Art Appreciation GE 106

GE 106 Art Appreciation The Evolution of Art Prehistoric Art (~40,000–4,000 B.C.) CHARACTERISTICS: Rock carvings, pictorial imagery, sculptures, and stone arrangements LEADING CONTRIBUTORS:...

GE 106 Art Appreciation The Evolution of Art Prehistoric Art (~40,000–4,000 B.C.) CHARACTERISTICS: Rock carvings, pictorial imagery, sculptures, and stone arrangements LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Prehistoric cultures that existed before the advent of a written language INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Lascaux cave paintings, Paleolithic era Prehistoric Art (~40,000–4,000 B.C.) Cave paintings in Lascaux Cave, France Ancient Art (4,000 B.C.–A.D. 400) CHARACTERISTICS: Religious and symbolic imagery, decorations for utilitarian objects, mythological stories LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Civilizations from Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, and the Americas INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Code of Hammurabi, 1792 B.C. Ancient Art (4,000 B.C.–A.D. 400) Code of Hammurabi (1792 B.C.) Medieval Art (500–1400) CHARACTERISTICS: Dark imagery, biblical subjects, Classical mythology, Gothic architecture LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Abbot Suger, Cimabue, Giotto INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Cimabue Crucifix, 1288 Giotto Lamentation of Christ, 1305 Medieval Art (500–1400) Notre Dame Cathedral, Paris, France Years built: 1163–1345 Renaissance Art (1400–1600) CHARACTERISTICS: Natural elements, individualism, realism, attention-to-detail, precision of human anatomy LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Leonardo da Vinci Mona Lisa, 1503 Michelangelo David, 1504 Raphael The School of Athens, 1511 Mannerism (1527–1580) CHARACTERISTICS: Stylized features, exaggerated details, decorative elements LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Bronzino,Francesco Salviati, Giorgio Vasari INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Bronzino, Venus, Cupid, Folly and Time, 1540Giorgio Vasari Allegory of the Immaculate Conception, 1541 Baroque (1600–1750) CHARACTERISTICS: Ornate, grandeur, richness, stylistically complex, dramatic LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Caravaggio, Johannes Vermeer, Rembrandt van Rijn INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Caravaggio The Calling of St Matthew, 1600Rembrandt The Night Watch, 1642Johannes Vermeer Girl with a Pearl Earring, 1665 Rococo (1699–1780) CHARACTERISTICS: Lightness, elegance, natural forms, asymmetrical design, subtle colors LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Antoine Watteau, Francois Boucher INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Antoine Watteau Embarkation for Cythera, 1718Francois Boucher Venus Consoling Love, 1751 Neoclassicism (1750–1850) CHARACTERISTICS: Renewed interest in classical antiquity, harmony, simplicity, and proportion LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Antonio Canova, Jacques-Louis David INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Jacques-Louis David Napoleon Crossing the Alps, 1801 Antonio Canova The Three Graces, 1816 Romanticism (1780–1850) CHARACTERISTICS: Imaginative elements, focus on passion, emotion, and observing the senses LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Francisco GoyaHenry FuseliWilliam Blake INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Henry Fuseli The Nightmare, 1781 William Blake The Ghost of a Flea, 1820 Francisco Goya Saturn Devouring His Son, 1823 Realism (1848–1900) CHARACTERISTICS: Detailed depictions of everyday life LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Gustave Courbet, Jean-François Millet INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Jean-François Millet The Gleaners, 1857 Gustave Courbet Woman with a Parrot, 1866 Art Nouveau (1890–1910) CHARACTERISTICS: Long, sinuous lines and curves LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Alphonse Mucha, Antoni Gaudí, Gustav Klimt INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Antoni Gaudí Church of Sagrada Familia, 1882 Gustav Klimt The Kiss, 1908 Alphonse Mucha Princess Hyacinth, 1911 Impressionism (1865–1885) CHARACTERISTICS: Short, quick brushstrokes, separation of color, sketch-like finish, modern subject matter LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Claude Monet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Pierre-Auguste Renoir Dance in the City, 1872 Claude Monet, Impression, Sunrise, 1899 Post-Impressionism (1885–1910) CHARACTERISTICS: Subjective visions, symbolism, abstraction LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Georges Seurat, Vincent van Gogh INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Georges Seurat A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, 1886 Vincent van Gogh The Starry Night, 1889 Fauvism (1900–1935) CHARACTERISTICS: Expressive color, line, and brushwork, bold surface design, flat composition LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: André Derain, Henri Matisse INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Henri Matisse Woman with a Hat, 1905 André Derain The Houses of Parliament, 1905-1906 Expressionism (1905–1920) CHARACTERISTICS: Distortion of form, strong use of colors LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Edvard Munch, Wassily Kandinsky INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Edvard Munch The Dance of Life, 1900 Wassily Kandinsky The Blue Rider, 1903 Cubism (1907–1914) CHARACTERISTICS: Abstraction, flat, two-dimensional surfaces, geometric forms, contrasting vantage points LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Georges Braque, Pablo Picasso INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Georges Braque Violin and Palette, 1909 Pablo Picasso Guernica, 1937 Surrealism (1916–1950) CHARACTERISTICS: Exploration of dreams and unconsciousness, inspired by Sigmund Freud LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Max Ernst, René Magritte, Salvador Dalí INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Salvador Dalí The Persistence of Memory, 1931 Max Ernst The Robing of the Bride, 1940 René Magritte The Son of Man, 1964 Abstract Expressionism (1940s–1950s) CHARACTERISTICS: Spontaneity, improvisation, colossally scaled works, unique techniques LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Jackson Pollock, Mark Rothko INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Jackson Pollock Autumn Rhythm (Number 30), 1950Mark Rothko Orange and Yellow, 1956 Op Art (1950s–1960s) CHARACTERISTICS: Use of colors, patterns, shapes, and