Lecture 5: Art and Philosophy - PDF

LECTURE 5 Art and Philosophy: Formalism, Functionalism and Hedonism Prepared by Dr. Allan C. Orate DR. ALLAN C. ORATE, UE DR. ALLAN C. ORATE, UE OBJECTIVES a. Relate the study of art to the field of philosophy. b. Compare and cont...

LECTURE 5 Art and Philosophy: Formalism, Functionalism and Hedonism Prepared by Dr. Allan C. Orate DR. ALLAN C. ORATE, UE DR. ALLAN C. ORATE, UE OBJECTIVES a. Relate the study of art to the field of philosophy. b. Compare and contrast formalism, expressionism, hedonism and other theories of art. c. Identify artworks, styles and artists that abide with the formalist, functionalist and hedonistic theories. d. Apply the theories to the analysis of art. e. Interpret formalism as the foundation of modern non-objective art. f. Formulate a philosophical approach to the study of Art Appreciation. g. Evaluate the merit or demerit of artworks using the formalist, expressionist and hedonistic principles. h. Make works of art that show the application of the theories. DR. ALLAN C. ORATE, UE READINGS 5.1. Kandinsky, Wassily (1911). “Theory” excerpt from Concerning the Spiritual in the Arts, pp. 46-52. In http://www.semantikon.com/art/kandinskyspiritualin art.pdf 5.2. Tolstoy, Leo (1897). Excerpt from What is Art. In https://www.google.com.ph/webhp?sourceid=chrom einstant&rlz=1C1RLNS_enPH670PH670&ion=&espv=2 &ie=UTF 8#q =what+is+art+leo+tolstoy+pdf. DR. ALLAN C. ORATE, UE VIDEOS 5.1. “Kandinsky and Schonberg” in https://www.you tube.com/watch?v=I0DX YTN0OAM 5.2. “ArtSleuth VAN GOGH, The Starry Night (final version).” In https:// www.youtube.com/results? search_query=Artsleuth+Van+Gogh+Starry+Night +MOMA. LECTURES 5.1. Formalist Theory of Art 5.2. Expressionist Theory of Art 5.3. Aesthetic Hedonism DR. ALLAN C. ORATE, UE  LECTURE 5.1 Formalist Theory of Art DR. ALLAN C. ORATE, UE DR. ALLAN C. ORATE, UE  Is this art according to representationism?  FORMALISM Art is the combination of perceptual elements. AUDITORY VISUAL Rhythm Line Pitch Shape FORM = ART Melody Value Harmony Texture Dynamics Color Art is NON-FIGURATIVE because does not contain any representation. NON-FIGURATIVE ART has no representation The way of presenting the subject is NON-OBJECTIVE  CLIVE BELL (1881-1964) ART = “To appreciate art, we Significant bring with us nothing Form from life.” What is essential in art is only the “significant form”. “Art for art’s sake.” THEOPHILE GAUTIER  PAUL CEZANNE 1839-1906 “Artists need to look at nature and things only as forms made up of spheres, cylinders, cones.” Cezanne, Mount Sainte-Victoire, 1902  Cezanne Apples and Oranges REPRESENTATION FORM Green Isosceles Pine Tree Triangle Brown Vertical Rectangle THIN AND THICK BLACK SLANTING LINES AND SHAPES  REDUCTION OF REPRESENTATION INTO FORM  You see only shapes and sizes, not genitals nor the sex act. There is no pornography in formalism!  WASSILY KANDINSKY (1881-1964) Concerning the Spiritual in the Arts, 1923 REPRESENTATIONAL ART: PURELY FORMAL ART: Sign of Materialism in Would bring about the Society Spiritual Life “Art is born from the inner necessity of the artist in an enigmatic, mystical way through which it acquires an autonomous life; it becomes an independent subject, animated by a spiritual breath.”  