubt, the biggest heroes during this COVID-19 pandemic. They've sacrificed their time and effort, and even put their lives on the line, just to make sure that we're safe. CLASSIFICATIONS OF ART A. ACCORDING TO PURPOSE 1. Practical or Useful Arts It is concerned with the skills and methods of practical subjects such as manufacture and craftsmanship. These types of arts are human creations used to produce artifacts, tools, and utensils used in doing household and everyday chores. Examples: basket weaving, agriculture 2. Liberal Arts  Liberal arts, also referred to as the humanities, includes the study of history, literature, writing, philosophy, sociology, psychology, creative arts, and more. It involves the development of man’s intellectual reasoning More broadly speaking, students earning a liberal arts degree learn to formulate effective arguments, communicate well, and solve problems. Examples: Mathematics, Philosophy, Psychology 3. Fine Arts These types of arts are the products of human creative activity as they express beauty in different ways and media for the satisfaction and relaxation of man’s mind and spirit. The term "fine art" refers to an art form practiced mainly for its aesthetic value and its beauty ("art for art's sake") rather than its functional value. Fine art is rooted in drawing and design-based works Examples: painting, Sculpture, Architecture, printmaking *The set of “fine arts” are sometimes also called the major arts, with "minor arts" equating to the decorative arts. 4. Minor Arts The minor arts include jewelry, silverware, coins, miniature sculptures and carvings - in short, anything excluded by the "major arts" such as paintings, prints and monumental sculptures are products of minor arts. The minor arts may be small, but, as the saying goes, good things come in small packages. It is really hard separate minor from practical arts since these works are connected with each other. In a way, we can categorize practical arts under minor arts. 5. Major Arts Major arts are characterized by their actual and potential expressiveness and by a purely disinterested purpose. Major arts require tremendous amount of training, effort, time and focus. Although the same demands go with performing a minor art but this classification demands for a more serious and long-term practice to perform and excel on it. Thus, requires an extensive training, focus and commitment to practice. Major arts, unlike minor arts had undergone further development/ enhancement to improve its purpose, hence more mature than minor arts. Examples: Music, Poetry, Sculpture B. ACCORDING TO MEDIA AND FORM 1. Plastic Arts The term "plastic art" - derived from the word "plasticize", meaning "to mould" - describes any art form which involves modelling or moulding in three dimensions. The most common example of the plastic arts is sculpture. This is because sculptors chip, carve, shape or modulate a range of traditional materials, such as marble, granite, sandstone, bone, ivory, wood, and terracotta, as well as contemporary materials such as concrete, aluminium, and foam rubber. These are developed through space and perceived by the sense of sight. Example: Painting, Sculpture, Architecture 2. Phonetic Arts These are based on sounds and words as media of expression. Example: Music, Drama, Literature 3. Kinetic Arts It makes use of rhythmic movement as the elements of expression. It is an art from any medium that contains movement perceivable by the viewer or depends on motion for its effect. Canvas paintings that extend the viewer's perspective of the artwork and incorporate multidimensional movement are the earliest examples of kinetic art. Example: Dance, optical illusion paintings 4. Pure Arts These are artworks in which the artist utilizes only one and no other medium of expression. We can use this to categorize the other classifications of arts. This type of art is not as experimental/exploratory as mixed art. It  focuses only on one medium probably to require focus or attention to the audiences Example: Sound in music, Color in painting 5. Mixed Arts As opposed to pure arts, this type of art uses two or more media to express oneself. It is playful, exploratory, experimental and provides variety of exposure on different mediums resulting into a beautiful harmony. Example: Opera which includes music, drama, and poetry all together. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------ FUNCTIONS OF ART Art’s general function is to satisfy our individual needs for personal expression, our social needs for display, celebration, and communication and our physical needs for utilitarian objects and structures. Below are the three functions of art. Read carefully and understand the differences between the three. SOCIAL FUNCTION It seeks or tends to influence the collective behavior of people as opposed to one person's point of view or experience. It is created to be seen or used primarily in public situations. Arts with social function have the power to affect all of us. These would include posters, political cartoons, religious paintings, bill boards, in other words, these are created works of art that are targeted to an audience. Even works that we might assume to have been done merely for the artist’s pleasure may have in fact been painted to serve a social function. PHYSICAL FUNCTION The forms and structures of art make one to live his/her life comfortably. This type of function is the easiest to spot and understand for it can be realized through the objects and environments we create which fill a utilitarian need. The processes through which a designer arrives at a solution to a problem (an answer to a need) is surely a creative