contrast to create images that appeared to be moving or blurring LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Bridget Riley, Jean-Pierre Yvaral, Victor Vasarely INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Bridget Riley Blaze, 1964 Pop Art (1950s–1960s) CHARACTERISTICS: Use of everyday, mundane objects, bold, vivid colors, mass media LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Andy Warhol Campbell's Soup Cans, 1962 Roy Lichtenstein Brushstrokes, 1962 Arte Povera (1960s) CHARACTERISTICS: Use of soil, rocks, paper, and other natural elements to create a pre-industrial sentiment LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Alighiero Boetti, Giovanni Anselmo, Mario Merz INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Mario Merz Giap’s Igloo, 1968 Minimalism (1960s–1970s) CHARACTERISTICS: A focus on exactly what the art portrays, aside from outside realities and emotions LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Carl Andre, Donald Judd, Frank Stella INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Frank Stella Black Series I, 1967 Conceptual Art (1960s–1970s) CHARACTERISTICS: An emphasis on ideas over visual components in the form of performances, ephemera, and other forms LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Joseph Kosuth, Marcel Duchamp, Sol LeWitt INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Joseph Kosuth One and Three Chairs, 1965 Contemporary Art (1970–present) CHARACTERISTICS: Exploration of Postmodernism, Feminist art, Neo Expressionism, Street art, Appropriation art, Digital art, and other small schools LEADING CONTRIBUTORS: Jeff Koons INFLUENTIAL WORKS: Jeff Koons Michael Jackson and Bubbles, 1988 GE 106 Art Appreciation How do you perceive “Art”? Assumptions of Art Art is Universal Regardless of origin, time, and place are liked and enjoyed by people continuously. Example: lliad and the Odyssey are the two Greek Epics that are still being taught in school even if the story did not originate in a specific place of even if the story were written a long time ago. Art is Not Nature Art is made by man, whereas nature is a given around us. Example: Most landscape painters took their inspiration from nature. Art Involves Experience John Dewey explains that art is a dynamic human experience that involves both the artist and the audience. Example: All life is experience; everything you have been through up to the colors and how you look at the image, how you see it, what details you focus as opposed to someone else and how they look at the same things. No two people are the same so your experiences shape all your art and anyone else's is shaped by theirs. GE 106 Art Appreciation  Anna McNeill Whistler/ Mona Lisa Scream Whistler’s Mother What do you think made these artworks famous? What is its purpose? Functions of Art Physical Functions of Art The physical functions of art are often the easiest to understand. Works of art that are created to perform some service have physical functions. Example: A Japanese raku bowl is a piece of art that performs a physical function in a tea ceremony. Social Functions of Art Art has a social function when it addresses aspects of life as opposed to one person's point of view or experience. Example: Political art, often designed to deliver a certain message, always carries a social function. The fur-covered Dada teacup, useless for holding tea, carried a social function in that it protested World War I or a simple editorial cartoon affects one’s perspective. Personal Functions of Art Personal function is vague for a reason. From artist to artist and viewer to viewer, one's experience with art is different. Example: An artist may create a piece out of a need for self-expression or gratification. GE 106 Art Appreciation Philosophical Perspectives of Art Art As Mimesis The word is Greek and means “imitation”. Plato and Aristotle spoke of mimesis as the re-presentation of nature. According to Plato, all artistic creation is a form of imitation: that which really exists (in the “world of ideas”) is a type created by God; 'The aim of art is to represent not the outward appearance of things, but their inward significance', Aristotle wrote. Art As Mimesis Example: An art class is studying a classic painting and discussing how the artist has faithfully recreated the natural landscape, paying meticulous attention to detail. They analyze how the artwork imitates the beauty of nature, following the concept of mimesis as discussed by Plato and Aristotle. Art As a Form of Expression The expression theory of art defined it as the means of portraying the unique and individual emotions of artists. Leo Tolstoy’s definition of art in his piece “What Is Art?” was very much out of this mould: ‘Art is a human activity, consisting in this, that one person consciously, by certain external signs, conveys to others feelings he has experienced, and other people are affected by these feelings and live them over in themselves’. Art As a Form of Expression Example: A young poet writes a heartfelt poem that reflects the pain and longing they feel after a recent breakup. Through the carefully chosen words and metaphors, the poet expresses their personal emotions, aiming to convey those feelings to readers who may relate and find solace in the poem. Art and The Truth Thinkers influenced by Martin Heidegger have interpreted art as the means by which a community develops for itself a medium for self-expression and interpretation. For Heidegger, art either manifests, articulates or reconfigures the style of a culture from within the world of that culture. Art and The Truth Example: A group of art historians is examining a series of sculptures created during a specific historical period. They discuss how these sculptures reveal the cultural, religious, and social truths of that era, such as the values, beliefs, and power structures that prevailed at the time. Art Shaping The World According to Karl Marx, art can be understood as a part of the superstructure or as part of the material basis. Or in other words, it can be understood as an ideology or as technology. Art as an ideology contributes to the reproduction of the current social conditions, while the art in the material basis seeks to change them. Art Shaping The World Example: A city embarks on an ambitious public art project that involves decorating its streets and buildings with vibrant and thought-provoking murals. Over time, these artworks become iconic symbols of the city's creativity and cultural identity, attracting tourists, fostering community pride, and even influencing the development of local art scenes and businesses.