CATEGORIES OF KANDINSKY’S PAINTINGS Paintings which retain some IMPRESSIONS naturalistic representation. Paintings which convey deep IMPROVISATIONS emotions inspired by events of a spiritual type. Purely formal paintings done COMPOSITIONS carefully, over a period of time, after preliminary studies. These are his most complicated works.  Kandinsky, Impression III (Concert) 1911 He painted this after attending a concert by Schonberg.  Kandinsky, Improvisation No. 30 (Canons) 1913 He painted this because of the constant talk about the incoming war.  Kandinsky, Composition No. 3, 1923 He painted this after a lot of preliminary sketches.  VISUAL MUSIC PAINTING Color REPRESENTATION Sound “Yellow is the color of middle C on a brassy trumpet; black is the color of closure, and the end of things; and that combinations of colors produce vibrational frequencies, akin to chords played on a piano.” KANDINSKY SYNAESTHESIA: The ability to perceive color Kandinsky and or sound simultaneously by two senses. Schonberg FORMAL MUSIC There are no lyrics, only sounds of ARNOLD Developed musical SCHONBERG ATONAL MUSIC instruments. based on the (1874-1951) 12-tone method String Quartet of composition (dodecaphonic). No. 1 in D Minor TONAL MUSIC C Dm Em F G Am Bdim7 Bach 7-Tone Scale (7 Chords in Triad Notes) Excerpt TONAL MUSIC C Cm Caug5 Cdim7 C# C#m C#aug5 C#dim7 D Dm Daug5 Ddim7 D# D#m D#aug5 D#dim7 12-Tone Scale E Em Eaug5 (56 Chords in Triad Notes) Schonberg Excerpt  PURELY FORMAL PAINTINGS Kandinsky, Color Composition Kandinsky, Transversed Lines, 1923  Mondrian Composition with Red, Yellow and Blue, 1924 STYLE De Stijl Neoplasticism Concretism  Malevich White on White STYLE Suprematism  Malevich Black Square  Malevich Red Square  Malevich Black Rectangle, Blue Triangle  Malevich Eight Red Rectangles  Malevich Suprematist Painting  Malevich Suprematist Painting  Current Riley OP ART Shows optical illusion  OP ART Vassarely FORMAL PATTERNS IN THE DESIGN OF THE TINALAK ARABESQUE The formal geometrical design in Islamic Art 32-Arabesque Islamic Art 52-Arabesque Islamic Art ARABESQUE WINDOW DESIGN Alhambra Palace Granada Spain  ARABESQUE WALL DESIGN Royal Palace Museum Istanbul Turkey  ARABESQUE WALL AND DOOR DESIGN Royal Palace Museum Istanbul Turkey  ARABESQUE DOOR DESIGN Taj Mahal Agra,India  LECTURE 5.2 Expressionist Theory of Art DR. ALLAN C. ORATE, UE DR. ALLAN C. ORATE, UE EXPRESSIONISM EXPRESSION Emotion Ideas Artist Art SUSANNE LANGER “Art is the creation of symbolic forms expressive of human feelings.” LEO TOLSTOY “Art is the objectification of emotion.”  ARISTOTLE Art is the expression of the artist’s overflowing emotion (catharsis). BENEDETTO CROCE Like language, art is the expression of idea by the artist (Intuitionism).  EMOTIONAL LINES Happy Sad Insensitive  Van Gogh Self Portrait STYLE Expressionism  BORN March 30, 1853 Zunbert, Netherlands SCHOOL Royal Academy of Arts, Brussel Van Gogh at 9 Years Old Vincent Van Gogh Kee Vos Stricker 28 Years Old His Second Cousin  Van Gogh At Eternity’s Gate 1885 Van Gogh, Miners, 1885 Van Gogh, Women Carrying Sacks, 1885 Van Gogh, The Potato Eaters, 1885  Van Gogh View of Paris from the Window 1886 LIVED IN PARIS FROM 1886 TO 1888  Van Gogh Café Terrace at Night 1888 Van Gogh met famous Parisian artist like, Seurat, Pissaro, De Lautrec Tanguy and Gauguin Van Gogh, Restaurant de la Sirene, 1887 Van Gogh, Summer in Paris, 1887 Van Gogh, Starry Night Over the Rhone, 1886 Van Gogh, View of Arles, 1888 Van Gogh, View of Arles with Irises, 1888 Van Gogh, Sunset in the Wheatfiel, 1888 Van Gogh, The Yellow House, 1888  Van Gogh Bedroom at Arles, October 1888  LETTER OF VAN GOGH TO HIS BROTHER THEO OCTOBER 16, 1888 Description of the Bedroom at Arles This time it's just simply my bedroom. The walls are pale violet, and the floor is of red tiles.  