process. Examples of work of arts that serves their functions include architecture, jewely, and furnitures PERSONAL FUNCTION Why do artists make art? Obvious answers, "because they choose to, because they want to, because they need to, because they can." All of these answers all point to the personal function. Most artists produce work done specifically to satisfy their own desire to produce work. It can be that simple as the artist simply enjoys painting, drawing or sculpting. They are pleased with their ability to represent the world, and they derive a certain satisfaction from doing so. Perhaps the artist finds the process art making, therapeutic. It calms them or relieves stress. You performing arts this pandemic such as vlogging, painting, singing, sculpting or dancing to reduce the burden and stress is art serving its personal function. SUBJECT TYPE There are two types of art - representational art and non-representational art. Each of them has different styles of artwork and can be easily distinguished. A. REPRESENTATIONAL ART- is the type of art that we see the most. Representational means descriptive, figurative and symbolized. Briefly, it depicts something easily recognized by most people. For example, the painting below is called Thunder Magic by Marcia Baldwin. People can generally recognize it as a horse without doubt. Although the using of colour may not be realistic, it represents an actual subject from reality. Painting, sculpture, the graphic arts, literature and the theater arts are generally under this category. Some musical composition have subjects, they are called Program music. B. NON-REPRESENTATIONAL ART- The opposite of representational art is complete abstraction, where the lines, colors, and shapes themselves are the focus of the artwork, rather than any existing thing. This is known as non- representational art.  For example, the painting below by Wassily Kandinsky is a great example. Kandinsky may well have intended for this composition to represent something which already exists, but the abstraction is so extreme that to most people, it is just an assortment of lines, colors, and shapes. Music, architecture and many of the functional arts fall under this type. The kind of music without subject may imitate natural sounds. -In short, representational art can describe a physical object clearly and the expression of artists can be easily understood by people. Non-representational art on the other hand is abstract that the artists view the subjects in a non-traditional manner. The meaning behind the picture is not obvious and may not be perceived by all people consistently. Nevertheless, the sake of both types of art is the same for it express the thoughts or emotion of artists. KINDS OF SUBJECT There are many different kinds of subject in a painting. Some of the most common are: 1. Landscapes- An outdoor view of nature, such as mountains, rivers, sky desert, fields or forests. In a Landscape, Seascape, or Cityscape, an artist creates the illusion of a three-dimensional world on a flat canvas or paper.  Landscapes include people, animals, buildings (barns, houses, or sheds), quiet roads or streets. If people or animals are included, they are not the focal point. Seascapes- A scene at sea (a ship on the water) or a scene including a portion of the sea, like waves along the beach. The water (ocean or sea) is the focal point, or a larger part of the scene and; Cityscapes-  A scene including city buildings, bridges, streets or traffic lights. A Cityscape might include a river or a park surrounded by skyscrapers.  Landscape Seascape Cityscape 2. Still-life- groups of inanimate objects arranged in an indoor setting. The objects themselves are the focal point. In general, almost any object can be included, as long as it is inanimate (nonliving) and small enough to fit on a table. Occasionally, a live animal that can be “still” is included (goldfish in a bowl, bird in a cage, sleeping cat). A Still Life is usually set indoors and contains at least one man-made object, such as a vase or bowl. Flower arrangements are a popular object found in Still Life paintings. Cut flowers no longer growing in the garden are considered inanimate. 3. Animals- Along with the human form, animals were subjects of the earliest art ever created. They are the earliest artworks known to us most especially in cave paintings. 4. Portraits- These have realistic likeness of a person in a sculpture, painting, drawing or print. Portraits might show only the face, but may include part, or all, of the body as well. Portraits may be set inside or outdoors. The subject usually fills most of the picture. Some artist’s portraits do not look realistic. A portrait may be a painting, a photograph, or even a sculpture. 5. Figures- unlike portraits, the emphasis here is on human body, either nude. The two pictures below are examples of a portrait and a figure respectively  Portrait Figure 6. Everyday life-this includes a set up similar to what is happening in our daily lives. The content here must be realistic. 7. History and legend- legend refers to the story of a definite place, local custom and haunted place. Example: Biag-ni-Lam-ang (Ilocano), Biuag and Malana (Itawes) 8. Dreams and fantasies- How a given artist renders the world of dreaming is clearly not all about fantasy. Images of dreams might also demonstrate, speak to the intellectual, sexual, social, and artistic values of artist and audience. It is easy to identify a subject as such for it has magical and unfamiliar contents. 9. Religions and myths- myth refers to the story that deals with supernatural tradition, men, culture, heroes and beliefs. Ex. Si Malakas at Si Maganda