The wood of the bed and chairs is the yellow of fresh butter, the sheets and pillows greenish citron. The cover scarlet, the window green. The table orange, the basin blue, the doors lilac. LETTER OF VAN GOGH TO GAUGUIN OCTOBER 17, 1888 Thanks for your letter, and thanks most of all for your promise to come. I did a painting of my bedroom with the whitewood furniture. It amused me greatly doing this bare interior.  Van Gogh Bedroom at Arles, October 1888  GAUGUIN LEFT VAN GOGH IN ARLES After nine weeks, Gauguin left Arles because of his quarrel with Van Gogh. Van Gogh’s dream of an artist colony was shattered, and he suffered a terrible emotional depression. Van Gogh, Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear, December 1888 DESCRIPTION OF EVENT THAT LED TO VAN GOGH CUTTING HIS EAR In a fit of madness, Van Gogh picked up his razor, pulled on his left earlobe and cut it off. Then he walked to a nearby brothel, and asked to see Gauguin’s favorite prostitute. Van Gogh presented the prostitute with his ear and said, “Guard this object very carefully.” The woman fainted after seeing the ear. Then Van Gogh ran home. Alerted by the brothel, the police the following morning discovered Van Gogh in bed unconscious. He was admitted to a hospital, where he repeatedly asked to see Gauguin. But his friend never came. Van Gogh In Front of the Assylum in Saint Remy Arles, France 1889 PERIOD OF CONFINEMENT From May 1889 To May 1890 DIAGNOSIS Manic Depression Epilepsy Van Gogh Dr. Paul Gauchet 1889  Van Gogh, Ward in the Hospital at Arles, 1889 Van Gogh, Assylum Garden, 1889 Van Gogh, Wheatfield with Cypresses, 1889  Van Gogh Starry Night June 1889 Video 5.2  DOMINANCE OF BLUE COLOR IN THE PAINTING Due to Van Gogh’s bipolar disorder or manic depression: Sadness, social anxiety, isolation, hopelessness, loss of meaning DOMINANCE OF CURVE LINES IN THE PAINTING Due to physical movements during moments of epileptic seizures  VAN GOGH USED YELLOW IN THE PAINTING Due to overmedication of digitalis pupurea to cure epilepsy Due to excessive consumption of liquor Absinthe containing thujone  Van Gogh View of Auvers 1890 Lived in an Inn Auvers, France May to July 1890  Van Gogh The Church in Auvers 1890  Van Gogh View of Vassenots Near Auvers, 1890  Van Gogh, Plain Near Auvers, 1890 Van Gogh, Wheatfield at Auvers, 1890 Van GoghGreen Wheatfield with Cypress, 1890 Van Gogh, Wheatfield with Cornflowers 1890  Van Gogh, Wheatfield with Crows, 1890 He shot himself in the stomach, in the wheatfield. After 29 hours, he died.  DIED July 29, 1890 Auvers, France ARTWORKS 860 oil paintings 1,300 watercolors, drawings, sketches Munch The Scream 1893 STYLE Expressionism EDVARD MUNCH (1863-1944) He experienced miseries and pain in life, which he expressed through his art. Munch Anxiety 1894 STYLE Expressionism Munch Despair 1892 STYLE Expressionism Munch Despair 1892 STYLE Expressionism Munch Jelousy 1895  Munch Melancholy 1895 Munch Ashes 1895  Munch Death in the Sicked Room 1895 Munch The Sicked Child, 1886 Based on the artist’s experience of the death of his sister Leonardo The Mona Lisa 1503 STYLE High Renaissance Art  SMILE OF MONA LISA Cheerful Powerful Seductive Sinful Botticelli, The Birth of Venus, 1486 EARLY RENAISSANCE ART SUPRESSION OF EMOTION Floating Eyes Not smiling Leonardo, The Mona Lisa Botticelli, Venus CHEERFUL WOMAN SERIOUS WOMAN Raphael Madonna of the Meadows 1505 STYLE High Renaissance Art SUPRESSION OF EMOTION Facial expression is contemplative prayerful, solemn and serious Leonardo, The Mona Lisa Raphael, Madonna POWERFUL WOMAN MEEK WOMAN Lucas Cranach Adam and Eve 1526 STYLE EVE High Woman Renaissance Tempest Art Sinful Leonardo, The Mona Lisa SINFUL WOMEN Cranach, Eve Leonardo, The Mona Lisa SEDUCTIVE WOMAN Picture of Nikki Zering Amosolo Woman with Basket of Mango 1949 THE SMILING DALAGANG FILIPINA Innocent and Fresh STYLE Romantic Realism El Greco Christ Carrying the Cross 1580 STYLE Mannerism Christ Carrying the Cross (Detail) El Greco, 1580 NO EMOTION The facial expression is solemn, it and does not show appearance of suffering. Christ Carrying the Cross, From the Movie The Passion of the Christ, 2004 Director: Mel Gibson Actor: Jan Caviezel VERY EMOTIONAL Shows suffering and pain  LECTURE 6.1 Aesthetic Hedonism DR. ALLAN C. ORATE, UE DR. ALLAN C. ORATE, UE  AESTHETIC HEDONISM ARISTIPPUS EPICURUS BEAUTY = PLEASURE UGLY = PAIN “Eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow you die.” B PLEASURE Bodily E Sensual Personal A Subjective Relative U Temporal T Momentary Limited Y Gratifying EXPERIENCE Duchamp The Fountain 1917 CULINARY ART  FASTFOODS Delicious foods for the pleasure of eating but no nutritive value Sotein Woman in Pink 1924 Leonardo, The Mona Lisa, 1501 SEXUAL PLEASURE EROTIC DANCE Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta-Jones Dancing the Tango Mask of Sorro, 1998 ACTIVITY AND ASSESMENT DR. ALLAN C. ORATE, UE DR. ALLAN C. ORATE, UE ACTIVITY AND ASSESMENT a. Assign members of the group to make a formal work of art. The art should contain only colors, shape, lines and other visual elements, without any recognizable representations of things. b. Assign other members of the group to make an expressionist work of art. The art should contain human emotions expressed in either representational or symbolic way. DR. ALLAN C. ORATE, UE  RUBRICS FOR ACTIVITY 5 Needs Excellent Good Fair CRITERIA Improvement (10-12 points) (7-9 points) (4-6 points) (1-3) All members Group All members actively Some members did participated in the The group does participation and participated in the not participate in activity, but the not show any collaboration activity, and the the activity, and the group does not collaboration and during the group collaborated group collaboration show a unified participation at all activity. harmoniously. is not harmonious collaboration. The composition The formalist theory The formalist theory The composition correctly applies the is incorrectly Formal of art is correctly does not apply formalist theory applied to many Artwork applied in the whole the formalist except to some parts of the composition. theory at all. parts of it. composition. The artwork shows The artwork shows The artwork The artwork very deep human both symbolic and shows shallow Expressionist does show any emotion both representational emotions both Artwork human emotions symbolically and emotions but not representationally at all. representationally very deep and symbolically DR. ALLAN C. ORATE, UE